Advent of the Three Calamities

Chapter 505: The Northern Walls Fall [1]



'....Everything looks normal as if nothing is out of place.'

If not for the room and the fact that he had been warned by the owl, Leon wouldn't have noticed that he had fallen for an illusion.

This alone made his back grow cold.

What would've happened had he not been warned?

Leon's lips pursed tightly as he rushed forward. He didn't know where he was heading, but he was sure the owl knew where to go.

All he had to do was follow it.

As such, he paced around the estate without saying a single word.

Tak, tak-

Within the silence that gripped the surroundings, the only sound he could hear was the faint click of his shoes and the flutter of the owl's wings as they navigated through the empty and dimly lit hallways.

'Where did it go?'

Pausing, Leon looked around before heading left.

'...Ah, here.'

He was unfamiliar with the surroundings, and with everything being so dim, he had to rely on his ears to properly follow the owl that blended in the darkness.

"I feel several presences in here."

Right as Leon lost track of time, navigating through the hallways, the owl came to a stop, pointing its beak in the direction of a certain door.

"This is...?"

Leon squinted his eyes to get a better look.

[Dining Hall]

It said.

Holding onto his breath, he turned to face the owl and asked, "How many presences do you feel inside? How strong are they?"

"There's four."

That's all the owl said; its tone as indifferent as it always sounds.

Leon casually acknowledged the owl's words before pressing his hand against the door. Suddenly, his body grew tense as his other hand gripped tightly onto the hilt of his sword.

Because the owl didn't specify the strength of the ones inside, he felt a bit nervous.

Of course, he didn't think he couldn't beat them.

Surely the owl wouldn't try to get him killed.

'Uh...?'

Leon's brows furrowed.

'Wait, now that I think about it, isn't this Julien's owl?'

Leon licked his lips which had become strangely dry.

Surely not, right?

He turned his head to see the owl's cold and indifferent eyes and swallowed.

Surely...

'Where the fuck are we....? Don't tell me that we're lost.'

Just then, he heard a faint voice coming from behind the door. His brows immediately jumped up and he leaned his head closer to listen in.

'It seems like we are, but how is that possible? I'm sure we followed the right path.'

'Apparently not, you dumb bitch.'

'What did you just call me?'

Leon's expression froze upon hearing the familiar voices coming from behind the door before soon relaxing.

His previous tension eased and soon after, he pushed the door open.

Clank-

"I called you a dumb bitch. Is it so hard for you to-Ah?"

"Eh?"

As the door opened, Aoife and Kiera stopped talking, and they both simultaneously turned their heads to look in Leon's direction.

"Leon?"

"Looks like you also got lost."

Behind the two of them was Evelyn who sat on one of the chairs with her palm on her forehead. She looked tired of it all.

Her expression alone seemed to say, 'Kill me. I want to die. I'm done dealing with the two of them. Someone help me.'

She was so absorbed in her thoughts that she didn't notice his presence.

"Leon."

Walking up to him with a frown, Aoife looked around.

"...It's good that you're here. I think there's something wrong with this place. Evelyn noticed

it first which is why the three of us were able to be together, but I'm afraid everyone else is

lost."

Aoife thought back to her experiences and her frown deepened.

"It's like the place is constantly changing. I can't tell where anything is and every time I try to retrace my steps, I find myself in an entirely new place."

"Is that what's happening?"

Leon didn't really notice this.

He followed the owl the entire time, so he didn't have to worry about retracing his steps or

going the wrong way.

However, when he thought deeper, this really seemed to be the case.

'It's almost as if it's trying to trap us inside. The longer we stay here the more dangerous it will become

for us later.'

Right as Leon opened his mouth to relay what he knew to them, his face froze.

'Hold on a second.'

And his brows flicked up as he looked around the room.

"One, two, three..."

Leon suddenly felt a tight grip on his heart as he turned his head sharply, scanning the

surroundings with greater alarm.

His sudden changes gained the interest of the girls who looked at him with frowns.

"Are you okay?"

"...Did something happen? Why are you acting weird?"

"Leon? Since when did you-"

"Shhh."

Leon pressed his hand against his lips and retrieved his sword. He could still distinctively remember the owl's words just before entering and his heart sank when he replayed them in

his mind.

'How many presences do you feel inside? How strong are they?'

'There's four.'

Leon looked around and counted.

'One, two, three...'

Where was the fourth?

There was no fourth.

"Leon?"

"Is everything okay? You're acting weird. Is-"

Bang!

The ceiling suddenly collapsed, sending large chunks of it flying down onto the ground. The faces of the girls changed rapidly as a large root appeared from above the ground, stabbing

right towards them.

"Dod-Hiek!"

