Chapter 887 Departure from the Lake
It was already late in the afternoon when Almira woke up from her slumber. The first thing she tried asking when she woke up was if we had succeeded at entering the Argatha. I was there currently helping Gobu's wife change some of the bedding. During the time I carried her off the bed when she jolted awake and that's the reason why I am the one answering her questions. I just happened to be there.
"We are back? Have you all entered Agartha? What happened? I remembered I was suddenly knocked out but other than that, I don't have any recollection of what happened next."
"Ah, during that time. After you tried to destroy the invisible wall, the invisible wall fired what you inflicted on it in full force which caused you to pass out. As for our entry, we were told by a mechanical voice that we don't have the qualifications to enter Agartha. According to the voice, we needed some sort of qualifications and invitation or some sort of proof that we are "worthy" of entering Agartha. Because we are missing what they needed, we have no choice but to retreat. It's not like we can even force ourselves there, we just don't have any way to get into that place."
"But..."
"No worries. I installed a Teleport Point there before we left in case we needed to go back. All we have to do is find this "proof" and "invitation" they are asking for so that we can go inside without any problems. We can't do that just yet and so we are not going to be able to even move there. We just needed to be a bit more patient."
Almira sighed hearing it and shook her head. "Is that so? What about my equipment? You said I was hit by a power equivalent to what I have thrown to the invisible wall. That must mean my equipment is in a big mess, yes?"
"Yep. Your sword, the Clarent is fine though there are some scratches here and there but they are fine, but compared to the armor you wore that time, it wasn't able to handle the power it released. It's broken and is now more like scrap since the armor lost all of its durability. I tried to salvage it but it's no longer possible. It's inside your workshop and you can do what you want with it once you are good to work again."
"Eh, if it's that bad, I would just scrap it and make a new one entirely then. It should be fine."
Almira stood up from the bed and started stretching.
"Thankfully, I don't feel bad in my body. After hearing what happened to me, I thought I was going to feel a bit more in pain but it seems I am fine for now."
"Well, your armor took all the brunt of the force so it's understandable you are fine now. Anyways, we also received the reward from the Elder Treant this morning, and it's a piece of vital information regarding the Tree of Life and how to find it."
"Eh, really? Tell me more about it."
And so, I relayed all the information to her. She was shocked at the information about her master but she didn't let it bother her and soon, recovered from it.
"Looks like what the Tree of Life does has something more with what the person desires the most. Seeing that it seeks those that desire it and yet only qualifies those who have pure hearts means it's not gonna be an easy task. And with the time it is scheduled to appear would be a few more months away, it is more imperative for us to do another task rather than wait for the appearance of the tree."
"Yes. I also agree with that notion. However, what are we going to do? We no longer needed to ask the elves the question we needed, and from the looks of the other elves with us, they seemed to be more in favor of not associating with them for a while. What are we gonna do?"
"We will still go to that place and assist the elves. Even if they don't like it or not, we still have to get there. Remember what I said before? Two of the Seven Deadly Sins weapon series are spotted there on our next destination. I am aware of you looking for those weapons so that the Versatile Weapon can devour them. If you wanted to complete all seven of them devoured inside the Versatile Weapon, then finding them will be the best thing to do."
She pulled the coat hanging on the hanger and put them on. "Tell everyone to be ready. We will be departing soon. If they still have some important business to do, make sure it is done so that we don't need to stop by in here."
I sighed in relief seeing Almira return to her usual self. Although there is a hint of her disappointment, I can see that was due to our failure of entering Agatha, and since there's nothing we can do about that, she decided to let go of that matter completely.
She went back straight to the basement to control the mansion once more. As for me, I told everyone if they needed to do something more, they will have to finish what they were doing as we will be departing soon.
After around 30 minutes, the mansion stood up from resting for so long and now, it is back to continue its journey. The scenery of the lake remains the same but now, it has slowly returned back to life now that we are seeing a few beasts and some new wildlife calmly drinking water on the lake. Without a trace of poison left in those waters, the lake will no longer remain dead as well.
Time for us to move on. Next stop, the territory of the beasts. If what the rumors said is true, then we will have almost no time to rest here. But whatever they plan on throwing at us, we will welcome it all, head-on.
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While Manato and the gang have resolved the matter of the poisoned lake, a certain shield user picks up his new shield and dons his new armor, gifted to him by the person he is working with now.
"Congratulations. Today will be the beginning of your work. Although you are still weak, we can just amp your levels and stats to a certain degree so that it will help you with your work much easier. Remember, we prioritize work progress and results. We don't want failures to fill up our ranks again, understood?"
"Yes, sir."
After the video call, the young man sat down on the bed and looked at his reflection in the mirror adjacent to the side of the bed.
"This is for the sake of my sister. Nothing more, nothing less. I am not going to betray the trust given to me by the one who saved my sister from the brink of death. Even if I trample the friends I have before, I will do what it takes to repay what he has given to me to reach this far."
Although he said that to convince himself, a small part of him is stinging him, seemingly contradicting what he was talking to himself. It's something that has been on his mind and has been constantly bugging him since then. However, he wanted to forget about it. All of the things that happened and the things he has done to achieve his goals. But in turn, causes grief and anger to the person who was there before Nobuhiko.
He still remembers the face of the person who asked for his cooperation and stop what he was doing. However, due to his firm decision, that decision ended up making something that has become something unrepairable.
Ever since the incident, he no longer receives any sort of messages from his friends. When he returned to the mansion, everyone is missing and Suhei, Pandora's brother, looked disappointed in him. He asked where is everyone at first to him but he only shook his head before leaving, seemingly giving him the cold shoulder.
But one thing is certain. After the incident of Manato escaping the underground lab that day, everyone is on high alert for him. They even tried looking for his relatives and even our friends in the process. It turns out, everyone else is missing as well. Riko's parents do not know her whereabouts. Rika's relatives also have no idea where she went. Even traces of Manato's presence and the siblings that Manato took under his wing also disappeared without a trace.
One thing is for sure, the decision he made that fateful night, was something that has torn their friendship apart. Now, both of them are enemies. The next time they both will see each other again, it's on the battlefield and both will fight to the death.
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