Chapter 40: Ancient Remnants

Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

In fact, the ancient ruins or remnants in Gawain memory were not far from the party’s encampment. It was located to the north of the Dark Range. Most parts of it were hidden in the mountains, and a part of it was exposed between the cliffs. Looking at the Dark Range from a distance, one should be able to see the old structure between the cliffs several hundred meters above ground.

However, it was just that the passage of time had erased the traces of civilization. A large number of spreading vines and mountain vegetation covered the rock walls of the ancient structure. Coupled with the collapse of the historical remnants and the accumulation of dirt and rocks between the cliffs, the exposed structure outside the mountain could hardly be seen. Standing at the encampment and looking towards the mountain, even the best hunter would find it difficult to find anything out of the ordinary among all the rocks and vines.

After administering to some matters at the camp, Gawain and the party of four set off for the mountains. Mere decades would not see much change in natural terrains. Utilizing the decade old satellite view and the route toward the mountain from his memory, Gawain and the party found the route that would lead them up the mountain successfully.

Amber seemed a little worried. “Uh… you’re going to dig for treasure in the Dark Range, and we only have four people in total. Don’t you think the size of this party is a little worrying?”

Gawain looked at the half-elf. “What do you think is appropriate then?”

Amber gestured. “At least bring a few hundred people to guard us on the way, a dozen master-level rangers and druids to provide support, knights to take the point, mages overseeing from the rear, and then a grandmaster-level bandit like me will be in charge of picking locks, breaking and entering. Isn’t that a standard deployment for treasure hunting in the mountains?”

AnimeDaily.Net

“Bull!” Gawain initially thought that this sh*t would have useful insight, but it turned out to be nonsense. “Which treasure hunting party is deployed the same way an army does! And you can say it as it is so easy. Why don’t you organize such a deployment for me?”

“Okay, I was exaggerating a little. But it’s the Dark Range! The Dark Range!” Amber waved her arms exaggeratedly. “Legend says that it is a place where there is a demon lord every eight hundred meters! You’re bringing three people into the mountains, and one of them can only cast fireballs… ”

“Believe it or not. I can beat you down without even using a fireball!” Rebecca suddenly burst out, holding up her staff, and pointing at Amber. “I’ll show you the power of Cecil women!”

Gawain stopped his (n+1)th great-granddaughter, and looked at Amber in resignation. “Sooner or later, your mouth will be the death of you. And where did you hear that a demon lord lives every eight hundred meters in the Dark Range? These are all just tales used by ignorant villagers to scare children, alright? If there were really that many demon lords, they would have already swept their way across Anzu.”

With that said, he looked up at the winding mountain route ahead.

“The Dark Range is indeed a dangerous place, but ordinary folks have exaggerated its danger. In fact, during the Gondor Empire, this mountain range was just one of the ordinary northern mountains. Together with the mountains in the southern border, they were called the Lolands, the two mountain systems in the north and south. Back then, the Dark Range wasn’t dark at all, but because of its rich natural resources and the production of a variety of minerals, it was known as the “Gold Mountain.” Unfortunately, the Dark Wave occurred, and the Dark Range happened to be facing the most violent part of the elemental storm, the entire southern foot of the mountain range was eroded by elemental power, thus forming the terrifying Black Forest. Then this mountain range gradually became known as the Dark Range.”

Part of his knowledge was from his own memory, and the other parts were from recent cramming.

“The Black Forest opposite the mountain is indeed dangerous, but it is located on the southern side of the mountain range. This mountain range is a natural barrier that almost fully keeps out the air from the Gondor wastelands that permeated through the Great Barrier. The vast majority of the aberrations in the forest need to rely on chaotic magic to survive, so they definitely will not leave the Black Forest, let alone crossing the ridge and come to the mountainous area up north that is as good as suffocating themselves. Thus, the northern side of the Dark Range is actually quite safe.”

The route that Gawain had chosen was not covered with too much vegetation, but occasionally, there would be trees and vines that blocked the road. These robust plants around the Dark Range would still be affected by the air from the wastelands. It was the “elemental winds” (that is, the contaminated air that Viscount Andrew spoke of) that traveled from the south every year carried by seasonal winds. Under the influence of those chaotic elemental powers, the plants appeared twisted and unusually thicker in quite a sinister manner.

But Gawain understood that apart from looking a little scary, these things were practically not a threat at all. They were just “stronger” plants. Those nobles who took a walk around the forest north of the Dark Range and returned home boasting that they had been to the Black Forest were all exaggerating the danger of this land. They had no idea what the real Black Forest looked like.

The reason he could confirm that the pollution north of the Dark Range had subsided was not because he had learned from the inherited memory or asked around about it, but because of the decade old satellite image in his mind.

