CH 215

“Chapter 215: The Sage of the Volcano 2”

I had to wrap a soaked cloth around my face to protect my skin.

Mike seems to be doing fine for now, but her breathing is getting rougher.

Regda, on the other hand, doesn’t seem bothered in the slightest.

– The Grandmaster’s chamber is down that hole. I’ll protect you from the heat.

The half-lizard disciple held his left hand in front of us.

All the heat we had been feeling up until now was alleviated.

I took a peek inside the hole that Regda signaled.

– That red and orange light…

– Yes, it’s obviously lava. Mount Wols is still active. The Grandmaster keeps it under control.

I don’t think Regda’s magic would be enough to protect us from plunging into lava…

– Grandmaster, I brought the kid.

– …. . ….!

– Understood.

– Regda-san? (Takaya)

– Go.

– Huh?

“Go”? As in, “Jump into the hole with lava”?

– The Grandmaster wishes to speak with you two.

– So… Am I supposed to just drop down?

– Tch…

– Hey.

I get it. We’re bothering you. I’d like some help at least.

– Master, let’s go. If anything happens, I’ll come back and bite his face off.

– I can hear you. (Regda)

– I’m well aware. (Mike)

Mike and Regda are staring at each other.

I wish we could’ve started on the right foot, but no use crying over it now.

– Regda-san, sorry for causing you trouble. I’ll make sure to make it up to you.

Without waiting for a response, Mike and I jumped down the hole straight to the bottom.

A woman with fiery red hair was waiting for us sitting on her knees when we landed.

– Hey there.

– The Sage of the Volcano, right?

Shamsheel stood up while laughing.

– The one and only. Call me whatever you want. The weirdo up there calls me Grandmaster, but I can’t say I like it.

– Sure. My name is Takaya. Thank you for looking out for my Grandmaster.

– Ah, don’t sweat it.

– May I ask what you talked about with Ever?

– Let’s talk about that in my room.

Shamsheel guided us into a room even deeper in the chamber.

– Sorry about the mess.

– Not at all.

The place was indeed a mess. The floor was filled with papers. I couldn’t even see a place to step on.

– Put all the papers together. You can take them home if you want to.

– What? Something so important?

Aside from the papers with Shamsheel’s research, I saw something unexpected.

– Is this a tree paper?

– It is. These are just the most recent experiments, though. All the others are stored somewhere else.

– What…?

– All the tree papers of every citizen in this country.

A cold chill ran down my spine.

What is the meaning of this?

– I can tell you’re confused. I need to do this to complete my objective.

Shamsheel handed me one of the papers from a stack.

It had a tree drawn in the middle and some scribbling on the side.

– This is a list of all the skills we have found so far. And it’s not near close to complete yet.

The skills were categorized into different types. Skills related to weapons, magic, etcetera.

– Takaya, let me ask you something.

Shamsheel took out a cigarette from her breast pocket.

– Why do you think tree papers exist?