Death

Through her earlier modifications, the magic circles that had been drawn into the wall still looked like they were fully functioning, but instead of truly drawing in the darkness elements in the air to multiply and expand, it cast an illusion over the person who came here to check up on the progress of the cave.

Nine had a faint feeling that this cave was actually the main basis of the Elves' expectations. She couldn't explain why she felt this way, but her [Veritas] skill rang true, though she never voiced her thoughts out loud.

It was a kind of gut feeling that she couldn't quite explain, honed over the years. This cave was clearly hidden well and had been worked over meticulously. There was no dust in the alcove, nor were there any monsters nor Magic Beasts inhabiting it.

For there to be no activity in this place, there was only one explanation. This was a place that was important to them in some way.

Though Nine had already looked over the cave earlier, she couldn't help but have a nagging feeling that she had missed something, causing her to overlook a very important detail in the enemy's plans.

Nine traced the modifications that she made earlier before leaving this place. A few of Mephisto's minions scurried out from their hiding places, latching onto her clothes and climbing up.

Nine looked at them curiously. Unfortunately, she could not understand their chirps mainly because they were not her familiars, thus she had no familiar bond with them. She gestured at Nocturne, causing them to leap off her and onto the other Vampire instead.

Nocturne communicated with his own familiar, communicating with the various Toxic Spiders.

"They said that only one person came in here once a few months ago. Other than that, no Magic Beasts have appeared, nor have any monsters come close, let alone anyone else."

Nine nodded. It was as she expected. Slowly, the puzzle pieces started clicking together. "…This is probably an escape route. One of them, at least."

Nocturne agreed. Since there had only been one person who came to check this place to make sure there wasn't anything wrong, it was important enough to check it, but wasn't important enough for there to be heavy guard.

"In that case, there should be a teleportation circle that we've missed somewhere. It's inactive, which is why it doesn't register when we scan the place with magic."

Nine carefully studied the alcove walls, thinking about what the Elves wanted. "Won't be on the walls. Most likely, on the floor since it'll be used for an escape teleport. That way, when they land, they'll be ready to leave and run right away instead of having to reposition themselves."

Nine and Nocturne split the work to look for a possible teleportation circle that had been inscribed.

The alcove was larger than it seemed from the outside, stretching deep and wide inside. There were several pathways that split, likely to confuse the potential pursuer, as well as allowing for ambushes should they want it.

In the end, Nocturne was the one who found it.

"Here it is!"

However meticulous it may have been hidden, since they already knew that it was most likely found on the ground, it was easier to look for misplaced details.

Whoever had checked this place previously did a quick job, going off to check other escape areas. Thus, the teleportation circle had only been hidden using a light trail of soil, easily unearthed. Whether it was negligence or the mentality that no one would be able to discover it, this allowed them to find the circle easier.

Nine moved over to where Nocturne had fully unearthed the teleportation circle, realizing that it covered majority of the floor in the middle.

The magic circle had been deeply carved into the earth but was currently not activated unlike the other circles on the walls, thus there was no glow of magic. The longer they studied the circle, the more signs they found that it was truly made by the Elves and only the Elves.

The circle had been carved in an easy manner, one that showed the practice and ease that the carver had in creating these types of magic circles. As such, the tell-tale signs of the carver's little habits had been fully inscribed in a way that could not be faked.

Looking at this, Nine could see that the teleportation spell had been made to transport a large mass of people… or maybe undead. It allowed for them to teleport out, but not for people to teleport in.

"What should we do now?" Nocturne wondered. "Can we open a teleportation circle to the place where its meant to come from?"

Nine tapped a finger on her lip. "I think we can. If we work together, it should be done in a few hours without alerting them."

Nocturne hummed; his mind already hard at work. "There. We should open another magic circle above it to allow for a forceful inclusion of a command."

Nine dropped to her knees, pulling out a variety of specialized tools from her interspatial bracelet, handing a set to Nocturne.

In silence, the husband and wife worked together, changing the magic circle here and there in ways that would allow for them to teleport in the opposite direction.

Finally, they left a way out to teleport as a last resort, but only allowed two people to teleport at a time.

Taking a breath, Nocturne stepped back, admiring the meticulous work that Nine and himself had put in. Working in tandem with Nine was always a pleasure. He felt like they were truly connected in a way that couldn't quite be explained using words alone.

The pleasure when working with someone who understood you fully was a great feeling. Nocturne even dared to say that he would never be able to find another person who understood him as fully as Nine ever did.

As Nine drew in the last rune needed, the cavern lit up with a blue glow. Nine and Nocturne both stepped onto the teleportation circle, taking a breath.

In the next moment, they were teleported into an unknown location.

Instantly, Nine and Nocturne moved from the spot they teleported to. They had none of the needed information required to infiltrate a place, but they worked with what they had. They found themselves standing in a similar cavern from the one they had just left – but with a difference.

This cavern's walls were crawling with green, thorny vines, known to the others for being the Elves' guard dogs.

The vines were semi-sentient and were able to trap intruders. Not only that, they exuded a type of toxin that would paralyse anyone who touched it other than the Elves. Once trapped, the prey was slowly pricked and drained of their blood, nourishing the vines.

Nocturne studied the walls full of crawling Elf Vines, making sure not to even remotely go near the vines. As far as he could see, they were crawling in every direction, which meant that there was no clear-cut way to exit this room without alerting the Elves to their presence.

The vines rustled, moving in different patterns. There was no set direction in which the vines moved on the walls, which might have frustrated a normal person, but Nocturne remained calm.

"Do you see a door anywhere?" Nocturne asked.

"Mm," Nine said, moving marginally closer to the Elf Vines. She reached within an inch short of touching the vines, realizing that they moved only on a surface of a wall unless they were provoked.

Nocturne turned to look at Nine, who seemed to be studying something, getting a clear glance at her back.

Suddenly, alarms started blaring in his head as he sensed danger. "Nine!" he shouted out, hoping that she would dodge, but to no avail.

Before he could take any action, the blurry figure of a man faded into view, his hand clutching a silver dagger. The man dashed forward, sinking the sharp edge of the dagger into Nine's vulnerable back.

Nocturne couldn't help but hold his breath as the horror welled up within him, pulling out his own dagger to fling at the man with a potent rage mixed with the taste of despair. His thoughts were white and echoed endlessly in his head as he watched Nine slowly slide off the edge of the silver dagger.

Nine collapsed.