Chapter 73: Unexpected Encounters in the Deep Cavern

“Shh, quiet now.”

Roalsa carefully assessed the two young women, her mind racing as she calculated the manpower and resources required to confront them.

She could palpably sense the white-haired young woman’s power; by Roalsa’s estimation, she, along with Olivia and ten elite knights, might stand a chance against her.

As for the black-haired young woman—

Only by wagering every life was there a remote possibility of fighting her to a draw.

“Are they mountain bandits?”

Her back to Roalsa, the woman remained acutely aware of the situation behind her.

Roalsa did not immediately reply, instead pausing for several seconds to consider.

“I don’t know, but I hope they aren’t.”

Roalsa could scarcely imagine the outcome of making enemies of these two young women.

Should they become adversaries, it would be an absolute disaster, not merely for the knight order, but for the entirety of Alastair.

Evidently, the woman also sensed a dangerous undertone in Roalsa’s words, tugging at Roalsa’s sleeve as she asked, “Do we need to retreat and seek reinforcements now?”

“Wait a little longer. I want to observe this place further.”

Roalsa turned her head and gestured towards the direction from which they had come.

“First, return to the cave entrance. Once you’re back, immediately fire the red flare stone. When people arrive, have them wait for me at the entrance. Understood?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Furthermore, if I haven’t emerged before nightfall, you are to instruct them to return to Alastair at once. Tell Olivia everything you’ve witnessed, so she can formulate a counter-strategy.”

“And don’t forget to inform Olivia of these two individuals’ strength.”

Having delivered her instructions, Roalsa patted the woman’s shoulder.

“Alright, go now.”

Nodding her assent, the woman turned and immediately retraced her steps along the path they had taken.

Once the woman’s figure was completely swallowed by the darkness, only then did Roalsa cautiously peer out again to observe the corners she had previously overlooked.

Beyond the two young women, behind the throne, a dilapidated wooden door seemed to stand.

It was slightly ajar.

Using her innate ability to perceive the wind, Roalsa keenly detected the faint sound of chains sliding.

Though immensely intrigued, Roalsa temporarily pushed the matter from her mind and continued her observations.

Aside from the wooden door, Roalsa also noticed an iron door to the right of the throne.

This door, too, was ajar.

However, in contrast, Roalsa could glimpse a faint yellow glow through the slightly open crack.

A viscous green liquid seeped sluggishly through the crevice.

Following the trail of the green liquid, she could discern several tattered, sack-like green objects.

Roalsa recognized them instantly as the corpses of Forest Slimes.

The liquid within them had long since dried up, causing their once plump bodies to deflate.

‘This is certainly problematic.’

Roalsa sighed inwardly, for scattered beside the Forest Slime corpses lay a jumbled heap of Ice Slime bodies as well.

‘It seems I’ll have to request reinforcements from the Imperial Palace.’

Silently, Roalsa etched the cave’s layout into her mind, diligently recording every sight and sound.

Next on her agenda was the sound of chains sliding behind the wooden door.

However, to explore it, she would inevitably have to pass by the two young women.

This was undeniably perilous.

Should Roalsa make even the slightest mistake and alert them, her death would be certain.

Thus, Roalsa carefully picked up a small stone from the ground.

With a gentle toss, the stone struck the hard floor, emitting a dull thud that echoed through the silent cavern.

The white-haired young woman remained in her prostrate position, without any movement.

The black-haired young woman, however, twitched slightly.

Her wings fluttered, neither too lightly nor too heavily.

Just as Roalsa thought she had been startled, the black-haired young woman smacked her lips, shifted her posture, and continued to slumber soundly.

It seemed the situation was manageable.

This presented an opportunity to act.

Roalsa immediately put her plan into motion.

She first extended one leg slowly.

After a prolonged wait, seeing that neither young woman stirred, Roalsa released her hand from the wall and took another step forward.

Silence still enveloped her.

The rustling sound of trickling sand was remarkably clear in Roalsa’s ears, making her already tense emotions even more agitated.

She let out a soft breath.

Composing herself slightly, Roalsa took her third step.

It remained profoundly quiet, utterly still.

Apart from the occasional drip-drip of water droplets, the entire cave was like stagnant water, without a single ripple.

Consequently, sounds that would normally go unnoticed now grated on Roalsa’s ears, intensely irritating.

Fortunately, both young women were deep in slumber.

Even when Roalsa accidentally kicked a stone during her advance, it failed to rouse them.

The wooden door was only a few dozen meters away.

Yet, to Roalsa’s perception, this short distance felt like an insurmountable chasm.

It seemed to take her centuries to finally draw near.

Only upon reaching the wooden door did Roalsa dare to cautiously release a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding.

Logically, she should have immediately slipped inside the door.

Yet, inexplicably, Roalsa felt an irresistible urge to glance behind her.

This single glance proved disastrous, for the moment she turned her head, a cold sweat broke out all over her.

The young woman prostrate beneath the throne had not been asleep at all.

A thick collar adorned her delicate neck.

Her refined face was streaked with blood vessels.

A horse bit was forced into her drooling mouth.

Her brilliant blue pupils were fixed on Roalsa, staring intently.

She looked like a demon from hell.

For a fleeting moment, Roalsa felt her heart skip a beat.

“…”

The two exchanged a silent gaze.

The young woman stared at Roalsa but made no reaction.

