Gavin, one of those people who were still conscious, concluded the story for Mark since the latter didn't know the details after he fell unconscious.
At the end of the story, all of them were dazed, especially Mark, Gavin and Harold, the ones who experienced it themselves.
They couldn't believe that everything happened just yesterday. Those who were swept away by the white wolf had yet to wake up. Only Mark regained consciousness after a full day.
"I didn't know he was such a person," Levi said, breaking the ice and catching everyone's attention, "I thought he was simply a brute."
Gavin wanted to yell at him, but he had no strength left. He could only shake his head in silent protest. In order to evade the magical beasts along the way, he almost depleted his magic reserve by camouflaging them beside boulders. Thankfully, they found an empty cave.
"That's weird," Aeon suddenly said, attracting everyone's attention, "how come we didn't experience the disappearance of the magical beasts earlier this morning?"
Gavin and Harold looked at each other. They couldn't tell because they were resting inside the cave. In the end, they could only shake their heads.
"Maybe it only applies deeper into the forest," Mark said noncommittally. He really had no evidence to back his claim, but it was the most logical explanation for him.
By the side, Levi nodded at Selena who was whispering something to him. Then, Levi stepped forward and spoke, "Why don't we go there tomorrow morning, to see if it still happens?"
Mark was surprised about hearing this, and he wanted to disagree because it was extremely dangerous. Before he could protest, Levi continued.
"Since they start returning to their homes after noontime, then we'll just have to return before that. Assuming that they're gone before dawn. Otherwise, we shouldn't proceed."
The members of the other team had nothing to say. It was a logical argument, and they had no control over the other team. They could only hope that the unconscious ones recover so they could finally go back to the camp.
"Why do you want to do that?" Mark asked. He didn't care about the items anymore after they lost Samuel. He was just curious about Levi's decision. He did not even ask the other members for their consent.
Levi adjusted his eyeglasses and turned towards Mark. "Samuel is originally our teammate. Selena and I want to check if he's really dead."
Mark shook his head. He wanted to discourage Levi if that was his only reason. He had heard about the matter from Gavin and Harold way before they told the story to him and the others, and the three could not find any way for Samuel to survive. He closed his eyes and started resting.
It was almost dark.
….
Aeon's group set up camp just beside the other team.
Levi happily cooked for all of them, and he earned several praises from Gavin and Harold.
Aeon and Suri leaned on a wall deeper inside the cave as they observed the rest of the group.
"Do you think we'll be alright tomorrow?" Suri asked Aeon who was munching on a gigantic piece of bird leg.
"At first, I thought Levi's decision was based on impulse or concern," Aeon threw the leg bone aside, "but, don't you remember, during the Grand Magic Examination, their group moved like water inside the plateau walls as they hunted us?"
Suri recalled their conversation with Levi a few weeks ago. One night, they had a random conversation about the Grand Magic Examination, and Levi mentioned that they were traveling along with them within the plateau walls in order to ambush them at the right time. This was all done with the help of Samuel. He had the magic to part walls by simply touching it.
This was not a simple feat. Summoning earth from the ground was way simpler compared to setting aside earth underground without altering the earth's shape on the surface.
The former took earth from below and used it on the surface. The latter compressed the earth to make more empty space. But Samuel, an E-rank mage, was able to do it. As far as they knew, none of their peers could. And none would expect him to be capable of such a feat unless he showed it willingly.
When Suri processed this, he realized that Samuel might have survived by hiding inside the walls. It may be tricky to execute, but it was doable. Maybe he didn't demonstrate that magic to his current team because there was no need to or the opportunity did not present itself.
"I hope you're right," Suri said.
….
When it was still 4:00 AM, Aeon and Suri informed Mark, who was already awake, about their departure. Mark wished them good luck.
The two teams parted.
The previous day, during dinner, Levi got hold of the information regarding which cave their team was supposed to search before they headed towards the Ur Trees. He had Gavin point at it on their map.
It was the 12th cave, a little over an hour run from where they were currently staying. So, the group decided to leave early.
"Did this guy just use food to fish out some info?" Aeon asked Suri and Korona in a hushed tone.
Korona went closer and replied, "I don't know, but if he did, it worked like a charm."
Aeon and Suri nodded.
"What are you guys talking about?" Levi asked as he scooted over.
The three people who were gossipping straightened up.
"Nothing!"
….
Three and a half hours later.
Selena led the way with a ball of fire. Due to the high walls and the thick canopy of trees, the area where they were currently at was actually quite dim.
They had reached the den.
The area looked just like how Mark and Gavin described it. It was about 50 meters wide, which was quite narrow for magical beasts, and was surrounded by walls of earth.
