Eternal Freedom's Ascension-Chapter 97: Ruined Cathedral

Kaiser carefully explored the forest, scanning the perimeter for signs of anything dangerous. He didn’t see any Bark Bat, which was a bit surprising.

It wasn’t until he noticed dried blood on trees that he realized he had stepped into another territory.

His body was still slightly exhausted, but it wouldn’t be a hindrance when fighting. He unsheathed the two swords, then proceeded cautiously.

He began to notice the claw marks on the trees, footprints of large paws, and some dry hair caught between twigs or the barks of trees.

’A mammal... probably.’

He could visualize something with four legs, with a large body covered in dark fur.

This part of the forest was very dangerous, so he decided to leave as fast as possible.

He sheathed his sword, then climbed up a tree. Standing on the strong dry branches, he leaped onto another tree, then onto another.

Like that, he moved by swinging through the forest, avoiding traveling on the ground.

Very soon, he appreciated his decision. In the distance, he could hear a thunderous collision. Curious but cautious, he approached the source stealthily.

Maintaining a great distance, he perched on a thick branch and activated the Eyes of Sequence.

His vision sharpened, and he could see the source of the chaos clearly.

Two creatures were battling each other, their bodies riddled with injuries. One was a Nightmane Predator, a massive furred quadruped with six eerie yellow eyes. It opened its jaw threateningly, exposing its thick sharp set of canines.

The other creature was a twisted chimera. It had two eagle-like heads with sharp beaks, two large wings covered in green feathers, and a pair of bird-like legs covered in green scales. One of its wings was broken, denying it flight or escape.

Boom!

The two creatures collided heavily. The sharp canines of the predator sank into its injured wing, while its own pair of sharp beaks tore into the predator’s skin.

They struggled with each other, using their claws and talons to fight each other viciously.

The sheer brutality of the fight made even Kaiser pause, as it was evident that they really wanted to kill each other. He studied them some more, then turned around and left.

Although he’d have loved to see the conclusion of their fight, he wasn’t ready to risk attracting the attention of the winner.

’I can tell—the bird chimera will die.’

That creature was clearly not in its natural environment, and it surely couldn’t overpower the predator in its own suitable environment.

After a few minutes, he heard a despairing cry, then everything went silent. He didn’t pause, swinging through the forest as fast as he could. Eventually, he arrived at the edge of the forest.

Instead of coming down immediately, he perched on the last tree, then scanned the perimeter of this place.

An almost collapsed temple lay ahead, its structure looking ancient and mystical. A few structures remained intact, though Kaiser remained unaware of their original purposes.

’A Ruined Cathedral...’

His eyes narrowed, and he finally came down from the tree.

With measured steps, he climbed up the staircase of the abandoned structure. The place was silent, and he couldn’t sense any creature nearby.

Even his shadow senses didn’t catch anything on their radar. Then, he began exploring the cathedral. The main building was still intact, but the other parts had collapsed over time.

’This was probably a worship place for some religion.’

He touched the walls, noticing the smooth carvings of letters he couldn’t understand. It clearly wasn’t a language from his world—Kaiser had studied every known language on Earth.

Surprisingly, he saw an intact painting which had fallen to the ground. Wiping the dust off it, he checked the image.

It was a depiction of a great war. Countless warriors in red armor were charging at an equally massive horde of grotesque creatures.

The painting wasn’t clear, but he had no doubt that those creatures were Nirad Creatures.

’This must be before their world was torn apart and thrown into the Nirad Realm.’ 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

Perhaps someone had survived the world assimilation, and painted this so their world’s last struggle could be remembered.

Kaiser’s expression turned solemn. It was obvious that Nirad Gates weren’t just random openings. At first, there were barely ten on Earth. However, there were now hundreds of Nirad Gates all over the Earth.

Some parts of the continents, like a large island attached to Africa, had been conquered by the Nirad Creatures from the Nirad Gates opening up there. Several other locations around the world had been conquered too. Only the existence of the Guilds who had dedicated themselves to clearing the dungeons and closing the gates, kept things normal for now.

’They’re only a temporary measure. Eventually, millions of Nirad Gates would bloom across the planet like wounds.’

His gaze shifted back to the painting on the ground.

’Would our world also be like this, staging one final war between the Nirad Creatures and we humans?’

He didn’t know, but he could predict that dark, inevitable future already.

Shrugging, he produced a storage relic and stored the painting within it. Then, he dismissed the relic, letting it sink back into the depths of his crystal core.

He explored the other parts of the cathedral, noting the identifiable items like candle wax, an altar for offering, and several others. Surprisingly, he found a simple bedchamber on the upper floor of the cathedral. The room was still intact, but the amount of dust and webs in it could make a person develop severe sneezing fits.

Blocking his nostrils, he created a broom made of darkness and quickly cleaned the room. He found a few books on the dresser, which were also written in languages he couldn’t understand.

After cleaning the room, he checked if the bed could still be used. Surprisingly, it was still intact. Although it wasn’t made from foam but something elastic, he didn’t mind and decided to manage it.

’Night is approaching.’

The unknown source of light that illuminated the Aether Skies through the fog was gradually disappearing, and soon everything would be covered in thick darkness.

Kaiser didn’t mind staying in the dark as it was his own element, but he still decided to get some sticks and start a small bonfire in the room.

By the time he was done collecting dry branches from the Withered forest, the deep dark night had already come.