The lingering Light Spell reached its time limit and slowly went out.
The magnificent golden scenery vanished from their surroundings, along with the faint rainbow hues concealed beneath the gold.
Ruger and Mahama exchanged a glance. Big Guy turned toward the path, and the instant he touched the stone slabs, his broad frame stiffened.
Ruger and the other two watched quietly from the side.
Mahama stood on the first slab with his eyes closed for a while before he began walking forward. Once he moved, he never stopped, taking one step after another. Each stride carried his towering frame a considerable distance, yet against the vast cavern and the long road, he still seemed rather small.
A faint sound reached Ruger's ears.
"This pain... this pain..."
Mahama walked with his head lowered, muttering to himself as he went.
Ruger watched him. Something unexpected seemed to be happening to Big Guy, but he persevered, his feet moving without pause.
Step after step, he walked farther and farther away. Gradually, he even raised his head, like a victorious knight standing tall and proud.
But Ruger noticed that Big Guy's face was trembling and his eyes were wide.
Apart from his unchanging footsteps, none of those strange signs made any sense. They looked nothing like the reaction to pain he had imagined.
Gradually, more sounds began to emerge.
Ruger looked at the Monster Wolf he had just released. The creature stood obediently off to one side, which meant that the strange noise, like chattering teeth, came from Mahama. Seeing Big Guy reduced to such a state was genuinely startling, yet his steps remained perfectly precise. The distance of each stride and the timing of each lifted leg never changed.
Understanding dawned on him in an instant.
Ruger watched those two legs. The fellow