Chapter 377: One Night Before We Leave

By the time the group finished documenting the hidden pool, the sun had begun to sink behind the southern hills.

Professor Roland was satisfied with their findings. The passage was stable enough for future research, the ancient markings had been recorded, and Athena had collected enough measurements to begin comparing the southern network with the records from Luna’s village.

It wasn’t everything they had hoped to discover, but it was a meaningful result.

More importantly, they had managed to explore the springs without damaging anything.

Professor Scolding gathered everyone near the entrance before they began the journey back.

"We’ll leave the hidden passage undisturbed. Athena will organize the records, and the professors will decide how to continue the investigation after our departure. Tomorrow, we return to the village, complete our remaining reports, and prepare to leave according to the original schedule."

Kong’s ears drooped.

"Tomorrow? Already?"

"Did you expect to live here?" Vedas asked.

"I was considering it. The water is warm, the scenery is beautiful, and the local food is excellent."

"You’ve been here for two days."

"Two wonderful days."

Sun folded his arms. "I agree that our achievements deserve additional vacation time. We restored a village, helped stabilize the World Tree, and discovered an ancient observation site. Surely that merits an extension."

Mithra looked at him. "You spent most of yesterday arguing about the food and losing competitions."

"I participated in important cultural activities."

"You fell into a pool."

"An important cultural activity!"

Melo laughed as she helped Kong gather the remaining supplies. "Come on. Let’s enjoy the evening we have left instead of trying to convince the professors to adopt us."

Arthur glanced toward the southern basin one last time. The steam rose quietly between the trees, and the hidden pool remained concealed beneath its ancient roots.

They had found a piece of forgotten history. There was no need to force it to reveal everything at once.

"Let’s head back," he said. "We still have one more evening together."

Star bounced happily on his shoulder, apparently approving of the decision.

Kong sighed. "Fine. But I’m requesting a farewell feast."

"Denied," Vedas said.

"You aren’t even a professor!"

"Someone has to maintain standards."

The Last Feast

They reached the village before nightfall.

The restored paths glowed beneath the evening lanterns, and the sound of conversation drifted from the communal gathering area. Several villagers had already heard about the group’s discovery at the springs. When Arthur and the others arrived, they were immediately surrounded by questions.

"Was the hidden pool really beneath the roots?"

"Did you find any ancient treasures?"

"Were there any dangerous creatures?"

Kong pushed through the crowd with an expression of great importance.

"There were no monsters, but we discovered something much more valuable."

Everyone leaned closer.

"Another pool?"

The villagers stared at him.

Kong’s shoulders slumped. "How did everyone guess?"

Melo patted his head. "Because you haven’t stopped talking about it since we left."

Laughter spread through the gathering.

The villagers had prepared a meal using their remaining supplies, supplemented by vegetables and herbs from the restored gardens. The food wasn’t extravagant, but there was enough for everyone, and the communal tables were filled with dishes that had once been familiar to the village.

Kong immediately volunteered to help.

"I’ll take responsibility for the kitchen."

A villager handed him a basket of vegetables. "Then you can start by washing these."

Kong inspected the basket. "I was thinking of a more supervisory role."

"You can supervise yourself while washing them."

Arthur chuckled as Kong reluctantly carried the vegetables away.

Sun appeared beside the cooking area a moment later, rolling up his sleeves. "Allow me to assist. A warrior must be capable of more than fighting."

One of the villagers smiled. "Wonderful. You can stir the pot."

Sun accepted the spoon with dignity.

Ten minutes later, he was explaining how his stirring technique improved the distribution of heat.

Mithra watched him with growing amusement. "You’re stirring soup."

"Precisely. And I’m doing it exceptionally well."

"Would you like a medal?"

"I would accept one."

The villager responsible for the pot gave him another spoon. "Here. You can stir the second one, too."

Sun stared at it.

Melo nearly dropped the plate she was carrying from laughing so hard.

Even Vedas, who had been helping move the tables, let out a quiet chuckle.

By the time the meal was ready, the entire gathering had become a friendly contest over who had contributed the most. Sun claimed his stirring had been essential. Kong argued that washing vegetables was more demanding than stirring soup. The villagers politely informed both of them that the food had been prepared by people who knew what they were doing.

Arthur sat back and watched the argument unfold.

It was a good sound.

A few days earlier, the village had been a place of silence and fear. Now people were laughing over dinner, teasing their guests, and making plans for the days ahead.

That change mattered more than any formal report could capture.

Memories Worth Keeping

As the meal continued, the villagers asked the students to share their favorite moments from the expedition.

Kong spoke first.

"My favorite moment was discovering the communal kitchen."

"You discovered it on the first day," Athy pointed out.

"And it has continued to provide excellent service ever since."

"That isn’t a memory. That’s a food review."

"Food reviews are important records of civilization."

Melo leaned forward. "My favorite moment was Sun falling into the floating-stone pool. Especially when he tried to convince us the stone had cheated."

"It moved unexpectedly!" Sun protested.

"That’s what floating stones do," Arthur replied.

Mithra raised her cup. "To the most ambitious leap in the history of the hot springs."

Several villagers joined the toast.

Sun lowered his head. "I regret agreeing to these games."

"No, you don’t," Mithra said.

He considered that for a moment. "I regret losing."

Vedas’s favorite moment, he claimed, was when everyone had finally stopped arguing long enough to complete the investigation. Nobody believed him, particularly after he admitted that the villagers’ stories about the old spring had been more interesting than he expected.

