The Bizarre Detective Agency

Chapter 899: The Collapse

The Spiral Hall.

Broad stone steps spiraled downward.

The passages leading to the branches of each level looked like wormholes bored into the abyss, and tiny creatures moved through them.

Three robed figures were among them. If one drew closer, a frantic rustling could be heard from beneath their dark robes.

"Toss the counters. Knight Vino, you keep yours."

Captain Hoggart removed his counter and, along with the squire, leaned against the stone railing and dropped it into the black, gloomy abyss.

"Squire, you're too tense. Relax," Captain Hoggart said, noticing the squire's hand trembling beneath his robe as they continued their descent.

"Yes, Captain Hoggart!"

The squire stopped, his body straightening beneath his robe, his voice involuntarily growing louder.

"Erlosii!"A shrill cry, accompanied by the thudding of feet, suddenly erupted as two anomalies carrying a bound anomaly rushed toward them.

Hiss—

With a rumbling exhaust, Knight Vino's robe billowed out, revealing the cold glint of steel beneath.

"Hold. Don't do anything."

Captain Hoggart quietly stopped them, standing his ground and watching as the creatures rushed to the stone railing ahead and hurled the struggling, shackled anomaly into the abyss.

The whistle of its fall vanished instantly, but the two anomalies remained at the railing.

They soon understood why the two anomalies lingered—a few residual shadows were "spat out" by the abyss, and the waiting anomalies caught them.

They were a few indistinguishable tibias. The anomalies holding them seemed dejected, muttering unintelligibly before tossing the bones back into the abyss and turning away.

Captain Hoggart frowned and glanced back. Where they had thrown their counters, some other anomaly was picking something up.

"Let's keep moving."

Each turn of the Spiral Hall constituted a single level.

They could see the deep layers extending into the grim abyss below, as well as the six levels above them.

As they passed between the seventh and eighth levels, very close to their destination, a vibration suddenly emanated from the steps beneath their feet, originating from the depths of the earth.

Loose stones trembled, kicking up dust. They, and the surrounding anomalies on the seventh level, all stopped simultaneously, searching for the source of the vibration—

Boom!

The tremor intensified sharply with a loud roar as lava burst from cracks in the rock.

One unfortunate anomaly was standing directly in front of a fissure, its short, agonized shriek drowned out by the hot, viscous lava.

Knight Vino stepped forward, positioning himself in front of Captain Hoggart and the squire. He blocked their view and shielded them from the stone fragments flying like arrows.

The red-hot stones tore through their robes and clanged against the steam armor, leaving dents and white scrape marks.

Boom!

Another torrent of lava erupted from a newly formed fissure.

The anomalies scattered in all directions, shrieking, swarming like ants returning to their nest.

"Keep moving!"

Captain Hoggart roared, and Knight Vino shielded them as they scrambled down the steps.

At that moment, amidst the chaos on the eighth level of the Spiral Hall, several figures appeared.

"I have it!"

A hoarse cry rang out from their midst. A charred silhouette raised an unremarkable wooden box high, displaying it to all the pursuing anomalies, then plunged into a branch-off passage on the eighth level.

Two other figures turned and ran toward the upper levels.

Most of the pursuing anomalies scattered in pursuit, but a few minions still followed the other two.

"If you won't leave, then become sacrifices for our Lord!"

A figure in a black cloak stopped, tore off his robe, and with a fanatical roar, exploded like a shadow, engulfing all the pursuing minions.

"That's Lu Li."

The squire couldn't help but exclaim, gazing at the lone cloaked figure ascending toward them.

The trembling started again from beneath their feet. An incomparably violent tremor spread throughout the entire Spiral Hall, as if ancient giants had reawakened and were battling deep underground.

Everyone still in the Spiral Hall was thrown off their feet, including Hoggart's group. Even Lu Li, who was running toward the upper levels, was knocked to the ground.

Falling rocks and dust obscured their vision. The pervasive screams and tremors made them oblivious to their own approaching death—

A shadow flashed past, and a boulder the size of a house crashed down on the steps where Captain Hoggart and the squire stood. The violent gust of wind it created tore the robes from the remnants of metal armor.

"Captain!"

A blast of steam dispersed the dust. The squire was nowhere to be seen, and Captain Hoggart, half-buried under the rocks, was muttering something faintly.

Knight Vino dropped to one knee before him, listening intently to the whisper, nearly drowned out by the chaos.

"Protect Lu Li... bring him... back..."

The light of life faded from Captain Hoggart's eyes.

Knight Vino clenched his iron fist and turned to face the collapsing eighth level.

...

Lu Li, adjusting to the incessant tremors, got to his feet and began to scramble unsteadily up the steps.

The Spiral Hall was collapsing, and the steam silhouette seemed like a madman bent on destroying the Old Sewer.

Now that Ophelia had drawn away the anomalies and Bishop John was covering the rear, Lu Li was without support—

An anomaly pushed aside some rocks and rose, skittering on three limbs toward Lu Li's back, its long proboscis taking aim—

Boom!

A huge shadow fell. Steel boots crushed the anomaly, and caustic venom hissed from its broken proboscis.

"Go. Up."

Knight Vino whispered to Lu Li, who glanced back.

Lu Li's dark eyes lingered for a moment on the Inquisition's knightly armor, then he turned and continued his ascent.

Knight Vino followed him with heavy strides.

Every second, new cracks appeared; every second, waterfalls of lava erupted from the fissures. The eighth level of the Spiral Hall was like a world on the brink of doom, where tremors, lava, and collapse were the eternal melody.

Few anomalies displayed such raw destructive power. The steam silhouette, in comparison, was more of a cunning brute.

But disaster does not distinguish between friend and foe; it treats all alike.

The steps beneath their feet suddenly tilted and split apart. The section of the Spiral Hall they were on, like a broken piece of honeycomb, slid from the hive and plunged into the abyss.

The next intact section of the stairs was hundreds of meters away.

Lu Li sped up. Knight Vino, following silently behind him, also began to shed his bulky, heavy armor.

After a short sprint of a few dozen seconds, the untouched steps were close.

Lu Li ran onto the sharply tilting ground, leaped over rolling fragments of rock, grabbed the edge of the broken stairs, and pulled himself up.

Knight Vino, now stripped down to his leg armor, followed suit. He also pushed off and jumped, but he was too late and too heavy. His outstretched hand fell short of the ledge by a few dozen centimeters, and he began to fall.

Slap.

A hand shot out and grabbed him, sliding from his elbow down to his palm before finally catching hold, dragged down a few dozen centimeters by his weight.

Knight Vino gasped for breath. The terrifying collapse of the Spiral Hall served as a backdrop, with countless shards of rock and torrents of lava falling into the silent abyss.

He looked up at Lu Li, who was holding him but could be dragged into the abyss at any moment. Gritting his teeth, Vino drew the dagger from his belt.

"Please, return to Vinnelag... wash away the corruption, if you have not been... tainted."

Before he could sever his own wrist, Lu Li, hanging above him, also drew a dagger and plunged it downward—

The sharp blade pierced through both their palms.

A calm whisper cut through the sharp, tearing pain in his palm and reached Knight Vino's ear.

"You'll go back and tell them yourself."