Chapter 4: Ancient Dragon
As the sun set, the main city of Moldavia began to bustle with activity in the evening.
Adventurers and hunters returning from their explorations of the Black Forest and the Great Aias Mountains exchanged their spoils for rewards, then gathered in groups of three or five near the taverns and trade streets. These adventurers, who had endured over ten days or even longer of hardship, knew they couldn't spend all their earnings if they wanted to develop further in the future, but they also understood that indulging for one night was a good way to relax. Thus, the gleam of gold coins shone at the counters, and hearty laughter and the clinking of glasses echoed through the streets.
Continuing past the brightly lit commercial street, one reached the central square of the city. The faint rays of the setting sun, as they illuminated this area, were soon replaced by another kind of light.
In front of the central square, there had originally been a pool used to store water for fire prevention. However, since Joshua had taken over, it had undergone multiple renovations. Now, the pool had been transformed into a large fountain. The clear, flowing water, purified by a magical array, could not only be drunk directly but could also, when necessary, transform into several water elementals that would automatically extinguish any detected fires—combining aesthetics with practicality. Its only flaw was that it couldn't be used in winter, as the mage who created the fountain hadn't yet reached the level required for ice-water elemental conversion.
At the center of the fountain was an ice-blue gemstone with a texture resembling crystal. Besides serving as the core of the magical array, this gem also provided illumination at night. When night fell, its cold, pale blue light refracted through the fountain, creating a breathtakingly beautiful scene that was very popular among the citizens.
Now, as the sun dipped below the horizon, the ice-blue cold light refracted in front of the square. At some point, two figures in mage robes suddenly appeared standing before the fountain.
"Baniel, what do you think of this city?"
The speaker was a young-looking man. He wore a black robe, and his messy, flaxen hair was tied carelessly behind his head. His unkempt appearance made him look more like a wandering bard than a mage. At that moment, a subtle smile played on his lips as he surveyed the fountain and the people coming and going around it. "I didn't expect such a prosperous city in the north. The number of adventurers here is beyond my expectations."
"I think it's decent."
Standing beside the young man was an elderly man dressed with meticulous precision. His gray-white hair was combed neatly. Frowning deeply, he focused intently on the ice-blue crystal before him, answering his friend's question somewhat absently. "Of course, it can't compare to the Three Mountains Holy City, the Seven Luminaries Capital, or the White Tower, but as the main city of a count's territory in the northern lands, its infrastructure is already excellent."
As he spoke, a ball of ice-blue light appeared in his hand. The old man, named Baniel, casually pointed his finger, and the light ball merged into the gemstone core. He let out a sigh of relief, and his stern expression immediately softened. "I wonder which junior designed this array. Look at the runes from the third sequence to the seventh—all full of errors and mistakes! Just looking at it makes me feel uncomfortable!"
At that moment, the gemstone at the core suddenly burst into brilliant light, with seven-colored rainbows flickering around it, like a rainbow after a rain. Baniel smiled as he watched this scene, muttering to himself with some self-satisfaction: "I just corrected a few of its errors and added conversion functions for the elements of earth, water, fire, wind, light, shadow, and aether. From now on, it won't just be ordinary Black Iron-rank water elementals; even Silver High-rank composite elementals can be summoned!"
"It's a pity the material quality is too poor. Otherwise, with my skill, summoning a Water Elemental Elder from this pool of water wouldn't be difficult." After his moment of pride, he sighed, seeming quite dissatisfied.
"A dignified Legendary Mage, the 'Rune Master,' acting like a fussy old man with obsessive-compulsive disorder." The young bard-like man shook his head. Over the past few decades, he had witnessed similar scenes countless times. His old friend had always been like this. Back when the two of them traveled together on the continent, he often couldn't resist tampering with local guardian arrays, which frequently got them wanted in various places. Even now, there were still bounties on them in some small countries in the Western Mountains, under the ridiculous charge of 'vandalizing public sanitation.'
After all, when Baniel modified the water circulation system, the moment it restarted, it spewed all the sewage from the sewers onto the streets and even the palace! That scene back then was quite spectacular...
So now, he could only complain somewhat helplessly: "This is, after all, the territory of that 'Savior.' Casually modifying someone else's city's array like this will make you look like a treacherous scoundrel trying to leave a backdoor—you don't want another pointless bounty on us, do you?"
"No problem, William. I only strengthened its original functions. If he wants, he can just change it back." Satisfied, Baniel turned around, no longer looking at the gemstone, which had returned to its ice-blue color but still had a trace of seven-colored light at its base. He and his friend slowly walked toward a corner of a nearby alley.
There, a peculiar tavern stood. It was midday, and its doors were wide open. Many adventurers passed by, but none of them so much as glanced at it or showed any intention of entering, as if it didn't exist at all.
And these two spellcasters, who had stood by the crowded fountain, freely discussing and casting spells, had also gone completely unnoticed. Even the artificial intelligence monitoring the entire city was deceived. Everyone walked past them with natural expressions, not turning their heads even slightly.
"He's back."
Suddenly, the bard named William stopped in his tracks. This spellcaster, who appeared unkempt but was actually serious by nature, blinked and broke into a smile. "It seems our mission is complete. We can leave now."
"Leave right now?" Baniel hesitated, stroking his beard. "I haven't even greeted that Tower Spirit (Number 3) that's been trying to monitor us all along. Besides, we rarely get a chance to come out these days. I don't want to go back to the Eastern Plains so soon."
"Then do you want to meet him?" William asked.
"Of course not." The old man narrowed his eyes and answered quickly. "It's not the right time yet." A slight smirk curled at the corner of his mouth. The aged spellcaster said in a somewhat cunning tone, "If we meet now, we'll have no reason to stay in the Northern Empire any longer—I still want to look around a bit more."
He paused briefly in his speech, then looked toward the direction of the Great Aias Volcano and said leisurely, "On this land where ancient dragons roam."