My dear witch, please turn evil according to the script!

Chapter 333 You're a mature runestone now; you should learn to find other runestone friends on your own.
"Exploring ruins?"

"That's something I really miss..."

Standing before these ruins, Roland felt somewhat dazed and moved.

As a legitimate adventurer who had registered and obtained a certificate from the Adventurers' Guild, he had indeed encountered similar behaviors quite often.

I've also visited many historical sites with old Lancelot to help clients find antiques.

However, most of the ruins within the Empire, especially those near Riskan, are relatively safe.

So what remains for him are mostly happy memories tinged with a little thrill.

The campfire at night, the dry, hard black bread that could be used for self-defense but had to be soaked in water to soften it before it could be eaten, some fresh ingredients found on the spot, and the father who cooked by the fire while explaining the mission to himself and boasting about his past adventures...

After his father passed away, he stopped accepting commissions from the Adventurers' Guild and focused on preparing for and training to pass the academy's assessment.

I never imagined that in December of 1029, I would encounter so many wonderful life experiences.

The reason he cared so much about his background was because he truly regarded old Lancelot as his father.

He was Roland's initial emotional anchor to the world.

He was afraid that he wasn't his son.

Only then did Roland understand why he was so concerned about his origins.

Even though he was in the snow and ice of Isfar, Roland could picture the mild climate of Riskan, where even winter wasn't too cold.

Emerging from beside the campfire, there was the man laughing heartily, telling his son those exaggerated adventure stories.

If I were truly just an ordinary "local," I might really see him as an all-powerful adventurer father...

I hope I acted well enough that he didn't notice my perfunctory attitude...

"call……"

A strange sadness welled up in Roland's heart with the memories, and his breathing quickened. He took a deep breath and exhaled deeply.

"Let's go in and have a look."

Using his telekinesis, Roland lifted the rubble, revealing a word on a line of fine gold stone inscribed with indistinct characters.

Holy Lagnathia.

Now Roland knew why the face looked familiar.

Roland asked Russell about the design of the laboratory's exterior.

She replied that the exterior of her portable laboratory was modeled after the laboratories of the Holy Empire.

Of course, that's only the appearance; the Holy Empire's former laboratories were much larger than her little hut.

Some secret research labs are hidden deep in the mountains and forests, and no one knows where they are except for the contact person.

He was responsible for researching some forbidden experimental projects in order to deal with the Demon King's army, which was already at war with the Holy Empire at that time.

Based on this, it can be inferred that this ruin should be the former secret research institute of the Holy Empire.

I don't know what happened to make them look like this.

"Looks like we've unearthed some ancient artifacts..."

"Even by the shortest possible time, this thing is at least three hundred years old."

"But why did you bring me to this place?"

As the rubble blocking the entrance was cleared, a passage leading underground appeared before Roland.

Before Roland could take any action, the rune stone flew in on its own, and the golden light it emitted served as a light source, and it was exceptionally bright, as if all the lights that could be turned on in the hotel lobby had been turned on.

The light made Roland's eyes hurt a little, so he squinted.

Seemingly sensing Roland's discomfort, the Golden Tree Runestone wisely dimmed its brightness.

Roland: "..."

This rune stone... why does it look so sensible?

Moreover, it has a flattering connotation.

Why did I experience this feeling from a stone?
Could it be that the sight of the scene has made me more empathetic?

Even if it's strong, it can't be this strong, right?

Roland had already sensed that runes possess a certain degree of self-awareness from Cellina's Sun Rune.

But now it seems... that Sun Stone has receded.

Looking at the runestones drawing circles in mid-air, trying to make him follow, Roland sighed and then walked down into the tunnel that led to an unknown destination.

Thanks to the illumination from the runestone, Roland was able to observe the downward tunnel very clearly.

Contrary to his expectations, the tunnel was remarkably well-preserved, except for the section near the surface which was somewhat damaged.

What surprised Roland even more was that the walls on both sides of the tunnel were covered with a layer of mithril, and every few meters there was an inscription for detection and a rune for warning.

It should be a rune set that automatically sounds an alarm when it detects an intruder not on the authentication list.

To ensure proper functioning, a mithril coating was specially applied to guarantee the normal operation of the magic.

However, according to Roland's observation, the magical energy supply here should have been interrupted.

Because those runes are still intact, they just lack energy.

Roland walked down, observing the walls on both sides.

After descending the steps for more than ten meters, a heavy door made of a special alloy blocked Roland's way.

Just as Roland was about to forcefully break through the door with the Spear of Boundary, the door suddenly lit up and a small groove appeared.

At the same time, a magical projection appeared on the door, displaying a line of text.

Please verify your identity with a blood test.

Roland was taken aback.

There are still operating facilities in this ruin!?

It's no wonder it was once the secret laboratory of the Holy Empire.

But Roland still decided to forcibly demolish it.

What kind of identity verification does he have?
Since we have nothing to do anyway, we might as well just take action.

Just as Roland began to condense the Spear of Boundary Break, the Golden Tree Runestone flew in front of him, flying around wildly. From its chaotic and disorderly flight, Roland could tell that the stone was in a hurry.

After Roland stopped moving, the rune stone became a little more stable, then flew to the edge of the groove and began to move vertically up and down.

Roland: “?”

It seems I'll have to find an opportunity to ask the World Tree if there's anything like rune language that I can learn, even something similar to sign language.

