Chapter 114: Chapter 114: The Wyrm-Sealed Abyss
The young woman caught the heavy leather scroll.
She looked down at the glowing silver sword emblem pressed into the wax seal.
The aggressive and defensive posture she held completely vanished.
She lowered her chipped steel longsword. Her eyes widened in absolute shock.
"The Warden," she whispered. Her voice trembled slightly. She looked up at Dante. "He is still alive? The system has not purged him?"
"He is acting as the Outpost Elder in Sector 404," Dante explained and crossed his arms.
"He could not leave his post, but he told me to find his descendants and pass on his legacy."
"The system rejected my cosmic weight, so I cannot use it. It is yours."
She didn’t immediately break the seal.
She ran her thumb over the glowing silver wax. A look of profound and exhausted relief washed over her face.
"My name is Elara," she said and looked back at him.
"My grandfather told us the Warden would send an Outworlder when the cycle began again."
"We have been holding this dojo for decades and waiting for the system to finalize the draft."
"The major guilds in the Capital have been trying to buy us out or burn us down for weeks just to claim the real estate."
Dante nodded. He knew exactly how the major syndicates operated.
"They will not bother you anymore. The [Blade-Master] Hidden Class should give you enough raw stats to hold your ground against anyone knocking on your door."
Elara gripped the scroll tightly.
"I owe you a massive debt, Outworlder. The legacy of the Vanguard will not end in this dusty room."
"Just do not join Vanguard’s Legacy," Dante warned her dryly. "The Guild Master is an idiot."
He turned away and headed back toward the door. The fetch quest was complete.
He had delivered the legacy and successfully ignored the attempt of the system to force him into a rigid class structure.
"Wait," Elara called out.
Dante stopped and looked over his shoulder.
"The Warden said if a player arrived who was too dense to inherit the blade, they would require access to the deeper paths."
Dante fully turned around. "The deeper paths?"
"The Path of Gods and Demons," Elara clarified.
"It is a forbidden zone located far outside the eastern walls of the Capital. The system strictly prohibits standard players from entering."
"It is the only environment capable of providing an advancement class suitable for your cosmic weight."
Dante remembered Master Sun mentioning the same location back in Ironhold.
"I have the coordinates," Elara said and stepped forward.
"But I cannot just give them to you. The system requires a formal authorization from the Lord of Aethelgardia to bypass the geographical lockdown on the eastern gates."
Dante sighed. The Zenith Protocol was a bureaucratic nightmare.
Even when he bypassed the standard progression curve, the game forced him to run errands for the regional NPCs just to open a door.
"Where is the Lord?" Dante asked.
"The Royal Palace," Elara pointed toward the massive and glittering white and gold structure dominating the center of the skyline of the Capital.
"Be warned. The Lord of Aethelgardia is not a standard frontier mayor. He is a high-tier entity. He will not be easily impressed by a high-level Outworlder."
"I will manage," Dante said.
He left the dojo and stepped back out into the pristine streets of the upper residential tier.
He didn’t waste time walking. He activated [Meteor Stride].
He chained the zero-cooldown teleports to rapidly cross the distance. He completely bypassed the massive crowds of players marveling at the architecture.
He arrived at the massive and gilded gates of the Royal Palace in less than two minutes.
The security here was significantly heavier than Ironhold.
Dozens of heavily armored paladins stood guard. They gripped massive halberds that crackled with holy magic.
Dante didn’t slow down. He walked straight up the wide marble steps.
The guards didn’t cross their halberds to block him.
The dynamic system governing the palace security immediately recognized the [Mantle of the Void-Dragon].
More importantly, the system identified the small intricate insignia etched into his shoulder.
The [Zenith Epaulet].
The heavily armored paladins immediately parted. They slammed the butts of their halberds against the marble steps in a flawless and synchronized military salute.
"The Capital welcomes the Conqueror of the Abyss," the lead guard boomed. His voice resounded across the courtyard.
Dante walked past them. He pushed open the massive and towering gold doors leading into the inner sanctum of the palace.
The throne room was breathtaking.
It was a massive vaulted chamber constructed entirely from polished white stone and stained glass.
The ceiling depicted ancient battles between celestial beings and shadowy demons.
