The Mine (2)
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The air pulsed.
The walls glowed with runes that hadn't been there a second ago. Before we could react, magic circles bloomed beneath our feet.
"What the—!?"
"Shi—!"
'Fuck.'
A flash of light engulfed us, and I felt the magic forcing something—like reality itself bending around my body.
Then—Nothing.
The light vanished. The mine looked normal again. The eerie carvings, the glowing runes—all gone like a trick of the eye.
"…What the hell?"
I stood alone.
The silence hit me first. No footsteps. No grumbling. No stupid banter.
I focused.
"…Macao? Wakaba?"
Nothing.
I couldn't feel them - no presence, no aura, nothing through my Haki. Like they had been erased.
My jaw clenched. Something wasn't right.
'Teleportation Magic?'
Shit.
I couldn't keep going. This cave was way too dangerous.
But… Macao and Wakaba.
There was no time to hesitate.
I needed help. Whatever this was it was beyond me. I couldn't afford to be reckless.
I turned and sprinted toward the entrance.
But after just five steps—
BANG!
I slammed into something.
An invisible wall.
I staggered back, clutching my shoulder as glowing runes shimmered in the air like ink suspended in water. I stared at them, jaw tight.
"…These aren't Ishgar's standard runes."
They were older. I think.
'Haah. Fuck this.'
I drew in my magic and pressed my palm flat against the barrier. Reddish-black energy flared, destruction crackling through my arm as I poured it into the wall.
BOOM!
The blast echoed—but I didn't break through.
The recoil hit me like a hammer, launching me off my feet.
I crashed against the ground.
Of course, it didn't hurt—not really. The Giants had toughened me up, and that drink they gave me had done wonders. Whatever was in it, it stirred something in my blood.
I got up and dusted myself off.
"It reflects magic," I muttered, eyes narrowing at the runes. "So… what about a physical hit?"
I walked back to the barrier, cracking my knuckles.
'Time to use Haki.'
Willpower surged through me as I coated my arms. The air around them shimmered with pressure.
WOOSH.
I slammed a punch into the invisible wall—hard enough that even the most durable Giant I'd met would've braced for it.
Nothing.
Not even a crack.
I blinked… and then grinned.
It had been a while since I got to test my Armament Haki like this. Not since I returned from the Sun Village. Opportunities to really push myself had been rare.
'Perfect training opportunity.'
But then the image of Macao and Wakaba flashed in my mind.
Right. I couldn't waste too much time.
Still… I threw a few more punches. And kicks. For about an hour.
Eventually, I collapsed onto the stone floor, breathing heavily.
"Haah… haah…"
Using Haki took a toll. It wasn't like magic. It didn't draw from magical power—but from the body and the mind. It was raw. Pure. And according to Rock, only those with Giant blood could even attempt it.
I believed him. Mostly.
I had even tried teaching it to Cana once. She couldn't manifest anything, but maybe it was a talent thing. Or maybe I was just a shit teacher.
I stared at the invisible wall again. Couldn't see it, but I could feel it—both with Observation and Magic Sense.
'If only I could use that…'
The memory hit me like a cold wave. That mission. The only time I'd used it.
When I'd mixed Haki and Magic.
Rock had said it was a feat only one Giant in history had pulled off.
Oars the Tower.
And yet, I'd done it.
The result hadn't just been destruction. It was annihilation.
In that moment, my reddish-black destruction magic had turned purple.
It had gone beyond power.
It had become calamity.
The best comparison I could think of. My normal destruction was like Power of Destruction from High School DxD (Rias's version) while when mixed with Haki it had become like Hakai from Dragon ball.
It wasn't about breaking things. It was about erasing their existence.
I lay there for a while longer, catching my breath.
Fifteen minutes, maybe.
Then I stood up, brushing off my pants.
'Can't sit here forever. Time to move.'
Staying put wasn't productive. And if I wanted answers—or a way out—I'd have to find them myself.
I pushed deeper into the mine.
As I walked, I noticed something strange—the glowing blue crystals on the walls were growing sparse.
Their light dimmed with every step.
'At this rate, I might end up in pitch darkness.'
The deeper I went, the more the silence grew oppressive.
I kept my steps light. My Haki stretched to its limit.
The something happened. The ground beneath my foot gave a soft click.
Shit.
...I was too late. I tried to jump but to no avail.
The floor panels ahead dropped away, and a gust of wind erupted from below, blasting me off my feet. I twisted mid-air, trying to control the fall.
Crash.
I landed hard in a lower chamber, rolling across uneven stone. Dust rose in a thick cloud.
"Of course there were traps," I muttered.
This place wasn't just a natural cavern… it was constructed. Designed.
But for what?
Still, even with my Observation stretched as far as I could manage, I felt nothing. No intent. No malice. No magic signature that hinted at a lurking presence.
It was unsettling. Like standing in the eye of a storm that had yet to hit.
"Nothing alive... but everything feels like it should be," I muttered, my voice barely a whisper now.
I pressed forward.
The deeper I went, the more refined the structure became. The uneven stone gave way to shaped corridors, archways lined with runes—some pulsing faintly with magic, others long dead and cracked.
I passed murals. Symbols. Forgotten words I couldn't read. I tried using my magic sense, but the ambient energy here was... dense. Like walking through water.
Eventually, I came into a chamber.
The air here was heavier.
A single crystal hovered in the center of the room, casting a soft purple glow across the stone. It illuminated a mural etched into the back wall. A massive depiction carved directly into the rock.
I stepped closer.
Two figures, cloaked and robed, stood tall at the center of a crowd of bowed heads. One of them held a staff shaped like a crescent moon. The other bore a jagged crown and a sword that looked as though it cut the sky itself.
Above their heads, written in Standard Runes that shimmered faintly in the light—two words I could just barely make out.
The Moon. The Emperor.
I walked closer and just as I took a step forward. I got chills.
The Moon opened its eyes.
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