They didn't come in through the main road.
By the time they reached the outer boundary of the Andreas estate, their route had already been mapped, revised, and cleared twice over. They identified the blind spots and pinpoint their path in.
"We're in."
The voice was low, steady fed through a comms unit tuned just above a whisper.
Four in total as they moved beneath the tree line, spacing deliberate. No time for wasted motion.
This wasn't their first operation.
The man at the rear slowed, just slightly. His gaze shifted across the woods ahead, appraising their surroundings.
"…You seeing this?"
A beat.
"Seeing what?"
"Nothing."
That was the problem.
Absence of beasts. The atmosphere seems quiet that they could only hear the blow of the wind.
"Stay focused," the lead cut in.
"Log it. We move."
No one argued as they pressed forward. The cathedral stood ahead of them.
It didn't feel like it belongs there, not because it was mysterious but because it fit too perfectly into a place that shouldn't have held it at all. Like it had been placed there… or had always been there, unnoticed until now.
One of them exhaled quietly.
"…So that's our target?"
"Matches the file," the lead replied. "Close enough."
Another pause. Short and measured.
"Do you feel something's off?"
"Yeah," the lead said. "That's why we're here."
He stepped forward first, the others followed right behind, o more questions. They advanced toward the cathedral, unaware that long before they crossed into the clearing,
they had already been noticed.
Beneath the Sixth Floor which was structured and deliberate.
Too…precise.
Agatha sat alone at the central control platform, her posture relaxed but her eyes anything but. The chair beneath her adjusted subtly to her weight, its design accommodating without being noticed a quiet compliance built into the system itself.
Before her, three massive monitors stretched across the curved console, suspended in perfect alignment. Their glow painted the dim chamber in cold light, replacing the warmth of torches or mana lamps with something sharper clinical, unfeeling.
Lines of data streamed endlessly across the screens. Symbols. Characters. Structured sequences.
Not runes or glyphs. Not anything she had ever studied. They moved in rigid order flowing, updating, shifting yet none of it carried the familiar pulse of magic. There was no mana fluctuation. No spiritual resonance. No imprint of will.
And that alone unsettled her more than any spell ever had, her gaze drifted downward.
The board before her was wide, spanning nearly the length of her reach. Embedded into it were countless keys each marked with unfamiliar symbols, patterns, and characters. Some were simple. Others layered with complexity.
None of them followed magical logic.
No circles, no arrays, no anchor points.
Just… input.
"This is unnecessary," Agatha said at last, her voice quiet but edged with clear judgment. "Only those who aren't associated with magic or swords could do this."
Her forefinger hovered briefly, then pressed down on one of the keys, "perhaps this requires intelligent mind to operate."
A soft, almost imperceptible click answered her.
Immediately, her eyes snapped back to the central screen. The response was instant.
A rectangular framework materialized at the center of the display clean lines forming its boundaries. Within it, the exact symbols she had pressed appeared, aligned and structured. Beneath it, rows of documented files unfolded into view, each labeled, categorized, and ordered with mechanical precision.
Agatha blinked.
"Is that what it does?"
There was no delay, no chant, no activation sequence. Just input and result.
"This could have an affinity with alchemy."
Her expression shifted, though not into awe.
Into confusion then disappointment.
"What's the point…"
She leaned back slightly, resting her head against her right palm, her elbow anchored on the armrest. Her gaze lingered on the screen, but her attention had already begun to drift.
"Everything about this is complicated," she muttered. "And not in an understanding way."
Her eyes narrowed faintly.
"The one thing that impressed me…"
Her gaze lifted slightly, thoughtful now.
"…He created a voice that could speak without soul infusion."
That alone had been… unnatural. Magic required a source. A will. A binding. A voice without any of those should not exist.
Her brows furrowed.
"What did he call it again?"
A pause.
"Ahi? Ehyi? Yaw?"
"AI."
The voice came immediately.
Calm. Neutral. Present.
Agatha's head tilted slightly, her eyes shifting not toward a person, but toward the space itself.
"AI, yeah… that's what he called it," she said, nodding once as if confirming her own memory. Then, without hesitation, she asked:
"What is AI?"
"AI stands for Artificial Intelligence, non-organic cognitive system." the voice, Aid responded.
Agatha repeated it slowly.
"Artificial… Intelligence…"
She leaned forward slightly, her earlier disinterest giving way to cautious curiosity.
"What does it mean?"
"AI is a machine-based system capable of performing complex tasks that typically require human intelligence."
The explanation came without pause. Without hesitation and thought.
Agatha watched the screen for a moment longer.
Then, unexpectedly, a small smile formed at the corner of her lips.
A qualified one.
"Ohh… I see now."
But she didn't, her gaze returned fully to the monitors.
The thought surfaced uninvited.
In all her years decades of study, mastery, refinement she had never encountered something like this. Not even close.
Her eyes moved slowly across the platform, taking in the full scope of it.
The structure, the order, the sheer scale of it.
Is it worth it…?
Her fingers hovered slightly above the keys again but this time, she didn't press anything.