Although it was difficult, Roland still roughly understood the meaning of the Golden Tree Runestone—let's give it a try.

Roland sighed and continued to condense the Spear of Boundary Break.

Fortunately, the goalkeeper provided an assist at that moment.

[Detection timed out, first notification.] [Please complete the detection as soon as possible.]

[Failure to conduct inspections after three warnings will trigger the Gray Fort Protocol. This will activate self-destruct mechanisms within abandoned and sealed bases.]

[A forced breach of the gate will also trigger the self-destruct procedure.]

Roland: "..."

Okay, let's give it a try.

With a thought, Roland pierced the tip of his right index finger, and a drop of red blood, shimmering with gold and green, dripped from his fingertip and fell into the groove.

Blood detected... Verification in progress...

[Verification successful. Welcome, member of the Lancelot family.]

The door slowly opened.

But Roland remained rooted to the spot.

It's not because the gate passed verification.

It wasn't because his royal status was confirmed.

Roland, however, began to doubt his own manhood.

Why does my blood glow?!

The only good news is that my blood is still red; although it glows, it is indeed red.

Never mind, I'll ask Elena about that later.

Let's go inside and see what's hidden in this theoretically abandoned research institute that could make the Golden Tree Runestone fly here and bring us here.

As the verification was successful, the door opened, and Roland heard a buzzing sound.

Then, accompanied by the creaking sound of the rusty mechanical structure turning and starting up again, the lights reappeared in the abandoned research institute.

Then Roland saw a pile of white bones on the ground.

There were corpses everywhere.

Whether in the corridors of the research institute or beside the experimental equipment and workbenches, all that could be seen were corpses.

But strangely, there are no signs of fighting in the current scene.

Either the person who killed these people was exceptionally skilled and completed the killing in an instant.

Either... they died from some kind of virus or curse attack.

However, Roland was not a detective, and investigating the cause of death was not his job.

He came here to search for treasure.

After walking a few steps, he realized why he was able to pass the identity verification.

It is important to know that Isfar was once part of the Kingdom of Platia, and the Lancelot family was the royal family of the Kingdom of Platia, one of the electoral families of the Holy Lagnacia Empire.

No matter how secretive the facility was, under the political system of the Holy Empire, it was impossible for the Electoral Family to be unaware of its construction.

After all, the materials and resources needed for the research, as well as assistance when necessary, or cleaning up the mess if something goes wrong, all depend on the Elector's help.

only……

When Roland saw a familiar suit of armor in a corner of the research institute, he admitted he was a little dumbfounded.

That armor, even as time passes and it is covered in dust, still shines brightly.

A tattered navy blue cloak still clung to the pure black armor, and even now, the armor remained loyal in protecting its master.

Even though the owner of the armor is now nothing but bones.

Roland was bewildered for a simple reason—he had seen this armor before.

In Isfar's dream, the past of Isfar is reflected under the effect of the great magic Spiral Hourglass released by General Landros.

If I remember correctly... shouldn't the "self" in my dream have died in the siege of Isfar?
No... I didn't see the ending back then.

Because the Demon King, who had regained his "physical body" through the dream, came out to cause trouble and disrupted the progress of the dream.

But why is the guy whose account I logged into and had someone else play for me in the dream dying here?

It seems that this research institute is not very old.

Roland bent down to examine the objects on the corpse.

Then he found a family crest and something that looked like a door card.

The family crest looked somewhat familiar. Roland thought for a moment and then took out the letter the princess had given him.

The family crest was engraved on that uniquely textured letter paper.

People from the Lancelot family.

In other words, this is Roland's ancestor by blood.

No wonder I was playing games for someone else in my dream...

It's probably the logic of the dream magic that automatically locked onto me, a descendant of royalty.

Even though his lineage lost in political struggles, was exiled to a foreign land, and was almost ambushed and killed on the way.

But at least it has been passed down.

Although he's not doing very well, at least there's nothing wrong with his bloodline.

Putting aside the question of why his ancestor died here, Roland decided to first find a place where he could swipe his access card.

Looking around, Roland noticed that there seemed to be something pressing down on the back of his ancestor's body.

Using his telekinetic powers, Roland carefully lifted up the old man's remains. Then he bent down and saw what looked like a slot for inserting cards.

Insert the card, and the wall immediately receded several tens of centimeters and moved aside, revealing the secret room hidden behind the wall.

And in the secret chamber, there was that twisted, enormous creature of flesh and blood.

Forgive Roland for being at a loss for words; he simply couldn't describe what he saw.

Twisted, frenzied, chaotic... If Roland hadn't been unable to sense the power of the evil god from it, he would have definitely thought it was something like the flesh-and-blood mutants that appeared in the Isfar Cataclysm.

But to be honest, even those deformed variants grew in a more regular way than this huge lump of flesh that almost filled the entire chamber.

Although aberrations are also bizarre, with the exception of a few individuals, they retain some biological characteristics.

For example, hands, legs, head, and so on.

To prevent further contamination of his eyes, Roland summoned dozens of Radiant Spears, burning away the filth before him.

After the intense heat of the scorching sun burned away the twisted flesh, a small stone fell down. Before it hit the ground, it was caught steadily by the Golden Tree Runestone, which used its broad, hexagonal arms (probably) to catch its good brother. Then, it carried its seemingly dormant good brother to Roland.

Roland: “???”

Holy crap! This golden tree runestone has this use?!

(End of this chapter)