Dragged Into Another World Because of My Otaku Friend-Chapter 41: Ancient Weapon

In the heart of the forest, where the trees stood thick and silent, only the hooting of owls echoed through the night. Suddenly, the ground trembled slightly, and a patch of earth began to shift.

With a low grinding sound, a hidden tunnel creaked open.

A figure emerged, cloaked in dirt and urgency. He stepped aside and pulled another up behind him, then another. One by one, dozens then hundreds of people began to climb out of the hidden passage.

"Form a perimeter around this region. Be alert for any monsters lurking nearby!" an old man barked, his voice steady and commanding despite the chaos.

He was the mayor.

"Alia! Set up the barrier quickly, before night creatures catch our scent!"

A young woman nodded and raised her staff, chanting softly as a glowing bubble formed in the air, making a dome like shaped that cover all of people there.

All around, townspeople emerged, weary but alive. The injured were carried on stretchers, groaning softly as they were laid gently onto moss-covered ground.

"Be careful... he has broken ribs," said Sir Van, his voice calm but firm as he examined a wounded man being laid on a stretcher. The old healer had served the town for decades, and there wasn’t a soul who hadn’t been tended by his hands in this town.

After checking on the injured, Sir Van made his way up a small hill, where the mayor stood, staring out at the valley below.

The town was ablaze, red flames and black smoke climbed into the night sky, casting a hellish glow. Between the burning rooftops, shadowy figures of monsters moved like wraiths, stalking the streets they once called home.

Sir Van stepped beside him.

"Is this really the only way, Frank?" he asked quietly, his tone tinged with disappointment. "What will the townspeople say when they learn you sent outsiders to defend us? The youngsters are already whispering that you trust strangers more than your own people."

As he spoke, he waved a hand, brushing away the smoke wafting from the mayor’s pipe.

The mayor didn’t flinch. His eyes remained locked on the distant inferno.

"And what choice did we have, Van?" he replied after a long pause. "We’re farmers. Breeders. Not warriors. If we stood against those monsters ourselves, we’d already be dead."

He took a slow drag from his pipe, then sighed.

"I’ll answer to the townspeople later. I’ll take the blame. But for now, all we can do is pray those outsiders return safely... and maybe, save what’s left of our home."

Both of them continue watching their home who now become worldly hell.

---

Huff... huff... huff...

Bob was gasping heavily, his breath ragged and loud. He leaned against a tree, one hand pressed to the bark, the other gripping his knee as he hunched forward, completely winded.

I wasn’t in any better shape. My legs felt very heavy with each steps. I dropped to the ground on all fours, hands and knees sinking into the dirt, as if I had just finished a 5K marathon without training.

"Bob..." I panted between breaths, "...after this... we seriously need to start working on our cardio."

"Yeah," he wheezed, still bent over. "I think so too."

We were currently in the southeastern outskirts of Lily Town. After securing the powerstone, our journey here had gone relatively smoothly, fewer monsters seemed to roam this close to the town’s edge.

This area was dense with trees and eerily silent. It looked abandoned. Crumbling houses stood like relics of the past, their walls overtaken by vines and weeds.

Liam and Kiwi take a look at the map, studying it closely.

"According to the map, this should be the place," Liam said, glancing around the overgrown clearing. "I’ve been here before... but I never found anything."

Kiwi narrowed his eyes, deep in thought, trying to recall the mayor’s words. After a long pause, he turned to Liam.

"Liam, take out the key."

Liam dropped his bag to the ground and pulled out the old book. He flipped it open with care. Tucked behind the book’s worn leather cover was the key. He retrieved it and handed it over.

The key was strange, an ancient design. A triangle shape rested at the top, with an extended base below it that had a sunken groove, like the teeth of a key waiting for the right lock.

"Alan, Bob, try searching for something this key might fit into," Kiwi said as he held out the strange key for us to see.

I got to my feet, feeling a bit more refreshed after the short rest.

"You mean a keyhole or something like that?"

Without wasting time, we spread out, scanning the area. We checked everything, tree trunks, the ground, the crumbling walls of the abandoned houses, even under loose stones. Every crack and rocks became a possible hiding place.

After several minutes, frustration began to sink in.

"There’s nothing here," I said, wiping sweat from my brow.

"Same here," Bob called out, dusting off his hands. "Not a single keyhole or mechanism."

Liam clenched his fists, the tension growing in his face. He looked around with rising anxiety.

"Where the hell did you hide it, Grandpa?" he shouted, his voice raw with emotion. "Lily Town is depending on this. If we can’t find the weapon, people are going to die... and it’ll be your fault!"

His voice cracked, and the anger gave way to desperation. Liam dropped to his knees, the weight of his emotions too heavy to carry any longer.

