part0012

Lark ended up staying at the underwater dungeon for several days. He merrily chatted the time away with Kel’ Vual and the rest of the members of the Arzomos tribe. Lark found so many stories to listen to. He was really glad to have met his friend once again in this new life.

Lark also ended up modifying the parasitic nests in the breeding ground, enabling the mother nest to gain full control over all of the monsters in the dungeon. This way, these monsters would no longer come out of the lake when the dungeon’s entrance opened during a full moon. The last thing Lark wanted was for another nest to escape and attack a human settlement.

What if a middle-ranking nest escaped?

Even Commander Daltos would be killed if he fought against it.

“It was really wise of you to cultivate a mother nest in this dungeon,” Lark said to Jaraxus. “Although these monsters obey the commands of the Arzomos, in a sense, they’re still parasitic demons. But since the mother nest grew up believing that you’re its master, it’s possible to control them all.”

Jaraxus’ tail stiffened. She tried her best to suppress her glee from showing on her face. “It was an idea from Lord Agreas. I merely followed his command.”

“Is that so?” muttered Lark. There was a hint of loneliness within his voice.

He’d discovered that his friend, Agreas, had chosen to remain in the Demon Realm to seal the portal and sever its connection to the mana well located deep underground. Furthermore, he also learned that the demon who helped the first king found this nation was the very same demon. It was a surprising revelation. After all, he even heard Agreas’ voice back when he severed King Alvis’ curse.

So, that was why it felt so familiar. Even the name was almost similar. Lark felt stupid for not realizing this instantly. He regretted not asking more questions when he saw the demon’s golden eyes back in Fork Meadow.

“You’re going back to your town?” said Kel’ Vual.

“Although I left a letter in my office, I’ve been gone for quite some time now,” said Lark. “And you said it yourself, Kel. It’s only a matter of time before the portal’s seal is broken. I need to prepare some countermeasures before that times comes.”

Kel’ Vual thought that despite taking over the body of that fragile-looking human, Evander remained the same. He hadn’t even flinched when Kel’ Vual told him that the Immortal Demon was close to awakening from its slumber.

Well, Evander had managed to regain his beloved weapon. He would surely survive even if Barkuvara started invading this nation.

“Countermeasures.” Kel’ Vual nodded. “Of course. Agreas… He told me that he’ll be redirecting the portal to the ocean.”

Lark understood the implications of his words. If the portal appeared right above the ocean, the only demons that could reach their kingdom were those that belonged to the sky or sea, and parasitic demon tribes. This single move of Agreas had cut their enemies’ battle strength by half. Altering the coordinates of the portal was indeed a wise decision on his part.

There was a very high chance that Mullgray Islands—the haven of those bloodthirsty pirates—would be the first to be hit by the brunt of the demons’ attack.

Hopefully, the Kingdom of Lukas would have enough time to set up its defenses by then.

Lark said to Kel’ Vual’s son, “Your name’s Luvart?”

“Yes, Lord Evander,” Luvart politely responded.

“I have several high demon cores stored in the treasure room. They’re all well-preserved too,” said Lark. He was certain that there were at least three high demon cores stored inside the golden statue. As for where his two disciples had obtained it—Lark had no idea. “I’ll give one of them to you the next time I visit. I’ll even help you integrate your core with it. You can look forward to it.”

Luvart’s eyes widened. In human standards, it was akin to Lark swapping his initial mana pool with Austen’s. An undamaged high demon’s core was extremely valuable even in the Demon Realm. After all, it was extremely hard to kill a strong demon without damaging its core. More so if the opponent was a high demon.

But how had Lord Evander managed to obtain several of them?

Furthermore, judging by his words, it seemed that those cores had been preserved in their optimal state.

“I… I don’t deserve such a precious item, Lord Evander!” Luvart bowed his head. “It would probably be better if you give something so valuable to my father.”

“Give it to him? I’m sure you know it too. Your father is nearing the end of his lifespan. He has only around a decade or two to live, at most. Even if he consumes it, nothing will change. He’s too old to fully merge himself with another core. It’d be wasted on him.”

Lark chuckled. “Hey, Kel, how about it? Want to have the core instead?”

Kel’ Vual shrugged. “Well, I don’t really mind? Who knows, if I’m lucky, maybe it’ll extend my life by several more years, maybe even decades? I might even live long enough to see you become a hunched, old man, Evander!”

“I doubt that.” Lark grinned. “You’ll probably be dead by then.”

Lark and Kel’ Vual laughed, as though it was the most hilarious thing they’d ever heard. It was bizarre how those two could talk about their life and death so nonchalantly.

Luvart stood there silently as he watched and listened to the two’s antics.

“See? Your father doesn’t want it,” said Lark.

“What? When did I say that? Hey, give me at least one. You have several of them, right?” said Kel’ Vual, broadly smiling, his usual stoic image was gone.

