Sitting on the ground in front of us was the most luxurious looking chest I had ever seen. It seemed to be built from solid metal with heavy gold lining and embellishments that appeared to glow in the moonlight. The initial flash of light died down, and I slowly lowered my hand from my face as I stared in awe.

"That's a chest," I gaped. "We found the treasure."

Childe let out a low whistle and circled around the luxurious chest, inspecting it from all sides. "It looks heavy. How are we supposed to carry this back to the Academy?"

"How about we take a look inside first?" Kaeya asked and reached out to the ornate latch decorating the front of the chest.

The moment his fingers made contact, the lid swung open with a flourish, and the inside glowed with goods. I excitedly stepped forward, wanting to get a closer look. Diluc stepped up beside me, clearly wary, but he couldn't hide the intrigue on his face. Thoma walked over with his bag, and I briefly thought of how much it could hold. Kaeya leaned in, pulling out the first item from the chest. It was a pouch. He jostled it, and the insides clinked together—the unmistakable sound of Mora.

"Mora," Kaeya untied the pouch string to look inside. "Pretty standard as far as treasure goes."

I leaned forward and looked deeper into the chest. A few more identical pouches rested at the bottom alongside some weapons, purple crystals, and random objects that left me confused. One was a rose so blue, it couldn't possibly be real. A few of the petals were encrusted with what looked like dried blood. Next to the flower was a metal chain with an hourglass on one end, and the sand inside was scarlet red. Curiosity gripped me as I leaned into the chest, grabbing the most normal item of the bunch—a hat.

As soon as I picked it up, the walls of the chest began to disappear at an accelerated speed. The container of silver and gold dissolved into light and vanished, leaving only its inner contents behind. I stood there, holding the hat, shocked.

"Was that because of me?"

Kaeya bent down to brush through the purple crystals. "I doubt it. Whatever magic that existed to make the chest appear might have triggered it to also disappear once the contents were disturbed."

I sighed in relief and inspected the hat in my hands. It reminded me of a top hat that a gentleman might wear, but it had a small front visor and a tiny chain that clipped into a badge. As far as treasure went, this hat didn't seem very valuable. I held it out for the guys to see.

"What was this in here for? That flower and hourglass, too. Are they things we can sell?"

"Anything can be sold," Kaeya shrugged. "But these items can also be used. You haven't taken Battle Strategy yet, have you? That isn't an ordinary hat—it grants you additional power in battle."

I raised my eyebrows, doubtful. "This thing?"

"It's a Circlet of Logos—an Artifact," Childe said and swooped down to pick up the blue flower. "And this here is a Flower of Life. The hourglass is a Sands of Eon. It's a bit much to explain in full on the fly, but there are five main types you can use as well as different sets of each type."

"And they give you power?" I frowned. "This hat doesn't look very…"

Childe laughed. "Go on, try it for yourself."

There was no harm in putting on a silly-looking hat. I turned it over and plopped it on my head, but it ended up being a much larger size than I expected. The hat fell straight over my eyes, and I stood there feeling a little stupid, but I waited. Nothing about me changed.

Childe snorted, and I took that as my sign to pull off the hat. Cheeks flaming, I crossed my arms.

"What's so funny?"

"Nothing," he waved a hand. "It's just—it fit so terribly, but you looked really cute."

My ears heated. "I don't see how this is supposed to help anyone in battle. With ornaments as impractical as this, Artifacts would be a hindrance. I didn't feel any different while wearing it either. Who's going around carrying an hourglass or holding a flower in a fight, anyway?"

"You're not the only one to have these thoughts," Diluc said. His head was slightly turned to the side, almost as if he was trying to hide his face. A light chuckle escaped him. "I'm sorry, but that oversized Circlet on your head really was amusing."

I pressed my lips together and tried to contain the embarrassment.

Diluc cleared his throat, masking his face once more. "Some Artifacts are even flashier than the ones we have here. To make them more suitable for combat, there is a way to shrink them down to a manageable size that can be pinned to one's outfit. You may not feel a difference while donning an Artifact now, but your battle performance will have greatly improved."

"Huh," I mumbled, staring back at the hat.

This was a lot of information to take in, and I was reminded of how everyone here has gone through at least one full year at this school—except me. I needed to study extra hard on my own time if I wanted to get on their level any time soon. I gestured to the rest of our treasure loot with the hat still in my hand.

