Chapter 449 - 424: The Flamed-Out Shell Ship

Chapter 449: Chapter 424: The Flamed-Out Shell Ship

Despite his words, his gaze remained glued to the map, as if he hoped to see through the parchment and witness that lost splendor with his own eyes.

Hearing this introduction, Roland traced the map with his long fingers, feeling the fine texture of the parchment as he gave a slight nod.

"It seems this is the map of Aiselon."

"Without a doubt!"

Galvis immediately chimed in, the Elf’s fingertips excitedly tapping at various places on the map.

"Look here, ’Breath of the Morning Wind.’ Ancient records say it was the site of the most renowned academy in the human kingdoms. Their library dome was supposedly inlaid with Star Stones that would glow in resonance with knowledge... and here..."

His fingers darted across the map as he rattled off place names as if they were his own treasures. Though his tone held the uncertainty of someone recounting legends, his enthusiasm was undiminished.

Suddenly, as if struck by inspiration, Galvis shot his head up, his pale eyes sparkling with excitement.

"Hey, Roland! Come to think of it, we’ve actually... sort of seen a corner of Silver Radiance City! Er... or rather, we’ve come into contact with a tiny fraction of its legacy."

"Hmm?"

Roland tilted his head, his eyes filled with confusion.

"Jiles!"

Galvis clapped his hands together.

"The Magic City Jiles from the River Domain, the one that crawled up from underground! Legend says its creator was once a high-ranking figure in Silver Radiance City..."

"I read about it in an ancient geography text that was falling to pieces. Its core was supposedly modeled after the defense system of one of Silver Radiance City’s districts!"

"Jiles..."

The name made Roland’s expression darken.

Instantly, the image of those silent, twisted ruins in the Land of Mist flashed before his eyes.

Broken colossal pillars pierced the gloomy sky, and an unending fog filled the ruined streets.

What was more terrifying were the Magical Guide Structures that roamed the ruins—tireless, brutally efficient killing machines.

They were cold and precise, utterly lifeless, yet possessed terrifying combat strength.

Even though the city was dilapidated, so decayed that it bore no resemblance to a "pinnacle of ancient wisdom," those silent instruments of slaughter were enough to offer a glimpse of their origin...

Silver Radiance City.

The technology and Power it represented were beyond imagination.

Roland shook his head, casting aside the cold, unsettling memory. He suddenly recalled something and turned to Galvis, who was still engrossed in the ancient map.

"By the way, Galvis," he asked, "you mentioned your mentor... Lady Visna? I asked you to inquire about ’Rudolph.’ Have you heard anything back?"

At the question, Galvis reluctantly tore his gaze from the map. A look of utter helplessness crossed his face as he threw his hands up in a shrug.

"Nothing! It was completely useless!"

He sighed exaggeratedly.

"My mentor is more elusive than the most mysterious creature in the Star Realm. She lives in seclusion year-round in the most remote corner of the Eternal Song Forest. It’s like even the sunlight needs her permission to filter through the trees there."

"She has a standing rule: she never sees any outsiders. Not even me..."

The Minstrel lowered his voice, his tone a mixture of complaint and awe.

"I’m her only student, in name at least. And when she imparts her ancient knowledge, I can only listen to her speak from behind a thick curtain—so thick not even a shadow can pass through."

"She never discusses anything with me beyond the knowledge itself. Not a single extra word!"

Galvis’s expression soured.

"So, when I finally worked up the courage to ask her about ’Rudolph’ through the curtain a while back... all I got was dead silence. I couldn’t even hear her breathing!"

He instinctively rubbed his lower back, as if it were still aching.

"I didn’t give up. I pestered her for three whole days, trying every form of flattery I could think of. In the end... sigh. I don’t know what she did, but some invisible force ’sent’ me flying from her treehouse door straight to the edge of the forest. I nearly broke apart from the fall!"

Upon hearing this, Roland asked curiously.

"If that’s the case, how did you find out the name ’Rudolph’ in the first place?"

An embarrassed look immediately crossed Galvis’s face. He rubbed the tip of his nose, his gaze shifting away.

"Well... when I was a boy, I snuck into her study once while she was out and saw it. Because of that, when she came back and found out, she was furious. She almost banished me for good and disowned me as her student."

The Minstrel’s voice dropped, tinged with a hint of lingering fear.

"I knelt in the thorn bushes before her door for I don’t know how long. My blood stained the thorns red before she finally... reluctantly forgave me."

Seeing the genuine, lingering fear on Galvis’s face, Roland sighed inwardly with a sense of helplessness.

’The truth about Rudolph was just beyond a thin veil, yet impossible to pierce.’

’This feeling of being so close yet so far out of reach was truly frustrating.’

Suppressing his frustration for the moment, Roland’s gaze returned to the ancient, history-laden map in his hands.

His fingertips traced over several place names that Duadeng had specifically circled.

According to the Zor Elf Elder, these places had been extremely prosperous core regions of the Aiselon Continent in ancient times. Even after ages of change, it should still be possible to find some lost ruins or clues to their legacy.

Just as he was carefully deciphering the ancient place names and planning a route in his mind...

"Roland!"

A clear call interrupted his thoughts.

Avril, who had been leaning over the rail curiously observing the bizarre, kaleidoscopic scenery of the Star Realm, turned and waved energetically to him, her slender finger pointing toward the front of the Shell Ship.

"I think we’re almost there!"

No sooner had she spoken than Roland felt the ship shudder.

Ahead of the bow, a deep rift quietly opened.

As if drawn in, the Shell Ship’s speed increased sharply, and it slid smoothly inside.

After a brief moment of weightlessness and distorted light, like passing through a film of water, he opened his eyes again to find the scene outside the porthole had suddenly stabilized and cleared.

But...

Roland quickly rolled up the map and stowed it away, his brow slowly furrowing.

The scene before him was "slightly" different from the Aiselon Continent he had envisioned from the map and the legends...

Before he could get a good look at the strange surroundings, a roar mixed with anguish exploded beside him.

"Hey! Damn it! My baby! What’s happened to you?"

Before the words had even faded, the veins of faint purple light that had been flowing steadily across the Shell Ship’s hull within Roland’s view began to flicker and dim, like a severed filament. Then, they faded completely.

Immediately after, the familiar humming stopped abruptly, and a powerful sense of weightlessness hit them.

The massive Shell Ship had lost all power. Like a great bird with broken wings...

...it plummeted from the sky.