[Book 2] Gate Guardian - Song of the Frozen Soul

PHASE 25 - AETHERNUS

PHASE 25 - AETHERNUS

“I won’t let you get away!” Hades followed as he jumped from the rooftop. 

The God of the Underworld revealed his tattered dragon wings for his slow descent, and his better control at aerodynamics made it possible for him to land faster than me.

Right when I was able to touch the ground, Hades is already blocking the entrance of the ten-story building. He stomped his hell fork and shouted at me.

“You shall not pass!”

If I have to go inside the building, I should defeat him. The Greek God Hades is said to be on par with the primal god Zeus, and considering the fact that I don’t have any God Core or even the <Heart of Light> with me, I have a slim to no chance in winning. Even if I win, I would end up half-dead and it will consume so much time.

Suddenly, I remembered something. Back in Book 1, Heushac and Kristoff once made it to the Underground Laboratory without entering the building. They took the long road, which is the hangar of the airfield. There seem to be some passageways of some sort to that place.

I jumped back, away from the God of Underworld, and coated my body with electricity. “<Magnum Boost>!!!”

“Ohoho…” Hades chuckled. Then his crimson eyes glowed. “Are you going to outrun me? It won’t happen. You’re just a puny Gate Guardian, and I’m a god.”

I kicked the floor and bolted forward to my enemy. Hades positioned the edges of his fork towards me, thinking that I will take him head-on. But he’s completely wrong.

I used my right foot as a pivot, stepped on my brakes and clutch. Then, I change my direction towards the west, aiming to go away from the enemy. It was an ankle-breaking crossover U-turn!

“Hey, where do you think you’re going?” Hades shouted. “Did you get scared that you need to go to the bathroom?”

When I have already gained a thirty-meter distance from him, I decided to reply. “Yeah. Does your hangar have restrooms leading to Underground Laboratory?”

“What the-!!!” Hades was stunned. “What the hell! How did you know that!? Just… who are you!?”

I didn’t reply. I focused on evading the obstacles on my way while speeding up. I did not spend any of my energy looking back. I just focused on running away.

<>

After five minutes, I finally made it to the airfield. There are still war noises around, but the place has been occupied by Black Cross Gate Guardians. They have converted it as a temporary medical center where the wounded allies take refuge.

The hangar is filled with injured people. There are Gate Guardians who lost an arm or a leg, and some lost their eyes. I’ve seen enough pitiful scene back then, so I didn’t pay much attention. Anyway, there are cool airplanes here!

Finding the underground path is not hard. The Gate Guardians have already scouted this place, and I just took one asks a person to lead me to my destination. At the mouth of the underground entrance, two Gate Guardians who are equipped with a rifle-type Weapon Gem halted me.

“Proceed no further. This place is yet to be scouted.”

“I’m from the infiltration team. I have received orders from Lord Freya to scout the underground path.” I said.

And as easy as that, they let me go. I used my <Magnum Boost> again to run inside the underground tunnel. It’s full of left and right turns but it’s just a one-way path.