Chapter 529 Long Corridors
Davster watched Andrew walk away with a tired smile on his lips before falling into a state of semi-consciousness. He knew that time was short and his weakened body could no longer withstand the effects of the lamia poison.
As Andrew followed the path indicated by Davster, his mind was filled with conflicting thoughts and emotions. He felt honored to be chosen for this mission, but he also carried the weight of responsibility to protect the princesses and find a solution to the chaotic situation that was unfolding.
Finding the hallway to the right of the main staircase, Andrew hurried on, keeping his attention sharp in search of the lobby mentioned by Davster. The distant sound of battles and shouting echoed through the halls of the palace, serving as a constant reminder of the impending danger and that those doing such damage were still around.
When he finally reached the hall mentioned by Davster, he found several vases on display, just as Davster had described.
Without wasting any time, he approached the third vase and removed it from its place. After a brief tremor, an opening in the middle of the hall revealed a staircase leading down into the depths of the palace.
As he gazed into the darkness, Andrew dryly swallowed the saliva in his mouth and moved on with only his sword to light his way.
Carefully descending the steps, Andrew entered the underground of the palace, where the darkness seemed to swallow everything.
The air was heavier here, carrying whispers of ancient secrets and hidden dangers lurking in the shadows. And when the secret passage closed completely, producing a tremor like the one before and a loud noise, Andrew's legs began to shake even more.
The large snail-shaped staircase led him to an underground corridor, which seemed to be part of the sewers or something, because the stones on the walls were full of moss.
Moreover, the underground corridor snaked like an ancient serpent with its cold, damp walls bearing traces of the palace's forgotten past. Andrew's heart beat fast, with a mixture of anticipation and apprehension as he advanced, guided only by the white light of his sword and his determination.
As he went deeper, the air became colder and colder and an impending sense of foreboding filled the atmosphere. The faint echo of water drops and the sound of Andrew's footsteps added to the growing tension. Andrew's senses remained sharp, each step being taken cautiously as he tried to ignore the growing anxiety. He knew that the princesses might be in danger and that time was rapidly running out, but he definitely didn't want to run and end up falling into some trap.
After what seemed like an eternity, the corridor widened, revealing an immense chamber bathed in a faint, ethereal luminosity. Stalactites hung from the ceiling, looking like frozen tears, while stalagmites rose from the floor like ancient guardians. In the center of the chamber was a pedestal, upon which rested a shimmering sphere.
Andrew did not see a path to follow it as Davster had mentioned. He had expected a large metal door that he would need to get through to find the princesses and the tomb of the kings, but he definitely wasn't expecting something like that.
"What is it? Did I miss the way?" Andrew wondered aloud. "No, there was only one path.... Shit! Am I lost?! What now?"
With a mixture of wonder and fear, Andrew approached the pedestal with his hands trembling slightly as he stared at the sphere.
"And what is that? Is it some kind of test? Like the evidence from the movie of that kid with the scar who needs to get to the Philosopher's Stone room?" inquired Andrew.
As Andrew gazed at the enigmatic glowing sphere, he realized that there was no other option but to investigate further. After all, he could not allow his doubts and fears to prevent him from fulfilling his mission and protecting the princesses. So, with his sword still in hand, Andrew moved even closer to the pedestal, keeping alert for any sign of danger.
As he looked at the sphere so closely, he noticed that it emitted a soft luminescence and its surface was smooth and translucent, as if made of an unknown material.
"I can't just stand here. I need to find the princesses and keep them safe like Klaus asked." he said to himself, gathering the courage to touch the sphere.
?andasnovel.com As he reached out his hand, he felt a slight vibration run through his fingers as it came into contact with the object. A strange yet comforting feeling came over him, as if the sphere was somehow communicating with him.
Images began to form in his mind, revealing glimpses of the kingdom's past. He witnessed former kings and queens, brave warriors and moments of glory and tragedy, as well as the various attacks this Capital City had already suffered in its entire history. It seemed that the sphere was telling the history of the kingdom, imparting to him knowledge long forgotten.
Andrew also realized that the sphere was showing him the way to find the location of the princesses and the entrance to the most protected part of the underground fortress, the vault, because among the many images that unfolded before him, revealing secret passages and hidden rooms, he finally understood the path he needed to follow to the tomb of the ancient kings.
When Andrew's mind returned after seeing so many images, he felt a strong dizziness and fell backwards, his buttocks on the floor. His sword fell to his right and, with wide eyes, he said to himself:
"Now I know what to do..."
In the vision Andrew had, he saw that somewhere in this small cave with speleothems, there was a secret passage to another corridor. So Andrew followed exactly where he remembered and pulled a small speleothem, like a lever, which made one of the cave walls open, causing dust to fall from the ceiling and revealing a path ahead, only this path was different from the corridor Andrew had followed to get there. In this path there were hundreds of wooden doors, only that Andrew was not surprised, because he had already seen all this and knew that it was just a way to confuse intruders and make invaders waste time opening door after door.
Andrew already knew precisely which way he should go.