Under the Oak Tree

289  Chapter 50

Maxi tensed. She could see Riftan's icy expression past Kuahel Leon's shoulder. While she scrambled to respond, Anette spoke up.

"It is possible. But looking into a city of this size with our current number would take much too long."

Upon hearing her considered answer, Kuahel's delicate eyebrow twitched upward. His expression made it evident he wanted nothing less than their eager cooperation. Feeling the silent pressure, the mages exchanged glances among themselves.

After a moment of uncomfortable silence, Celric sighed. "We came here to investigate the ruins, not to act as spies. Since participation in such a dangerous undertaking was never discussed during the negotiations, we must first deliberate amongst ourselves before we can give you an answer."

"The Mage Tower would also be put in a precarious situation if we fail to thwart the dark mages' conspiracy," Kuahel said stonily.

The Temple Knight commander appeared slightly taken aback by Celric's answer. As a man used to operating within a strict hierarchy, hearing someone in charge state that they needed to obtain consent from their subordinates was a foreign concept to him.

"If it were to get out that dark mages are behind the allied monster army," he continued, "it would only be a matter of time for the Reformed Church to collapse and the Orthodox faction to gain power. And if worse comes to worst, tragedies of the past may repeat themselves. The papal candidate backed by the Orthodox Church is well-known for being a fundamentalist."

"Is that a threat?" Anette snarled as if ready to fight.

The Temple Knight remained calm despite the suddenly hostile atmosphere. "I am merely pointing out that this matter affects you as well. If we do not stop the monster army, it would not only endanger the lives of countless people, but it would also end all hopes of a reconciliation between the Mage Tower and the church. Not to mention, the Western Continent would be ravaged by war."

Miriam, who had been silently staring at the crystal model, abruptly asked, "How many days would it take to reach this place?"

Riftan broke his silence to answer her question, his face ominously subdued. "I would say about a week. And that is if we don't run into any trouble on the way."

The mages looked even more reluctant at his words.

"The Temple Knights would protect you," Kuahel retorted, his forehead creasing.

"If I remember correctly, you've already failed them twice," Riftan scoffed. "I would not make such grand promises if I were you."

Kuahel's face smoothed into an emotionless mask, and Maxi felt the animosity between the two men soar to dangerous levels. Unable to stand the hostility any longer, she cautiously went to speak.

"So far… we have relied on the hot spring to conserve wood and firestones. We will need more if we are to make a two-week journey there and back. I-It would also become increasingly difficult… to transport the wagons and look after the horses. Under the present circumstances, traveling to the monster base will be difficult. I suggest we return to the Western Continent for now so we can make thorough preparations—"

"We must at least confirm whether the location and size of the monster base are as shown here," Kuahel said, adamantly shaking his head. "We cannot halt our investigation and head back just because of one model. Our journey back alone would take weeks, and even more to form a scout party approved by the Council. Meanwhile, the monster army will continue to attack villages to create more undead. We simply have no time to waste."

"Are you saying you would sacrifice us for the cause?" Royald grumbled. "If we go further north, we will either starve or freeze to death. When we've consumed all of your warhorses, we will have to carry all the luggage ourselves and trek the wasteland until we reach the city. Your brawny selves might be able to take it, but us mages would freeze. Is that what you're suggesting?"

"We are not taking all of you," Kuahel replied, pressing his fingers to his temples as though warding off a headache. "I plan on forming a small party for a covert investigation. We would only need six mages capable of search magic."

Kuahel swept his tired eyes over them and continued in a more respectful tone, "Unfortunately, we cannot replicate your elaborate search spells with divine magic. As such, your help is imperative."

When Riftan tried to speak, Kuahel quickly added, "And you, Sir Riftan, also recognize the importance of gathering intelligence before waging a war. Hundreds— no, tens of thousands of lives are at stake. I understand your concern for your wife, but I ask that you also consider the ramifications of failing to bring down the monster base."

"What do you understand, exactly?" Riftan's patience seemed to be wearing thin. He unfolded his arms and stepped closer to Kuahel, snarling like a feral dog, "How would a monk know what it's like for a husband to watch his wife, whom he hasn't seen in three years, almost die in front of him twice?"

Maxi was stunned by his outburst of emotion. He looked on the verge of grabbing the Temple Knight by the collar.

Elliot swiftly clamped a hand on Riftan's shoulder. "Commander, please, compose yourself."

After shooting daggers at the knight, Riftan glanced at Maxi's blanched face. He cursed under his breath and stepped back.

Celric's heavy sigh broke the tense silence. "I see your point, but as I have already told you, we would like to discuss this among ourselves before we come to a decision."

He scanned the faces of the mages and added, "Who knows? Some of us might even volunteer to go."

The mages remained silent as though tongue-tied, and only Miriam expressed her willingness to participate. Unfortunately, she was not skilled in either search or tracing magic.

"Can't we just send the mages of Nome Hall?" Royald said blithely. "Earth mages are the best at tracing magic."

"The same could be said for wind mages," Anette shot back with a snort. "And we all know you're also capable of using wind-based tracing spells."

"I'm a water mage! My competence with those spells are nothing compared to earth and wind mages."

"Why don't we… head out and talk in private?" Maxi said imploringly.

They were surrounded by men who lived by the code of chivalry. In front of such an audience, the mages' squabbling over which of them would get to avoid danger was painfully embarrassing.

"O-Our current priority is investigating this place. There may be other things concealed here that we haven't found yet."

"You're right," Geoffrey eagerly concurred. "We would have to consult Master Calto before we can make a decision anyway. We will discuss this matter when we return to camp."

The group ceased their strained argument and stepped out of the secret chamber to inspect the carvings on the walls of the temple. They scoured the cavern for magical devices or other hidden chambers for quite some time, but nothing noteworthy turned up.

