"I remember those... damn freaks were just up ahead, weren't they?"
"Freaks?"
Mohg blinked, looking at Morgott with a bewildered expression, unsure of what his brother was referring to.
"You know, those things with the two giant lightbulbs on their heads. The ones with scales—the ones that look particularly... unique."
"Oh, you mean the Basilisks..."
A look of realization dawned on Mohg's face, followed quickly by a curious glance at Morgott. "Why the sudden interest?"
"I think we should take one back with us," Morgott proposed, glancing at Mohg.
Mohg's expression immediately shifted to one of horror mixed with pure shock. This is bad. I've corrupted my brother!
"What's with that look?" Morgott's face darkened as he stared back. "Don't you always like to 'taste' these strange and unusual things?"
"Uh... I mean... well, it's not out of the question. I am actually a little curious about their internal anatomy..." Mohg clicked his tongue and eventually nodded in agreement. "But before we go, let me study this map first."
With that, Mohg sat down on the ground and spread out the structural diagram "borrowed" from that "good Samaritan" Rama, examining it closely.
In an instant, Mohg's eyes found the high tower and the elevator they had encountered. Tracing the lines from there, he followed the path all the way to the area most familiar to him in his memory. After studying that section, he began to look upward, trying to find a reference point in their current surroundings.
Unfortunately, the architectural style in this area was largely identical; there were no discernable differences. Just as Mohg was beginning to feel disappointed, he spotted a pipe configuration very similar to the one they had used to enter. After a careful comparison, he managed to pinpoint their location.
I really didn't expect a structural map of the sewers to be floating around out there... it feels completely illogical, Mohg thought, propping his chin in his hand and frowning.
Whether it was the existence of the Three Fingers or the Subterranean Shunning-Grounds themselves, the Golden Order shouldn't have allowed such a detailed map to leak. Yet, here it was. And it had fallen into the hands of a group of mediocre grave robbers with suspicious ease. Mohg couldn't shake the feeling that something was off.
He wouldn't believe for a second that there wasn't a hidden agenda at play. He even suspected this was the work of some "old schemer," laying the groundwork to make it easier for certain people to come into contact with certain things in the future.
"Well? Did you figure out where we are?" Morgott asked, noting Mohg's deep frown.
"Yeah, I found it. It looks like we took the long way around. There's a much closer path we can take to get back."
Mohg nodded and pointed out a different route back to the upper levels to Morgott. Having made their preparations, the two didn't hesitate. They tucked the map away, took a deep breath, and stood before the wooden door.
Creeeeeak—
Staring into the familiar darkness ahead, the two brothers shared a look and charged back into the fray.
"Phew! Finally made it out of that hellhole!"
Mohg leaped out of a pipe, landing on the main path outside and gasping for air.
"Yeah... those things are incredibly annoying," Morgott agreed, nodding vigorously. Judging by the lingering slime on his head, their recent experience inside the pipes had been far from pleasant.
"But at least I caught one."
Morgott looked down at the Basilisk corpse he was dragging behind him. The pair of fleshy, eye-like growths on its head seemed to be staring up at them, looking rather eerie.
"...I think we should deal with this thing first," Mohg muttered. "It keeps glaring at me. I don't think it's very happy about the situation."
"...Fair enough."
Morgott looked down at the Basilisk, silenced for a moment before nodding in agreement.
The two used the map to find a small auxiliary pipe—just large enough for them to pass through, though they estimated that if they grew any larger, they wouldn't fit.
"I get the feeling this map isn't complete," Morgott remarked, looking at the diagram in his hand. "There are quite a few areas not marked here."
"Well, the sewer system is massive. It's only natural there would be omissions," Mohg replied, not at all surprised. He drew his dagger and began to dissect the Basilisk.
During the process, he discovered the organs responsible for storing the Death Blight smoke. After a moment's consideration, he decided not to throw them away. Instead, he wrapped them tightly in the Basilisk's own skin; they might come in handy later.
Soon, with their combined efforts, the Basilisk was fully disassembled. The two decided to handle the "giant eyes" by tossing them directly into the fire to be charred.
"The meat actually looks quite white and tender..." Mohg whispered, looking at the remains of the Basilisk. The appearance reminded him of bullfrog or perhaps alligator. The texture seemed to be somewhere in between the two. For some reason, he suddenly felt that Basilisk might actually taste pretty good.
Wait... am I transitioning from a Lord to a gourmet chef?
Mohg fell into a brief moment of silent contemplation. However, he didn't ponder for long once the meat was roasted. He tore off a leg and started chewing.
"How does it taste?"
"It's definitely going on the menu!"
After another bout of crawling through the pipes, the two finally returned to the Omen settlement.
The area was as peaceful as ever. They even found a new shipment of supplies, which Mohg guessed had been arranged by his eldest brother, Godwyn. Under the current lockdown of the Capital, there was no other reason for food to be sent down to the Omens.
Mohg silently made a mental note of Godwyn's kindness. He then joined Morgott, and the two resumed their study of the structural diagram. They began planning their future routes and making arrangements for when they eventually returned to the lower levels.
However... as far as they were concerned, they wouldn't be heading back down anytime soon. Mohg had decided that until they had a proper means of self-preservation, he wouldn't gamble with the depths again. This period would be perfect for nurturing the power given by the Mother of Truth and the Aspects of the Crucible.
As for when they would explore again... Mohg suspected it wouldn't be too far off. With the dual acceleration of their newfound powers, he and Morgott were bound to grow rapidly. And with the added blessing of the Mother of Truth, he might even surpass Morgott in speed.
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