BXBX NOVEL 199 Chapter 199
Aron's group continued to be on standby at the camp until evening fell, only then did Lady Rose come from the main tent seemingly satisfied.
Juliet was still standing by the entrance of the ruin not too far whereas Aron was just meditating within one of the smaller tents as Evanora still slept.
"You there, call the others." She instructed as she saw one of the scouts heading to the tent to switch places with, unfortunately for him it seemed he wouldn't be getting the sleep he was so looking forward to.
Lady Rose's voice reached Aron's ears and he also stood up before waking up Evanora without the need for being called.
A short moment later everyone gathered at the front of the main tent where Lady Rose stood with her arms crossed.
"I've learned that this ruin is quite large, it's likely the remant of an entire fallen city judging from the estimated scope, however navigating will be tricky since time has lead to much of the place being swallowed up by land. At the very least they probably wont be any traps, the biggest danger will be potential life forms dwelling there or risk of the collapsing architecture." Lady Rose summarized as best she could.
Normally she wouldn't care for telling the others anything but the information wasn't really something she needed to keep secret. What's more in a case such as this, transparency was needed to give the other members a false sense of belonging.
Aron still couldn't tell wether she was hiding anything but such an occurrence was doubtful. The only real unknown remained Juliet whose intentions were still unclear to him.
"So then do we start exploring right away like you said or?" Juliet asked with a look of doubt written all over her face. This was because Lady Rose had said the ruin was the size of a city, what qualified for a city in Pesia was no small thing and exploring such a large thing with their small group didn't seem adequate.
Strength wise they were fine but they simply didn't have enough people for other tasks should the need arise. Lady Rose had already considered this point and so she shook her head head.
"No, we'll wait for the other groups to arrive. I've already sent a message and I'll be using my scouters next to help them arrive more quickly. From what I've been told we can expect a good number of Aethelians within the ruin, one hundred and ten to be exact unless some lives were lost. For now continue as you did while we wait." She dismissed them with a wave before returning inside the main tent.
For the Lucas and others more rest was welcomed and so no complaints were given. Aron only now decided to enter the tent as well but found no sight of the Aethelians, only ashes on the ground which he chose not to even comment on.
"Curious?" Lady Rose asked without bothering to turn in his direction, anyone would wonder what exactly happened but Aron didn't see the need to inquire. "Not in particular, they are quite a few arts that are capable of such so it's not all that odd."
Aron replied as if she were asking if he was interested in the method she used to dispose of them rather than why she did it. From this the message was basically him saying he didn't care that she killed them without telling him.
Seeing as he wasn't going to inquire on the matter, Lady Rose chose to not speak more on it either. "I see, then are you hopeful in finding what you seek from this ruin?" She finally turned to face Aron while leaning against one of the four tables present in the tent.
"That chance always exists. How about you? Are you still planning on lingering around me even after that?" Aron brought up a matter they had previously discussed in which she said she would follow him out of their interests somewhat aligning and his existence as a whole being beneficial.
Lady Rose tilted her to the side slightly and began tapping her cheek as if in thought. "There's been no change in my decision, our partnership will continue even beyond that. At least until one of us achieves their end goal." She answered casually while looking Aron in the eyes, what followed was a brief moment of silence between the two before Aron finally gave her a nod.
"I see… goals you say." Aron muttered before turning to leave.
It wasn't strange for someone to have an end goal in life or purpose but for Aron his end goal was rather… blurry. He knew quite well that the chances of him dying before even reaching the half way mark were extremely high and yet he wasn't at all fazed… because he couldn't find any other meaning to his existence at the moment.
Would becoming the strongest existence in Limbo grant him happiness or satisfaction? Unlikely.
Would it provide meaning to his life? He didn't know.
For now at the very least it give him a reason for being, something to seek out with all his strength.
…
By evening the following day all three other groups had managed to convene at the camp, thankfully not much time had passed thus no one had gone really far.
Immediately upon arriving they were told of the current situation before being allowed to rest since they had traveled nonstop. The scheduled time for departure had now been set to midnight that very day.
Those that had already been in the camp prior were currently gathered at it's center to provide room for those who just arrived in the tents.
Lady Rose in particular had also left the main tent and was standing near the entrance of the ruin, using her scouter to get a rough layout of it. Aron patiently waited beside her so as to get an idea of what they were dealing with before entering.
After sometime had passed the scouter returned out of the ruin covered in dust and cobwebs. Lady Rose ignored the condition of the scouter and just proceeded to turn her attention to the crystal on it to see what it recorded within.
Judging from this action, Aron ruled out a dislike of dirt being the reason she didn't make physical contact with people. He didn't make a fuss over it and just turned his attention towards the crystal as well.
What it displayed was a dark an eerie atmosphere, with the run down buildings barely visible. What little illumination was present came from light that penetrated through holes in the rocky ceiling.
"Tsk, it's far too dark. If I make the scouter illuminate itself then we may alert those already present within, though it's strange they didn't leave a trail of light at the very least…. What do you think?" Lady Rose couldn't help but find the situation suspicious, normally when exploring a dark underground space a trail of light would left much like they did in mines.
"It is odd, but we'll have no choice but to use light lest we miss key points while exploring." Aron replied while feigning concern, his vision in the dark was near perfect so such a problem didn't mean anything to him.
Wether the lack of light was purposefully done or not, they would find out once inside. Lady Rose unaware of Aron's true thoughts on the matter just nodded along. "I suppose so, we'll discuss an approach when everyone is present then." She muttered before turning away from the ruin's entrance, seemingly with no interest at that moment.
…
Meanwhile many kilometers away, Sayiva and her airship were nearing the continent of Drotzi. Even now they received no more resistance ever since she declared that she only sought to fight the pillars and emperor.
In such a situation only those with unbridled loyalty to the empire would still fight and risk their lives, however very few such people existed.
The empire of Ettenheim had a short history, thus many of the factors that made an ideal empire strong were yet to be established. What kept Ettenheim together was the fact that the very strongest individuals were in power with no one even coming close to opposing them, those that showed potential would quickly be brought under them or put in a situation where growth was impossible.
Now that a force emerged that could bring an end to their seemingly unshakable power, many chose to stay neutral despite said force belonging to Aethel.
Sayiva's first true obstacle awaited her at the port city of Hazenloft which had now been turned into a fort of sorts. It's great walls now aligned with flags bearing the Ettenheim and Vonstein crests…
"Milady, if the reports regarding our opponent's are correct then…" A worried bulky middle aged man expressed his concerns to none other than Victoria Vonstein herself.
She was clad in silver armor with green leather apparel adorning many parts of it. Her aged face showed an unshakable determination as she looked toward the empty horizon from the wall on which she currently stood. "If it really is Sayiva then the reports are likely true, even back then she was a formidable opponent despite her pacifistic nature."
The uniformed man couldn't help but show a surprised look upon hearing the woman who was laying carnage to Ettenheim forces and declaring war against the pillars was previously a pacifist. "What changed?…" he asked in a low tone as a cold sweat run down his forehead.
Victoria showed a complex expression at this, almost regret before answering. "Anyone would change after losing their lover and child ."
The answer was brief but it was more than enough for the man to understand.