[Complete Tunyak’s additional request. Time remaining: 23 hours 1 minute.] The statue descended, not too quickly, but not slowly either. However, since its base had already been flush with the ground, by the time I realized what was happening, the chariot’s wheels had already vanished below the surface. Doppy, who hadn’t been on the chariot when it started moving, dashed toward the statue with an outstretched hand and shouted, “Su-Yeok!” In the brief moment that followed, I weighed my options. Thankfully, he wasn’t too far away, so time wasn’t an issue. I could jump down, grab Doppy, then haul him back up, or I could stay in the chariot and try and pull him up from there. Either way, he would be able to board before it became fully submerged. However, the first option carried a certain risk. Disembarking could potentially cause the statue to stop descending. Sure, it could resume once I am back on board, but that isn’t guaranteed. There wasn’t enough time to waste on deliberating such a small decision, though. I pushed away my concerns and activated Master of Shadows. Doppy’s shadow surged up from the ground and snatched him by the waist. The shadow ignored his startled cry and began speedily shooting toward me. He wasn’t too far away, anyway. Just as the chariot’s upper section dipped below the surface, I had the shadow fling Doppy toward me. Screaming all the way, Doppy sailed through the air. I briefly set Ryun aside and stretched out my arms to gently catch him. He clung to me, eyes wide and breath ragged. Then, he slowly met my gaze and stuttered, “S-Su-Yeok. Thanks.” “Nah. Should’ve just had you climb aboard.” Just as I finished speaking, the chariot came to a complete stop underground. A thick metal plate slid into place over our heads, sealing off the passage. Darkness enveloped the space. Only Doppy’s ragged breathing filled the silence. I gently set him down on the chariot’s floor and summoned a ball of mana. A sparking mass of lightning appeared, crackling through the shadows and banishing the pitch-black gloom. Tunyak stared at me, eyes slightly widened. “That thing earlier... was it shadow magic?” “So you had another trick up your sleeve. I knew about the lightning, but...” He paused, his gaze lingering on the glowing bolts suspended in the air. “You told me, didn’t you? That you were more formidable than you let on.” “I did. Did you think I was just bragging?” Tunyak laughed dryly. I met his grin with one of my own, then glanced up at the sealed hatch above. “Think the divine beast, mechanical horse, and your bull will be alright?” He shrugged. “Hard to say, but probably.” “Because the divine beast will keep them in line?” “Not quite. The divine one may go off on its own. It’s always been free. I was talking about Kalem and your mount.” “Why? We didn’t exactly tie them down.” Tunyak smiled faintly. “Kalem was a leader of his herd. Even if the divine beast disappears, he’ll stick around and probably keep your horse from wandering off.” “Ah,” I quietly responded, nodding. Truth be told, I wasn’t really worried about the mounts—our pursuers worried me more. I debated whether to finally tell him. Hmm. Maybe now is the time. My reasoning for not bringing it up was simple: I didn’t want to spark Tunyak’s rage. After seeing those guilty of corrupting a divine beast, I figured he would drop everything and chase after them without a second thought. The statue trembled slightly as it continued to descend. I didn’t know how deeply we would descend, but the sooner I fessed up, the better. Once we arrived, we would have to act fast. Now wasn’t the time for drawn-out explanations. Just a quick summary. I turned to him. “Tunyak.” “There’s something I need to tell you.” “We’ve got pursuers behind us.” “What?” Tunyak jerked back, startled. I calmly reached into my pocket and pulled out the mechanical device. His brow furrowed as he squinted ponderously, unspoken questions rattling around his mind. However, he didn’t interrupt since he wanted to hear me out. I tossed the device into the air before catching it again. “You asked why I didn’t just destroy it.” “The moment I saw it, I figured someone was tracking it. If someone went through all the effort to implant this into a divine beast, it only made sense that there would be a tracker built in. Therefore, a chase was inevitable. Well, maybe not a certainty, but likely.” Tunyak fell silent for a long beat. When he finally responded, his voice was taught with frustration. “So you knew, and still brought us here? Why?” He