I Received System to Become Dragonborn-Chapter 878: The Fuel

While the clash between Erend and Orzhal-Kur raged like a storm outside, sending tremors through the forest and shaking the skies, deep within the ancient temple, another struggle was happening. This struggle was not about power - at least not yet – but about mystery and decisions.

The eight adventurers moved cautiously through the long stone corridors. Every footstep echoed in the hollow silence of the temple.

The deeper they went the colder it became as though the structure itself had not known warmth or light in centuries. Or the Magic energy here was just to strong.

Strangely — and perhaps, ominously — not a single monster had appeared. No guardian or man and no trap triggered. But the absence of danger felt like a trap in itself.

Their weapons never left their hands. Every shadow was treated as a threat. Every turn of the corridor was approached with blades drawn and spells ready.

Room after room passed them by. Some were cracked open, others sealed shut.

Many of the walls bore ancient murals and carvings filled with cryptic symbols and swirling patterns that seemed to pulse subtly when touched by torchlight.

Esther, Selene, and Annette began slowing down each time they saw another one. Their eyes lingered on the runes and faded glyphs. Something about the artistry felt resonant in their mind. As if knowledge was buried here and waiting to be unearthed, like they found Magic they had never encountered before.

But before they could study further, Jan urged them forward. This wasn't the time. Curiosity could wait.

The three reluctantly agreed, tearing their gazes from the murals and moving on.

Eventually, the corridor opened into a wide sealed chamber. Jan stepped forward, placing a hand on the stone surface of the door. His expression darkened.

"There are people inside," he muttered.

Mark tensed. "People?"

Jan nodded with low voice. "I can feel them. But… nothing else. No other movement. These walls are muting something. I don't like it."

Mark glanced toward the others. "Then what do we do?"

Jan hesitated. His senses that were usually so sharp were hitting a wall here. What if it wasn't people at all? What if something else was lurking in the dark beyond that stone? Something masking itself?

He clenched his teeth. "I don't know. What do you all think?"

Kaela stepped forward without hesitation. "If there are people in there, we need to help them."

"I agree," Hund said.

Others voiced their thoughts — some cautious, some supportive — but in the end, the majority agreed. They had come here for more than battle. If lives could be saved, they couldn't walk away.

Jan finally nodded. He pulled out his bow and readied an arrow, just in case.

Mark moved to the opposite side of the door with his sword raised, ready to flank. The others took positions behind them. Magic at the ready and their eyes locked forward.

Creaaaak.

The chamber door opened. But no attack came. Just silence.

Inside were people that amounted about dozens of them. Men and women slumped on the floor. Their clothes ragged and their bodies thin and limp as if they hadn't eaten or moved in days.

Some sat upright against the walls. Others lay sprawled on the stone. They didn't look dead but they didn't look alive either.

Their eyes were open. But there was nothing in them.

The adventurers entered carefully, spreading out and lowering their weapons but keeping their guard up. The door closed behind them with a heavy thud.

"Hey," Esther called softly to a young man leaning against the wall. "Are you alright? Can you hear me?"

No response. His eyes stared through her.

Selene knelt beside a woman with tangled hair and trembling hands. "Who did this to you?"

Still nothing. The woman blinked but as if by reflex, not thought.

Annette moved closer to one of the silent figures. "Please… can you speak? Tell us what happened here."

But there were no answers. Only hollow eyes. Eyes that had seen too much and had forgotten what hope looks like.

The adventurers exchanged glances across the dim chamber. Their eyes heavy with the weight of unspoken understanding. freeωebnovēl.c૦m

One by one, their heads slowly shook out of grim acceptance. These people couldn't be saved.

They were breathing, but they weren't really alive. Whatever had drained them had left behind only the husks of what once were lives.

Carrying them would only slow the group down, endanger the mission, and potentially doom them all. They could return later, if they survived.

Still, it wasn't easy turning away.

They lingered for a while longer, examining the room and look to every corner and every faint crack in the walls. The silence was stifling.

Selene and Esther moved carefully around the chamber, sensing with more than just their eyes. Their fingers brushed against the air itself and their minds reaching for the echoes that lingered in this damned room.

Selene's brow furrowed. "There's something here," she whispered. "Something that feels old and fed on them."

Esther nodded and then said in low and wary voice, "I feel it too. This is a residual threads of Magic that was drawn from the roots of something foul. This is most like the kind of Magic that took their mind."

"What do you mean?" Mark asked, watching them closely.

"This is forbidden Magic that takes memories," Esther murmured. "Thoughts. Identity. This will empty them."

"Something used Magic to consume the essence of their minds," Selene added. "Piece by piece. And it fed that energy somewhere else. Into something else."

Jan's eyes narrowed.

Esther glanced over her shoulder at the lifeless people against the walls. "So they're not just victims. They're fuel."

The room seemed to grow colder at her words. The shadows pressed tighter against the walls. Somewhere beyond, deeper in the temple something was waiting. Something that had eaten these people's memories and wanted more.

Jan turned back toward the door. "We keep moving."

"We need to be extra careful," Selene said to them. Her face looks pale. Esther made the same face.

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