They finally reached that conclusion. Although it was an incredibly difficult decision, both of them knew there was nothing more they could do except to inform their father.
"(Get ready. We're leaving soon,)" Aerchon said.
Aurdis sighed, feeling helpless. Then, realizing she had to do what she had to do, Aurdis nodded and walked away from her brother.
They were finally prepared. Aerchon had also given orders to his soldiers to get ready because they were going on a journey.
The day had turned into the evening when they all lined up in front of the Elf Palace. Saeldir stood behind, observing Aurdis and Aerchon's departure. For this matter, there was nothing he could do to help; they had to handle it on their own. Besides, he had his own work to do.
The air was growing colder as the sun began to set, marking the arrival of winter. Aurdis pulled her coat closer to her body.
"(We're heading to Sylvan Haven to meet the King!)" Aerchon said to his soldiers. "(We'll move fast; I want us to get there as quickly as possible. That's why I'm only taking thirty soldiers.)"
Aerchon then turned to Aurdis, who responded with a nod.
Aerchon gazed at his soldiers. "(Let's ride!)"
Afterward, the hooves of Unicorns galloped on the dusty ground in front of the Elf Palace, creating a cloud of dust around them. Even as the journey began, they sped off at high speeds, not wanting to waste any precious time.
~~~
While Aurdis and Aerchon left to meet their father at their mother's grave, Saeldir intended to search for references about The Great Calamity with his apprentices.
"(Find anything that refers to a major disaster in the past, anything. And bring it to me. Do you understand?)" Saeldir instructed his ten apprentices.
They all exchanged glances. One of the apprentices asked, "(What kind of major disaster are you referring to, master?)"
"(Like I said, anything that looks like a very significant and inevitable disaster,)" Saeldir replied.
"(May we know why you're asking us to look for this, master?)" a female Elf inquired, her expression beginning to show concern.
Saeldir didn't respond immediately. He gazed at them in turn. Finally, he said, "(We might be facing that major disaster soon.)"
Hearing Saeldir's response, the apprentices exchanged glances again, this time accompanied by whispers of concern.
"(That's why we need to work quickly. Come on! Move!)" Saeldir clapped his hands, signaling them to get moving.
And so, they began to move quickly, driven by anxiety. If their master said so, it was highly likely that it would happen, even if they didn't fully understand it. So, there was no room for slacking off.
Saeldir looked at all of his tense apprentices after what he had told them. Well, he couldn't do anything about it because it was true.
Saeldir also felt fear and apprehension about that disaster, and the sooner they all knew what was coming, Saeldir thought it would be better.
He started working as well. He walked over to a table where there were many books containing references he had collected sometime before and began to read.
~~~
It started to rain, and the weather grew colder. Erend watched as the journalists rubbed their arms, trying to fend off the cold.
"Why are they so stubborn?"
Erend never understood why a journalist could be so stubborn in pursuit of a story. It was their livelihood, but weren't there plenty of good news sources they could access besides this place, given the recent events?
Yet, here they were, from morning until late afternoon. Erend was forced to witness their struggle along with his fellow soldiers.
A few moments later, a delegation from neighboring countries emerged, causing the journalists to awaken and rush toward them. This eventually forced Erend and his fellow soldiers to move to block the journalists from getting too close to the delegation.
Various questions were thrown at them. The delegation provided detailed explanations that satisfied the journalists. Afterward, the journalists allowed the delegation to leave.
Erend could see a sense of satisfaction on the journalists' faces. For today, their task was done well.
He and his fellow soldiers, who were on this shift, were allowed to go home and be replaced by another shift of soldiers. Billy and Adrien were in the shift after Erend.
Unlike his fellow soldiers, who felt tired after their afternoon shift, Erend didn't feel tired at all. That's because he was planning to enter the Dungeon World again later.
After finishing dinner and taking a shower, Erend immediately excused himself to his room to rest. But instead of resting, Erend told Tut to open the portal to the Dungeon World.
And so, the portal was opened. Erend stepped through it and found himself in a vast place with black sand beneath his feet.
This place was entirely devoid of life. There was only a door in front of Erend that would lead him into the Dungeon.
[ "Erend, you're going back into the Dungeon after all this time. Are you sure you're ready?" ]
Erend took a deep breath and exhaled. "Yes, Tut. I'm ready."
[ "Very well, then. Good luck." ]
Erend entered the door and was immediately greeted by Dungeon Level 1. He could clear Dungeon Level 1 as he arrived at a cave where he fought Haril, or rather his first form as a bat. Since he had defeated it, there was nothing stopping Erend there, so he proceeded to the next stage.
Beyond this cave, Erend once again found himself in a long corridor. Although he felt anxious, Erend didn't slow down. He had to keep getting stronger to stop The Great Calamity.
In this corridor, he encountered a dozen centipedes the size of pythons. Their leg movements on the floor and stone walls gave Erend chills. He grimaced.
"Why does it have to be insects again?"
He was fine with any monsters, but insects always disgusted him.
[ Skill activated: All Fire-based Power (Lv.1) ]
Erend released a torrent of fire towards the centipedes. However, it turned out that the insects were stronger than Erend had thought. They crawled out from behind the wall of fire toward him.
~~~
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