Chapter 159: Mysteries Beyond the Golem
In Triss's shocked eyes, Lann began to strike the golem's body with the runeblade, as if he were a blacksmith forging iron, but in the most brutal way possible.
[Clang! Clang! Clang!]
With each blow, the golem's body shuddered, and chunks of enchanted stone flew in all directions.
"Lann, be careful!" Triss screamed.
Lann looked up and saw that the golem had stopped struggling to free itself from the rock wall. Instead, it raised both of its arms above its head.
The Golem launched a fierce attack, causing a deafening roar.
Resisting the impact with a protective shield, Triss looked in the direction of the golem, knowing that Lann had taken the blow at point-blank range.
To her surprise, Lann was suspended in the air, performing a perfect flip, landing firmly.
The tremendous shock wave did not affect him at all.
Lann looked in Triss's direction and saw the relief on her face.
The sorceress quickly suppressed her emotions as she saw the golem still struggling, raising her hand to launch another bolt of lightning.
Although it was not as powerful as the first, it caused the golem's magic system to short-circuit again.
Seizing the opportunity, Lann slid forward, aiming for the gap he had been striking at previously. He raised his sword once more, preparing for the final blow.
With a loud cry, the Aerondight sword sank deep into the golem's body. The enormous three-meter creature shuddered abnormally, and pieces of stone fell from its body.
With a watchful gaze, Lann watched as the golem became motionless before beginning to lose its glow and turn into a marble statue.
"I heard that if you get the golem core, mages can easily create another one, right?"
"The golem's shell is nothing more than runed marble." Triss said. "Only the core is irreplaceable."
Lann stored the golem's entire body into his inventory. In situations like this, having a storage space was incredibly convenient.
"I'll give it to you after we get back."
The golem core wouldn't be of much use to Lann, so naturally it was best for Triss to make the most of it.
The golem had been like a gatekeeper. Now that it was defeated, they were temporarily safe.
Triss controlled the flames and accurately ignited every brazier in the open space, allowing the full picture of the square to appear in their eyes.
"We haven't entered the secret laboratory yet, right?"
Lann nodded and pointed forward. "There."
There is a manor-style duplex staircase in front, although most of it has collapsed. After crossing it, they came across an ancient and exquisite door.
"This door is not an illusion. We will have to open it the old-fashioned way." Triss frowned, and she used a torch to carefully illuminate every inch of detail on the door from top to bottom.
"There is a keyhole here, but I don't know where the key is... Lann, did you see this kind of detail in your precognitive dream?"
Under Triss's questioning gaze, Lann took her hand and walked away from the door, descending the stairs again.
This cave system was surprisingly large, with many branching chambers in addition to the plaza and main gate. It was a combination of natural formations and human development.
Lann knew that behind that door was the secret laboratory. The other caverns were auxiliary rooms, like hatcheries and apprentice dormitories.
According to his vague memory, Lann explored several caves and soon found his goal.
A long, narrow hallway with puddles on the floor. The walls were covered in plants, of which Triss collected several along the way.
At the end of the corridor was a place resembling a small pavilion surrounded by seven statues of hermits. They seemed to be guardians or watchmen, giving the place a prison-like feel.
At their feet was a stele with inscriptions in Elder Speech.
Lann didn't understand the language, but he wasn't alone.
Triss softly read the words aloud: "Staring into the abyss is a relief."
It had to be admitted that sorcerers acquired vast and diverse knowledge during their years at the academy.
As the sorceress pondered the meaning of the words, she felt Lann's hand suddenly rest on her shoulder.
"What happened?"
Lann looked around. "In my premonitory dream I saw something else... Do you still have your protective shield active?"
A green fire suddenly ignited in the air without warning, and a figure wearing a tattered black robe with a portable lantern suddenly emerged from the void, and a hoarse and unpleasant cry began to echo in the open space.
A Specter!
The blue protective shield flickered in the air, blocking the enemy's surprise attack. The ghostly figure, seeing that its attack had failed, quickly vanished into the void.
"Tsk, golems, specters." Lann clicked his tongue, remembering some bad times. "Can't these secret mages' laboratories have some originality?"
Triss covered her mouth and laughed. "I heard that you disappeared in Toussaint before. Were you exploring Thomas Moreau's laboratory at that time?"