"Please, Grandpa," he whispered, his hands trembling as tears slid down his cheeks. "You always said you’d protect the town... please don’t let that promise die with you."

Bob, Kiwi, and I stood in silence, watching Liam. It felt like we were out of options, if the weapon wasn’t here, then we had no choice but to retreat.

I stepped toward Liam and gently placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Liam... I think we need to go."

But just as the words left my mouth, a sudden gust of wind burst upward from beneath us. A glowing green symbol, a circle etched with runes, appeared at our feet, with Liam standing directly at its center.

The ground trembled.

"What the—?" I stepped back instinctively.

The earth groaned and shifted. The soil within the glowing circle began to sink, revealing a massive spiral staircase that descended deep underground. The circle’s diameter was about half the size of a football court, and the sound of stone grinding against stone echoed all around us.

Within moments, the rumbling ceased. The magical seal faded, and silence returned, except for the rapid beating of our hearts.

"Do we really have to go down there?" Bob asked, his voice low and uncertain. He glanced at the dark stairwell with hesitation etched on his face.

Without a word, Liam moved forward, determination renewed in his eyes. He took the first step down into the darkness and took the torches attached to the wall of the entrance. Kiwi followed close behind. I exchanged a glance with Bob, then went after them.

Bob, still uneasy, sighed and brought up the rear.

The spiral staircase seemed endless, winding downward into the earth. As we descended, I ran my fingers along the walls. Strange symbols and unknown shapes were etched into the stone, each one raised slightly from the surface, like ancient carvings meant to be felt, not just seen. They glowed faintly under the light of our torches, casting eerie shadows that danced along the curve of the stairwell.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, we reached the bottom.

Before us stood a massive door.

It was unlike anything we had ever seen, completely out of place in this forgotten part of the world. Glowing green lines moved across its surface in perfect synchronization, like circuitry from a futuristic machine. The lines traced intricate paths, pulsing gently, as if the door itself were alive.

"Whoa..." Bob breathed, wide-eyed. "This design is insane." free𝑤ebnovel.com

He reached out and touched the surface. A ripple of green light spread from the point of contact, radiating outward across the door like water disturbed in a still pond.

"Cool..." he grinned, eyes sparkling with childlike wonder, as if he had just unwrapped a new toy.

At the center of the door, a triangular indentation sat waiting, perfectly shaped to fit the key.

"This must be it," Kiwi said, stepping forward.

Liam didn’t hesitate. He took the key and carefully inserted it into the slot.

Instantly, the glowing lines began to converge, streaming from every part of the door into the triangle. A soft hum filled the air, growing louder as the energy gathered.

Then, with a deep mechanical thrum, the door began to open, piece by piece. Starting from the center, segments shifted outward, sliding smoothly with precision, revealing the darkness beyond.

We held our breath as the passage slowly revealed itself.

What lay ahead was unknown.

But we had come too far to turn back now.

We were flabbergasted by the technology as we walked deeper into the darkness.

This felt straight out of a science fiction film, like something rendered with CGI, not something you’d find buried beneath an overgrown forest.

Beyond the massive door lay only darkness. But then, one by one, green lights blinked into existence along the ground, like the guiding lights on an airport runway at night. They formed a glowing path stretching deep into the hallway ahead.

Without speaking, we followed the trail.

"Bob," I whispered, still stunned, "this... this isn’t from this world. It’s way too advanced, even compared to our world."

"You think we’ll find aliens?" Bob asked, leaning closer, his voice low and half-serious.

At this point, I wouldn’t even be surprised. After everything we’ve seen, monsters, magic and grotesque creatures, aliens don’t sound so strange anymore.

The deeper we walked, the quieter it got. Our footsteps echoed faintly against the cold, metallic floor. Time seemed to slow. Then, we reached the center of the corridor, and the lights led us to something on the wall.

At first, it was cloaked in darkness. But as we stepped closer, soft lights flickered on, revealing a massive mural carved and lit into the stone.

It was breathtaking.

At the center of the mural was a humanoid figure, tall, powerful, and otherworldly. It had majestic wings and a long, curling tail. Its body radiated authority and danger. Surrounding it were eight enormous objects, cannon-like devices, all pointed directly at the figure.

As I stared at it, a jolt ran through my body.

Suddenly, my dreams, flashed before my eyes. Visions I had seen countless times before. That same figure... chasing me through endless, dark skies. Its wings slicing the air, its eyes locked onto mine.

And then...pain.

A sharp, crushing pain stabbed into my skull, like someone hammered a nail into my brain.

"Ah—!" I dropped to my knees, clutching my head. The pressure was unbearable. My vision blurred.

"Alan!" Bob shouted, rushing to my side.

But I couldn’t hear him clearly. Everything was drowning in that pulsating ache.

The figure in the mural... what was it?