Episode 294
Zeke was taken aback by the message that appeared before him.
“The Forest of Fairies rejects the immortal?”
Michelle gestured for Zeke to follow her beyond the stone towers.
“What’s wrong? Let’s go.”
Zeke hesitated, contemplating the message, but eventually stepped into the area.
Suddenly, the stone towers around them began to tremble.
Rumble—
Dozens of stone towers collapsed, scattering stones across the ground.
The scattered stones then started to merge, forming a shape.
“What… what is this?”
Michelle, equally startled by the unfamiliar sight, rolled back to hide.
The stones coalesced into the form of a giant.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
The stone giant looked at Zeke and bellowed.
“Defier of the laws! Leave this sacred land at once!”
As soon as it finished speaking, the giant disintegrated back into stones, which then flew toward Zeke in a fierce whirlwind.
Whizz!
Zeke raised his cloak to shield himself from the oncoming stones.
Crash!
True to its reputation, the cloak deflected the stones effortlessly.
Though unharmed, Zeke wore a perplexed expression as he faced the relentless stone storm.
“System, is there any way to stop this?”
The system searched for information and displayed a message.
[Activate the Dragon God’s form while holding the relic of the Divine Dragon Poseidon, and the domain will recognize you as a dragon.]
“Recognize me as a dragon?”
Puzzled but determined, Zeke retrieved the radiant orb, Poseidon’s relic, from his inventory and activated his Dragon God form.
His eyes transformed into dragon’s eyes, and scales began to emerge on his body.
Gradually, the stone storm subsided.
[The domain ‘Forest of Fairies’ re-identifies the user.]
[The domain ‘Forest of Fairies’ recognizes the power of the dragon.]
[The domain ‘Forest of Fairies’ halts security measures.]
The stone storm retreated, and the stones returned to their original tower forms.
As the storm passed, Michelle emerged from hiding, trembling.
“What… what just happened?”
Ignoring Michelle’s bewilderment, Zeke cautiously approached the stone towers.
Unlike before, he could now enter the domain of the Forest of Fairies.
“System, do I need to stay in Dragon God form?”
[You may deactivate the Dragon God form, but you must keep the Divine Dragon’s relic with you.]
Zeke deactivated his Dragon God form and pocketed Poseidon’s relic.
He turned to Michelle.
“Let’s keep moving.”
Together, Zeke and Michelle traversed the path of stone towers and ascended the forest trail.
At the top of the hill, a peaceful village came into view, with houses made of wood and earth. Druids clad in leather garments gathered in the village square.
What was surprising was that each druid had a mystical beast by their side.
Michelle waved enthusiastically at the villagers and ran toward them.
“I’m back!”
Despite Michelle’s cheerful shout, the other druids in the square remained indifferent.
Feeling awkward at their lack of response, Michelle approached the oldest-looking druid, tapping her chest.
“Chief! Look! I’ve brought someone to heal the Mountain Lord!”
An elderly man with hair and beard braided with colorful threads sat leaning on a staff, his wise eyes peering from beneath long eyebrows.
The one called the chief rose from his seat.
Though not as large as Michelle, the other druids around him were also quite robust.
Then, without warning—
Whoosh!
The chief swung his staff at Michelle.
Thwack!
“Ouch!”
The staff struck Michelle’s head, then skillfully continued to pummel her body.
At the same time, the chief unleashed a torrent of colorful curses.
“You little brat! Breaking the village rules and running off on your own, you little punk! And now you bring an outsider here? Do you think our village rules are a joke?”
The chief’s staff moved with precision, delivering a thorough beating to Michelle.
“Ow! Chief! Grandpa! Wait a minute!”
“Wait, my foot! You’re getting five years’ worth of punishment today, you rascal!”
After a while, other druids managed to pull the chief away from Michelle.
Still fuming, the chief continued to huff and puff.
Zeke watched Michelle, who was curled up and clutching her bruises, and clicked his tongue inwardly.
“So she didn’t have permission to leave.”
The druids had remained hidden from the outside world for centuries.
To maintain this secrecy, they had to strictly isolate themselves and ensure the village’s location remained unknown.
Occasionally, outsiders would find the village, but only after much effort on their part.
But Michelle had brought an outsider without permission, so the chief’s anger was understandable.
The chief gave Michelle one last whack on the head with his staff before turning to Zeke.
“As you can see, we’re not in a position to welcome outsiders.”
Zeke realized that the druids in the square had assumed a defensive stance, wary of him.
He approached the chief.
“I apologize for intruding on your village. My name is Zeke Draker.”
At the mention of “Draker,” the druids behind the chief gasped.
“Dr-Draker?”
“I heard the Drakers have horns and sharp teeth.”
“Yeah, and they always laugh like demons, ‘Heh heh heh.’”
Hearing the druids’ whispers, Zeke sighed inwardly.
“Why do even the druids have such strange rumors about us?”
Unlike the murmuring druids, the chief scrutinized Zeke with sharp eyes and spoke.
“Why has a Draker come here? Did you lure that fool to ravage our village?”
Zeke shook his head.
“I have no such intentions. I didn’t come here as a Draker. I’m here to find the Fairy Lake.”
The druids were even more startled by Zeke’s words.
“He wants to find the Fairy Lake?”
“Is the Draker planning to destroy the Fairy Lake?”
“Scary Draker!”
Once the misunderstanding began, it spread uncontrollably.
“This is troublesome.”
