Chapter XXXIII

Summary

• The character gains the courage to escape from the dormitory and ventures out into the night. He leaves the dormitory unnoticed, and outside, he decides to not turn back despite the risk of expulsion and takes a detour to avoid being spotted by others.
• On the way, he makes a stop at the stables to pick up items that he had stashed earlier. Then, he heads towards the wall that bounds the Academy's compound. After several failed attempts, he finally manages to climb over the wall which is fortified with spikes.
• The character successfully breaches the border and begins his journey into the dense forest. He relies on a lantern to navigate through the forest, but the path is treacherously dark. Despite his fear of alupi wolves, he persists and eventually finds a barely traceable trail. He follows it and stumbles upon ancient ruins.
• The character scrutinizes the luminous ruins and uncovers a closed door that leads to a domed building. He examines the inscriptions on the door, determines that the building has been there for hundreds of years, and decides to explore the interior of the ancient structure despite the limited time he has on hands.
• Inside the building, he finds a cryptic tunnel lit by glowing words carved into the wall. He learns that neither the language nor the script is recognizable, and presumes that they tell a cryptic story. He notices similar symbols found in the Labyrinth and a diagram that shows how to control the bracer. He feels that he must return and share his findings with Ulciscor.
• The character advanced deeper into the tunnel and discovered a massive hall illuminated by an eerie green light. It was filled with numerous cavities hosting corpses impaled by obsidian blades which appeared as recent death victims as they haven’t aged or deteriorated. This sight instills absolute terror in his heart.
• As he navigates the hall, he encounters a large metal plate inscribed with unknown symbols. When he touched it, it produced a resonating thrum that echoed throughout the hall.
• The hall floor then morphed into three distinct maps – one depicting the current Solivagus, the other representing its past version, and the last one presents a completely destroyed future apocalypse. An ominous repeated phrase begins to echo around the hall while the corpses in the cavities began to whisper them too which made him flee in fear.
• As he escapes the terrifying labyrinth and heads back to the dormitory, he encounters two men discussing the destruction of Solivagus. One of them turned out to be Veridius, the Principalis of the Academy, and the other is an unnamed man. Veridius goes inside the building and instructs the man to stand guard.
• The protagonist hides behind a broken wall in the ruins area, carefully observing until Veridius reappears. Consumed by fear, the protagonist waits for an opportunity to resume his return journey.

• Two characters, Veridius and Marcus, are discussing a recent alarm that was set off and the possibility of someone breaching their island again.
• Veridius instructs Marcus to return to the academy and ensure no students are missing while he investigates further.
• The protagonist, concealed in darkness, overhears the conversation and calculates they can beat Marcus back to the academy if they hurry.
• After navigating difficult terrain and a seemingly hurried journey, the protagonist arrive back at the Academy wall.
• The protagonist uses a makeshift rope to climb over the wall, injuring their palm on a spike in the process. They manage to hide their entrance and rush towards the dormitory.
• Arriving back at the dormitory, they spend a few minutes frantically cleaning themselves in a fountain before rushing up to their room.
• Upon entering their room, the protagonist is seen by their roommate Eidhin. Lying, Eidhin covers for the protagonist when Marcus arrives to inspect the rooms.
• After the close call with Marcus, the protagonist reflects on their night's activities and their injuries. They decide to seek medical attention for their hand injury in the morning and burn their bloodstained tunic later at the stables.
• The chapter concludes with the protagonist contemplating the mysteries of the evening, including the bodies they saw in the crypt and the whispered warnings.