Chương 194: Chapter 53: Fourteen Doors

Three days later, punctual and with her nerves forged into a steel focus, Selena met with the King at the appointed location: a discreet chamber situated behind the Grand Throne Room. It was nothing like the artifact vault she recalled from her first visit; this, in itself, set a precedent of far greater importance, pointing to a secret deeper and more jealously guarded. His Majesty awaited her in the middle of a seemingly austere room.

Its aesthetic lacked the dazzling opulence of the rest of the palace; the walls were made of plain stone, and the furnishings were sparse and functional: a desk, a few shelves lined with ancient books, and a map of the realm laid out across a table, yet everything exuded a solemn, practical utility. At the center of the chamber, a heavy trapdoor of coralline and iron marked the entrance to a lower level.

Thaerón, curiously, wore a light robe of dark linen and a simple cloak that day, eschewing both his crown and customary jewels. He appeared to be a more human, more agile version of the monarch. Without a word, the King engaged a mechanism and the trapdoor swung open, revealing a spiral staircase carved directly into the bedrock that dissolved into the gloom. They descended together.

The downward journey was slow, giving way to a series of labyrinthine passages that twisted and branched, descending floor after floor. Every new level was sealed by a massive door featuring a unique lock. Thaerón opened each one using a heavy ring of ancient keys bound to his belt. Selena noted, with a pang of human empathy toward the almost mythical figure of the King, that as they descended, the earth's trapped heat and physical exertion brought a faint sheen of sweat to his brow and temples.

That single, tangible detail stripped away the myth of the unmoving, unshakeable monarchs of folk tales. After at least fourteen doors and their corresponding stretches of labyrinth which she had tallied mentally, marking every turn and every shift in the air's inclination, they finally arrived at the last door before their destination. It was guarded by two royal sentinels unlike any she had ever seen before.

Their armor was a matte black that seemed to absorb the torchlight without returning a single reflection, like human-shaped wells of pure darkness. The men beneath were tall and heavily built, their mere posture radiating a military discipline so absolute it bordered on intimidating. Upon sighting the King, they snapped to attention in synchronized movement and lowered their heads in a silent yet profound bow. Until one of them spoke.

His voice was deep, echoing through the narrow corridor like the scraping of two millstones. —I have no voice, yet I speak to you. I have no body, yet I bear witness to your passage. Touch me, and I break; leave me, and I fade. Yet everyone possesses me, though none may keep me in their pocket. What am I? A riddle. A test not of strength, but of intellect. A guardian demanding not a password, but comprehension.

Thaerón looked at him and, without hesitation, with the confidence of someone who had recited this many times before, answered: —Silence. No sooner had he uttered the word than the second guard, who until then had remained motionless, began to speak. His voice was martial, yet clearer and less guttural. —I build castles in the air, yet I dwell within a box of bone.

I can make you travel to the stars without moving from your chair, and though I am capable of creating entire worlds, a single hard blow can make me vanish forever. What am I? Thaerón, adopting a graver tone this time, as if the answer demanded greater respect, said: —Imagination. He held his breath for a moment, as though awaiting confirmation. The two guards, their expressions hidden beneath their helmets, moved in unison without altering their stance.

With seemingly minimal effort that nonetheless made the hinges groan, they pushed open the heavy steel door behind them. Selena, with a practiced eye, estimated it to be at least twenty centimeters thick. This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. They passed through the door and entered another chamber, another section of the subterranean maze.

After another stretch, they reached a second door, identical in appearance to the first, guarded by two other sentinels wearing the same light-absorbing black armor. These two did not bow. The moment the King and Selena came to a halt before them, they demanded in a voice that was an intimidating command in itself: —Royal seal. —Both spoke at once, their hands dropping to the pommels of the longswords resting at their belts.

Thaerón, showing not the slightest hint of concern, produced a solid gold pendant seal from his robe, the monarch's personal crest and displayed it. The guards observed it for a moment, then nodded, yet they did not step aside. They lowered their hands from their swords but remained blocking the way. Then, the guard on the left spoke, and the one on the right repeated every phrase with eerie synchronization: —God has never seen one. The King sees one rarely. The common man sees one every day.

It cannot be touched, yet it separates friends. It is the only thing the ambitious wish to become, yet the humble already possess without trying. What is it? Thaerón did not waver. His response was clear and sharp: —An equal. The guards, as if operating as a single organism, stepped back in tandem, clearing the passage. With a combined effort that caused the stone floor to vibrate, they hauled open the second door.

This one was even more massive, at least twice as thick as the previous one crafted from an ancient, dark iron that seemed to have absorbed the chill of centuries. A complex system of gears and counterweights turned it slowly, producing a deep rumble that reverberated through the bowels of the fortress. Once they crossed threshold and the door shut behind them with a final thud that sealed off the outside world, the King stopped and inhaled deeply.

The atmosphere here was different: drier, stiller, with a faint aroma of ozone layer, ancient dust, and an echo of latent power floating in the air similar to the Void yet domesticated and contained. Thaerón turned toward Selena and, with a solemn gesture, drew a simple necklace from a pocket. The pendant was a dune felis, the royal emblem, yet carved from flawless, transparent glass. Inside, suspended like a cloud in amber, was a thick, dark substance that appeared to be... coagulated blood.

—Now, take this —the King said, offering her the necklace. His tone admitted no argument— I carry one just like it. Put it on before taking another step, or I assure you, they will kill you. The guards, at the very least, possess orders and reason. The things guarding what lies beyond... do not. Selena felt a shiver run down her spine like a trail of ice. Without hesitation, she took the necklace and slipped it on.

The glass of the felis felt cold against her skin, and the dark substance within seemed to pulse faintly, like a distant heartbeat. Then, they resumed walking. The passage beyond the door was different. The stone was more irregular, almost organic, as though the chamber had formed naturally before being reinforced. And then there were the sounds: subtle noises on the ceiling, raspy whispers in the thickest shadows, and the dry clicking of something dragging itself across the rock.

Yet it was not fear of the unknown that seized Selena; it was her perception of the Void that sharpened sense that had become a part of her launching a visceral warning. Whatever moves in those shadows is not entirely alive. It was no illusion, nor was it an animal. It was something broken, a corrupt presence contained, yet un-tamed. Until they reached the end of the passage, where they finally caught sight of one of the "things." It crawled along a high ledge, half-hidden in the gloom.

It was a grotesque figure, a nightmarish puppet crafted from mismatched pieces of flesh. Coarse black stitches were visible where two skin tones, one pale and sickly, the other dark and weathered, met in an unnatural join. It possessed limbs of varying lengths, and its head jerked with spasmodic movements, revealing multiple wild eyes that stared in every direction at once, devoid of intelligence, driven only by a blind, ravenous vigilance.

The aura it radiated which Selena felt as an icy pressure against her chest was one of pure anomaly, of a distorted reality forced together by seamwork. Thaerón noticed the rigidity in her face, the fight-or-flight instinct tightening her muscles. —Do not worry —he whispered, his voice low yet steady in the ominous silence— Remember the necklace. They will not attack us. They recognize us as... temporary permits. Without averting his eyes entirely from the stitched creature, he drew the final key from his ring.

It was made of bronze, aged and faded, featuring an intricate design that seemed to tell a miniature story. He slid aside a metal plate on the wall, revealing a hidden lock, and inserted the key. With a deep creak that resonated through their bones, the final door as wide and massive as the one before it swung slowly to the side.