Sure enough.
Ten minutes later, he found an even earlier city survey record.
It was a large, folded map. Once unfolded, it nearly covered the entire table.
Matthew and Edgar leaned in at the same time, examining it closely.
In the next instant, both of their breaths caught for a brief moment.
The title of the map read: 《General Map of the Second Royal Capital District》.
It was not the Royal Capital.
Rather, it was... the Second Royal Capital.
Matthew slowly raised his head to look at Edgar.
The old man had a complex expression on his face. He nodded gently.
“You didn't see wrong,” Edgar said. “The Royal Capital we live in now... is not the first one.”
...
Edgar gently spread the map out completely, his finger slowly tracing the city's outline.
“According to the records currently available, at least six hundred years ago, a much larger ancient city existed here.
“Later, there was war, fire, and an unexplained ground collapse.
“The entire city... practically sank underground.”
Matthew listened in silence. In his mind, countless clues began to rearrange themselves.
Underground.
It hadn't been excavated later on.
Instead, it was... a truly buried city.
Edgar continued, “Later, when the kingdom was established, the survivors didn't clear all the ruins. Instead, they rebuilt the current Royal Capital on top of the old city's remains.
“So,” he tapped the map gently, his voice low, “beneath our feet, there has always been another city.”
Silence filled the room.
At this moment, Matthew finally understood.
Why the underground drainage system was so massive.
Why the old clock tower connected to the underground.
Why Mission 317 met with accident after accident.
Because what the Class holders were entering... was not a common underground passage at all.
Instead, it was—the ruins of the First Royal Capital.
Matthew's gaze lingered on the map for a long time.
The entire map was at least a third larger than the current Royal Capital.
Streets crisscrossed, with plazas, canals, temples... and even several city gates that had long ceased to exist.
If not for the map's title, no one would have ever imagined that such a city lay buried beneath their feet.
Edgar sighed softly. “A pity. Too little information was left behind. Many files were transferred away.”
Matthew didn't speak, but continued to flip through the notes attached to the map.
Most of it consisted of surveying data.
Until the very last page, where a line of slightly blurred text caught his attention:
“The East, West, and South Districts of the old city have all completed surveying. The North District is temporarily suspended from surveying due to severe ground collapse.”
The North District.
Matthew frowned slightly.
The current Entrance 317 was located in the West District.
In that case... what was the situation with the North District ruins?
Just then, an archives administrator walked over.
“Gentlemen, you have forty minutes left. If you need to access other dossiers, please register as soon as possible.”
Matthew looked up and nodded politely. Then, as if asking casually, he said, “Excuse me, what other files are there regarding the First Royal Capital?”
The administrator clearly froze for a moment. It seemed very few people asked this question.
After a brief thought, he replied, “The public portions are basically all here. The rest are restricted archives that require special clearance.”
Matthew pressed further, “What level of clearance?”
The administrator smiled. “At least from the Royal Academy or the Class Holders Guild headquarters. Ordinary applications won't get approved.”
With that, he turned and left.
...
Edgar closed the dossier and shook his head gently.
“No need to try. I've applied twice, and both times were rejected. The reason given was just a single sentence.”
He read slowly, “Involving Kingdom security.”
Matthew's eyes flickered.
A ruin from six hundred years ago could actually involve current Kingdom security.
This meant that the truly important things had not disappeared with history.
...
Just as the two were preparing to return the dossiers, Matthew suddenly noticed something.
In the fold of the map, there seemed to be an extremely small, folded slip of paper.
It was wedged inside the binding. If his spiritual perception hadn't been exceptionally sharp, it would have been nearly impossible to detect.
Matthew didn't pull it out immediately. Instead, he calmly turned to the next page.
Under the guise of organizing the dossiers, his finger lightly hooked it, and the paper slipped quietly into his palm.
The entire process did not alert anyone.
This was a habit he had formed as a wizard.
When facing the unknown, observe first, then judge.
...
It wasn't until they left the archives and boarded the carriage heading back to the city that Matthew slowly unfolded the slip of paper.
The paper was very old, its edges already yellowed.
On it was only a simple sketch of a clock tower. Below the clock tower was a flight of stairs extending downward.
