Chapter 175
I drew a map beside the bonfire.
Then I stuck seven twigs into it.
Those marked the locations of the divine stones.
"Is one of them over here?"
"Yes. There are three stars right at the top center. One just below them, one far to the right, and two on the left—one below and one above."
"If those three stars are the center of the empire, the one just below must be east of Tern. The two on the left mean there are some in the south and north of Aindel. And this one."
"This is south of the continent."
It's the southern hemisphere, ruled by the Tak Great Tribe.
I pointed to the southern part of Aindel.
"Do you remember where the star is here?"
"The southern one is vague, and the northern one is on the northern continent of Aindel—said to be tainted by darkness."
I had to find these divine stones.
The grand duke already had three, and if he obtained the rest, who knew what might happen.
It was said the divine stones carried the power to rule the world. That same power could also protect it. If so, the grand duke was already immensely strong.
"The grand duke probably doesn't know where the other divine stones are. If he did, he would have searched for the one in Tern first."
"Shouldn't we hurry and find ours too?"
"Right. We should first look for the one in Tern. After that, the northern Aindel will be easier."
The remaining two would be more difficult.
One was in the place ruled by the Tak Great Tribe, which seemed perilous. There was also a deer divine beast there.
The stone in southern Aindel wasn't urgent. We could go there, but the grand duke couldn't. Even if he could, finding the exact location would be very difficult.
"Let's try to find at least two first. I don't know what powers the divine stones hold, but we need to prepare."
Hans asked,
"What about taking the ones the grand duke already has?"
"Too dangerous. I think the grand duke values his three divine stones more than all his military might."
I looked toward the plains.
Going back home and returning would be too far.
But there was another path.
"If we go to Tern first, then head for the northern continent of Aindel, it'll be better. Going to the east from here is slower—traveling from there to the new territory on turtle-back is much faster."
"That's true."
Everyone's faces brightened.
The problem was whether the turtle could reach us here. We could take the Krapos pirate ship to Tern, but—
So I attuned with my elemental and asked the turtle divine beast for help. I asked if it couldn't come close, that it should at least approach nearby. But I got a response from a completely unexpected place.
"What's this?"
I dug through my backpack and took out a pouch.
Inside, there were three of Elin's stones given by the queen, and now, all three elementals had awakened.
Moreover, they were communing with 'tree' of Osu, within my own body. It seemed all the elementals accompanying me were also now connected to the Osu tree.
"Have the elementals awakened?"
"I think the queen placed a seal on them, which would only be released when the Osu seed sprouted."
Perhaps it wasn't something the elementals could have told me before. During all my lightning training, the elementals had remained quiet. Maybe the shock of the lightning training affected them too.
/ / /
The next day, we all went to the shore.
We hadn't slept at all. We noticed the movement of dark knights and had descended the mountain all night.
After reaching a beach far from the fishing village, I took out Elin's stone and injected magic into it. I also asked the elemental to summon a ship.
The elemental emerged from the stone and started summoning a light over the sea. But astonishingly, instead of a ship, what appeared was something like a whale—made entirely of water.
"What is that?"
"Isn't that a sea monster?"
The smooth, watery whale submerged and surfaced again. It was quite large, but still seemed too small for all the dark knights to board. Not that I planned to put them on, anyway.
Next, I took out another stone and summoned the magic warehouse. The elemental shone brightly and released a strong magnetic force. Then—flash! Light exploded.
I let out a pleased chuckle.
A sphere of light formed on the sand. It looked just like a portal for teleportation.
"Wait a minute."
I reached my hand, then my head, into the darkish light portal. I could see a small dot far away. I was told people could enter. I ought to trust it.
I gently pushed myself in.
In an instant, I was sucked through a tunnel of light and then bounced out onto the floor.
The moment I looked around, I was astonished.
It was a huge treasure chamber. There were several holes in the ceiling and the floor was paved with broad bricks.
At first glance, there seemed to be no exit. Air came in through the holes in the ceiling, and it was a bit chilly. I didn't know where this warehouse was, but it seemed safe.
Capacity was about 500 people. Crammed in a dense formation, up to 2,000 could fit. With a kitchen installed, even long-term living would be possible.
Where I came out, there was the portal of light. It seemed this portal was always open, but only connected when we opened an identical door from the outside.
I immediately exited.
Curiosity filled the others' faces.
"How was it?"
"Donnie, Hans—go in and see."
"Yes."
The two went into the warehouse.
A moment later, a glove popped out first, then Donnie and Hans emerged, looking quite cheerful.
"How was it?"
"It's really good. The grand duke couldn't even imagine something like this. It's like a hidden weapon."
"You never know. The grand duke could have things we don't know about."
I looked at the dark knights.
"All of you, go inside and rest."
—We obey the order of the king.
All 125 dark knights entered the portal one by one. The seven bronze knights went in after them. Then I immediately closed the door to the magic warehouse.
I should have checked the stones sooner.
Who knew it'd be this convenient.
"We'll board that boat."
The water whale was half submerged, but the water wasn't that deep. As we approached, the whale tilted and came toward us.
It was truly amazing.
It didn't seem alive, yet it moved its head and wagged its tail like a creature. Perhaps it was a water elemental.
"Hey, what about me?"
"Still afraid of water?"
"I didn't end up in the water on purpose last time, you know. I really thought I was going to die."
"Step on my back and get on."
Donnie bent down. Then Allen leaped up, stepped on Donnie's back, and climbed onto the water whale—or rather, vanished.
