Chương 51: The Wrong Staircase

Rayne had assumed that even if the monster intended to pursue them from the second floor, it would at least take some time to get down. Instead, the Bellringer's Scion did not head for the staircase at all. It vaulted over the second-floor railing, clung to the wall on all fours, and crawled downward in a horribly twisted posture. The almshouse doors would not open. Shadows continued pouring in from every direction, and a terrifying crone-like monster was rapidly closing in from the distance.

For a moment, Rayne could not think of any way out. His right hand never stopped moving as he cut down the approaching shadows, while his left hand tightly gripped the necklace hanging against his chest.

"Tell me!"

"What am I supposed to do?" No one answered him. The next moment, the Bellringer's Scion dropped from the wall onto the first floor. It landed on all fours, then slowly pushed its tall body upright and began walking toward Rayne and the others. There was no more time to hesitate.

"Run!" Rayne abruptly raised a hand and pointed toward the unexplored corridor on the right side of the hall.

"That way!" They had no idea what waited ahead. At this point, however, they could no longer afford to care. Barton raised his shield and charged first, smashing aside the shadows blocking the way before rushing into the right-hand corridor. Serin and Tyren followed close behind, leaving only Rayne and Asar to guard the rear. Asar panted heavily as he swung his longsword, driving back one approaching shadow after another. Just then, Rayne suddenly reached out and patted his shoulder. Asar looked back instinctively.

Rayne said nothing. He merely jerked his thumb toward the corridor behind them. Asar bit down on his lower lip.

"But..."

"Don't worry." Rayne kept his eyes fixed ahead, his voice unnaturally calm.

"I'll catch up." He looked as though he had already prepared himself to remain behind alone. Asar wanted to say more, but from the corner of his eye, he saw that the Bellringer's Scion had already drawn close. All he could do was grit his teeth and swing his sword with all his strength. The blade swept horizontally, forcing several shadows in front of him backward at once. Then Asar spun around and ran after his companions.

Only after confirming that Asar's figure had disappeared into the depths of the corridor did Rayne raise both swords once more. As the Bellringer's Scion drew closer, a smile slowly spread across Rayne's calm face.

"You want to hurt my companions?" Rayne held one longsword horizontally before himself while slowly drawing the other back.

"Then you'll have to get through me first!" It did not take long for the Bellringer's Scion to reach him after Asar left. It was extremely fast, but not so fast that Rayne could not react. As its two gaunt arms reached for him, Rayne abruptly twisted aside, narrowly avoiding its grasp. At the same time, he lashed out with a backhand slash, cutting a shadow blocking his escape route cleanly in half. After so much fighting, the number of shadows around them had decreased.

The hall, which had once been packed with them, had finally become somewhat more open. After missing its attack, the Bellringer's Scion twisted its head around. The mouth on its deeply wrinkled, crone-like face opened wide, releasing a piercing shriek.

"Aaaah—!" A violent wave of sound struck Rayne head-on. Agony stabbed through both ears, and the scene before his eyes blurred. Yet instead of retreating, he stepped forward into the shriek and brought his longsword down toward the Bellringer's Scion's open mouth. The monster's shriek stopped abruptly. It hurriedly raised an arm to shield its face. The blade cut deeply into the gaunt limb before being stopped by the hard bone within. A faint smile slowly appeared on Rayne's face. It could be injured.

That meant it was not invincible. The Bellringer's Scion angrily reached out with its other arm and tried to seize him again. Rayne pulled his sword free and retreated several steps, avoiding its grasp. For now, he could only hope that Asar and the others would hold out a little longer. Ideally, they would find another exit. And if they could not... Rayne steadied himself again, pointing his twin swords toward the Bellringer's Scion, one held forward and the other drawn back.

"Then let me see..."

