Chapter 5 (1/2)

Translator: Atlas Studios  Editor: Atlas Studios

Gawain wondered if Rebecca had received an injury to the head when she fought against the monsters and said patiently, “Although I have been here for many years… I was dead, okay! How am I supposed to know how the grave looks like when I was dead?”

Rebecca thought for a moment. She was going to remind her ancestor that the tomb for the founding king of Anzu was built when that king was still alive. Even the king himself participated in its design. However, on second thoughts, if she were to keep up this drivel, Aunt Herti might just kill her on the spot. Thus, she swallowed her words, turned to him and smiled awkwardly. “Ahaha… that makes sense.”

“Now we can’t go back by the same route.” Herti sighed and calmly analyzed the situation. “The entrance to the castle’s courtyard and the ancestral graves have been occupied by those monsters. Going back where we came from would be a dead end.”

“We have to find another way out,” Gawain said as he searched his inherited memory. “It’s been seven hundred years since, has the castle not been renovated?”

“The upper parts of the castle have undergone reconstruction, but the foundation hasn’t been modified,” Herti said quickly, “The entrance you mentioned should still be there.”

“Well, that’s great then,” Gawain said, extending his hand to a soldier beside him. “Lend me your sword for a while.”

After taking the longsword from the soldier, Gawain drew a sketch on the ground. He first sketched the top view of the castle’s outline, followed by a side view of the castle roughly divided into three levels. Though the sketches were drawn in a hurry, the different sections of the castle could be made out quite clearly.

“The entrance is here, two levels underground. It’s close to the wine cellar and the granary, at least it used to be. There are two passages to get here, but we would have to enter these passages from the surface, so this is probably not feasible.”

Rebecca looked curiously at Gawain’s sketches. “The wine cellar and granary are still there, but I never knew a third room existed…”

“It’s not a room, but a mezzanine, built with some architectural tricks. It’s hidden between the wall and supporting beams.” Gawain chuckled, “This piece of land wasn’t very peaceful back then. Located at the border, the monsters emerging from the wasteland of Gondor and the soldiers of the old empire who had gone mad would come to attack every ten to fifteen days. The Cecil pioneers pretty much built this according to the demands of a stronghold during a war. In these situations, the hidden passageways and levels were indispensable. They can be used for emergency evacuation and as a supply route when under siege.”

Knight Byron took a serious look at the simple map and pulled out his long sword to trace the bottom corner of the map, “So we have to advance to the entrance at the second level of the castle… and not pass through the courtyard or the passages on the ground floor. This is where we are. The ancestral tomb is an underground structure built in the southeast section of the castle. It coincides with about one-third of the castle’s structural base…”

“In this overlapping area, there should be a passage,” Gawain interrupted Byron, “The tomb was built seven hundred years ago. These craftsmen were the same ones who built the fortress. These buildings were built in accordance to the standards and regulations then. They must have made an alternative route.”

With that said, he gave Rebecca a strange look. “You really don’t know anything about this? This knowledge should have been passed down in the Cecil Clan through the generations.”

Rebecca looked down embarrassed. “I…”

“Ancestor, we failed to live up to the glory that you have fought to bring to the family.” Herti bit her lip. With a troubled look, she said, “The Cecil Clan has been through many things in these seven hundred years…”

“Alright, I know,” Gawain waved his hand. This was not the time for telling stories. “After we get out of here, I’ll let you explain to me the things that happened these past seven hundred years. The matter at hand is to find the way to the hidden passageway from the tomb.”

Rebecca, Herti, and Byron squatted down and studied the sketch. Though they were familiar with the Cecil Clan’s castle, they were not familiar with how the tomb was constructed. This seven hundred year old tomb was not just some tourist attraction that could be entered for two silver coins, let alone somewhere they could take a stroll around every few days. Even before the tomb was sealed a hundred years ago, the descendants of the Cecil Clan could only enter the tomb on a few rare occasions in their lifetime—and they were also not allowed to go near their ancestor’s resting grounds.

How would they know where the hidden passageway was!

In the face of this problem, even Gawain’s memory could not be of any help. After all, he certainly did not expect that sometime in the future, he would rise up and find a way out of there…

But just as they were unable to find a solution, Amber, who stayed obediently in a corner, suddenly spoke up, “Hey… I might know a way…”

Immediately, everyone in the tomb turned their attention to the half-elf thief.

Amber’s neck cringed back.

Herti frowned. “How do you know?”

“I…” Amber was a little scared, but upon seeing the encouraging look from Gawain, she grew bold. “That’s where I came in from… it should be in the same direction. I’m guessing that is the hidden passageway.”

Gawain nodded. “Good, you lead the way.”