Chapter 58

Mount Kohe is not exactly close to the royal city of Helgoda.

Cyrus, along with Judas and the others, followed Samuel all the way.

Finally, after Cyrus stepped into the Mount Kohe, he had Walker bring the man to him bound.

It was dusk, and fiery clouds spread across the entire mountain, draping the forest in a thin veil, both ethereal and magnificent.

Cyrus sat casually on a large rock by the stream.

He stretched one leg forward and bent the other, his right hand, gloved in leather, resting on his knee, revealing a section of his fair wrist, which attracted the attention of onlookers against the backdrop of the dark colors.

But at this moment, no one will look, and no one dares to look.

Poor Samuel was worrying about what to eat for dinner when he was suddenly grabbed by two servants disguised as soldiers and brought before Cyrus.

Samuel was extremely frustrated.

He's quite skilled; otherwise, he wouldn't have dared to venture into the mountains alone.

But to his surprise, after just two rounds, he was knocked to the ground, his hands were tied, and he was now kneeling before this man who was clearly a noble young master...

Samuel couldn't help but feel nervous, wondering what he had done to offend the other party.

Cyrus spoke calmly, "Samuel Fern."

Samuel looked up in surprise.

How could this noble young master know his own name?!

Cyrus: "Don't you remember? We met on the ship, the Dream."

He reminded him.

Samuel's face showed a thoughtful expression, then he looked at him with a sudden realization. "You, you are...?"

Samuel's mind was entirely focused on Duke Bill and the Dream, and he only glanced at other people or objects briefly.

But I still remember the young boy who brushed past him on the deck, but...

Samuel glanced at Cyrus, then at Judas standing behind him, who was clearly in a subordinate relationship with him, and instantly realized that the facade they had created on the Dream was nothing more than a pretense for outsiders.

The one in charge was actually the young boy sitting in the center.

But Samuel couldn't understand how he, an honest and unassuming man who only wanted to go to sea, had offended this noble young master.

So he humbly asked for advice.

Cyrus thought to herself that he was indeed an interesting person. Since he was kidnapped, he had not shown any panic. He was calmly trying to find a way to escape. No wonder he was a man who had seen the storms of the sea.

He said, "The reason you came to Mount Kohe is the same reason we came."

Samuel: "You're here for Duke Bill too?!"

Cyrus: "That's right."

"Now, let's talk about why you came to Mount Kohe. We can have a proper discussion. Walker, untie him first."

Walker nodded in agreement and ordered the soldiers to untie Samuel's ropes.

Samuel rubbed his slightly reddened wrist, grinned, and after weighing the pros and cons, knew that he had no right to bargain.

He stated bluntly, "You are definitely not Helgoda people, but even if Helgoda are, you certainly don't know as much as I do."

What do you know?

"Mount Kohe holds special significance for Duke Bill," Samuel said.

Cyrus was somewhat surprised.

Neither the notes Rodney provided nor the information they gathered mentioned Mount Kohe.

Not to mention knowing Mount Kohe so special to Duke Beale.

He was playing a guessing game.

Although the answer was obtained directly, there were still hidden clues that we did not understand.

Cyrus couldn't help but wonder—was it because of the special nature of Mount Kohe that Duke Beale buried the treasure here?

Samuel said, "Duke Bill never married or had children in his life."

"People say he dedicated everything to the sea, but in fact he originally had a lover he loved very much, and they met in the Mount Kohe."

Cyrus: "How did you know that?"

No one mentioned that either Mount Kohe or Duke Beer had a lover, and naturally, this was not mentioned in the information he had gathered.

It's obvious that this is a hidden "Easter egg," a story that Duke Beal intentionally concealed.

Samuel: "Having followed Duke Bill for so long, it's only natural to find clues that others have overlooked."

"But Duke Beal is an incredibly clever man; he blatantly left some suggestive traces right under the noses of countless people."

"Most people wouldn't be able to find it; only I discovered it."

Walker raised an eyebrow. "Are you indirectly praising yourself as an incredibly intelligent person?"

Samuel grinned, revealing his stubble, and said, "I really am."

"And I have never doubted that only I can do what Duke Beal did back then, and I will do it even better than him!"

Cyrus: "To set sail and explore New Continent?"

"That's right!"

Samuel's eyes gleamed with an undeniable light.

"But you've already failed once."

"That was just me testing the waters."

Samuel replied nonchalantly, "If I fail once, I can try again, a third time... until I face my death."

Samuel Fern's face shone with the radiance that only comes when discussing dreams.

Cyrus couldn't help but discourage him, saying, "If you die in the Mount Kohe, how will you achieve your dream?"

"If I were to kill you right now, wouldn't you feel very resentful?"

Samuel: "I am powerless to resist you."

"It would be easy for you to kill me. Although I am unwilling that my dream has not yet been realized, I will still open my heart to the embrace of the Creator God. May the Creator God bless me!"

He sat casually on the ground, looking at Cyrus, then suddenly grabbed his messy hair and laughed, "Besides, I always felt you wouldn't kill me."

"Can't I just answer the questions honestly?"

"I just want to find out about Duke Bill's past. I don't know what you want or what your plans are, but I definitely won't get in your way! And I certainly won't tell anyone afterward..."

"How about sparing my life...?"

Cyrus did not give a clear answer.

He asked, "How did you discover the clues left by Duke Bill?"

Samuel shifted his position and sat up straight. "I suppose, following Duke Bill's line of thought, if I had to say what was important in his life, it would definitely be the Dream."