"Those are a lot of…weapon enhancement crystals, right? Those weapons look pretty handy too." The Mora was the most appealing to me. "If I'm being honest, this treasure feels a bit underwhelming. I think I was more excited about the chest than what was inside."

Kaeya chuckled, holding up the two weapons that the chest dropped. One was a green catalyst, and the other was a simple recurve-type bow. "These would do for intermediate fighters. If we wanted to make better use of them, though, breaking down the parts and using those parts to refine higher-quality weapons is ideal. Do any of you have a knack for smithing, by any chance?"

We all shook our heads.

"Didn't think so," Kaeya hung his head. "Selling for profit to the town's blacksmith is our best deal, then. I'll be sure to handle it in such a way that he doesn't ask any questions regarding how I got the material."

I crossed my arms. "We each get an equal cut."

"Of course. You and I had a deal from the very beginning, but I don't know about the other three."

"Come on now," Childe said. "We're basically comrades at this point. I don't see why we can't work something out."

Thoma frowned. "Childe, I might be wrong about this, but you don't strike me as someone who really needs this treasure. Didn't you once say something about having so much Mora, you didn't know what to do with it all besides spoiling your family back in Snezhnaya?"

"It's about the principle," Childe shrugged. "If you're worried about me not making use of the earnings, don't. My family is plenty spoiled, yes, but I can think of one other person who I wouldn't mind giving my share."

"I didn't come here looking for any treasure." Thoma shouldered his bag. "So, please don't worry about me when divvying it all up."

Diluc spoke up. "Hang on a moment."

"You're kidding," Childe grinned, pointing at Diluc. "This guy's pockets run even deeper than mine. Whatever you have to say had better be good, Ragnvindr."

Diluc grumbled something incoherent and rubbed his temple. "I'm not concerned about the treasure, Childe. You can keep those petty matters to yourself. What I was going to say is that there's something different about the rockface."

"The rockface?" I turned to look at where he gestured.

The two Seelie courts were built next to a wall of stone that rose high enough to form a cliff above. Because the luxurious chest had appeared between the two courts, I thought they existed to frame the treasure's location. Upon closer inspection, I noticed that the Seelie glow emanating from the courts didn't quite reach the space that the chest once occupied. There was a deep crevice in the rock darkened by shadow.

"Lumine," Diluc looked at me. "Was that there before?"

I shook my head slowly and stepped up to get a closer look. "No, I don't remember any gaps in the wall. Strange, it looks like the crevice goes in deep."

"It's too dark to tell anything," Thoma murmured. "Maybe that's where the luxurious chest was being kept before the Seelie unlocked it?"

Tentatively, I placed a hand on the solid rock next to the crevice before sticking my arm in. "There's just empty space."

"How far?" Kaeya asked.

I leaned in a bit further, waving my arm around and feeling nothing. "It keeps going. The break in the rock is wide enough for me to slip in if you want me to—"

Diluc suddenly stepped close and placed a hand on my shoulder, pulling me from the crevice. "Wait, don't go in there just yet. We don't know what's in there. It could be dangerous."

"It's too bad the lamp is out of fuel," Thoma sighed. "Next time, I'll bring some extra oil."

I frowned. "Next time? Why wait for later when we can find out right now?"

"Kaeya's end goal was to find some treasure, wasn't it? Well, he got that. There's no need for us to prolong the night any further." Diluc crossed his arms.

"Finding treasure was the initial goal," I reminded him. "That was before things got complicated with the Abyss Order. The little information we have on the Abyss involves that cave mural photo, remember? What if this crevice leads us to that cave? We could be one step closer to finding more about the truth. Maybe, just maybe, there's something in there that could help us stop the Abyss Order."

Diluc stared at me for a moment before saying, "I already lost you once today while doing something as simple as walking through a forest. If you think I'm going to be okay with you blindly diving into a hole that could very well lead to your death, you'd be wrong."

My mouth dried up. I caught a flicker in the fire of his eyes. A flicker of genuine worry behind a blaze of determination. Still, we couldn't fall back now. "Diluc—"

"Which is why I'll go in first," he sighed. "The opening looks uncomfortable, but it's nothing I won't be able to handle."

"Alone? What if something happens in there and we don't hear from you?"

He gave me a wry smile. "Now you're beginning to understand."

