Into the Spiraling Mine

Despite Miriam’s fervent reluctance, Rachel’s subtle coercion ultimately compelled her to guide them toward the mine’s entrance.

“My lady, this is the mine you mentioned earlier.”

Miriam’s face wore a fawning smile as she gestured behind her. Rachel followed the direction of her finger, her gaze falling upon the mine.

What appeared before Rachel was less a mountain and more a colossal wall. This range, known as Gray Mountain, boasted an incredibly smooth, sheer face, and it was upon this very surface that Miriam indicated the mine’s entrance. From a distance, especially when viewed from a higher vantage point, the mountain seemed as though it had been precisely sliced open, bearing no resemblance to any natural geological formation.

Now, Rachel and her companions stood directly before this imposing face. Rachel tilted her head back, her eyes unable to discern the top of the stone wall within her field of vision. She then cast her gaze to either side, observing how the wall, stretching eastward and westward, formed a subtle arc before finally vanishing into the mountain forests on both flanks.

A peculiar thought suddenly struck Rachel: she felt as though she had stumbled inadvertently into the very edge of the world, and that perhaps by passing through this stone wall, she might glimpse another realm entirely.

“Lady Rachel, is everything alright?”

Vera’s voice, tinged with a hint of concern, reached her ears, suggesting that her prolonged moment of distraction had likely worried her attendant. Rachel let out a soft sigh, dismissing her recent musings.

“It’s nothing,” Rachel replied, a smile gracing her lips. “I was merely a little surprised.”

“Oh…”

Vera nodded, though her expression suggested she hadn’t quite grasped the meaning of Rachel’s surprise. Rachel, having no inclination to elaborate, instead turned her attention to Miriam.

“Are you certain this is the mine you spoke of earlier?”

Rachel inquired, her gaze sweeping from side to side.

“Why can’t I see any of the miners you mentioned?”

“Those folk are always so elusive; perhaps they have the day off today?”

Miriam quickly responded.

Rachel nodded imperceptibly, yet a quiet murmur of doubt stirred within her.

Her initial plan had been to apprehend one of the miners and question them about their activities in this supposedly abandoned mine. However, upon her personal arrival, she discovered the area before them was utterly deserted.

Rachel, for her part, did not believe Miriam was lying. The ground nearby was remarkably clean, devoid of weeds, suggesting that many people had been moving about here quite recently. Miriam’s explanation thus seemed plausible enough.

Nevertheless, the fact remained that the mine was now empty. Had the working miners simply been given a holiday, as Miriam suggested, or had Miriam’s visit a few days prior alerted them, causing them to hide?

Rachel hesitated for a moment, then made up her mind.

“We’ll go inside and take a look.”

“Yes, My Lady!”

Vera nodded with resolute affirmation. Seeing this, Miriam also nodded in agreement.

“Then I shall not trouble Your Ladyship any further; I will take my leave now…”

Miriam turned to depart, only to have her wrist suddenly seized by Rachel.

“What are you talking about?”

Rachel fixed Miriam with a serious gaze.

“I said ‘we’, didn’t I? That naturally includes you. Why are you in such a hurry to leave?”

“But… this is your property, My Lady. It wouldn’t be appropriate for an outsider like me to enter…”

Miriam uttered these words, her face contorted into a tearful expression that practically screamed, ‘Have mercy on me!’

Yet Rachel pulled her closer with a decisive tug, a hint of amusement sparkling in her eyes.

“What’s inappropriate about it? Weren’t you keen on doing business here before? This is a perfect opportunity to investigate, isn’t it?”

“B-but…”

Miriam attempted to protest further, but Rachel afforded her no such chance, forcefully leading the thoroughly unwilling Miriam into the mine.

Upon entering the mine, their vision immediately dimmed, and the temperature dropped several degrees in an instant, causing Rachel and her companions to shiver involuntarily. Fortunately, Rachel had come prepared, igniting the oil lamp she had brought to serve as their light source.

The passage inside the mine was exceedingly narrow, allowing only one person to pass at a time. Rachel’s trio formed a single file: Vera took the lead, acting as a scout, Rachel followed in the second position, holding the oil lamp in one hand while gripping Miriam, who brought up the rear, with the other, ensuring she wouldn’t flee.

“This place… it hardly looks like a mine,”

Rachel murmured, her voice low, as she held up the oil lamp and surveyed their surroundings.

Though Rachel had never visited a mine, either before or after her transmigration, and thus had no frame of reference for what a typical mine should look like, the irregularities of the current one were glaringly obvious.

Setting aside the excessively narrow passage, Rachel and her companions had walked for a considerable time without encountering any areas where miners would work or dig, nor any tools for illumination. Had it not been for the clear signs of artificial excavation within the passage, Rachel might have easily concluded that Miriam had led them astray, and they had simply wandered into a small, naturally formed cave.

Along both sides of the passage, Rachel discovered several square-cut rooms, yet these too were utterly empty. While she did find traces of human habitation within them, there was no sign of anyone present.

Rather than a mine, the place felt more akin to a secret base carved into the mountain. Could this possibly be a refuge for those tax-evading refugees from her own territory?

Almost as swiftly as the thought arose, Rachel dismissed the notion. Setting aside the immense difficulty of carving out a base of this scale within the mountain for refugees lacking both strength and tools, the sheer precision of the passage and the remarkably square-cut rooms seemed far too meticulous to be their work—almost obsessively so.

As Rachel pondered these thoughts, she suddenly noticed Vera, who was leading the way, come to an abrupt halt. Rachel likewise paused, her gaze turning to Vera with a touch of bewilderment.

“Vera, what’s wrong?”

“My lady, I think we’ve been walking in circles…”

Vera spoke with a hint of hesitation.

“In circles?” Rachel furrowed her brow. “Do you mean we’re lost? But there’s only one path here, not even a single fork.”

“No, My Lady, what I mean is that this passage itself is spiraling… I think,” Vera explained, scratching her head, her tone uncertain. “It wasn’t noticeable at first, but now we’re constantly getting closer to the inner curve, so it’s becoming much more apparent.”

“And, I’m not sure if it’s just my imagination, but it feels like we’re constantly climbing upwards…”

“A spiraling passage, constantly ascending…” Rachel mused, deep in thought. “Does that mean we’re approaching the very center of this mountain?”

“Um, if I may interrupt.”

Miriam, who had been silent for a considerable time behind Rachel, finally spoke, her voice trembling slightly.

“Regardless of where we’re headed, My Lady, isn’t this place… shaking?”