Chapter 137 - Chapter 24: Torrent #3 (1/2)
Chapter 137 – Chapter 24: Torrent #3
The ruin Silvan discovered was located deep inside a dense forest. Karamis, the area Silvan defended, was located to the south-east of the Demon World and was in contact with the Great Desert, one of the buffer zones to the Human World.
As the name suggested, the Great Desert was an incredibly large desert area. Despite its proximity to the desert, Karamis was a land rich in green vegetation due to the abnormal climate caused by the unique magic lines in the Demon World.
The Black Flame Dragon flew slowly for an hour or two before landing in an open area in the middle of the forest. The arrangement of the trees looked unnatural, like it was an artificially created landing point.
“Beyond that is the entrance to the ruins. It was so well hidden that I wouldn’t have found it if it wasn’t for a coincidence.”
Sepira said as she spread out the stairs for descending from the Black Flame Dragon. Silvan had already jumped down.
“How did you find it?”
Felicia asked while gazing at Silvan’s back.
Sepira laughed awkwardly.
“Someone was hit by a creature and fell to the entrance of the ruins. It was a deep well-like entrance.”
It was a fun story, but Felicia thought otherwise. She frowned and asked,
“That person, are they okay?”
“Yes, relatively. Their shoulders and neck are stiff though.”
Sepira laughed awkwardly again, and Felicia understood why Sepira’s ears were red throughout the story.
‘No, she didn’t want to talk about this in the first place.’
When she thought about it, the story shouldn’t be amusing, and any desire to laugh soon disappeared.
At that moment, the staircase was opened completely. Felicia was already jumping down and hurried to catch up with Silvan. Once she arrived at the entrance, she understood why Sepira emphasized it had been an accident.
The entrance to the ruin was hidden very well. No, if she had come across it, she would have thought it was just a deep pit.
A circular passage with a diameter of approximately 1.5 meters was drilled vertically akin to a well. The earth was bumpy, like it had been formed naturally, and clumps of bushes were surrounding the entrance.
Felicia knelt on the edge and looked inside the hole while sniffing it. There was a faint but clear scent. A place where magic power was concentrated gave off a good smell.
“It is true. There is the scent of magic power.”
That wasn’t all. There was a soft glow inside the deep hole, and the light was leaking from the inside.
As Felicia looked carefully, Silvan quickly held out a hand.
“Now, Felicia. Please embrace Oppa. I will jump in.”
Silvan laughed while Felicia, who pulled back reflexively, cast a magic spell.
“Levitation.”
Felicia dropped down slowly into the hole, while Silvan’s shoulders sagged with disappointment. After falling almost 12 meters, a large passage was visible. It was a very old passage, but it gave off an artificial feel.
After the two of them went down, Sepira, Delia and the five crew members went down as well. Felicia preferred exploring ruins with a small, elite group since large numbers was just cumbersome.
There were two lights in the passage. One was a dim light which seemed to leak from deep inside, while the other was a pale light coming from little stones embedded in the ceiling.
It was very pretty, but it was hard to proceed with the exploration with this lighting. Felicia pulled out a stick with a brilliant light at the end of it which she had prepared in advance. They were in a large crypt which reminded her of the ones she had seen during the Red Lightning tribe subjugation.
Silvan’s group had already explored the first floor, so they hurried on. After arriving at a place which was like a central hall, the unknown characters Sepira had mentioned were revealed for the first time.
“Indeed, they really are like the characters I saw. Maybe… the legend might be true?”
Felicia said as she looked at the letters carved on the high ceilings, floor and walls. The confused Sepira asked,
“Your Highness, the legend?”
As always, curious questions pleased Felicia, and she responded by spreading her knowledge.
“After going to Kaltein’s lair last time, I did some research. However, I didn’t have time to study a lot since the departure time was so tight.”
It wasn’t just Shutra who had investigated after returning to the Demon King’s Palace.
Felicia looked at the characters and said again,
“In fact, this wasn’t something I found out through research. It is a story I picked up while investigating ruins.”
There was a question mark above Sepira’s head. Felicia laughed and asked Sepira a new question,
“Sepira, how much do you know about the history of the Demon King’s Palace?”
“I know it was created 500 years ago.”
This year was obviously Year 512.
Felicia stretched and said,
“Yes, only 500 years. Before that, the Era of Struggle was only approximately 3,000 years.”
The Era of Struggle referred to the time before the demon king, when all species had been at war with each other. The Demon World of that time was no different than what was beyond the limit line. Every day, a cruel war occurred.
“Then what type of civilization was there in the old days?”
Before the Era of Struggle—
The distant past before the Thunderdoom Fortress was built…
“We don’t know. No matter how far back the records of the dark elves go, it is only up to 6,000~7,000 years. It isn’t an exaggeration to say we don’t know much about the civilizations and how the species lived before that time.”
7,000 years was indeed a long time for the dark elves. Sepira counted in her head for a while before her long ears extended.
“Your Highness, if it was 7,000 years ago… wouldn’t it have been hard to have a proper civilization?”
The dark elves had also been different 7,000 years ago, and they had been primitive in many ways.
Felicia nodded.
“The majority of people think like that. They think it was a time without a proper country, where the species just fought in tribal units. But I don’t think so. If there hadn’t been a flourishing civilization in those days, we shouldn’t be able to find their traces after they have long since perished.”
It was much older than 7,000 years ago. Maybe it was a past that went back even more years.
“We call this legend the indigenous species. Although there is little evidence, I think it makes sense.”
Felicia said with a smile. Sepira looked at the characters engraved on the floor.
“Your Highness, do these characters belong to the indigenous species?”
“Let’s see, should we find out from now on?”
Felicia responded with a laugh.