"Mm…"
Alexandra groggily rubbed her eyes. For some reason, she felt like she'd just had the best sleep of her entire life.
But…wasn't she in the middle of something?
"Ah!"
The memories came rushing back to her like a tidal wave.
"Alice!"
She shot up but wobbled and fell back to the floor. She was still too disoriented to move.
Luckily, she spotted her sister sleeping on the cave floor not too far away before she did anything drastic.
'What…happened to us…?'
Considering their previous predicament, both of them should've been dead. Alexandra and Alice both fell unconscious near the end, so protecting themselves and reaching this cave was absolutely impossible.
'Somebody helped us…?'
If so, it was proper to be extremely wary at the moment. Such a powerful force who waited until the sisters were on the brink of death before saving them, it was normal to doubt their intentions.
Alexandra sighed and sat down.
'This place really makes me question if I actually reached the 6th revolution or not.'
Environment damage? Fatigue? The events she'd experienced so far made Alexandra feel like a newbie adventurer just setting off on their path to greatness.
It was a thrilling feeling, but it was also terrifying. After all, after so many years, she'd forgotten this feeling.
That is, the feeling of being "mortal."
Alexandra clenched her fist, looking down at the cave floor absentmindedly.
'Mortality…how long has it been since I've faced my mortality…?'
Her thoughts swirled. She felt like she was on the verge of epiphany, about to realize something crucial for her future progress.
"Oh, finally found you."
A voice suddenly rang through the cave.
Alexandra's eyes shot open. She jumped up and stood before her sister's unconscious body, her aura flared.
"Who?!"
Under Alexandra's sharp gaze, the figure revealed themselves.
She sighed in relief.
"Xinyue, it's just you!"
Alexandra plopped onto the floor and sighed again. "Where have you been all this time?"
Xinyue tilted her head curiously, a reaction that seemed to be her most common, and spoke, "was following, lost track of Alexandra, searched and finally found."
Alexandra nodded in understanding. It was easy to lose track of people in the almost negligible visibility of the blizzard, and considering that this was the only cave present for several hundred thousand kilometers, it was completely normal for Xinyue to find them here.
Only, others would have just as easy of a time.
"Xinyue, did you find any secrets to the blizzard on your way here? We must leave immediately, but I'm afraid Alice's body can't take it with her current condition."
Xinyue rubbed her chin in thought, imitating Alexandra's movements. "Average storm. Eye is peaceful, best bet."
Xinyue raised her thumb cheekily, but the lack of change in her expression made the gesture a bit strange.
"Pfft…!"
Alexandra laughed unwittingly. Really, in a tense atmosphere like this, Xinyue's accidental comedy was a great pick-me-up.
"Alright, since you say the eye of the storm is safe, I'll trust you. Let's rush there as fast as we can!"
Xinyue quirked her head. "This is eye. We are here."
Alexandra's face fell. "H-huh?"
"Eye of storm, very small, only this cave."
It was bad news, extremely bad news.
If that was the case, how were they supposed to escape?!
The eye of the storm was the safest place for them, but it also put them furthest from any possible exit. The journey was definitely not something Alice could handle with her injuries!
'Shit. I need to think of something…'
Alexandra's awareness spread once more, but before she could even do anything, Xinyue moved.
She walked to the back of the cave and crouched on the floor, feeling the soil with her hands.
In the next instant…
Bang!
She slammed her palm down, causing the floor to shatter entirely.
A hole several meters wide was revealed, and within, a staircase descended into darkness.
"New path," Xinyue said with an air of accomplishment.
"Nice," Alexandra responded with a grin.
She didn't know where this strange passageway led to, but anywhere was better than remaining in this cave.
After all, there was no way to tell when the blizzard would end, and before it ended, staying in the cave was suicide.
'As the only safe zone within several hundred thousand kilometers, it will become a place where everyone who passes by this area stops.'
If so, then the opening Xinyue created was likely an inheritance or at least a treasure site of some sort.
'Opportunity and risk together, eh?'
Alexandra smiled. It would definitely be dangerous below, but it was better than nothing, especially if there were rewards involved.
"Hup!"
Alexandra let out a small grunt as she slung Alice over her shoulder again.
"I'll take care of her until she wakes up. Xinyue, let's go together."
Xinyue nodded and the two women immediately made their way down the stairs.
Rumble!
As they vanished into the depths, the cave rumbled slightly.
The rocks began to move, rearranging themselves until the floor became one piece again, indistinguishable from its previous appearance.
However, there was indeed something different about it.
Because under this floor…
There was only solid rock.
***
It was incredibly damp, almost to the point where it felt like the inside of some creature's stomach rather than an underground area.
Atop that, there was no light at all. Even mana lost its light in this darkness, forcing one to descend the seemingly endless staircase blindly.
But that was only the start.
Alexandra was an experienced fighter, so moving without her eyes wasn't difficult at all.
Around 100 steps down, however, she felt something change.
20 steps later, she realized she could no longer smell the damp air around her.
Her eyes hardened. She tightened her grip on Xinyue's hand.
If anything happened, this grip was her assurance that she was still alive.
200 steps down, another change took place. Alexandra's mouth was already numb due to the lack of olfactory input to her brain, but that numbness become complete at some point, helping Alexandra realize that her sense of taste had also disappeared.
Besides her eyes, the two senses she'd lost so far didn't affect her perception much. As long as she could still use her perception, taste and smell were inconsequential.
Their loss, however, didn't bode well for the future.
As Alexandra expected, as she passed the 300th step, she could no longer hear the sound of her and Xinyue's footsteps.
The only confirmation she had of the latter's existence was the firm grip she felt on her hand.
And despite knowing the hell that she was about to descend into, Alexandra kept moving.
She closed her eyes even though they were useless at the moment.
She focused on the feeling of Xinyue's cold hands in hers.
She focused on the feeling of Alice's warm body on her back, and the movement of her chest as she breathed.
100 steps were crossed in what seemed like an instant.
Alexandra's foot stepped on the 401st step.
Or did it?
She had no way of knowing.
Was Alice still in her hand?
Was Xinyue's hand still entwined with her own?
She had no idea.
She couldn't feel it at all.
She could only trust in object permanence and keep walking forward.
Or at least, complete the action she believed was walking forward.
However, at this moment…
Even the weakest beast could kill Alexandra.
She was left completely defenseless, forced to descend the endless staircase mindlessly in hope of some sort of salvation.
