Devourer's Legacy: I Regressed With The Primordial Crest
Chapter 86: Stairs (1)

Chapter 86: Stairs (1)

"Get your asses down you brats!" Aldric screamed at the top of his lungs, his voice cutting through the morning air like a blade.

The children jolted awake, some crying out in surprise, others groaning as they rubbed sleep from their eyes. Most of them had grown used to Aldric’s harsh wake-up calls over the past week, but it never got easier. The man seemed to take pleasure in startling them from whatever brief peace they could find in sleep.

The wooden doors of the wagon swung open with a loud bang, and brilliant sunlight flooded in. After spending so long in the dim interior, the sudden brightness made the kids squint their eyes and shield their faces with their hands. Some turned away completely, blinking rapidly as tears formed from the harsh light.

But as their eyes slowly adjusted, what they saw in front of them made every single child open their eyes wide in pure awe.

A mountain range sprawled before them - the tallest peaks any of them had ever seen. The mountains rose like giant stone fingers reaching toward the heavens, their surfaces a mix of gray rock and snow-capped summits. Some of the highest peaks had completely disappeared behind thick white clouds, making them seem endless and impossible to climb. The sheer scale was overwhelming. Even the smallest visible peak dwarfed any hill or mountain the children had seen in their home villages.

"Whoa!" several children exclaimed at once, their voices mixing together in amazement.

They forgot about their aching bodies, their empty stomachs, and even their fear of Aldric for a moment. The sight was simply too magnificent to ignore. Some pointed with trembling fingers, others just stared with their mouths hanging open.

"Look at that one!" whispered a girl with braided hair, pointing to a particularly tall peak that seemed to pierce the sky itself.

"I can’t even see the top of it," muttered a boy with freckles scattered across his nose.

But their moment of wonder didn’t last long. They could feel Aldric’s impatient glare burning into them, and none of them dared to make him scream again.

One by one, they began climbing down from the wagon. Their legs were stiff and wobbly from the long journey, and many stumbled as they hit the ground. Some of the younger children needed help from the older ones to make it down safely. Their clothes were wrinkled and dirty, their hair messy from sleeping in cramped conditions.

It took several minutes for all twenty-three children to disembark and gather together. They formed a loose group, instinctively staying close to each other for comfort. The mountain air was crisp and thin, making some of them feel slightly dizzy. A few coughed as they adjusted to the different atmosphere.

They found themselves standing in front of an impressive archway that had no nameplate or sign to identify it. The arch was built from some kind of red marble that seemed to glow in the morning sunlight. The stone was smooth and polished, clearly the work of master craftsmen.

What’s noticeable was that, Intricate patterns were carved along the edges, though the children couldn’t make out what they represented from where they stood.

From the archway, a long staircase stretched upward, disappearing around a bend in the mountain. Their destination wasn’t visible - the stairs seemed to lead somewhere high above them, hidden by the curve of the mountain face and the morning mist that clung to the upper reaches.

The stairs themselves were made from stone slabs, each one carefully cut and placed. Every step was made with the same kind of dark stone, shaped to the same size and positioned with perfect precision. They alternated in a pattern that created a rhythmic visual effect as they climbed higher and higher. Along the wall that bordered the stairs, strange inscriptions were etched into the stone at regular intervals. The children couldn’t read the symbols, but they looked ancient and mysterious.

"Listen to what I am going to say to you very carefully," Aldric began, his voice dropping to a more serious tone.

He gave them a few moments to gather themselves and pay attention. Some children were still breathing heavily, others were trying to brush dust off their clothes. All of them turned to face him, though many kept glancing nervously at the intimidating staircase.

"The stairs lead to the outer hall of the Silent Monastery, where some of you will be training starting tomorrow," he announced.

He made sure to press extra emphasis on the words "some of you," letting them hang in the air like a threat. His eyes scanned the group, watching their reactions carefully.

All the children present were intelligent enough to understand the meaning behind his words. This wasn’t going to be a simple matter of everyone going up together. There would be a selection process, and not everyone would make it.

Nervous glances were exchanged. A few of the smaller children moved closer to older siblings or friends. The reality of their situation was starting to sink in.

"As you may have understood, not all of you will be accepted here," Aldric continued. "There is a simple test."

Not one of the children believed his description of the test being "simple." They had learned over the past week that nothing about this journey was simple or easy. Aldric’s idea of simple usually meant dangerous, difficult, or both.

"You will all start climbing these stairs in a few moments," he explained, gesturing toward the stone steps. "Whoever reaches the outer hall by sunrise tomorrow will be accepted as a disciple under the Silent Monastery."

The announcement hit the group like a physical blow. Sunrise tomorrow? That meant they had less than twenty-four hours to climb what looked like thousands of steps up a mountain. And they were already tired, hungry, and weak from the long journey.

Mixed expressions appeared on the children’s faces. Some of the more determined ones were already sizing up the staircase, trying to figure out the best strategy for making it to the top. Their eyes showed a fierce determination to succeed, no matter what it took.

But the smarter ones were thinking of something entirely different. After a week with Aldric and seeing the harsh, unwelcoming nature of this place, they had already realized that the Silent Monastery wasn’t the kind of place where they would want to be. The idea of deliberately failing the test to go back home was starting to look attractive.

Maybe if they pretended to try but didn’t make it, Aldric would take them back to their villages. Maybe their families would welcome them home. Maybe this whole nightmare would end.

But Aldric wasn’t new to this process. He had brought groups of children here before, and he could read their faces like an open book. He knew exactly what was going through their minds, and he had no intention of letting them choose the easy way out.

"Just a suggestion," he said with a cold smile, "make sure you try your best to climb the stairs by sunrise, or else..."

He let his words trail off as he walked several steps away from the group. Then he raised his arm and pointed his finger toward something far in the distance, up toward the sky above the mountains.

The children followed his pointing finger with their eyes, craning their necks to see what he was showing them. All they could see was empty sky, a few clouds, and the distant peaks of the mountains. No one understood what he was trying to demonstrate.

It only took one more moment for them to find out.

BOOM!

A brilliant blue lightning bolt suddenly struck from the clear sky above them. The sound was deafening, like thunder exploding directly over their heads. Several children screamed and threw themselves to the ground, covering their heads with their hands.

But the lightning didn’t hit them. Instead, it struck just above where they were standing and spread out against some kind of invisible barrier. The bolt scattered across what looked like a dome-shaped force field, crackling and sparking as it dispersed harmlessly into the earth around them.

The children stared in absolute terror and amazement. Magic. Real magic was protecting this place.

"If you fail," Aldric said simply, his voice carrying clearly in the sudden silence, "you will be thrown out."

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