Azure Scepter

Page 179

Suddenly, Futia's pointed ears perked up—a series of light footsteps came from behind her.

She turned around and saw Trier fully armed.

Trier glanced at the prey in Fydia's hand, then recognized it as a grey-feathered pigeon. In the game *Azure Scepter*, this rare bird is the main ingredient in "Salted Pigeon Baked with Spirits," a specialty dish from the Evergrande region, whose primary effect is...to improve athletic performance in bed...

"Fodia, have you been working too hard lately?" Trier couldn't help but ask.

Fydia immediately straightened up like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, her eyes wide: "I didn't, I didn't, don't talk nonsense!"

Before Trier could ask any more questions, she quickly changed the subject, saying, "Did something happen? Why are you wearing armor?"

As she spoke, she quietly slipped the grey-feathered pigeon into her deerskin bag.

“Aurius is missing. There’s definitely something fishy going on here,” Trier said. “Fodia, I can’t find any clues even with divination spells.”

“Then let me track them down.” Fythia fastened her deerskin bag. “Why don’t we set off now? Let’s start with Auris’s residence.”

"We can wait for Edith. She went to the barracks to find people. She should be able to organize the manpower by the afternoon."

“Aurius’s residence is within the city, so it’s relatively safe and there shouldn’t be any problems,” Futia shook her head.

The next moment, she suddenly said bluntly and softly, "Trier, could you stay with me for a little while, even just half a day would be fine."

Caught off guard, Trier opened his mouth in surprise.

The proud and aloof Futia actually went straight for the ball!

"Why are you suddenly being so direct?" he asked instinctively.

“I do observe and analyze,” Fauci said. “Trier, for someone as stubborn as you, a straight shot is the most effective.”

Trier wanted to argue that he wasn't being stubborn, but rather that it was Fythia who was. However, he then realized that if he said that, it would only confirm that he was being stubborn, so he simply kept quiet.

"So is that okay?" Futia asked.

Trier didn't say anything, but directly took the other person's soft, boneless hand in hers.

The elf's tense smile instantly blossomed into a radiant smile.

Because of his extreme fear of Losewey, Auris did not go to Velt. Instead, he stayed in Eraf to recover from his injuries. According to the knights who went to scout ahead, for some unknown reason, Auris suddenly moved to the city's port area a few weeks ago.

The massacre that took place a few weeks ago nearly reduced half of Eraf to ruins, with raging fires burning half the city and the remaining buildings suffering varying degrees of damage. Because Eraf is situated among mountains, and the horrific aftershocks of the battle permanently altered the course of many mountains, the damage to buildings caused by various secondary disasters was particularly severe.

It was midday, and the sunlight pressed down on the torn black tower, its sharp ribs pointing obliquely towards the distant, mostly collapsed Lighthouse Grand Theatre, like the withered arm of a dying man reaching towards the sky. Below the tower, charred wood and rubble, blackened by the flames, lay scattered on the streets, everything exuding a sense of decay.

In stark contrast to the lifeless backdrop, the pedestrians on the road seemed full of life. Small groups of day laborers pushing carts of building materials moved among the ruins, occasionally greeted by passersby; while merchants who had discovered the business opportunities hidden within the ruins worked diligently with their hired hands, trying their best to salvage usable building materials, and the work songs common in the foothills of Saint-Saëns could be heard everywhere.

Trier led Faudia by the hand, walking slowly down the street. Both of them wore hoods, so no one recognized them.

“Trier, thank you for helping me deal with those envoys my mother sent. To be honest, I really didn’t know how to face them,” Futia suddenly said.

Trier shook his head: "I haven't really done anything on my own initiative. But are you really planning to never go back?"

"At the very least, I want to find my sister's soul."

“Fodia.” Trier stopped and looked at Fodia with great seriousness. “Although the truth may be hurtful, according to my analysis, your sister has been dead for so long that she has probably already been reincarnated as a demon or a devil. To consider the worst-case scenario, if her soul is not resilient enough, she may even have become an abyssal worm.”