“Shut up, Kel. I’m talking to your son.”

This was the first time Luvart had seen his father act without reserve in front of others. He was normally cold and hard to read, even when speaking with the warriors. Luvart couldn’t recall the last time he’d heard his father laugh and enjoy himself like this.

Luvart realized that he liked this version of his father a lot better.

Kel’ Vual had carried the heavy weight of responsibility of guiding their tribe and protecting the portal for so long. Luvart hoped that his father would continue to smile more.

After discussing several contingency plans with Kel’ Vual, Lark finally left the dungeon. The high-ranking nest’s body, which served as gate to the main entrance, opened.

Lark cast a concealment spell on himself, shot out of the lake, and flew up into the sky.

While hovering in the sky, Lark froze. He felt the gaze of someone watching him from a distance. Looking at the source, he saw a familiar face. A man with incredibly pallid skin and deep, black eyes.

The best archer of the kingdom and one of the royal court magicians.

Although Lark was currently concealed by his spell, he was certain that Farsight knew his exact location.

“Waiting here for days finally paid off,” said Farsight, his eyes gazing at the place where Lark was currently located. He took an arrow from his quiver, nocked it on his bow, and pointed it in Lark’s direction. “Show yourself.”

Although Farsight wasn’t exuding killing intent, Lark knew that he wouldn’t hesitate to fire at him the moment he tried to escape.

Should he reveal himself?

Lark pondered for several seconds. Eventually he decided against it. It would be a pain in the neck if he had to stop and answer all of the questions of the royal court magician. Moreover, how would he explain the reason he came directly from underneath the lake?

Lark decided to escape from the kingdom’s best archer.

He pointed a finger at the lake below and cast a spell, causing pillars of water to shoot up like geyser, further concealing his presence. Using this opportunity, Lark flew toward Blackstone Town.

To his surprise, an arrow infused with mana shot toward him, unimpeded by the pillars of water. Looking closely, the arrow was spinning rapidly, enabling it to pierce through the water pillar without deviating from its intended trajectory.

Lark cast a wind barrier in front of him, blocking the arrow before it struck his body. The arrowhead—clad in lightning—formed cracks and exploded into numerous shards.

Impressive, Lark thought.

If that same arrow was blocked by an ordinary, metallic shield, its target would have been blown back by the explosion and pierced by the shrapnel. Moreover, the lightning spell that clad the arrow was probably meant to temporarily paralyze the opponent, rendering him defenseless against Farsight’s next attack.

Even if the first arrow failed, the second shot would definitely kill the target.

And just like Lark had predicted, a second arrow shot toward him a split second after the first one exploded.

The second arrow was faster and stronger than the first. It spun more rapidly, creating an ominous whizzing sound. Rather than an arrow, this one felt like a javelin.

Lark reinforced his wind barrier with mana, successfully blocking the second attack.

The pillars of water receded.

Farsight didn’t fire a third arrow.

Lark continued hovering there, right above the lake, as he stared at the archer on the ground below. Lark received a mental transmission from within the dungeon.

“Lord Evander, should we dispose of the human?” said Jaraxus. The high-ranking nest guarding the main entrance must have told her what was happening outside.

Lark replied, “No. He’s someone I know. Don’t touch him.”

And the mental transmission ended.

Elias ‘Farsight’ was one of the strongest men Lark had met so far in this life. Judging by those two arrows, he was probably in the same league as Sword Saint Alexander—but with a bow. It would be a great loss to the kingdom if Jaraxus killed him due to this petty squabble.

Well, Lark was certain that Farsight wouldn’t go down without a fight in the first place, even if his opponent was the guardian of the dungeon.

To Lark’s surprise, Farsight suddenly retreated into the nearby forest and hid behind the trees, his eyes still locked on to his opponent. Although Lark was still concealed by his spell, Farsight was following his every movement, as though he could see him clearly.

After several seconds, Lark realized that Farsight had no intention of fighting against him any longer.

The moment he realized that Lark was a formidable foe, he instantly increased the distance between him and his opponent. He carefully studied his prey, just like a hunter concealing himself in the forest.

Well, this was much better than a useless battle.

Lark stared at Farsight for a moment, and without uttering another word, flew toward Blackstone Town.

After Lark was gone, Farsight came out of the forest.

Most people thought this name was given to him due to his ability to see his target from great distances. But the real reason was different. It was due to his ability to see through concealment spells. His ability to see his targets even hiding behind rocks or trees. Even if they’re hiding under water. An archer born with eyesight capable of seeing through pitch-black darkness.

Farsight was certain of what he saw just now: The person who came out of the lake was the Lord of Blackstone Town.

Farsight said to the soldiers hiding behind the trees, “Send a message to King Alvis. Tell him that Lark Marcus came out of the lake, at the place where the massive sphere of mana was first located.”