Chapter 69: Chapter 69: The Lost Team
’Well, he told us, but it’s pretty much the same as not telling us anything.’
Right now, Ron’s team versus the Water Giant Spirit was a 30/70 split at best—the spirit would land three punches, and they’d be planning a funeral. Chasing it into its home turf to find the Gemstone was out of the question.
Still, it was a useful piece of information. Filled with gratitude and respect, Ron and his companions bid farewell to the loyal, solitary Fishman and returned to the Black Dragon’s Nest.
"How did it go? Did you see that creature?" Aiksuuri, who had been waiting on the shore, watched them curiously.
"We saw him," Ron said as he got dressed. "Your teacher was right. You’d best stay far away from him."
"Why?"
"He’s a Paladin."
Ron’s answer was short and to the point, yet it dispelled all the young Black Dragon’s questions.
’What else was there to ask? Black Dragons are naturally of an evil alignment. It was already incredibly merciful of Devin Booker not to just jump out and run the whelp through with his sword. As for Aiksuuri converting to the faith of Bahamut, Devin Booker would probably only learn that by casting Communication with the Dead on the dragon’s corpse—if he even knew the spell.’
’A Paladin living underneath a Black Dragon’s Nest? Who would even believe it!’
"Besides that, we also learned about the remaining six Gemstones, and the location of one of them—it’s in the Elemental Plane."
"Then I’ll just have to find five." Aiksuuri drooped dejectedly, reaching out a claw to pick at the Lightning Gemstone on Aive’s shield. Luckily, Delaford was watching him from the shore, otherwise the young dragon might have actually pried the Gemstone off!
"Besides that, do you have any other clues?" Ron continued asking, figuring he might as well since they were already there. After all, the Black Dragon lived very close to the original "scene of the crime," so it would be easier for him to find any traces.
"No," the Black Dragon shook his head. "I’m too young, so I don’t dare stray too far from my nest. You should probably go ask the other creatures nearby. Although Delusional Land has never been truly conquered by anyone, it’s a vibrant place. Many beings live here."
"We’ll certainly be paying them all a visit," Ron nodded. "In any case, thank you very much for your help."
"If you need anything, you can come find us, or have You bring us a message. By the way, could you remove some of the restrictions on it? Having it suddenly spark with electricity while we’re talking is pretty scary."
’At first, Ron had almost mistaken the Ghost Fire for some kind of suicide bomb!’
"Of course," Aiksuuri nodded. He reached out and tapped a finger on You’s skull. A faint, ethereal CLICK was heard. "There. I’ve removed some of the daily restrictions, but it still won’t defy me and will continue to follow my commands."
"We mainly just want to chat and get a better sense of the situation," Ron smiled. "As for overthrowing you or anything like that, I’m not interested."
"Um, I’ll come find you in a few days." After its restrictions were lifted, You wobbled unsteadily in the air as if it were drunk, barely able to stay afloat. "Sorry... I... so many memories, I..."
"Then I won’t disturb you." Seeing this, Ron took his leave. The Ghost Fire was suddenly downloading a massive amount of memories from its past life, and its bandwidth probably wasn’t holding up.
’It said it would come on its own in a few days, anyway.’
Without You to guide them, the return journey for Ron’s group of five was a bit more difficult. Just as Aiksuuri had said, the forest was teeming with creatures. In just a short amount of time, the path they had made was already disturbed or destroyed.
After trekking through the forest for three full days, Ron and his companions were finally lost.
"I told you we should have turned right at that last tree!" Aive and Delaford erupted into a fierce argument. "Now look! We’re completely lost!"
"We’ve already passed that tree six times! Six whole times!" Delaford shot back, not to be outdone. "Your so-called ’path’ is just the one we trampled ourselves! When are you going to get that through your head!"
"You noisy little shorty!"
"You brainless, giant pig!"
"So, do you two have any brilliant ideas?" Ron nonchalantly took two steps back, sidling up next to Victoria and Sera.
"I haven’t spent much time in jungles or swamps in my life," Sera shrugged.
She was an expert at survival on the vast, snowy plains, but not here.
"I have no sense of direction," Victoria was even more direct. "I’m already completely turned around—Shh! Everyone, quiet!"
Victoria’s sudden warning made the two who had been trading personal attacks just a moment before instantly come to a tacit understanding. The five of them quickly dove for cover, their eyes fixed on the area beyond their hiding spots.
The noisy sound of footsteps crunching through fallen leaves and mud approached from the distance. Peeking from their hiding spots, Ron and the others could see a group of about twenty people walking toward them.
The group consisted almost entirely of humans. Judging by the emblems on their clothing, they all seemed to belong to the same organization.
"A black whirlpool with a blue eye. Do you recognize it, Aive? Victoria?" Delaford had the sharpest eyes and could see it clearly even from a great distance.
But Ron and Victoria clamped their hands over his mouth. "Quiet!"
’There are Casters in that group, and more than one!’
Ron watched them with a furrowed brow. It looked like three Casters and six Warriors. The leader, a middle-aged woman, was dressed in ornate clothing, making it impossible to gauge her strength.
These people were escorting a group of prisoners nearly equal to their own number. The prisoners wore only scraps of cloth to cover themselves, and their hands and feet were bound with hemp ropes as thick as two fingers. A few of them were even in metal manacles and shackles.
The swamps and jungles of Delusional Land were difficult to traverse even with the best boots. Being forced to walk barefoot and bound would be absolute agony. In fact, as they drew closer, Ron could clearly see the raw, bloody flesh around the prisoners’ wrists and ankles.
If they kept walking like this without treatment, these people would be permanently crippled.
But right now, Ron wasn’t acting as a Pharmacist, but as the leader of his team. Therefore, he could only suppress his impulses and wait with his companions for the group to pass.
Out of the corner of his eye, Ron saw a flash of sorrow in Aive’s emerald eyes. As someone who had once been a prisoner herself, it was all too easy for her to empathize with these poor souls.
But like Ron, as the staunchest bulwark of the team, she absolutely could not show any weakness that would force her companions to bear the consequences.
"Bakoyannis, how much longer until we reach that trade station you mentioned?" a man who looked like a guard asked the middle-aged woman in the lead. "Honestly, I don’t get it. Did you really believe that Elf? You think a trade station will have slaves worth capturing?"
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