Futia took a deep breath, hesitated, and after a moment sighed, saying self-deprecatingly, "I just don't want to accept reality."

After a pause, she continued, “But we all have to accept reality eventually. Edith was also in great pain when she learned the truth. She was like a completely different person. Look, we were on that bridge at the time. The Guardians blocked the entire bridge and refused to let anyone pass.”

Trier followed the elf's finger and saw the Masodell Bridge, which was made entirely of steel, but many of its cables were deformed under the scorching heat, and dark red bloodstains seemed to have seeped into every railing.

People spontaneously erected a memorial plaque at the entrance to the bridge, beneath which lay many long-withered flowers. Trier saw a young mother kneeling there, sobbing softly; not far behind her stood a high-ranking member of the stonemasons' guild, his face flushed and beaming; in the dilapidated building opposite the architect, a red-haired girl was idly painting, while someone else was singing a love song in the language of dwarves.

"Why is that stonemason smiling so happily?" Futia asked.

Trier pulled his hood tighter: "The happiest people when it comes to urban reconstruction are the architects."

After saying that, he stopped talking, took Futia's hand, and led her across the bridge toward the port area.

The world is not static; resilient people will always find their own way and direction for development.

Just as some suffer while others rejoice, the different regions of Eraf also experienced drastically different fates after that horrific battle. At this time, there was no city reconstruction plan led by Trier; the survivors simply rebuilt their homes spontaneously.

Perhaps out of fear of fire, or perhaps because the port could quickly replenish building materials via shipping, the port area, which had always been synonymous with filth and chaos, has experienced unprecedented rapid development in the past few weeks. The previously chaotic and haphazard buildings were all reduced to ashes in the fire, replaced by countless clearly planned stone buildings. All the new buildings face north and south, and their facades all feature standard bases, proportionally proportioned multi-window walls, and three-section structures with eaves and roofs.

Compared to the bridge area, the port area was significantly more lively, with several times more people. The streets Trier was currently on were already packed with people.

The house where Aurelius finally settled was in the middle of this bustling street; it was a small courtyard building with a colonnade.

Trier gripped the hilt of the "shadowless" sword beneath his cloak and slowly walked toward it.

Suddenly, Fatiya tugged at the corner of his cloak.

“Someone is watching us, right to our right, the one smoking a pipe.”

Trier glanced quickly to his right and saw two plumes of smoke billowing from the man's nostrils.

After the smoke cleared, the man initially glanced at him casually out of the corner of his eye, then suddenly frowned, blinked incredulously, and finally widened his eyes in surprise. The man quickly emptied the tobacco from his pipe and strode towards him.

"Your Excellency... Your Excellency the Duke," the man stammered, seemingly overwhelmed with excitement and nervousness, his words somewhat incoherent. "Why did you come here in person? Oh, no, I didn't question you, I just..."

“Don’t be nervous, speak slowly,” Trier said.

He intended to use a "Brave Aura" to calm the other person down, but after touching the Holy Symbol, he realized that he was in a broken oath state and couldn't release the ability.

“I am a spy left behind by Sir Nordman. He was worried that sealing off this place directly would alert any potential enemies, so he left me here to keep watch,” the spy said. “But I haven’t made any new discoveries during this time.”

After finishing speaking in one breath, the spy lowered his head nervously.

"Can we go in and take a look?" Futia asked.

“Of course, no problem, Your Excellency.” The spy glanced cautiously at Trier, then strode to the courtyard gate, unlocked it with the key, and said, “Please.”

Fati's eyes lit up, and then

Trier took a gold dragon from his pocket and handed it to the spy.

"Well done," the time traveler said. "Go to the military camp next to Dragon Kiss Pass, find Princess Edith, and tell her to just lead the people directly to the south gate."

“It’s my pleasure.” The spy took the gold coin, then suddenly looked up, his tone hesitant. “Your Grace, please forgive my intrusion, but… could you please bless me? Everyone says you are a living saint walking among mortals, could you… could you make me… a little more handsome?”

The spy's voice grew softer and softer until it was almost completely gone—it was hard to imagine that a rugged man with a face full of scars and a thick beard would show such a timid demeanor.

