Tropical Tree City was across the island from Minos, so the journey wouldn't be an easy one. While walking directly across the island would be much faster, the danger was also far higher.
Not to mention the demonic beasts, there were still probably a lot of people fighting over the treasure's expelled from the eruption, which further bolstered the danger.
Meanwhile, traveling at the edge of the island would be much slower, but again, one wouldn't have to worry much about the demonic beasts or human cultivators that were running wild in the jungles.
Minos thought for a while before ultimately choosing to head on the edge. With his current speed, the journey wouldn't take very long either way, so he might as well play it safe.
It didn't take long for Minos to head back to the port. He walked down the long wooden pier and jumped down the side, landing on the beach underneath.
With a quick burst of movement, Minos detonated into his top speed. The sand and gravel exploding all around him like mini-fireworks as his feet stomped heavily into the earth.
Minos looked out towards the sea as he ran, taking in the beautiful view. The large ships that came in and out, the watergulls that called out loudly in the skies, and occasional dolrin's that leaped out of the ocean to catch a breath of air.
The view helped with the journey, making it feel like time was passing much faster. Minos would occasionally slow down to catch his breath and regain his energy before exploding out again.
With his impressive speed, it only took a few hours to reach Tropical Tree City, and most of that time was spent on Minos recovering.
Tropical Tree City, just like its namesake, was dotted with all sorts of exotic tropical trees, each holding a variety of different colorful fruits.
Just like before, as Minos attempted to enter the city, he was stopped by a guard and forced to pay a small entrance fee, and as per usual Minos paid the fee without causing any problems.
Entering the city, he couldn't help but appreciate the vast diversity one could find in such a small area. Despite being on the same island, the two cities looked completely different, and carried different vibes.
Tropical Tree City was clearly for higher class patrons, with the general quality of life here being much higher from Minos's immediate experience.
The streets were much cleaner, there were more guards pacing the streets, maintaining order, and the buildings were in much better condition.
It seemed this city was likely the place where the nobility of Volcamie Island called home.
Almost the same moment Minos had that thought, he noticed the large mansion at the end of the street, a huge sign with the words 'Yulk Family Estate' hanging on the front of the silver gates.
The Yulk family was naturally one of the three families that controlled the island. Who the other two were, Minos didn't yet know, but that information wasn't really important to him, so he ignored the sight and continued on his way.
Minos headed to the nearest pub, since it was often the best place to get information. As he entered the establishment, he immediately noticed the difference.
The people here were much more quiet and civilized, their clothes more intricate with many different flamboyant colors, clearly people of a higher economic standing.
A few people looked towards Minos as he walked in, but they seemed to have a little disdain in their eyes when they noticed his plain white robe that had a few small holes torn into it.
Minos ignored their eyes, and found a seat across the bar, right in front of the bartender himself.
The bartender wasn't as arrogant as the customers, and despite not thinking Minos was anything special, he still treated him with respect just in case.
This world was a dangerous one, and there was no lack of maniacs who had killed people simply for disrespecting them.
"What can I get you?"
"Just your most popular drink, also, I've got a question I want to ask you. Rest assured, if the answer is to my satisfaction, I'll make it worth your time." Minos said, as he slid a few Nux Crystals across the table.
The bartender couldn't help but gulp as he looked at the crystals. He was ultimately just a mortal, and only got paid in silver coins, meanwhile a single Nux Crystal would be a year's worth of his salary.
"Ask ahead, while I wouldn't be so arrogant to claim I know everything, I've heard a lot over the years I've worked here." The bartender said with confidence.
"Since that's the case, have you ever heard of a man called Yaflow Devim?"
"Hmm, the name sounds a bit familiar…"
As the bartender was thinking, Minos pulled out the book from his waist. He handed it to the bartender as he said. "He's the author of this book."
"Oh, now I remember!" The bartender replied as he flipped through the book.
"He's the ancestor of the Devim family. While they haven't been doing too well recently, they still are a long established family line, much better than most people."
"Do you know where I can find their house?"
"It should be at the end of the road, a small mansion with the family name at the head. You'll know it when you see it."
"Many thanks." Minos said as he flipped a single Nux Crystal into the bartender's hand.
Without even receiving his drink, Minos left the pub. It didn't take much walking for Minos to find what the bartender was talking about.
It was like a smaller version of the Yulk Family Estate, making the Devim's family's dreams quite clear, however given how desolate the place looked at the moment, it seemed they weren't doing too well. Minos knocked heavily on the gates a few times, but received no response.
After waiting for a couple minutes and seeing no one, Minos decided to take matters into his own hands. With a single leap, he lunged over the gate, landing gently on the other side.
He walked up towards the large wooden doors at the head of the mansion and knocked again, but again, no response.
Minos found the nearest window, using it, he peeked into the house, but he saw absolutely no one inside.
As Minos was about to leave and come back on another day, he heard a delicate young voice suddenly shout out towards him.
Turning back, he saw a young lady in black mourning clothes screaming towards him. She was holding the hand of a little boy, with a single old butler standing slightly behind her.
"Who are you? What are you doing on our property?" The beautiful young girl said with consternation.
"I mean no offense, I just wanted to ask a few questions about a man called Yaflow Devim, but when I knocked at the gates, I received no response, so I rudely entered by force and attempted to knock on the front door. I apologize if I caused you any fear." Minos said politely.
The young woman was still angry, but given Minos's delicate response, it would seem rude of her to continue berating him.
"What do you want to know about my ancestor?"
"This isn't a good place or time to talk. How about I come back later and we can talk then." Minos said, taking her current situation into consideration.
"Good, then come back in an hour, we can talk then." She replied.
…
The hour passed by quickly, and this time when Minos knocked on the gates, the old butler quickly came out in response, welcoming him.
The two reached the large wooden doors, the old butler opened the door signaling Minos to enter.
Minos nodded in thanks as he entered the mansion. The usual luxury one would expect from such a large house was completely lacking, with the place being mostly empty.
There were a few sofas that were very worn in, as well as an old wooden table, that seemed to have been quite valuable at one point in history, but had long since had its value reduced to nil.
The young lady from before was sitting comfortable on one of the sofas as she poured herself a cup of tea. The little boy from earlier was completely gone, likely in his room.
"Welcome. Come, have a seat." The young lady said as she looked up towards Minos.
"Many thanks." Minos said as he took a seat across from the young lady.
"I have yet to introduce myself. You can call me Minos."
"Othella, Othella Devim." Othella responded.
"It's nice to formally meet you Othella. Back to the subject however, I am quite curious about your ancestor."
"Well you'd be the first, my ancestor was never an especially lauded man." Othella said.
"On the contrary, I'd say it's better to have the praise of one genius, then a million fools." Minos said, rejecting Othella's claim.
"Oh, who's this genius then?" She asked with some curiosity.
"He's sitting right in front of you." Minos said with a smile.
Othella couldn't help but burst into a small giggle, but quickly restrained herself. Sitting in elegance once more, she spoke.
"I didn't take you for the arrogant type."
"Not arrogance, confidence. There's a critical difference."