"Allen?"
"He probably went inside."
The others began entering the whale's body one by one. I hoisted Yuri onto my shoulders and approached. The whale's body was really made of water. When I put my hand in, I could feel a space.
I climbed in.
From the outside, you couldn't see inside, but from within, you could see out—faintly, through the water membrane.
It really seemed to be a water elemental.
There was air inside and the floor was soft and squishy. Once everyone got on, the whale began to dive.
We all opened our eyes wide in surprise.
Who would think of traveling across the sea on a water elemental? And underwater, the water membrane vanished.
It felt just like riding in a transparent submarine. Underwater, the elemental vessel's membrane became invisible. Coral and fish were in full view.
"Can things like this really exist?"
"Can we breathe properly?"
"If air runs out, we'll just surface."
The whale swam deeper and started accelerating, moving as fast as a dolphin. The scenery of the ocean passed by us on all sides.
/ / /
Crossing the sea underwater was truly a rare experience. Along the way, I saw a giant octopus and fearsome, savage sea monsters that tried to follow us.
The water whale surfaced every ten minutes or so to replenish air, then dove again. It was slower than the turtle, but more than ten times faster than a ship.
Moreover, it could change shape at will. When monsters appeared, it changed into a swordfish and attacked. Since it was a water elemental, all the water in the world was its body and its strength.
After seven hours, we had crossed the sea.
It was night, and since there were no fishing villages nearby, I immediately summoned the bronze knights and lined them up.
Among the seven, only one shone with light.
The direction was southeast. Judging by the brightness, it was fairly close. Closer than when we saw the light pointing toward the capital.
I sent the bronze knights back into the warehouse and headed east. Eastern Tern was the most prosperous region, so I could see the lights of big cities scattered everywhere.
And, the demon's essence and cow divine beasts were also in Eastern Tern. In addition to the divine stone. The cow divine beast belonged to Hanuk the holy knight. I wondered what happened in ancient times.
Right now, we were at the shore, but we'd have to pass through several cities. There weren't many mountains here; it was either villages or cities. Even at night, we would be noticed.
There were guards stationed at the gates of the villages. We could turn back, but we were already in the guards' line of sight. If we just walked in, we'd surely be detained.
"What do you think, should we just go in?"
"We'll be arrested for illegal entry. Better to break through and shake off the pursuit squad. Or use a bribe."
"We'll have to go through gates like this over and over. At the next gate, they'll surely be waiting for us. Even with a bribe, a pass is meaningless on its own."
The King of Tern might want to help us, but there were those who wanted us dead. The merchant lord who died on Pleasure Island, he was a count and lord of some territory in the east.
"Will a bribe work?"
"Let me give it a try."
Hans stepped forward.
I handed him a pouch of gold coins.
"If it doesn't work out, try to draw their attention, Hans. We'll be arrested either way, and we can negotiate then."
"Yes."
Hans gave his helmet to a comrade and walked to the gate. He was wearing Amir's armor, but the large cloak hid him from view.
As Hans approached, the guard blocked him.
Soon, Hans and the guard started talking. Maybe the bribe was working—Hans went inside the gate.
Five minutes passed.
There was a loud bang at the gate, and Hans came running toward the village, shoving the guards out of the way.
"Run!"
As soon as I heard the commotion, I sprinted up the hill to the right of the gate. Hans had gone into the village. He was trying to draw the guards' attention away from us.
Thanks to him, our party descended into the village unnoticed by the guards. Then we walked away, unhurried. The guards were running around trying to catch Hans.
After a while, we reached the east gate, which was also guarded. This time, the youngest ran out. He boldly walked up and randomly threw a rock.
"Hey, you idiots!"
"Catch that brat!"
The guards at the east gate burst out, including the captain who rushed out in his coat. We headed straight for the gate.
Our team knocked the east gate guards unconscious and ran east. There was no other way unless we wanted to waste more time. We had to keep breaking through like this.
On the way, I kept pulling out the bronze knight to check the direction. The light got brighter. It seemed like we'd reach our destination in a day or two.
Fleeing until dawn, I noticed the pursuit squadrons were increasing. For the trouble we'd caused, far too many troops were after us. It was as if some national emergency had been declared.
After leaving the mountains, we arrived at a city—but unfortunately, we had to pass through it. A large river blocked any way around, and enemy troops were set up across the bridge.
I considered summoning the elemental vessel regardless of who saw, but the commander looking over the troops started coming toward us and stopped in the middle of the bridge.
"Come this way, sirs!"
Sirs? Did he know us?
Still wearing my helmet, I headed for the bridge.
"Are you the ones who caused the commotion?"
"That's right."
"Welcome to our country. If you'd just told the truth, you'd have been allowed to pass—so why all this trouble?"
"Tell the truth? About what?"
The captain smiled.
"I am the city's guard captain. There was a royal messenger's order throughout the land. Any group matching yours should be welcomed as guests."
"Why should you treat us as guests?"
"You really don't know?"
He shrugged.
Like I'd know.
The captain said,
"There isn't a steward in Tern who doesn't know you. Aren't you the ones who purified the great Forest of Death? The royal family has been eagerly awaiting you."
"They were waiting for us?"
"Indeed. Ever since all but the Forest of Darkness in western Tern disappeared. Now that you've shown yourselves, my lord will be immensely pleased."
Has word already spread?
Whether we're arrested or welcomed—
It'll be a hassle either way.