Chapter 1258: The Ubiquitous Magic Mark

“Are you sure it’s really okay to bring these two little ones along?” High King Gawain’s gaze shifted away from the two young dragons and turned toward Melita. “They’re still just children…”

Melita didn’t even look back as she replied steadily, “The deep blue magic marks on them are a crucial clue—and a huge mystery. If we don’t get to the bottom of this, we’ll only be left with longer-lasting worries.” Her tone was calm, clearly reflecting deep thought on the matter. “Among all the hatchlings, Meri and Nore’s magic mark reactions are the strongest. After Chairman Andar and several ancient dragons familiar with the deep blue ley lines examined their bodies, they unanimously agreed that only by bringing them near the Reverse Tide Tower could we hope to observe any faint traces—anything that might explain why their magic marks flare up and cause them to become restless, always turning toward the tower…”

Melita paused for a few seconds, then sighed softly. “Of course, there’s some risk involved. But healing always carries risk… That night, the magic marks on the two little ones doubled in size. Who knows what other changes might come next? Rather than sitting here in ignorance, waiting for things to unfold, Noretta and I both agree it’s worth taking a little risk.”

“You two are their mothers, so naturally the decision is yours,” Gawain said after a moment’s thought, his voice slow and measured. “Be careful. No one really knows what that tower is like now…”

A low, soft growl rumbled from Melita’s throat. Then, as if sensing something, her gaze shifted toward the distance. In the dim twilight, faint lights flickered along the coastline—that was the watch post on the west coast. Far out over the vast sea ahead, a bright red flare suddenly shot up into the sky. With a loud bang, it exploded, scattering a vivid red glow that stood out starkly against the night.

The two playful hatchlings immediately stopped their antics, their attention drawn to the bursting flare overhead. They cheered and ran to their mother’s shoulders, craning their necks and excitedly chattering at the slowly descending red light on the horizon.

“That’s the sea where the Wintertide is stationed,” Gawain took a couple of steps forward, smiling as he looked toward the flare’s direction. “Looks like Byron’s right on schedule.”

…

Under the polar night’s shroud, the Wintertide and two multi-role escort ships gently bobbed with the waves. A biting cold wind blew in from afar. Foam and scattered bits of ice on the sea’s surface shimmered under the starlight with a pale, almost ghostly hue. Farther out, looming over the waters, stood the towering giant.

Even the most seasoned Imperial Navy sailors felt their hearts tighten at the sight of that colossal tower. Even admirals who had weathered decades of storms instinctively held their breath when they saw it.

Byron stood on the upper deck of the Wintertide, staring toward the tower. Bathed in starlight, the massive structure loomed like a giant indifferent sentinel, coldly watching over the sea. He muttered quietly to the red-haired woman beside him, “No matter how many times I see it, that thing still scares me… Before coming here, I tried to imagine what this legendary tower might look like—something so formidable even His Majesty treats it with utmost caution. Now I realize my imagination wasn’t nearly enough…”

Asralena stood next to Byron, clearly shaken by the tower’s imposing presence. She lowered her voice instinctively. “I heard from His Majesty Balrogar that this tower isn’t even the largest ‘legacy’ left by the Wayfinders. On the planet’s surface alone, there are two other ancient structures even bigger than this.”

Byron was momentarily at a loss for words. After a long pause, he finally said, “…Our human perspective was far too narrow.”

Asralena glanced at him. “It’s rare to hear something so thoughtful come from you.”

“…I suspect you’re mocking me, but I have no proof,” Byron said with a twitch of his lips. Then he frowned slightly, turning his gaze to the Dragonmark witch beside him. “But then again… even though you were ordered from home to accompany us to Talrond to investigate the Reverse Tide Tower incident, your superiors didn’t exactly say you had to come all the way out to this ‘frontline,’ did they? Isn’t this a bit risky?”

Asralena gave him a half-smile and raised an eyebrow. “You’re worried about the safety of someone who could probably take on ten of you? You’d be better off worrying about your own health—you’re no longer the young man you once were.”

Byron shrugged, about to say more, when suddenly a bright red flare shot up from the foredeck, exploding into a wide, glowing curtain of light that interrupted him.

Byron immediately recalled the mission protocols. Looking toward the west coast of Talrond, under the starlit night, his extraordinary vision quickly caught sight of massive shapes streaking across the sky—the dragon squad had arrived.

Dozens of powerful dragons flew in from Talrond’s direction, cloaked in starlight and cold wind, skimming over the icy polar sea. As they neared the Wintertide, they cast spells like glittering flashes and glowing orbs on themselves to serve as guiding lights. At the same time, the Wintertide lit several deck lamps to help guide their landing on the water’s surface.

The deck had been cleared, sailors ordered to move to the bridge and connecting corridors for safety.

Byron and Asralena stood together in the upper deck’s “no-landing zone,” looking up as the massive forms drew closer. They watched the majestic wings blot out the stars, then saw each dragon enveloped in a shimmering light, transforming into human form—just like Asralena had once done. These mighty dragon warriors leapt from heights of tens or even hundreds of meters, landing one after another on the Wintertide’s reinforced steel deck. Each landing sent a thunderous “boom” echoing through the night.

Byron’s eyes widened. From the first dragon warrior’s landing, he instinctively shouted, “Hey! My deck!”

“I told you, dragons always land like this,” Asralena quipped, seizing the moment to tease. “Especially when you’re landing on a ship surrounded by sea on all sides. The precision and reflexes required are insane—you have to start aiming and dropping from far away…”

“That’s not your ship, so you don’t care,” Byron shot her a look. Before he could finish, another loud “boom!” came from the deck. He nearly teared up in pain. “Hey! My deck!!”

