Chapter 2186 Token <TOC> Chapter 2188 Mark of Earth
Translator: SumTLMan
After leaving Big Inba, they prepared to leave the lava lake and return to the shore.
Although Angel had plans to stay a few more days in the Fire Domain, he had no intention of staying inside Magu. Even though Magu appeared quite gentle, who knew if it would suddenly change its mind? By then, staying inside Magu would become very dangerous.
Ascending, they quickly returned to the exit through which they had entered Magu’s body.
Since leaving the exit would mean entering the lava lake, Eremy took the initiative to appear and wove a layer of flame barrier around Angel.
The process of stepping out was smooth, without any hindrance.
However, just as Angel was preparing to leave the lake bottom, Magu appeared in front of them.
“Mentor Magu, you’re not asleep?” Dangros looked at Magu with some surprise.
Leaning on a cane, Magu slowly approached, coughing twice: “You make it sound as if I love to sleep.”
Dangros: “Isn’t that the case?”
Magu lifted his cane and tapped Dangros: “Stop talking nonsense, move aside, I have some words for Mr. Pat.”
Magu looked towards Angel. In the pupils of flame, what reflected was not Angel’s appearance, but the aura around him. Different from what he had seen in the classroom before, Angel’s aura now mixed with a dense and heavy power.
“Ah?” Magu expressed surprise: “Is this Inba’s energy?”
Angel nodded, the essence Inba had given him was a rich earthy aura, blending into his own aura.
“It actually lent its power to you. I thought it disliked humans very much. It seems it’s just talk.”
Angel smiled, offering no comment, but instead asked, “Mr. Magu sought me out, is there something you are puzzled about?”
Stroking his flame beard, Magu nodded with a smile: “Yes, there is one thing. I forgot to ask earlier because I was lost in thought.”
Dangros hummed from the side: “What lost in thought, you were clearly sleeping.”
Magu glanced at Dangros, who stuck out his tongue and chuckled.
Angel: “Please speak, sir.”
Magu withdrew his gaze from Dangros and turned back to Angel: “Actually, it’s not me who wants to know, but the monarch… Where is the passage?”
Although still smiling, Magu’s eyes were clearly probing.
Angel was silent for a moment: “Where the passage lies is not important, I believe Mr. Magu understands my meaning.”
Knowing that wizards have the capability to traverse the void, as long as the existence of the Tidal Realm is confirmed and its coordinates known, finding a way in for them is no longer dependent on a physical passage.
“I understand, but the first place you appeared was in our Fire Domain. As the king of this territory, the monarch naturally wishes to understand everything about this place, and naturally, the passage is included.”
Angel pondered for a moment.
He was considering whether to reveal the location of the passage to them.
Although telling them would still allow Angel to leave, he also had to consider more than just himself.
The Magic Painter Wizard nonchalantly positioned a door on the painting, a passage that the elemental creatures here also deemed significant. Yet, despite many years, they never discovered it, likely obscured by some special concealment by the Magic Painter Wizard.
Such actions by the Magic Painter Wizard were probably to prevent fire elemental creatures from leaving, which would expose the Tidal Realm.
But viewed from another angle, the Magic Painter Wizard was also protecting humans outside.
It’s worth noting that beyond the gateway lies the Shannon Royal Family, situated in the capital of the Goldfinch Empire.
Should the elemental creatures here depart, the first to suffer would be the mortals of the capital.
Reflecting on this, Angel nevertheless shook his head and said, “Now is not the time, but it won’t be long before you understand.”
Magu inquired, “Why?”
Angel pondered, “It’s a form of protection.”
Magu gazed deeply at Angel, not questioning further about the nature of this protection. Instead, before Angel, he gently tapped the ground with his staff, sparking a trail of sparks that ascended, eventually vanishing out of sight.
Approximately two minutes later, a spark descended from above, caught by Magu.
Cradling the spark, Magu heard the voice of Magic Fire Midir in his ears.