hadn’t spoken accusingly. Thankfully, it didn’t seem like he was doubting me either, probably because I had already proven myself. Still, his tenseness was clear from his tone. I replied plainly, “Because I wanted to catch the ones responsible.” “Let’s say I destroyed the device. Sure, maybe we still would’ve found this place, but would we have caught the culprits? Not a chance.” I exhaled and studied his face. He looked deep in thought, eyes locked on mine. “You’re a native, and I’m not exactly overflowing with information, either. We would have missed our chance. Or ended up having to wait for another corrupted beast to appear.” He didn’t respond, and I continued, “However, if we lure them here and then confront them directly, we could get something out of it. We can even resort to coercion, interrogation, or torture, if we have to. A little risk, for a better shot at the truth.” Tunyak seemed to have accepted it, at least partially. “You’re not wrong.” The anger in his eyes had subsided, but the coldness remained. “But I still don’t understand why you didn’t tell me.” His anger didn’t surprise me. On the way here—after purifying the divine beast—I had simulated this conversation over and over in my head. From the time I had spent with him, I knew that, naturally, he would be upset. It was completely reasonable, after all. “Because if I had, you would’ve insisted we go back and confront them immediately.” I had run through the possibilities a dozen times. In the end, honesty always came out as the best option. “I’ve noticed you tend to charge in first and figure out the details later. Like Kalem, that bull of yours.” The chariot began to slow. “If you’d heard we were being followed, you’d have taken off without a second thought. Can you say otherwise?” His silence said enough. “I didn’t think the first wave of pursuers would be important. They’d only be in charge of following the divine beast, after all. Probably just grunts or handlers.” His silence continued. “But the closer we got to something significant, the more likely they’d send someone higher up. That’s what I was aiming for. Someone closer to the head of the operation, maybe even the head themself.” Tunyak fell into thought again, then finally nodded. “You’re right.” The chariot landed. A pale-gray stone corridor extended ahead of us. “Sorry for keeping it from you, but it couldn’t be helped.” Logically, he understood—but emotionally, he looked a little wounded, and it looked like he was sulking a little. Not very becoming of a warrior. Trying to lighten the mood, I half-jokingly remarked, “Do you think the divine beast, Kalem, and the horse can get away if someone gets there first?” Tunyak nodded reluctantly. “Probably. The divine beast for sure, and the others are clever.” He didn’t sound thrilled. “But I’m still a bit worried.” We both knew the divine beast had been captured before. Neither of us said it out loud, but dragging this out wouldn’t help. I clapped him lightly on the shoulder. “Then let’s keep it moving. Get this done and climb back up.” [Complete Tunyak’s additional request. Time remaining: 22 hours 47 minutes.] We walked briskly through the pale-gray corridor, not sure what we should expect. Nothing stood out as strange, and not even the faintest trace of divinity lingered in the air. Honestly, I had expected something more like an ancient temple. In reality, there were no symbols or statues anywhere—only these clean, aged, ash-colored walls. Tunyak let out a low hum. “Hmm.” I figured he was thinking the same thing I was. Still, that didn’t mean this place was unrelated to gods. The divine beast had led us here, and we had found a statue that clearly had something to do with a divine entity. My best guess was that the emptiness was due to the disappearance of the Forgotten God. Find the newest release on novel(ꜰ)ire.net Are there enemies ahead? The thought crossed my mind, but I didn’t think so. There wasn’t any particular reason to believe that. If I had to come up with one, it was probably because I assumed that clearing the black barrier around the statue had been the main trial. Of course, I couldn’t be certain. Neither Tunyak nor I said anything. We walked in silence, the sound of three sets of footsteps echoing faintly through the corridor our only company. Then, at the very edge of the lightning-lit path ahead, a stone door came into view. I met his gaze. “Tunyak.” We quickened our pace. Approaching the door, I realized that it had neither a lock nor a keyhole. Are we really supposed