"Just how many weaknesses you're hiding!" ◆ ◆ ◆ Asar raced after Tyren and the others, but he could not stop himself from repeatedly looking back. The clash of weapons and the monster's shrieks continued to echo from deep within the corridor. Rayne was still fighting. Fortunately, there were noticeably fewer shadows in this corridor, greatly reducing the pressure on Tyren and Serin.

"Well?" Asar hurried to catch up and asked anxiously, "Is there a way through up ahead?"

"The corridor ends here! But there are stairs going both up and down!" Asar hurried over. Sure enough, two separate staircases branched off at the end of the corridor. One led upward to the second floor where the Bellringer's Scion had first appeared. The other descended into darkness so deep that nothing could be seen within.

"There's a basement..." Asar stopped between the two staircases, momentarily uncertain which path to choose.

"What do we do?"

"Up or down?" While he hesitated, a violent crash suddenly came from deep within the basement. Bang—! This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. It sounded as though something heavy had been knocked over, followed by a series of objects scattering across the floor. No one knew what was hiding below. But Asar abandoned any thought of going downstairs.

"Move!" He turned and stepped onto the staircase leading to the second floor.

"We're going up!" The surroundings became considerably quieter once they reached the second floor. It seemed that most of the shadows in the almshouse had gathered on the first floor and along the corridor on the opposite side of the second floor. Only a few scattered shadows blocked their way here, and the group dealt with them together. However, what they needed most was still a way out of the almshouse. Or, at the very least, some clue as to what this place was hiding. They searched along the corridor.

Asar pushed open one of the doors, and Barton entered first with his shield raised. Once again, the room was empty. A dust-covered desk stood in the center. Several wooden cabinets lined the walls, while countless yellowed sheets of paper lay scattered across the floor. It appeared to be an office. Tyren and Asar searched through everything. Most of the documents, however, were merely old admission records and daily expense reports from the almshouse.

At least on the surface, nothing there could help them escape their current predicament.

"What now?" Tyren looked out toward the corridor.

"Keep searching, or go downstairs and help the captain?" Asar answered without the slightest hesitation.

"We go back downstairs and help the captain." He had barely turned to leave when Tyren reached out and caught him by the shoulder.

"A few more rooms." Asar whipped his head around.

"The captain is still down there alone!"

"I know!" Tyren did not release him, his voice equally urgent.

"But he told us to go first because he wanted us to find another way, didn't he?"

"Let's search a little longer. If we still find nothing, I'll go back with you." Asar clenched his teeth.

"Fine."

"A few more rooms." The group immediately left the office and continued searching the rooms on both sides of the second-floor corridor. However, room after room contained nothing but empty wards or storerooms packed with old debris. Forget an exit—they could not find even the slightest useful clue. Then Asar opened a door near the far end of the corridor. There was still no sign of anyone alive inside. The only thing in the room was a small bronze pendulum clock sitting alone on a low table in the center.

The clock stood only half as tall as a person. Its casing was covered in twisted, intricate carvings. Although a thin layer of dust coated its surface, the pendulum continued to swing slowly. Click. Click. The dull sound echoed steadily through the empty room. As Serin stepped inside, her pace gradually slowed to a stop.

"Wait." She stared at the bronze clock, her brows drawn tightly together.

"There seems to be some kind of power attached to this thing..." Tyren glanced at her.

"A curse?"

"I don't think so." After hesitating for a moment, Serin slowly shook her head.

"It feels more like a seal, or perhaps some kind of spellwork meant to sustain an ongoing effect." The moment Asar heard that, he walked straight toward the clock. If this object was connected to the abnormalities within the almshouse, then there was no reason to hesitate. He gripped his longsword with both hands and brought it down upon the clock with all his strength. Clang—! The piercing clang echoed through the room. Asar felt both hands go numb as the blade rebounded high into the air.

The bronze clock, however, remained intact. There was not even a shallow mark on its surface.

"It's that hard?" While the group stared at it in alarm and confusion, an agonized scream suddenly came from the first floor.

