Building The First Adventurer Guild In Another World

Chapter 317: Abyssal Leviathan

For a moment, silence enveloped them—a heavy silence that pressed against their ears and made even the sound of breathing feel intrusive.

Gradually, one by one, Sage and the others began to shake off the dizziness as the darkness behind their eyes lifted like a curtain being drawn back.

The first sensation Sage registered was the cold, solid ground beneath his feet, a stark contrast to the shifting terrain they had just navigated. When his vision finally cleared, he was met not by the strange blue forest or ocean-like sky they had encountered before, nor by the terrifying presence of that monstrous entity that had nearly obliterated them. Instead, he found himself in a vast, desolate city in ruins stretching endlessly before him.

Towering stone structures loomed broken and cracked; some leaned at precarious angles as if frozen mid-collapse, while others lay in heaps of rubble scattered across the ground like remnants of a forgotten war.

A faint wind whispered through the empty streets, carrying dust and fine grains of sand that brushed against their faces and clothes, lending an air of age and abandonment to this lifeless place, almost suffocating in its stillness.

Above them hung a dim gray sky not entirely dark but devoid of warmth or color, as if light itself had grown weary of illuminating this forsaken land.

The air was thick with the dry scent of stone and decay, something ancient untouched for ages. Cracks snaked across the ground like veins; some gaped wide enough to swallow a person whole.

Broken pillars and statues littered the streets, once grand forms now reduced to jagged outlines and fragments that hinted at a civilization long past its prime.

Sage straightened slowly; his muscles still protested from earlier shockwaves while his mind struggled to regain focus amidst confusion and lingering fear.

He glanced around quickly to ensure everyone was accounted for: Gregor holding Mina close, Brutus standing guard, Vanthrice gripping her spear tightly, Caelis gathering himself along with the others.

A small breath escaped him, one he hadn’t realized he’d been holding but relief was fleeting as memories of their recent encounter flooded back.

Without hesitation, Sage turned sharply toward Valeria; seriousness etched on his face, a rare sight indeed.

His voice wavered slightly despite his attempt at steadiness as he asked, "What do you mean that thing is just a baby?"

The echo of his words filled the empty streets, amplifying the weight of silence around them. The others shifted their attention to Valeria too; disbelief mirrored in their eyes along with an unease that had been building since they escaped that creature.

Valeria stood composed amidst it all; her crimson hair swayed gently with an unseen breeze while her expression remained unfazed, as though what they had witnessed was merely an inconvenience.

After a brief pause during which she seemed lost in thought, she spoke lowly yet firmly: "That creature is known as the Abyssal Mana Leviathan."

The moment Valeria spoke the name, an unsettling silence enveloped the group. It wasn’t recognition that stilled them, but the weight of the name itself, ancient and dangerous, as if it were a forbidden secret.

Sage narrowed his eyes, mentally repeating the name. Even without knowing its history, he sensed it was far from ordinary; it was something beyond any magical beast they had faced before.

Valeria continued, her voice steady yet chilling. "It is an ancient species that existed long before most current civilizations. They don’t hunt like typical creatures; they don’t rely solely on physical strength or behave like anything you’ve encountered. Their entire existence revolves around one thing... Mana."

Sage’s expression tightened at her words, a faint chill running down his spine, not from the cold air but from what she implied.

Valeria glanced at him briefly before elaborating, "They feed on Mana. Not just small amounts or stray energy in the air; they absorb everything—Mana from their surroundings, from living beings, even from attacks. To them, Mana isn’t merely a tool; it’s sustenance and life itself. The more they consume, the stronger they become."

Gregor swallowed hard as he listened, tightening his grip on Mina while Brutus frowned deeply in contemplation.

Sage let out a breath as realization dawned upon him. "So all those spells and attacks... that creature wasn’t avoiding them; it was consuming them."

Valeria nodded in confirmation.

"Yes," she replied simply and then added in a lower tone, "That’s why they were feared. That’s why they were hunted."