to just push it open? Once we reached within a certain radius, I felt a strange, oppressive energy emanating from the stone. The door itself radiated an unfamiliar force. Tunyak tilted his head. “Do we just push it?” “That’s what it looks like, but I’m not entirely sure.” “You don’t feel anything?” He stared at me, clearly puzzled, as if I had asked something nonsensical. Whatever I was sensing, he didn’t. “What are you talking about?” I shrugged and gestured toward the door. “We’ll find out if we try pushing it.” “What’s with the cryptic attitude?” Tunyak grumbled, but I ignored him and shifted my stance. The door was designed to open if one side was pushed. Still, that strange sensation wouldn’t leave me alone. I tightened my grip on my axe, adjusting my stance so that I could swing at a moment’s notice. With my feet spread slightly, I lightly tensed my arms. The moment my left hand touched the stone, an immense force surged from the door and slammed into me like a tidal wave, causing me to inhale sharply. In that moment, I recognized that pressure. It was the same sensation I had experienced when I supported Paraktus’s boulder back on the second floor. I gritted my teeth, hurled Soulbound aside, and slammed my right palm against the stone. Only then did I understand the corridor’s unusual length. If we lost to this force, the door would likely crush us against the far wall. “Wh-what’s going on? Why’d you throw your weapon?!” Tunyak cried out in shock, but I didn’t have the strength to answer. Thankfully, he wasn’t entirely clueless—he quickly pressed his hands to the stone door. Almost immediately, he groaned sharply. “Grrh!” Now he understood my reaction. Tunyak nearly slipped under the weight of the pressure but managed to catch himself, planting his feet and bracing with both hands. Doppy, hopping from foot to foot behind us, anxiously called out, “Su-Yeok! Are you okay? Should I help?!” “N-no!” I forced out through clenched teeth. The door applied its pressure to each person separately, so there was no reason to let Doppy burn his energy as well. Given that Tunyak was probably trying to help his god, I didn’t mind his contribution. Fortunately, Doppy caught on fast, and he immediately chanted, “Strength boost! Agility boost!” He didn’t stop there, though, and fired more buffs off in quick succession. I surged with renewed vigor, strength coursing through my limbs. However, the door’s resistance intensified to match me, so it didn’t help much. Saliva dripped from the corner of Tunyak’s mouth. I had experienced this before, but it was his first time, and he clearly didn’t know how to handle it. I racked my memory. Paraktus had only managed to push the orb after he returned from somewhere. I still didn’t know what he had found at that time. No, wait. It was a ring. Paraktus had taken the other path and brought back a ring. Afterward, Doppy had told me that the chamber had only contained two items: a ring and a necklace. At that moment, the necklace Paraktus had given me flashed through my mind. [Paraktus’s Determination Necklace] - Given by Paraktus to the Liberator. - An unknown power is contained within the radiant emerald gem. - Grants Indomitability lvl +5, Combat Focus lvl +5 while carried Back then, I suspected that there was something more hidden within the “unknown power.” I had assumed that it would reveal itself as I climbed the tower. But it hadn’t—until now. Standing before the same kind of test, I could feel it now. That necklace had to be the key. Straining every muscle, I shouted toward Doppy, “Doppy! Paraktus’s necklace!” “What?!” he called back, startled. I didn’t have the strength to explain again. Even though I had become far stronger since the second floor, that only meant the door’s resistance had likewise increased. Doppy seemed to understand. He reached up to his neck and pulled off the necklace. Panting, he ran over to me, but he was too short to hang it around my neck. “Yoonie! Put the necklace on Su-Yeok!” Yoonie snatched the necklace in her beak and flew to me, spinning once in midair before dropping the chain over my head. The silver thread glinted as the small, deep green gemstone slipped past my eyes and fell against my chest. Then, in that instant, a brilliant green light burst forth from the necklace. 「Invisible message: Paraktus’s Determination Necklace has reacted to the Shackle.」 「Invisible message: The power and experience possessed by the fifth-class god ‘Paraktus’ has been temporarily granted to Challenger Kwon Su-Hyeok.」