[This is a work of fiction, only meant to be enjoyed, not to be taken literally. We mean no offense to anyone, any organization, or any religion.]
[2] Chapter 2: Eyes of Apophis II
March 26th
XX MountainRange
The massive door in front of them towered over the crevices, or rather, the ceiling.
While most stood transfixed by its presence, Professor Lukham stepped forward.
He stopped right in front of the door.
Between the two enormous stone slabs was a narrow gap.
From it, a steady current of air slipped through.
Lukham slowly raised a finger and eased it into the space in-between.
"Airflow. Then, this must be the place."
He withdrew his hand and turned back toward the students gathered behind him.
"Shall we go inside?"
"...Is there a need to ask? That's why we came, after all."
Margaret spoke first, folding her arms beneath her chest as though the answer were obvious.
And she wasn't wrong.
They were here because of the possibility, no, the expectation, of a relic beyond that door.
Slowly, other students cast glances at each other before nodding.
Lukham looked at his students.
"Mm. It looks like most of us are in agreement."
Yes, most.
With the exception of Ishanna, who blankly stared at the door without moving.
Naturally, Lukham didn't point it out.
Instead, making a gesture, he motioned for two male students to come up front.
Dropping their lanterns, the two singled-out males nodded.
Then, they stepped forward.
"But is it possible to push such a massive door open?"
A female student muttered, nudging her glasses higher on the bridge of her nose.
"Well, we won't know until we try."
Beside her, another female student answered.
Then, she cast her gaze on the males tightening their fingers around the edges of the doors.
Krrckk—!
Audible cracks resounded as they slowly pulled the door with surprising ease.
Remnants of dust also fell from the ceiling as the door opened.
"Uhh… that was surprisingly—"
"Easy? Mhm."
The students stood in place for a moment, as Lukham came in front, raising his hand.
Everyone nodded, then slowly, they pushed into the room.
Fhht! Fhht!
Their footsteps echoed as they slowly entered through the gates.
However, as their lantern illuminated past the entrance of the gate, as they stepped past the entrance—
Pah!
From inside, a single torch lit up.
Then, following it, surrounding the inside of the temple, several torches lit up, brightening the room.
Clang!
Lanterns slipped from numb fingers and struck the stone floor.
The students stood frozen, bewildered with what they saw.
Golden.
The entire room was filled with golden light.
Its structure closely resembled that of the ancient kingdoms.
Pillars rose to support the ceiling.
Four massive ones on each side, with a red carpet stretching toward an elevated platform.
And on top of that platform, accessible by short stairs, sat a stone slab arranged like an altar.
Yet, right now…
None of them were concerned much about that.
"G—gold! So many!"
"Even just a bundle of this is more than enough for a lifetime."
"W—w… well, gold is priceless these days, so hahaha…!"
Their faces lit up with awe; this was more than enough to satisfy them.
Some stepped forward eagerly, scooping handfuls into their pockets.
Even Lukham remained silent.
He didn't stop them; he simply stood, watching the scene unfold.
Normally, he'd expected a modest temple, not one brimming with treasures like these.
"Haizz."
A quiet sigh escaped his lips.
Meanwhile, the others continued greedily pocketing the gold scattered across the room.
'Something's off,' Ishanna thought.
His thoughts reeled back to the writings he saw on the walls.
Not to mention, there was that mural depicting a war.
'...'
With his mind made up, Ishanna strutted past them.
He walked straight toward the altar-like slab on the elevated platform.
Step by step,
He ascended the short stairs, now standing before the object that had caught his attention.
'A petrified eye?'
On the slab, three angular objects tilted slightly at deliberate angles.
Resting atop them all was a round stone sculpture resembling a closed eye.
"—Eh? I didn't take you for someone who's not materialistic."
With those words, Ishanna watched as the petrified eye vanished right before his eyes.
"What, huh?"
Ishanna turned to see Margaret Hawthorne standing there, casually tossing the eye in her hand.
Catching it, she muttered, "What's this junk, anyway?" before examining it more closely.
She studied it carefully.
'Just what I needed.'
Ishanna shook his head.
"Say, ever heard the word restraint?"
At that, she glanced over with an unimpressed stare, her glasses sliding slightly down her nose.
