Pillars of Ita

Elisa climbed up a path to the top of the ruins, stood on the high platform, and gazed at a bright light in the wind and snow.

The biting wind did not frighten her; instead, it shrouded the girl's expression in frost. She turned and leaped down to the next level, then gripped the rock face firmly to steady herself.

She rose, nimbly traversing a remaining corridor, and returned to the starting point. There, a campfire burned, and Olivia was speaking with the young man:

"Is that the evil dragon sealed there, the legendary Dragon King Livegard?"

"That's right, but after so many years, it's long since died. However, the elves' magic circle was damaged in a great battle two hundred years ago, giving it a chance to escape."

"I've heard about that great battle. The extinction of the Holy Flame of the Flame Council seems to be related to it, as is the demolition and reconstruction of the Bronze Bell Council. Is this what you're referring to?"

Olivia nodded: "Mr. Maryland certainly comes from a family with a strong academic background; that's exactly what it is."

"It's just that ships often sail south from the coast of Baozhang, bringing back news from other places. We have trade relations with the Sons of the Gulf, and both of these rumors originated from there."

"So now, you want to reseal Livegard?"

"The power of dragon blood can only have one master. One will live, and the other will die. Livegard is about to break free. All we can do is reseal it back to a trustworthy person."

"So you chose me?" Maryland Rogers tried to sound uneasy, but anyone with eyes could see the ambition lurking in his eyes.

“We have no choice, Mr. Maryland. I wonder if you have heard of the Oathkeepers? Elisa and I both come from this ancient lineage.”

Olivia looked at the former seriously, "Therefore, we all carry dragon blood and cannot seal this evil dragon again, but your appearance here may be the choice of heaven."

"Did fate choose me?"

“Mr. Maryland, fate doesn’t choose anyone, but at this moment, someone really needs to step forward.”

The girl's voice, like a string of bells dissipating in the wind and snow, stirred a longing in one's heart. Maryland's heart pounded, as if a raging fire was about to erupt from it.

He placed one hand discreetly on his chest, but Olivia had actually noticed something hidden there long ago, or rather, she knew what it was from the beginning.

But she didn't point it out, only watching the other person perform. Maryland suppressed her ambition, concealing the fervor in her eyes, "Ms. Olivia, I have one more request."

“Mr. Maryland, please speak.”

"If the seal is successful, I would like to ask you to return to Winterhold with me."

"Winterhold, is that your hometown, Mr. Maryland?"

Maryland nodded. "I have no complaints about sealing the dragon within me, but I don't know how long I can hold on by my own will."

Olivia smiled gently. "I have no objection, but you still need to get the opinions of Miss Elisa and that gentleman."

Maryland turned around and looked at the box where a man was leaning against the broken wall, carefully wiping the sword in his hand with a strip of cloth. The boy was strangely dressed and single-minded, as if everything around him was irrelevant.

However, what truly made Maryland uneasy was the sword in his hand, its blade gleaming with an eerie light, almost like an evil sword.

He suppressed his curiosity and nodded slightly to Olivia.

But Eliusis merely observed this scene coldly. Only when she saw Elisa emerge from the shadows did she immediately transform into her human form and reveal herself before Elisa:
"Look at that poor wretch, completely fooled by her, seemingly without a doubt that it's true or false. Compared to this fool, I think you should be wary of that wicked woman."

"If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I would almost have believed what she said—"

Elisa glanced in that direction. "So you really think everything he said was true?"

Elius frowned.

"What do you mean?"

Elisa sighed: "Do you really believe that he accidentally ended up here, then by chance obtained the power of Livegard, and took it away from here alone, which led to the series of events that followed?"

"You mean he's lying to us too?"

"His purpose has always been this. Our suggestion was exactly what he wanted, so he willingly fell for it and pretended not to see through it."

"Wait, how does he know the secret of Vo-Sarastiel?"

Elisa looked at the other woman with a pitiful expression, making Eliussis feel a little uncomfortable. "...Why are you looking at me like that?"

"It wasn't that he knew, but that someone told him."

"The seal here was broken during the great war three hundred years ago, so Livegard's soul had the opportunity to break free. It lured this young man here in order to regain his freedom."

"But it never expected that it would fall into the hands of a mortal, not only having its soul controlled by the other party, but also having half of its power taken away by the other party."

Elisa's gaze fell on Eleusis. "So you're saying he wouldn't know this is a trap? Do you think he has any secrets... Eleusis, I think you'd better stay here."

"What do you mean?"

Elisa said earnestly, "You can at least keep your life in the Sons of the Gulf prison, but if you go back to the Empire, I'm afraid you won't even have any bones left."

The Duchess immediately bristled: "What do you mean...you mean I'm no match for that old man?"

Miss Nightingale looked at the other person with a hint of regret. If she really had a brain, she wouldn't have failed to realize that people with starlight could be resurrected.