After the message, Magu looked at Angel with a hint of surprise and after a long examination, remarked, “I just communicated with His Highness, who expressed understanding towards your response. This is quite unlike the character I know of His Highness. It seems he values you highly?”
Angel merely smiled, responding not with words but with a slight relaxation in his heart. Upon refusing to answer earlier, Angel had braced for the worst, especially upon witnessing Magu’s silence and secretive message passing. He had even discreetly prepared for the worst scenario by communicating with Eremy through thoughts.
He had anticipated a confrontation but was relieved when Magic Fire Midir seemingly accepted his response lightly.
“I know, I know!” Dangros exclaimed excitedly, grabbing Magu’s beard.
“And what might that be?” Magu looked down.
Without any reservation, Dangros pointed at Angel’s left earlobe, “The new king must have changed his attitude because of the Mark of Flame on Mr. Pat’s ear.”
Dangros’s excitement stemmed from his curiosity about the Mark of Flame, having wanted to ask Magu about it previously but lacking the opportunity. Seizing the moment, he eagerly voiced his theory.
“A Mark of Flame?” Magu turned to Angel’s earlobe, seeing nothing but faintly sensing a swirl of flame power.
“Mr. Pat has hidden the Mark of Flame, and now, without the Voice of the World, its fluctuations have weakened,” Dangros clarified upon seeing Magu’s puzzled look.
Magu, curious about the change in Magic Fire Midir’s attitude, looked expectantly at Angel, “May I see it?”
“You do enjoy spreading knowledge, don’t you?” Angel silently glared at Dangros before nodding to Magu, “Yes, you may.”
With the illusion concealing his earlobe dispelled, the mark of Odeklaes’s flame immediately became visible.
Magu examined the mark, initially out of curiosity. However, his expression soon turned solemn, his gaze deepening.
As one of the longest-living fire entities in this region, Magu had encountered many varieties of flames.
Yet, in his memory, none of the diverse flames he had witnessed bore a power level surpassing that of the Mark of Flame.
This mark undoubtedly belonged to a being far more powerful than any elemental creature of the Fire Domain, a testament to the strength of the creature that left it.
The mere presence of this mark astonished Magu, yet what truly alarmed Magu was the sensation of a flame fluctuation within the mark. Although this fluctuation was so faint as to be nearly imperceptible, it was of a power Magu couldn’t even fathom… a power reminiscent of the ancestral flame, powerful, ancient, and enduring.
“Have you sensed it too, Mentor? I can no longer feel it, but when I was within the Voice of the World, that sensation was especially vivid, making me feel a closeness…” Dangros said, his gaze filled with confusion and longing.
Although Magu did not understand the nature of this fiery power, it began to grasp why Magic Fire Midir showed such courtesy towards Angel.
Now away from the Voice of the World, yet having sensed that power, when Magic Fire Midir met Angel, it was during the climax of the Voice of the World, likely making the power’s fluctuation even more pronounced.
It took a while for Magu to recover from its astonishment, before taking a deep breath: “Mr. Pat, can you tell me what exactly this power is?”
“You don’t know either, Mentor?” Dangros asked in surprise. He had intended to inquire of Mentor Magu, only to find Magu’s reaction mirrored that of the new king.
Angel’s response, like his words to Magic Fire Midir, merely acknowledged the existence of Odeklaes, keeping silent about the Source Fire.
Magu found this regrettable but understood that compelling Angel to speak might only be possible through force. Given Angel dared to enter its body, it indicated he had a trump card. Taking a forceful approach could likely backfire.
Ultimately, Magu, like Magic Fire Midir, had to keep its regrets to itself, watching as Angel drifted away.
…
Upon returning to the shore, Angel did not immediately choose to leave the Fire Domain.
He planned to stay a few more days to see if he could coax a fire elemental creature into becoming a companion. After all, having a relatively friendly relationship with the monarch of this fiery domain was a rare fortune, not guaranteed in other domains.
