Funai Er walked down the hidden stone staircase behind the church, step by step, descending into the depths below.
The sound of her heels striking the cold stone steps echoed through the narrow, enclosed space, unnervingly clear.
The farther down she went, the dimmer the light became. Only the faint glow of wall lamps, set far apart, lit her way. The air was thick with dust and a faint, stale chill rising from deep underground.
She didn't encounter anyone along the way.
There were no guards on duty, no priests passing by, not even the slightest trace of another living person. It was highly unusual.
Even if Tia had impersonated the Archbishop and the church's routine defenses had slackened, the underground areas—especially the entrance to the sealed grounds—should never have been so deserted. In theory, this place's security was second only to the Archbishop's own residence and the inner sanctuary where the holy relics were kept.
A clear note of wariness came over Funai Er's beautiful face. She didn't slow down, but her emerald eyes swept over every shadow and corner along the way.
At last, the stairs ended. Before her stood a massive, dark metal door of indeterminate material. Purification runes and sealing spells belonging to the Harvest Mother Goddess were engraved across it, their faint sheen barely visible in the dim light.
She had been here before, of course. Funai Er had once found a way to infiltrate the place, caused a certain amount of chaos, and left behind a trigger substance for the suppression array amid the confusion. The underground sealing level was therefore familiar to her.
It looked no different from before.
She stopped before the door and reached out, her palm almost touching the cold metal surface.
At that very instant, Funai Er froze.
Her