Trier's lips twitched slightly.

This wish is too strange; appearances can be deceiving. He thought to himself.

Despite his inward disapproval, Trier did not refuse the other party's request, as it was a good opportunity to increase the spread of the faith—if the blessing took effect, the spy himself would become...

He originally intended to use divine power to distort reality, but the next moment, a good idea suddenly came to him.

After killing Losevie and Saint Seir in the battle of souls, he clearly felt that his soul had been greatly strengthened. Perhaps, he could now, like some psionicists, make slight changes to reality with just his will.

With this thought in mind, he took a deep breath, focused his attention, and imagined what the spy's face would look like without acne scars.

The next moment, Trier vaguely felt a bit of divine power being manipulated by his own will, and almost at the same time, something incredible happened: an invisible force descended upon the spy.

In an instant, the spy was radiant. All the freckles and acne scars on his face disappeared, his yellow teeth caused by years of smoking a pipe became bright and clean again, and even his sparse hair became thick again. At a glance, the spy, who was originally middle-aged, had directly transformed back into a young man under 20 years old. In gaming terms, the spy's charm depreciation caused by age and bad lifestyle habits simply disappeared.

"By the Radiance!" The spy touched his face in disbelief, then immediately wanted to kneel down, but seemingly considering that he shouldn't attract too much attention right now, he abruptly stopped the impulse.

Fythia was equally stunned, and she looked at Trier in shock.

Trier was also somewhat surprised by the effect of his blessing. Although the blessing ultimately consumed divine power, the consumption was reduced by at least 80% compared to using divine power directly, and the effect was much better than simply using divine power.

It seems that his will has indeed begun to influence reality. He thought to himself.

—Amidst shock and elation, the bewildered spy looked up at Trier again, who had already led Fyodor into the courtyard.

In the courtyard.

"I also want to offer my blessings!" Futia said with great anticipation.

Trier immediately shook his head: "You're too powerful. This blessing can only affect people who aren't that powerful—let's get down to business."

Chapter 341 The Fate of Aurelius (Part 3)

Aulis's courtyard was quite clean. Since the building was newly built, there was no vegetation in the courtyard, and there was no water in the pit. The empty space was more like a vacant lot than a courtyard.

Trier led Fyodor through the white colonnade to the main building.

Unlike the numerous manor-style buildings in the upper city, Aulis's house in the port area was a single three-story building with windows facing the street that offered a direct view of the bustling docks of the trading port.

Trier pushed open the door and strode into the main building.

He had expected to see a filthy dragon's lair, but to his great surprise, the entire building was remarkably clean, almost unnaturally so—there was hardly any furniture in the vast building, and the few pieces that were there were all of normal human size.

A spotless table, a bookshelf without a single book, a stone bed without a mattress, and a fireplace without firewood—these four elements constituted all the furniture used by Auris.

“This is too clean,” Trier remarked. “It’s like a hermit’s quarters—anything else you’ve discovered?”

"Judging from the thickness of the dust accumulated on the ground, this house has probably been uninhabited for some time, about a week. That means that shortly after we returned, that talkative but timid dragon left here."

As she spoke, Futia squatted down, picked up a bit of dust, gently rubbed it into a dry ball, and then brought her fingertips to her nose to smell it.

“Besides the spies and knights who came in to search earlier, only you and I have been here recently, so there shouldn’t be any other clues—so, what should we do next?”

At this point, Fythia couldn't help but turn and glance at Trier: "Wait, Trier, as a demigod in mythology who can observe the surface of planets with the naked eye, didn't you discover anything?"

Trier shook his head and pointed to the furniture: “I’ve already said it—it’s too clean here.”

He emphasized the word "here".

Futia frowned instinctively, but a moment later, she suddenly realized.

She immediately stood up and walked quickly to the table, then noticed something out of place: the floor was covered in dust, but the table was spotless.

She then turned to check the bookshelves, the stone bed, and the fireplace, all of which were also spotless.

"Could it be a constant cleansing enchantment?" Futia leaned closer to the table, her nostrils twitching slightly.

