By deliberately leaking false intelligence, Dorothy diverted the main forces of Thorn Velvet elsewhere. Then, she reported the target of Thorn Velvet’s operation to the Serenity Bureau, allowing the Hunters to engage and restrain them—creating the perfect opportunity for her to strike at their base.
A classic "luring the tiger away from the mountain" strategy. This time, Dorothy’s tactics bore some resemblance to when she dealt with Buck in Igwynt, though with a key difference—Buck had taken the initiative and exposed a weakness that she exploited, whereas, in this case, Dorothy had to go through great lengths to lure Thorn Velvet away.
Now, with Thorn Velvet and his key subordinates occupied in battle against the Hunters, they wouldn’t be returning anytime soon. This was the perfect moment for her to infiltrate the ruins.
Deep within the Scholarly Society, Dorothy stood before the webbed corridor. The passage ahead was densely covered with fine spider silk, causing her to pause in thought. Last time, this entire corridor had blocked her small corpse marionettes from conducting reconnaissance.
"The spider silk in this corridor... If anyone not designated as ’authorized’ so much as brushes against it, an alarm will trigger. Even though Thorn Velvet is outside, there must still be guards stationed within the ruins. It’s best not to alert them and risk ruining everything."
Dorothy assessed the corridor woven with countless strands of silk, then scanned her surroundings. Her gaze eventually settled on Nephthys, who stood beside her.
"Senior Nephthys, I have to trouble you one last time. Could you carry me across?"
"Huh? Carry you? I can try… I think that should work."
"Mm, let’s give it a shot. If carrying doesn’t work, piggybacking is fine too—as long as my feet don’t touch the ground."
To Dorothy’s surprise, Nephthys was unexpectedly strong. She held Dorothy securely and steadily, with no need to switch to a piggyback carry.
Nephthys then carried Dorothy through the webbed corridor. Since Nephthys was recognized by the spider silk as one of their own, no alarms were triggered during their passage.
Finally, after traversing the entire corridor, Nephthys set Dorothy down. She turned to glance at the corridor filled with alarm-triggering webs. Dorothy let out a sigh of relief.
"We made it through. Thanks, Senior Nephthys. Your stamina is really impressive."
"It’s nothing. My field of study often requires me to venture into remote and difficult-to-access areas, so I’ve been training regularly."
Nephthys replied casually, while Dorothy continued, "Now then... which way leads to the so-called torture chamber?"
"That passage there—just follow it to the end, and you’ll see a corridor leading downward. Go down, and you’ll reach it. Even though Thorn Velvet has left, there are likely still guards posted in that area. Please be careful, Miss Dorothy."
Nephthys pointed to a corridor, and Dorothy followed her gaze before giving a slight nod.
"Understood. Thanks for your help, Senior Nephthys. You should leave now—and best to stay far away from here. If I need your assistance later, I’ll contact you through the special text."
Dorothy advised, but Nephthys seemed surprised.
"You’re going in alone from here? Will you be okay?"
"Don’t worry. I may be young, but I’m still a Beyonder. I can handle myself. Besides, I don’t need your help for the next phase. You’ll be safer if you leave now, Senior Nephthys."
Dorothy smiled reassuringly at her. Seeing her confidence, Nephthys didn’t press further and simply responded with a solemn nod.
"Then please be careful."
With that, Nephthys retraced her steps through the webbed corridor, while Dorothy released several small corpse marionettes to scout ahead before proceeding down the path Nephthys had pointed out.
Soon, she reached the downward staircase Nephthys had mentioned. At the entrance to the stairway, fallen stone statues lay scattered. Without hesitation, Dorothy sent a few corpse marionettes ahead first, then followed after them.
Descending the stairs, she moved through a narrow passageway that stretched downward. Before long, faint screams echoed from a distance. Her corpse marionettes had already reached the passage’s exit ahead of her.
Through their shared vision, Dorothy saw a vast underground chamber supported by numerous stone pillars. Dimly lit torches flickered within the space, which contained a dozen makeshift cells constructed from nailed wooden planks. Each cell held prisoners covered in wounds from prolonged torture.
Most prisoners, left behind after the main forces departed, huddled fearfully in the corners of their cells. Only two unfortunate individuals were currently being lashed by cultists, their screams piercing the silence.
"So this is the torture chamber Nephthys mentioned… As expected, some guards were left behind."
Muttering to herself, Dorothy counted the remaining enemies. Excluding the prisoners, there were six people in total—two whipping the captives, two resting, and two guarding the staircase leading further down. Among them, one or two might be Apprentice-rank Beyonders.
"In that case… I’ll take care of you all first before heading down."
With that decision, Dorothy retrieved her Cursed Box, expanded its opening, and used her Corpse Marionette Ring to summon three human corpse marionettes. She ordered them to quietly advance and lie in ambush near the entrance of the torture chamber.
Then, she took out several items from her Cursed Box—a black candle, a sigil, and a carved stone coin.
After stowing the Cursed Box away, Dorothy moved closer to the chamber entrance. She held up the black candle and infused it with a single point of Shadow, causing it to ignite with an eerie black flame. This was a mystical item she had obtained from Luer—the Extinguishing Black Candle.
Dorothy then blew out the candle.
Suddenly, the corridor lights flickered out. Simultaneously, every light source in the torture chamber was also extinguished.
Pure darkness consumed the underground space. Everyone was plunged into pitch-black obscurity.
"This is bad! Why did it suddenly go dark?!"
"The torches went out! I can’t see a thing!"
"Find them! Get the lights back on, quick!"
Panic spread among the remaining cultists. They fumbled around in the darkness, trying to locate and relight the torches. But in this total darkness, movement was difficult—some tripped over obstacles, while imprisoned captives stirred in alarm. Some prisoners, driven mad by their suffering, began screaming hysterically.
Dorothy took this moment to place the sigil over the stone coin and pressed it against the ground. She closed her eyes and activated the sigil.
"Earth Listener Sigil…"
This was a sigil Dorothy had confiscated from Deer Skull’s subordinate during the battle at the chapel. Using a stored spirituality of Stone, she activated it.
Immediately, she could sense every vibration around her through the ground. Without relying on sight, she precisely detected all movement within the chamber—the positions of guards and prisoners alike.
Earlier, she had memorized the layout using her Cognizer ability. Now, as soon as darkness fell, she cross-referenced the detected vibrations with her mental map, instantly distinguishing between the prisoners and the guards.
She then commanded the three corpse marionettes lying in wait at the entrance. Armed with daggers and short blades, they advanced swiftly in the darkness toward their designated targets.
A scream echoed in the pitch-black chamber. The first kill had been made.