Dark Fantasy: Super Coward Mode

Chapter 83

We squeezed through the narrow passage, eventually arriving at a small room, no bigger than about one square meter.

Agartha, with her relatively thin frame, seemed unfazed, but the hunter, bundled in thick clothing, and the more stout Saint, were clearly struggling. The hunter panted for breath, and the Saint let out a groan of discomfort.

"I'm sorry for dragging you all here," I apologized to them, seeing how exhausted they were. But the hunter just snorted, while the Saint shook his head and approached.

"Sir Tanthan, you mustn't apologize!" the Saint exclaimed with a serious expression, pointing toward the red-tinged inscription on the wall.

"Human curiosity! It never ends!"

The hunter frowned slightly at the Saint's loud declaration, but hearing it filled me with a sense of elation.

My purpose, the goal that had seemed endless, was now taking shape. I couldn’t afford to lose heart in moments like these. After all, humans must always take one more step forward.

I nodded at the Saint.

"Thank you, Saint."

"I have done nothing. It's all due to your mental fortitude, Sir Tanthan."

As I smiled in response to the Saint’s words, the hunter muttered something while staring at the inscription.

"...That inscription gives me the same feeling as that dog."

"Just brushing past it makes my head hurt."

Agartha, hearing the hunter’s comment, was now clutching her head in discomfort.@@@@

I looked at the inscription. Something about it felt off—this was clearly the final inscription in the cave.

To think that just an inscription could exude the power equivalent to a Foreign Entity... No wonder the Saint had described the Scribe as the most powerful of their kind.

What secret was hidden within this inscription to imbue it with such strength?

Taking a deep breath, I calmed myself before stepping forward, resolute in my decision. I had endured direct mental attacks from Nutrische, a being on par with a Foreign Entity, so I was confident I could read this inscription as well.

Focusing intently on the inscription, the words began to solidify, revealing their contents.

The first inscription.

Raidan Tanthan.

"...!!"

The moment I saw the inscription, I was utterly shocked.

Not only was my name written in blood-red letters, but the Scribe had written it perfectly, not a single character out of place.

I had already suspected that the previous inscriptions had been meant for my eyes alone, and this confirmed it. The Scribe had been waiting for me to find these inscriptions.

"Sir Tanthan! Are you alright?!"

"I'm fine. Please stay back."

I raised my voice to stop the Saint, who seemed ready to rush to my side, likely thinking something had gone wrong when I recoiled in surprise.

The words of the Gardener when I first met him echoed in my mind: "You smell of the Inquisitor and the Scribe."

Now, the Scribe had written my name here, right in front of me.

This could only mean one thing: the Scribe had been watching me from the very beginning.

But why?

Why was someone like me, a mere human, being observed?

Swallowing dryly, I turned to read the final inscription.

You must remember what has been forgotten. She must never be forgotten. Never.

'This is my final gift to you.'

The moment I read the emphasized part of the inscription...

"Ugh...!"

"Sir Tanthan!"

"Tanthan!"

A sudden, unbearable pain struck my head, as if someone were squeezing my brain. I lost my balance and collapsed, with the Saint and Agartha rushing to catch me.

But I couldn’t stand. Along with the pain came flashes, like a montage of memories racing through my mind.

Images I had never seen before.

There was a woman, crying.

It was the same image that had briefly crossed my mind that day on the train, while I was talking to White Mask before the dragon-slaying mission.

Raidan Tanthan was facing the crying woman.

And it was me, Raidan Tanthan, standing in front of that crying woman.

Was this the Scribe’s doing?

No.

I vehemently denied it.

The woman reached out, gently touching Tanthan’s cheek, her lips moving as if she were trying to say something.

Who was this woman?

'The one you must never forget.'

As the image of her lips formed clearly in my mind...

If you have seen this, then the time has come. We will meet soon, Raidan Tanthan. I look forward to that moment.

The moment had nearly arrived.

The girl quickly began to move.

The hunter, Agartha, and the Saint looked down at the unconscious Tanthan.

The hunter had been silently observing Agartha's behavior, which bothered him. Normally, she would be making a fuss, being loud as always.

But now, she just stood there, gazing sadly at the fallen Tanthan, without making a move.

However, the hunter said nothing. To someone as self-centered as him, other people's problems weren’t worth getting involved in.

For now, he needed to escape.

That was the task at hand.

The passage was narrow. In this situation, he would likely have to carefully push Tanthan through as they made their way out.

As the hunter formulated his plan and was about to put it into action, the sound of footsteps echoed through the cave—steps that didn’t seem human.

A sense of déjà vu washed over him.

Yes, just like the time in the underground prison. That same eerie feeling.

Hah.

The hunter let out a scoff and turned to glare at the Saint.

Of course, there had to be a Foreign Entity in this unknown space. He had foolishly forgotten one of Londan’s iron rules: 'Never venture into unknown spaces lightly.'

Why had he let himself trust Tanthan's words so blindly?

The hunter mused that he hadn’t been thinking clearly lately.

"Thief."

"I know."

"You do."

The thief nodded a few times and made his way toward the entrance.

"I'm leaving first."

"What?!"

Agartha exclaimed in shock, but the hunter simply glanced at her.

"Staying in a cramped space like this and getting caught by a Foreign Entity is a death sentence. It's better to face it in an open area."

"But we don’t know for sure if we’ve been spotted...!"

"And you'd risk staying here with an injured man on the off chance we haven't? Now that's laughable."

With that, the hunter holstered his gun and squeezed himself into the passage.

As Agartha watched the hunter, she smirked.

"...The guy who always looks out for himself is staying behind to help Tanthan?"

Perhaps she was only joking to lighten the heavy mood, but the hunter dismissed the thought.

Tanthan was essential to defeating the Foreign Entities.

That’s all it was—pure logic, no emotional attachment, the hunter thought.

"Let’s go."

"I’m coming with you."

Agartha stood up.

The hunter, who had expected Agartha to be nothing but dead weight, now hesitated to tell her to stay behind. She raised her prosthetic arm.

"You think I’d just sit back? It takes some strength to reach this kind of position. Besides, this prosthetic’s come in handy."

Her usual playful smile returned to her face as she said that. The hunter just snorted in response.

"Do whatever you want."

"Right."

"I’ll come too, Agartha."

Hearing the Saint’s words, the hunter raised his eyebrows in surprise and glanced at him. Something was off.

Maybe it was because the Saint was seeing a Foreign Entity for the first time, but he looked oddly excited.

Yes, he seemed quite thrilled.

For some reason, the guilt of Raidan Tanthan hung in the air between the Saint and the rest of them.

With those feelings in mind, the hunter and Agartha regarded the Saint with cold eyes.

"Have I done something wrong...?"

Neither of them answered as they made their way through the passage, the Saint following behind with a puzzled expression.