Lann nodded. "That old sorcerer turned into a special specter, retaining his consciousness and some of his magical ability. He gave me quite a beating."
Lann stepped out of the area protected by Triss's shield, lowering his left hand to create a purple magic circle around himself. With the tip of his sword on the ground, he leaned back on the hilt, relaxed.
The wraith, seeing Lann seemingly helpless, thought he had a chance. He appeared again, brandishing an iron sword at Lann.
The Quen Sign's protective shield flickered but did not break. At the same time, the Yrden Sign's purple magical aura enveloped the wraith.
"Compared to the enemy I faced back then..." Lann looked into the wraith's empty, maddened eyes. "... You are nothing."
Lann stepped forward, turning his body as the runes on the sword glowed: [Whirl]!
The wraith attempted to escape again, but affected by the Yrden Sign, he could not become intangible, and his speed decreased drastically.
In two breaths, the wraith received dozens of blows, cuts and stabs that exceeded his ability to resist.
Lann continued to spin, until the wraith turned into green ash that fell to the ground.
Small lights flashed in the air, among them a small mutagen. Lann reached out and caught it without looking back. Then he walked over to the seven statues, looking up to examine them.
In the central pavilion-like structure was a column extending to the ceiling, with detailed carvings of wheat ears.
Triss looked around carefully, noticing several spring mechanisms on the outside of the pavilion.
"You said the key to the secret laboratory is here, and there is obviously a switch here. Did your precognitive dream explain this?"
Lann smiled mysteriously. "Do you remember what was written on the stone tablet just now?"
Lann moved forward quickly and manipulated one of the pavilion's mechanisms, explaining: "What we want is hidden under this pavilion, and these mechanisms are the key to opening it."
Lann twisted the mechanism hard, and then saw a statue of a hermit suddenly began to vibrate violently.
After several consecutive rotations, the stone statue turned to face the center of the pavilion.
With one last click, Lann had activated the mechanism for the seven statues, lining them up in the direction of the center of the pavilion, and the floor of the pavilion split in two, revealing a deep pit.
Triss suddenly frowned. She heard some strange sounds inside.
Dark shadows moved at the bottom of the well, vaguely humanoid.
"Is this the 'Abyss'?"
Lann said jokingly: "And there are many 'demons' in the abyss."
Triss frowned. "Why do you think this will help us open the door?"
Lann thought for a moment and replied: "I saw a man who looked like a mage apprentice walk out of the secret laboratory and fall into this pool of water, and the water was full of drowners. Since he was able to get out of the laboratory, he must have brought the key with him."
Triss nodded in agreement with Lann's explanation. She glanced at the drowners creating ripples in the water and began to murmur a chant.
[Crack!]
A bolt of lightning the thickness of an arm struck the water. The sound of electric current echoed through the air.
Within a couple of seconds, five drowners began to float rigidly on the surface of the water.
Lann gave up on his intention to take out the crossbow he had stored in his inventory. This weapon, which had never been used since its creation, seemed like it would remain unused for a while longer.
All the obstacles under the water were cleared, and the next step was to go into the water and find the key.
Triss was not willing to do that job, and Lann had no intention of delegating it to a lady. He slapped his chest and his griffin armor disappeared into his inventory. Then he took a deep breath and dove into the water.
After a while, Lann emerged holding a rusty key in his hand.
"Okay, now we can open the door."
Triss took a few glances at Lann's perfect body. Then, as he wiped the water from his body, she took a few more laps around the pavilion.
"I found some lab notes." Triss said, holding up some old, yellowed papers.
[As per the instructions of our supervisor, Ireneus var Steingard, we have conducted a series of studies on the genotype of the creatures commonly known as drowners. Sadly, administering a poison made of fugu fish induced a coma in all the specimens in the study. After 24 hours the vital functions of all above-mentioned specimens ceased, prohibiting us from continuing with the study.
Matteo Sykula]
Triss read the contents to Lann and deduced: "This laboratory must belong to this Ireneus, and Matteo must be his apprentice."
"So the wraith we just killed was probably this Matteo. Also this Ireneus seems to be a sorcerer obsessed with biological research."
Triss was excited: "Also, according to your dream where you saw the capture of a witcher, it is possible that this sorcerer has also conducted numerous studies on witcher mutations! We could bring this information back for Mousesack and Jerome to study. Lann, our find could be greater than we imagined!"
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