With the Orc army's taking of Lioxus in a single day, Laffe, Cammille, Grant, and Archer were all unable to see any hope of their own plans being fulfilled. The Harmonic Knights had even appeared, who were famed fighters throughout Illyas.
It made the four Adventurers feel small as they walked amongst heavily armed knights. Especially Cammille. The Harmonic Knights were friendlier than she expected, striking up conversations with Laffe and the boys.
Her confidence had grown ever since she reached B-rank, yes, but in front of the Harmonic Knights she idolised so much as a child, she felt herself recede back into her shell. She simply followed everyone's footsteps in a slight daze as she rubbed the tattoo on her wrist.
Thus, without her knowing it, she had found herself near Irene and Thallium Yan. A thin grey fog lingered around her, unseen in the Baneful Shroud's currently thin veil.
The Harmonic Knights had brought the goblin's torches with them after exterminating the monsters in their route. They figured it was important, given their own Analysis Skills and common sense.
It served as a decent tool now in their travels, as the Baneful Shroud was fought back. Sleeping underneath these lights would likely serve them well.
"We're just not sure what kind of fuel those goblins had been using." Cammille heard Thallium Yan sigh. "We realised the problem too late, and after that one single hall, we no longer found any goblins as we went deeper. We only fought some weird monsters and then four of us have reported having some kind of ram tattoo appear on their wrists. After that, we found ourselves in a chamber... the same chamber that brought us here.
So now, if we don't bother you with having to fly all of us back into the labyrinth, going back would be difficult. We were unlucky to have fallen into the trap that delivered us here, but at the same time we're lucky to have found familiar faces."
Thallium Yan let out a chuckle as she finished what she wanted to say and shook her head.
"In fact, I should've known this would happen. Things like these happen to me all the time." She pursed her lips, "Have you found any pathways back up, Miss Irene?"
Cammille didn't mean to eavesdrop on their conversation, but with how she was walking just right behind them, she couldn't help it. She watched as Irene Vistas tilted her head in thought.
"From what I've learned, there used to be a tower that connected Lioxus to the labyrinth in the ceiling. It has now been destroyed, though." The lady in bright golden armour gestured vaguely, "Perhaps there would be an intact tower in some other kingdom city. If that doesn't work, searching the pillars would work too. I can fly, so I never really paid attention to such things."
A slightly embarrassed look flashed on the Dictator's face, "Sorry I can't really help... But on the topic of the torches, have you tried using beast hearts as fuel? When I raided a goblin camp, I found one there. The Cosmic Interface told me it was for a certain ritual, but now that I think about it more, refuelling their torches might just be that ritual."
Irene Vistas then pulled out a bowl from out of her pack. Inside it was a pouch-like object that looked soft and brittle.
"This is the Preserved Labyrinth Spider Heart I got. Would you like to give it a try?"
Thallium Yan had a doubtful and somewhat discomforted gaze as she thought about using hearts as fuel. It felt off to her in some way, somehow. Nonetheless, this issue was something she needed to address for the sake of the knights under her.
"Alright, let's give it a try." Thallium Yan relented to the curious shine that flashed in Irene's eyes. It was a familiar gaze she had once seen every day.
'I wonder where Orien and Lisa are now...' The knight captain inwardly sighed. With Avina's destruction, the future of the young boy was bleak while Lisa most likely survived because of Sky Cross.
Of course, Thallium Yan well and truly believed that the ever-curious Orien was one of the Blessed. And when it came to such people, random deaths was unlikely.
But that was the second tragedy he was going through. First, was Mist Pine, and then Avina? Thallium Yan shuddered to think of how difficult it would be for her to act in his place.
These thoughts swirled in her mind as she gestured to one of her torch-bearing knights.
"Let me borrow that for a second," She said as Irene handed her the Preserved Labyrinth Spider Heart.
The torch-bearing knight ended up joining the small audience that developed as the humans travelled. Cammille was standing beside him as he watched his captain shave off a few pieces of organic matter from the preserved organ.
Thallium Yan made use of the carving knife she had in her collection as she cut three equal portions from the heart. The pieces were about the size of a die, cut out of a heart the size of an apple.
With one more glance at the person who suggested the idea, Thallium Yan then dropped the pieces into the torch in the knight's hands.
Vwhoosh!
At the moment the pieces joined the mysterious fuel that burned at the bottom of the torch's bowl, they all took on a red glow. A wave of heat pulsed from the torch as the flame danced in what looked like delight.
