Published at 15th of April 2026 12:11 am

Chapter 147. Into the unknown

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Everyone fell silent, waiting for him to continue.

There might be another key, Clementus said, hesitation slowly leaving his voice. In the past, the Church sent three expeditions into the ancient headquarters. The first two were before the Inquisition, but the last one the last one was after, when mana and artifacts became much more crucial for our survival. For the first two, the gate would be opened and checked every day. But the last time, it was theorized that something might have chased the expedition to the gate and killed them there. And that maybe, if they had the key with them, they could run away and close it behind.

You risked a creature from ancient times getting out for an expedition? the DArc woman shouted.

We were taking considerable riskwe knowbut we sent our best men. They were ready to sacrifice themselves if they couldnt run. They never came back, much like the first two, but they should have tried to hide the key or preserve it. They would try to make sure their bodies could be found and buried. The third key should be with them.

There it wasthe real reason we were here, I imagined. There was something down there, something in the singularity that the creature wanted. Something it would lead us toward. The question was: did it plant the idea? Did the Miracle Bringers reach the pope, or did the pope simply follow protocol he knew they were aware of? Another question was where the old key was. Was it still with the creature, or hidden so well we wouldnt find it?

There were many questionsbut no answers.

You want us to go into an unknown ninth-level singularity without intelinto one that killed all expeditions that went into it? asked DArc.

I dont see another way, Clementus said, not meeting the speakers eyes.

Shes right, I said. Going into even a basic singularity without intel should be suicide. The ninth-level is even more certain suicide.

The people who went there should have had information with them. This time, Leo spoke.

So the mundane branch also knows, I murmured.

They were tasked with research. If we go after their tracks, we might also get to their intel, not only the key. Theres a chance that their corpses are somewhere close to the entrance, Leo argued.

A lot of assuming for something our lives depend on, said William.

Propose a better idea, then, the cardinal said.

Silence descended over the room. There was no better idea. We couldnt find the creature. No ones magic or memories had anything stand out.

We spent another hour on preparation: who would be in which group, who would stick with whom in an emergency, and so on. We stayed in the group we initially created, with the Hussar, the summoner, the oracle, and Astrid joining us. To my surprise, before we were set to move, two more creatures approached us. Both cats.

Its a pleasure to finally meet you, Mr. Alhazred, said a Donskoy bald catan ugly one. Well, Id prefer it be over a tea and a snack, but beggars cant be choosers.

Hes from the main Cat Council, William whispered in my earhis political knowledge as a noble much better than mine.

Hello.

Arash, the cat said.

Arash.

An honor to meet the heir of the dreaded Alhazreds, the cat continued. We really enjoyed the show you put on during the duel. There arent many occasions to witness magic at such a level, let alone spatial magic.

Thank you. I enjoyed it as well, I replied with a smile. Although this comes as a surprise, considering you should be one of the people who sent those poor souls to their deaths.

We simply bet on what we thought was a winning horse. The horse stumbled, but the race goes on. And so we would like to offer you a contract for the duration of our little escapade here.

My eyebrows shot up.

I already have a broker, I said, looking at the hairless creature with confusion.

Oh? And where is he? the animal asked, then looked around as if looking for QShar before bringing his gaze back to me, eyebrows raised.

I appreciate the theatrics, but Im not the kind to backstab without a reason.

Oh, and who speaks of backstabbing? We know a bit about you. Raised according to the ancient laws. Be cruel to your enemies and just to your allies. We dont need you to betray anyone. Just let us in on your brokers deals. Simple as that.

I raised my eyebrows. Really? We are trapped in an underground city with a singularity in front of us, an enemy among us, a closed, impenetrable gate behind us, and you want to play politics.

Look around you, the creature purred. Fear, confusion, and most of all uncertainty. A perfect place for politics.

I groaned, mulling his words over.

Why would I need you?

Information.

I seem to have much more information than you, I said, eyebrows raised. I found out about the creature. I doubt your expertise in magic is much better than mine, either.

About the case? Sure. Magic expertise? We dont doubt that. But inside scoop on the people here? Oh, I think we are much better informed. Mr. William might know who is who, but who hates whom? That is another thing entirely.

I looked to William, but he didnt deny it.

Arent you curious? the bald cat continued. What is the relationship between the popes? Who was close to George, and why could he switch those keys so easily? Why is Leo so protective of his position?

I looked at the creature and felt hatred for politics swell up inside me. But he was right. I needed informationand desperately. I could try scaring them into revealing it, but there was one problemhope. As long as the people and cats believed they were getting out of here, they would keep playing their little games, thinking of leaving with profit. For the cats, it was like we were locked in a vault filled with gold, and they were trying to gather as much as possible before getting out.