"He sacrificed so much to build this ship, including the girl he loved."

"You can't take women with you when you go to sea."

"Because at sea, women meant disaster. Duke Bill would not give up his dream of going to sea, so he painfully let go of his beloved."

"But he must have regretted that relationship, otherwise he wouldn't have remained unmarried for life."

Samuel muttered, "Oh, to be honest, there's no conflict between getting married and having children and going to sea. It's just a pity I haven't met the woman I want to marry yet..."

Cyrus: "I don't care about that."

"... Yes, yes, I'll continue."

Samuel, as if unable to contain himself, tugged at his collar. "I wonder if you've ever been inside the Dream's cabins?"

"No."

"If you've ever been inside, you'll see the words and patterns engraved on the ship's planks or tables—lots and lots of them. Duke Bill liked to engrave any information on his stuff."

Cyrus couldn't help but look at Judas and Walker.

The two nodded.

Judas said, "Indeed, but they're all just everyday messages, nothing important..."

Samuel wagged his finger. "That's why I said Duke Bill is an incredibly intelligent and extremely daring man."

"Since he loved his Dream the most, how could he not want to see it one last time before leaving Helgoda and touch its beautiful hull?"

"So I boldly guess that Duke Beal must have secretly returned to the ship afterward."

"Furthermore, he left some traces in conspicuous places on the ship, and it was these traces that guided me to trace his past love and to unravel the clues he had ultimately hidden!"

"That clue is Mount Kohe!"

Samuel: "I am a shipbuilder."

"I am very familiar with the structure of the ship and know how the ship or its contents will change after going through the waves of the sea. I can tell the difference in the traces inside the cabin."

However, Duke Bill was a burning fanatic.

He left so many traces that Samuel has only now been able to sift through them to find the important information.

Cyrus let Samuel follow his own ideas.

They found a dilapidated cabin deep in the mountains.

This used to be a resting place for hunters in the forest, but it was obviously no longer of use. Samuel went inside and found special symbols hidden under the floor and in the corners.

Cyrus recognized that these were symbols marked on a treasure map.

He asked, "Do you know what that means?"

Samuel: "Yes, these are the symbols Duke Bill would mark when he identified directions at sea, representing east, southeast, southwest..."

"He had it engraved under the table in the cabin."

Cyrus: "..."

No wonder this man was willing to spend fifty silver coins to board the ship so often.

Samuel was somewhat excited. "We just need to follow the directions given; we don't know what we'll find in the end."

He suddenly said to Cyrus, "You must know, right?"

Cyrus raised an eyebrow, neither confirming nor denying.

He hadn't intentionally tried to hide anything from Samuel: "Yes, I know, and I can tell you now."

"No, no, no, please don't tell!"

Samuel waved his hands in a panic. "Please let me enjoy the pleasure of deciphering!"

Cyrus gestured for her to proceed.

Samuel breathed a sigh of relief and led the way.

They eventually followed the directions to the edge of a cliff.

Cyrus glanced at the detailed map generated by the system; the destination marked on it was in a hidden cave below the cliff.

Seeing Cyrus's eager expression, Judas couldn't help but ask, "Do you want to go down yourself?"

Cyrus nodded. "Don't worry about me, Judas."

"You and your men wait up there; Walker will take me down."

"Okay, please be careful."

Although Judas was worried, she would not go against Cyrus's wishes to stop him. The fledgling eagle will always grow up, and letting the lord try and fly before that is the best choice for him.

Of course, letting go is only possible if it is safe enough ahead.

With Walker's help, Cyrus slowly reached the bottom of the cliff.

After a careful search, they finally found the cave hidden in the thick grass, but it was completely empty.

"How could that be..." Samuel scratched his head in confusion.

Cyrus inadvertently struck the dagger against a spot on the mountain wall, making a hollow sound.

Walker looked over instantly. "There's something wrong with the cliff face."

There is definitely a problem.

Because Duke Bill hollowed out the mountainside, where he hid the treasure he brought back from the continent he had explored...

Cyrus saw ancient lithographs depicting abstract figures wearing eagle feather headdresses, unusual written records, and pieces of gold the size of a palm...

He found a well-sealed old parchment in an inconspicuous box.

098 appeared on the system interface: [Host, this is the sea route map. Do you want to add it to the system?]

[I highly recommend this app, it's really good for tracking books. You can download it here and give it a try.]

"Yes."

[System is currently recording data... Bug fixes are in progress, please wait... Bug fixes complete, sea routes updated, host is welcome to explore at any time.]

As soon as 098 finished speaking, the system interface refreshed instantly and changed—the mist around the Western Continent dissipated, revealing the azure sea. On the vast sea, there were many unmarked areas that had been obscured by blurry mosaics before being explored.

Cyrus: "..."

Could my future journey be to the stars and the sea?!

He couldn't help but turn his gaze to Samuel.

At this moment, Samuel was oblivious to the gold and jewels scattered on the ground, and instead, he was fascinated by the manuscript left behind by Duke Bill.

He noticed Cyrus's meaningful gaze, and his face turned pale. Was he going to be killed?

Is he really going to run into the embrace of the Creator God?!

Samuel couldn't help but despair.

After all, he truly hadn't expected that what Duke Beal left behind was such a coveted treasure, and that he had learned of such a huge secret...

This Cyrus nobleman will surely not let him go no matter what.

The initial elation at discovering the manuscript was instantly extinguished.

Cyrus: "Let's go."

"Please forgive me...wait, where...where are you going?" Samuel was stunned.