They all flinched, instinct taking over as weapons were drawn in a blink.
Taria’s spear snapped to position.
Rauk’s eyes flared silver-grey.
And Kaedros began silently weaving a spell in his mind.
The short metal statue before them crackled. Its empty sockets lit with yellow flame. "It’s been years! Finally! Finally! Finally!
"You are here! You’re here!"
The castle behind them shuddered. And then... Kaedros felt it.
Thousands of them staring at them from within the strange castle.
Eyes that locked onto him and his companions with a curious, hungry interest as if they’re staring with a piece of meat they’ve not had the chance of eating for years.
But among them... Kaedros felt one eye. Different. Burning like a coal against his soul.
It saw him, not as a man, but as the Dragon beneath his illusion.
Yet even then, he felt no hostility from the eyes, no hate or baleful intent.
He looked up toward the castle, but saw nothing. The eyes vanished as quickly as they had come.
Then he turned to the statue. Barely waist-high, with a wide flat head, oversized ears, and a snub nose. The yellow fire in its sockets burned brighter now, and the power radiating from it was undeniable.
"What are you?" Kaedros asked in a cold voice.
None of them released their gathered mana,not Rauk, not Taria, not Kaedros himself.
"I am the Keeper," the statue said, somehow looking at them intently despite its eyeless face.
Taria glanced at Kael and raised a brow. "Um... Keeper of where exactly?"
The statue puffed itself up, flames in its sockets blazing. "I can’t believe this! You don’t know who I am? The Keeper! The one who sealed the path and opened it only to the worthy!"
Its voice dipped to a dramatic whisper. "Has my story... truly been lost in the outside world?"
And then it continued ranting, muttering to itself in a huff.
Taria had already taken several steps back. She leaned toward Kaedros and whispered, "We should’ve stayed in the corridor."
Kaedros was starting to agree with her, because he really couldn’t make sense of things since they left.
Suddenly, furious whispers echoed faintly from the castle.
The statue stopped mid-rant and tilted its head.
Kaedros could’ve sworn he heard someone say, ’Don’t frighten them!’
Rauk cleared his throat. "We’re... lost. We didn’t know what this place was. We wandered in by accident."
A silence deeper than any Kaedros had ever known. Even the air held its breath.
Whispers erupted in a torrent, swirling like wind, too many voices layered atop one another:
"I thought the gate was sealed!"
"They got lost and ended up here?"
"We can’t! They’re the only candidates we’ve had in years!"
"Maybe the gate’s open now! Maybe more will come!"
"It doesn’t matter! All we—"
The word slammed into them like thunder, low and rasping. The other voices died instantly. What followed was speech, too low to decipher.
Taria’s eyes never left the castle. "Okay, this is seriously weird."
"I agree," Rauk muttered. "We have a talking statue in front of us, which means it’s probably at least rank three monster... maybe higher."
Kaedros opened his mouth to say he doubted it was a monster, but the statue moved.
In a flash, it was inches from Rauk’s face.
None of them had seen it move, not even Kaedros.
The statue stared up at him, voice shrill. "A monster?! Are you comparing me to those lowlife weaklings? That’s an insult! Are you challenging me? ARE YOU?!"
Kaedros acted fast, bowing low. "Of course not, Keeper. Forgive the rudeness of my companion. We’re new here, unlearned and unprepared."
The statue turned to him, voice suspicious. "Is that so?"
Rauk nodded quickly. His gathered mana had evaporated in the shock. "Yes. That’s right."
The statue huffed, then floated back to its place before the gate. Only then did the group breathe again.
They exchanged looks.
If that statue was this strong... what kind of beings waited inside?
Trying to reset the mood, Rauk asked, "Keeeper... how should we properly address you?"
The statue lit up with joy. "As any man, of course! Address me as Keeper!"
Rauk bowed deeply. "Of course, Keeper."
The yellow eyes blazed brighter. "I think I’ll like your group better. So full of courtesy, despite your ignorance. Such polite little candidates."
Then his tone darkened. "Too bad you’ll die. Either by my hands or inside."
Kaedros froze. "What?"
"What’s he saying now?" Taria demanded, her spear trained on the Keeper again.
The statue shrugged a hunched shoulder. "Just facts. Do you know how many candidates have come here to take IT? Thousands? Tens of thousands? More? And where are they now?"
It pointed a clawed hand at them.
"Dead. All dead. Most of them by my hand. They all thought they were ’the one,’ just like you three. I drank their marrow."
The sound it made then, the laughter, was horrible. The screech of rusted blades rubbing against iron.
Taria shivered. "He’s mad."
"Maybe," Rauk said, his voice dry. "But he’s also the only being we’ve met so far. And we still have no food or water."
"He’ll probably kill us for food. And bleed us for drink," Taria muttered, horrified at her own imagination.
Kaedros rolled his eyes. "Maybe. But what choice do we have? There’s nothing behind us. And returning to the Kingdom now? That’s suicide."
They all fell silent at that.
The bounty hunter’s Association.
The conspiracy at the capital.
Death waited for them on either side of the gate.
Kaedros stepped forward. "Keeper ... may we trouble you for some food and water?"
The statue perked up. "Of course! We have meat and bread! Ale and wine! Grains so fine and fruits so fresh—"
Kaedros started to smile, ready to thank him, when the keeper raised a claw.
"You’ll just have to fight me to the death for it, of course."
And then came that terrible metal cackle again.