Chapter 201: Between the Mountains

Laura words echoed in my mind through the whole night. I knew my death had hurt those around me already, but being told that again, first by Lucius and then Laura, helped bring somethings into perspective.

Now, it was shortly after dawn. Everyone was awake and we had already had out breakfast. Mona was doing her ritual dance by the camp while I walked along the river.

After some consideration during breakfast, we decided to head into the valley brimming with demonic power at midday. It was when a Demon's power was at its weakest, giving us slightly better odds in case we needed to fight. Thus, we suddenly found ourselves with some free time in our hands. While Mona, Laura and Theresa decided to simply remain in camp and… do whatever, I chose to walk down the creek for a bit.

A little bit of time alone to get my thoughts together helped, as my mind felt somewhat clearer by the time I returned to camp.

"Found anything interesting?" Theresa asked as I came to sit by them. I shook my head. "Just endless grass. Honestly, this place is massive."

The black haired archer nodded. "It really is." She glanced north, where two tall peaks were barely visible through the clouds. "They look massive too." She mumbled. "We should probably get going – the entrance to the valley isn't too far away."

She didn't need to say that twice. We quickly gathered our things and set off. As we approached the tall mountains, our conversations slowly died down and eventually, only our footsteps and breathing broke the fragile silence. 

The entrance to the valley was through a cave, according to the guild they had gotten this information from. "Apparently there is a barrier in place that prevents any entries from above," The usually cheerful druid spoke in a low voice as we approached the mountains. 

"I don't like this," I mumbled. "It's a perfect setup for a trap." 

Laura nodded. "That is why we will assess the situation first. No rushing. We have all the time we need."

While her words seemed to help with Mona and Theresa's anxiousness, they didn't do anything for me. I knew all too well how powerless we would be if the Demon Lord showed up. No matter how careful we were and how slow we took things, everything would fall apart the second he arrived.

It took us less than fifteen minutes to find the entrance of the cave Mona was talking about. It was a narrow crack right where the two mountains met.

"Is it just me," I whispered, "Or do those mountains look like teeth to you?"

Theresa flinched. "Please don't say that."

I stepped back and looked up, towards the peaks. There wasn't a single tree on the mountains. Their surfaces were in stark contrast to our surroundings – a mix of brown, yellow and white. The more I looked at them, the more they seemed like two massive fangs sticking out of the ground.

"Please don't be alive." I whispered. None of the others heard me, which I was thankful for, but I couldn't help but feel even more on edge now. I couldn't even imagine what a creature which such huge fangs would even look like.

"Kai, are you good to go?" Laura asked, glancing towards the crack in the surface of the tooth-mountain. I took a deep breath to calm my racing heart and nodded.

Mona was the first to go. She stepped inside the cave, then waited for us. Laura and I followed next. While the entrance was just a crack, the cave itself was quite large and spacious. As I looked around in the darkness, Laura created a light at the tip of her fingers, effectively blinding me.

Theresa followed us while I took a mental note – do not explore caves with others. 

Once we were all inside, I took point and led them through the dark, twisting caves. I could see the faint reflection of sunlight on most walls. It didn't take me long to find the other side – the entrance to the mysterious valley.

"Slowly now," Laura whispered. I nodded. The pale sunlight was just a few steps ahead now, but I couldn't see anything beyond the entrance because of the overgrown vines covering it.

As I stepped closer and carefully pushed the vines aside with my sword, I had to slow down because of a ringing sound. 

"What is it?" Mona asked as I shook my head to get rid of it. It kind of felt like my ears were ringing, but it also felt like it was coming from within the valley. "Do you hear a ringing?" I asked. All three women shook their heads in confusion. Mona's expression quickly turned into worry.

"Should we go back?" She asked. I shook my head. "No, it's probably because of the demonic magic. Let's keep going but be careful."

I stepped out of the cave and was met with a breath-taking view. 

Blue grass spread beneath my feet, covering the whole valley. A few large trees were blooming in the distance. An old ruin stood tall at the bottom of the valley, vines and their flowers climbing its walls.

"It's so pretty!" Mona whispered as she motioned to step ahead.

The ringing sound got louder as I watched her take a couple of steps forward. What was this annoying sound? I took a deep breath and focused – there was clearly magic at work here, so why couldn't I see any of its flow?

The ringing sound got louder.

"Mona, stop." As soon as the words left my mouth, the druid froze mid step. Her posture immediately changed as she raised her hand slightly, ready to cast a spell.

"Something feels off." I mumbled. "I can't see the flow of magic."

I looked up to the sky, where a barrier preventing entry supposedly was. I couldn't see anything out of the ordinary and I couldn't sense any magic nearby.

"Perhaps you're not… Demon enough?" Theresa asked. "I mean, your soul is human, as is your mind. So, maybe that's why things are off?"

I glanced at Laura. "Do you sense any magic?" She shook her head. "No, but I don't hear any ringing either."

Mona tilted her head. "Do the thing – with the demon's soul." 

It took me a split second to understand what she meant by 'the thing'. She was talking about using Soul's Aspect to take on the Corrupted Demon's form. Would that even work?

"Worth a shot," I mumbled. I cast the spell, then grunted as my body began to change. Laura and Theresa stepped back, confusion and shock in their faces. Mona glanced at them with a grin and giggled. "It really cool isn't it?" 

"That's one way to put it," Theresa mumbled as my transformation finished. "Did it work?"

As soon as I opened my eyes and looked towards the sky, I nodded. "Yeah."

A massive barrier surrounding the entire valley was clearly visible to me now. The amount and density of magic flowing through it was unlike anything else I had seen. And the barrier wasn't the only thing brimming with demonic magic.

"Oh no," I whispered. "Mona, no matter what you do, don't move from that spot."

I could see it now – intricate lines of magic, covering the entire surface of the valley. And that wasn't all – strands of magic were seemingly randomly moving in the air. What was all this?

"What did you see?" Mona asked with a hint of worry in her voice. "What am I standing on?"

I took a deep breath. "You're not standing on anything – it's just that… There's demonic magic everywhere." I carefully stepped forward and pointed at the ground, a safe spot between the lines of flowing magic. "Step here."

She did as I said, and less than a minute later, we she was back with the others, in the relative safety of the cavern. "Explain exactly what you see." Laura said as I stood outside. "Don't skip any details."

I nodded. "There is a barrier on top – I've never seen such a powerful one. The building down there seems to be the focal point of whatever is going on here." I pointed at the ground. "The entire valley is basically a massive magical circle – not a circle really, but you get my point."

Mona clenched her fists. "The guild notice only said 'a barrier coving the sky and minor demonic magic in the valley itself'. Are they trying to get players killed or what?" She glanced at Laura and Theresa, who could only shrug. 

"Whatever this is, it's clearly important." I said after a moment of silence. "Very important. Not even some of the Demon castles were this well protected." Not even their main base, where I first met the Demon Lord and almost killed Vixia was this well protected. 

I took a deep breath and asked the question on everyone's minds. 

"Should we turn back?"