"Fine. You'd better make it out in one piece, though."

Dilluc nodded to me and stepped forward, placing a hand on the rock and peering into the darkness of the crevice. His lips twisted in distaste before he turned sideways, brushing past the jagged rock and falling into the shadows. I held my breath as he slowly disappeared.

Just when Diluc faded from view, I heard knuckles cracking and turned to see Kaeya rolling his shoulders. "Guess it's my turn," he said.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, what if Diluc finds even more treasure in there and decides to hoard it all for himself?"

I gave him a look. "He's not like that. You know Diluc."

Kaeya looked distant for a moment. "I did. So, I feel obligated in some way to make sure he doesn't actually run into any trouble."

"You're worried about him, too." My lips parted as the realization hit me.

Kaeya turned away, readying himself to wiggle between the rock. "If we don't make it back in the next five minutes, you're welcome to send in Childe to be the next sacrifice."

"Hey," Childe snapped.

"Hey," I hissed. "Don't joke like that."

Kaeya chuckled one last time. "Sorry, you're right. It must be the fatigue getting to me. After all this hard work, would it be too much to sleep in your bed tonight? The one in my room is unfinished."

I wrinkled my nose. "What are you talking about? I've seen your room, Kaeya. Your bed is completely fine."

"Not quite, it's missing you." He winked and shuffled into the crevice before I could get in another word. The darkness swallowed up Kaeya just like it had with Diluc.

I bit my lip, trying to contain the urge to jump in after him.

"So," Childe placed his hands on his hips. "Are you going in next, or am I?"

"That would defeat the point of them scouting out for danger in the first place." I didn't remove my eyes from the crevice. "Diluc would probably be upset if we all joined in."

"Diluc would probably be even more upset if he found himself stuck in a spot with Kaeya," Childe said. "If you ask me, us showing up would be doing him a favor."

"We can't all go in. There would be no one to call for help if something really did happen." I rationalized.

Thoma dropped his bag onto the ground. "Then we won't all go in. I'll stay out here."

"Alone?"

"You sound as if the forest is what's dangerous and not the mysterious fissure," Thoma smiled. "Trust me, I'll be more than okay hanging out here by myself. As long as you come back—preferably before the sun rises—I can rest easy knowing that I've done my part. Diluc and Kaeya are pretty brave, going in without knowing what to expect, and so are you. But, if you ever want to turn back, just know I'll be waiting out here." He pulled out two bottles of water and held one up in each hand. "With drinks!"

The tension in my body dissipated with his easygoing smile, and I returned it in full. It was settled, then. I would go in with Childe to follow Diluc and Kaeya. Hopefully, they hadn't gotten too far just yet and we'd be able to catch up to them quickly. Before that, I couldn't just leave Thoma standing there.

Moving away from the crevice, I stepped over Thoma's bag and pulled him into my arms. I allowed myself to spare a moment, hearing the sound beat of his heart that quickened as I lingered. His arms came down, water bottles still in hand, to settle around my shoulders. Pulling away, I smiled up at him.

"I'll be back."

He nodded, wide-eyed and red-faced.

Childe cleared his throat, and I took that as my cue to leave. He grumbled something about, "Really? All it takes is a few water bottles?" as I passed.

Squaring my shoulders, I faced the crevice once more and angled my body to fit through the narrow gap. Compared to the size of Diluc and Kaeya, I was much slimmer, and it didn't take much effort for me to fit through at all. I bumped into the rock a bit and found it was slightly damp, so I made sure to keep away from the walls as best as I could so my clothes wouldn't get wet.

The glowing light from the Seelie guided me somewhat, but it wasn't long before I shuffled out of range. With only rock surrounding me and the darkness closing in, my breathing hitched, and I suddenly felt too large. How had Diluc and Kaeya gotten past this part at all? I was beginning to doubt there was enough air to sustain us all. Were the walls moving? I felt like I was about to be squished and merge as one with the damp, jagged rock. I was going to get stuck here and become one with the rock forever. This was a terrible idea.

Sudden grunts and grumbles came from the entrance as Childe made his attempt to squeeze through, and the Seelie glow was completely blocked out by his body. My heart tightened with mild fear, and I forced myself to take a calming breath. I wasn't alone. Diluc and Kaeya would be ahead. Childe was right here. Thoma was waiting for me.

I shuffled further down the cramped tunnel.