She paused for a moment, revealing a glimmer of something else in her eyes, not fear but perhaps respect or caution. "There was a time when these creatures weren’t rare. They appeared across various regions of the world, growing slowly at first and feeding quietly, until they suddenly became disasters no single force could contain. Entire regions lost their Mana; lands turned barren, and even powerful individuals found their strength draining away just by being near them. Eventually, the world could no longer ignore them... so the decision was made."

She looked back at Sage and the others with gravity in her voice. "The entire world united to eradicate them."

Her words hung heavily in the air like an unspoken truth as everyone tried to fathom what that must have been like, a war not between nations or factions but against a species capable of consuming the very power everyone relied upon. Despite his fear, Sage felt intrigue rising within him, a whirlwind of thoughts and questions surged through his mind as he asked quietly, "And did they succeed?"

Valeria nodded slowly. "After countless losses and sacrifices that most records don’t even bother to describe... yes, they succeeded. The Abyssal Mana Leviathans were hunted down one by one until they were believed to be extinct."

Her gaze drifted slightly as if looking beyond their ruined surroundings into another time altogether.

"Or at least... that is what everyone believed."

Sage exhaled slowly, his eyes flickering as he processed everything he had just heard.

He turned back toward the spot where the creature had been, even though it was no longer visible, and muttered under his breath, "And the one we just ran from..." Valeria’s lips moved slightly as she finished his thought for him. "Was just a newborn."

The silence that followed felt even heavier than before, the weight of those words sinking in now that they understood what that creature truly was. Mina, who had regained some consciousness, shifted slightly in Gregor’s arms.

Her small face remained pale; although she didn’t fully grasp everything happening around her, she sensed the tension and fear lingering in everyone’s hearts. Quietly, she tightened her grip on Gregor’s clothes without saying a word.

Sage let out a dry laugh, one devoid of humor and shook his head slowly. "A newborn... if that was a newborn, then I can’t even imagine what a fully grown one looks like." Brutus grunted lowly in agreement, his expression darkening further.

Caelis adjusted his stance slightly, still alert and cautious as if expecting something to happen at any moment.

Gregor glanced at Sage with serious eyes and said quietly, "If something like that can exist inside this Vault... then this place is far more dangerous than we thought."

Sage nodded; his usual relaxed demeanor had vanished as he replied in a low voice, "Yeah... no kidding."

Yet amid the fear and tension settling in around them, another feeling began to rise within Sage, something sharp and focused that pushed aside the fear and replaced it with curiosity and determination.

His eyes narrowed slightly as he looked at Valeria again, then scanned the ruined city surrounding them before glancing up at the empty sky above.

"If something like that existed before... and if the world had to unite to wipe it out... then there must be records left behind about that war," he mused.

He paused for a moment; despite their dire situation, a faint smile curled on his lips. "And if it’s inside a Vault... maybe there’s more than just monsters waiting for us."

Valeria shot him a brief glance; her expression remained unchanged as she chose not to comment on his words. The others stayed silent too, each lost in their own thoughts while trying to adjust to this new understanding of their world.

The ruined city around them stood still, the wind drifted through broken streets and collapsed buildings, carrying dust and whispers from a past long forgotten. For a short moment, it felt almost as if nothing else existed beyond this place, as if the danger they had just escaped was merely a distant memory.

Then suddenly, without warning, the space around them trembled.

It started as an almost imperceptible ripple in the air, like heat distortion rising from the ground but within seconds grew stronger. The very fabric of space twisted and bent until it became impossible to ignore.

Sage’s eyes sharpened instantly, his body tensing as he looked up. Valeria’s expression shifted to one of seriousness, her gaze fixed on the distortion above them.

The air thickened, the wind stilled, and the entire ruined city seemed to hold its breath as a massive beam of light began to form in the sky. It descended slowly but with an overwhelming presence, casting a blinding glow over everything below.

"Here we go again..." Sage muttered under his breath, tightening his grip as he stared at the approaching light.

Before anyone could say anything or fully react, the beam shot down toward the ruined city with unstoppable force.