"For example, we look up information on the Ancient Empire, find out the White Tower’s books are missing, and end up making a trip for nothing."
After Orelia finished, Ale chimed in, "Or maybe while investigating, we discover a Demon lurking inside the White Tower, have an epic battle with it, and become the heroes of the White Tower!"
"And in the end, we get a hefty bounty from those white-robed guys, and they even let us leave our handprints on that white tower," Kase said with a chuckle.
"If a Demon was capable of evading the Prophetic Magic of a dozen Prophet Grandmasters in the White Tower and could sneak in to steal books without a trace, it would probably kill us all the second we met. Forget about whatever comes after."
Colin continued, "Besides, if we really did save this place, the most they’d do is erect a statue of us or something. Who’s going to let you put your handprints on anything?"
"A statue is so boring."
Kase rambled on, "Statues are carved by other people. Only a handprint is your own. You press it on a stone, and hundreds of years later, people will see it and know you pressed it there yourself—not anyone else. That’s what makes it truly you."
"Strange Orc philosophy," Colin summarized.
"I think it’s actually pretty nice," Ale said. "My mom also said that there are many legends about heroes among mortals, but some of the people who pass them down aren’t content to just retell them. Others have ulterior motives. In the end, most of the legends become completely distorted."
"You hear that? You should learn a thing or two, my friend Colin," Kase said, puffing out his chest.
"Hey, human friends!"
As they were talking, a very familiar voice with a metallic hum called out from behind them.
Colin whipped his head around.
A pale golden figure had suddenly appeared just inside the gates of the White Tower and was slowly approaching them.
Before he could even get a clear look, Colin turned and ran as if struck by lightning.
Just as he was about to turn back and call for Kase and the others, the Half-Orc suddenly sprinted past him. Ale and the rest of the group were quickly gaining on him from behind as well.
Colin immediately put on another burst of speed and sprinted forward.
The group didn’t stop until they were out of the small town and had run another few hundred meters. They all stood together, bent over and gasping for air.
"HUFF... PUFF... I haven’t run like that in a long time. If I ran like that in the Silver Star Court, my mom would definitely scold me."
"What were you all running for? We should have said goodbye to Miss Sirikxia."
"Goodbye? Are you serious? I had no intention of being stuck in that town until evening."
"I only started running when I saw you guys running."
"But you were the one running the fastest!"
"Get outta here! What’s running fast got to do with who started first?"
After a few moments of bickering, they all broke into laughter at the same time.
Once they caught their breath, they officially set off, following the main road on the east side northeastward.
This time, Orelia needed to return to her Monastery to report on her work. The Monastery was located on the trade route between Rommon and the Holy City, which was also the group’s destination.
Warm sunlight spilled over the land, and the white puffs of their breath were clearly visible in the light.
The Roaring Mountain Range blocked most of the cold wind.
Although it was still quite cold here, it wasn’t cold enough for heavy snow.
They walked on the uneven dirt path, which was flanked by patches of small grasses and flowers.
Not far off were small groves of trees, and further in the distance, they could see damp soil turned over by wooden plows.
’Because of this year’s winter disaster, these fields are probably being prepared for crops like rye or turnips,’ Colin thought. ’In previous years, the farmers here would have greedily planted barley or something similar.’
The group walked and chatted.
As they traveled, Colin came to deeply appreciate just how comfortable the [Empowerment Armor] Specialty was.
The "second skin" mentioned in the Specialty’s description was definitely no exaggeration. As he walked, he could really feel the Armor conforming to his skin.
However, this close fit wasn’t uncomfortable.
The Cotton Armor and the outer layers of Armor would shift slightly with Colin’s movements.
This prevented any chafing, and the Armor’s weight was distributed more evenly across his body, making it feel slightly lighter.
At the same time, it made much less noise, though he could still hear some faint sounds.
The Specialty itself was quite useful, and it elevated the experience of wearing Armor to a whole new level, making walking much more comfortable.
The sun moved slowly across the sky.
Along the way, the group took out some crackers and dried meat, eating their lunch as they walked.
The main road here was much calmer than the one near Thousand Masts City. The whole journey felt like a pleasant outing.
Since he was with his companions, Colin decided to lower his guard. He took out his notebook to review his notes on Ora Kaim, wanting to take a closer look at the most critical findings from his trip.
The records in the White Tower were much more detailed.
Most books mentioned that the major cities of today were built on the ruins of Ora Kaim and the Elf Empire, but only the records in the White Tower had detailed studies on the ancient history of each city-state.
A key example was Thousand Masts City.
To be honest, Colin had been quite surprised when he saw this information yesterday.
He had suddenly felt as if everything around him was intricately connected to Ora Kaim. He even got the feeling that finding the [Silent] Ring had been no coincidence.
He could only hope that was a false impression.
But to get back on topic.
First of all, the distribution of cities wasn’t just influenced by things like terrain and local resources; the Magic Net was also a key factor in deciding a city’s location.
In certain places, there were things called "Magic Net Nodes."
These nodes on the Magic Net were like magical amplifiers. They provided the foundation for large-scale magical engineering and were a necessary environment for many magical experiments.
To make an analogy, they were like invisible, infinite energy facilities.
And Thousand Masts City was situated on one such Magic Net Node.
All things considered, the city’s location could be described as exceptionally advantageous.
To the east was a fertile plain like the Golden Plain, to the north were hills that produced minerals, and to the northeast were abundant forestry resources. On top of that, it was located on a Magic Net Node. It was no wonder Thousand Masts City had become the largest city-state in the Northern Lands.
During the era of the Ancient Empire, the area of Thousand Masts City was a key port for Ora Kaim. It was the political, cultural, and economic center of the entire Northern Lands, and was even praised by the Ancient People of the time as the "Second Capital."
After the fall of the empire, this Second Capital immediately became a ghost town.
No one knows the specific reason why. It could have been large-scale attacks by Barbarians and Orcs, or perhaps an Evil Dragon taking advantage of the chaos.
An unknown number of years later, a Dwarf Clan known as the Shadow Anvil Clan established a city-state underground. ’Based on the information provided by the Task Log for [Empowerment Armor], this is very likely Donkexes’s clan,’ Colin inferred.
The Shadow Anvil Clan built a vast city-state underground.
They studied the technology of the Ancient Empire and improved upon it, becoming the most powerful Dwarf Clan of their time.
Many of the Magic Items produced in the Undercity were crafted by the Shadow Anvil Clan. Even the followers of the Deity of Invention would be amazed by their Mechanical Devices.
But not long after, the "Great Dwarf Migration" occurred.