This question shifted back to Angel.
After all, Angel initially promised to lead them to the destination.
Angel carefully observed the surrounding situation but didn’t notice any familiar landmarks. He thought for a moment and pointed to the alley connected by the stone bridge in front: "Let’s head that way."
The reason Angel chose the alley ahead was twofold. First, when he was in the Nightmare Realm’s Underground Labyrinth, he was constantly traversing narrow paths, rarely encountering open spaces. That was more like a maze, while this resembles a city.
Therefore, he prioritized the alley ahead that looked most like a maze.
Second, based on the previous translation of the Woodsoman language by the Black Earl, he had a hypothesis that the "Sacred Object" the Mirror Demon God’s followers were searching for might be in the Hanging Jail Stairway. The "Dominators" they mentioned might refer to Franklin, the overseer of the Hanging Jail Stairway. They might have also mentioned the Noah Clan because they discovered Franklin’s daughter, Margaret, had a relationship with Augustine.
Based on this hypothesis, Angel’s intuition told him that if the followers’ target was indeed the Hanging Jail Stairway, it shouldn’t be far from here.
Angel was quite familiar with the Hanging Jail Stairway; the open view here was clearly not its location.
Thus, walking straight towards the alley squeezed between those two unfathomably high walls might be the optimal solution.
Angel didn’t verbalize his analysis; he merely indicated which direction to take.
The group did not question him, as they only needed to mindlessly follow.
As they stepped onto the stone bridge, they glanced downwards. Below was the alley they had previously been able to see through the window, with a shadow lying at its end.
"That’s a dead Magical Creature, almost completely devoured, indistinguishable which kind. I was just looking down at it," Dox said.
"That’s the corpse of a Greedy Demon, also a bait for fishing. Greedy Demons tend to engage in cannibalism and use what’s left as bait to attract other creatures, so there should be others lurking nearby," the Black Earl glanced, naming the creature immediately.
Despite having only a few bones left, the Black Earl was able to recognize it, showing just how far behind their experience was compared to his.
Upon hearing that there might be hidden creatures nearby, Dox immediately became eager: "Shall we go and kill them?"
Angel: "You must have forgotten what I said before. Let me repeat: avoid Magical Creatures when possible, use Photostones for relic research, and don’t waste time in the moment."
With that, Angel didn’t speak further, directly crossing the stone bridge and entering the alley ahead.
Dox smacked his lips, muttered something indiscernible, but ultimately followed with enthusiasm.
As soon as they stepped into the alley, they felt a distinct change.
Outside, some fluorite was still operative, so it wasn’t too dark. But inside the alley, it was pitch black, devoid of light.
The walls on both sides were quite high, connected to a Mana array up top, preventing any climbing over; they could only follow the alley.
This claustrophobic, narrow, pitch-black atmosphere made Angel feel as if he had returned to that Underground Labyrinth in the Nightmare Realm, filled with bewilderment for the path ahead, leaving only wild thoughts and fears of the unknown.
Of course, back then, Angel wasn’t even a Junior Apprentice, merely a novice. Now, he was an Official Wizard, and such darkness was nothing to him.
Moreover, having traversed the Underground Labyrinth of the Nightmare Realm, would he still fear the underground maze in reality? It’s known that, in terms of danger, the Nightmare Realm maze is a hundred, a thousand times more perilous, or even more.
After walking for a short while, a faint light arose from the side.
It was Vay casting the Light Source Technique, an advanced trick of the Light Radiance Spell, capable of lighting the vicinity like daytime.
Seeing everyone looking over, Vay asked in confusion, "Did I do something wrong? Can’t I use the Light Source Technique?"
Angel: "No, you can use it."
Vay: "...???" Then why didn’t any of you use it earlier?
Perhaps noticing Vay’s confusion, Dox said, "I intended to, but seeing Angel wasn’t using it, I refrained. So, you wanted to compete with me in nocturnal vision, right?"
Angel: Who has the leisure to compete with you in nocturnal vision.
Kaier: "Same here, since none of you were using it, I didn’t dare either."
The Black Earl remained silent.
Angel, who was being watched by everyone: "..." He was merely reminiscing about the feeling in the Nightmare Realm, absorbed in thought, not even considering the lighting issue, yet now it seemed like he was the scapegoat.
Angel pondered briefly, then adopted a solemn expression: "Do you need me to command even whether or not to use the Light Source Technique?"
"As I said, within the agreement, as long as you’re not wasting everyone’s time, feel free to do as you wish."
With that said, Angel proceeded forward.
He truly couldn’t be bothered to haggle over such trivial matters.
However, Angel hadn’t walked for even a few minutes before he came to a halt. He vaguely heard someone breathing.
After the group caught up, they too noticed that faint breathing sound.
They exchanged glances, keeping silent, while conversing through the Mind Ribbon.
Kaier: "It seems to be coming from the other side of this wall, right? There’s someone behind who appears injured? Is it someone from the Merchant Organization?"
Dox: "Spiritual power can’t penetrate, can we smash the wall?"
Angel: "...No."
After a pause, Angel said, "Breathing sounds trying to penetrate this wall with a Mana array isn’t so simple. Whether it’s a person or a creature behind it remains unknown. No need to bother with it, let’s continue moving forward."
It was evident they were in the maze already, if there were truly an injured person, they would help if they encountered them later. But, Angel felt it wasn’t likely a person; the number of creatures in the underground labyrinth far exceed those in the open areas.
Or rather, even more.