Chapter 738  Cthulhu      

          [Ragnar, Sumeri, Nikolai]

"Is this it?" Nikolai inquired, casting a glance at the others.

"I think so too," Sumeri answered.

"Well, that wasn't so long," Ragnar commented. They had only passed through two rooms, making it probably the shortest dungeon he had encountered.

For once, it was a nice change that after just two rooms, they were already at the boss's area.

"What should we do now?" Nikolai asked, waiting for the door to open, but it remained steadfast.

"Remember that riddle on the first floor?" Sumeri asked and recited, "The master would call out to us, and the door shall open if we answer . . . I think."

"You think?" Ragnar raised an eyebrow. "You're not sure?"

"I've never been here, and Ren only provided general directions, so cut me some slack," Sumeri retorted.

"Go and interact with it then," Ragnar urged Sumeri.

"Why me?" Sumeri replied.

"Because you have the highest INT among all of us here, and I'm the leader, remember?"

Sumeri begrudgingly accepted the words "leader" as she grumbled towards the door, hesitantly placing a hand over the panel. She was weak to that word, given that she was in a guild for years under a leader. Interacting with the gates proved to be more than a physical endeavor; it beckoned the attention of Cthulhu himself. The moment that Sumeri placed a hand over the door, they felt slithering whispers creeping into their minds, forcing each of them to confront an unsettling voice. In the minds of those who successfully overcame the head splitting pain, the whispers revealed a haunting message:

"Small thing, you have stumbled into the eternal dream. Wake now. Wake now to serve. Open the gates. Open the gates. I wait. I hunger. Open the gates."

Ragnar and the others were ensnared in the dream's grasp, and felt the weight of the ominous demand pressing upon them. The encounter with the Black Gates became a surreal confrontation with a force beyond their comprehension.

As the whispers faded, the nightmare took a toll on the party. The dream, while vivid and otherworldly, exacted its toll on their physical beings. The characters woke up, jolted from the dream, but the experience left them drained. Each players gained a number of levels of exhaustion, the price paid for succumbing to the haunting whispers and traversing the treacherous dreamworld.

The Black Gates had not only presented a physical barrier but had woven a nightmarish dreamscape, leaving the party with a profound sense of foreboding as they grappled with the aftermath of their surreal encounter. The journey into Cthulhu's lair had taken yet another unsettling turn, and the true nature of the dream remained an enigma shrouded in dark whispers.

"W-what . . . what just happened?" Nikolai asked, his confusion evident. "I suddenly feel weak."

"It's because we're exhausted," Ragnar pointed out, indicating the exhaustion symbol on the side of their names.

"It's fine," said Sumeri with a waved of her hand. "We brought a lot of counter potions exactly for this."

Sumeri and the others drunk a [Revitalizing Elixir] to clear the status effect on them. If they didn't dispel the Exhaustion, then their stat would fell into half. That would spell trouble if they encounter the final boss. ǁ Revitalizing Elixir ǁ

The Revitalizing Elixir is a potent potion crafted by skilled alchemists to provide swift relief from exhaustion. It appears as a vibrant azure liquid, emanating a rejuvenating glow. When consumed, the elixir not only restores physical and mental energy but also dispels the effects of exhaustion, allowing the drinker to recover with renewed vigor. Highly sought after by adventurers facing prolonged challenges, the Revitalizing Elixir is a valuable asset in overcoming fatigue and pushing beyond one's limits.

ǁ E N D ǁ

Ragnar and the others attention shifted when they heard a creak. The cavernous black door groaned open with an eerie creak, beckoning Ragnar and his companions into an unknown realm. As they crossed the threshold, the familiar surroundings of the tomb faded away, replaced by a surreal landscape of ancient ruins. The air was thick with an otherworldly energy, and the ground beneath their feet felt both solid and ethereal.

Amidst the crumbling remnants of a forgotten civilization, the party found themselves in the heart of an arcane realm. Strange symbols adorned the dilapidated walls, glowing faintly with an otherworldly luminescence. The ruins seemed to pulsate with an ancient power, and the air hummed with the resonance of long-forgotten incantations.

At the center of this mystical space lay the enigmatic being they had come to confront. The air grew heavy with an oppressive aura as they beheld the indescribable form of Cthulhu. Its shapes were many, a cosmic kaleidoscope that defied mortal comprehension. The true nature of Cthulhu's form remained elusive, hidden behind a veil of cosmic ambiguity.

Yet, certain characteristics stood out amid the cosmic chaos. Cthulhu's head, an alien spectacle reminiscent of an octopus, dominated the scene. Countless tentacles, dripping with otherworldly ichor, twitched with malevolent intent. The very essence of these purple appendages usurped the laws of nature wherever they extended, bending reality to their inscrutable will.

Cthulhu's corpulent body, a grotesque amalgamation of rubbery texture and scaled hide, sprawled across the ruins. Its hands and feet terminated in curved claws, each appendage poised for incomprehensible acts. Multi-jointed bat-like wings emerged from the creature's shoulder blades, resembling a tattered leather cloak when closed. The wings hinted at the eldritch power residing within, capable of defying the constraints of earthly physics.

As the party confronted this cosmic horror, the fabric of reality itself seemed to fracture in the presence of Cthulhu. The boundaries between the physical and the conscious world cracked like fragile glass, creating an unsettling dissonance that reverberated through their very souls.

Its presence transcended the limits of comprehension, an ancient force that wielded power over the very fabric of existence. The party, mere mortals in the face of such cosmic enormity, braced themselves for the impending confrontation with a being that defied the laws of reality.

"This is it . . . are you ready everyone?" Ragnar asked. Sumeri and Nikolai nodded with a serious face. As the echoes of their footsteps mingled with the cosmic hum of the surroundings, the party readied themselves to face Cthulhu, the indomitable force that challenged the boundaries of mortal comprehension.