57 Jump into the abyss?

The Ainmester had left right on time.

And the envoy ship was scheduled to arrive in under eight hours.

It should have taken nearly three weeks for a ship to arrive in a place like this, so all of this must have been planned beforehand.

And Theo understood that quite well. 'But can you really plan things this far ahead?' But then he remembered. Venira was touted as one of the most intelligent women in the universe. 'Why couldn't I get those damn genes…' He'd been asking that same question all his life.

He didn't get looks, and nor did he get the intelligence. He'd wondered why his parents didn't do all that fancy gene editing on him- but- he never really got that answer. Not from his father and certainly not from his mother.

"Whoa!"

A bug.

A rather large centipede.

Theo's heart had almost jumped. He was too busy in thought, so when he did notice them (dem) bugs, he was definitely not calm, that was for sure.

"Try not to be too scared." Voli comforted him. She'd made a grand plan about how she'd see something really scary, scream a bit, and grab onto John. But right now, she had her hands full with Theo instead.

Large Ferns and cuboidal trees surrounded them and it was sticky hot.

Bugs everywhere.

John, Voli, and Theo were being led by Sandra to a special place.

The light was low and they had to carry luminescent orbs.

'Of all things, why'd it have to be centipedes!' Theo however regretted his life choices all over again.

"This way, we're almost there," Sandra said, staring back.

Murmurs, buzz… and occasionally howls and roars in the distance. All three were on full alert- all three apart from Theo who was too busy thinking about all kinds of things even just moments ago.

"You've been saying that for over half an hour now," Theo mumbled. 'Why did I want to visit this place again?'

But now that the centipedes caught his attention, he desperately clung to his senses. It sufficed to say, he did not like them, no.

It wasn't just the centipedes. There were all kinds of bugs here; millipedes, crickets, wasps, larvae, flies, mosquitoes, and a lot more. And everything was large. Definitely larger than what Theo was used to.

"Reminds of those training facilities I used to hang out in," John said, grinning. He had a plasma knife in hand which he used to slice through all the foliage.

The damp smell passed through everyone's filters minimally.

"You mean the facilities you used to raid alone like a criminal." Theo rolled his eyes and stuck close to John, almost clinging to him.

Most of the predatory animals weren't here, as this place was too dense. And since this planet lacked reptiles, even this bug-filled place was a lot safer than open fields.

"I'd like to know more about that." Voli's face lit up.

The forest only got denser and denser.

"Are you sure, it's here?" What was even the hidden soil of Vardak anyway? Theo sure didn't know and his journal didn't know either.

But this Sahalla did and for that, she was leading the three here.

When Theo explained that they wanted to come along, Sandra agreed on the spot, on the condition that the saint would be left behind. Skully wasn't in a particularly good mood after finding that Theo didn't really have anything special for him, so he proceeded to ignore Theo's existence anyway.

So, everything worked out.

But what if-

What if she was leading them here for another purpose?

'What if she wants to dispose of us and take skully and-' And Theo stopped. That was outrageous.

One, killing the three would mean an unavoidable war. And two, Theo had used his skill, therefore it was really unlikely that something would go wrong.

And Theo desperately wanted to believe that.

"We're here."

Sandra stopped.

The foliage was a lot less dense here. And it happened so suddenly.

There weren't many bugs either.

Theo could finally breathe in relief.

"This place is?" John asked, keeping a sharp eye around him.

"This place is dubbed the hidden soil of Vardak. Only few know of its location. Normally, outsiders are strictly forbidden but, in order to respect our mutual trust, I've brought you here." Sandra gestured behind her. "This way."

Voli, John, and Theo slowly moved ahead.

And when they were just in front of Sandra, they noticed something.

There was no foliage past this point and certainly no land.

Just a cliff and below that cliff-

-Was just a massive hole in the ground.

A hole that had no light inside.

'One, two kilometers don't even begin to do justice to this thing's radius…' Theo took deep breaths. His bug-free relief time was replaced by the dread of the unknown.

"That place looks awfully scary," Voli said.

"Yes, and it is," Sandra admitted. "However, this place is sacred to us. Legends go that, once one of our saints lost her loved ones to the great Zauns… and as revenge, she eradicated most of them from the planet and sealed the rest here, at this place. We dare not venture within."

"If this place really is that important to you guys, then why did you bring me-"

"Our saints-" Sandra paused. "They are our deities. We have our reasons to keep them hidden and sealed. They bring peace and prosperity to us. And so- I place this request upon you-" Sandra's tone changed drastically. "Please take good care of him and bring him back here once he fulfills his desire."

'So that's why-'

But it still wasn't enough- at least that's what Theo thought.

Blip!

[FQ. Jump into the abyss!]

'Huh?'

Suddenly Theo's vision got filled with a red screen. It was not transparent like the rest of his menu. And instead of his typical quests, this was- definitely, not something he could ignore.

After all, the moment he tried to close the menu- [Initiating quest aid!]

Clack!

The earth below Theo's feet crumbled.

In a split second, he saw horror in everyone's eyes, as he slowly but surely descended in the dark hole backside first; and the rest of his comrades just stared down at him, eyes bulging. 'Oh shit!'