6. First Quest (3)

The pillar of blue light shot from the ground and I felt the floor disappearing from beneath my feet including my room.

I felt as if I was suspended in space for a moment before gravity found me again and I fell back on my butt feeling my dinner crawling up my throat.

I resisted regurgitating it and breathed heavily before I lifted my head and looked at my surroundings. It was quite dark and the air around seemed heavy filled with the scent of earth.

I stood up, dusted my shorts and pulled out a light stone from my small backpack, it was a convenient torch replacement in this world. I looked around at the space which was now illuminated and noticed that I was in a tunnel-like space.

I got teleported right inside the mine.

I looked around before starting to walk ahead, the winding tunnel went deeper and deeper inside the earth and I couldn't find anything.

"It's pointless to keep on walking," I muttered before I closed my eyes and used my Mana Sense to check if there were some Mana traces around that could prove as a clue.

Mana traces were like the evidence like footprints or fragments of hair or nails, left behind on the crime scene, just like every person had their unique fingerprints, their mana was also unique.

The inanimate objects also contained a certain amount of mana which makes them traceable just like the traces of humans or animals.

For a moment, when I let my Mana sense do its work, I was drowned in the traces of multiple people, mine workers. I started walking ahead letting my Mana sense do its work.

After walking a few meters ahead into the pitch-black darkness with only my sense as a guide I stopped as I reached the dead-end. I touched the rocks that blocked my way and sighed, the air pressure was quite low so deep in the mine that I found it slightly hard to breathe.

"It was useless coming here," I concluded.

I was about to turn to leave when I heard the sounds of footsteps echoing off the narrow walls of the mine. I suddenly recalled Rune's conversation with Sir Rudyard and cursed myself for wasting time. It must be midnight and those people would be here to investigate the mine.

If they found me here, it would be difficult to answer their questions.

"Oi, system, teleport me back!" I quickly commanded.

[Request denied.]

"What the heck?!" I scowled at the blue screen, "I don't have time, here. Don't mess with me and teleport me back!"

[Request denied.]

"Why?!"

[Task incomplete.]

"There's nothing to investigate here, fool! It's an empty mine."

[Task incomplete.]

I clenched my fist and slammed it on the wall beside me in frustration. Something I shouldn't have done.

Two things happened.

First, I heard the sound of cracks that ran up the place I punched.

And second, the footsteps grew louder.

"Help me out, Patrons!" I shouted in my head but there was no reply instead I felt the ground beneath my feet cracking and I found myself falling into the deeper darkness.

I opened my eyes and blinked a few times as everything around me was pitch-black, I groaned as I moved feeling the aches blossom from everywhere on my body.

"I hope I'm not dead again." I groaned.

[Goddess of Wisdom sighs with relief.]

"Guess I'm alive." I sighed as I saw the notification.

I carefully moved my body hoping that I hadn't broken anything and once I was sure I was in one piece without any life-threatening injuries. I stood up cautiously feeling my surroundings as my light stone seemed to have fallen off somewhere.

I didn't even know how deep I fell but it was obvious that getting out would be complicated as I had no idea if there was an exit to begin with.

My body wasn't strong enough to last for a long time with the oxygen level already low and almost buried several feet below the ground. One wrong move and I'd be dead again.

I walked carefully feeling the wall beside me and wondered if I was in yet another tunnel or an underground cave.

In my past life, I had read about people who went to explore caves but because of some accidents they got trapped and died inside.

The thought of something similar happening to me made me shudder.

"System, take me back." I tried to order it again but the same denied notification popped up making me chant a string of profanities.

[Goddess of Wisdom shakes her head and reminds you of her warning.]

"Shut it." I snapped.

"It's not you guys in my shoes here."

I knew it was strange to have these two as my Patrons to begin with. These were the prolific figures from two different myths or rather beliefs: one, a Goddess of Greece and the other, a heavenly figure from Christianity.

I kept walking in the darkness, not even knowing how much time had passed and if the people from the mansion knew of me being missing or not. I didn't even know if Rune and the party he brought were safe or not.

I controlled my breathing as I kept walking until I heard a strange sound in the cave. I went still for a moment, fearing that I may have triggered another accident but it didn't seem like the sound from earlier.

I perked my ears as I listened intently till I concluded that it was the sound of footsteps.

I gulped as various scenarios ran through my head. Underground monsters, some giant insects, demons, etc. each worse than the other.

"Oi, system please tell me I don't have to fight in this tight space." I thought and received no response.

"I'm going to file a complaint against your shitty service!"

I prepared myself for the unknown entity that seemed to be getting closer and I gulped before frowning as I saw the light.

Usually, it would be a person walking towards the light but for light to come walking towards a person?

I still made sure to be on alert as the light turned at the corner and a silhouette came into view making my eyes go wide and jaw drop.

"Rune!" 

"Reina!"

We shouted in unison and Rune rushed close to me.

"What are you doing here?" He asked as he looked at my hands and down at my knees.

In the light of the light stone that he was holding, I could see that I had scraped my arms and busted my knees, I was bleeding. But Rune wasn't unscathed as well as he too had wounds on his body and he was limping.

"Wha... What happened to you?!" He gasped as he stared at me.

"I should be the one asking!" I said as I looked at him but he shook his head instead.

"No, wait. Why are you here, Reina? I told you we would go tomorrow."

"Right, then what are you doing here?" I asked instead and he pursed his lips for a moment.

"I-I..."

I sighed as he avoided my eyes, "I heard you talking with Sir Rudyard."

He looked back at me, "What? Wait, does that mean you followed us?"

"Yes," I lied making him run a hand through his hair.

"Why did you come here, Reina? It's dangerous." He said, "Now look where you are."

I cocked my brow at his words and reminded him, "We are in the same situation, brother."

"I would have preferred if you were in some safe place."

"While you would be here like this? No way!"

Rune looked at me before he sighed, "You are stubborn."

"So are you."

We were quiet for a moment before he spoke up, "Let's find a way out."

I looked around the space the light stone was illuminating and noticed that it was a fairly large place and there was another way apart from the two paths from where I and Rune came.

"All right, but I'm mad at you," I said as I started walking towards the third path.

"Huh? Why?" He asked as he followed me.

"You lied to me."

"I-I'm sorry..."

"Apology rejected."

Rune's shoulders slumped and I felt slightly better. Sir Rudyard and his men must be having a field day trying to look for us. But if things went well then they would be somewhere around here as well and that would ensure my and Rune's safety.

Just when I thought everything would go fine, I heard a familiar sound which made my eyes go wide and look at Rune who had the same expression as me.

The ground beneath us cracked but before I could react I felt Rune grabbing me against him before we fell.