If I'm to learn how this system operates…
Her expression tightened just slightly.
It's really… really complicated.
And not in the way magic was complicated.
Magic had layers but those layers were intuitive once understood. They flowed from will, from intent, from connection.
This...
"This logic…" she murmured under her breath.
"It differs too much."
There was no intuition here.
She inhaled slowly then suddenly gasped, her hand moving to her temple.
"This is a lot…"
Her fingers pressed lightly against her head as if steadying herself.
"…for my mind to take in piece by piece."
A quiet sigh escaped her.
For the first time since arriving on the Sixth Floor, Agatha who had faced spirits, curses, and ancient constructs felt something close to mental fatigue. From comprehension.
Silence settled in.
Only the faint hum of the system remained.
Then,
"Alert. Alert."
The shift was immediate.
Agatha's hands lifted slightly off the console, hovering in the air as her posture straightened.
"Huh?"
Her tone sharpened.
"What now?"
"An unauthorized individual attempting to gain entry to the premises has been detected," Aid reported.
The phrasing was precise and singular.
Agatha's eyes narrowed slightly.
"Ohh… really?"
She adjusted in her seat, no longer relaxed. Her body leaned forward now, attention fully engaged.
How close could they be?
"Aid," she said, her voice now carrying authority rather than idle curiosity, "are you able to situate their location?"
"I already have. I could also share a visual display of their position."
Agatha paused, a visual display.
Her mind immediately reached for the closest equivalent.
Like photomancy?
But even as the thought formed, she felt resistance to it.
Can it? Photomancy still relied on mana projection and light manipulation.
This… didn't feel like that.
Her eyes narrowed slightly.
Is this thing playing with me?
"Alright," she said at last.
"Proceed."
"Understood."
The response came instantly.
Then, the monitors shifted.
The flowing data vanished, replaced by segmented frames. Multiple windows expanded across the screens, each one displaying a different angle, a different perspective.
Moving images.
Live and Clear, not illusions or projections shaped by magic. Reality captured and presented.
Agatha froze just for a fraction of a second.
The figures appeared within the frames.
Dark silhouettes moving along the outer boundary.
Black and white. Sharp and defined.
Every motion tracked. Every position accounted for.
Her eyes widened slightly not in fear, but in genuine surprise.
"It would appear…"
She leaned forward just a bit more, studying the display.
"…I was mistaken."
This wasn't photomancy, it was something else entirely. Something… cleaner and more exact.
Her gaze traced the movement of the individuals on screen. Their spacing. Their coordination. Their intent.
Then her expression shifted.
"Seth…"
Her voice lowered, almost thoughtful now.
"What are you?"
The question lingered in the air not directed at Aid, but at the absence he left behind.
She leaned back into the chair once more, settling into it not in relaxation, but in readiness.
Her earlier frustration with the system faded into the background.
Replaced by something else.
Her body shifted slightly, angling toward the screens as her attention locked onto the outsiders approaching the estate.
The system hummed quietly around her.
And for the first time since she sat at the platform. Agatha did not see it as unnecessary.
She watched.
Right outside, the cathedral stood where it should.
Stone pillars held their original weight. The archways were complete. Even the stained glass, dulled by time and dust, remained whole enough to catch the last traces of daylight and fracture it into faint, colorless shadows across the ground.
Dust ruled the structure, though. Thick. Undisturbed.
Four figures stood at its entrance.
Grey hooded cloaks draped over each of them, uniform in color but not in shape. The fabric hung differently depending on what lay beneath one stretched over bulk, another fell tighter, another moved with a faint metallic rhythm.
They didn't stand in a line but in a cluster formation. The tallest stood slightly behind the others seven feet of presence, his frame broad enough that even the cloak couldn't fully conceal it. Something long was strapped across his back beneath the fabric. Its outline broke the natural fall of the cloth, creating a rigid silhouette that didn't belong to a simple weapon.
When he spoke, his voice carried low and deep, like something that didn't rush for anyone.
"…This is the place."
No one answered immediately.
At his left front, a figure shifted slightly taller than average, around six feet. His movements were lighter, but not careless. There was structure underneath the cloak edges that didn't belong to cloth but armoured like.
His voice came out younger, not inexperienced in anyway just… not worn.
"hmmm, it did match the reports."
A soft metallic clink followed a step, to the right front of the large man, the smallest of the four adjusted her stance. Each movement produced that faint dual chime subtle, rhythmic, almost delicate if you ignored the context.
Her tone didn't match the environment at all. Light, allmost cheerful.
"Reports said cathedral, but this looks like a hidden cult' doesn't it?"
She tilted her head slightly, looking up at the cathedral.
"this wants to look more of a diabolic site."
At the front, the lead didn't respond immediately.
He stood still, facing the structure.
5'9". Balanced build. Nothing exaggerated but nothing lacking either. His cloak didn't hang loosely.
"…hmmm, this is quite dark."
His voice was steady. Mature. The kind that didn't waste words.
A pause.
"A trap dungeon, I want to see how much it holds."