“At least I didn’t sense any remnants of magical winds.” Trier shook his head again. “I just tried to use these pieces of furniture as a medium for the sympathetic law, but the interference only got worse—it seems the trail has gone cold, and we can only choose to conduct a thorough search.”

Fythia did not respond to Trier. She suddenly stood up, walked quickly to the empty third floor, pulled out a dagger from her boot, and pried open a wooden plank on the ground.

There was a conical flask buried under the wooden board!

"How did you find out there was something here?" Trier was surprised; he hadn't even noticed it using his divine vision.

Fythia waved the empty conical flask at Trier: "It's a scent. I just smelled a fifth scent on the table—this flask used to contain a potion for weaker life forms."

Trier suddenly remembered that at the Blood Wedding, Futia had also shown a similar ability to smell that strange, colorless and odorless liquid—this might be a special ability of some kind of ranger.

Although things had made some progress, Trier's brow furrowed even more—the situation seemed increasingly perplexing.

Why did Aurelius hide an empty bottle in a secret compartment? Was he trying to conceal something? But if it was to conceal something, why didn't he just destroy the bottle?

Why did the divination spells targeting Aurelius fail again? And why did Aurelius leave without a word a week ago?

Is it possible to find a way to track down Aurelius?

At that moment, Trier suddenly saw Fyodor take out the recently deceased grey dove from her deerskin bag.

“The most skilled elven chefs will add a few drops of a weak life potion when finishing the dish of Salted Pigeon with Spirits,” Futia said. “That potion reacts with the blood of the Grey Feather Pigeon to form a white jelly—the reaction is quite sensitive.”

As Futia spoke, she used her dagger to cut open the base of the grey dove's wing. As fine beads of blood seeped out from the blade, a visible milky-white mark slowly extended from beneath the bird's carcass toward the stairwell.

“Now, Auris is definitely not in the city. As long as we use the blood of the Grey Feathered Dove to find the direction it left the city, I can try to continue tracking it—follow me.”

“What if someone else used the weak life potion in the city?” Trier asked suspiciously. “Besides, it’s been a week, the smell should have dissipated by now.”

Futia shook her head: "This potion is rare in the human kingdoms. I made a special trip around the city a few days ago to make salted pigeon with strong liquor—I couldn't find any alchemists selling this potion at all, and the smell of this potion does linger for a long time."

After saying that, she grabbed the gray-feathered dove by the neck and quickly left the room, following the milky white trail in the air.

Although Trier felt that Feudia's method of tracking Aurelius was quite unreliable, the fact was that reality sometimes does not conform to general logic, and Feudia was right.

Erlav, one of the top port cities in the entire Kingdom of Orko, actually only had one trace of the scent of a weak life potion. This scent trace twisted and turned throughout the city and eventually led to the south gate of Erlav.

When the two arrived near the city gate, Edith and the dozen or so elite knights she had gathered, who originally belonged to the survey team, had been waiting there for some time.

“We’ve prepared three days’ worth of rations and water.” Edith pulled on the reins, urging the armored horse to Trier’s side, then dismounted. “Wait, what’s that milky white trail in the air?”

“The product of the reaction between Grey Feather Dove’s blood and the weak life potion can be used to track Aurelius’s whereabouts,” Fythia said first. “Don’t say so much yet, hurry up and follow that trajectory, make sure Grey Feather Dove’s blood is completely drained.”

Edith's horse lowered its head and nuzzled Trier's hand affectionately. Trier turned around and then discovered that the horse was actually the Pegasus Nina.

At this moment, this talking pegasus, who knew many things, behaved like an ordinary, mindless warhorse. She pawed at her front hooves and then snorted.

However, Nina suddenly stopped rubbing against them. She blinked her big eyes, then quietly took two steps back away from Trier, silently protecting Edith in front of her.

Trier remained silent, suspecting that Nina had sensed his current chaotic and evil aura and had been scared away by him.

He shook his head, banishing these wild thoughts from his mind, and then mounted an empty warhorse.

“Follow me,” Futia said, and then she ran ahead to lead the way.