"What is that?" Captain Don asked with surprise flashing across his aged expression. His eyes gazed at the strange-looking gemstone, he frowned as he focused on the strange, mysterious light flashing inside of it. Even though he was far from being a talented spellcaster, he had some meager experience, and could faintly sense the mysterious power contained inside its crystalline prison.
Without a doubt, he was certain that the object Crysta revealed was dangerous.
"I…" Seeing the stern gaze of his captain, Crysta found herself unable to voice any word. She averted her gaze, turning to look away instead of on the captain, ultimately looking for Sara for some assistance.
Sara sighed as he looked at her little nemesis. Shaking her head, she ultimately decided to step up and help her out.
"We don't know either Captain Don." She explained. "There is something trapped inside, that -at least for the time being-, is unable to escape. It was the only item placed atop the altar, which she lifted without thinking about any of the consequences." Sara sighed, looking dismissively at the guilty party once more.
"I… I did not… How c-could I have known!" Crysta cried out with desperation tinting her voice. Tears welled at the corners of her eyes, she looked as if she wasn't the one responsible for all the trouble she had caused. "I didn't… I could not have known it was cursed!"
Her words were like a bolt of lightning striking down from a roaring chaotic storm at the midst of the sea. Captain Don turned pale with the girl's exclamation. His eyes turned wide, as he looked at the girl with an unholy mixture of shock and worry cast on his face.
"Cursed? What do you mean? What happened?!" He exclaimed, looking more and more agitated as the time passed. The more he listened to their story, the more worried he became. He was almost wishing he didn't even ask at all…
"Well, as it turned out…" Sara sighed one last time before she finally got into the core of their story. "The brochure… or whatever that jewel actually wasn't buried with the entire temple without a reason… Either the entity that was trapped inside or the whole item itself, had a mysterious spell cast on it, forcing it to bond with the first person that took it from atop that altar…"
"Yes, and what does any of that mean?! Explain it already!" Captain Don roared with a nervous, agitated tone. He had no more patience to listen to them, he needed answers and he wanted them right now!
"With Crysta grabbing the gem, the spell activated whisking her away from that place into something she explained to be an empty dark room-like space. A female voice, she could not identify spoke to her, explaining that the so-called 'Eye' have now recognized her as its Master…"
"I-I was also told, that I need to keep it safe, and should diligently meditate. I should be able to increase my bond with this Eye once I reach a sufficient level…" Crysta finally gathered her courage and decided to chime in.
Unfortunately, her words only caused further confusion to weigh down on the elderly captain. He frowned at their explanation, not sure what to do or where to put any of what they were telling.
"Eh… And what does any of that mean? What is the purpose of this gemstone… this Eye? Why was it placed and buried under the sand for gods' know how long only for us to steal it away? What are we supposed to do now?"
"That…" Crysta wasn't sure how to respond to the questions of the captain. She turned to Sara for assistance yet again, however this time, she was met with a smirk. She could only gulp and gather herself briefly before answering.
"I… actually cannot remember the rest. I guess I have lost consciousness shortly after that voice spoke to me, and when I came to be, I was lying atop the altar, surrounded by the group."
She smiled wryly, pausing for a moment before adding with a bit of hesitation and uncertainty twisting the tone of her response.
"The last I remember from that unknown voice was that I am supposed to 'Grow' closer to the Eye. I will supposedly know 'more' later…" She sighed, lamenting the results of her hasty action from the day. Meekly she whispered her mockery under her breath, mostly to herself. "Not sure what any of that means."
Unfortunately, her whispers were still caught by both Sara and the Captain as well.
"It means you need to learn how to be a mage, and how to cultivate your mana." The old man explained curtly. Turning his gaze on the purple-haired adventurer, he eased on the coldness of his expression as he asked.
"Miss Sara, may I ask that you look over the misunderstandings that you two have and teach this poor girl what she is now supposed to do? I would really appreciate it!" He asked, going one step further and bowing down at the end of her inquiry.
His action caused both Crysta and the rest of the group that was so far silently listening to the story to be caught off-guard and exclaim with worry.
"C-captain! You shouldn't do that!"
Even Sara was shocked to see this display. She quickly stepped forward and reached out to gently touch the Captain's shoulders.
"Captain Don, please… There is no need for any of that!" She exclaimed with an embarrassed look on her face.
However, the old man was unmoving. Keeping up the subservient posture he asked.
"Will Miss Sara help this old man and teach this ungrateful girl? You see… Every one of them is like a son and daughter to me…"
"Of course!" Sara exclaimed hurriedly. She assisted the old man to stand back up and straighten his back before she continued. "Of course I will help! Even if I did not wish to, we are still forced to work together for the foreseeable future. It is in our best interest to work together!"
Whilst they were speaking they spotted the second group that have finally made their return. It was the third group that ventured out last, the group with the fiery amazon, the twins, and their entourage of escorts.
Like Sara's group when they got back, they too weren't without their fair share of adventure. Bruised and battered, torn clothes, tattered rags, and bent armor… it was clear they were through some great deal of trouble during their little excursion.
However, when Captain Don and the rest spotted the blood-drenched amazon grinning back at them… their eyes went wide with shock…
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>>>Check out my latest novel: The Strongest Demon Lord in the Modern World<<
It's an urban modern-day styled story, with a reverse transmigrated ('Banished') immortal entity from the fantastical world of Nova!
Planned Tags and Genre: # CULTIVATION # R18 # BETRAYAL # TRANSMIGRATION # URBAN # ACTION # ANTIHERO # OVERPOWERED (romance maybe at some later point)
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