The younger one exhaled lightly.
"Yeah. I figured you'd say that."
The small one took another step forward, clink...clink.
"We're still going in, right?"
The large man behind them shifted slightly. The ground shook slightly.
"…Of course we are, we didn't come to observe the exterior."
The leader finally moved, one step forward. Then another. Stopping just short of the cathedral entrance.
Behind him, the younger one noticed.
"what is it now Rate, are you stopping for a reason?"
He didn't response, the leader's head tilted slightly. Not enough to be obvious. But it was enough to change his angle of perception.
His gaze didn't fix on a point. It moved slowly, methodically across the tree line, the broken edges of the surrounding land, the empty space between shadows. With the use of appraisal to detect what hides from eyes.
The small one shifted her weight again.
Clink… clink.
"…you feel someone is watching us?"
No answer, the large man's voice came from behind, lower now.
"…Say something so it can be handled, we have no time to waste here."
A few seconds passed.
Then,
"Nothing."
The leader stepped forward inside and the others followed. The moment they crossed the threshold, the sound changed.
Outside silence was dead silence.
Every step echoed but only slightly, as if the space itself resisted carrying sound too far.
The younger one glanced upward.
"…if this is a trap dungeon dose that means we get to encounter monsters or is based trap only?."
Stone arches above them remained solid.
"if it's only just a regular trap base it'll be no fun don't you think? it'll be more fun if there's monsters in it."
The small one spun once light and casual.
Clink… clink.
"Fun wouldn't it?"
She smiled faintly, though it couldn't be seen beneath the hood.
"It's most likely not your ordinary trap base, I just want to harvest the rich spoils and resources and be out of here."
Another step.
Clink.
"Right?."
The large man's voice followed.
"…earlier I couldn't notice any signs of beast, could they have all been taken down by the adventurers."
That mattered more.
The younger one frowned slightly.
"…Yeah. That's could be true."
He reached up, brushing the edge of his hood back just enough to expose part of his face.
"It would be normal if it's one of the effects of the this dungeon."
Rate continued walking, straight down the main aisle, his pace didn't change.
"…and it didn't read and sort of abnormality."
The others fell in behind him again, formation loose but intentional.
"if any of you fail to keep up and falls behind, I wouldn't think of turning back."
The younger one sighed lightly.
"Of course you won't, cold as ever."
They moved deeper.
Rows of long-forgotten benches lined both sides, covered in dust thick enough to swallow detail. Their steps left marks now clear, defined interruptions in a place that hadn't been touched in years.
Or longer.
At the far end, after the stand alter something mount.
Centered, elevated slightly. A coffin of black stone, not ornate but not crude either. Intentional craftsmanship.
The small one slowed.
Clink… clink… clink…
"…This is what you see once in life time."
"Let it be, we aren't here For that." the Rate replied.
They approached but didn't circle it, and didn't inspect it closely. They just passed it. But not without acknowledgment.
The younger one's eyes lingered.
"…You thinking what I'm thinking?"
The large man answered.
"…Now's not the right time girly."
"Yeah," the younger one muttered. "ah ah ah."
The small one laughs slightly and tilted her head toward it as they walked by.
"You don't leave something like that in the center unless you want it seen."
The Rate's voice cut in.
"....."
That ended that line of thought, they continued. Beyond the coffin, the structure opened further. And there the path. Wide and descending. Not broken through but constructed.
Deliberate stairs leading down into darkness.
The younger one let out a quiet breath.
"…There it is, where things starts becoming more fun"
The small one leaned forward slightly, peering down. No visible end.
"...least tell me one of you brought a touch."
The large man's presence shifted subtly.
"…we use the light orb."
"That does it." the Rate replied.
Silence fell again.
But this time, It was anticipatory.
The younger one glanced back the way they came.
"…Let's gets this over with."
"i don't have time for idling."
He looked forward again.
"…none of you better hold me back."
The small one smiled faintly.
"Everything about this feels staged and I'm ruled up."
Rate stepped closer to the edge of the descent.
Stopped.
"…get ready for we are about to go in."
A pause. Then,
"Let's clear this all up."
The large man moved first this time stepping forward, his size briefly overtaking the narrow perception of space as he approached the stairs.
The others followed in sequence.
Before descending, the younger one spoke again.
"…move faster you old lump?"
The big one didn't turn.
"watch it or I'll smash your head into your torso."
The small one tilted her head.
"How intriguing, Can't be cool with one and other."
Rate finally shifted slightly.
"Keep it down already, I don't have time to look over your despicable act."
"…it's quite a shame you both haven't grown up from your boyish features." the younger one said.
The large man's voice followed.
"…stop being annoying girly."
"My point exactly," the small one muttered.
Clink.
They all turned on their light orb.
Rate took the first step down. Boot met stone, the impact formed a sound carried then died quickly. The others followed, one by one.
Clink… clink…
The sound echoed faintly behind them.
Then disappeared into the depth.
Above them, the cathedral remained.
From the Sixth Floor control room, every step they took was already seen, measured, and recorded.