———Jeff———

  <1: 58 pm>

  “You don’t know where he went?” I asked, seeing how odd that is. Don't these two usually stick together?

  “Of course not. All he said was that he is going adventuring with three other people in our css. You read the group chat, right?” Orrel replied. Guess he seriously doesn’t know anything? “I think it is best to simply wait. Unless you have something urgent to tell them specifically, I don’t think you need to worry.”“Indeed. There’s no need for you to rush anything.” Sixson chimed in despite usually being quite a quiet guy. “Hmm…”

  “Something on your mind?” Orrel asked, seeing Sixson uncharacteristically show concern. He usually only does that through words more than expressions.

  “It just feels like… Something isn’t adding up.” What does he mean by that? “Perhaps that is being a bit hyperbolic. I was expecting one of those four to say something before they disappeared on us.”

  “That’s the thing you are worried about? Some of us have been missing for a longer period of time and came back fine.” Orrel said. He’s not wrong about that. “In case you forgot. Useph once went missing for two days.”

  “...Wasn’t that because he was kidnapped? That seems plenty concerning to me.” I pointed out. “What if something like that happens again?”

  “No. It won’t.” Orrel firmly said, sounding more like he is in denial more than anything. We don’t even know how he was rescued, unlike the other time where we unched a rescue operation.

  “Anyway. I don’t think we are getting anywhere with this topic. I think we should talk about something else.” Malk said, not concerned about their whereabouts. “Jeff, why did you even ask that in the first pce? Did you have something urgent to ask them or something?”

  “I wanna ask them about their progress. You know how ‘those three’ are in a different league altogether, right? I want to test my strength against them directly, since that’s gonna be the most accurate way, and I haven't been able to do that for a long time now.” I expined myself. I think it has been a good while since we fought each other and compared our strength.

  “Surely we can just do it in school or a P.E. css. Why do it on a Sunday?” Malk pointed out. I mean I guess that’s true, but I just feel like doing it today.

  “Just because. Don’t you decide a few things on a whim as well? Anyone?” I said while leaning back on the bench.

  “Usually, those kinds of decisions don't involve the use of violence or extreme exertion.” Orrel said, just trying to bring me down.

  “Why don’t we test that out right now!” I ask while forming a fist. He might have more mana in the tank than I am, but I’m still physically stronger! I can dodge and weave through any attacks of his!

  “No thanks. I’m not someone who acts recklessly like you do.” He firmly denied the challenge. You’re no fun.

  “And why are you here at the park anyway?” I asked, seeing him getting here first while everyone else only joined in because he seems to be chilling and not doing anything. “You’re not the type of guy to stay outdoors for that long.”

  “To fulfill my morbid curiosity. I recently discovered something here and with the recent event, I was contempting setting foot in there and investigate.” He expined.

  “What exactly?” Malk asked, curious since it’s rare for him to do the dirty work himself. What could he have come across that is so fascinating he needs to check it out in person? And why does he use the word ‘morbid’?

  “Hm. Since you three are here. Perhaps I could show you. I was contempting calling the others to join, but you three should be enough.” He said before walking to the back of the park. Where is he going? Is there something hidden back there that we don’t know of?

  We all followed him towards the back of the park and into the woods. Is there a secret dungeon or something? What did he find that needs him to even think about it? Can’t he just jump in?

  “Here it is.” He decred, but I don’t see anything noteworthy? Just a bunch of trees and dirt.

  He leaned down and started to dig into the soil. What is he doing?

  *Grab* *Lift*

  “Whoa!” I let out an involuntary yell as he suddenly pulled a giant metal pte out of the ground. What the heck did he just do!?

  “A… basement?” Malk muttered as he walked over and saw the stairs underneath. There’s a secret underground base here? Why? Malk’s expression quickly turned serious alongside Sixson’s. Did they realize something I didn’t?

  “If you’re curious about what’s inside, then follow me.” Orrel said, putting down the metal pte and walking down the stairs. I mean, why would we not follow him at this point. This pce seems pretty damn interesting already.

  *Shine*

  He silently casts a light spell that illuminates the area, allowing us to see inside as we all reach the bottom of the stairs. This pce looks… like it has seen better days.

  “What in the world is all of this?” Sixson asked, his tone carrying a sense of dread.

  “Some sort of underground facility. I do not know the full detail, but it is clear that the activities here are not savory in the slightest.” Orrel said, not sounding like he has a lot of ideas either. “Jeff, look at that thing besides you.”

  “What thing be- WHAT THE HELL!?” What in fresh hell is that!? I-Is that real?

  “A-A corpse?” Sixson said, his composure taking a hit. Yeah, is that an actual corpse? Most of the body seems to decompose, and I can see bits of skeletons poking out. The body seems to be wearing some sort of protective gear, and there is a rge hole in the torso and head. What could’ve done… “T-There are a bunch more corpses here!”

  Some of them are on the floor, buried into the ground, pinned to a wall, or even into the ceiling. What could’ve caused all of this? Many of them are barely recognizable as humans with how mangled they are.

  Most of them seem to be in complete disarray. It’s clear that this underground pce used to be a lot less open than it is now. Walls are torn off, or melted. Furniture is broken up into pieces. There are a bunch of gss shards just on the ground, some even embedded into the corpses.