"Aaaah—!" The cry was even more pained than the monster's earlier shrieks. The entire almshouse seemed to tremble faintly with the sound. Everyone in the room froze. Asar lowered his gaze to the longsword in his hands, then looked up at the completely undamaged clock.

"Was that... the monster's scream?" Before they could understand what had happened, another burst of rapid footsteps sounded from below. Thud, thud, thud—! The pounding footsteps were approaching at astonishing speed.

"We're screwed! Run!"

"There's definitely something wrong with this thing!" Barton did not leave immediately. He hurried to the low table, wrapped both arms around the bronze clock, and tried to lift it. No matter how much strength he used, however, it remained firmly fixed to the table. And it was not only the clock. Even the ordinary-looking table beneath it refused to move, as though it had become part of the almshouse itself.

"Forget it! We need to go!" Asar yanked the door open and led the others out into the corridor. They had barely reached the corridor when the stairwell began to shake violently. Thud! Thud! Thud! Countless shadows scrambled over one another as they crowded up the stairs, packing the entire staircase from wall to wall. Behind them, the Bellringer's Scion was rapidly scrambling up the stairs on all fours.

Large numbers of shadows clung to its gaunt body, making its crone-like face appear even more swollen and distorted. Even its previously long, slender limbs seemed to have thickened.

"Fuck!" Tyren let out a shrill curse, spun around, and sprinted down the corridor after Asar.

"Why the hell can it mutate too?!" The group raced along the second-floor corridor. Before long, they burst onto the gallery overlooking the main hall. Asar leaned over the railing and looked down. Rayne was still standing on the first floor. Several new tears had appeared in his clothing, and his breathing was much heavier than usual, but at least he had not fallen. Rayne noticed them as well.

The moment he saw the group on the second floor, he turned without the slightest hesitation and rushed toward the staircase leading to the gallery.

"Captain! Don't come up!" Tyren hurriedly leaned over the railing and shouted at the top of his lungs, "That old hag is coming this way!" Rayne froze halfway up the stairs. He looked up at Tyren, then heard the increasingly violent vibrations coming from deep within the second-floor corridor. No further explanation was needed. Rayne turned around and sprinted back down the stairs.

"Downstairs! Hurry!" Asar and the others hurried after him. In the confusion, Serin suddenly lost her footing and pitched forward down the staircase.

"Careful!" Fortunately, Tyren was right beside her. He quickly wrapped an arm around her waist, lifted her completely off her feet, and charged down the stairs after the others while carrying her. When they returned to the first floor, however, the situation had not improved. The almshouse doors remained tightly shut. Behind them, the enraged Bellringer's Scion was rapidly closing in with a vast horde of shadows. After all the fighting and running, everyone was nearly exhausted.

Even Rayne's breathing had grown noticeably heavy. Tyren and the others were panting so badly that they could barely form complete sentences. They had nowhere left to run.

"Th-the basement..." Asar bent over and took several hurried breaths before finally forcing the words out.

"That corridor from earlier... there are stairs leading to the basement." He raised his head and glanced at the Bellringer's Scion, which was about to catch up.

"Let's go down there."

"We don't have anywhere else to run!" Before they could reach the end of the corridor, however, the Bellringer's Scion caught up with them, surrounded by a great mass of shadows. Barton glanced back. The shadows nearly filled the entire corridor. The Bellringer's Scion's twisted body was half-hidden among them as it rapidly closed the distance. He gritted his teeth and suddenly stopped.

Only after everyone else had run past him did Barton draw a deep breath, raise his greatshield, and turn to face the approaching monster.

"Barton!" The moment Asar saw him, he instinctively began to slow down. Before he could stop, however, Rayne shoved him forward from behind.

"Don't stop!" Rayne barked in a low voice.

