A Way Out

Rinidan's fate was still uncertain. Joshua was not a fool to wait around and see what happened. There was a chance of the city getting taken over. That was enough reason to leave.

The mines were not that far from the inn. Everyone was in a rush, so it took Joshua around ten minutes to get there. Khali and Aurora had no idea who this Leo was, but they trusted Joshua. There was no way he would lead them to a trap.

As they walked through the dark mines, using the torches they found along the way to make things easier, Khali asked. "Is it far? Are you sure he will be there?"

Leo would never leave the Crows Nest room without saying something to Joshua, so he was almost sure he would be there. If he was not there, Joshua had no idea what to do. Finding a way out inside the mines was impossible. An outsider like Joshua did not have the knowledge it takes to find a secret passage. Their best bet was the pile of bones called Leo.

"He will. I'm sure of it." Joshua said.

As they braved deeper inside the mines, the once loud sounds of war were diminishing. That did not change the fact that people were dying. Joshua felt pity for them, but he still did not want to be one of those people.

He thought about having enough strength to prevent these types of things. But he did not know who was attacking nor the reason behind it. He could not judge as he did not know if Rinidan had it coming. They had that illegal underground arena. Maybe Rinidan had some other dark secret.

Joshua and Aurora held hands as they traveled across the mines. Aurora's entire body was shaking, and she was glad Joshua was there for her. Hanrog, who was closer to Khali, seemed ok. He was still a child, yet a war scene was nothing for him. This duo of father and child was friendly but had many secrets. Secrets that Joshua promised himself to uncover.

~~~~

Soon they reached a place near the Crows Nest room. Leo had enough of that strange noise and decided to see what it was.

He left the room and walked for five minutes before encountering Joshua.

"Leo?"

"Joshua?"

Both were surprised to see each other. Leo had no idea Joshua was looking for him at that point, and Joshua thought Leo would be inside the room.

Leo grabbed the opportunity to ask about the sounds he was hearing. "Do you know something about these strange sounds?"

Joshua and his friends exchanged glances, and he said. "Yeah, about that..."

~~~~

They explained the situation to Leo. Not in that much detail, as time was short on their end, but he grasped the main points.

"Damn it. Such bad timing for an attack," Leo said. Only Joshua understood what he meant.

"The first time Leo decided to leave, an attack happened. Maybe he's just unlucky?" Joshua thought.

Khali could not stand in the same place for more than two seconds. "Do you know a way out or not?" he asked.

Leo, who was still thinking about the sudden attack, suddenly recalled something and said. "I do, I do. Please, follow me." No one had objections regarding that, so they followed Leo.

"Here, we should turn left. Or was it right?" Leo had a good memory. But many years passed, and the mines had changed in some ways. They could only pray for the best.

As they were trying to find the way out, another group of people crossed paths with them. The one leading the group had a crown above his head.

"That's the ruler of Rinidan." that's the thought that crossed everyone's mind. The ruler of Rinidan was also looking for a way out of the city. Imagine the morale of the army seeing their ruler flee. That only meant that the situation was not looking favorable to Rinidan.

Both groups exchanged glances, and the ruler of Rinidan was surprised to see others. Joshua thought about following them and using the passage they knew. But all of them gazed fiercely at Joshua and his group, sending a message.

"If we follow them, they will kill us for sure." Joshua was still somewhat new in this world. He was still weak compared to those who trained and leveled up for years. Even if they had enough strength to fight against that group, it would only make both parties lose time, and time was precious in a situation like that one.

With these thoughts in mind, both groups moved on their way.

"It's here. It's here!" Leo said. That sentence came to relieve the stress they had.

They walked for a long time and no sign of a passage. But, in the end, Leo had not let them down.

Leo moved his hands, touching the wall. They had no idea what he was trying to do. But then, Leo found some mechanism, and he pushed it. The stones on the wall started to move, and a small corridor opened up in front of their eyes. It looked like a scene directly from a movie.

Joshua was sure they would never find that without Leo. Sparing Leo's life had turned into one of Joshua's best decisions. And as far as he knew, Leo still had a lot to help against the Demon Lord.

"So it is true," Aurora said, doing small jumpings of joy. Khali did not show that much emotion, but they all knew he was also relieved.

"Good job, Leo." Joshua gave him a thumbs up.

~~~~

The passage was not that wide, so they all walked in a line. Leo was the first, as he was the one who knew about it anyway. Joshua decided to be the last one as if things went wrong by his side, the others could escape.

"What's happening?" Aurora said.

Their surroundings started to shake, and it looked like the corridor's roof could fall at any moment.