The strategy as they entered the entrance was simple.
Liam gathered all the Tier 3 knights at the front, their black armours gleaming under the dim light, forming a living spearhead at the front to scout out for any potential dangers.
Mize propped up his chin against his hands, arms snugly wrapped around Liam's waist as he watched with growing interest.
"Looks like a forgotten civilization," he murmured.
His voice was barely above a whisper, but in the silence of the entrance, it carried in a dragging echo.
The first ranks of the knights disappeared into the shadowed marks of the entrance, their figures swallowed by the heavy darkness.
The gate, despite being eroded by time, still stood firm albeit tilted, its cracked pillars lined with faded etchings, murals and even symbols.
Mize's ruby-red eyes gleamed as he took in every detail.
"It's just a conjecture of mine," Liam began, standing at the center of the formation as the troops steadily moved forward.
The moment they crossed the threshold, the space within unfurled into something far grander than the modest entrance on the outside suggested.
It was massive, immensely massive.
A single glance upward forced their necks to crane.
Fog churned and twisted in eerie swirls high above, blotting out whatever ceiling this place might've once had.
"I believe this was built by past Lords who during their trials period" Liam mused, eyes flickering with thought.
"Seeking refuge underground, hoping to survive… only to become relics for the Warp's use."
Mize hummed softly. "Really?"
The passage before them, once narrow, widened into an expanse too vast to be natural.
And there it stood, the true face of the secret realm.
Towering walls loomed in every direction, like ancient barricades, the traces over the surfaces suggested they had withstood the erosion of time for an unknown distant eras.
They stretched for what seemed like forever, their cracked surfaces marred with deep grooves and jagged scars.
Heavy fog pooled at the top, masking the true height, but even what was visible surpassed hundreds of meters.
The floor beneath them was paved with deep black marble, fractured and worn over the steps accumulated.
Scattered debris, remnants of unidentifiable structures, lay in the corners randomly.
Mize exhaled, his fingers brushing against Liam's chest absently. "It never ceases to amaze me… how much I missed a lot of these scenes from the game back then."
Liam glanced at him, brow raised.
"When I played the game," Mize clarified, his voice filled with a mix of nostalgia and disbelief.
"This whole place was just a flat 2D map with some icons slapped on it. I never imagined it actually looked like this."
"And it's huge too," he continued, his head tilting back as he tried to see the end of the walls. "Even with the fog, you can tell it stretches way beyond what we can see."
"It is, after all, a maze," Liam said, his lips twitching in amusement.
As if on cue, the knights began their advance.
There was only one entrance before them, but soon, countless pathways would unfold, twisting and breaking off into an intricate labyrinth.
It designed to confuse and trap anyone who dared to enter. Most Lords wouldn't even be bold enough to enter at the early stage of the game.
The risk of being stuck was greater than being killed inside.
Then, Liam began with his plan.
The knights split off, moving like phantoms, their dark forms vanishing into the maze as they ventured deeper, galloping.
As for Liam and Mize…
They strolled in at a leisurely pace, walking at the very back as if they were simply sightseeing.
Mize clicked his tongue, rolling his eyes. "You know, for all the places we could've gone, I'd say this is easily the worst date spot ever."
Liam smirked, his arms tightening slightly around him. "But you're still here."
"Against my will," Mize deadpanned, squirming.
Liam sighed dramatically and finally placed him down, setting him onto his feet as if he were handling a delicate porcelain doll.
Mize brushed off his dress and took a few steps forward, stretching.
"Don't run around," Liam warned, ruffling his hair before he could protest. "It's dangerous here."
Mize shot him a ridiculous look. "I am not a kid."
Liam hummed, clearly not convinced.
"You think I'd actually run around in a place like this?" Mize scoffed, hands on his hips before turning with a feisty pout and sauntering ahead.
The path into the maze was grand, so massive that it made them feel like ants before a titan's doorstep.
The two of them drifted further inside, their steps echoing against the silent, dust-laden halls.
They took several turns under Liam's guidance, the knights were informing him the right path in real time communication between them.
'That's handy... ' Mize envied, strolling ahead aimlessly and eventually came before the wall on the side.
Mize, ever curious, trailed his fingers along the walls, his palm gliding over the cold, rough surface.
"Feels solid," he murmured.
"It should be," Liam said from behind. "These walls were built to keep things in, after all."
Mize frowned. "I thought mazes were supposed to trap intruders, not whatever's inside?"
Liam didn't answer right away.
Instead, he knelt down, brushing aside the dried vines clinging to the stone.
Slowly, the faint outline of several carvings came into view.
Symbols, crude and erratic, etched into the rock as if carved in desperate haste.
"It seems like… they weren't running into this place for shelter," Mize said, a realization creeping into his voice. "They were running away from it."
