Chapter 67: It’s Plural
Walking through the ancient garrison post felt like walking through a graveyard.
Silas and Cher stepped into the ruined structure, finding clear signs that it had not simply been abandoned and left to decay. The scars of a fierce battle covered every surface, as though some ancient conflict had torn the place apart long before time claimed it.
Cher had no explanation for what had happened here, and Silas had little interest in finding one. His priority remained unchanged; he needed a bathtub.
The two searched for an entrance leading underground and eventually discovered a long staircase. Its entrance was partially buried beneath collapsed rocks and thick vegetation.
"Step back."
Before Silas could draw his daggers, Cher activated her ability. A beam of deadly white fire tore through the obstruction, pulverising stone and vegetation alike. A few moments later, the dust settled, revealing an open path descending into darkness.
"Do you have any torches or lights?" Silas asked.
He had brought neither. Turning to Cher, he found her simply shrugging.
"I didn’t bring any either, but I have a better method."
Without another word, she stepped into the darkness. A moment later, a warm glow illuminated the stairway ahead.
’Using her fireball ability as a light source. Not bad.’
Silas nodded inwardly and followed.
The deeper they descended, the heavier the atmosphere became. Their footsteps echoed through the silent underground world, the sound carrying unnaturally far. Eventually, they reached the first underground level.
The damage here was even more obvious.
Ancient scars marked the walls, entire sections had collapsed, and countless pieces of the structure were missing altogether. Yet something else immediately drew Silas’s attention.
"These are..."
He stopped before a row of rooms whose doors had been breached long ago. Inside, yellowed papers lay scattered across the floor. Most were damaged beyond recognition, but some remained intact enough to read.
"They were researching something here."
Picking up a few sheets, he skimmed through reports filled with scientific terminology he barely understood. Yet few words caught his attention, like Gaia, safe haven’s ceiling, and dragons.
"Someone wasn’t paying attention," Cher said with an exaggerated roll of her eyes. "I already told you this used to be a research facility."
Silas looked at her, trying and failing to remember that particular detail. His expression made her sigh.
"Humanity has been desperate for power ever since arriving in this world. Facilities like this were common back then, and they’re still common now."
She glanced at the documents with obvious disinterest.
"Besides, most of these reports are incomplete. Whatever they were studying has probably been surpassed a long time ago."
"Maybe. I’m still taking them."
To Cher, the papers were little more than trash. To Silas, they were treasure.
His understanding of the Enhancer world remained painfully limited, so he collected every intact document he could find. During their search, he even discovered several ancient books that had survived remarkably well. And he handed everything to Cher for safekeeping.
Eventually, they found what he had been searching for, a bathtub.
It looked ancient, fashioned from silver-colored metal and decorated with golden ornaments along its edges. Unfortunately, it was filled with dirt, dust, dead insects, and small stones.
"This should work," Cher said, tilting her head. "Although it needs cleaning thoroughly."
"We don’t have time for that."
Silas rolled up his sleeves and approached the tub.
"Do you have any soap?"
"Why do you keep treating me like a travelling hotel service?"
Her eyes narrowed, though amusement lingered behind the expression. Before Silas could determine whether she was offended or entertained, she flicked her wrist, and a bottle appeared in her hand.
"Use this shower gel. It’ll do the job."
’A shower gel... it seems destiny keeps bringing me back to these things.’
The memory of his first attempt to understand the Gaia Calling surfaced briefly. Ignoring it, he removed the debris from the tub and turned on the water. To his surprise, the ancient plumbing system still functioned.
At first, murky yellow water flowed from the pipes, carrying an unpleasant odour. After several minutes, however, it gradually cleared until it became transparent. Only then did Silas pour the shower gel into the tub and begin scrubbing.
Cher watched from the side, oddly fascinated. For reasons she couldn’t quite explain, there was something strangely remarkable about watching Silas perform work that most people would eagerly avoid.
Half an hour later, he finally stepped back.
"It’s ready."
The bathtub now gleamed as though it had been manufactured yesterday rather than centuries ago.
"What do you think? Impressive, right?"
"Absolutely terrible."
She chuckled despite herself, and Silas smiled. The two stood beside the tub while it slowly filled with water, foam gathering across the surface.
"We need hot water next."
Silas glanced at Cher.
"Why don’t you look for a solution?"
"You want breakfast too? Maybe a bottle of champagne while we’re at it?"
Silas stared at her for a moment, realising she had completely misunderstood his intention. He did want hot water, but that was not the point.
"Ahem..."
Suddenly finding the subject surprisingly difficult to approach, he gestured vaguely toward the bathtub and then at his clothes.
"I need to get in, so..."
The explanation died halfway through. After a few seconds of increasingly awkward hand motions, realisation finally dawned on Cher. The moment that thought crossed her mind, Cher’s face turned full crimson.
Without saying a word, she hurried out of the room, not daring to glance back even once. Silas watched her leave and shook his head with a faint smile. For some reason, he found the whole situation strangely amusing.
Not wasting any more time, he removed his clothes and sank into the water. The moment he closed his eyes, the world shifted. It felt as though he had fallen into a deep, bottomless lake, his consciousness sinking endlessly into the darkness.
Unlike the first time, however, the sensation no longer caught him off guard. Repeated visits to the Time Mind World had made the transition familiar.
When he opened his eyes again, he found himself in a place that looked almost identical to it. The only difference was that this world seemed much smaller, and Shadowheart was nowhere to be seen.
’Let’s start with my Calling.’
’Collect a dragon blood droplet.’
’Trust your companions.’
The first line was straightforward and required little interpretation. The second, however, immediately drew his attention, making his eyes narrow.
’It’s plural.’
Until now, he had assumed Gaia was telling him to trust Cher.
’I was wrong.’
’It’s asking me to trust everyone on my team.’
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