We have to I started, but another feline voice cut me off.

Pampered bald rat, the newcomer shouted, and I could see Arash wince.

One more cat approached, this one managing to keep her cat-retainer, an older woman walking with a cane behind her. The cat was an orange one with quite a few scars and bite marks. She was large but not impressively so, like a Maine Coon. Her keeper was dressed in the same outfit made to carry cats as QShars cat-lady wore, the white fabric contrasting with her copper-colored skin.

Rami, the cat introduced herself and, unlike the previous one, extended her paw for me to shake. I did so without hesitation and looked at the pair. The two cats held each others gazes, their tails twitching behind them in erratic movements.

Aaaah, a dirty stray crawled her way from a dumpster and into a serious talk.

Aaaah, a bald rat pretending to be a cat. Forgot to oil the skin and now youre grumpy?

Mr. Alhazred, please dont bother with the services of strays. They are street cats with street information at best. Unless you need some intel from Cypruss dumpsters. If so, then we cant compare, Arash said, the last part with clear condescension.

How funny, spat the new arrival. A breed only useful when a client has a fur allergy, bragging only thanks to the work of strays like us.

You live like animals. You rejected the Egyptian gods. Dont try to make yourself the better cat because you listen in on beggars talks.

You rejected the desert gods for Egypt and pretended to be enlightened. At least our saint cared for us. You just borrowed the first useful deities.

Rich, coming from a dirty stray

Whoa! I shouted, breaking the shouting matchmostly because William started to stare holes into my back. I, on the other hand, found their conversation very entertaining.

I enjoy a good fight as an other man, but could you get to the point?

Of course, spoke Rami over her bald opponent. We would like to offer the same intelligence, but for simply opening a road to your brokers contactsand we would like assurance for the Cyprus exorcist branch getting their information from us, as well as help with any negotiations with other branches.

I raised my eyebrows. There was most likely more to itas I knew the catsbut

Well, that is nice, spoke Arash, but we sat on the Church councils. We know all that you need to know. So I dont see a point in talking.

Well, we wont try to fuck you over, unlike my furless compatriot, said Rami. And we might not have sat on church councils, but we strays know all there is to be known. We have the biggest information network, and any knowledge we offer about other people here is top-notch, I assure you.

Yeah, but other houses werent where the skinwalker got it, were they?

Thank you for the offers, I said before another argument broke out. But Ill need time to decide.

Both cats tried some small talk, but I shooed them off, not interested in more politics. I could feel a headache comingbut the cats were right. William didnt have all the inside scoop. He knew who was who, but didnt have access to the cats information networks.

Before I could go back, the older woman who had previously held Rami, the stray, approached me. I was about to reject any further discussion, but instead she handed me something without saying a word. To my surprise, I recognized the document. I had seen similar ones in the mundane papers my family had preserved. It was an ancient exorcism contract, written and decorated as they had been two thousand years ago, even bearing the organizations logo hastily drawn in the corner. It was written recently, as the ink hadnt dried yet, and it had my name on it, with the client marked as anonymous.

It was a contract to hunt and kill a skinwalker.

I looked at it with confusion.

Its something Ms. Rami would like to give you.

What for?

The woman just shrugged. Im just a messenger.

Yeah, I have to sign a contract with her for an explanation. I get that, I sighed, taking the document.

The woman bowed a little and went away to pick up her cat.

This was strange. The contract was clearly hastily written, but the logo and its placement mimicked those of the old documents. But what was the point of giving it to me? It wasnt a chirograph, just an agreement. Although it was clear someones family had preserved items related to exorcists.

So what are we gonna do? asked William from the side.

Not sure, I sighed.

I could feel the headache coming even faster than before. I looked back at the writing. Well, I would go after the creature anyway. With a light grin, I went to the side and signed the agreement. It looked like my first exorcist job would be going after a skinwalker in a ninth-tier singularity. Funny, it sounded like something straight from ancient times. I chuckled at the thought and went on with preparation.

Finally, we got ready to depart. Slowly but surely, the time to enter the singularity came. We separated into the preplanned groups. The Church wanted to lead the way, and we were second as the group with the most firepower.

We walked through the dark, ancient corridors, the sconces still lit from our previous passage. Everyone was nervous. After fifteen minutes, we finally passed the point where the body of the cardinal wasnow wrapped in the spare clothes the Church group had with them.

People frowned, seeing the bloody wrappings, red liquid soaking through the fabric. We kept walking, slowing our pace. Once again, the darkness was broken only by braziers, and we lit them one by one, putting most people on edge each time a new part of the corridor was revealed. I also used their light to see, without risking anyone finding out about my mutations.

And then it happened. One of the braziers lit the corridorand when the previously dark space came into focus, it wasnt empty.

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