Void Cultivation

Chapter 381: Chapter 380- A Cause for Alarm (4)

The moment they opened the door, Grey and Violet were greeted by an empty, dimly lit tavern. Rows of neatly arranged tables and chairs stretched across the room, while a long wooden counter stood at the far end, lined with shelves where bottles of liquor and other drinks were usually displayed. Despite the tavern appearing well-maintained at first glance, there was not a single person anywhere inside.

Normally, taverns were lively places where travelers, merchants, and townsfolk gathered to drink, eat, and unwind after a long day’s work. They were usually open every single day, even from the early hours of the morning, and rarely remained deserted for long.

Furthermore, many taverns also served as inns, providing rooms for guests who wished to spend the night. Such establishments attracted a steady flow of customers every day, making them a reliable source of income for their owners. That was why seeing an establishment of this size completely empty felt incredibly unusual.

Even more peculiar was the state of the furniture. The tables and chairs had all been arranged neatly, as though the tavern had been prepared to receive customers. Nothing appeared broken or abandoned in a hurry. However, there were no mugs left on the tables, no unfinished meals, and no signs that anyone had been here recently. The entire place felt unnaturally quiet.

Grey and Violet slowly approached the counter.

Behind it, they found several bottles of alcohol neatly lined up on wooden shelves alongside rows of clean glass cups. Every bottle was carefully arranged, and each glass sparkled as though it had been washed not too long ago. Yet there wasn’t the slightest trace of moisture on any of them. Everything was perfectly dry, almost as though no one had poured a drink for quite some time.

Instead of allowing the strange atmosphere to unsettle them, the two calmly decided to investigate the upper floor to determine whether there were any guests staying in the building.

The tavern consisted of two stories. The ground floor served as the bar where customers gathered to eat and drink, while the upper floor functioned as an inn, offering rooms that travelers could rent for the night.

It was, in every sense of the word, a combined tavern and inn.

However, when they reached the second floor, they were met with complete silence.

Every single room was empty.

The beds had long since been stripped of their blankets, while the furniture throughout the rooms was covered by a thick layer of dust that had settled over everything like a thin grey film. It was obvious that no one had stayed here for quite some time.

This discovery both puzzled and excited them.

If the rooms had been abandoned for so long while the bar downstairs appeared ready for business, then something was clearly wrong.

At the very least, this place was connected to the recent disappearances or the brutal murder they were investigating. It might even be one of the murderer’s hideouts.

"There’s nothing in the rooms up here... and there’s no other floor above this one," Violet said thoughtfully as she glanced around one last time.

Grey remained silent.

Without saying another word, he turned around and headed back downstairs.

The more he thought about it, the stranger everything became.

The rooms upstairs had clearly not been used for a very long time, yet the bar below gave the impression that it still operated on a regular basis. Those two facts simply did not fit together.

It was incredibly bizarre.

If someone owned a building that functioned as both a tavern and an inn, there was no reason not to make full use of both businesses. Renting rooms would provide a consistent source of additional income alongside the profits from selling food and alcohol.

Unless...

The tavern itself was never meant to be the real business.

Grey’s eyes narrowed.

Perhaps the bar merely served as a disguise—a cover that concealed whatever truly took place within this building.

Unfortunately, despite thoroughly searching every corner of both floors, neither of them managed to discover anything that seemed suspicious.

"Instead of searching above ground..." Grey suddenly said in a low voice, "...let’s search underground."

The moment Violet heard those words, her eyes immediately lit up.

"You’re right!" she exclaimed, a smile appearing on her face. "Most taverns usually have a cellar where they store wine, ale, and other alcoholic beverages. It’s almost always built underground!"

It was as though a missing piece of the puzzle had suddenly fallen into place.

Without wasting another second, the two immediately began searching the ground floor.

After only a few minutes, Violet finally located what appeared to be a concealed trapdoor hidden beneath a worn rug near the back of the tavern.

He slowly pulled it open.

A narrow flight of stone steps descended into darkness below.

However, when Grey and Violet expected to find rows of barrels filled with wine, liquor, and other beverages, what greeted them instead was something entirely different.

Beyond the staircase lay not a storage cellar...

...but a wide, spacious tunnel that stretched far into the depths beneath the earth, disappearing into darkness as though it led to another world altogether.

Grey and Violet exchanged a brief glance before silently arriving at the same conclusion.

It was time to inform the other captains about what they had discovered.

At this point, there was little doubt left in their minds. The abandoned tavern was almost certainly connected to the recent disappearances as well as the gruesome murder that had taken place in the Market District.

Violet wasted no time.

She immediately activated her voice transmission artifact and contacted the other captains, briefly informing them about the hidden tavern, the abandoned upper floor, and, most importantly, the underground tunnel concealed beneath the building.

Although Grey could not hear the replies coming from the other end of the transmission, he could tell from Violet’s expression that they had understood the situation. It would not be long before the remaining captains arrived at the tavern to investigate the discovery alongside them.

After ending the transmission, Violet slipped the communication artifact back into her pocket before turning toward Grey.

"They’re on their way," she said with a nod.

Grey simply acknowledged her words and shifted his gaze toward the dark tunnel that stretched endlessly beneath the tavern. The stale air drifting out from its depths carried a faint, unpleasant scent, making the passage seem even more ominous.

Neither of them could tell how far it extended or what dangers lay waiting within.

After a brief moment of silence, Violet’s lips curved into her usual carefree smile.

"In the meantime," she said as she looked toward the tunnel’s depths, "let’s find out where this passage leads. Who knows? We might even find the person responsible for all of this and put an end to the entire matter right here and now."

Without waiting for another response, Violet confidently stepped onto the stone pathway and began walking deeper into the underground tunnel.

Grey followed closely behind, his senses remaining on high alert.

The deeper they ventured underground, the colder the surrounding air became. The faint light filtering in from the trapdoor above gradually disappeared until darkness swallowed everything behind them. Only the echo of their footsteps reverberated through the massive underground passage as they advanced cautiously into the unknown, uncertain of what awaited them in the darkness ahead.