NOVPUBThe smell of alcohol and coldness still lingered in the teleportation hall of Floor -6, interspersed with the intermittent sound of sleeping guards’ heavy breaths.
Antanas and Sinola were both staring intently at their bracelets, waiting for a signal indicating that the New King had finished his tasks on the current floor.
When the black crystal screen on their bracelets lit up slightly, indicating that they had completed all the content of their internship examination at Herram Prison and were able to unlock the trading feature at the service points of the last layer, they immediately checked the list of available Contracted Prisoners.
Soon, the map drawn in purple lines on the screen sketched out a complex labyrinth of corridors, and a flickering red dot marked the target’s location.
It was evident that the New King had already paid his service points. As guards of the same team, as long as they reached the cell of the Truth Pullane, they could open the heavy door at any time and enter, thus avoiding further damage from this layer [The Inverted Path of Rebirth].
Antanas lightly swiped her finger across the screen to magnify the details of the map, focusing on the red dot.
Sinola leaned in for a closer look, her pupils reflecting the splendid light, and quickly nodded to signal Antanas that she was ready.
"Second Princess, we’re going to rescue Pullane. You stay here and rest, be safe," Antanas turned back to look at Hyperion, bidding her a temporary farewell.
"Eh, okay."
Hyperion sat in her chair, nibbling a biscuit, and felt like she was the only one who could relax while everyone else was busy.
It seemed like she was fulfilling her mission as a Priest of the Church of the Goddess of Destiny.
Why had things turned out this way...
Was this the treatment of the Princess of the Demon Race?
"Let’s go."
After explaining things to Hyperion, Antanas and Sinola shared a look and without any hesitation, immediately dashed into the Frost Corridor of the floor -6 prison.
The corridor was filled with a damp chill, and their forms stirred up a gust of piercing cold wind.
Antanas led the way, swift and decisive, with Sinola right behind her, her eyes scanning the surroundings, ready for any potential dangers.
Their eyes were constantly shifting shapes, sometimes morphing into a purgatory that threatened to swallow them, and sometimes into a beautiful scene that confused their minds.
Yet, these illusions weren’t impossible to withstand with high-level spells.
A pale blue light often erupted from Antanas’s fingertips, constructing a transparent barrier around her and Sinola, blocking out the catastrophes from the illusions.
In the beginning, the illusion attacks bumped into the barrier, making subtle vibrations, like droplets falling on a calm lake, instantly dissipated.
As the illusions in [The Inverted Path of Rebirth] started to rapidly intensify, the barrier began to withstand it, like facing a violent storm, and Sinola had to resort to casting complex interference spells.
With the low chanting of Sinola’s incantations, she precisely weakened the damage from the illusion.
Antanas and Sinola were seamlessly coordinated in the illusions, filling the corridor with their determined footsteps and the sound of spells clashing until, after passing a series of corridors and multiple corners, they finally arrived at the cell marked on the map.
The two senior members of the Demon Clan simultaneously pushed open the door to the prison cell, storming their way inside.
"We made it!"
Antanas raised her hand for a high-five with Sinola. They had both only suffered minor injuries to their cheeks.
Sinola was tentatively hesitant, but she pulled up the corner of her mouth and raised her hand, returning Antanas’s victorious high-five.
Just an hour ago they were prisoners. Now they had become partners at large within the prison, feeling a nameless sense of excitement and freedom.
More importantly, the New King had already obtained permission for them to return to the base level. As long as they managed to rescue Truth Pullane and pass the final test from Warden Bacas, they could leave Herram Prison and begin their life in the bright and prosperous Protoss Empire!
"Speaking of, where’s the King?"
Sinola glanced back at the clear light screen left at the door, the edges securitised by the intricate seal mechanism she despised, ensuring a perfect fit between the metal door and the frame.
She remembered when they had arrived, the door had not been opened in advance.
"He’s probably on his way."
Antanas thought nothing of it.
While the King was stronger than they were, he always composed himself with grace and elegance.
As far as she could see, unlike how they had scurried towards this prison cell, the New King had just completed some maintenance work on the negative sixth floor. He would be walking unhurriedly and elegantly to join them and most likely would arrive a bit later.
"I see."
Sinola seemed to understand now. So, they both stepped over the threshold of the prison cell together.
Inside the real space inside the prison cell, it was a world apart from the outside. The dense gray walls encrusted with frost swallowed most of the light and echoed the sound. The frosted dome ceiling appeared particularly heavy under the sparse light, resembling a forgotten abyss. Not a whisper of breath could be found, only oppressive silence and unfathomable cold.
In the special prison cell of Truth Pullane, several temple-like Anti-Magic Steel pillars stood tall. They extended upwards, covered with a complicated network of runes. These runes flickered intermittently under the dim light, sparkling with blue dots. Antanas and Sinola felt like invisible eyes were peering at them in the dark every time the lights flashed.
Sinola swiftly scanned this heart-racing and unwelcome space, finally fixing her gaze at the center blocked by the Anti-Magic Steel.
Looking through the gaps in the Anti-Magic Steel, a single stone platform stood lonely at the center, filled with curse marks. Black ice chains, like serpents, were wrapped tightly around a figure of the Demon Clan.
The figure was tightly wrapped in a stout restraining garb, harshly immobilized from limbs to the head within the seal. Even his face was covered by a cold mask, leaving only a few narrow gaps. Like a diver suffocating in the deep sea, he could only rely on the scarce oxygen for survival.
Despite being obscured by numerous seals, the prisoner’s eyes, Truth Pullane, cold and deep, reflected the figures of the two visitors through the gaps in his mask.
Without a moment’s hesitation, even though he was restricted by numerous seals and chains, Pullane’s magic had already started to vibrate the Anti-Magic Steel on the same frequency.
The ground under Antanas and Sinola suddenly erupted with black sparks, forming a mouth of hell, hot and fierce, attempting to swallow both Sinola and Antanas at once.
"Pullane, stop attacking as soon as we meet!"
Antanas quickly erected a defense enchantment in front of her, trying to block the burning black flames and protect both her and Sinola.
