The small exploration group, consisting of only four members, resumed their journey, slowly descending from the spine. Kevin lingered for a brief moment, his gaze drifting toward the fallen Centurion Knight, broken and motionless.
His expression remained blank, betraying the many unspoken thoughts crossing his mind.
Then, without a word, he turned away.
Slowly, the air grew heavier the further they went.
It wasn't a natural phenomenon. Like a heat haze rippling across the landscape, except there was no heat. The wind no longer howled as freely as before.
They adjusted without needing to speak.
Jasmine maintained the lead with unwavering focus, fiddling with her sword hilt. Mikoto lingered at the rear while Noah remained near the center, his attention divided between observation and recording, occasionally pausing for half a step longer as he noted the irregularities etched into the terrain.
As for Kevin himself, he moved between them.
Sometimes, he walked alongside Jasmine, at others he fell back before drifting forward again. There was no set rhythm to his movement, yet it never disrupted the group. If anything, it filled the gaps that compensated for what the others did not cover.
He wasn't much for a close fighter nor did he experience a great amount of experience. But he could kill the enemy.
Dismantle and Shred.
These two powers were simple in nature, yet terrifying in application.
They did not rely on technique, nor did they demand refined execution. They were direct. As long as his intent was clear and the target was within his line of sight, the result would follow.
And perhaps that was what made them so dangerous. Though he did need to get close and personal if he wanted to use Shred but it didn't matter.
The deeper they ventured, the more the environment seemed to resist them. The terrain shifted in subtle ways. For instance, there were angles that didn't quite align and distances that felt just slightly off. Even the ground beneath their feet carried a strange density, as though it were both solid and hollow at the same time.
Fragments of broken structures began to appear more frequently.
Ruins that could not be clearly identified as either natural or constructed. Some curved like bone, others stood in unnatural formations, smooth yet untouched by time. They felt out of place like remnants of something that no longer belonged to this world.
It was like looking at a painting drawn by an inexperienced artist.
Kevin's gaze swept across them briefly before moving on.
There was no curiosity in his eyes.
Eventually, they reached a ruined cathedral after hours of walking and slaying stray beasts.
It rose from the fractured earth in a warped imitation of grandeur. The towering spires were broken with the remains clawing upward like splintered bones, while the main structure leaned ever so slightly, as if on the verge of collapse, yet held in place by something defiantly.
What remained of its walls were riddled with enormous cracks.
There were no doors.
Only a gaping entrance where one should have been, reminscient of the open maw of a monstrous Terror. The edges were uneven, as though something had torn its way through.
Fragments of stained glass still clung to the upper frames of the cathedral's windows. What little remained was clouded and distorted, their colors dulled into muted shades that no longer resembled anything meaningful. The designs were impossible to decipher, warped beyond recognition, as if whatever they once depicted had been deliberately erased.
Inside, rows of broken pillars stretched into the darkness.
Some stood tall despite their damage, while others had collapsed entirely, scattered across the ground. The floor itself was ruined and disorderly, with some sections sinking inward or rising slightly, creating a disjointed path that led deeper into the structure.
There was no dust.
No sign of decay in the natural sense either.
Looking around and noticing the absence of monsters — or life for that matter, Jasmine frowned distastefully. Perhaps the image wasn't to her liking.
"It's empty. Noah, do you sense anything?"
Noah briefly scanned the cathedral's interior before shaking his head.
"No fluctuations within immediate range. At least, none that register as hostile," he paused then rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "That aside, just what is this place? Was there something like this in the past? Perhaps the idea is stored somewhere in Fortcliff's old archives."
"Most records of the Catastrophic Era has been long lost and irrecoverable. I doubt you would find anything about it there."
It was to be expected.
Basically, the Catastrophic Era was said to be an ancient age when the heavens tore open and the Gods descended into the world.
They were beings of absolute will and power. Their spiritual pressure alone reshaped reality. Mountains rose and collapsed at a whim. Seas boiled or froze depending on whose authority reigned. The uncountable laws that governed the world fractured under their existence.
And then, for some unknown reason, they turned on one another.
Perhaps it was inevitable.
Clashes between divine entities were not something to be taken lightly. They were the origin of concepts that gave rise to the Breath of Heaven and etched the Leylines into the fabric of the world. Beings that held absolute dominion over mana, shaping it and defining the very rules by which it functioned.
Countless legends spoke of them, though none could truly capture their nature.
Perhaps it was more fitting to call them "Authors" or "Writers."
Creating things from nothingness, creating 1s from 0s and reducing 1s into endless 0s. Such were the existence known as Creators. Yet, despite their seemingly almighty powers, they were no longer alive. Slain. Killed. All Great Ones had perished during the Catastrophic Era and none of them absolute.
Or rather—
It was more fitting to say they had returned to the state of "Nothing" or "Not Existing."
…Nonetheless, the Gods were gone, and all records or remnants of that primordial epoch had long since been swallowed by the Dark Dimension.
All that remained was the Forgotten Lands.
"Let's split up and spread out. There might be something useful or valuable here, so take your time to investigate and record your findings."
Those were Jasmine's final instructions as leader before she set off on her own.
The group soon dispersed.
Their footsteps echoed across the ruined cathedral before gradually fading into separate directions, swallowed by the vast, hollow interior.
Jasmine advanced toward the central aisle.
Mikoto veered off toward the left wing, committing every irregularity to memory.
Noah remained near the entrance for a moment longer before moving toward the right side.
Whereas,
"…Well, isn't this something?"
Kevin scratched the side of his neck, uncertainty flickering across his expression.
But standing still wasn't an option.
Alone like this, there was nothing to do except continue forward and see if anything in this place was actually worth uncovering. There might have been something valuable hidden within the ruins, though he seriously doubted it.
After a brief pause, a quiet sigh slipped from his lips.
Then his footsteps carried him deeper toward the center.