But it was too late.

Before Kiera could even have the time to react, the root directly grasped onto her throat.

Its movements were so fast that even Leon found himself struggling to react.

But that wasn't all.

Bang, bang! The entire room shook as the sides of the wall shattered and even more roots appeared. Leon's face grew pale at the sight and he quickly raised his sword in order to fight back against

the root, but...

Bang-

He was absolutely no match for it.

With one whip, Leon was sent flying back, his back crashing against the nearby wall as he spat

out a mouthful of saliva.

"Ukeh."

Just as his trembling hand pressed against the ground to push himself up, something cold and

slimy brushed against his ankle.

Squelch!

His breath stopped as he glanced down, only to see a dark root slithering up from beneath

him, its veiny surface pulsating as it wrapped tightly around his foot.

Squelch... Squelch...

The sound grew louder, more sickening. Panic surged through him as more roots began to

emerge from the shadows, writhing like serpents.

Before he could react, one coiled around his arm,

"Ah...!"

Leon felt the air get sucked out of his body the moment the root took hold of him.

"Ukh!"

He thrashed and strained, his muscles burning as he fought against the roots that clung to

him like living chains. His fingers clawed desperately at the air, searching for anything to grab

onto.

"No... this can't be happening," Leon gasped, his voice hoarse.

Eventually, his eyes fell on a certain owl and he reached forward.

"H-help."

He reached out to the owl in hopes it would help, but all he received was a cold and indifferent

look.

A thick, gnarled root surged up, coiling around his wrist with a wet, sickening squelch.

"Ukh... No!"

The root yanked his arm down with brutal force, pinning him to the cold, damp ground.

Squelch... squelch...

The sound grew louder, more relentless, as countless roots began to sprout from the earth,

their forms weaving around his limbs and torso. They crawled up his legs, tightened around

his chest, and snaked around his throat.

The air felt colder, heavier, as his struggles became weaker. Panic was replaced with a num dread as the roots envelo him entirely..

Darkness crept into his vision as his body grew still, and the faint echoes of his muffled cries

faded alongside those of the girls.

In the end, Leon's strength gave out and silence enveloped the surroundings.n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

.....

Overlooking everything in silence, Owl-Mighty's indifferent eyes gazed directly in Leon's

direction before turning around and leaving.

Squelch~

It's job was done.

***

"How old did you say you guys were?"

This was probably the fourth time the 'Head Elder' had asked us the question. Shortly after

her appearance and the situation cleared up, we were escorted to a private room where the Head Elder greeted us.

She, alongside the others, carried the same look of surprise upon seeing our real faces.

"...We're twenty."

Answering her again, her aged face couldn't help but scrunch up a little as she mumbled,

'How impressive. I would've thought they were older considering their strength, but...' Glancing at us again, she sighed.

"It looks like we've underestimated the people of the Empires. They haven't been slacking."

"...Thank you."

The only thing I could think to do was thank her for her compliment.

She merely waved her hand at us.

"Don't bother, we're the ones who are thankful to you. Given everything that you've done for

our house, the only ones who should be thank you are us."

As she said so, she looked towards the window displaying the sky.

A faint smile tugged at her lips upon laying her sight on the sky.

"I've always wanted to see the sky you guys boast about so much in the Empires. I can't say

I'm disappointed."

Lowering her head, a faint sadness lingered within that smile of hers.

I understood the smile all too well.

While the sky signified liberation, it also signified grief.

I didn't know the relationship between her and the old man, but I was sure it was close.

Placing her hand down on the table, she quickly pinched her chin and took a deep breath before looking at us.

"I heard a short summarized version of what happened from Kora, but I'd like to hear your

side of the story. How exactly did you meet and how did you solve the entire situation?" To her question, I chose to respond.

I knew the entire situation better than anyone else and thus, I explained everything to her.

From the start until the end.

It took about half an hour for me to explain everything, and by the time I was done, the room

grew silent as the Head Elder seemed lost in her thoughts. She continued to mumble things to herself while sitting there in a daze.

This was until she finally snapped out of it and looked at the three of us.

Her gaze...

It felt ever warmer than before.

If before she treated us nicely because we were her saviors, right now, it almost felt like she

was regarding us as members of their own house.

As her lips parted open to say something, her expression suddenly changed.

"?"

Lifting her head, she looked towards the window and her face stiffened.

Similarly turning my head, I found myself staring at the tall walls in the distance. At first, I

didn't notice anything abnormal, but it then happened.

Bang-

A terrifying, yet muffled explosion.

Its sound reverberated throughout the entire surroundings, shattering all noise from the

world. Bang!

The noise persisted one more.

And then...

Bang-!

The walls shattered.