She merely fixed her gaze on Roalsa’s startled eyes and remained prostrate on the ground in silence.

There was no reaction whatsoever.

Roalsa almost forgot how to move.

Her mind was now consumed by a single thought—

‘She had been discovered.’

Roalsa felt that she might soon face a fierce battle.

Energy slowly gathered within her.

Roalsa had even prepared to draw her sword.

“Drip.”

“Drip.”

Water droplets fell one by one.

The dripping echoed through the silent cavern.

Roalsa had almost lost all sense of time.

She simply stared back at the young woman, not daring to even take a breath.

One second, two seconds, three seconds.

Time ticked by.

Yet, the young woman remained entirely still.

She simply stayed there quietly.

Finally, the young woman closed her eyes.

It was as if whatever Roalsa did, it held no consequence for her.

“…”

Gazing at the young woman with closed eyes, Roalsa hesitated for a few seconds.

The individual before her seemed to harbor no ill will, nor did they wish to engage in a conflict.

Though finding it profoundly strange, Roalsa ultimately forced herself to calm her frantically pounding heart.

Stiffening her resolve, she gritted her teeth and swiftly opened the wooden door, slipping inside.

Beyond the wooden door lay another dark passage.

This time, however, the passage was almost entirely adorned with pale, bleached skulls.

Torches, casting a dim, flickering light, burned silently.

Their meager glow spilled onto the skulls, lending the gloomy corridor an eerie atmosphere.

While such a scene might terrify ordinary individuals, it held no fear for Roalsa.

She simply closed the door softly.

Then, casually grabbing a wooden plank from the wall, she barricaded the door.

Taking a torch from its sconce, she began to explore deeper into the cavern.

The further she ventured, the muddier the path beneath her feet became.

Where she could once advance with ease, in the deeper sections, Roalsa now had to exert immense effort just to struggle forward through the mire.

Moreover, the mud seemed incredibly viscous.

With every step, Roalsa felt an inexplicable force tugging her backward.

Even for someone as strong as Roalsa, she was soon panting, breathless after only a short distance.

By this point, the mud, which had initially only covered her ankles, now reached her waist.

Its depth, moreover, appeared to be slowly increasing.

Roalsa could even feel something slithering beneath her feet.

Seizing the opportune moment, Roalsa took a deep breath, dove into the mud, and pulled out an enormous python.

The python measured approximately ten meters in length.

It thrashed relentlessly in Roalsa’s grip, flicking its blood-red tongue and emitting menacing hisses.

“What on earth is in here?”

Without hesitation, Roalsa dispatched the python.

She tossed its corpse back into the mud and pressed onward.

Roalsa instinctively felt that something important must be hidden deep within this passage.

Driven by this thought, Roalsa continued her advance.

By the time she reached the end of the mire, the muddy water had risen to her neck.

With almost every step, fetid, muddy water surged into her throat.

When she finally clambered out of the mud pit, Roalsa’s once magnificent uniform was utterly ruined.

Her fair skin was caked with mud, leaving her looking utterly filthy and unrecognizable.

In the muddy water behind her, the faint forms of giant pythons and crocodiles drifted.

“Ptooey, ptooey.”

Spitting out the mud from her mouth, Roalsa wiped her lips with her hand, disregarding her appearance, and continued deeper into the cavern.

The muddy passage was merely the first obstacle.

Further inside, Roalsa encountered prison cells filled with snarling hounds, deep pits teeming with venomous snakes, and corridors lined with spikes and flame-throwing devices.

Needless to say, these simple impediments were nothing to Roalsa, and she passed through them with ease.

However, this only intensified her curiosity: what valuable treasure could possibly be hidden at the end of this passage?

Easily overcoming a few more straightforward challenges, a tattered Roalsa finally arrived before an iron door.

The iron door was locked, and there was no key.

Fortunately, the door had no special properties.

Roalsa simply channeled a little magic and, with a powerful blast, created a gaping hole in it.

To Roalsa’s surprise, a bright light emanated from within the iron door.

Her curiosity now peaked, she eagerly squeezed through the hole, keen to investigate what was radiating such brilliance.

“Ah, you are…”

Upon entering the room beyond the door, Roalsa hadn’t even had a chance to explore before a young man’s voice drew her attention.

The voice carried a hint of surprise, alongside a touch of bewilderment.

Following the sound, in an unassuming corner of the vast room, a naked young man was suspended with his hands bound high above him.

Fetters locked his ankles, and a thick chain encircled his neck, holding him captive.

Before the young man stood a table laden with steaming food.

Beneath the table, piles of gold and silver treasures gleamed.

Roalsa glanced down at her feet; she had been too hasty entering and hadn’t noticed that the treasures already reached her waist.

Having navigated a multitude of traps to reach this final room, Roalsa was not astonished by the sheer volume of gold and silver.

After all, for mountain bandits, the purpose of so many traps was merely to protect their stolen treasures.

In fact, the only thing that truly shocked her was that, apart from the gold and silver, a human young man was also tied up in this room.

“Um, who are you, and why are you bound here?”

Roalsa averted her gaze, trying her best not to look at the young man’s body.

The young man, however, looked at Roalsa, swallowing hard.

He shifted forward a few steps, causing his chains to rattle loudly, and his voice held a note of urgency—

“Um, my name is Brunhilde. Excuse me, have you come to rescue me?”