An immaculate carving proudly stood before the five pairs of eyes of the group.

An extremely muscular man with his arms outstretched and his hands forming fists that exuded a powerful presence even from the image.

Wild hair that was spread out to the very top of the boundary of the gate as if blown by an untamed wind.

At the front of his head, a solemn face with eyes that were shut, a button nose and ideal lips; all very detailed as they gave off the impression of a seasoned and calm warrior.

Yet, behind this gorgeous image, a contrasting one could be seen, floating above it as if to portray that this was the true self that was above the facade depicted at the forefront.

A malicious grin that spreads from ear to ear upon a face similar to the one of the man at the forefront.

Open eyes that look like the eyes of a devil gazed down at something that was within its own hands.

A large ball that was divided into two halves.

However, because of the lack of colour on the vast stone, there was no clear distinction on the difference of these halves.

Benzard was the first to come back to reality as he turned to his fellow adventurers.

“Listen up. This is it. We don’t have time to waste,” he said, causing the others to pay attention to him. “We don’t know what we’re going to find so let me tell you this. If one of us manages to find the legacy before the others, they are to wait for at least three hours if there’s no immediate danger. If no one else shows up, in particular, me, then take the legacy and make it your own.”

Everyone was surprised by this.

Denille couldn’t believe what she was hearing. This guy was willing to let go of the legacy just like that?

“Even though I’m the one who seems more interested in this than any of you, it defeats the purpose of us coming here if we fail to get it in the end. So if you find it, go for it. Understood?”_.

Everyone nodded.

Benzard pulled out the two Keys and motioned for Skullius to come and take the one that was bound to him.

The Keys were only useful when the person bound to them used them, after all.

Slowly, Skullius walked up to Benzard who gave him the Key and put his hand on his shoulder to supply him with mana.

They walked up the giant fox that gazed at them, its focus being on Skullius as it then released a low guffaw that made everyone comfortable.

‘Curious.’

However, because its eyes were so large, no one could really see who it was actually focusing on.

The fox stood from its laying position but did not remove itself from the way, Benzard pushing Skullius to go towards the gate from under the creature.

Passing through only made the two all the more cautious as the shadow that engulfed them even in this dark world had a certain depth to it.

The two reached the gate, Benzard looking at Skullius and nodding before placing his Key onto the gate.

Skullius did the same with his Key, the moment the second Key touched the stone gate causing the large structure to shake greatly!

Both Keys glowed with a white light as they exerted their power on the gate, forcefully causing it to grunt and begin to open, albeit very slowly.

The two figures carved onto the stone were split in half as the two pieces diverged, a bright circular portal being revealed behind!

Its light caused the adventurers and Skullius to squint their eyes, the beauty and unease this portal exuded being especially overbearing.

“You may pass,” the fox said as it then turned to the other three who rushed over to Benzard and Skullius.

The bright portal made everyone hesitate. They had all expected a gaping black hole that would be glad to just swallow them whole instead of this welcoming-ish light.

What could it look like inside the actual labyrinth? Could it be that their perception was biased and Fulgardt had different tastes?

There was only one way to find out.

Denille looked at Skullius and voiced out a thought she had been wanting to enact for a long time.

“Isn’t this shitface useless now? We can kill him right?”

Skullius turned to this woman with a hard expression.

‘I completely forgot that there might not be any use for me since they’ve already opened the gate! I thought they’d only kill me when they had gotten the legacy or whatever just in case. Can they take that chance?!’ Skullius thought as he gave Denille a hateful stare.

This woman really wanted him dead.

“That’s true. Having to continuously supply him with mana when in such a dangerous place would be a hustle,” Reon said, posing a logical view point.

Benzard turned his gaze to Skullius, showing that he was considering it.

Skullius wouldn’t allow it!

His mind raced as he used all the processing power he could muster from his mind to fabricate a fairly convincing argument while keeping a somewhat calm temperament that no one believed.

“It’s not that I’m afraid of… meeting my end or anything. I’ve actually died before you see but killing me now won’t benefit you,” he said with a slight tremble.

Denille walked right up to Skullius, a dagger in her hand as then posed the obvious question.

“Oh yeah? Why is that?”

“Because you might still need the Keys to open wherever this legacy is being protected. It’s obviously guarded right?”

Denille stopped and everyone else mulled it over. It wasn’t that they hadn’t thought of it. They had all obviously considered that, but what made them hesitate to carry on with Skullius was that it was known that each legacy had a different setup from the other. It was usually not the same as legacies could be found just about anywhere.

What if there were more gates beyond this one that needed the Keys?

Wouldn’t killing Skullius destroy the Key as Eobald had said? They had all believed his remark about the Key when they saw that it was functional and in possession of Skullius after Eobald’s death after all.

“But what if it doesn’t need the Keys?” asked Denille with a frown.

“But what if it does?” Skullius posed his own question.

“What you’re saying is just a possibility to make us more anxious about killing you! Stop trying to look intelligent while you’re the one whose desperate to keep your sorry life,” an unveiled disdainful look appeared on Denille’s face as she looked down at Skullius.

“Even so, it’s this possibility that could make you all walk out with everything or nothing? Maybe you’ll need to Keys to get out after you have the legacy or after you’ve failed. What will you do then? Rot while trapped in there?”

‘Oh crap! That’s actually a good point!’ Skullius thought sneakily.

…!

Benzard were a grim expression. The last point that Skullius had made actually made sense. This wasn’t merely any legacy. It was the legacy of a man who was known to be unpredictable and valued strength without much in the way of honor.

He could literally put up anything as a challenge. This assumption wasn’t too far fetched.

The others felt the same. Denille couldn’t deny that Skullius was right. There were too many variables.

The giant fox watched on in amusement.

“He’s right. We still need him alive,” Benzard said. “If we by any chance split up, whoever gets stuck with him needs to keep him alive at all costs. Got it?”

Everyone nodded, with Denille doing so bitterly.

“Don’t hesitate to use your full strength when you’re in a tough spot. Let’s go.”

Benzard was the first to walk up to the light and take a deep breath.

‘I have every reason to be obsessed with gaining more strength. Those who feel differently are those that have never needed it,’ he thought before walking into the portal.

Everyone else quickly followed, a ripple running through the portal as each one went in.

As Skullius passed through the light that disrupted his mana core for a moment, he felt a hard surface under his foot.

His senses that had been temporarily dulled focused as they took in what was around.

A dark and narrow corridor that stretched into the unseen distance was all he could vaguely see. Skullius could barely make out sturdy walls on both his sides and when he took another step forward, he bumped into something!

He drew back in surprise as he realised he had bumped into someone.

A blue light was released from this someone’s finger, their view being revealed to Skullius who unconsciously rolled his eyes when he saw who it was.

The same could be said for this person as they released an agitated ‘Urgh’.

“I can’t believe I have to be stuck with you, shitface,” Denille said as she looked around. They were the only two in this narrow corridor that barely fit them both when they stood side by side.

Skullius was about to retort when…

KRRRRSHHHHH!

A scrapping sound was heard along with the sight of sparks that sprayed as a certain object brushed against the walls.

The little light provided by the sparks gave glimpses of a horrifying image that made Denille and Skullius tremble.

Unfortunately, the appearance of this creature was only a secondary concern.

The shiver-inspiring image of a creature that held a large sword which scraped against the walls was terrifying but…

The core that it held within it was…