Surviving As A Cannon Fodder

Chapter 129

"Where am I?"

The cave tunnel was deeper than Ann had expected. 

As the bioluminescent algae on the walls cleared, the natural rocky surface of the cave was layered with a brick-like structure.

It was covered with mana stones of high resonance on either side of the wall that lighted the pathway as she walked past them. The precise cut of the stones showed expert workmanship and technique.

'Smart lights' were developed by Axel Gilbert well into the current century. It was one of his oldest and most established creations. But these tunnels seemed to have been made hundreds of years ago before such technology even existed.

The runes written on the mana stones resembled the ones she had seen in the artifacts in Gilbert's office and on the relic they were transporting.

Runes of such caliber belonged to the ancient magicians who were the founders of today's magic system.

'The old man is gonna turn green from jealousy when he sees this' Ann slowly touched the rune written on the mana stone.

Even a non-mage like her was able to identify that the mana stones were worth a lot of gold than what meets the eye. They were of the purest form, more than that of those that the mage tower produced.

It seemed like wherever these tunnels led to they must be precious enough to hold exquisite magical equipment hidden inside the depths of Eldom.

Considering the number of relics that have been uncovered in recent excavations there was a high possibility that she may have stumbled into one of the excavation sites.

"But I don't think anyone's been in this place for a very long time..."  Ann mumbled to herself.

An exquisite structure with the possibility of relics present would definitely attract adventurers and scholars. From their conversations, even Chief Gallahan didn't seem to have any knowledge of it. Or else he would have bragged about the place till their ears bleed.

'Am I the first person here in centuries?' Ann speculated.

"ROAR" An ogre's fierce cry was heard through the tunnels.

Ann shook her head to clear her mind. It was not the right time for conspiracy theories as the ogres were still hot on her trail.

She was running through the tunnels in the hopes of losing the ogres along the way, but they were on her track no matter what path she chose in the maze-like tunnels.

'I need a weapon. Anything. Even a stick would be fine!' Ann stopped running.

At last, she had reached the end of the tunnel.

There was nowhere left to hide. And without any weapons, she was in a vulnerable position against the alpha ogres.

In front of her stood a large door covered in golden engraving. The runes etched between the engravings were partially similar with the ones on the mana stones on the walls.

"Dammit!" Ann banged her hand on the door.

She searched for a way to open the door. But there were no handles or latches anywhere. It was all too similar to the Orion relic they were transporting that had zero holes.

"Oh come on!" She threw her hands in the air and kicked the door in frustration.

"Oww... Ow Ow"

Ann jumped, holding her feet that stung from kicking the door.

If she doesn't find a way to open the door, she would be a sitting duck for the ogres to have a snack on. From the rumbling of the ground, they were getting closer and closer.