Firefly Journey

After Lin Yuanran left, seven or eight people gradually entered the small room.

They can't all be considered human beings.

Among them was a guy who was over two meters tall and looked like a monster. He was the troll McCauley, with snow-white skin, and belonged to the Ice Troll race.

“Everyone’s here, let’s begin,” said Cassius Bello.

Jonathan the werewolf said, "Before you begin your lobbying, I have a question."

"Excuse me."

"What is your relationship with Erillo?"

Eriello the Deceiver, a renowned prophet, whose extraordinary profession is 'The Awakener', is the third awakening name of the 'Diviner' path of the Grim Reaper.

He doesn't belong to any country; he only serves money and interests.

“He has nothing to do with us.” Cassius’s eyes were sincere, not feigning. “He is not the source of information for the Duchy. You have been tricked, and it has nothing to do with the Duchy.”

Upon hearing this, everyone present remained noncommittal. Cassius's words might not be true, and who knew if he was lying? The only certainty was that Cassius did not want to be associated with a con artist.

"I swear in the name of the God of Light."

As he spoke, Cassius raised his right hand.

Those present remained unconvinced; on the contrary, they were even more convinced that he was an accomplice of the fraudster. Swearing by the gods was tantamount to farting; the ancestral gods had long since fallen and could no longer answer the cries of believers.

“I’ve finished asking my questions, and I’m not satisfied with the results. Now, tell me about your plan,” Jonathan said.

The Frost Troll McCauley and everyone else in the room became serious. They had already been fooled, so what else could they do? The most important thing was to try to gain the greatest benefit.

Cassius said, "Currently, I have deduced that the location of the Divine Ruins is deep within the Yedeen Mountains."

The sentence doesn't contain a detailed address, not because Cassius is trying to keep us in suspense, but because the Yedeen Mountains are teeming with magical beasts, and no geological survey team is willing to venture deep into them to create a comprehensive map of the interior.

If it weren't for the appearance of the Divine Ruins, that place would still be a quiet, uninhabited area.

"Based on preliminary assessments, there are at least three great lord-level magical beasts in the mountains. Whether they are ferocious or benevolent is currently unknown," Cassius continued. "Of course, this is not a problem. We can easily drive them away by joining forces. The difficulty lies in the mana required to open the ruins."

"We can join forces to drive away the monsters, and we can also combine our magic to open a door, right?" The troll McCauley said, his two exposed fangs twitching, making him look comical.

Cassius said, "No problem, but as far as I know, the ruins of Krumbo are quite special. They require a constant influx of magical power to maintain the normal operation of the internal space. Otherwise, they will collapse at any time. This is its self-protection mechanism."

Among the visitors, a middle-aged man said, "So that means we can't enter the ruins; we have to maintain stability inside from the outside, right?"

“That’s right.” Cassius nodded. “So, my task and the task of everyone here is just to act as a bridge; getting into the ruins is the business of our fellow travelers.”

Upon hearing this, Macaulay snapped, "I came by myself."

Maintaining the ruins with you? What would I get in return?

"Don't worry." Cassius had already considered this: "I will try my best to satisfy your desires. I mean, the Duchy will try its best to satisfy them."

Macaulay snorted, "That's more like it."

The Frost Trolls live in the northern tundra of the Duchy and the Debasa Empire, where resources are scarce. If the Duchy can provide some assistance, they can accept it even if they don't get the benefits from the ruins.

Immediately, Cassius Bello looked at the middle-aged man: "Sir, you're not a local, are you?"

The term "local" has many interpretations. In a narrow sense, anyone who is not from the principality is considered a foreigner.

However, what Cassius is referring to here is not so simple, but rather in a broader sense, so broader that it transcends the entire supercontinent.

The middle-aged man was very honest and introduced himself: "My name is Lumer, I come from Chestanton, the city of progress, and I am a member of 'Wings of the Machine'."

The Winged Machines worship Remington, the god of machinery and technology, another great deity besides the Seven Ancestors.

His birth changed the way of life in the world. Magic was no longer the only supernatural power. Alchemy came into being, and all sorts of convenient inventions emerged.

His contributions to the world are almost on par with those of the ancestral gods. Due to his great achievements, he is also known as the 'Eighth Ancestral God' by later generations.

“Friend from across the sea? It’s a pleasure to have you here.” Cassius extended his hand politely.

Lu Mo smiled, clasped his hands together, and then separated them.

Jonathan's eyes flickered with doubt. Chestanton was thousands of miles away from the Rhine, and had to cross the Stormy Sea in between. How did he find it by smell?

Are fraudsters' businesses really that extensive?

What was the purpose of luring him here?

Working for free?

A series of questions suddenly arose, and Jonathan had a premonition that this matter was not simple. Considering Cassius's intention to try his best to distance himself from the conspiracy with Erillo, it was hard not to suspect that they had something fishy going on.

It's not a good feeling to be a chess piece while others are playing chess, but you can't break the deadlock and can only go with the flow. This feeling is the most helpless.

“Let’s set a time,” McCauley said.

"Ten days later, gather everyone and we'll go open the ancient god's ruins."

Cassius had already set the date; otherwise, he wouldn't have invited everyone.

"There's another question: how should we distribute the items in the ruins?" Jonathan's question reflected the true thoughts of everyone present except for Macaulay.

This involves my own interests, so I can't help but care.

Cassius's words were simple and direct: "It's all about skill."

"It's all about ability," everyone thought to themselves, but no one objected. Once inside, what they got depended entirely on luck. And luck is always unpredictable, meaning everyone had a chance—wasn't that a kind of fairness?

"After this incident is over, I hope everyone will keep quiet. The Duchy does not want to hear any gossip."

Before leaving, Cassius gave everyone some instructions.

Everyone agreed that this was not a good thing. What if they actually found something good in the ruins and then went around boasting about it? Wouldn't that be harming themselves?

After seeing everyone off, Cassius sculpted a clay figure and said softly, "If the Pope and those people in the National Council knew, they would be furious, wouldn't they?"

He chuckled softly. "Tell Erillo that I've arranged everything he asked me to do, and I hope he'll keep his promise."

"Go."

The little clay figure jumped out of the window and slowly walked forward.

Cassius picked up the book, placed it on the table, and then took out a notebook with a page torn out, taking notes as he read.

It's hard to imagine that a teacher is doing the same things as a student.

They are even more serious about it.