Chapter 144. The Mysterious Figure in Black

After meticulously checking the locator's readings, Benjamin, with a deliberate slowness, released the water beetle into the whispering embrace of the river.

Moments passed. The locator's feedback suggested an unobstructed path for the tiny creature. Time seemed to stretch out, a lazy river of inaction and stillness.

Then, drawn as if by some silent siren, Benjamin began to move towards a hidden passage deep within the aquatic underworld, departing without haste.

Yet, unbeknownst to him, within the cavern's shadowy depths, a figure raced towards a mysterious underground chamber. There, almost magically placed, stood a stone sarcophagus. Stranger still, curious artifacts surrounded the casket. Above, a ritual altar crowned the space, steps leading up towards the cavern's apex.

Catching sight of this tableau, the eyes of a masked man glittered with palpable excitement.

But then, instead of advancing further, his gaze drifted, and the edges of a fiendish smile pl