And so the Wintertide’s deck echoed with this chorus:

“Boom!” “The deck!” “Boom—” “My deck!” “Boom, boom!” “Two at once… my deck!” “Splash!!” “Hey, my… huh?”

Amid the dragons’ dignified landings, a strange sound suddenly slipped in. Byron’s pained shouts were cut off. He looked uncertainly toward the deck, then turned to Asralena. “Did you hear something… different just now?”

“I didn’t notice,” Asralena replied casually. “But I think I saw a few shadows fall from the side…”

Before she finished, Byron heard an unusual flapping sound nearby—not like the usual dragon flight. He quickly turned to see two hatchlings flapping their wings furiously, flying up from beneath the port side. The little ones were clearly straining, as if bearing burdens far beyond their years. When they finally reached the ship’s rail, Byron saw what was going on: each hatchling was clutching a person. One was Amber, her face full of curiosity; the other was Melita, looking a bit embarrassed.

Then Gawain appeared in Byron’s line of sight, stepping up from midair outside the rail as if climbing invisible stairs. He pointed at Melita, who was dripping wet, and shouted, “You should’ve said something if your eyesight was bad!”

Byron: “…” Asralena: “…”

But this little incident went mostly unnoticed. Most eyes were fixed on the dragons landing on deck. Even the sailors who glimpsed the odd scene outside quickly turned away, pretending not to see. Moments later, Gawain, Amber, Melita, and the two hatchlings had reached Byron. Gawain was stirring the seawater dripping from his body with magic, speaking awkwardly, “There was a small accident just now…”

Byron, a straightforward knight, knew the right response: “I didn’t see a thing!”

Gawain: “…Alright, let’s head to the main deck.”

They moved to the main deck, where the entire dragon combat squad Melita had brought had landed and assembled. They also saw Noretta standing at the front of the group—Victoria and Modir were beside the white dragon maiden.

Noretta looked surprised and curious when she saw Melita. “Where did you go just now? I didn’t see you…”

Melita awkwardly turned her head. “Don’t ask. Even if I knew, I wouldn’t tell you—so just don’t ask.”

Noretta found it odd but, after studying her friend’s expression, decided to suppress her curiosity for now. She stepped aside to reveal a tall, imposing male dragon standing behind her. “This is Magnar, captain of the west coast watch sentinels. He arrived at the Wintertide ahead of us.”

Only then did Melita notice the presence of a dragon warrior not from New Argondor. She sized him up, her expression serious and respectful. “Greetings, Sentinel. You’ve been stationed here all along?”

“Greetings to you as well,” said Magnar, the sentinel captain, his face grave. “My team and I have been stationed on the west coast for the past several months. Our eyes have never left that tower.”

“Then it sounds like you can provide us with some very valuable intelligence,” Gawain said from the side.

“Of course,” the captain nodded. “Feel free to ask me anything. I know all the changes on the west coast over the past few months.”

“The main focus is that tower,” Melita said immediately. “You’ve been monitoring it constantly—has it changed at all recently? Especially in the last two days.”

“From what I can see, there’s nothing unusual,” the sentinel captain said slowly, shaking his head with firm certainty. “The war on Talrond’s mainland hasn’t affected that tower. It remains exactly as it has for the past million years. At every post, we keep at least three pairs of eyes on that tower at all times, rotating shifts seamlessly every day. Ever since we established long-range communication, we’ve maintained constant contact with the rear lines. Throughout this period, the tower has appeared completely normal.”

“What about the west coast?” Melita asked immediately. “Have you noticed anything strange around your garrison?”

“If you mean anomalies caused by knowledge corruption… no,” the captain shook his head again. “Our post is stationed on a broken stretch of city wall along the west coast. Around the outpost, there’s only ruins—no intelligent life, so no chance of corrupted individuals. As for farther inland… when we had the resources, we sent out search parties. We found a few scattered survivors in the ruined cities closer to the interior, but none showed signs of corruption. After thorough screening, those survivors were sent back to the rear. You should already be aware of that.”

“…Yes, we know about that,” Noretta said softly from the side, exhaling quietly before locking eyes with the captain. “But aside from the conclusion that ‘everything is normal,’ has anything suspicious, abnormal, or unusual happened? Or even just something you personally think is worth reporting?”

“There is,” the sentinel captain surprised Gawain by nodding. He then reached into his gear and pulled out an object, handing it over. “I found this by chance during my patrol yesterday evening. I haven’t had a chance to report it back yet. It doesn’t seem connected to the tower, but I think… it’s somewhat special.”

All eyes immediately focused on the object in the captain’s hand. Gawain instinctively leaned in to get a better look.

It was a stone, about the size of a fist.

An ordinary-looking rock, as if picked up casually from the roadside—dark in color, heavy in texture.

“A stone?” Melita raised an eyebrow. “What’s so special about this stone?”

“Right now, it looks ordinary. But when I picked it up, it was emitting a steady blue glow. Even now…” The captain’s voice trailed off as he began to channel a small amount of magic into the stone. A faint humming filled the air, and the blackened surface suddenly revealed glowing, flowing patterns like watermarks. A brilliant azure light seeped from the hidden veins within the stone, bathing it in a mysterious, radiant glow beneath the night sky. “As long as you infuse it with a bit of magic, it changes like this.”

Behind Amber, two young dragons who had been scanning the deck suddenly cried out, their eyes fixed intently on the stone in the captain’s hand.

Gawain’s mind clicked into place instantly.

“Deep Blue Magic Mark?! They’re even appearing on stones now?!”

(End of chapter)