By comparing the satellite image to the information obtained from the memory, he could easily determine this was already a safe area.

“The people’s fear of this place come from two sources. Firstly, it is from the fear of the Gondor wastelands. Although the sentinel towers and Great Barriers built by the elves sealed up most of the Gondor wastelands, the magic barrier could only isolate about 70% or 80% of the chaotic energy. The corrupting forces leaking from the Gondor wastelands every year are the biggest threat to the bordering areas. Even if the Dark Wave has subsided, the fear and stress accumulated upon the people who live at the borders from generation to generation would not dissipate so easily. The horror stories have been spreading in these border areas for seven hundred years. It has almost already become a part of their culture,” Gawain said as he chopped the plants that blocked the way,” and he said casually, “Secondly… it is from the fear of the unknown. ”

“Unknown?” Amber asked, frowning.

“Yes, unknown. How many years has Anzu Kingdom stopped opening up lands in the south?”

Rebecca was the one who answered. “If you count from the signing of the decree to when they stopped pioneering, that will be more than two hundred years. If you count from the time when all pioneering and settlement rights were revoked, it will be one hundred years.”

“Yes, it’s a hundred years to say the least. For a hundred years, this place was listed as a forbidden area. Except for those ‘adventurers’ who boast about coming here, no one dares to come near. Thus no one actually know what this place looks like. They can only learn about this place from the horror stories that have been passed down from generation to generation and the brave stories from those adventurers. How could they not be afraid?”

Hearing Gawain talking so much on this popular science, Amber finally heaved a breath of relief. “Phew… So those horror stories of the Dark Range are just hyperbole, and we will actually be safe here?”

Gawain thought for a moment. Then he suddenly made a scary expression in the half-elf girl’s face. “Actually I was kidding. This place is dark, dangerous, chaotic, terrifying, and there is a demon lord every 800 meters.”

Amber: “… EEooooee!!”

“What happened to the grandmaster-level bandit? What an embarrassment.” Gawain smirked delightedly, raised his hand to pat Rebecca’s head, and pointed to a trunk lying across the ground not far away. “Your fireball will be useful here. Light it up. If I remember correctly, it’s just up ahead.”

Rebecca had waited for this moment for a long time. Immediately, she happily nodded, raised her staff and threw a head-sized fireball straight ahead.

It seemed like the girl was shooting the fireball faster than before…

“Boom——”

Upon a loud bang, the fireball exploded, and the rotten, weak trunk was blown apart in the center. It broke up into two, losing their stability as they rolled down the hill, and the road ahead was suddenly opened up.

An open space hidden in the mountains appeared.

This open field seemed to have been intentionally leveled by someone. The rocks had been cut into incredibly neat shapes. Between the rocks were an ancient arched door and collapsed walls. They seemed to have been embedded within the rocks of the cliff, looking as though there was once a magnificent fortress that had been swallowed by the surrounding rocks.

But in fact, this ancient remains was built inside the mountain itself, and about two-thirds of its structure was hidden behind the stone wall.

Amber, who had been scared all the time she was on the road, Rebecca, who had been listening to the ancestor’s lectures, and Knight Byron, who was on full alert, could not help but stare with eyes wide opened at the ancient remnants hidden in the mountain.

They stared at this incredible ancient ruins in amazement.

Gawain’s eyes roved around and suddenly stopped beside some collapsed stones.

He went to the pile of stones. There was a black thing stuck in the pile, that was very different from how it originally looked. After discerning for a long time, he realized that it was heavily rusted, broken sword.

On the ground beside the stone pile, there was a line of carvings. They were so deep that even after seven hundred years of weathering, it was still legible. “Sixteenth Squad, Cole died here.”

Rebecca’s voice came from behind him. “What is… this?”

“Back then, when the party crossed the White River, they encountered pursuers. The Sixteenth Squad was in charge of taking the rear. None of them survived,” Gawain said slowly. “He is probably the last surviving soldier, who retreated to this place, after losing hope of breaking out. It’s a pity… the Dark Wave was surging violently, and the entire Dark Range was shrouded in the decaying force. When I was alive, we were unable to recapture this area. When the Dark Wave naturally subsided, no one remembered this place anymore…”

Knight Byron unsheathed his sword, pressed it against his chest, and bowed respectfully at the simple tomb.

This soldier had a tomb here, but there was not a trace of the warrior who made this tomb and left the carvings.

Gawain spent a moment of silence before the tomb. Then he picked up a stone and stacked it on top of the pile. “Relax. Everyone is alive now.”

In that moment, he wished he could say it in Gawain Cecil’s voice, and not in the voice of Gawain, the transmigrator.

Then he walked to the arched door nearby. “Follow me, I will show you what your ancestors left behind here back then.”