And among all elemental creatures, Angel’s expectations for a fire elemental were highest because a fire-based life form could significantly aid his alchemy.
However, as a human, and having previously battled powerful elemental beings like Glarada, all elemental creatures who witnessed this avoided him, making coaxing one quite challenging.
But there was still a way.
Angel’s gaze turned to Dangros, following behind him.
At the moment, Dangros was enthusiastically rubbing a frog-shaped elemental sprite, appearing as if it was devouring the frog, but in reality, it was infusing its own fire into the frog’s body, recruiting a little brother.
After Dangros let the fire frog go, Angel finally spoke: “Congratulations, you’ve gained another little brother.”
Dangros held its head high, proud: “This fire frog is a juvenile Traveling Frog. In a few days, it will set out on travels, bringing me treasures.”
Angel: “…Bringing back postcards?”
“Gems! Gems! Traveling Frogs like collecting various gems. Soon, I’ll lay those gems across the floor of my room, just like Little Inba lays marble slabs in its room. It’ll definitely look beautiful!”
Dangros was already dreaming of a splendid future, while Angel, stroking his chin, thought to himself: “This fire frog sounds promising, could be termed a Treasure-Seeking Frog. Sadly, its fire energy seems a bit low… However, if no other options present themselves, it could be worth coaxing.”
After a while, Dangros was the first to snap back to reality: “Mr. Pat, where will you go next? If you’re not planning to leave, why not go back to Mentor Magu’s place? There are many beautiful rooms there.”
Angel: “No, after all, I am human and somewhat ill-suited to high-temperature environments. You’re more familiar with this place; could you find a more hidden spot for me? I plan to rest for a few days before leaving.”
Dangros didn’t suspect anything and nodded: “Okay, I know of a place where the temperature is relatively lower, and other fire elemental creatures seldom venture.”
While Dangros was leading Angel to the resting spot, Angel took the opportunity to say: “Didn’t you promise me before that if there was a chance, you would let me see your little brothers?”
Dangros: “Ah?”
“Now there is a chance. I’m going to be resting these few days; why not let me meet those hundreds of little brothers of yours?”
After reaching the resting spot, an excited Dangros hurried off.
Under Angel’s coaxing, Dangros, wanting to display his demeanor as a “big brother,” decided to notify all his little brothers to come and meet Angel. However, his little brothers were too scattered, and now he needed to find them one by one.
After Dangros left, Angel surveyed the resting place.
He had merely made up an excuse about “not adapting well to high temperatures,” not expecting Dangros to actually bring him to a place with such a low temperature.
He was just at the entrance of a small mound and could already feel the ambient temperature dropping to that of a warm winter.
Venturing deeper into the cave, the temperature dropped even faster, and he could even see patches of white frost on both sides.
The reason there was such a low-temperature place in the Fire Domain was that it was once the territory of an ice flame creature.
Ice Flame, a very special kind of flame. Although it mixes extremely contradictory properties, as long as it is primarily fire, it indeed counts as part of the flame family.
Like the lava giant whale, Glarada, although it has magma attributes mixed with earth, it primarily relies on high-temperature fire, hence it is still a fire elemental creature.
However, creatures in the Fire Domain prefer high temperatures, so this place is not favored by fire elemental creatures, and few other fire elemental creatures come near.
According to Dangros, that ice flame creature was very proud and aloof, seeing that other elemental creatures did not approach it, felt ostracized, and later left the Fire Domain, its whereabouts unknown.
Although it left, the cave was preserved.
After exploring the cave, Angel found that the temperature in the deepest part was comparable to the cold winters of the Paramjit Plateau, even finding items made of ice.
Presumably, these were left by the ice flame creature.
Although the ice flame creature was gone, possibly for a long time, and might not return, this was still its home, so Angel did not stay deep inside for long, eventually returning to the entrance.
Even if it was empty, the temperature here was much more pleasant by comparison.
Angel set up an illusionary cottage and moved in.