The Rupak flew above a certain rock protrusion along the side of a hill. It was where a rectangular hole was in the ground. Recalling the shape and size of the hole atop the hill in the Gro Mining Village, Re’Kha determined that the two were similar.

And, there was a rugged path the two people from the forest village could have used to follow. After all, the slope of the hill in the place wasn’t steep. It could be traversed on foot, though it might take time. But, it was a task that could be achieved overnight.

The three then returned to the forest village and packed their belongings. As for the corpses of the two Golpas, they left them to the villagers for safekeeping. They neither had the strength nor the time to dissect it.

They informed the villagers that if they had the time during their return, they would pick up the corpses of the two Golpas. Otherwise, the villagers could send them through the next Erki that might arrive during month-end. The Burkurel Re Clan would reimburse them for the cost.

Even though a Golpa wasn’t valuable when compared to other beasts, it still had a couple of body parts that might be useful for creating elemental weapons, especially its claws and spring-like legs.

Upon exiting the forest village, Re’Kha pulled open a scroll, “Let’s deal with all the missions related to the beasts first. There are only two more left. We’ll finish them tonight itself and focus on the missions related to the Sha tomorrow.”

Re’Gra looked through her scrolls, saying his piece, “The mission location of a Sha is quite near to the village with the final beast problem. So, let’s deal with it in the morning.”

“Alright,” Re’Kha nodded, feeling that Re’Gra did make a point. Even though a Sha could move freely during both the day and the night without getting affected by anything, it was better to fight it during the day since they wouldn’t have trouble seeing.

Moreover, as they would be able to see the Sha clearly, the fear they experience would be lower than when they fought the same Sha during the night. So objectively speaking, it was better to deal with a Sha during the day.

“The first village is situated within a valley while the second is situated at a cliff. It would be hard to reach their locations even on foot.” Re’Dha frowned when he peeked into the scrolls.

The three then travelled through the uneven plain. There was a cluster of hills and mountains in the region. And, due to the rocky terrain, no cities had been constructed nearby. And, it consisted of a wide stretch of land that wasn’t within the range of any City, both in their state and the nearby state on their east.

So, it created a vast stretch of unmanned lands where numerous villages lived in hiding, having lived in the place for generations. Some were small while quite a few were big. But not all of them transacted with a City or a Settlement.

After all, most of them turned self-sufficient.

As they approached an area where they could see a cluster of hills situated close to one another, as if they were split into pieces from a unified whole, Re’Gra spoke, “This place probably has the highest number of villages. Just the official number alone is in the three digits.”

Re’Kha took in a sharp breath of shock, “Then, why hasn’t a city been built her yet? Wouldn’t it be better for us and the Bura Fort if a city appeared here?”

“It is because some of the villages here have been around for more than two centuries. So, they have become accustomed to this way of lifestyle. And besides,” Re’Gra spoke, “The numerous villages have formed their own organisation to sustain themselves. They have adapted to the place and are able to deal with the threats that appear in the area accordingly.”

“Then, why have they asked for our help?” Re’Dha frowned, unable to understand. “If they are so self-servient, can’t they take care of their problems themselves?”

“The losses might have been severe so they had no other choice but to do so. We can’t say for sure until we talk with them,” Re’Gra said as they arrived at the foothill of one of the first hills among the cluster.

And, situated a bit farther was a village. It was located in a valley that seemed to have been made by splitting a hill into two with a blade. Soon, the trio made their way towards it, noticing that the village was surrounded by stone walls.

Rather than stone walls, they were just a series of boulders that have been lined up accordingly and chiselled around the outer edges to create a wall. Surrounding the boulders was a wall of wood that acted as the first line of defence.

And, the entrance to the village was a wooden platform attached to a pulley. When someone stood on it, the people of the village would pull the platform up. And when it reached the top of the wall, the people could enter the village.

As the trio arrived, the villagers noticed their approach, lowering the wooden platform in advance. After all, their getup—the Re Clan’s dress—and the bright blue gems on their Tikka jewellery were enough proof.

The group stood on the platform with their horses, watching the platform be pulled up at a slow pace. Eventually, once they reached the top, they were able to see a vast place that could almost not be called a village anymore.

“There are…at least two to three thousand people here,” Re’Dha said, gazing at the vast valley whose entrance was occupied by rows of houses. And, quite a few of them had been lodged into the hill walls, peeking out a little.

It was a bustling place, judging by the plethora of activities. Moreover, from time to time, people arrived at the village from the other side. They seemed to be from the numerous other villages located in the place.

As Re’Kha looked father away, she was able to notice a couple of other villages that were entirely lodged into the walls, living accordingly in a vertical world.