'Where is this…?!'
Moses quickly steadied himself and looked around quickly.
Towering, smooth walls stretched on either side, extending as far as the eye could see.
The walls were covered with vine-like plants, and through the gaps between the plants, one could vaguely see a cold, steel-like material.
Moses looked down at the ground and saw it was littered with small black pebbles. Then, he looked back.
Behind him, the path ended in another vine-covered wall, sealing him in a dead end.
"A maze?"
Moses's eyes narrowed.
Trapped between three towering walls, Moses immediately thought of a labyrinth, and then of abilities like illusions or hallucinations.
Although everything he had just experienced was extremely real, he was more inclined to speculate that he might be trapped in an illusion.
The most convincing evidence is-
That gaze from the brain-like entity.
Even now, he can still clearly feel the source of the gaze that is always fixed on him.
Sometimes, it would quietly watch him from behind, and sometimes, it would suddenly move to his side...
But no matter which direction he looked in, all Moses could see were those massive walls, dozens of meters high.
'Let's first figure out what's going on...'
Moses's face was tense.
He didn't know if this was an illusion or where his companions had gone to.
The only thing he could be sure of was that gaze, which is unrelenting and ever-present.
Moses calmed himself down, raised his hand to conjure the Black Sword, and then leapt onto it.
"Up."
At his command, the Black Blade immediately lifted Moses into the air, ascending higher.
Soon-
The Black Blade reached the top of the wall, which is dozens of meters high.
But Moses did not stop the Black Sword, and it continued to rise into the air.
As the altitude increased, Moses finally saw the true appearance of the place he was in.
This place-
was indeed a labyrinth.
Moses looked down at the steel city sprawling like a maze below, and a look of surprise gradually appeared in his eyes.
This place was very different from the labyrinth he had imagined.
But the problem was…
He had an impression of this sight.
'Isn't this the ancient labyrinth city where Herb for All-illnesses grew?'
'It really is an illusion…'
After confirming the true appearance of the place, Moses suppressed the turmoil in his heart with great difficulty, and thus concluding that he had likely fallen victim to an ability similar to Kyoka Suigetsu.
As for why this 'illusion' had taken the form of the ancient labyrinth city...
It was probably because he had recently obtained a Hope that has the ability to accelerate plant's growth, and had been entertaining the idea of using it to cultivate the Herb for All-illnesses.
With this in mind, Moses immediately tried to use his Nen Exorcism chance.
However, there was no response at all.
He doesn't know if it's because his Nen Exorcism chance cannot break this illusion, or because his intention to use the Nen Exorcism chance hadn't been firmly established.
'Nen Exorcism doesn't work...'
Moses felt a pang of disappointment.
'My mental resilience is nearly 300%... and yet I still fell for an illusion-based ability. That means the others must have been affected too.'
As his thoughts raced, a trace of concern flickered in Moses's heart.
After confirming the current situation, he thought of the Guide.
'Since the Guide hadn't given any prior warning, it meant this unknown ability trapping me in an illusion didn't pose a threat to the Guide.'
'Then-'
'The Guide might use this opportunity to dispel the Kyoka Suigetsu.'
'If that really happened, it would be troublesome.;'
'But for now, the priority was figuring out how to deal with this 'illusion ability'.'
Moses took a deep breath and had the Black Sword descend.
Soon-
Moyu landed on the roof of one of the towering steel structures.
The exterior of this ancient labyrinth was monotonous in style, permeated with an icy, metallic atmosphere.
But if it is placed in the ultra-ancient period, it gave off a futuristic vibe.
When Moses first saw this ancient labyrinth city, the term that immediately came to mind was-
Alien civilization.
Whether in his previous life or this world-
online forum and blog enthusiasts obsessed with alien civilizations loved attributing inexplicable phenomena to extraterrestrial origins.
But if they were to define this ancient labyrinth city as an alien civilization-
Then Moses honestly couldn't argue against it.
'How do I break free from this illusion ability-'
Moses walked to the edge of the steel rooftop, his brow furrowed slightly.
Given the fact that he was trapped in an illusion, Moses had no interest in exploring this ancient city, let alone searching for the Herb for All-illnesses here.
"Hmm?"
Suddenly, Moses turned his gaze and looked towards the top of another steel structure at his three o'clock direction.
A humanoid figure leaped onto the roof of that steel building, followed by a second, then a third...
In just a few seconds, six humanoid figures had gathered on the top of that steel structure.
Moses took a closer look.
Those humanoid figures had naked bodies just like male humans, but their heads were smooth, spherical objects covered in thin black patterns.
'Brion...'
Moses immediately recognized these humanoid figures with patterned sphere heads. They were a Calamity called Botanical Weapon, Brion, which guarded the ancient labyrinth city.
And the appearance of these Brion was obviously aimed at him.
'Even Brion has been conjured... But there shouldn't be any Herb for All-illnesses here, right? After all, I have no idea what it even looks like.'
Moses spoke to himself calmly in his heart.
"It exists, because this is what you desire."
"Go get it, you'll obtain it."
"Or, let me see an even stronger wish from you."
"I can make it come true."
That vague voice emerged in his mind once more.
Moses, who showed no emotion at all when he saw Brion, now paled at these words.
'What exactly is this 'voice'?'
'What it said-'
'What does it mean?!'