The smell of the "smelly passage" was perhaps due to the mess hall itself, where their fellows continue their search.
Not 40ft further in, they reach a Y intersection. The tunnel is growing relatively dim here, for they have passed none of the irregularly spaced torches that have assisted them until now. One fork curves to the left, and generally seems to rise toward a promising hint of torchlight. The other fork tends marginally to the right on an approximate level, but vanishes off into pitch darkness.