If she were a chosen one, it might be understandable, but the other party is clearly a native of the Empire, so it cannot be explained simply by being rough and clumsy.

However, she didn't have time to argue with him about this, and only said, "But this may not be a bad thing for us. He is ambitious and has the means to control Livegard. In fact, this is the reason why we chose him."

Eleusis's attention was drawn to her words. "But aren't you worried that he'll get out of control, as you say, such an ambitious man?"

Elisa looked at the Duchess again, her eyes filled with concern that bordered on pity.

It took Eleusis a long time to finally understand the meaning in their eyes—how could they worry about a phantom from history, which was nothing more than an echo of the past that had already happened?

Even if they transferred all the dragon blood curse to the other party, what difference would it make? That wouldn't be the real wanderer Alter, but merely a shadow of history.

She couldn't help but exclaim, both embarrassed and annoyed, "Damn it!"

……

When Selgios attacked again from mid-air, Beryl no longer held back. Golden flames gathered in her hand into a longsword, which she swung fiercely, sending her opponent flying far away.

The spatial tremor originated from the point where the two met, and the barrier above the city finally began to crumble. The entire scene was terrifying, with the three halos shattering instantly, and the entire sky collapsing like a glass dome.

Daryl hooked her hand on the edge of the wall, hanging from the top of the building like a cat, gazing at the scene in the distance. The change in the direction of the square was reflected in her jewel-like eyes.

Below, a small figure stood among the crowd, looking at the scene in the sky with some surprise:

Is the sky about to fall?

“The barrier is about to shatter,” Gita said calmly to the lady beside her, placing her hand on her grimoire. “Lady Aina, you shouldn’t have disembarked.”

“But there’s no one left on the ship. Are you really going to leave me alone on the ship?” Aina asked with a smile. “Mr. Ed promised to stay with me for a while.”

She gritted her teeth, "But that wretched guy abandoned me and ran away."

The scholar looked at the other person and didn't know what to say for a moment. Parker, who was usually bold, was like a mouse seeing a cat when he saw this lady.

They first escaped from Silverwind Harbor to here, then secretly slipped off the ship and went to the leader's place with the big cat people.

To be fair, by Paparazzi standards, the mistress of Oak Hills was definitely a beauty, with outstanding looks and a first-class background.

Even by human standards, she's quite adorable. I wonder what Puck is worried about. Even if he's from Earth, the leader is too, and so is Ms. Sylvie...

Thinking of this, Gita suddenly bit her lip.

The red-haired female pirate beside them seemed to sense something and turned to look at the two of them through the rain. "What's wrong? Have those things changed again?"

Her gaze fell on the shadowy creatures. Gita quickly shook her head. "No, no, they're still converging in one direction. I guess the captain and the others are there; the barrier itself is being controlled by someone."

Daryl remained on the rooftop, unaware of what was happening below; she only watched from afar the shockwaves created by the clash between Beryl and Selgios.

The invisible shockwave formed a wall in the rain, sweeping in from the direction of the square. It swept over the towers, making the high-rise buildings teeter on the verge of collapse.

Tiny pebbles also struck her hairy neck, but Daryl paid no heed, her emerald eyes reflecting only the shattered sky, until a crack appeared in the roof beneath her feet.

Until a shadow appeared in her field of vision—

A deep light flashed in her eyes before she leaped nimbly and landed among the crowd. "I see them. Another group of people are heading towards the Temple of Tririel."

“The captain’s words were actually true,” Baggins said in disbelief. “That guy Art actually came to this place, and the people with him are the Flamebringer’s Oath?”

“Alter?” Catherine asked, puzzled.

“Like your father,” the old sailor said, “he also has connections here. It’s a long story, but the big cat let us in here to stop the other side.”

Catherine looked up in that direction, not bothering to explain whether the man was her father or not, but a flame flickered in her eyes: "So, the source of the curse is there?"

"I'm afraid that's exactly the case."

“But these things still block our way,” Catherine said, looking at the swaying shadow figures. “Shall we fight our way out?”

“No need,” Gita shook her head at everyone, “I’ll think of a way.”

She opened her magic book. "Mr. Baggins, you'll lead the way later."

The boatswain nodded.

The scholar pressed her hand on the title page a little harder, “...the alliance between the Dwarf King, the hero of the Iron Throne, Varit, and the Bronze Dragon Clan.”

"In the wars of yesteryear, the hero wielding the holy sword sought the help of the master of that mountain range..."

The figure of a giant dragon flew out from the pages of the book in her hand, letting out a low roar as it swooped down towards the shadowy creatures.

“Ah, that’s the bronze dragon Gelfin.” Aina was very knowledgeable.

"...Yes, that's its story. They once fought against the evil dragons in the shadows, and now I call upon their names once more..."

