SWY 144

Of course, it might have just been a hasty assumption, but Sharhan was convinced.

“I’m coming down too.”

“Hold on a second. Let me undo the rope tied around my waist first.”

After Sharhan untied the rope, Lestel descended a moment later. Sharhan pressed himself against the wall to make room for him to land. The first thing Lestel did upon reaching the bottom was throw his arms around Sharhan. Startled, Sharhan shoved him back.

“Can’t you see I’m holding a torch? Your hair just got singed!”

He quickly moved the torch away, but a few strands of Lestel’s silver hair were already scorched. It bothered him, but Lestel just plucked them out without a care, then took the torch and examined the ground.

“It really is stone. Looks like it was never meant to be used as a well.”

“Told you I was right.”

“It really feels like they were trying to hide something here.”

Relying on the torchlight, Sharhan and Lestel carefully inspected the well, then began slowly running their fingers along the floor and walls. They were certain some kind of hidden mechanism must exist.

“Have you found anything?”

Rael’s voice called down just as they were about halfway through.

“Not yet.”

“The sun has set. You should probably come up for now.”

Sharhan and Lestel exchanged glances. Their eyes were asking each other what to do. They wanted to keep searching, but they had to consider the safety of those waiting above.

“Let’s stop for today and come back at dawn.”

At Lestel’s suggestion, Sharhan nodded. Still reluctant, he continued feeling along the wall until he said to Lestel, “You go up first.”

Clunk. Rrrrrrumble.

The part he had just touched pushed inward, and then a deep, resonating sound echoed through the well. Lestel instinctively pulled Sharhan close and stepped back.

“W-what’s going on?”

Rael, alarmed, leaned into the well and asked urgently, but they were too stunned to answer. The stone Sharhan had touched had vanished, and part of the wall slid back, revealing a narrow opening just large enough for a person to squeeze through.

“…Ha. Haha.”

They had suspected something might be hidden when they saw the stone floor, which wasn’t typical for a well, and yet the discovery still stunned them. Lestel gripped Sharhan’s hand tightly, his expression just as shocked as Sharhan’s.

“There really… was something.”

Lestel’s voice trembled. He had doubted it all along, even as they came relying on Rael’s theory and Adam’s words.

He ran a hand through his hair and cautiously stepped forward. After just two steps, he reached the opening, from which a chilly draft flowed.

“W-what happened?”

“We found it.”

“Huh? What do you mean you found it… Wait, was there really a secret passage?!”

“The well wall slid open and revealed a space just big enough for one person to pass through. We won’t know if it leads to the castle until we go inside.”

“We’re, we’re coming down too!”

Whether it was panic or urgency, Rael had lost his usual composure and stammered. Lestel untied the rope from his waist and tossed it up.

“We’ll go in first.”

The well was too narrow to wait for everyone to come down. Lestel entered the passage before Sharhan and held the torch forward.

It was so tight inside that standing up straight was impossible. Two people couldn’t walk side by side. The walls and floor were made of large and small stones like the well’s, and the air was heavy and stale.

“Lestel, move forward a bit. I can’t get in.”

Once Lestel made room, Sharhan slipped into the passage and shivered from the cold air.

“Woah… I can’t believe this place actually exists.”

Kuph, the third to come down, coughed several times from the bad air as he looked around the narrow space in awe. Sharhan and Lestel moved forward to make room for Rael and Adam.

Rael, the fourth to enter, had regained his composure and wore his usual calm expression. Having experienced a secret passage once before, he seemed unfazed. Though it wasn’t exactly the same, the cramped, dark feeling was familiar.

“What should we do about the rope?”

Adam, the last one down, asked. He had tied the rope to the other well since there was no one left to hold it, but if someone found it, they could follow down, which was dangerous.

“Should we just cut it?”

“There’s no guarantee this leads to the castle.”

“Still, it must lead somewhere.”

While Sharhan was still thinking, Adam said, “Let’s cut it. If someone supports me from below, I think I can climb back up without a rope.”

In that case, there was no reason to leave a risk behind.

“Cut the rope, Adam.”

At Lestel’s command, Adam coiled up the severed rope and entered the passage.

“Wow… I always thought it was just an abandoned well.”

Whether it was awe or disbelief, Adam couldn’t say another word. He just kept murmuring vague exclamations.

“I was sure it’d be inside the house, not in the well.”

Since Mernang had left a will saying not to sell or destroy the house, Lestel had naturally suspected there would be something hidden inside.

But his will wasn’t wrong. If the house had been sold or torn down, the well might have been destroyed too, or the secret space might’ve been discovered.

“Do you think Mernang knew about this?”

At Kuph’s question, Adam shook his head.

“I’m not sure. His will only said to protect the house. Maybe he knew about the passage but not its exact location. If he did, wouldn’t he have told me? But do you think this really leads to the castle?”

“We’ll find out once we go in.”

Lestel’s calm reply carried a faint tremor. He held the torch high and walked forward carefully, uncertain of what lay ahead.

The passage stretched endlessly. Despite being sealed for so long, insects appeared out of nowhere, some crunched underfoot, others dropped onto their skin.

The air was stifling, and cobwebs were everywhere. At the front, Lestel kept sweeping them away with his hand or burning them with the torch as he advanced.

“This tunnel is quite long. How much farther do you think we have?”

Rael asked between shallow breaths. The air was thin, and everyone was panting.

“The distance from Adam’s house to the castle is considerable. We’ll have to go a bit farther.”

Kuph answered. Though they couldn’t accurately judge time in the dark passage lit only by torchlight, it felt like they had come more than halfway.

“I see.”

“Are you feeling unwell?”

Hearing the strain in Rael’s voice, someone asked.

“No, it’s just my injured leg acting up a bit.”

Upon hearing that, Lestel asked,

“Sir Rael, should we rest for a moment?”

“No. I can bear it. Let’s keep going.”

“If it gets too much, please speak up.”

“Understood. Thank you. By the way, it looks like the torch is about to go out.”

Just as Rael said, the torch flame had shrunk considerably.

“We still have more oil, but…”

Lestel trailed off. They had oil, so they could refuel the torch, but the problem was the lack of oxygen. If the flame flared up, it would consume even more air, possibly causing someone to faint, especially the older Kuph or the already injured Rael.

“If the torch goes out, it’ll be pitch dark in here… but we haven’t had any problems walking so far. Maybe it’s better to keep going in the dark than risk suffocating by reigniting it. What do you all think?”

“You’re worried the flame will eat up the rest of the air, right?”

Sharhan immediately understood what Lestel was worried about.

“Yeah.”

“I’m fine.”

“So are we.”

As soon as they finished speaking, the torch went out with a soft hiss. The passage plunged into total darkness, not even a sliver of light visible. Lestel reached behind him for Sharhan’s hand. When the back of his hand brushed Sharhan’s stomach, Sharhan understood and silently took it.

Hand in hand, Sharhan and Lestel walked forward into the dark. The only sounds in the tunnel were their breathing and cautious footsteps.

Every now and then, Kuph let out a dry cough, and Adam muttered curses under his breath when bugs crawled on him.

It felt like they had been walking for hours when Lestel, leading the way, suddenly stopped. Caught off guard, Sharhan bumped into his back.

“What is it?”

“It’s blocked.”