Lena and Felix descended the narrow spiral staircase of the bell tower and reached the main hall of the church.There, a man of middle age was waiting.He stood at the front of the church, on the raised platform, looking upward.The pews had been replaced with tables and chairs.Where an altar once stood, a large round table now bore a pile of sketches, books, and scrolls.A large landscape map, covering the intricately decorated back wall, seemed to be the centerpiece of this repurposed church.“Chief Scout Drakel, I’ve brought Felix!”Lena called out.The man tore his gaze from the map and turned to face them.“Good,”he replied briefly.His black hair, combed neatly back, gleamed in the warm light of the oil lamps that lined the walls.He ran a hand over the mustache that adorned his gaunt face and continued:“…And, have you discovered anything interesting up there, Felix?”As the Chief Scout spoke his name, Felix instinctively straightened his posture.He admired the veteran deeply.His knightly jerkin and the deep scar on his face told a story of an adventurous life.As a scout, this man had lived a life Felix had only ever dreamed of.He held him in great respect.“No, everything’s the same, Chief Scout. But I have to say, it’s a great honor to be able to accompany you the day after tomorrow.”He couldn’t suppress a naive smile as he saluted Drakel.The deep crease between the old man’s eyebrows softened for a moment, and a hint of a sad smile flickered across his face.“I see you’ve been reading about the old military ways. Discipline is important among scouts, but nowadays, you can skip the saluting.”“Yes, I know, but I wanted to try it at least once, haha!”Felix replied.“Hah…”Drakel sighed and remained silent for a moment.(That we already have to rely on children…)he muttered under his breath.Felix noticed the his own casual attitude toward the situation and scratched the back of his head apologetically.He knew this was about something important—and potentially dangerous—but the joy of being part of it all outweighed everything else.“Ow!”Lena’s elbow jabbed into his side.“Please, carry on, Chief Scout.”She said, giving Felix a stern look.“…Very well.”Drakel’s eyes returned to the large map, along with the deep crease between his eyebrows.“As you already know, the day after tomorrow we will set out on another mission to secure Checkpoint Two, so that we may attempt a push toward Checkpoint Three in the near future.”At the center of the map, the city of Dorinth was marked, situated in the middle of the lake.A red line traced the planned route out of the city.It ran across the long bridge—the only connection to the mainland—and reached its first stop shortly after, right at the edge of the forest.‘Checkpoint 1’ was written there.Drakel’s finger pointed further into the woods at a spot labeled ‘Checkpoint 2’.“Up to here, it’s relatively… safe… However, the Viscus concentration at Checkpoint Two is already significantly higher. But don’t worry—we’ll bring the Mana with us.”Felix’s eyes followed the red line as it wound further into the forest.Countless crosses, exclamation marks, and other symbols made the area beyond Checkpoint Two look like chaotic scribbles.Then the line suddenly ended.Instead of cryptic notes or markings, there was only a single symbol:‘?’Everyone knew what it meant, but Felix couldn’t help but speak it aloud.“All beyond Checkpoint Two is completely uncharted?”Drakel responded with a tired snort.“That Checkpoint Three is even recognized as such is solely because of the old flag that was raised there years ago.You probably saw it from the tower earlier.But as you know, all of the scouts back then… likely…”He broke off, eyes fixed ahead.Then he corrected himself.“Unfortunately, the scout who made it back couldn’t provide further assistance either.”The crease between his eyebrows deepened.Felix followed Drakel’s gaze to Lena, who had been silently standing beside him for some time.Her face was downcast, fists clenched.She was… clearly distressed.Did the old man know why she reacted that way?He looked at him questioningly.“In any case, in times like these, every helping hand is needed.Your task will be to assist in fortifying Stage Two and transporting resources.”Felix’s puzzled look was ignored as Drakel continued his briefing.“For the past three weeks, we’ve discussed the mission and trained you as much as possible.Today, I want to show you something important.”Drakel picked up an oil lamp from the table and descended from the altar platform.“Follow me.”The two exchanged a brief glance before hurrying after him.Lena’s expression remained tense, but it was not the right moment to ask her about it.In a dimly lit side room, the three now stood before a massive wooden door, reinforced with thick iron fittings and a robust padlock.Drakel reached into his pocket and produced a simple-looking key.“We used to have two guards here, but nowadays… well…”he muttered, turning the key.KLONKThe lock clanged, and the massive door opened, revealing a dark stairwell leading deep beneath the church.“I can’t see a thing!”Felix whispered to Lena, who cautiously stepped down the narrow stairs in front of him.The only source of light marched a few steps ahead of them.“Me neither! Hey! Stop touching my ears!”“Oh… oops… sorry… But what can I do? I don’t want to run into you from behind, and I have to find my way somehow.”“…Hmm, never mind… But why is Drakel running so fast with the only light source—H-Hey!”“Oops! Haha!”After reaching the bottom of the stairs, the three continued through a few rooms in the cellar.Swords, spears, armor, chests, and shelves filled the rooms.Apparently, important equipment was stored here.But Drakel’s rapid pace allowed no time to look around.