Chapter 304: Explosives
Kaelis and his companions were thrilled upon seeing Aegon taking action. If a Valerian himself was taking things into his own hands, then even the Empire would have taken things seriously, let alone a small nation like Corals.
Before long, a tall shadow rose behind Aegon and silently placed a cube the size of his arm on the table. Plain black in color, it held scraps of wood on its surface which confused him a bit.
"Is this one of the explosives?" Aegon asked to no one in particular.
[Yes, Boss. We’ve recovered more than a hundred already, all embedded in trees, and they’re very hard to detect them. It’s as if the world itself was playing illusions against their minds. It’s definitely a Mystical Item, but I can’t recognize it.]
"I see," Aegon muttered. "Continue collecting them and see if there’s anything else. They might have some hidden tricks they didn’t tell the Aerial Council about."
Hearing that, Kaelis froze as he hadn’t even considered the possibility. He cursed himself for being so careless and also respected Aegon for being so cautious and smart.
[On it!]
Just as Aegon was about to use his Eye of Primordial Appraiser to know more about the cube, Elara snatched it from him and began to check it. Her frown deepened with every passing second.
"You know of it?" Aegon asked.
She hummed, "Yes, I know it very well. It’s made from Dreamveil Trees."
Aegon rummaged through his memories for this strange name but came up with nothing.
Seeing his expression, Elara explained, "Sylvanna is actually very big and we only live in a small part of it. Unlike you humans who use Rune Formations around your settlements, we rely on our guardian, the World Tree."
She caressed the cube, her voice lowering, "She protects us. There is the Feylith Forest, which technically came from the World Tree, and every tree growing there has Mystical Properties. And the tree that plays the biggest part in our protection is the Dreamveil Tree."
"Let me guess, it can mislead one’s senses?"
She nodded, "Yes, even high-rank Soul Cultivators often fall for their traps. Only Elves are allowed to pass without getting affected by them. And lastly, they also appear like any normal trees, so it’s easy to ignore them, even if you’re looking for them specifically."
"That’s why we didn’t find anything," Kaelis slammed his hand on the table. "Those bastards made sure we could never find these explosives."
Aegon tapped on the table, remembering something from his first birthday, "Is that why you gave me that crown?"
Elara smiled softly, "Yes. With it, you’ll be treated as a guest of the World Tree, so the Dreamveil Trees will respect you and won’t affect you."
"Interesting," Aegon stared at the cube with curiosity and said. "Now I’m even more curious to see them for myself."
"You’re always welcome."
Aegon chuckled softly and took back the cube. He analyzed it for a moment before muttering, "Miguel."
All of a sudden, the room’s temperature dropped as a giant shadow appeared out of nowhere, towering over everything and everyone. It radiated such a fearsome aura that even the Rune Formations of the Aerial Council were triggered automatically and Orien jumped to his feet, his face going pale.
"M-Monster..."
Aegon raised his head and blinked, then finally understood and rolled his eyes, "Don’t worry. He’s just here to help us. Big guy, can you open this without it exploding in my face?"
Kaelis sighed and made Orien sit down. Even now he couldn’t believe just how fearsome Aegon’s subordinates were. It was plain ridiculous that just one of them, like Miguel, was enough to bring down the entire Chainbound Sky easily.
Miguel remained standing for a second before nodding slowly. He then picked up the cube easily with one hand and the shadows around him consumed it.
Leaning back, Aegon waited a few seconds, staring at Miguel. It didn’t take long for him to get the results as Miguel placed an opened cube before him, filled with many complex machineries mixed with Rune Formations.
"It’s a work of art," Aegon mumbled, impressed by the creativity. "Whoever made this is one hell of a guy. I want to meet him."
Elara tried to understand the inside of the cube but lost interest upon understanding nothing of it. Same with Kaelis and the others. There were a lot of things inside, placed and interconnected in a specific pattern.
But Aegon was different.
His smile widened, as he completely forgot the situation at the moment and got immersed in it. He didn’t lie though because this was genuinely a work of art and he was sure not just anyone could make it.
’They can probably replicate the effects, but the intricacies involved here... ah, the perfection.’
Aegon felt as if he had met a fellow brother, as he could see the dedication in the work. But then he slapped himself mentally and thought, ’Brother my ass! He’s building bombs to kill people.’
Shaking his head, he focused on studying the Rune Formations and other parts of the bomb. It didn’t take long, as he already had good experience in this field and also had special eyes.
"So... what’s the verdict?" Elara asked.
"Its skeleton is made from Dreamveil Wood so that people don’t notice it," Aegon nodded and said. "As for the interior, it’s basically a bomb. Once triggered, it would release a very toxic gas in the air known as Nexium Gas."
He sighed, rubbing his face, as his voice turned somber.
"It’s a forbidden alchemy ingredient used back in the Ancient Wars. And it doesn’t just kill people, but also turns them into mindless monsters because it attacks their brains. And the worst part of it is that it’s very Mana Sensitive, so the more you try to deal with it or the mindless monsters, the more you’re powering it."
"W-What?" Kaelis was horrified just imagining the implications of it.
"If this is released in the Chainbound Sky..." Aegon frowned. "Then, it won’t be long before only zombies will live here, a floating island of death."
Kaelis couldn’t control his anger anymore and punched the table, breaking it in one blow. His eyes were bloodshot, his heart seeking the blood of those who dared to conspire against his people.
"I will kill them all."