Athy spoke about the markings. Athena described how the ancient symbols might help them reconstruct parts of the southern network. Leon and Metapholes discussed the craftsmanship of the hidden passage, while Professor Roland reminded everyone that their observations still needed careful verification.

Luna listened to them all, smiling as the stories overlapped.

Some remembered the World Tree’s golden light spreading through the village. Others spoke about the moment the villagers recognized Luna and her grandfather, or the first evening when the lanterns had been lit to welcome her home.

The floating-stone challenge earned another round of laughter.

But when the conversation turned toward the hidden pool, the atmosphere softened.

"It felt like we had found something that had been waiting for someone to remember it," Luna said.

Athena nodded. "That’s a good way to describe it. The markings survived, but without the records from your village, we might not have understood their significance."

"Then I’m glad we went," Luna replied. "Not just because of what we found, but because we found it together."

Arthur smiled at her.

She didn’t look away or dismiss the moment with a joke. She was comfortable enough now to say what she felt without worrying that it made her vulnerable.

That, too, was a kind of progress.

What Home Means

Later, when the meal had ended and the villagers began clearing the tables, Luna stepped away from the gathering.

She found her grandfather sitting near the restored water channel, wrapped in a warm cloak. He had spent most of the evening resting, following the healer’s instructions, but he had insisted on coming outside for a little while to enjoy the lanterns.

Luna sat beside him.

"Are you tired?" she asked.

"A little. But I wanted to see everyone enjoying themselves." He glanced toward the gathering. "It has been a long time since the village sounded like this."

Luna followed his gaze.

"I went to the southern springs today. We found a hidden pool beneath the roots. Athena thinks it was used to monitor changes in the regional network."

Her grandfather’s expression sharpened with interest, though he soon relaxed again.

"A hidden observation point? I remember fragments of those records. We never found the location."

"We’ll compare the markings with your notes tomorrow. Maybe we’ll understand more."

"I would like that."

Luna hesitated before continuing.

"When I first thought about coming home, I imagined everything would be exactly as I remembered it. The village, the paths, the people. I thought that if we restored the World Tree’s connection, I could finally return to the life I had before."

Her grandfather listened without interrupting.

"But things aren’t exactly the same. Some things have changed, and I’ve changed too. I still want to protect this place, but I also want to see what’s beyond it. I want to keep exploring."

She lowered her eyes.

"I wasn’t sure whether wanting that meant I was leaving something behind."

Her grandfather rested a hand over hers.

"You don’t have to choose between caring about your home and discovering what lies beyond it. You can carry one with you while you pursue the other."

Luna looked at him.

"Even if I can’t always be here?"

"Especially then. A home isn’t a place that demands you never leave. It’s a place where you can return, where people will remember you, and where you can continue building something together."

He smiled gently.

"You’ve already done more for this village than you realize. Don’t let responsibility convince you that you must spend the rest of your life repaying everyone."

Luna’s eyes stung, but she smiled.

"I’ll try to remember that."

"Good. And when you return from your travels, I expect you to bring me stories. Preferably ones that don’t involve nearly destroying the world."

She laughed. "I’ll do my best."

For the first time, the thought of leaving again didn’t feel like abandoning home.

It felt like carrying it with her.

One Last Question

Arthur found Eden sitting near the gathering’s outer edge, enjoying the quiet after the meal. Star had settled beside her, its little body pulsing softly with reflected lantern light.

"Feeling better?" Arthur asked.

Eden nodded. "Yes. Not completely recovered, but better."

"Do you think you’ll be ready for the next journey?"

"I think so, as long as I continue resting when I need to."

She glanced toward the restored water channel.

"Guiding the World Tree’s existing rhythm was different from using Future Manifestation. I didn’t have to force a possibility into reality. I was helping something that already existed find its balance again."

Arthur sat beside her. "And the hidden pool gave you something else to think about."

"It did. The southern network appears to preserve information about its own condition. I want to understand how these old systems worked together, but I don’t need to figure everything out tonight."

Arthur smiled. "That’s a good lesson."

Eden tilted her head. "You sound surprised."

"I’ve watched you push yourself hard because you thought you had to be useful. I’m glad you’re giving yourself permission to learn at your own pace."

For a moment, Eden was quiet.

"Thank you, Arthur."

He nodded and left her to enjoy the evening.

Across the gathering area, Luna was helping her grandfather back inside, while Melo and Athy argued about which of their discoveries deserved the most attention. Kong had somehow obtained a second serving, and Sun was still insisting that the kitchen would have fallen apart without him.

Vedas watched them with the expression of someone who had accepted that peace was simply another form of chaos.

For once, nobody was in a hurry.

Then Athena’s instrument chimed.

She looked down at it, frowned, and checked the reading again.

"Professor Roland? Professor Scolding? I think you should see this."

The professors approached. Athena showed them the faint signal appearing at the edge of her recorded measurements.

"The southern network is stable," she explained, "but there’s a small anomaly on the far side of the region. It’s weak, and I can’t determine whether it’s a remnant of the old network or a section we haven’t mapped."

Roland studied the readings.

"We have time for one limited investigation tomorrow, provided the route is safe. We cannot afford to extend the expedition again."

Arthur looked toward the dark hills beyond the village.

"So we have one last place to explore."

Vedas exhaled. "I knew this would happen."

Melo smiled. "You could always stay here."

"And let Arthur go alone? Absolutely not."

Luna joined them, her curiosity returning as she looked toward the distant southern hills.

"Then tomorrow, we finish what we started."

The group had one final day before departure.

And somewhere beyond the restored village, one last piece of the region’s forgotten history was waiting to be found.