"Leave it to Barton. He's ready!" Asar clenched his teeth. In the end, he turned his head forward again and continued running toward the basement. Behind them, Barton planted his greatshield heavily on the floor. The broad greatshield blocked most of the corridor. He lowered his body, braced one shoulder against the shield, and planted one foot firmly ahead of the other. The next moment, the surging tide of shadows slammed into the greatshield. Bang—! The violent impact sent a shock through Barton's entire body.

The soles of his boots scraped backward across the floor, leaving two clear skid marks behind them. But he did not fall.

"You want to get past me..." Barton forced the words through clenched teeth. The veins along both arms bulged as he heaved the tilting shield upright again through sheer force.

"Not happening!" Several shadows tried to squeeze through the gaps on either side of the shield. Still bracing the greatshield with his shoulder, Barton freed one hand and smashed his fist into every shadow that pushed through. One punch. Then another. Whenever a shadow managed to squeeze halfway through, Barton's fist slammed into it without mercy. He held them back through sheer force. But only for a few seconds.

As veins bulged along Barton's arms and neck while he desperately resisted the pressure ahead, two withered arms suddenly reached over the top of the shield and seized him by both arms. The next moment, the tide of shadows surged forward again. Barton and his shield were driven backward together, forcing him to stagger several steps. With the shield no longer blocking its path, the Bellringer's Scion finally forced its body through the mass of shadows.

Its deeply wrinkled, crone-like face slowly moved closer until it was nearly pressed against Barton's own. Barton stared into that twisted face. Then he abruptly drew his head backward.

"Get away from me!" Bang! Barton drove his forehead directly into the Bellringer's Scion's face. Crack! The bridge of its nose broke on the spot. Its crone-like face snapped backward, and dark-red blood began flowing from its nostrils.

"It worked!" A vicious glint flashed through Barton's eyes. He was about to slam his head forward again when the Bellringer's Scion suddenly opened its mouth and released a piercing shriek directly into his face.

"Aaaah—!" The deafening wave of sound erupted at point-blank range. Barton felt as though a warhammer had slammed into his skull. In an instant, nothing remained in his ears but a violent ringing. His body froze for an instant. At that moment, the small arm protruding from the Bellringer's Scion's back slowly rose. Chime—! The clear sound of the handbell rang through the narrow corridor. Barton's body shuddered violently. An indescribable chill surged from the depths of his soul and spread through every limb.

He tried to struggle. He tried to raise his fist again. But his body had completely stopped obeying him. The distorted crone-like face before him rapidly blurred. The next moment, Barton's vision went completely dark. ◆ ◆ ◆ Inside the Core Chamber, Owen stared at the unconscious Barton and fell silent for several seconds. That headbutt had actually broken the Bellringer's Scion's nose.

"... Now that's hard." It was impossible to tell whether he meant Barton's skull or the Bellringer's Scion's nose. Still, managing to injure a Low Silver-level boss head-on with nothing more than a Black Iron-level physique was quite impressive. Of course, that did not mean the Bellringer's Scion excelled in close combat. Although the system classified it as Low Silver, nearly all of that strength was concentrated in its Shadecalling Bell and its control over the Death Shades within the almshouse.

In terms of raw physical ability, it was not particularly formidable. Otherwise, Rayne could never have held it back alone for so long. Owen shifted his attention back to the fleeing party, then looked at the route they were taking toward the basement. His core slowly tilted to one side.

"Wow..."

"They went the wrong way." If they had entered the basement immediately instead of choosing the stairs leading upward, they might already have found the true method for clearing the almshouse. Instead, they had taken an enormous detour and discovered the bronze clock linked to the Bellringer's Scion on the second floor. They could not destroy it. They could not move it. The only thing they had accomplished was hurting the Bellringer's Scion—and completely enraging it in the process.

Owen watched Rayne and the others flee toward the basement, then glanced at Barton as the Death Shades gradually surrounded him.

"What a shame."

"They might have cleared it in one go." Now, however... It probably would not be quite so easy.