Beside it was a scribbled annotation:
“The true entrance is not in the warehouse, but in the clock tower. What posterity sees is but a seal.”
There was no signature, no date, and it was impossible to confirm who had written it.
Matthew slowly refolded the paper and placed it inside his coat.
He didn't tell Edgar.
It wasn't a lack of trust, but rather that the origin of this paper was too strange.
If it had been hidden inside the dossier all along, then...
Did the person who hid it want posterity to discover it, or did they want it buried forever?
The carriage slowly rolled through the streets of the Royal Capital. Outside the window, people came and went, a bustling scene of prosperity.
Yet Matthew knew that the direction of his investigation had finally become completely clear.
Underground Area 317 was not the starting point.
The true starting point was that... old clock tower that had long vanished from the surface.
By the time they returned to the Royal Capital, dusk was approaching.
As the carriage entered the East District, Matthew parted ways with Edgar.
Before leaving, the old man gave him a word of advice.
“Do not trust a piece of paper too much. In history, fake maps are often far more common than real ones.”
Matthew nodded in agreement.
He committed these words to memory.
...
Instead of returning directly to the inn, Matthew changed direction and walked toward the Royal Capital Library.
As the sky grew dark, there were few readers left in the library.
Violet was standing in front of a bookshelf, returning ancient texts to their places.
Hearing footsteps, she turned around. When she saw it was Matthew, a smile naturally curved her lips.
“How was your harvest today?”
Matthew didn't answer, but pulled the slip of paper from his coat and placed it on the table.
“Can you help me take a look at this?”
Violet gently unfolded it.
At her very first glance, her expression grew serious.
“This is shorthand script from the ancient kingdom period.”
Matthew was slightly startled. “It's not modern writing?”
She shook her head. “The main text is modern, but these symbols on the side are not.”
Saying this, she picked up a magnifying glass and carefully observed several inconspicuous scratches next to the clock tower sketch.
After a moment, she frowned slightly.
“These don't look like decorations. They look more like... markers.”
She quickly brought over a blank sheet of parchment and traced the scratches.
As the final stroke fell, the scattered symbols gradually formed a complete passage.
Matthew watched in silence, not saying a word.
Violet read it out slowly, “The clock tower has four gates.”
She paused, continuing to decipher, “Three gates sealed. One gate... left.”
The last two symbols were worn to the point of being nearly illegible. She verified them repeatedly before saying softly, “It should be... left for those who return.”
The room fell completely silent.
Matthew stared at the words on the paper, lost in thought.
Four gates.
Three gates sealed, and one preserved.
This meant that the so-called “entrance” was likely not the only one.
...
Violet put down her quill, her expression filled with doubt.
“Strange.”
Matthew looked up. “What's strange?”
She pointed to the last phrase. “‘Those who return.’ In the ancient kingdom period, this phrase wasn't common. It usually didn't refer to travelers returning home. Instead...”
She thought for a long time before finally finding a relatively accurate explanation.
“It refers to those who return to their homeland. Or, those who return to a place that originally belonged to them.”
Matthew didn't answer immediately, but his mind kept pondering the phrase.
Those who return.
If the First Royal Capital had been destroyed long ago, then who would be “returning”?
...
Just then, a low bell toll echoed from outside the library.
Dong—
Dong—
Only two chimes. It wasn't to tell the time.
Violet was startled. “Strange. There are no church events today.”
Matthew, however, slowly stood up and walked to the window, looking out into the distance.
The direction the chimes came from was precisely... the West District.
The chimes quickly ceased, and the entire Royal Capital returned to tranquility.
Violet stood by the window, looking puzzled.
“I've worked here for six years, and I've never heard a bell chime from that direction.”
Matthew didn't reply, but silently noted down the details.
7:13 PM.
Two chimes.
Direction: West District.
These details could all become clues in the future.
...
Upon leaving the library, night had already fallen.
On both sides of the Royal Capital's streets, gas lamps lit up one after another.
The number of patrol squads was noticeably higher than usual.
Particularly on the main streets leading to the West District, a squad of soldiers was stationed every few dozen meters.
Matthew didn't approach. He only observed from a distance before turning to leave.
...