Then with a tilt of her head—
"What's that? Food?"
Ishanna facepalmed.
Right, this girl—beautiful as she was—had a knack for being petty for all the wrong reasons.
'And all I did was score slightly higher than her because I overprepared for my favorite course back then.'
But ever since then, 'I've attracted such unwanted attention.'
Regardless, he'd learned to deal with her over time.
"If I'm not wrong, that thing you're holding is a petrified eye."
He casually pointed at it, his own unimpressed stare prompting her to glance down at the ball in her hand.
For a moment, she studied it.
Indeed, a semi-circular mid-section divided one half, forming a slight bulge.
Nothing about it screamed "eye."
But as she replayed it in her mind, her expression shifted, growing a bit uneasy.
And just as the thought settled—
Eeep!
A strange moan escaped her lips, and she dropped it to the ground.
Immediately, she darted behind Ishanna as a cracking sound echoed across the chamber.
"Mm? What's wrong?"
"...I just heard a loud noise."
"I heard it from over there."
All eyes in the chamber turned toward them.
Margaret straightened, catching their stares.
She then feigned a cough, balling her hand in front of her lips.
Ahem.
"It was a slight inconvenience, but don't worry about it."
…it's trash anyway.
She muttered the last part under her breath, stepping down the elevated stairs with a sardonic wave.
Ishanna watched her go without a word, and the others returned to their tasks.
But then he bent down toward the petrified ball that had rolled a few steps away.
Since entering this temple, a strange sensation had been creeping over him.
And he was certain he wasn't imagining it.
Those weird glyphs he could somehow read… everything about this place felt off.
'Not to mention, this eye too…'
Ishanna crouched beside it, running his fingers over its rough surface, turning it gently in his hand.
'Huh? It's unharmed?'
Without thinking, Ishanna inspected the object with both hands.
If he hadn't heard it wrong, everyone had heard that loud crack, right?
Yet not a single crack was seen on the ground or from the eye he was holding.
Astonished, Ishanna immediately went on one knee.
He inspected the floor where it dropped, and shockingly,
'No scratch… not even a dent.'
Something was very weird about this place, some—
Crack!
Another crack resounded, and this time, it was soft, so soft only he could hear it.
But then,
Crack–crack—crack!
A cascade of continuous cracking filled his ears.
He jolted upright, turning his head frantically, but found nothing.
Slowly, a strange warmth spread through his hand, and he realized what was happening.
His eyes darted to the object in his grip. Sure enough—
Crack~!
The stone encasing the eyeball began to fracture, layer by layer, peeling away.
Beneath, red flesh emerged, a fold of eyelid slowly revealing itself.
'—!'
A scream threatened to escape his lungs, but oddly, no sound came out.
Then, as if on cue—
Shuaaa~!
It opened.
The eye. Impossibly black sclera with a red slit, and just as it did.
Unknown to anyone else, this phenomenon seemed to affect only him.
Below, a pattern illuminated the chamber.
The shape of the eye was cast on the floor, the air, the ceiling—everywhere.
Ishanna's heartbeat surged as his knees hit the ground.
[Eye of Apophis activating…]
[Granting an upgrade in target perception's abilities]
[...confirmed!]
To make matters worse, Ishanna crumpled to the floor, clutching his eyes.
Searing pain shot through his gaze, burning and twisting the colors and shadows he perceived…
…everything appeared tinged with red.
Stress and fatigue compounded, pumping blood aggressively between his brain and eyes.
Blood poured from his eyes.
'My… eyes!'
It felt as if his eyes were about to burst, coupled with the pounding headache dragging at his skull.
Then—
Silence.
No, not quite; it was a silence followed by a blurred sound in the background.
"Hey, Teacher, think we should report this. We obviously can't carry everything with us."
"I've considered that, but who knows, everything might be confiscated from us."
Gradually, the surroundings cleared as his vision readjusted.
Slowly, his focus returned.
'My eyes…?'
Ishanna rubbed his eyes before holding his hands out in front of him, yet, oddly, no blood.
'What?'
Not to mention, the pain and the forehead had just seemed to vanish into nowhere.
'The hell…'
He was certain his classmates or Professor would have noticed something unusual, yet—
No one paid him any mind.