Chapter 40: Ancient Remnants

Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

In fact, the ancient ruins or remnants in Gawain memory were not far from the party’s encampment. It was located to the north of the Dark Range. Most parts of it were hidden in the mountains, and a part of it was exposed between the cliffs. Looking at the Dark Range from a distance, one should be able to see the old structure between the cliffs several hundred meters above ground.

However, it was just that the passage of time had erased the traces of civilization. A large number of spreading vines and mountain vegetation covered the rock walls of the ancient structure. Coupled with the collapse of the historical remnants and the accumulation of dirt and rocks between the cliffs, the exposed structure outside the mountain could hardly be seen. Standing at the encampment and looking towards the mountain, even the best hunter would find it difficult to find anything out of the ordinary among all the rocks and vines.

After administering to some matters at the camp, Gawain and the party of four set off for the mountains. Mere decades would not see much change in natural terrains. Utilizing the decade old satellite view and the route toward the mountain from his memory, Gawain and the party found the route that would lead them up the mountain successfully.

Amber seemed a little worried. “Uh… you’re going to dig for treasure in the Dark Range, and we only have four people in total. Don’t you think the size of this party is a little worrying?”

Gawain looked at the half-elf. “What do you think is appropriate then?”

Amber gestured. “At least bring a few hundred people to guard us on the way, a dozen master-level rangers and druids to provide support, knights to take the point, mages overseeing from the rear, and then a grandmaster-level bandit like me will be in charge of picking locks, breaking and entering. Isn’t that a standard deployment for treasure hunting in the mountains?”

AnimeDaily.Net

“Bull!” Gawain initially thought that this sh*t would have useful insight, but it turned out to be nonsense. “Which treasure hunting party is deployed the same way an army does! And you can say it as it is so easy. Why don’t you organize such a deployment for me?”

“Okay, I was exaggerating a little. But it’s the Dark Range! The Dark Range!” Amber waved her arms exaggeratedly. “Legend says that it is a place where there is a demon lord every eight hundred meters! You’re bringing three people into the mountains, and one of them can only cast fireballs… ”

“Believe it or not. I can beat you down without even using a fireball!” Rebecca suddenly burst out, holding up her staff, and pointing at Amber. “I’ll show you the power of Cecil women!”

Gawain stopped his (n+1)th great-granddaughter, and looked at Amber in resignation. “Sooner or later, your mouth will be the death of you. And where did you hear that a demon lord lives every eight hundred meters in the Dark Range? These are all just tales used by ignorant villagers to scare children, alright? If there were really that many demon lords, they would have already swept their way across Anzu.”

With that said, he looked up at the winding mountain route ahead.

“The Dark Range is indeed a dangerous place, but ordinary folks have exaggerated its danger. In fact, during the Gondor Empire, this mountain range was just one of the ordinary northern mountains. Together with the mountains in the southern border, they were called the Lolands, the two mountain systems in the north and south. Back then, the Dark Range wasn’t dark at all, but because of its rich natural resources and the production of a variety of minerals, it was known as the “Gold Mountain.” Unfortunately, the Dark Wave occurred, and the Dark Range happened to be facing the most violent part of the elemental storm, the entire southern foot of the mountain range was eroded by elemental power, thus forming the terrifying Black Forest. Then this mountain range gradually became known as the Dark Range.”

Part of his knowledge was from his own memory, and the other parts were from recent cramming.

“The Black Forest opposite the mountain is indeed dangerous, but it is located on the southern side of the mountain range. This mountain range is a natural barrier that almost fully keeps out the air from the Gondor wastelands that permeated through the Great Barrier. The vast majority of the aberrations in the forest need to rely on chaotic magic to survive, so they definitely will not leave the Black Forest, let alone crossing the ridge and come to the mountainous area up north that is as good as suffocating themselves. Thus, the northern side of the Dark Range is actually quite safe.”

The route that Gawain had chosen was not covered with too much vegetation, but occasionally, there would be trees and vines that blocked the road. These robust plants around the Dark Range would still be affected by the air from the wastelands. It was the “elemental winds” (that is, the contaminated air that Viscount Andrew spoke of) that traveled from the south every year carried by seasonal winds. Under the influence of those chaotic elemental powers, the plants appeared twisted and unusually thicker in quite a sinister manner.

But Gawain understood that apart from looking a little scary, these things were practically not a threat at all. They were just “stronger” plants. Those nobles who took a walk around the forest north of the Dark Range and returned home boasting that they had been to the Black Forest were all exaggerating the danger of this land. They had no idea what the real Black Forest looked like.

The reason he could confirm that the pollution north of the Dark Range had subsided was not because he had learned from the inherited memory or asked around about it, but because of the decade old satellite image in his mind.