…“…But the last one was definitely on purpose!”“I told you… I only stumbled into you! And to stop you from falling, I instinctively grabbed you! And… well, that was an accident! Really!”“Mm, yes, sure—oh…”They turned a corner and saw Drakel waiting in front of a locked door.“We’re here.”He said to his two delayed companions.The fully steel-reinforced cellar door was at the back of another storage room.KAKLONGThe lock made a deep metallic sound as Drakel turned the key.The massive door swung open.Inside, a dark room stretched before them.Felix could see bluish glowing spheres lying in the darkness below.“Ooh…”Excitement was written all over his face, for he knew what these spheres were.Even though their basic training had taught them little, it was enough to understand the importance of this artifact.Lena, too, was not unmoved.The uncertainty she had shown on the dim stairway was gone, and she now followed Drakel step by step.“This is…”Felix began.Only a few tables were set up in the lower part of the room, with small boxes on top.Though the furnishings were simple, Felix could feel the care and caution with which each box was placed.The room also seemed cleaner than the rest of the cellar.“Mana…”Lena added.One of the boxes was already open. On a bed of finely cut wood, the glowing spheres shone.“Here we store the Mana potions for the scouting flights.”Drakel picked up one of the spherical bottles and held it out to Felix.“Take it. Get familiar with the essence that gives us life.”The blue glow illuminated Felix’ awestruck face as he took the faintly glowing vial.The round glass bottle, reinforced with golden metal fittings, fit perfectly in his hand.Tiny colorful specks swirled within the bluish liquid, which felt slightly cool to the touch.“It’s hard to believe our lives depend on this stuff.”He felt almost sacrilegious calling the Mana ‘stuff’ and silently apologized.Lena took a vial as well, examining it with a serious expression.“The entire city… no, the entire humanity depends on this,”Drakel said, stroking his mustache.
“CAREFUL!”the head scout shouted.His stern, warning gaze bore down on Lena, who was curiously fiddling with two of the bottles.“S-sorry…”She gently set the second one back in its place and, her rabbit ears drooping, turned her attention to the remaining bottle.Felix found her reaction incredibly cute—and oddly refreshing. Even the model student could make a mistake once in a while.“One of these vials might be worth almost as much as a human life. Keep that in mind!”Drakel’s gaze swept thoughtfully across the room, and he added:“And the more we use, the more valuable it becomes.You understand how crucial it is that we make progress with the next expedition, yes?”He looked each of them deeply in the eye.Lena’s expression mirrored his seriousness.“We can only survive here because we use the old technology and Mana reserves from the old times.The Mana evaporators scattered throughout the city have been running nonstop for over 100 years, maintaining a habitable atmosphere on the island…”Drakel picked up a Mana bottle himself and continued.“The evaporation system is highly efficient, which is why it has sustained a livable atmosphere for so many years.However, it’s logical that the Mana will eventually run out.”He set the bottle down carefully and sighed.“And that ‘eventually’ is now within reach.”He sank onto a stair step as if a flood of negative emotions had drained the strength from his legs.The two apprentices had never seen the Chief Scout so vulnerable.“Every time the scouts venture into the Viscus-infested zone, more of the Mana reserves must be tapped… and not infrequently, they are… lost…”he said in a somber tone.Even Lena felt the weight of the mood and bit her lip.Silence filled the room.Felix was the first to break it.“That’s why we have to do everything we can to explore the world around us and escape this valley! The old maps show that there was a city not far from here! I’m sure we can find Mana reserves there!”Felix’ blind enthusiasm seemed to pull Drakel out of his slump.He scratched his head and stood up.“That is, at least, the hope,” he said, stroking his mustache.“People have been trying to achieve exactly that since the ‘Upheaval’ 150 years ago…But it’s not easy. Otherwise, we would have made more progress!That’s why we are now working on a new plan, in which you will also take part.”“The fortification of Checkpoint Two and the creation of a new Mana atmosphere…”Felix remarked.Lena asked:“How long do you think it will take before the new Mana atmosphere finally displaces the Viscus around Stage Two, and we can advance further?”“Hm… to be honest, I wonder if we even have enough reserves in the city to operate another experimental Mana evaporator. The old civilization was far superior to us technically, which is why we can still use their efficient Mana technology today. A system we cobble together probably won’t be as economical…""Ah, forget I said that,” Drakel added.Twitch TwitchFelix noticed Lena’s rabbit ears suddenly perk up.She lifted her head and looked toward the door.“Hey, did it just occur to you that you forgot to take the pot off the stove before leaving… huh?”tap tap tapHurrying footsteps echoed through the dark basement.Her large ears must have picked up the sound before anyone else.TAP TAP TAPGradually, it grew louder until it finally reached the entrance to our room.“DRAKEL!”shouted the man who suddenly appeared in the doorway.His chest heaved up and down.He must have run all the way here!“Kirgo, what’s going on?!”Drakel replied.Felix recognized the man—he was one of the other scouts under Drakel.“We need some of the mana reserves here! QUICK!”