Chapter 39: Setting Off Again
A month passed in the blink of an eye. Serie had made a full recovery, with no lasting side effects. Somme also declared that he had stayed in one place long enough. And so, Rhodes made the official decision: it was time to set out on their adventure once more. This time, however, their party had grown by two.
"Noryun, you be good and listen to the adults while I'm gone, okay? I'll be back!" Norne said, giving his sister a reluctant farewell at the village gate.
"Okay. When will you be back?" she asked.
Norne was at a loss for words. He didn't know when he would be back from this adventure, or if he would be back at all. But it was something he had to do. He didn't want to just protect this one village. To do more, he had to become stronger.
"I'll be back when I'm strong enough," he said, crouching down and gently ruffling his sister's hair. "And then I'll teach you powerful magic, okay?" Serie had told him that his sister also had a talent for magic. But she was still too young to have accumulated enough mana to cast even the most basic spells.
Noryun's small hand clutched her brother's clothes, her heart full of reluctance, but she still nodded firmly. "I'll be waiting for you!"
Eirik, who was standing nearby, couldn't take it anymore. "Hey, hey, it's not like we're going off to die. Stop acting like we're never coming back," he grumbled. He was laden with a large pack. Supplies for five people was no small amount, and the basic necessities alone took up a lot of space.
An adventure wasn't something you just started on a whim. It wasn't like deciding to go for a bike ride and just taking off. You had to at least bring your phone, so you could call for a ride home when you gave up.
"It wouldn't be wrong to say it's a matter of life and death. It's entirely possible we won't be coming back," Serie added coolly, her arms crossed. Even she had accepted the possibility of never returning to the Great Elven Forest when she had agreed to go on this adventure with Rhodes. It seemed that in a larger group, she had a bit of trouble reading the room.
Rhodes didn't correct her. He just quickly smoothed things over. "Alright, alright, it's time to go."
After giving some final instructions to a reliable elder of the village, Norne rejoined the party. Bidding farewell to the villagers who had come to see them off, the five of them officially began their journey.
And so, the legendary party of heroes, long lost to the annals of history, was officially formed.
The Saint goes forth, the Sage seeks to survive, the God-slayer slumbers, the one who faces the darkness speaks of death, and the honored one wears a crown of laurels.
But for now, the members of the party were unaware of the legends they would one day become.
As the village disappeared into the distance, they left the bounds of Glimmerwood, and Somme asked, "Where to first?"
"The ruins of the Dwarven Kingdom," Rhodes said, unfolding his map. "If I'm not mistaken, the number of magical beasts there should be much smaller than before."
"What do you mean?" Somme was confused. He had heard that the ruins had become a major stronghold for magical beasts. Shouldn't it be teeming with them?
"Because of the war," Serie explained.
"According to Kraft, the war between the allied armies and the magical beasts has already begun," Rhodes added. "That means most of the beasts have been moved to the front lines."
In truth, the world of magical beasts and demons was a chaotic one. There was no Demon King in this era. The various demon clans were all vying for power, each one carving out their own territory. But of all these territories, the dwarven ruins had the largest number of demons, to the point where it was almost like the first Demon King's castle. If nothing unexpected happened, the first Demon King would likely emerge from among them.
"I see," Somme said, understanding. "I heard that the ancient dwarven forging techniques were also lost in that attack. And to think, that was the very foundation of the dwarven race. I wonder if they can ever be recovered."
From the very beginning of the Age of Myth, the dwarves had been renowned throughout the continent for their formidable forging skills. Countless races had paid exorbitant prices to have them craft powerful weapons. It was even rumored that the dwarves had once forged a weapon capable of harming a god. But with the fall of the first Dwarven Kingdom, it was impossible to know if the rumor was true.
"Isn't your forging technique passed down from master to apprentice, not from a recipe?" Rhodes asked. As long as the people were alive, the knowledge shouldn't be lost. Unless, of course, they had used the ancient method of entombing all the craftsmen after a project was completed. But many dwarves had escaped the fall of their kingdom. Were none of them skilled in the ancient forging techniques?
Somme shook his head. "I don't know much about it. Even the axe-maintenance skills I have, I learned from the old man."
"I see."
"Can outsiders learn your forging techniques?" Norne asked tentatively.
"In theory, no. But in reality, they've been lost for hundreds of years. No dwarf on the continent knows them."
Somme's meaning was clear. No one could learn the ancient techniques because no one was left to teach them. "But," he added, "if those techniques were to ever appear in the hands of another race, I don't think the leaders of the dwarven clans would just stand by and watch."
A shadow of disappointment crossed Norne's face.
"It would be risky if it were the exact original techniques," Rhodes said, giving Norne a smile that seemed to say he knew what he was thinking. "So we'll just have to break it down and reassemble it. I doubt those dwarves would be able to tell the difference."
His words sparked a flicker of hope in Norne's eyes. Perhaps he should find some time to speak with Rhodes in private. He taught them magic without asking for anything in return, and he even traveled with an elf. Perhaps they shared the same goal.
While Norne was lost in thought, Eirik was more concerned with another matter. "I hear there's a lot of treasure in the dwarven ruins."
"That's right! They say there are statues, dozens of meters tall, carved from gold and encrusted with all sorts of gems. And a treasure vault with a floor paved with gold coins, like an ocean of gold." Gold wasn't a widely used currency in this era, but the dwarves loved the shiny yellow metal, and all sorts of precious gems. When the other races commissioned weapons, they would often pay with large quantities of gold.
"Wow! Just thinking about it makes my eyes hurt."
No matter the era, people were always drawn to shiny things. Even Eirik, who had grown up in a village that relied on barter, was no exception.
"Is there anything else besides gold and jewels?" Rhodes asked. He was more interested in other kinds of treasure. He couldn't carry much gold anyway.
"That, I don't know."
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yo guys trying something new for Every 150 Power Stones = 1 extra chapter