Chương 94: 1-93 Entering his Sanctum

"Damned cowards, all of them!" Linda spat, loud enough to make Josef feel concerned for his eardrums once again.

"Once this is over, I shall go back to the glades and strike their names from the Mother Tree myself!" Which meant she was also loud enough for just about anyone on the floor to be privy to her words. Though clearly she didn't care how many toes she was stepping on. Josef couldn't even blame her for it, because the whole thing was really frustrating. They were so close to the end, a single floor away, but almost none of the adventurers were feeling very adventurous anymore.

Clearly, after surviving their fight against the knights, they decided that their part in fighting Sanctum was done. Which meant that they would rather leave instead of continuing. Nevermind that exiting the dungeon wasn't currently possible, as long as someone else fixed that issue for them. Could he have argued with them some more? Thrown his weight around until they caved? Possibly, but he was too tired to shout at people, and it came dangerously close to using his status like Sanctum's healers did.

Besides, it would have been hypocritical to give Onyx a choice while denying everyone else the same. Speaking of the big lizard, he ultimately didn't rise from his position, implicitly choosing to stay behind. Despite his fighting prowess, that was likely for the best. He had already seen what happened if someone's head was not in the fight. In the end, that meant it was only his usual group that continued onward, alongside four volunteering adventurers.

Somehow, it was impossible to catch a glimpse of them through the slits of their helmets, and even the sound of their voices was unrecognizably generic. If those weren't sponsored by Vasaj, he would swallow a broomstick. Sideways. He would normally have many rude words for his slimy benefactor, but at least he was looking out for their success in his own strange way. And if this was the effect his tokens had outwardly, then he might just have to swallow his apprehensions and ask for a new one.

Maybe he could get one resistant to fire, just in case. Around him, he mostly heard affirmative grumbling, as the others agreed with Linda's sentiment.

"And they complain our kind doesn't make proper adventurers." Zippa added a bit more verbosely. Apparently, the Scalesome Brothers weren't all that popular with the guild, now that it was dominated by elven members. To be fair, their group really wasn't on the same level as all of those other adventurer parties. They were a step above. After all, who else could have survived this much without being part of the large exploration team?

"What are you thinking about?" Bezzo nudged his side, drawing him from his thoughts.

"Just wondering if we can get the team promoted after this is over. We have to be the strongest one in the guild." The reptile snorted at that.

"We're lucky enough if they don't kick us out. They've always been grinding their teeth about having to tolerate those teams that were older than the rule against non-elves. All the attention that will come from this might just give them a reason to get rid of us."

"If they do that, we will just have to open our own adventurers' guild. With blackjack and hookers!" Josef joked. It would really suck if his friends lost their livelihoods after helping him. If that happened, he might just have to go through with that idea.

"Hold on, why would we need hookers?" Zippa inserted himself into their exchange.

"I'm not against it, just curious. How many are we talking about?" Josef shook his head, pushing the reptile's snout away, feeling exasperated with himself for letting such an idiom slip in. He could only blame the tiredness that was pulling a blanket over his consciousness. At least it lifted Zippa's mood, even if the degree of enthusiasm was a bit surprising.

"Just a saying from where I grew up." Throwing a glance at their newest helpers, he decided not to elaborate. Even without them around, he would probably have avoided any further explanation. That topic was just a tad bit too sensitive for him. Which is why it had to immediately go back to the far reaches of his mind. Instead, he focused on picking up his own pace, noticing how everyone's steps were slowing to accommodate his tempo.

With the amount of order mana flowing up the stairs they were descending, there was little choice but to rely on him to suck it all up. Even Linda showed reluctance when it came to leading the way against the overwhelming sea of energy. She had, without any further comment, fallen behind Josef, putting him at the front-most position. Unfortunately, despite his best efforts, there was not much speed to be gained.

The rate at which he could drain the mana was ultimately limited, while the amount in front of them only grew. On top of that, he could clearly feel his efficiency dropping by the minute, while his heartburn increased. Going by the mana-poisoning he was experiencing, Josef assumed that more and more of the white mana was accumulating within his heartstone. Aside from the pain, it came with another, even more terrifying, side-effect.

One that the lack of upgrade notifications for his spells had already clued him in on. It was messing with his ability to use the system. Case in point, he couldn't open his status at the moment. What he didn't know was whether his progress had well and truly stopped, or if it was merely the information that was cut off. Hopefully, it was only the latter, but that affinity's proclivity could very well cause the former. And between those two points lay an entire realm of difference in concern.

Whatever they were going to walk into at the bottom of those stairs, they'd better get it over with quickly, because he didn't know how long he could keep it up. You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

"Are you well?" Zippa had picked up on his growing discomfort. He really had an eye for these things, even if Josef wasn't as happy about it as usual.

"If you need to, we can take a breather. Who knows how much longer-" A decisive hand gesture cut him off.

"No, I'm fine. Resting would just make it worse." He knew he wasn't fine, and he wouldn't be until they were as far away from this place as possible. Idly, he petted Sprout's head, trying to center himself in the sensations of spoiling the dog-like plant. Her vines were covered in tiny, fibrous growths, almost like miniature ferns. It wasn't quite as luxurious as a coat of fur, but it felt remarkably familiar to the touch.