As he clenched his eyes in disbelief, he spotted the Professor and Margaret talking together.
But then, something even stranger happened.
[Divine Foresight]
[Name: Margaret Hawthorne]
• [Gender: Female]
• [Age: 21]
• [Date of Birth: November 6]
• [Height: 5'2]
• [Weight: 56kg]
[Other information not applicable]
[Upgrade 'Eye of Perception' to view further status]
It was unreal.
The world seemed to blur into grey, and before him was a strange string of texts.
Floating gothic texts, displaying what appeared to be an accurate estimation of Margaret's data.
Still clutching his left eye, Ishanna's head swiveled in disbelief.
And sure enough, it didn't apply only to her.
He could see… data.
With a wry smile bordering disbelief, Ishanna's hand dropped to her side, and just when it did,
Shfttt—!
"Blergh, what's this?"
"What's wrong?"
Two students had appeared in the corner of the room.
One shivered, rubbing their eyes with the back of their hand, blinking repeatedly.
The other glanced at the former, asking with a tilt of his head.
"Nah, I think it was dust?"
Saying that, they then patted dust from their shoulders.
Hhftttt~
Just as he did, more dust particles fell from above, prompting everyone to instinctively raise their heads.
"Gah! Where are all these things coming from?"
"Beats me, how on earth am I supposed to know!"
Everyone squinted, shielding their eyes from the dust falling from the ceiling.
However, Ishanna slowly tilted his head up, and, like before, the world turned dull—
[Divine Foresight]
[Name: Apophis Fragment (Clone)]
• [State: Weakened]
'What the hell… is that—'
Kuh!
Pain flared in his eye again, forcing him to one knee. But he didn't look away.
His gaze followed a coiling mass twisting and dancing along the stone pillars supporting the chamber.
And when he focused closer…
That thing… that thing was undoubtedly—
"Everybody! Run!"
Immediately as he shouted that,
RUMBLE!
The whole chamber trembled as though an earthquake had hit the place.
"Ack! My rear~"
"Mou, what's happening now?"
"Earthquake?"
Unlike Ishanna, who sensed the real danger, the others were stunned by the tremors, teetering off balance.
"Everyone! I said run away! This place is dangerous!"
Ishanna was already sprinting toward his classmates down the elevated stairs.
Just as they glanced towards Ishanna in confusion, they all froze.
Everyone's eyes met with a giant coiling serpent.
At the back, its body was coiling around the back pillars.
Its massive body twisted around the back pillars, scales glinting in the golden light.
Chills ran down Ishanna's spine.
Hiss~
"Everyone, RUN!"
It took a moment.
But Lukham finally snapped back.
He turned toward the students and screaming at the top of his lungs—
"Kyaaaaaa~!"
With a chorus of panicked screams, everyone bolted.
They dashed through the massive stone gate with their valuables.
Despite the massive movement from the students, the giant serpent paid them no attention.
Rather, it fixed its gaze solely on Ishanna alone.
"Flores—!"
"Teacher run!"
"But!"
"Hurry up and go!"
Ishanna shouted back.
"I don't know why, but this guy's focus is on me. Rescue the other and call for help immediately."
Lukham had already reached the base of the stairs when Ishanna's words hit him.
And when the man looked closer, the giant serpent wasn't moving, and what's more,
…Margaret was frozen by his side at such a scene.
She had completely collapsed onto the floor.
Instinctively, Lukham knew that if Ishanna looked away or tried to flee…
It would be the end for all of them.
"Don't worry, I'll send help immediately."
Without another word, while gritting his teeth in distaste, he turned towards Margaret.
"Eh!?"
"Hold on tight."
With a smooth motion.
He hoisted her onto his back and dashed toward the door, refusing to glance back.
Behind him, the girl flailed wildly, hitting his back again and again.
"W-wait, that giant… Ishanna…! What about—!"
Lukham didn't reply.
"Answer, dammit!"
Her voice faded as they disappeared from the chamber, leaving Ishanna letting out a short, tense breath.
But then—
Wrrrddddd!
Bang!
The massive stone door slowly closed by itself upon the last exit of Lukham and Margaret.
Ishanna stared backward in horror.
"You're… kidding, right?"