Just as they finished emerging on the other side, Ren’s mushrooms pulsed with alarm. His eyes widened and he raised a hand, stopping Liora dead in her tracks.
No explanation was needed, the ground beneath their feet vibrated subtly, revealing the nearby presence of something enormous. A deep worm, it had to be eight meters long, moving in their vicinity.
Ren made a silent signal to Liora: don’t move.
They remained completely still, barely breathing.
Ren’s mushrooms pulsed once, very softly, synchronizing with the tunnel’s natural rhythm. Staying calm was crucial now, the deep worm might be Bronze rank and in its element, but as long as it didn’t detect them, they wouldn’t have to face it.
Liora maintained her position, her control perfectly held. There was no fear in her posture, only absolute concentration.
The worm drew closer. They could feel its massive presence moving the earth around them as if it were water.
Ren began to move, his steps perfectly synchronized with the tunnels’ rhythm. It was an almost hypnotic movement, so fluid and light that it seemed a natural part of the environment.
But Liora, despite her determination, didn’t feel so confident. The deep worm was right below them, its presence a constant threat. Remembering Ren’s instructions, she opted to remain completely still.
Ren stopped when he noticed she wasn’t following. His mushrooms pulsed softly as he signaled for her to wait. With deliberately slow movements, he continued moving away until reaching a nearby wall. A smile formed on his lips while Liora watched with evident confusion.
‘Now I have enough distance in case this fails,’ he thought while preparing himself.
He pressed his hands against the wall, spreading all his fingers so the tips touched the rock. With precise movements, he gradually changed position until using his fingernails.
Suddenly, his fingers began moving in a complex and delicate pattern. It was a downward movement, but so intricate it seemed impossible to replicate by chance. He was perfectly mimicking the vibration of a deep assassin walking, light, quick, deadly.
The effect was immediate.
The worm, sensing what it believed was a natural predator, began retreating deeper into the rocks. No worm at this depth, regardless of size, would risk facing a deep assassin.
♢♢♢♢
Ren straightened, relaxing his muscles while his mushrooms pulsed with satisfaction. He waited a moment to ensure the worm had truly moved away before signaling to Liora.
“Now,” he whispered, “try approaching using the imperceptible step.”
Liora nodded, her expression determined. She began to move, trying to imitate the movements she’d seen before. The result was… less than graceful.
Deeply concentrated… her feet moved at different times, occasionally colliding with each other. She tried to maintain the rhythm but ended up looking more like an unpracticed dance than a stealthy movement. Ren had to bite his lip to avoid laughing while his mushrooms pulsed with barely contained amusement.
“Relax,” he suggested when he managed to control his smile. “Don’t think too much… Feel the rhythm.”
Liora furrowed her brow in concentration and tried again, this time more slowly.
“No, relax your face and let yourself flow,” Ren instructed gently. “Feel the rhythm before taking the next step.”
It was fascinating to watch her progress. Each attempt was slightly better than the last, though occasionally she still lost the rhythm by thinking too much and tripped over her own feet.
“Wait!” Ren suddenly whispered, his mushrooms pulsing in warning. A worm was moving nearby, attracted by the failures.
Liora froze mid-stride, precariously balanced on one foot. Ren had to contain another laugh at the image.
After scaring away the worm, they continued practicing. Ren was a patient instructor despite their limited time, gently correcting each mistake and stopping Liora whenever he detected a nearby threat.
“We won’t always be lucky, an assassin might come… Think of it as a casual dance, not a traditional one,” he suggested while watching her try again. “The rhythm is already there so you don’t need to mark it, you just need to follow it.”
“A ‘casual’ dance where tripping means being eaten,” Liora murmured, though there was humor in her voice.
“Exactly,” Ren smiled. “Though perhaps your mind would prefer to avoid that part.”
Gradually, Liora began to improve. Her movements became more fluid, more natural. She wasn’t just mimicking the rhythm in Ren’s advance anymore, she was beginning to feel it.
“Much better,” Ren approved when she finally managed to approach without breaking the pattern. “Though your intense concentration expression could use some work.”
“What’s wrong with my expression?” Liora asked, relaxing her furrowed brow.
“You look like you’re trying to solve a particularly difficult math problem,” Ren laughed softly. “It’s supposed to feel natural.”
“Easy for you to say,” Liora responded, though a small smile formed on her lips. “You’ve been doing this for… how long exactly?”
Ren avoided answering directly. “You’re doing quite well for your first time.”
They continued advancing, now alternating between practice and real movement. Each time Ren detected any danger, they stopped so Liora could observe how the rhythm changed or what signals to look for.
She was very serious, but Ren could see that Liora was a natural learner. Her ability to adapt and improve in a short period was impressive.
“Soon you won’t need me to stop you,” he commented while scaring away another worm. “You’re starting to feel the vibrations yourself.”
Liora’s eyes brightened at the compliment, though she maintained her concentration on keeping the correct rhythm.
♢♢♢♢
Finally, they reached the small deposit. Ren examined it.
“This time there are no monsters,” he murmured. “No eggs, no cores… nothing.”
“Is that strange?” Liora asked, observing the natural bowl formed in the rock.
“I think so,” Ren responded while pulling the crystals he’d prepared from his backpack. “Though perhaps the other times were the strange ones…”
Ren began examining the bowl’s walls, his mushrooms pulsing while analyzing the light and mana patterns. He was looking for specific points where crystal reflections against the mana environment were particularly intense.
“We can move normally here,” he explained while working. “The crystal plate on the ground is too hard, no creature at this depth can break through it.”
He carefully placed the Iron and Bronze rank crystals he’d brought, aligning them to make the process easier. Then he took out the hydra plate.
“I need you to stay at the edge,” he instructed Liora while taking out one of the medicines Julius had given him. “The mana saturation here can be… intense.”
“Is that why the medicine?” Liora observed the small flask with curiosity.
“Precaution,” Ren nodded. “The hydra needs pure mana for cultivation, but processing it here isn’t exactly… comfortable.”