"There's indeed a reaction," Irene whispered from the side. An unseen grey fog swirled around her at that moment, as if reacting to the dancing flames as well.
The knight's eyes sparkled, "Captain! Have you solved the problem of fuel? Does this mean we can set up camp here in the [First Kingdom]?"
Thallium Yan squinted as more thoughts ran through her head. "We can't be sure just yet if other beast hearts create the same effect. Of course, it would be best if the hearts of the beasts here would have similar functions for the ritual..."
Thallium Yan then looked into the knight's eyes as she commanded, "Spread my words. We're going hunting."
.
.
.
The company of Harmonic Knights experienced the life of being an underground hunter. They had been given a glimpse of what the beasts here were like after their brief battle at Lioxus. Those beasts were more or less normal, just with thicker hides and sturdier bodies.
Thus, they were surprised at how different the beasts in the light were from the beasts in the dark.
Other than the Bedrock Worms who are able to burrow into the earth and evade the Baneful Shroud, most of the beasts here had something on their bodies that glowed. Bioluminescence was a common sight, and bright spots, bright horns, or glowing hooves were a thing.
When one of the squads returned from one of their hunts, they had brought back a bundle of glow-in-the-dark bones that depicted a magical sight.
"We found an abandoned den," They had answered simply when questioned. They brought back the bones simply because one of their members had grown up in a family of sculptors and wanted to use the bones to make something.
Thallium Yan could only nod helplessly when she heard those words. A balance between work and leisure was an important part of their lives, and some of her knights had baffling hobbies.
She was used to their eccentricity already.
After a few more hunts, and a few failed attempts, the Harmonic Knights figured out what they needed to refuel the special torches in their possession.
It was a beast heart, of any kind, filled with blood and allowed to dry. Once completely dried — and that included the blood inside its sacs — through either natural causes, Mystic Patterns, or an Evolver's aura, then it could be placed in the torches and allowed to burn.
The knights tried burning the hearts alone, but it seemed like the conditions of the ritual weren't met. The light borne from the burning heart didn't seem to do much except provide a dull glow, similar to how someone's Tangible Will delivered its illumination in the Baneful Shroud.
Now, with this ritual's discovery, a lot of things changed. Thallium Yan instantly set out to find a suitable location. With the aid of the golden angel Irene, such a place was easily discovered.
The Harmonic Knights, with four Adventurers, placed their flag down inside the ruins of a kingdom-city.
This kingdom-city was basically rubble, with only a few buildings standing lonesomely in the darkness. The torch towers that once burned brightly and unceasingly had been toppled, its vibrant light snuffed out.
But even in this state, it was still useful. The possibility of useful treasure just hiding beneath the rocks was present. The damaged walls were more or less still standing, as the kingdom-city was only destroyed and not flattened.
The place was better than setting up camp in an unreliable and barren area or near a river of magma. Being near sulfuric waters was also unpleasant given the rotten smell that permeated its surroundings.
"This is definitely a good place for a base." Thallium Yan studied the geography of the area and felt how difficult it would've been to attack such a kingdom-city. The walls must have felt taller than they truly were.
If they could make use of their resources right, their camp could turn into a fort in the coming months.
.
.
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When the Harmonic Knights had planted their flags in the ruined kingdom-city, morning had already arrived.
Athelei had to wake up.
With a sluggish body, he pulled himself out of his sheets and stretched as he floated around in his room.
"Mmmmmghh!" A moan left the young boy's lips as he felt his bones crack and his muscles tear slightly. He exuded a weak aura of heat from the use of [Energy] as his eyes adjusted to the lighting.
He drifted over to his balcony and relished in the beauty of Atlantis. It was a sight he saw every day.
"Is it time for me to move on from such a place?" Athelei muttered to himself as he recalled Hilvar's goals in the war.
"If that powerful Orc successfully invades a few more kingdom-cities and takes them, I can nab myself a few more Stains of Existence. The likelihood that they would invade during the time when Irene hasn't summoned me is also high, so I have to factor that in as well..."
Putting aside the allure of the rich subterranean kingdoms, Athelei had already copied all the books in the Lotus family's library. The Tidal Tome was no longer reacting to another gem, and his studies had hit a bottleneck.
Perhaps it was indeed time to leave. Atlantis was a flourishing city experiencing a new beginning.
There were no ends in sight just yet.
...At least, none that Athelei fancied.