"You mean those corpses outside?" Liam pondered, "Interesting theory"
Liam's fingers hovered over the markings, his golden eyes narrowing. "Then something must have happened here."
Mize crossed his arms, tapping his foot. "Wow, Mr. General, what an insightful observation. Truly, I would've never figured that out if you didn't point it out for me."
Liam snorted, standing back up with a smirk. "Happy to be of service, dear wife."
Mize groaned, stomping away while Liam chuckled behind him.
His gaze lingered on the carvings for just a second longer, his eyes scanning the barely legible words.
"We were cursed by the gods…"
Liam's smirk deepened.
"Interesting"
The two kept walking deeper into the maze, the air turning colder with each step.
From time to time, Liam would pause, his expression laced with amusement, lips curling ever so slightly.
Mize, naturally, didn't miss this.
"What is it?" He leaped forward, his movements light and fluid, like a cat bouncing after a drifting leaf.
His long black hair trailed behind him in elegant waves, never once catching on the dust-ridden ground.
Liam chuckled and, without warning, reached out and tugged Mize's ear.
"Ouch!" Mize yelped, slapping his hand away.
"What was that for?!"
Liam, as always, ignored the protest entirely, his voice as casual as ever. "Some of the knights ran into a few… complications ahead."
Mize rubbed his ear, a tinge of red creeping onto his face, half from the pull and half from irritation. "Complications? You mean more trolls?"
"Most likely. If I had to guess," Liam mused, watching his knights' movements through the mental link, "this entire place is their lair, that is but another theory"
Mize's eyes gleamed at that. "Then it should be the Troll King we'll be facing soon, no?"
Liam smirked, pleased by the accuracy of the guess, but he couldn't resist teasing.
"Aww, thank you for telling me something I already knew." He reached out again, this time ruffling Mize's hair in mock praise. "But it's still a theory, Mimi"
Mize huffed, pouting as he crossed his arms. "You're insufferable."
Liam laughed. "And yet, you're still here."
They walked on, following the path carved out by the furthest knights ahead.
The deeper they ventured, the more the walls felt like they were closing in, their towering presence filled the space, narrower and narrower.
Then.
Boom!
A deafening crash thundered through the underground maze, shaking the air around them.
Liam halted abruptly.
Mize, caught off guard, smacked straight into his back.
"Ow!" He clutched his nose, eyes misting up. "Warn me next time, will you?"
Liam barely acknowledged the complaint, his focus locked elsewhere. "They've found it."
"The gate?" Mize asked, rubbing his sore nose.
"Yes," Liam confirmed, then reached for Mize's hand without hesitation. "Come, hold on."
Mize instinctively clasped his hand, their palms pressing together.
And in the blink of an eye.
Swoosh!
They vanished.
The moment they reappeared, a towering gate loomed before them, its sheer size dwarfing everything else in sight.
It stretched high into the darkness above, its heavy iron frame laced with jagged battle scars.
And beneath it, battles reigned.
Boom!
Boom!
Steel clashed against steel as a horde of dark knights fought against armored trolls, the weight of their blows sending tremors through the ground.
Boom!
Boom!
Mize inhaled sharply. "It's the gate. Finally."
"Indeed," Liam murmured, his golden eyes flickering with sharp focus.
But then he added, "Though we have a slight problem now."
His grip on Mize tightened, instinctively pulling him closer.
Mize blinked, his gaze shifting to the battlefield.
The ground trembled beneath them.
The air crackled and thundered with continuous loud booms.
The sheer magnitude of the battle between these two forces sent ripples through the air.
Swords met with maces, sparks igniting each time, metal crashed against metal.
Though the dark knights fought desperately, they were on the losing end in the early stage of the battle.
It can't be helped, outmatched in physical strength and realm differences caused a lot of casualties to their side.
One troll, towering over the rest, swung its massive club with a roar.
The force of the impact sent a cluster of knights flying, their dark armor scraping against the stone before they regained their footing.
And in response.
A lone dark knight darted forward, blade flashing under the dim glow of the underground cave.
He weaved between the troll's sluggish yet powerful swings, avoiding every movement accurately.
Then.
He struck.
Shua!
A single, clean thrust found its way beneath the troll's helmet, slicing deep into the vulnerable gap at its throat.
The troll froze.
A thick gush of dark blood sprayed into the air, a grotesque fountain that painted the battlefield in crimson.
Then, with a heavy thud, the massive body collapsed, shaking the ground upon impact.
Mize's eyes gleamed, practically sparkling.
"So handsome!"
Liam arched a brow, turning to glance at him. "Handsome?"
"It's just like how I imagined giants fighting each other would be! Like in those fantasy movies!" Mize exclaimed, completely immersed in the scene unfolding before them.
Liam sighed. 'Her logic truly jumps around like a rabbit.'
Still, she's his rabbit.