Chapter 358: The one for whom they had come all this way
"These are all tricks of the Sphere of Secret Concealment," Idan finally realized the source of the strange feeling that led him to this room where he found the boy.
"A descendant of the Grandia Royal Family, right?" Idan looked at the boy once more. "Is the Sphere really trying to find and return to its true owner?"
"I don't think so, though," Idan dismissed the thought. "The Sphere isn't with me, it's still next to Arabel, so it must be just a coincidence that I ended up next to someone with the Grandia Royal Family's bloodline."
The Sphere of Secret Concealment was not a sacred weapon and did not possess its own consciousness. Based on this, Idan roughly understood that it was just an ability that brought him here. The only ability of all that he could use away from the sphere itself.
"Okay, System, do you have any ideas? Are there any tasks?" — before doing anything, Idan immediately turned to the System. From what he knew, the System usually gave tasks at such times.
But to Idan's surprise, the System remained silent.
"System?" Idan called.
[Host, this System is currently unable to issue tasks], the System's voice replied, reassuring Idan and making it clear that it was still available.
"Why?" asked Idan, surprised by such an unusual answer.
[This System has no connection to this world, unlike your world and Junonia's world. Therefore, this System cannot issue tasks," the System explained, surprising Idan again.
After receiving this answer, Idan, as usual, began to think and analyze. However, before he could sink into his thoughts, he quickly pulled himself together and decided to put his thoughts on hold for later.
They didn't have much time right now, and Idan didn't want to waste it on simple guesses.
After another glance at the boy, who still hadn't noticed their presence, Idan turned and headed out of the room. After leaving the door, he stopped and looked around the long corridor filled with similar doors.
Idan didn't know why this boy ended up here, under Erza's mansion, in this confusing maze. But one thing he understood clearly: the boy was not here of his own free will.
"Is it worth getting involved in this case?" muttered Idan, but then, sighing, he sent Arabel a message to get her opinion. After all, he wasn't alone, and his decisions also concerned Arabel.
{MBG: What? Did you find the boy under Erza's mansion? And his name is Sora Grandia?} I sent a surprised message to Arabel.
{MHG: Yes, and it looks like he's not the only one here...} Idan shared his suspicion, not hiding that there were other similar rooms in the place where he was.
Arabel, having read Idan's message, like him, came to the conclusion that this boy was not there on his own. She came to this conclusion based on how Erza and other local creatures treated her. This boy, like her and Idan, was not from this world.
Then, after reading about Idan's suspicions about the presence of other creatures like this boy under Erza's mansion, Arabel frowned.
They were already limited in time. If they had more opportunities, Arabel would not hesitate to try to find out the truth and, if possible, help these creatures.
However, in their current situation, when they themselves were in danger, Arabel did not dare to involve unknown creatures in this matter.
"But what if these creatures are there of their own free will?" — Arabel wondered, not ruling out the possibility, but then quickly shook her head.
{MBG: Dan, take this boy and send him to the spatial storage. We don't have much time as it is, so as soon as you send the boy, go find Milena, and I'll try to talk to him.} — Arabel, having made her decision, sent a message to Idan.
After reading the message, Idan immediately agreed with Arabel. He turned around and entered the room to the boy.
"Ned, can you discreetly check the guy for anything strange?" asked Idan. He had suspicions that Erza couldn't leave this boy unattended.
Knowing about the mysterious being that Arabel and perhaps Erza herself had, Idan assumed that this boy most likely had something similar through which Erza could control and monitor him.
Idan was sure that the boy possessed the power of the bronze rank based on the fluctuations he felt.
Ned easily conducted a thorough examination of the boy, and as Idan expected, he discovered something alien inside him. It was something related to the element of darkness.
"As expected," Idan said with a grin.
"System, is there a way to get rid of this object without attracting attention?" - he asked.
[Host, just send the boy to the spatial storage. All the connections within it will be suppressed, and the other side won't even notice the connection disappearing. After upgrading the spatial storage, the suppression ability has increased significantly," System replied bluntly, giving him its advice.
"That's great," Idan said, pleased with the System's suggestion.
With a wave of his hand, he opened the Access Door to the boy's room. Under the influence of Ned's ability, in the guise of Sierra, the boy did not notice the appearance of the Door.
After making sure the door was fully open, Idan glanced at Ned and nodded. Ned, having understood his master's intentions without further ado, quickly grabbed the boy with the power of his Soul and threw him inside the door.
The boy didn't even have time to react and get scared, as he was abducted.
Idan closed the Access Door and asked Coco to continue on her way to Milena, and soon the trio left the place.
After descending a few more levels, Coco successfully led Idan and Ned to the door of the room, behind which was the one for whom they had come all this way.
"Well done, Coco!" Idan couldn't resist praising her, gently stroking her small head.
As in the case of the boy's room, the door of this room was also unlocked.
Pushing it open, Idan pushed the door open, and the thick, sickening smell of rotting blood immediately hit his face.
Somehow restraining the urge to vomit, Idan looked inside, and a terrible and unbearable picture appeared before him.
The whole room was a circle with torches burning on the walls, illuminating the space with a strange dark flame. This flame, unlike the usual one, seemed to absorb all shades of color, leaving only white and black.
In the center of the room, a lone figure sat with his head down. Her hands were tied to the ceiling with dark threads that pulsed as if alive. These threads, supporting the figure, prevented it from falling face down.
Idan realized with pain that there was no trace of the beautiful blond hair he remembered so well.
Her snow-white skin was riddled with deep cracks, from which not red, but black blood was oozing out.
After examining the wound carefully, Idan noticed that these cracks somehow reminded him of the mysterious inscriptions he had seen on the bodies of the murdered outsiders.
Just seeing the huge amount of blood around the figure took Idan's breath away.
All this unpleasant stench came from this pool of blood that surrounded this figure.
"What did they do to her?" exclaimed Idan, unable to contain his emotions when he saw Milena's condition.
"We should have acted sooner," he said with regret and deep bitterness. Idan remembered well what state she was in a day and a half ago, when Coco brought the photos she had taken. Milena looked much better in these pictures than she does now.
Ignoring the stench, Idan gathered his thoughts and took a step forward, turning into an Alpha of Fire and covering himself with flames.
As soon as his foot touched the blood, the fire began to burn it, pushing the sticky blood away from Idan.
At first, he wanted to use his new strength, but he restrained himself at the last moment.
After all, they were in the territory of the creatures of Darkness, and Idan was afraid that these creatures might be too sensitive to light and would be able to detect his presence.
Unlike Lumiar's bloodline, his Alpha Fire bloodline seemed less noticeable to him.
Idan had not gone more than half the way when numerous dark tentacles appeared from the ceiling and from the pool of blood, which rushed towards him from all sides.
Idan instantly summoned his fiery wings and wrapped them around himself, protecting himself from these tentacles.
"Ned, stop! Stay away!" he shouted to his friend, who, seeing what was happening, was about to rush to help. However, Idan strictly ordered him to stay put.
Coco, sensing the sickening smell as soon as the door opened, quickly ran away as far as possible.
The tentacles relentlessly attacked Idan, trying to break through his fiery defense. One by one, they slammed into his defenses, burned and weakened. But in their place, new ones appeared from the pool of blood and from the ceiling, continuing their fierce attack.
Idan, defending himself with his fiery wings, felt his defense getting weaker with each blow. And the number of tentacles was not decreasing, and if this continued, his defense would soon fall.