"Heh, that's quite impressive." Laigushi smiled faintly.
"Not particularly." Dan Heng's expression did not change.
"But at the Tree Court, I found a great deal of research on the Sky Titan. I also learned that most scholars of Amphoreus attribute the taboo surrounding the Outer Realm to a curse laid by Aegle."
"Indeed." Laigushi nodded. "Of the twelve Titan Gods of Amphoreus, Aegle is the most mercurial."
"Its moods manifest in the weather: clear skies when it is calm, rain when it grieves."
"Its breath is a chilly breeze, and its shriek is a startling bolt of lightning."
"Yes. It is also one of the two Titans whose Core Flames have yet to be returned." Dan Heng looked at Laigushi.
Laigushi raised his head toward the pitch-black night sky.
"The sky above us is bound to every citizen's life. Leaving the campaign against Aegle until the end of the Journey of the Spark must have been a carefully considered strategy on Madam Aglaya's part."
"Perhaps." Dan Heng also looked up at the false sky.
"If returning Aegle's Core Flame can break the Sky Curse, then all we need to do is focus on helping the Chrysos Heirs."
"But that's where the problem lies."
Dan Heng turned to Laigushi.
"Does the Sky's Curse truly have anything to do with Aegle?"
"Or is someone else preventing the mortals of Amphoreus from leaving?"
"..." Laigushi fell silent for a moment before answering calmly.
"The Antikytherans have no homeland left to return to, so I understand your concern for your old friends and your home."
"But just now, I used Antikytheran technology to examine—"
"Or, in a term more familiar to you, to 'scan'—this carriage."
"If my assessment is correct, I may be able to inspect its power system more thoroughly."
"Oh?" Dan Heng