<Episode 97>
Kuwong.
With a heavy sound, the gate opened.
The white city revealed itself along with the setting sun, emanating an unfamiliar and refreshing sense of awe.
My first impression of Calepa, or more precisely, the outskirts of Calepa, was that it was highly exotic.
The landscapes of the Astrosa Kingdom were also foreign, but they were generally a blend of modern and contemporary architecture of the northern continent.
However, this place was different.
‘It feels like I’ve traveled back at least 150 years.’
Perhaps that’s why it felt more like a relic than a city.
But that’s where my observation ended. After all, it was a place I would leave by the end of today.
“Miss Daisy Fager and Mr. Gavroche Berkeley-Gratten.”
The guide assigned to us led us to a small building near the castle gate.
“This is the dormitory. Dinner will be served at 5 PM. Please note that going out is prohibited until 5 AM tomorrow.”
We listened to his words in silence.
“From this moment on, all personal activities are strictly prohibited for the candidates. You will be accommodated in this building for a week, where a brief training will be conducted before the second round of examinations. As you both know, the entrance assessment consists of a total of three rounds…”
I half-listened to the guide’s explanation while thoroughly exploring the interior of the city.
Malicops had advised me in advance.
“…Just because you’ve arrived at the outskirts of Calepa doesn’t mean it’s the end. The real beginning starts there. The outskirts are where the priests reside, and beyond that is the fortified city of Calepa, where Calepa himself resides. However, no one knows exactly where it is. It’s protected by powerful magic.”
When I first heard those words, I felt like my plan was a bit hopeless.
But now that I had arrived at the outskirts of Calepa, it was slightly different.
‘…I can enter the sanctuary more easily than I thought.’
If my assumption wasn’t wrong, there would be no problem moving tonight.
“Does anyone have any questions?”
I didn’t have any.
Andert and I only exchanged glances with the silent guides.
“No one seems to have any questions.”
When no one said anything, the guides left with a somewhat disappointed expression.
Without bidding each other goodbye, the two of us went to our own assigned rooms.
Andert seemed unusually quiet. But right now, what mattered more to me was entering the sanctuary to meet Rue.
Based on the calculations I had, I began to plan out the night.
That day, past midnight.
I silently went out of the window and crawled up to the roof. Perhaps because it was in the mountains, the dawn breeze felt unusually chilly.
The moon, shining brightly in the sky, illuminated the outskirts of Calepa.
It was a suitable day to break into Rue’s bedroom.
So why was Andert here?
“…What?”
The dark-clothed man looked at me without a word.
There was a brief moment of silence between us.
If neither of us spoke first, it would develop into a silence that would continue until sunrise.
Finally, I asked him first.
“Why are you here?”
“And you?”
“I asked first.”
“If you answer my question, I’ll answer yours.”
“Answer my question and then I’ll answer yours.”
Andert gave me an annoyed look and gestured beyond the outskirts as he spoke.
“Are you going there too?”
Thanks to that, I immediately realized.
‘This bastard. He must have something to do with Rue after all.’
I didn’t know how he knew Rue’s identity.
But considering the fact that he was the one who selected Rue to be his evaluator out of everyone else, there must be something between them I wasn’t aware of.
Feeling annoyed for no reason, I gestured towards the space Andert was pointing at.
“Why are you going there?”
“Why are you going there?”
“It’s none of your business.”
“My business is none of your business either.”
Settle down. Let’s calm down.
Find peace in your heart, Daisy, think of the head maid and Desherro’s nagging.
‘I guess there’s no point in prying into intentions. If we have the same destination, he might even prove to be helpful.’
Yes, it might be helpful. After all, Andert’s skills have already been guaranteed by the swordmaster. Fighting here would only be a waste of time.
“Follow quietly. If you get caught, I’ll leave you behind.”
Leaving that sentence, I leaped over the roof and landed firmly on a wall.
It was my first time jumping so high, and my ankles hurt, but there was no other choice. Concealing one’s presence required ten times more energy than revealing it.
First, I looked around the outskirts of Calepa from the top of the wall.
‘My prediction was correct.’
The structure inside this massive wall was not unfamiliar to me. As I realized the reason, a small chuckle escaped me.
Mephisto, you really loved this place.
The sanctuary of the Calepa would probably be in the north of these outskirts.
After descending the wall, I ran towards the direction.
Finally, as I arrived in the vicinity and surveyed the surroundings.
“Hey.”
My annoying little brother rudely called me.
