"Oh! The entrance must be around here, not that door up ahead," Ares guessed.
"You're brilliant, Sir. Going through that door would have meant no chance of survival," said Number Two. She felt around on the left wall for a moment, then pressed a spot about a meter from the ground three times in quick succession. With a clang, a very narrow opening appeared in the wall. "How are we supposed to get through such a small hole?" Ares asked.
"Crawl," said Number Two.
"I'm not a dog," Ares grumbled. "What a terrible design."
Number Two got down and crawled in first, followed by Number Three, Ares, the little dog, and then Hill. Beyondbear had just stuck his head in when his shoulders got stuck. "Oh, Buddha! What am I going to do?" he cried, but no one paid him any mind.
Ares actually heard his call but ignored it, continuing to crawl forward. More importantly, he knew there was nothing he could do. The tunnel was too narrow to turn around; the only way was forward. The deeper they went, the harder it became to breathe. The passage was pitch black, and it felt endless, as if they would never reach the end. "How much further? I'm out of energy," Ares cried out.
"We're not even a tenth of the way there," Number Two replied.
"What!" Ares immediately collapsed and refused to move. The robot dog barked behind him, urging him on. Hill also called out, "Why have you stopped? Keep moving!" Ares wanted to curse out Number Two, but he had no strength and was parched with thirst. He had never been so exhausted. This five-kilometer-long tunnel was designed to robotic standards; it was nearly impossible for an ordinary person to traverse. Even if one managed to crawl the whole way, they would be completely spent.
In the end, Ares and Hill had to be pulled out by Number Two on a makeshift cart. Still shaken, he asked timidly, "Is that the only way in?"
"The stone door is a viable path, but only Daechir has the authority to open it."
Ares had to settle for the next best thing. "Is there anything to eat in here?" Number Two shook her head, then picked him up and carried him forward. This time, they only walked for about a hundred meters before another stone door appeared, much smaller than the last. To the left of the door was another path. Ares got down from Number Two's arms, pointed, and asked, "Where does this path lead?"
"To the large stone door outside. We can't go that way," Number Two answered.
The moment the stone door was opened, Ares gasped, "Wow!" The room wasn't large, but it was magnificent, glittering with gold. Coins and gold bars were scattered on the floor, piled into small mountains. The walls were adorned with various solid gold shields, masks, and armor. But the most captivating object was a vehicle. As he got closer, he shouted in delight, "It's a time machine! I'm rich!" Daechir hadn't destroyed the time machine back then but had brought it here. He climbed onto it, looking it over. "It still works! This is great! Where should I go? Let me think."
"What does this thing do?" Hill asked, walking over.
"It can take you back to the past."
Hill's face lit up. "Can it take me back to save my parents?"
Ares immediately fell silent. He had no intention of using such a valuable machine for something that held no meaning for him. Number Two reminded him, "We could go see Mr. Ronnie. He invented the time machine."
"Excellent! That's exactly what I was thinking."
Number Three, who had been silent until now, suddenly spoke up. "That won't work. This time machine can only alter time, not its physical location. If this cave doesn't exist at our destination time, we'll be buried alive right here."
"How do you know that?" Ares asked.
"You can tell by the wheels. Also, the dashboard only displays time, no coordinates."
"Then let's move it outside."
"That won't work either."
"Why not?" Ares snapped. "You tell me."
"How would we get it through that tiny opening?"
It had been a moment of pure excitement for Ares, but now it dawned on him. "So you're saying, to get the time machine out, we have to rescue Daechir first? And then leave through the main stone door."
Number Three nodded. "Correct."
"So, do we rescue her or not?" Ares was caught in a dilemma. In the end, he decided to do it.
The group grabbed fifty gold bars and over a hundred gold coins and crawled back out through the small tunnel. Once again, Ares had to be pulled out by Number Two on the cart. Beyondbear, who had grown impatient waiting outside, had blocked the entrance with sand and dirt. Number Three, leading the way back, thought he'd taken a wrong turn. "This isn't right. There's no fork here." Trapped, unable to advance or retreat, they were stuck in the dark, stuffy tunnel. It was beyond miserable; Ares felt like he was going to die. More than three hours passed before the tunnel was dug open again. It turned out that Beyondbear, having gotten hungry and not knowing the way out, had returned.
Ares was furious. He said to Number Two, "Beat him up!"
Number Two, who already disliked Beyondbear, seized the opportunity. Her attack was vicious, and she only stopped when he was beaten to the ground. "Is he dead?" Ares asked coldly.
"No. Should I kill him?" Number Two said, preparing to strike again.
"Forget it. If he dies here, we'll have to carry him out. Otherwise, he'll pollute the air."
Beyondbear was thoroughly cowed, following silently at the back of the group. Seeing him so quiet, Ares turned and said, "This time, we're going to rescue Daechir. You'd better be on your best behavior."
"Really? Oh, Buddha!"
"Of course." He took a gold coin from his pocket and tossed it to him. "Here, buy yourself some candy."
After leaving the Eagle's Nest, they first went to a bank and exchanged the gold for over three hundred thousand shillings. Then they went to buy the convertible Ares had his eye on, but unfortunately, Beyondbear was too large to fit inside. Number Two found him to be more and more of a burden; he did nothing but eat. Left with no choice, Ares spent another six thousand shillings on an open-topped truck. He couldn't drive, so Number Three acted as the chauffeur. The five of them split into two vehicles and headed for the "Broad Institute."
Ares sat silently in the car, thinking about how to rescue Daechir. The car was self-driving, and Number Two sat beside him. "What are you thinking about?" she asked. Ares told her his worries. "Don't worry," Number Two comforted him. "With me here, we will definitely rescue Daechir."
Over four hours later, they finally reached their destination. As they got out of the cars, they saw four security guards standing at the entrance to the institute. The main door required a facial scan to enter. De Silva had managed to get in last time by turning invisible and tailing someone inside.
Ares looked at Number Two beside him and said, "Didn't you say not to worry as long as you were here? Go on!"
"Alright!" Number Two said, pulling out her gun and charging forward.
"That stupid woman," Ares muttered. "Is she really just going to shoot her way in?"
No sooner had he finished speaking than three shots rang out—bang, bang, bang. Three of the four security guards fell to the ground. Number Two had the last one in a chokehold. Ares, seeing this, steeled himself and made a decision. He said to Number Three, "You go help her. Remember, use a hostage to trade for Daechir. I'll wait out here for your triumphant return."
Beyondbear asked, "What about me?"
"If you want to help, go ahead. You have my full support."