"Claire, do you really think the underground part is a dark world?"
Megan curiously asked her companion beside her. Claire nodded.
"The elders hold that belief, but I don't. When Mother told me stories as a child, she mentioned similar ideas."
"Then are there large mineral deposits here? I only knew there was high-quality iron ore west of the City of Time Wheels, which is also the foundation for the local high-end clock business."
Shade asked as well, and Claire could answer that question.
"Yes, the natural resources beneath this island are abundant. Not only is there the open-pit iron mine you mentioned, but even when I was in school, I knew there were several gemstone veins beneath the island. But the Fatu People would never mine their own homeland and turn it into one of those environmentally ruined mining cities on the Old Continent."
Sivie very much agreed with her. The Aurora Family's home island had become unfit for habitation because of overdevelopment.
In any case, the clue provided by the association was indeed worth investigating. After lunch at noon, Shade called Claire and Flora, who had only recently arrived here, and headed with them to the western part of the island.
The entrance to the underground cave was inside a hidden cavern at the mountain foot. The cavern was not large, but its interior was extremely complicated. Under normal circumstances, one could pass through it and emerge high up on the mountain. According to the map provided by the association, however, they needed to head toward a remote corner of the cave. Finding an artificial brick wall would mean they were in the right place.
"How did they even know about this place? I've never heard of it."
Claire was quite astonished.
Beyond the brick wall was indeed