“I told you to call me sister.”
“You seem to know the way quite well. Have you been here before?”
As it was a vague question that could only garner an ambiguous answer, Andert reiterated.
“Were you actually from Rogue in the first place?”
Ha. you troublesome flea.
“Andert, have you heard anything about Mephisto’s army?”
“You’re calling me that damn name again.”
Despite his unpleasant words, the light-green eyes hidden behind the mask blinked briefly. It was a sign of affirmation.
“During the magical war, they had strongholds scattered throughout the empire. We called those strongholds Mephisto’s temples, and their overall appearance perfectly matched the architectural style of this place. Well, considering Mephisto’s army consisted of Rogue’s defectors, it’s not surprising.”
Andert, who had been silent for a moment, asked me while avoiding a low-hanging branch.
“You said that I died because of Mephisto.”
It was a slightly different topic from the conversation we had been having so far.
“Yeah.”
“If I died, how am I still alive now?”
In truth, that’s the question I wanted to ask.
How are you still alive, Andert? How did you end up in the hands of the swordmaster?
“That’s just… something I said from my perspective. I thought you were dead, but in reality, you didn’t die and were still alive. Maybe you were rescued in the middle or accidentally drifted to another island.”
“Am I from Queen Island?”
That was a good guess.
In an archipelago where the distance between islands is close, Queen Island was the place where Mephisto had nearly died.
When I didn’t answer, he gave a slight nod.
“Are you too?”
“Curious?”
“….”
“If you’re curious, I’ll reveal it in 60 seconds.”
Andert looked at me with a cold gaze, devoid of any hint of humor.
The humour of assassins didn’t work on him. He was such a dry guy.
Pretending like nothing happened, I continued the rest of the story I was initially telling him.
“There were a total of 12 temples of Mephisto discovered, all with the same internal structure. It was quite systematic, to the point where specialized archaeologists were organized for the expeditions. It wasn’t a style you could see in the Empire.”
“….”
“And just now, after exploring the outskirts completely, I became certain. The structure of Mephisto temple’s is identical to the structure of the outskirts of Calepa.”
The reason I freely roamed around this area was because of that.
The structure here was so familiar to me.
Of course, in terms of scale and everything else, Mephisto’s temples couldn’t compare to the outskirts of Calepa.
But the fact that there was a large open space in the center of the outskirts, like a square. The fact that there was a large well at the western and eastern ends.
The arrangement of the buildings that appeared to be important structures also formed a hexagon from bird-eye vision, suggesting that the temples of Mephisto had been reduced in size to be moved underground, unlike the outskirts.
Whether Mephisto willingly left Rogue or was chased away, one thing was clear: he couldn’t let go of his attachment to this place.
After walking for about 10 minutes like that,
Beyond the pitch-black view, a small cliff in the shape of a hill appeared.
I spoke to Andert, who was quietly following me, as I felt the damp cliff and the ivy surrounding it.
“If my guess is correct, there might be an entrance to the tower beyond this ivy.”
A faint sound of the wind could be heard.
That was also the moment when the wall supporting the ivy came to an end. As we entered the empty space after removing the ivy…
“I got it right, didn’t I? Big sis is smart, isn’t she?”
An endlessly dark cave entrance greeted us.
Ignoring my words as I showed off, Anderd moved his steps further into the cave. What a disrespectful fellow.
The path was darker than the deep sea.
There was nothing to see, and all we could hear were our own breaths and the sound of our footsteps.
However, maybe because we had just passed the forest, instead of feeling scared, we could walk leisurely.
Suddenly, moonlight poured in.
We continued walking without rest along the staircase that extended into the sky.
It felt like running up the branches of a tree.
We discovered something at the end of the staircase.
Under the full moon, a garden was engulfed in black flames.
sorry, I’m not sure I’m going to keep the moondust system, because I think I have to manually upload the locked chapters on nu even after they’re released and that’s a lotta work…
Thank you for the chapter!
Is this black flame an illusion again? As for these siblings, Andert is too dry, Rue would have made Daisy mad at three times and kept readers entertained.
Well I don’t know much about the premium system, but if it’s too much trouble, wouldn’t it be better to just do what you want? And if you aren’t sure of what you want, than I would say that your instincts seem not to be impressed with it. I will try to send some ko-fi’s to help with the decision!
adhasd I abandoned the premium system idea for this series in the end, I loved it too much to keep it from you guys haha, thank you for the ko-fis! I’m soo enjoying your comments.