Chapter 2085: Chapter 2085
The moment Jenkins's voice faded, dozens of cocoons began to stir unnaturally. But they only started moving after he spoke in the common tongue, which meant the souls here were mostly from the eighteenth epoch, not some ancient, powerful beings.
He chose one at random, retrieving a falling metal cocoon while keeping a wary eye on the human-faced snake. After cutting the cocoon open, he once again caught the familiar "scent of Nolan." This time, a woman crawled out.
The age projected by her soul was certainly greater than that of the miner and the train conductor, but she was still far from an old woman. Her attire was in much better condition as well; though not exquisite, it was at least free of patches and dust.
“You don’t need to ask. I'm from the Witch's House. Williamette, I never thought you’d be a Savior.”
Jenkins had certainly clashed with the illicit organization before, but he had primarily fought them under the guise of a "Believer of Lies." The members of the Witch's House were adept at maneuvering among nobles and government officials, using political intrigue and their beauty to navigate the upper echelons of society—which is precisely why their defeat had been so crushing.
When he had first encountered the organization, Jenkins was only a baron. At the time, however, rumors were already swirling that Bishop Parrold intended for him to be the next candidate for bishop of the Sage's Church in the Nolan diocese. So it was entirely possible she had seen his photograph.
“In that case, has the End of the Era arrived?”
“If my journey here ends in failure, then the end will likely come.”
He stated the fact in as regretful a tone as he could muster.
“I see... So this is the final battle. To think it would happen inside a Mysterious Realm.”
This woman had once been a leader in the Witch's House, one of the organization's so-called "Seven Witches." She had fallen in a battle where they summoned the Hanging Shadow of the Shadow Realm, slain on the field by the Orthodox Church.
She, too, had a tragic past. Though Jenkins was curious, he didn't press her for details. He only knew it involved a miserable childhood, a peasant family bankrupted by the enclosure movement, an alcoholic father, and a silver-tongued young lover. She was another pitiable yet loathsome figure born from the tragedies of the age.
But everyone has their story, and Jenkins had no time for pity. He just wanted to understand what was happening in this place.
“The cocoons may have blinded my eyes, but they couldn't stop me from seeing the shadows. There truly is a worm here...”
Instead of looking at the woman, Jenkins kept his eyes fixed on the human-faced snake. The creature remained coiled in place, its tongue flicking as it watched them converse with an unnerving smile.
“That worm—it's enormous, and seems to have sharp angles—is inside the body of one of the great demons. It's dormant, absorbing the demon's power.”
Understanding dawned on Jenkins. It all made sense now. If he had actually tried to find the door by sacrificing others, it wouldn’t have been just the demons that awoke. The worm would have also been roused through a process akin to a ritual sacrifice. Then he would have been forced to battle a portion of the power of the Beast of Calamity, the Earthfire Worm, amidst the lava.
So this was the true nature of the Mysterious Realm. Sacrificing more souls to find the way meant facing more demons. Showing compassion for the souls meant facing only the lava.
But with the Difference Engine's meddling, the human-faced snake was here to encourage entrants to sacrifice souls, thereby awakening the dormant Beast of Calamity.
“So, the Beast of Calamity is also restricted within this Mysterious Realm. It can't act freely; it needs a specific trigger to unleash its power... Mysterious Realms are never designed to be inescapable death traps. If I don't sacrifice any souls, there must be a way to safely explore the lava...”
He turned his gaze back to the human-faced snake.
“I'm bound by the rules of this realm, and I'd wager you are too. That's probably why your malevolence has been so restrained, isn't it?”
“So, have you found a way out?”
Jenkins ignored the snake and spoke to the woman instead.
“I'll send you out of here, but I can't promise...”
“Don't bother. Just destroy my soul.”
“I'm sorry, what was that?”
An Enchanter, of all people, should understand the value of a soul. Her request was even more baffling than a wish for suicide.
“What good would it do to go on? What I want is total oblivion.”
She looked at Jenkins with grave sincerity.
“I'm tired of it. I'm tired of it all. Even if I continue on, even if I get to live again in another world, what's the point? Is there any place without suffering? I've had enough.”
“Don't let the era you lived in...”
He trailed off, instead producing another cross, identical to the one he had used before.
“You must understand one thing,” he declared. “I promised to send you away, not to destroy your soul. And I am a man of my word.”
The cross dissolved into dust in his hand, and the woman's soul vanished. Jenkins dusted off his hands, shot a glance at the snake, and then walked with his sword to the spot where the large boulder met the sealed entrance of the cave.
“As puzzles go, this one's a bit too simple!”
He gripped the sword with both hands and plunged it into the ground. With a flash of white light, dust billowed into the air. The massive boulder sheared away from the cliff face, plummeting toward the rising lava below.
The boulder struck the surface of the lava, and just as Jenkins had expected, its landing was soft, like a stone settling onto a pile of cotton. The molten rock didn't swallow the boulder or even cause it to tip. And though Jenkins was now directly above the lava, the demons made no move to grab him.
He withdrew his sword and donned his monocle, his eyes peering into the depths of the lava. The human-faced snake remained silent. Jenkins began to move again, gathering the three metal cocoons the souls had left behind. Using his sword as shears and strands of metal pulled from the cocoons as thread, he stitched the three layers together. The result was a makeshift suit, far from airtight, but it would at least protect him for a few precious seconds.
Tucked inside, Jenkins could enter the lava and reach the door. The only question was what the awakened swarm of demons below was doing, and whether they would attack once he was submerged. The most update n0vels are published on NoveI~Fire.net
“If you're going to spring your trap, now's the time. I'm leaving.”
Standing before his makeshift cocoon armor, Jenkins addressed the human-faced snake. The creature couldn't shrug, so it simply flicked its tongue a few more times.
“You'll regret this.”
“You never should have come here, Savior. You have no hope of victory, so why not just wait peacefully for death? It would be better for everyone that way.”