They stopped looking around and moved deeper towards the recess at the corner. There, they saw the wolf cubs. They had yet to develop their eyes and were stepping on top of each other as they squirmed on the grass.
Levi slightly lifted his right hand, and the wind started to gather on it. He was about to extend it forward when a hand suddenly stopped him. He looked over at his side and saw Aeon. The latter shook his head.
Levi looked at him with an empty expression. When he looked away, the wind in his hand dispersed.
Levi moved back, and after a few meters when he was sure that he was outside the hearing range of the wolf cubs, he started knocking on the wall while walking. The rest of them followed as they observed the surroundings.
Broken trees littered the area. On the walls, there were huge scratch marks, obviously from the battle. There were also protruding parts of the ground and walls due to magic. Even the Earth King's Coffin and the Earth King's Claws were still there, sticking out. What they did not see, however, was the body of the dead three-eyed white wolf. The spikes that killed it were also gone, only leaving the ground that was torn open.
The group almost reached the coffin when…
Tok! Tok! Tok!
The knocking sounds that Levi made suddenly changed. Based on the sound, there was probably an empty space behind it.
Levi carefully threw in a few wind blades, opening a human-sized hole in the wall. "Selena, come with me. One of you, stay here. The rest, follow the knocking sounds that I'm going to make."
Aeon decided to be the one to remain in front of the hole in case something happens.
Levi and Selena moved into the hole that was quite spacious. The latter provided vision by making a small fireball. Levi then resumed his knocking activity while walking. Outside, the group slowly followed the knocking sound. Although it was quite muffled, they were still able to hear it.
After a few moments, however, it started going up.
It moved up until they couldn't hear the knocking sound anymore. Suri and Korona looked at each other and smiled crookedly. They couldn't follow Levi and Selena from the other side of the wall anymore. From a distance, they waved their hands in the air to catch Aeon's attention. They couldn't risk making any noise.
Aeon saw Suri and Korona waving so he also waved back. Everything was cool until Suri started gesturing a walking motion with his fingers then pointing up.
At first, Aeon responded by squinting his eyes and furrowing his eyebrows. But then, he realized something. He hammered his palm with his fist. Aeon praised himself for his quick wit. He gave Suri and Korona a thumbs-up and a wide grin.
Then, he entered the hole.
Suri and Korona's jaw dropped. What the fuck just happened? Did Aeon understand what they were telling him? The two could only shrug at each other. Levi might get mad, but they didn't worry too much. They'll just blame it on Aeon.
The two talked in a hushed tone.
….
Two minutes passed.
Five minutes passed.
After twenty minutes without any activity, Suri started to worry. How come they were taking so long? Suri backed away from the wall and looked at it. He started thinking that they might be going all the way up, but the wall was extremely high.
"What's the matter?" Korona asked Suri in a whisper.
Suri thought for a while before replying, "Don't you think they are taking too long?"
"Yeah, they actually are. Should we also follow?"
"Yeah. Maybe we should."
The two walked side by side towards the hole, but after a few moments, they started hearing rapid footsteps. The steps were muffled, but they were getting closer and closer.
Aeon exited from the hole. He was now carrying a bald man on his back, full of bruises and cuts all over his body. It was Samuel. He was unconscious but still alive. After him, Levi and Selena also rushed out.
"Let's go!" Aeon said as he slowed down in front of the two. His tone sounded extremely urgent.
Both Suri and Korona were extremely confused, but they immediately followed and ran side by side with Aeon. Behind them were Levi and Selena who had grave looks on their faces. It was such a rare sight on people who were always calm and composed. Moreover, the two were frantically looking around the area in front of them.
Korona gave in to her curiosity and finally asked, "Aeon, what's wrong?"
Aeon smiled crookedly at them then subconsciously looked at the top of the wall on his left side. "You know about the mysterious disappearance of the magical beasts?"
"Yeah?" Suri chimed.
"Yeah, we actually found them. They're having a meeting on a lake over…" Aeon looked to their right and gestured at a direction with his head, "there."
"A meetin—"
"And they're already done," Aeon hurriedly interrupted Korona.
"WHAT?!" Suri and Korona yelled at the same time.
"Soooo… right now we're casually running for our lives," Aeon said with a wide grin.
Casually!
What in the world is happening? Is it normal for magical beasts to have meetings?!
Suri felt his head hurt. He knew that wasn't exactly what's happening. It was just how Aeon simplified things to be. In other words, the beasts were merely gathering. But, most importantly, they were not killing each other.
Something is really up, but they couldn't comprehend it.
….