Zeke reluctantly retrieved Agamemnon’s mask from his inventory.
Seeing the mask, the chief flinched.
“That is…”
“It seems you recognize it, Chief. It’s one of the three sacred relics bestowed by the Fairy King upon the mortal realm. I’ve come to restore its power.”
The chief regarded Zeke with a different gaze.
“The Clan of Light, is it?”
“If by the Clan of Light you mean the lineage of Luvern, then yes.”
The druids murmured again at Zeke’s words.
“A Draker is from the Clan of Light?”
“Can a sacred Clan of Light be a scary Draker?”
“I don’t know, it’s scary.”
The druids were simply afraid of Zeke without reason.
The chief glanced at the fallen Michelle and clicked his tongue.
He gestured with his staff.
“Come inside for now.”
Zeke followed the chief into an earthen house.
Inside, the house was surprisingly well-decorated. A clay vase with flowers sat by the window, and beautiful woven patterns and traditional crafts adorned the walls.
“Have a seat here.”
Zeke sat on a cushion on the floor, facing the chief.
The chief settled into his seat and addressed Zeke.
“How did you meet that rascal, Turushino?”
“Turushino? You mean Michelle?”
So Michelle was an alias, Zeke thought.
The chief clicked his tongue and continued.
“That rascal left without permission, claiming to find some miraculous elixir, and it’s been five years. We thought the fool had died somewhere, but suddenly, they bring an outsider here.”
The chief lit a pipe and puffed on it as he spoke.
Zeke explained to the chief.
“Michelle sought an elixir to heal someone.”
He showed the chief the elixir from his inventory.
“Unfortunately, the elixir isn’t a cure, so it can’t heal the illness.”
The chief shook his head.
“I never expected that fool to succeed. They have an unmatched affinity with mystical beasts, but they’re hopelessly inept in other areas.”
Zeke recalled the way Michelle had looked at the Dragon King.
Mystical beasts are usually wary of strangers.
Yet, for some reason, Bucephalus hadn’t been wary of Michelle.
“Was it because of their affinity with mystical beasts?”
The chief spoke to Zeke.
“I understand why you’re here, but you can’t go to the Fairy Lake. You should leave.”
“I can’t do that. To restore this relic, I must reach the Fairy Lake.”
The chief frowned at Zeke’s insistence.
“This isn’t something you can achieve by being stubborn. Leave the mountain.”
Zeke then asked the chief.
“Is this related to the person Michelle mentioned needing healing? They called them the Mountain Lord.”
The village elder took a deep drag from his pipe, exhaling a cloud of smoke as he listened to Zeke.
Through the haze, Zeke spoke with determination. “I am of the Rubern bloodline, a healer by class. As I told Michel, I believe I can treat this ‘Mountain Lord’ you speak of.”
The elder chuckled softly at Zeke’s words. “Healing the Mountain Lord is impossible.”
“And why is that?” Zeke asked, his curiosity piqued.
The elder set his pipe down with a sharp look. “Because the Mountain Lord is not human.”
Zeke furrowed his brow at this revelation. “Is the Mountain Lord a spirit beast?”
The elder nodded solemnly. “Not just any spirit beast, but a divine beast. He has lived here for thousands of years, far beyond the realm of humans. How could a mere human hope to cure such a being?”
Zeke pondered the elder’s words, a realization dawning on him. “Without the Mountain Lord’s power, it seems impossible to reach the Fairy Lake.”
The elder fell silent, confirming Zeke’s suspicion.
Rising from his seat, Zeke proposed, “If there’s no other way, why not let me try? There’s nothing to lose. Take me to the Mountain Lord.”
The elder’s eyebrows twitched, weighing the risk of exposing the Mountain Lord to an outsider. After a moment of hesitation, Zeke added, “I bear the spirit of an Elder Dragon within me and am the successor of the Hero King. Trust me, and take me to him.”
The mention of the Elder Dragon widened the elder’s eyes. He scrutinized Zeke closely before extending his hand. “Place your right hand here.”
Zeke complied, placing his hand in the elder’s. The elder examined Zeke’s palm intently, glancing between it and Zeke’s face, before swallowing hard. “This… this is unbelievable.”
After a long moment, the elder nodded and stood. “Follow me.”
Zeke followed the elder out of the earthen house. Outside, druids and mystical creatures peeked curiously at them. The elder waved his staff, barking, “What are you gawking at? Get back to your duties!”
The crowd dispersed quickly, but the elder called out to a retreating figure. “Turushino! You come with us!”
Michel, caught off guard, stammered, “Why? Are you going to hit me again?”
The elder’s voice boomed with exasperation. “You little brat! Just come here! Oh, to have a grandson like this…”
Zeke realized with surprise that Michel was the elder’s grandson, recalling how Michel had addressed him as ‘grandfather’ earlier.
With Michel in tow, Zeke followed the elder along a narrow path behind the village. The path led to a cave, where the elder and Michel bowed respectfully, hands clasped in prayer. Zeke mimicked their actions, sensing the gravity of the moment.
Inside the cave, they emerged into a bright, lush area filled with vibrant flowers and greenery. Zeke felt a distinct energy, reminiscent of the time he had entered the domain of Poseidon.
Following the elder, Zeke walked into the heart of the flower field, where a solitary tree stood. “The Mountain Lord resides there,” the elder indicated.
As Zeke approached the tree, he was taken aback by the sight of the being resting against it.