Apparently, she was still figuring out how to expand and improve her body, because those hadn't existed a couple floors prior. Thankfully, she had also chosen to grow her body to the size of a large wolf, trotting beside him instead of hitching a ride. Maybe it was a bout of independence that came with her changes, or she was just as sensitive to emotions as a real dog. Even Pretzel had opted to return to him, unsummoning herself.

If he caught her meaning, then that was the second best feeling of closeness, outside of wrapping him up, while putting none of her weight on him. If he had any energy to spare, he would have fawned over his adorable summons. What would Dusty have done, Josef wondered. Not for the first time, either. His command over the affinity would surely have been nice to have around as well. But maybe it was the density of the order mana that was keeping him away in the first place.

In that case, he had another reason to finish matters quickly, even if it might have been only wishful thinking. Suddenly, Josef almost fell over his own legs, exhaustion having swayed his steps. Thankfully, he was spared a plunge into the void below as he was able to hold onto his plant familiar, who in turn snaked some vines around him for support. Before he could catch his breath, still reeling from that moment of disorientation and shock, those very same vines lifted him up.

With little fanfare, Sprout dropped him onto her back and tied him to her with vines, which felt almost like wearing a seatbelt.

"Thanks, girl." He rubbed the scruff of her neck, earning a happy bark in response. Adjusting his posture, he realized she had grown another couple of centimeters since he last looked. Had she been getting ready to carry him? He'd have to get her something nice after this, once he figured out what she liked. Maybe a bag of fertilizer? Ignoring the awkward shuffling of those waiting behind him, Josef signalled his new mount to continue onward. Within the first minute, he regretted not having asked for a ride before.

Thanks to the sheer malleability of every inch of the familiar's body, she provided the smoothest riding experience he could have asked for. He could have saved himself from so much walking had he only asked. Finally, he felt enlightened about his familiars' constant need to ride on his shoulder. Having someone else carry him was truly sublime. Though, admittedly, that could have been the exhaustion speaking.

He might have been able to heal his sore legs, but the magic couldn't undo the mental exhaustion of having been up all day. Another thing that ended up enlightened was the path ahead. Literally, as it looked like they were walking out of the dark of night and into the light of day. Not because their surroundings were lacking in lighting, the ambient mana made sure of that, but because the concentration ahead had reached blinding levels. They had reached the boss room.

Josef grit his teeth as he shoveled away at the mana in front, which was thick enough he swore it could be touched with bare hands. Not that any of them dared to do so. If being a healer didn't work out, he might have a future as a snowplow, because that's how he felt, clearing the way.

"Almost there," he muttered silently, clutching his chest. Then, as if someone had drawn back a curtain, the light made way, revealing a cavernous, circular room. Surprisingly enough, it wasn't filled to the brim with the overwhelming mana, but contained a surprisingly normal atmosphere. At least as far as the mana was concerned. That was the only normal thing about the room, which reminded Josef of a massive chapel. A chapel that had an infinite void for walls, with a ceiling of pure, incandescent light.

And where the pews would be located, there instead were dozens of neatly arranged stone slabs. Why would a room in the dungeon even look like that? Did this place decide that the bishop was a boss monster, requiring his own environment? Or did he actually spend his time redecorating the place? There was no time to contemplate the machinations of the dungeon, though, because the gruesome sights in front of him demanded attention.

"What's the holdup?" Linda asked, squeezing herself past Sprout. Without noticing it, he had kept standing in the opening he had created, blocking the others out. Silently, he stepped forward and to the side, making way without taking his eyes off the scene. Those slabs, each and every one of them, had someone lying on top. Beastkin, scalefolk, and even many elves, all in the same posture, lying on their backs, arms resting at their sides. They were the people Sanctum had taken along.

Both the unwilling victims they had picked up on the way, and the adventurers who had joined oblivious of their final destination. All of them were white as ash, as if they had been drained of their color. Trails of order mana were wafting off their bodies, climbing to the ceiling like smoke, where they joined the solid light above. His heart plummeting into his stomach, Josef slid off Sprout, disentangling himself from her vines with some effort.

Running up to the closest slab, he took a terrified look at the beastkin on top of it. With some sick sort of relief, he realized that the furred person wasn't Cana, as he had first feared. However, he still recognized the beastkin as one of his former patients. A retired guard, who looked similar to a German Shepherd, and had no business being inside the dungeon. Except there were no retirement plans in Highsend, and there had clearly been a reason the man had wanted to get his legs fit again.

Now all that remained of those scarred legs he had carefully healed were cracked, chalk-like columns. Focusing his eyes on the man, he pushed his eyes to reveal whatever he could get, even though he feared the answer he would receive. The system was slow to respond, and whatever his eyes were working with felt painfully slow. At last, though, he managed to produce a result.

'Rudger': Canis - Level 25 Conditions: Mana exhaustion The Stillness Warning: Signs of The Stillness found on specimen unrelated to dragonkind. Danger rating automatically increased due to potentially contagious vectors. Error: Cannot increase danger level any further. Josef didn't know what to do with all that extra information, but he immediately realized the most important aspect of it. These people, despite their ghastly appearances, weren't dead. Not yet, at least. Now, he just had to find Cana.

That, and address the robed figure kneeling at the far end of the chapel, praying at an altar.