"Gita answered softly, the girl's right hand resting on the cold pages of the book, rainwater wetting the gems on the metal cover."

The shadows created by the cultists' sacrifices were much weaker than those they had encountered in Elpashin, and far weaker than the one Fang Zheng had seen at the Summer Solstice Tower.

As the phantom of the bronze dragon swept overhead, it scattered the writhing creatures, and Boatswain Baggins, seeing this, took the lead:
"Seize the opportunity, let's charge!"

Daryl followed behind, followed by Alice—the twin sister who was always taciturn in front of strangers.

Finally, it's May.

The knight first shielded Gita behind her before speaking somewhat seriously to Aina, who was standing to the side, "Lady Xiaoyu, please follow behind me."

The petite woman nodded quickly.

……

Among the group heading up the steps toward the Temple of Tririel at the summit, the current Archbishop of the Flamewreath was the first to notice that someone was following them.

He glanced in that direction; there were few obstructions from the temple to the city center square, and he immediately spotted Baggins and his group breaking through.

He turned around and looked at the man who was single-mindedly climbing upwards. The man, who used the alias Kobelflick, seemed completely unconcerned and continued walking up the steps against the wind and rain.

"Someone is following us."

“Send your men to stop them,” the wanderer Art said without turning his head. “They are not from Toragotos; perhaps they are your men from three hundred years ago.”

He didn't quite believe that anyone other than the old green dragon would notice his arrival, but Toragothos had already been outmaneuvered by Lifgard.

It's unlikely that any of the Dragon Worshippers under their command would know their own identities, and those fanatics might not even know who their enemy is.

His commanding tone made Baldoma frown slightly, but they shouldn't be disturbed right now. The plan was in its final stage; once they entered the temple, he wouldn't need this dangerous man anymore.

"Gunther, take some men and stop them."

He glanced at the idiot from the Brandbald family, feeling that keeping this young man around was a potential threat, and that it would be better to get rid of him now.

The taciturn young man simply nodded silently. Baldoma pointed to a few trustworthy and reliable subordinates to follow him. Although this young man was a hothead, he held a very high position.

On the one hand, he had to get the other party away, but on the other hand, he also had to prevent the other party from having any accidents. Although the Brandbald family had declined, it was still very prestigious, and many of his political allies came from this faction.

This is why he had to bring this unpleasant young man along.

Fortunately, the other party seemed to be obedient. He watched the young man leave from a distance, while the people who followed were still at the foot of the holy mountain. Gunther should be able to stop them before the young man ascends the holy mountain.

Bardoma then turned around with relief.

And things turned out just as he predicted.

As soon as Baggins and his party reached the top of the mountain, they were met by the knights of the Flame of the Covenant. These knights, clad in heavy armor and wearing fiery robes, immediately drew their swords upon appearing.

The boatswain didn't waste any words with them. With his other hand, he drew his musket and fired a shot that struck one of the knights in the chest. The lead bullet pierced his battle robe and left a long trail of sparks on the metal casing.

“Tsk,” Baggins scoffed, “Be careful, it’s a magic armor.”

“They look like legitimate knights. These people have actually mixed up with cultists. The Oath Court has really degenerated to a terrible state over the years.”

It was Daryl who launched the first attack.

Miss Catwoman seemed quite familiar with these tin cans. She stepped past the boatswain, brandished her two-handed sword, and thrust it at the knights.

The enemy clearly did not expect Baggins and his group to be so decisive. In an instant, the knight who had been shot stumbled backward, while others roared and pounced on Daryl.

Only one person bypassed the main battlefield; it was Gunther, the fool from the Brandbald family, who came to the side of Baggins' group and unintentionally encountered the knight lady who was protecting Gita and Aina.

When May noticed someone appearing to her side, she didn't hesitate and transformed her battle halberd into a golden spear of light, hurling it in that direction.

However, before the light spear could reach the young man, it was automatically deflected by a glowing shield. Gunther and the Knight Girl both let out a soft "Eh" and then looked at each other.

"Purifying Spear, what is your relationship with Rhea and Gonzalez?"

The young man from the Brandbald family spoke, his voice unusually calm.

But at the same time, May spoke up: "You are not from the Flame of the Tower. Who are you? Are you a member of the Secret Guard?"

Meanwhile, in the sky, someone else noticed this subtle yet intriguing burst of power on one side.

Beryl and Sergios stopped fighting in mid-air at the same time. The female bishop looked in that direction immediately and then frowned.

She turned around and said in that direction, "Stop, Sergios. I don't know why you're on that side, but you have no choice but to act now."

Her gaze fell to the distance.

In the square there, the spire was slowly falling, its body cracking and crumbling.

The barrier in the sky had long since shattered into pieces, and the shadows of two giant dragons were now looming over Vol-Salastir from the left and right.

Upon hearing this, Selgios merely glanced at her silently.

...(End of chapter)