Chapter 1638 (2/2)

After the Frost Matriarch set Claudette down and patted the blushing young woman on the head, the Pinnacle Seeker leader turned to Seeker Ozaer. When she spoke, the voice was echoing and powerful. Truly, it was the resonant voice of a giant. “Welcome Seeker Ozaer. You should be the last batch; we won’t wait any further. Prepare your troops.”

“Ah, so the Lady of Talons didn’t make it in time,” Seeker Ozaer showed a small smile. “How unfortunate.”

To Randidly’s surprise, that was that. The rest of the group wasn’t addressed at all. He truly began to wonder if he had imagined that brief look from the Frost Matriarch.

While Seeker Thunder Wing and Seeker Ozaer moved forward toward the cluster of powerful individuals, Randidly brought along his subordinates to follow Thunder Wing’s guards toward the larger group of subordinates brought along. But as he was walking away, the sonorous voice of the Frost Matriarch caught his attention. “Claudette, I understand you were ambushed by the Engraving Guild? Tell me the details.”

With his skin prickling again, Randidly paused and looked back toward the golden-haired Claudette. As though she had known his thoughts, Claudette had been waiting for his glance. Their eyes met, and this time Claudette looked away first, to look up at the Frost Matriarch. Then she began to speak slowly, explaining the situation.

But at the same time, Claudette sent Randidly a message. Since they weren’t separated by any Nether and Aether barriers, the messaging was still functioning. I’ll publically leave out the details of your assistance, but I’ll let the Frost Matriarch know in private. I suspect you would prefer not to have so much attention directed toward you, right now. And my mistress is a woman that always repays her favors.

Randidly tilted his head to the side. Such a gesture was… surprisingly thoughtful, from Claudette. There was a chance that she was lying and wouldn’t inform the Frost Matriarch about his contributions at all, but Randidly didn’t think she was that type of woman. It was a deft move that was clearly aimed to deepen their relationship through a shared secret.

But it served Randidly purposes, so he accepted.

Considering the mysterious actions of Claudette, Randidly settled down on his haunches near the other Pinnacle Seeker subordinates. They were a pretty regimented group, with clear deviations depending on which Pinnacle Seeker they followed. To Randidly’s surprise, fully half of the people here seemed to belong to the Winged Serpent race. They hovered in a localized area, looking at the new arrivals with cool eyes before turning back and using their wings to draw elegant patterns in the air.

Shrugging, Randidly ignored the surroundings and concentrated on the energy flows. Flying under the radar was better for him anyway, and the Frost Matriarch forcible suppression of the space meant he had a rare opportunity to view the patterns of these spatial barriers with a wider view. Let alone twenty barriers, Randidly could see almost fifty barriers worth of space from within the frost palace.

Honestly, the power of the Frost Matriarch’s image was somewhat overwhelming. He couldn’t even sense the faintest ripple from her body.

But just as he was about to get down to work with these precious few minutes, Lay’mel stepped up before Randidly and coughed lightly. With a frown spreading across his face, Randidly looked up at the elfen man. “...yes?”

Without needing Randidly’s prompting, Helen drifted closer to the duo and began staring at Lay’mel with her arms folded across her chest.

“Ahem. I have been tirelessly gathering information during our journey here,” Lay’mel began self-righteously. When he saw Randidly press his lips together, he continued much more hastily. “I’ve basically been listening while the group was gossiping about Claudette. And I just wanted to share with you… part of the reason why she is treated so graciously. Her father is one of the two custodians of Alymian, the Land of Dreams.”

Randidly was originally annoyed at Lay’mel for the interruption, but that last line caught his attention. “He’s a custodian…? Does that mean he was not the individual who reached the Pinnacle and created it?”

Lay’mel shook his head. “N-no, not as far as I can tell. They didn’t say it directly, but… some of the things the Pinnacle Seekers said seemed to imply that no one really knows who the second person to reach the Pinnacle was. Perhaps because that individual refuses to step forward… there are two custodians who handle the details of Alymian. One is Senior Beigon. The other… is Solomon Rex.”

Randidly rubbed his chin thoughtfully. It was an interesting bit of information, but it asked more questions than it answered. Who was this mysterious individual that had reached the Pinnacle and created Alymian then? Had they been eliminated by Elhume perhaps, due to fear of a rival?

And also, if Claudette’s father was close to Solomon Rex, the father of the very same Nether-gifted Neshamah that Randidly had encountered, why had she so helpless before the Engraving Guild trap?

Randidly pressed his lips together. Or was Claudette never in any danger the whole time, which was why she dared to be so unforgiving and aggressive…? Or perhaps the two custodians are rather competitive with each other…

Bah, these sort of complicated situations just serve to make me paranoid...

Eventually, Randidly’s speculations had to come to an end; he didn’t want to miss this chance. He activated his Nether Core and used the Stillborn Phoenix to study the area without letting the images brush the icy fortress.

Very soon, the Frost Matriarch raised her massive hand and the Pinnacle Seekers marched forward. Randidly pulled back his senses and rolled his shoulders. The time for their advance had begun.