Inside the inn, Aidan had been waiting for a long time.
“You're finally back! So many people came to the guild today.”
Matthew put down his coat. “What happened?”
Aidan said hurriedly, “I heard the blockade zone has expanded again. Now, it's not just underground—even the three streets near the warehouse are off-limits. A lot of merchants are complaining.”
Matthew nodded.
The situation was even tenser than yesterday.
This meant the authorities were no longer just investigating; they were controlling the situation.
...
Late at night, Matthew didn't rest. Instead, he spread all his materials across the table once more.
The old map, the clock tower sketch, the annotations from the ancient books, the records for Mission 317, and the notes he had compiled over the past few days.
He wasn't in a hurry to find answers, but instead drew a new sketch on a piece of paper.
First Royal Capital, Second Royal Capital, old clock tower, kingdom warehouse, Entrance 317.
Five locations.
As his quill connected them, a new diagram of relationships eventually took shape.
Matthew stared at it for a long time.
Suddenly, his gaze stopped on a single detail.
The warehouse and Entrance 317 were very close to each other, but they were not in the same location.
If the sketch was real and the true entrance wasn't at the warehouse, then...
Entrance 317 was more like a passage that had been artificially excavated later on.
Thinking of this, Matthew picked up the map again and carefully measured the scale.
A moment later, he let out a soft breath.
He had calculated it.
According to the scale of the First Royal Capital map, Entrance 317 was still nearly a hundred and fifty meters away from the actual clock tower ruins.
In between, there was an entire underground area that had yet to be excavated.
...
Just then, the rapid clatter of hooves suddenly sounded outside the window.
“Yah! Move! Get out of the way!”
On the street, patrolling soldiers scrambled to make way. A messenger on a fast horse galloped toward the Class Holders Guild.
Matthew walked to the window, quietly watching the scene.
A minutes later, from the direction of the distant guild, a low copper bell suddenly rang.
It wasn't a clock, but the warning bell used only when the Class Holders Guild issued an emergency summons.
Clang—
Clang—
Three consecutive rings.
In the entire East District, nearly all Class holders raised their heads.
Aidan also pushed open the window, his expression changing slightly.
“A Level 3 emergency summons. The guild... has run into trouble again.”
The warning bell continued for a full minute. The entire inn was awakened.
Many Class holders hurriedly threw on their gear and rushed toward the guild.
Aidan already had his longsword strapped to his back. “Matthew, are we going?”
Matthew nodded. “We're going. But only to take a look.”
...
At the Class Holders Guild, the hall was even more crowded than in previous days.
Class holders kept arriving, and the deacons behind the counter were run off their feet.
In front of the mission announcement wall, a new red commission had just been posted.
Matthew didn't squeeze inside. Instead, he stood on the periphery, quietly listening to the discussions around him.
“The North District!”
“Not the West District?”
“Is that for real?”
“I heard a section of the street collapsed!”
The North District?
Matthew's eyes narrowed slightly.
This corresponded with the records he had seen at the archives today.
In the First Royal Capital ruins, the North District's survey had been halted due to a severe ground collapse.
And now, of all places, something had happened in the North District.
...
Soon, the crowd parted to make way.
The vice president walked to the mission announcement wall himself, his voice steady and powerful.
“Everyone. Half an hour ago, a ground collapse occurred on Ninth Street in the North District. Currently, thirty-seven residents have been evacuated.
“The City Guard has already sealed off the scene. We are now recruiting Class holders of high Silver Rank and above to assist with search and rescue.”
He paused, then continued, “This mission is strictly limited to the surface area. No one is permitted to enter the underground fissures without authorization.”
The final sentence was spoken with extreme severity.
The hall instantly fell silent.
...
Ryan stood beside Matthew at some unknown point, whispering, “See that? It's still the underground.”
Matthew nodded gently.
All the anomalies had still not deviated from the ruins of the First Royal Capital. It was just that this time, the location had shifted to the North District.
...
Without hesitating for long, Matthew and Aidan registered for the mission.
They weren't going to explore the ruins, but to participate in surface search and rescue.
This completely fell within the duties of a Silver Rank Class holder and wouldn't arouse any suspicion.
...
Rate on N.U.
