The entire Underground Wine Cellar seemed to come alive in an instant, beginning to writhe.
As the sound of peeling echoed out, the limestone all around them shattered and collapsed.
Like tentacles, blood vessels made up of worms spread throughout the entire underground space.
As their writhing grew more violent, they began to emit squeaking sounds—or rather, they were not really "squeaks," but the sound of rubbing against one another, like glass being scratched.
But the limestone did not shatter completely. Some traces remained, transforming into sharp spikes.
Every spike was covered in spiral patterns. They looked like some kind of rune, yet also like some kind of language.
"Are these... teeth?"
Isabel's inspiration stirred faintly, and she spoke instinctively.
The instant the ground also began to writhe and roll, Sherlock immediately chose the appropriate counterspell and released it.
—Petrification Ray! It was a spell modeled after the Path of Twilight.
Sherlock pressed his staff lightly but firmly against the "ground," firing at close range.
The petrification spread in an instant. Like frost spreading across glass, a solid layer of rock resembling hoarfrost formed in the blink of an eye.
The next moment, the ground collapsed with a thunderous roar.
The group fell straight downward. Yet beneath their feet was a layer of solid rock.
Iver had originally intended to spread his wings—but before he could, Sherlock had already cast the spell a second time.
—Group Feather Fall Spell!
Translucent silver-gray radiance wound around everyone. The resistance of the air suddenly increased, as though it had turned into a non-Newtonian fluid. Their descent became even slower than sinking through water, and as they continued downward, they slowed more and more until they were moving at the speed of falling feathers.
The stone disk beneath their feet carried them slowly downward