Linde and his group followed the ferry crossing and found a shallow spot where the water was shallow, with the deepest part only waist-deep, making it the perfect place to cross the river.
Just as everyone was about to take off their armor and wade through the water, Alice quickly stopped them.
He waved his staff at them and said:
"No need for that trouble."
As the girl spoke, she raised her staff, stood still on the edge of the shallows, and chanted an ancient incantation:
"O spirit of wind, please open a path for me."
A blue wind slowly gathered around her at the girl's call, and then became violent as she chanted.
Then, like a hurricane, it cleaved the shallows in front of the girl in two, revealing a dry riverbed.
This action, reminiscent of Moses parting the sea, directly shocked the surrounding soldiers.
"Really...?"
The intense, adoring gazes of the crowd made Alice blush, and she could only say:
"I can only hold out for 10 minutes, everyone hurry up and leave."
Seeing this, Linde gave the order:
"Get moving, everyone! Get through the shallows quickly!"
The soldiers immediately sprang into action, quickly running towards the opposite bank.
Watching the soldiers take action, Lind looked at Alice and asked:
"Alice, can you move while you're casting a spell...?"
Before she finished speaking, the girl had already come to Linde, taken the boy's hand, and walked towards the other side of the river.
"Of course, it's just a mid-level spell, it's no challenge for me."
The pride of a genius was now on full display in the girl, making her seem like a completely different person from the girl just now.
Looking at the sweeping wall of wind around him, Lind once again felt the power of magic.
As if reading Lind's mind, the girl said:
"Don't worry, with your talent you'll learn it quickly, hmm, within three years?"
"Within three years..."
"That's already fast, isn't it? Some people spend their whole lives in the academy and still don't get the intermediate mage qualification."
"That's great, this is considered fast..."
As the group quickly crossed the shallows, the magical passage behind them swiftly closed, returning to its previous state.
After glancing at the shallows behind them, Linde and his group continued northward along the riverbank.
As the group continued to advance, the terrain gradually rose, and they soon entered a vast hilly area.
This hilly region is known as the Adran Hills, stretching from the edge of the Gur Mountains all the way into the heart of the Sass Empire.
I had only seen this huge hilly area on a map before, but when I got there, I realized that it really did stretch as far as the eye could see.
It was already noon, and the sunlight shone evenly through the clouds onto every hill, making them gleam like the scales of a giant dragon.
Legend has it that a legendary monster dwells in the heart of the hills, and many adventurers and hunters who have come to seek it out have perished there.
Fortunately, the destination was only on the outskirts of the hills, far from the center, so there was little to worry about encountering any legendary monsters.
At most, they'd be a few scattered magical beasts, which Linde and his group could basically kill without taking any damage.
As they ventured deeper into the hilly area, their pace slowed considerably, and the rugged mountains became increasingly difficult to traverse.
As it was getting late, the group had no choice but to find a relatively flat spot on the mountainside to set up camp.
With the campfire lit, the weary souls of the group finally found solace.
Linde took the jerky soup that Astaire handed him and drank it down in large gulps.
Since entering the hilly region, due to the rugged terrain, Linde has stopped riding his bronze light and has walked all the way here in his armor. Even with his bronze warrior physique, he can clearly feel the fatigue.
In the end, they managed to survive thanks to the activation effect of the halo.
Alice, who was standing to the side, was already exhausted. She didn't meditate today and went back to her tent early. Soon after, soft snoring could be heard coming from the tent.
"Looks like he's really tired."
Linde withdrew his gaze, sat down by the campfire, looked at the weary crowd, and said:
"We'll rest tomorrow, reinforce the campsite a bit, and explore the surrounding area."
"yes……."
The soldiers' voices betrayed their exhaustion; the arduous journey of traversing mountains for several days had indeed taken a toll on their morale. Linde turned to Astaire, somewhat apologetically, and said:
"I'll have to trouble you again tonight, Astaire."
"Don't worry, my lord, I'm in good condition."
Aster smiled and tapped his chest armor, producing a strong, resonant sound.
Lin De couldn't help but sigh inwardly; the Gold-level was indeed worthy of being called Gold-level, its physical strength was truly formidable.
However, what reassured Linde even more was that he did not sense any large creatures such as magical beasts in the vicinity.
He had just used the activation aura to sense that the area around the camp was very safe, which made the already excellent terrain even safer.
Linde had an idea: to use this place as a temporary base to facilitate future exploration.
As Linde pondered this, he returned to his tent and immediately collapsed onto his bed.
Perhaps due to overwork during the day, Linde quickly fell asleep.
...
The peaceful night passed in the blink of an eye.
The next morning, Linde woke up, stepped out of the tent, and stretched.
He saw that the early-rising soldiers had already begun to fortify the camp and were surveying the surrounding environment.
Lind walked toward Alice's tent and called out softly a few times, but there was no response. Just as he was getting worried, Alice came out yawning and stretched.
Looks like you've had a good rest.
Today, Linde plans to take Alice to explore the hills around the camp, draw a map, and determine the location of the ruins.
In fact, according to Alice's information, most mage towers are built very tall, so tall that they can be seen at a glance even in hilly areas.
However, since arriving in the hilly area, despite straining my eyes, I haven't found a single building that resembles a tower.
In the end, only two possibilities remain: whether this mysterious building is a mage tower or not, either it was hidden by some kind of magic, or it was built underground and cannot be seen from the surface.
Regardless of which one it is, Alice needs to determine its exact location through continuous meditation.
Alice patted her face to clear her mind and said:
"I'll pinpoint the location of the ruins later and see if I can find it."
Seeing the girl's eager and excited expression, Linde knew how attractive an ancient magical ruin would be to a mage.
Even as a novice, I couldn't contain my excitement and wanted to find this so-called ancient ruin as soon as possible to explore it.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com