Chapter 108 - Into The Bowels Of Despair

Stepping into the trial built to torment mortals, facing adversity after adversity, experiencing pain and suffering that I had hoped I would never have to in my life, I began to ask myself one question.

"Why?"

For some reason, since coming to Gaia, I've had this obsession with becoming stronger. At first, it was simply my childish wonder with this world, and my own desire to be someone I wasn't that drove me to lust for strength.

Then, when the very first person in this world I met betrayed me, I began to wonder if it was even possible to stray away from what I already was--a weak, unmotivated husk of a human, someone without a work ethic, someone without any true desires of their own--the only thing I ever wanted was to become someone strong enough to take hold of the intangible desires I had.

Meeting that person, the first in this world to befriend me, who taught me...it returned to me, I severed my ties to those childish dreams, but...I still held onto them, in hopes of one day being able to achieve them.

Taken away from me, I blamed my own powerlessness. I swore to never let something like that happen again, not because of selflessness, but because I feared what depths I'd fall to if I were to lose those around me like that again.

That's why meeting the Outlanders, who have all been so patient and caring, just feels wrong. I don't deserve it.

Why do I get to be this happy without you, Meinhard?

That's why...I'll complete this trial and bring you back.

I know you'll probably scold me for "wasting" a wish like this on you, but I don't care. Even if you somehow resent me for it, you'll be alive. That's all that matters to me. Just live, experience a life of your own choices.

Surrounded by scornful walls that looked down upon him, three options sat in front of him: Forward, left, or right.

Each of these walled paths were covered with mossy, thick branches that coiled around each other, acting as a doorway to each of these possibilities. In truth, he couldn't tell which was the right path to begin his journey through the labyrinth ahead.

Kneeling down against the blackened stone, Ren let out a sharp, prolonged breath between his lips, "Araphel: Particle Shade."

There was a maximum range of the sensory spell, spanning up to a ten meter radius for maximum proficiency. He planned to use this to garner some level of information compared to the zero he possessed, aiding in making his choice.

Extending the veil of shadows, there was no difference felt between each path, retracting the spell as he slowly stood himself back up--now back to square zero. Looking up, another possibility was brought to his mind, noticing the lack of a ceiling sitting above the high-reaching walls.

"Bingo. This is the answer to this room, isn't it?"

Ren rubbed his hands together, cracking his knuckles before grabbing onto the grooves of the wall, hoisting himself up before he began to scale the wall. Focusing his reinforcement primarily in his hands, lacking the natural understanding to put it in his fingers, climbing the wall came with ease--not even requiring much of a handle for himself.

Before he could even make it halfway up the dirty, chipped stone wall--it began to rumble violently, shaking him off as he fell onto his back as the air was shot out of his lungs. He then watched as wooden limbs extended over the precipice of the unscalable walls, creating a ceiling of damp, mossy branches over his head.

"--Can something go the way I want it to for once in this place?"

Placing his hands behind him and raising his hips, Ren kicked the air with a "Hup!", jumping up from his fallen position and onto his two feet. Facing the three options before him once more, he extended one finger--"Eeny, meeny, miny...moe!"

His finger landed on the path to the left as "moe" left his mouth. As soon as he stepped to the leftmost passageway, the bed of branches that covered the walls pulsated as if recognizing the choice he made. It was already dark enough before the ceiling of damp wood had formed, presently it requires his utmost focus not to trip over his own feet.

--In times like this, I'm pretty damn envious of light and fire users…

The shadows that painted the walls played with his senses, tricking him into believing a path existed when there was not. Walking turned into a jog, then into a sprint as the corridor became claustrophobic, stretching onwards without a seeming end.

The end of the corridor became apparently--slamming into it nose first as he nearly fell back onto his rear from the sudden impact against the wall obscured by darkness.

"Ow…"

Ren rubbed his stinging nose, checking near his nostrils for blood before he turned to the left, noticing the corridor had led to an open area within the maze.

A welcome sight, light by lanterns that were perched on each wall that made the room, but at the same time, he felt standing in such an area made him stand out like a sore thumb.

Sitting in the center of the room was a pedestal, placed within a fountain of blood similar to the one he initially found, decorated with copper roses, holding a tablet with text inscribed onto it. Time had clearly weathered these carved symbols, but he managed to decipher the text.

"The abode of the cretinous half-beast, an existence scorned by even those who seeded him. Born to die, born to punish, his gentle nature was nurtured into one of unimaginable malice. Even when the Prince of Minos himself came to slay the ungodly entity, he too became but sustenance for Asterius. Abandoned in the labyrinth, forgotten by all, his snow-white hide became tainted by his evil, dirtied with grime and blood.

Any sanity or mercy the minotaur once possesses were buried by only the instinct to kill and consume. Those who step into the winding halls of this labyrinth draw Asterius in, becoming prey to the gluttonous man-beast."

The final section immediately stood out to Ren as he traced his finger along the dust-covered text, his blood running cold as he carefully repeated what he read in his head.

--This is Asterius' personal domain, and stepping into it means...he knows I'm here.