In the end, the mages returned to camp before nightfall without any new discoveries. Settling into a late supper around a brazier, they nervously studied each other.

"So?" Anette said irritably, annoyed by the fraught atmosphere. "Who are we going to send?"

"We would all be grateful if you volunteered your skills, Anette," Royald said, his eyes shining with hope.

Anette snorted. "If I'm being honest, I do wish to see this city of monsters with my own eyes. But I have no intention of giving you the satisfaction by volunteering."

She abruptly furrowed her brow.

"More than that, I'd hate to become a puppet for those pious bastards of the church. I was born in Nornui. It's my home. Quite frankly, I couldn't care less if this land went up in flames."

"How can you utter such a thing without a hint of shame?" Miriam said, glowering at Anette with a look of sheer contempt.

Maxi was horrified by her friend's callous words as well. Anette, however, seemed unfazed by their reactions.

"Why must I be ashamed? My ancestors were originally mountain dwellers who were driven from this land and forced to live in the middle of the ocean. And yet I have to risk my life for those who exiled my people?"

"If the Mage Tower and the church… were to make peace through this cooperation, everyone would be able to live here freely."

Anette shrugged with a look of indifference. "I hold no grudges against the people here, but I don't want to upset my brothers and kin for the sake of this land's peace."

"That's the same for everyone here," Miriam bit back frostily. "Whatever the reason, you agreed to join this expedition, which means you bear the same responsibility as the rest of us. If each of us starts laying out our excuses, no one would be willing to take the risk."

A heavy silence fell over them. Maxi desperately stared into the blazing fire and silently asked herself what she wanted to do. She likewise had no desire to venture into this dangerous place. Even so, she could not help but think of all the tragic deaths of the previous war. Those anguished memories compelled her to do whatever she could to prevent such a calamity from happening again.

Before long, Riftan's face rose in her mind. Would it be right to subject him to further torment when she had already put him through enough suffering? Maxi bit her lip. Should she not put him first just as Anette had put her brothers first? She was silently brooding when Celric entered the tent with the senior mages.

"What did the others say?" Miriam asked, rising to her feet.

They had been deliberating their next course of action with the senior mages remaining at the clifftop. A weary-looking Celric sat down before the fire.

"They will select two mages to join us as soon as the day breaks," he said. "The remaining four will be chosen among those down here."

"There are twelve up there, so why must more be chosen from those here?" Royald objected.

Nevin heaved a sigh. "Look here, you grumbler. The twelve mages up there are mostly from Kabala or Undaim. They will not be helpful for searching anything. As for the mages of Urd, they may be proficient in all elements, but…" Nevin paused to study Celric's expression before continuing, "they're not strong enough to endure such an arduous task. On the other hand, there are two senior mages of Sigrew here — Geoffrey and myself, as well as two mages of Nome Hall. And we are all young and in good physical condition."

"Who was selected to come down?" asked Miriam.

Geoffrey shrugged. "The mages of Kabala volunteered, but since Albern is the only one among them proficient in search magic, he will likely be one of them. And though no one is a more competent healer than Elena, she will likely be excluded since her search magic experience is lacking. They will draw lots to determine the remaining member."

"That sounds like the fairest method," Anette remarked, stroking her chin as though she found the idea amusing.

Nevin nodded. "On our end, Geoffrey and I volunteered. By the looks of it, it seems the traitor will also be in the party, so we'd only need one of you to join us."

He pointed to Anette, Maxi, and Royald in turn.

"Why are you excluding me?" Miriam piped up.

10:57

"We all know how skilled you are in offensive magic, Miriam, but honestly speaking, your skills in other areas are not much to speak of. Neither offensive nor healing magic will be of much use in this assignment. Both can be covered by the Temple Knights' divine magic. It was decided that only those adept in search, tracing, communication, and concealment would be chosen. Considering the provisions that will be allotted to the scout party, it would not be prudent to add more people arbitrarily."

Miriam's face turned grim as though her pride had been wounded.

Geoffrey pretended not to notice and asked brightly, "Well, then… who will it be?"

Maxi looked back and forth between Anette and Royald. With his lips pursed, Royald seemed as unwilling as Anette. Maxi found herself unable to raise her hand in fear of Riftan's inevitable livid reaction.

The senior mage exhaled heavily at their silence. "Since none of you wish to go, we have no choice but to draw lots as well."

Royald, who had maintained a miserable scowl thus far, had a spark in his eye as he chimed in. "If we're leaving it up to fate, why don't we employ a more interesting method?"

Ignoring Anette's dubious glare, he shot to his feet and darted out of the tent. He soon returned with a small leather bundle. Maxi eyed the item with curiosity.

Royald unfolded the bundle to reveal three dice and a pack of cards. "Why don't we decide our fates with a game of chance?"

"You cad," Miriam lambasted him. "Everyone knows how much you love to gamble. You're obviously trying to rig the game so this naive idiot will be chosen."

Miriam pointed to Maxi as she spoke.

Maxi angrily shot to her feet. "Wh-Who are you calling a naive idiot?"

"Who else? He's trying to force someone who nearly died to risk their life again. And he has the gall to call himself a man!"

The insinuation that her loss was a given greatly offended Maxi. Though this was not the first time Miriam had treated her like a nitwit, she could not believe that the woman would so blatantly belittle her in the presence of the senior mages.

"S-Stop with your needless meddling!" Maxi cried, fuming. "I'm quite certain… you'll be surprised at how good I am at this game. I once won a sum enough to purchase a horse!"

She confidently declared this recalling the time she had cleaned Riftan of his gold buttons in a game of chance. Both Miriam and Anette regarded her with skepticism.

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