Sitting on a massive throne carved from a single flawless block of diamond was the Lord of Aethelgardia.
The NPC didn’t wear armor. He wore elegant and flowing white robes lined with gold thread.
He looked entirely human, but he radiated an aura of absolute and crushing authority.
"Outworlder," the Lord spoke.
It simply existed perfectly within the mind of Dante and completely bypassed acoustic physics.
"You have arrived. The rumors of your impossible resilience and your victory over the Void-Bishop have reached the inner walls. You are the anomaly."
"I am just a guy who needs a gate pass," Dante said and walked right up to the base of the throne.
He didn’t bow. He didn’t use a formal greeting.
The eyes of the Lord narrowed slightly, but he didn’t seem angry.
"You seek access to the eastern gates," the Lord deduced and leaned forward.
"You wish to enter the Path of Gods and Demons. You seek a class that the standard system cannot provide."
"That is the plan," Dante agreed.
"I can authorize your passage," the Lord stated smoothly. "I have the authority to temporarily lift the geographic lockdown."
"But I will not do so for free. You possess unparalleled destructive power. The Capital requires your specific talents."
"A quest," Dante noted. "What is the problem?"
"A problem of containment," the Lord said. His expression turned grim.
He raised his hand and projected a glowing three-dimensional holographic map of the subterranean levels of the Capital.
He pointed to a massive and sprawling network of dark caverns situated directly beneath the foundations of the city.
"The Wyrm-Sealed Abyss," the City Lord announced.
"It is an ancient and sprawling underground chasm. Centuries ago, the founders of Aethelgardia sealed a primordial threat within those depths."
"Recently, the seals have begun to fracture. The roars of dragons resounds up through the aqueducts of the city.
The sound is driving the local populace insane and causing massive systemic instability within the merchant districts."
The hologram zoomed in on the dark tunnels and showed dozens of flashing red warning icons.
"I dispatched three entire squads of my elite imperial guard to investigate the structural damage to the seals," the Lord continued.
"Dozens of high-level paladins. None have returned. They simply vanished off the systemic grid the moment they entered the lower levels."
Dante listened intently.
[Hidden Quest Triggered: The Wyrm-Sealed Abyss]
[Classification: SSS-Rank (Investigation)]
[Objective: Enter the Wyrm-Sealed Abyss. Discover the fate of the missing imperial guards and neutralize the source of the draconic threat.]
[Recommended Level: 70+]
Level 70.
The scaling of the game was accelerating at an absolutely terrifying pace.
An SSS-Rank quest at Level 70 meant the boss at the end of the dungeon was likely going to possess mechanics that completely ignored standard combat math.
"If you complete this investigation and silence the roars," the Lord offered and stared directly at Dante, "I will grant you unrestricted access to the eastern gates. Furthermore, I will fulfill any one request within my administrative authority."
Dante crossed his arms.
He didn’t want to slog through another massive and multi-floor dungeon right now.
He wanted to secure his class advancement and solidify his build. But the system was rigidly enforcing the progression gate.
If he wanted the authorization, he had to clear the basement.
"Fine," Dante said and accepted the quest prompt. "I will take a look. How do I get down there?"
"The entrance is located beneath the Grand Cathedral in the temple district," the Lord explained and waved his hand to dismiss the holographic map.
"Be warned, Champion. The entities dwelling within the Abyss are not standard corrupted beasts. They are ancient. They are starving. Do not underestimate the dark."
"I have got a flashlight," Dante muttered and tapped the black brand on his wrist.
He turned and walked out of the throne room. He left the Lord to his quiet contemplation.
He had an SSS-Rank investigation to handle, but he wasn’t going to dive into a Level 70 meat grinder immediately.
He had been running constantly since he logged in.
He needed to check on his squad, review the auction house preparations, and grab some digital food to reset the localized fatigue parameters of his avatar.
He opened his system map and headed toward the nearest high-end inn in the residential district.
He needed to summon Erebus and Aura and make sure the reality-warping toddler wasn’t getting cranky from hunger.
Fighting ancient dragons in a dark basement with a crying half-soul Celestial strapped to his back sounded like a terrible tactical decision.