By comparing the satellite image to the information obtained from the memory, he could easily determine this was already a safe area.

“The people’s fear of this place come from two sources. Firstly, it is from the fear of the Gondor wastelands. Although the sentinel towers and Great Barriers built by the elves sealed up most of the Gondor wastelands, the magic barrier could only isolate about 70% or 80% of the chaotic energy. The corrupting forces leaking from the Gondor wastelands every year are the biggest threat to the bordering areas. Even if the Dark Wave has subsided, the fear and stress accumulated upon the people who live at the borders from generation to generation would not dissipate so easily. The horror stories have been spreading in these border areas for seven hundred years. It has almost already become a part of their culture,” Gawain said as he chopped the plants that blocked the way,” and he said casually, “Secondly… it is from the fear of the unknown. ”

“Unknown?” Amber asked, frowning.

“Yes, unknown. How many years has Anzu Kingdom stopped opening up lands in the south?”

Rebecca was the one who answered. “If you count from the signing of the decree to when they stopped pioneering, that will be more than two hundred years. If you count from the time when all pioneering and settlement rights were revoked, it will be one hundred years.”

“Yes, it’s a hundred years to say the least. For a hundred years, this place was listed as a forbidden area. Except for those ‘adventurers’ who boast about coming here, no one dares to come near. Thus no one actually know what this place looks like. They can only learn about this place from the horror stories that have been passed down from generation to generation and the brave stories from those adventurers. How could they not be afraid?”

Hearing Gawain talking so much on this popular science, Amber finally heaved a breath of relief. “Phew… So those horror stories of the Dark Range are just hyperbole, and we will actually be safe here?”

Gawain thought for a moment. Then he suddenly made a scary expression in the half-elf girl’s face. “Actually I was kidding. This place is dark, dangerous, chaotic, terrifying, and there is a demon lord every 800 meters.”

Amber: “… EEooooee!!”

“What happened to the grandmaster-level bandit? What an embarrassment.” Gawain smirked delightedly, raised his hand to pat Rebecca’s head, and pointed to a trunk lying across the ground not far away. “Your fireball will be useful here. Light it up. If I remember correctly, it’s just up ahead.”

Rebecca had waited for this moment for a long time. Immediately, she happily nodded, raised her staff and threw a head-sized fireball straight ahead.

It seemed like the girl was shooting the fireball faster than before…

“Boom——”

Upon a loud bang, the fireball exploded, and the rotten, weak trunk was blown apart in the center. It broke up into two, losing their stability as they rolled down the hill, and the road ahead was suddenly opened up.

An open space hidden in the mountains appeared.

This open field seemed to have been intentionally leveled by someone. The rocks had been cut into incredibly neat shapes. Between the rocks were an ancient arched door and collapsed walls. They seemed to have been embedded within the rocks of the cliff, looking as though there was once a magnificent fortress that had been swallowed by the surrounding rocks.

But in fact, this ancient remains was built inside the mountain itself, and about two-thirds of its structure was hidden behind the stone wall.

Amber, who had been scared all the time she was on the road, Rebecca, who had been listening to the ancestor’s lectures, and Knight Byron, who was on full alert, could not help but stare with eyes wide opened at the ancient remnants hidden in the mountain.

They stared at this incredible ancient ruins in amazement.

Gawain’s eyes roved around and suddenly stopped beside some collapsed stones.

He went to the pile of stones. There was a black thing stuck in the pile, that was very different from how it originally looked. After discerning for a long time, he realized that it was heavily rusted, broken sword.

On the ground beside the stone pile, there was a line of carvings. They were so deep that even after seven hundred years of weathering, it was still legible. “Sixteenth Squad, Cole died here.”

Rebecca’s voice came from behind him. “What is… this?”

“Back then, when the party crossed the White River, they encountered pursuers. The Sixteenth Squad was in charge of taking the rear. None of them survived,” Gawain said slowly. “He is probably the last surviving soldier, who retreated to this place, after losing hope of breaking out. It’s a pity… the Dark Wave was surging violently, and the entire Dark Range was shrouded in the decaying force. When I was alive, we were unable to recapture this area. When the Dark Wave naturally subsided, no one remembered this place anymore…”

Knight Byron unsheathed his sword, pressed it against his chest, and bowed respectfully at the simple tomb.

This soldier had a tomb here, but there was not a trace of the warrior who made this tomb and left the carvings.

Gawain spent a moment of silence before the tomb. Then he picked up a stone and stacked it on top of the pile. “Relax. Everyone is alive now.”

In that moment, he wished he could say it in Gawain Cecil’s voice, and not in the voice of Gawain, the transmigrator.

Then he walked to the arched door nearby. “Follow me, I will show you what your ancestors left behind here back then.”