Chapter 526 [526] The Palace of wonders.
It was so difficult to move this slab of...crystal. I had to enhance my physique with the help of my mana to make this beautiful but stupid piece of crystal move! It was so tiring, I wondered what failure of an architect designed this.
But eventually, I was able to open it just enough for me to go through, thankfully my slim figure helped me in this regard instead of just garnering looks from people I hated.
"Finally..."
I heaved a sigh of relief, wiping the sweat off my bro with my napkin, which was still wet. I stepped outside, to be greeted by a view... I didn't quite expect.
In front a balcony made of the same material, and beyond it a vast garden, surrounded by walls, and then beyond those, a city incomplete yet beautiful, surrounded by walls.
And there was something beyond even those walls, something that truly, truly grasped her heart and held it close, Her focus entirely on it.
The sea of stars themselves, a view never to be seen on the Planet of Earth, so filled with people and light, that even the Wellingtons themselves had a hard time managing to see this...view.
The fight for survival had deprived them of this beauty, a beauty she read about in books in the vast library they possessed, one she had seen illustrations of, one she had even dreamt about as a child who was always alone.
"..."
Her mouth agape, her awestruck face absorbed in its beauty. She had seen so many illustrations of this place, and so many videos, art pieces worth millions... But they did not compete.
They could not dare to compete with the sight in front of her, the vast and collected beauty of the cosmos itself, the realm humans once so desperately tried to reach, but it was...impossible.
For them to do so when their extinction was next door, at the hands of the demons and monsters.
No matter how many videos she watched, illustrations she saw, art she admired, it could never come close to witnessing it in real life, in front of her, the real thing, not a figment of her imagination or an illusion set by something else.
"... Wow."
She acted so immature, unlike her previous self, like a little girl again. For a few seconds, which turned to minutes, her eyes still stuck on the scene in front of her, but her body snapped her out of her daze, it sensed danger.
Not even a second passed for her to enable shields of mana she learned, five skills erupted in an instant, all of her rank. The talent she had for mana and the work ethic with it allowed this.
The skills were pointed to her sides, where she sensed the 'danger'.
But to her surprise, the dangers did nothing. They simply watched her, and bowed, Perhaps to show that they were not a threat. Sabrina looked at the odd danger. The monsters she saw were serpent like...what were they called again? She tried to remember, she had read about when she was about four.
"Lamia."
But it was somewhat wrong, the lamia she read about had the features of a woman on their upper body, and a snake on the lower body. Although the latter was correct, the former was the opposite. The heads of these monsters were like snakes themselves, fierce cobras. And they had a muscular body instead of a feminine one. They wielded spears, strikingly similar to a spear she had grown used to seeing in the hands of a specific person.
'Ame-No-Sakahoko?'
She thought, however, the spear she saw lacked the 'divine' and 'authentic' feeling of the real deal. It was like it was simply a replica, or something designed using that spear as a basis.
It was also much, much weaker than it.
"...?"
She was confused, however she wasn't dumb. She immediately connected the dots and thought that this strange place may have something to do with Alan, the diamonds in the palace that resembled his eyes, the familiar mana abundant in this place and as well as the weapons of the...
'The...'
She struggled on what to name them, she couldn't exactly call them monsters, that would be an insult. After thinking for a few seconds, she sighed and just called them soldiers.
The weapons of the 'soldiers' were like the spear Alan wielded, and based on the fact that they showed no aggression or malicious intent, she lowered her guard and disabled her attack skills. She still kept the defensive ones active, however. Using her mana to scan the opponents, she almost jumped back in fright.
'A-rank!'
The strength of these two soldiers was amazing, she was inclined to believe they weren't simple soldiers at all! The term knights was more fitting.
"... Will you do anything to me?"
She muttered, not having anticipated the knight to hear her, much less understand her and even respond!
It simply shook its head sideways. It could not speak, but it understood her voice.
"... Ok?"
She stepped back, and bumped into the other one behind her. Her muscle memory urged her to apologize.
The knight graciously bowed back, and then went back to stand guard. She stood still for a few moments, unsure of what to do, but then, an idea propped up in her mind. One that urged her to explore the place.
Surprisingly, the knights did not stop her attempt, she was free to move wherever she wanted, but they did follow her. They were smarter than the rest of the soldiers and had interpreted the orders they received differently. They needed to do this to prevent their brothers, who were not as gifted, to follow the orders they received without a fault.
Sabrina toured through the castle, and was shocked to find out how big it was. It was harder for her to traverse the castle. It was expected, considering even Alan felt tired navigating this place.
"How large is this place..."
She asked, but no one answered, She took a gasp of breath, trying to enliven herself. And then continued. She continued to explore, but she found empty rooms most of the time, The castle appeared extravagant, but it was empty.
It was strange, she finally found the exit of the castle and entered the gardens, witnessing flowers that defied that her common sense. But considering all the other things she had seen, she simply dismissed them and took a photo of them.
She always kept a camera with her in her spatial ring, it was an old camera belonging to her father, he left it with her before he went on his mission.
Although the quality of it wasn't on par with the ones in the market today, it was good enough.
She continued moving forward, and encountered a large fountain, she passed it soon enough...but then she stopped. A certain voice calling out to her.
"Hello!"
"Huh?"
She remembered this voice, it belonged to someone who wasn't doing so well the last time she saw her. The voice betrayed her memories. She remembered that voice, although in a much worse state than now. It used to a dying voice, but now it was filled with life.
"Samantha...?"
She turned around, and a little girl, with hair as black as hers, directly contrasting her brothers, hugged her.
She was surprised, but soon a smile appeared on her face as she picked Samantha up by her shoulders.
"You are okay!"
Samantha had gotten healthier, but for Sabrina it wasn't an issue to lift her up. She even pinched her cheeks that were not all bones now!
"How are you!"
Samantha said, elated. She remembered the big sister that sometimes appeared when she was alone. During the time, Alan was filled with guilt and unable to face her dying body.
Sabrina sometimes went and took care of her. She didn't know why she did, but she simply went. Perhaps it was because she was bored and missed what it felt like to have a little sister. The one she had and fondly remembered was gone for now, training in her own residence.
Sabrina put her down and dusted off her clothes, She also saw the cohort of similarly powered of knights that followed her, and shivered slightly. Seeing so many 'knights' that could tear them to shreds in an instant was a shocking sight.
The two knights with her were somewhat glad, sighing in relief that they were tasked with the more mature lady instead of the rampant, energetic child. Their brothers looked tired, and jealous of them as well.
Whilst Samantha's knights were busy every day ensuring not a hair on her body was touched as she played, And also take care of it in such a manner that she would not cry or resent them. The ones tasked to Sabrina simply stood guard, and even when she awoke she simply explored the palace at a leisurely place, allowing them to follow her with peace.
The burden placed on them was much less than the poor group assigned to Samantha. But they still followed obediently.
Sabrina was led by Sam to a large snake, which looked tired and even somewhat afraid of Sam. The snake lowered its body and allowed her to sit. Sam told Sabrina to come with her, and after a moment of hesitation she agreed and went aboard.
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