  It looks like they were… attacked by a monster? I think it’s fair to compare it to that. Some sort of savage monster completely tore through this pce like it was made of paper.

  “Good thing these corpses don’t emit a lot of smells. How long have they been here?” Malk pointed out. The area is filled with a rather uncomfortable smell, but it’s not unbearable. A rotting corpse of any kind should fill the area with the worst of smells, so why are they not?

  “Probably around six to seven months, considering the state of their bodies.” Orrel gave his estimate. How does he even know that?

  “So… Not long after the Eclipse started, right?” Sixson pointed out. So this pce is probably used for some sort of magical experiment? The scenery has that kind of impression all over it. Like a sci-fi bunker with all kinds of whacky and not so peaceful creatures kept locked inside. “Hmm… But there is no way this pce was made only a month into the Eclipse itself. The logistics of creating a pce like this within a very short timeframe aside, people were in a complete panic and all kinds of jobs were suspended. No way they have the workforce needed.”

  “The fact that this pce existed before then is even more disturbing, isn’t it?” Malk pointed out. It sure is. Makes you wonder what kinds of shady things others have been doing behind the scene. There’s no way someone made something like this and did nothing with it until the magical shenanigans. “Did you explore here for long or…”

  “No. I don’t feel comfortable coming in here alone. While the fact that nothing has been cleaned up here indicates that this pce has been hidden with no one dared to ever enter it again. I feel like eventually someone is going to come in here with the recent event.” The recent event? What is he talking about?

  “That news?” Sixson muttered. “I see now. With the existence of something like this pce being on the front cover, they couldn’t risk anyone discovering this pce, even if it was abandoned.”

  “Now this is some real heavy stuff. Can’t imagine what it’d be like if those guys actually stumbled upon this pce right now.” Malk said as we walked deeper into the facility. All the electronics and such were damaged and not powered. We couldn’t really glean into them for information. This pce has been abandoned for too long for anything to be working properly.

  “That would be quite the conundrum.” Orrel said, taking a video of the facility with his phone. “I can’t imagine people would be happy to see these guys in the frames, but it’s impossible to avoid with how many there are.”

  “What even killed them? It has to be a monster of some kind.” I said, seeing how brutal the aftermath is with so many things broken, be it people or objects.

  I even see some bullets on the ground. They were fighting back against something and all that is left is an eborate shared coffin.

  “It’s impossible to tell. Though the fact that this pce has been sealed back up again and how there were no reports simir to the ones two days back implies that it wasn’t something mindless, at least.” Ah. Right. If it was a rampaging beast then people would’ve noticed by now. Something that can tear down walls of steel can definitely get out without any trouble. That just sorta begs the question of what actually killed them. Was it an opposing faction? Maybe even a single person?

  “There doesn’t seem to be any written down documents?” Orrel pointed out as we searched any intact containers for items. Weird. Did someone take them? No way it already disintegrated in this terrible atmosphere. “Hmm… If it wasn’t left abandoned for months, then maybe we’d get more information to support that hit piece. Then again…”

  “With how terribly everything was damaged, even if we were to discover it not long after whatever this incident took pce, it might already be too te.” Sixson finished his sentence.

  “I mean. The existence of this pce alone should help spread awareness, at least.” I pointed out. It’s better to know more than know less, am I right?

  “Maybe, but can people really sleep well at night knowing these kinds of pces exist? At least with dungeons they have soce that whatever is in there won’t come out and put you in here.” Orrel said, feeling a bit pessimistic.

  “...Wait. Weren't there a few missing reports during that time? Seven months back or so? Some people came back mysteriously, right?” Malk pointed out. I didn’t actually check the news during that time, so I wouldn’t know.

  “I have heard of it but didn’t pay it any mind. You think they know something?” Sixson asked with a skeptical look. “Even if they were victims of experiments here and were freed by an unknown force, it would be uncouth to ask them. Do you even know who we should ask?”

  “Did we already come to a conclusion that they kidnapped people as well?” I asked while scratching my head. Last I checked that facility in the news only had signs of monsters and criminals, and no one that was reported as missing.

  “It seems to align with the timeframe Orrel estimated, at least.” Malk pointed out. We don’t even know if the timing is accurate, right? “That missing people incident quickly quieted down, but we never knew what caused the disappearance, and everyone involved was very adamant on not speaking up.”

  We reached the second floor of this pce, and… Oh crap.

  “These rooms… were definitely not designed for monsters, let me tell you that.” Orrel commented, showing a slightly disturbed expression. Small rooms with beds in them, definitely not for monsters, that’s for sure. It doesn’t look like a living quarter either. We saw one upstairs which is admittedly in ruin so we can’t quite compare. These rooms themselves don’t look like they have been touched on much aside from the doorway being blown open. “Evidence of a rescue operation, it seems.”

  “Now this is getting more fascinating by the minute.” Malk commented. “Still, it simply reinforced what we already specuted. I don’t think we’re getting anything more than this…”

  “Seems so.” Orrel replied. “But regardless, we should publish our findings somewhere. Can’t exactly record this pce and not make it public, can we?”