Dungeon Raider System
Chapter 660 - 660: Nefarius ceremony Part 1

The moment the door creaked open Uriel noticed several things. First, he heard an ominous chanting coming from thousands of people at the same time. It filled the room and leaked out through the now barely open door.

It wasn't the language or the volume what got to him nor was the malevolence in the air so dense he could feel it, it was the fact that it wasn't the first time he experienced something similar.

'This is what Seiren described as a mind attack.' Uriel inwardly pondered as he looked inside trying to identify the nature of the ceremony being carried in front of him.

There were countless people wearing cloaks of different colors each representing a different element. They also covered their faces in different manners, being the most common a black piece of cloth that covered their mouths, but there were also some wearing surgical face masks and bandanas.

It was one of the reasons why Uriel couldn't understand a word they were saying, but the reverberating voices joined in a dissonant choir and the flux infused in the air also didn't help much in that regard.

Uriel continued looking until he spotted four people standing by the throne next to the pillars depicting animals, though they didn't look like the same as they did before. The animals depicted in them emitted a pale blue light, shimmering faintly like a distant star, and it seemed as though every word the cultists spoke caused them to rattle.

Dust and small pieces of stone came off from the pillars, the bear being the most affected, then the lynx and so on up until the last one that looked the same as Uriel saw it for the first time. He didn't miss how that phenomenon was taking place in a counterclock wise manner which in some cultures was taboo.

It might not seem like much, but to Uriel it was a sign that whatever ceremony was being held it wasn't a religious one.

"Someone's out there!" A female voice was heard and a man rushed in for the door giving Uriel just enough time to buy similar cloaks to the ones the cultists wore including two gas masks to cover their identities.

Since he was in a rush, he didn't think much of it and bought two blue ones, one for himself and one for Atsa who remained by his side though he didn't seem to be interested in looking what was going on inside the throne room.

"What are you doing here!? If they notice you were wandering around you're gonna get us all killed." A man said in a whisper shout as he opened the door prompting Uriel and Atsa to rush inside. This was enough to catch the attention of those who were nearby and they stopped chanting to look at the source of the commotion.

"I'm sorry, my grampa is not good in the head and I had to fetch him." Uriel apologized as best as he could, but his acting wasn't that good and the man looked the newcomers with distrust. They were wearing appropriate clothing for the ceremony and they also had their faces covered which meant they had to belong to the society.

There were, however, two contradicting problems with the attire of Uriel's choosing.

The first one being that the color of his robe was blue and he entered through the gate destined for the fire users in the society which made them worthy of punishment, the second one was that the quality of his cloak was obviously leagues above that of low rank members which meant he didn't have the authority to even scold them.

However, that wasn't the case for Easton who after returning with enough serum earned back the trust of his comrades. Not just that, the short time he spent with Mark on their trip to Texas was enough for him to not just learn new skills but also put them into practice since they had to fight their way across the wilderness.

"You shouldn't be here." Easton remarked angrily. By the intensity of his glare Uriel could have sworn he saw through his mask and was getting ready for a fight, but then Atsa intervened in a timely manner.

"You shouldn't be disrespectful towards your elders, young man!" He said with a nagging voice. "Try standing still for hours when you're my age or holding your bladder for more than an hour, then come back and tell me where I can or can't be."

"Apologies, I wasn't... It's just..."

"And don't get me started about warts! You get them everywhere! They just keep popping out of nowhere and..." Atsa went on a rant about the problems of being his age for so long Uriel almost bought it despite knowing he wasn't just old, he was ancient.

He didn't know what kind of creature Atsa was, but after his intervention it became clear to Uriel that he was on the 'good side' since at least he wasn't trying to get him killed.

"I'm deeply sorry, I just meant to say you're in the fire wing when you should be with your kin." Easton awkwardly pointed at the sector where hundreds of cultists wearing blue cloaks gathered.

"And I meant to say to mind your own business and get out my way." Atsa walked amidst the crowd with his hunched back and the ill disguised hatchet making a thumping noise that was muffled by the evil chants resounding in the chamber.

"That was some quality acting, Eagle." Uriel commended the man for his acting skills.

"What acting? I do have warts not even my healing can take care of. Would you like to see them?" Atsa asked as he patted his rear which caused Uriel to wonder if what he was experiencing at the thought of that old man's buttocks was the first time he felt true horror.

"Please, anything but that." Uriel cringed.

Whenever they walked near the cultists they stopped chanting for a brief moment as they opened the way, but then got back into their same position and resumed chanting. It was a chance for Uriel to study the hierarchy and better understand what place were they supposed to take once they reached the water wing.

The cultists weren't lined up due to their age nor power, gender also played no part in the way they were lined up but Uriel knew there had to be a certain order that apparent chaos.

'Could it be wealth? Status? If it's wealth we should head over to the front, if it's status we're better off at the back.' While Uriel pondered about this matters a woman Uriel could have sworn he'd seen before gestured for them to line up besides her.

'Why not?' Uriel shrugged and walked towards her with confidence.

"Did you bring something to eat? I'm starving." The woman puckered her lips from beneath her mask.

"Uhm, sure, but can you explain my grampa what is going on?" Uriel asked as he handed her an energy drink and a snack from his souvenir shop.

"Huh? If he's that old maybe you shouldn't have brought him, this is taking way more flux energy than most young can spare." The woman said as she turned to Uriel who Immediately recognized her, though not because of her face.

"You're that water cultits!" Uriel gasped at the length, quality and softness of her prominent cleavage.

"Excuse me?" The woman chuckled at Uriel's blunder, then asked. "We've met before?"

"I'm sorry, I mean to say cultist. Yeah, we have, you sort of helped me in the past."

"I'm helpful like that." She smiled as she gauged his body trying to recognize him. He was tall, slender, with broad shoulders and an agile look that made him stand out from the crowd. It was precisely her type, yet she couldn't remember ever seeing him. She didn't think much of it since there were so many people in the society and she was among those who joined after entering the dungeon.

"I don't know much myself, but it's the same old. They're trying to summon a god that will help us reach perfection."

"How could you possibly become any more perfect?" Atsa too gaped at the sight of her cleavage.

"You player!" The woman chuckled. "By allowing us to harness the power of all four elements instead of one. I'm not that interested in something like that since I got lucky and my trait makes my skin look pristine, but I'm also not against becoming more powerful.

Unless I also get a dry skin, burn marks or weird facial features." The woman spoke until she realized Uriel had vanished along with his 'grampa' without leaving a trace.

They were already mixing in with the rest of the cultists, though this time they found a more secluded place where Uriel looked Atsa in the eye and asked a single question.

"Is the thing inside that sphere a god?"