The Trainee's Dagger

"What exactly happened?" Fang Heng unscrewed the stopper of his waterskin, poured out some water, and scooped a handful onto his face to wake himself up. He shook his wet hair before asking, "Did you see someone coming, Tarta?"

The two continued forward. Fang Heng trudged over the uneven forest floor, sometimes having to lower his head to squeeze beneath arched tree roots. The thick roots were covered in maidenhair ferns and coriander, with clusters of moonlight asters hanging down from them. He casually picked some and stuffed them into a pouch inside his robe.

Tarta sat on his shoulder and gently shook her head.

"No?"

"Then what was it?"

Centaur tribes believed dried asters possessed magical power. Later, alchemists discovered that aster powder was an excellent material for catalyzing magical power, which could then be used to prepare mana solutions.

Soaking a Core Crystal in mana solution for more than eight hours allowed it to fully absorb the free aetheric energy within. Fang Heng had lost his Magic Furnace, so he could only charge Core Crystals through such primitive methods—but fortunately, his fundamentals had been solid when he studied alchemy in Kapuka, and he still remembered these emergency measures.

Aethelria was rich in resources. The entire world brimmed with aetheric energy, and all kinds of strange raw materials could be found everywhere. Fang Heng looked up and saw crystals floating throughout the forest. These were raw crystals, one of the reasons the floating continents remained aloft.

There should have been a natural raw crystal mine here, though it was not worth much. Only high-quality raw crystals had value as materials for Core Crystals. Most high-quality raw crystals were buried deep underground, while these raw crystal deposits floating above the ground had long since been discovered. They were little more than scenery now.

The ground sloped slightly southward. The sound of rushing water came from ahead, and the two parted the bushes to see a pale-purple stream flowing beneath a stretch of sharp white rocks.

Its pale-purple hue reflected the dim forest and the glow of the crystals.

Tarta looked across the stream before finally saying, "I saw people camping over there."

"Across the stream?"

The fairy girl nodded gently.

"Come on, let's take a look." Fang Heng was eager to run into travelers so he could ask how far this place was from Elpaxin, and how to get there.

Still, he first went down to the stream to refill his waterskin and bent down to drink a few mouthfuls. The mountain spring was sweet and clear. Some beautiful fluorescent plants grew along the bank, while white fish darted beneath the water like flashes of silver.

He had the walker raise its blade-legs and stab them into the water. Water splashed everywhere, but it caught nothing.

The fish sensed the disturbance in the current and scattered in every direction.

"Silver Trout." Fang Heng sighed and shook his head. "What a pity. Their meat is delicious."

He rubbed his stomach. It was growling.

Tarta nodded. "Indeed. In Ausch, Silver Trout is one of the typical dishes served on noble dining tables."

"Is that so?" Fang Heng asked as he turned back.

"Because Silver Trout are not native to Ausch's many rivers, they are transported there along the Istania-Fasa route. To keep them alive, the ships carry water tanks and bulky oxygenation equipment. A live wild Silver Trout can sell for an astronomical price in Ausch. Some nobles even deploy warships for them—the 'Silver Trout Route' got its name from this." Tarta answered in an utterly matter-of-fact tone.

Fang Heng was fascinated. "It would be great if we got the chance to run that route someday."

"Transporting Silver Trout requires a specialized commercial permit." Tarta shattered his dream with a single sentence.

However, Fang Heng knew how the locals of Corin cooked Silver Trout.

One method was to brush the trout fillets with oil mixed with celery and fennel leaves, then grill them until golden. Served with lemon, pepper, and salt, they were crisp on the outside and tender within, with rich, layered flavors.

Just thinking about it made Fang Heng drool. He was a foodie at heart. But imagining it only made his hunger more obvious. Rubbing his stomach, Fang Heng stood up, looked around as far as he could see, and found a shoal where he could wade across the stream.

The Sword Plover walker moved ahead of them in alert mode.

In this mode, the walker was basically fully controlled by the system, and Fang Heng did not even need to operate it. However, it had only one marching pattern in this mode—though if a scouting module had been installed, the system would occasionally stop to scan the surroundings.

Only when the terrain became slightly more complicated would the system be helpless, forcing Fang Heng to take over. The walker leaped and scrambled in his hands, even running between rocks. He did not use the system at all, because Fang Heng had discovered that this could train his operational proficiency.

Before long, the two arrived at the place Tarta had mentioned.

There really were signs of a campsite in the forest.

Dead leaves had been swept aside, exposing the soft humus layer beneath. Someone had piled rocks into a temporary stove on the soft earth. It was far more professionally made than anything Fang Heng could have managed, showing that their investment in survival-related skills was on an entirely different level from his.

There were also traces left by tent stakes nearby. There had probably been three tents, two small and one large. Fang Heng estimated there had been at least five people. There were no droppings from pack animals in the camp, unless they had been cleared away—but since more obvious traces had not been concealed, that seemed unlikely.

An expedition team composed of several members took shape in Fang Heng's mind. As for its composition or mission, he knew nothing. He did not possess professional tracking skills; he was merely drawing conclusions through analysis.

Such teams were not uncommon in the areas surrounding towns. At the very least, it was a good sign. It meant he might not be too far from Elpaxin.

Fang Heng searched around but found no additional clues. The damp ashes in the wind stove indicated the other party had been gone for quite some time, at least several hours.

"How did you find this place, Tarta?" he asked as he turned back.

"I found it while collecting Stardew."

Fang Heng knew Stardew was not dew on grass and trees, but the nectar of Starlight Flowers.

Starlight Flowers bloomed only at night. From the time Shining Star rose before dawn until the moon set, they released pollen and secreted nectar. The nectar vanished without a trace before the first ray of morning light appeared, so the best time to gather it was before dawn.

The nectar of Starlight Flowers was the base liquid for Fairy Wine, and was beloved by fairies. However, Tarta probably collected it for the magical power contained within. Though she was a Dragon Soul, she was still influenced by some of the memories and experiences of fairies.

Incidentally, Shining Star was Aethelria's Dawnstar.

"Were there people here then?" Fang Heng asked again.

Tarta shook her head. "But they should not have left long before that. I saw embers in the campfire at the time."

"What a pity." Fang Heng said regretfully. "If we had come a little farther yesterday, we might have seen their firelight."

"But there is no guarantee they would have been friendly."

Fang Heng scratched his head. Thinking about it, that was true. Tarta's words made him more cautious. He had not forgotten what happened at the Elven Ruins.

The other party had not deliberately concealed their tracks, so Fang Heng could roughly guess which direction they had gone. That made him feel a little fortunate. Otherwise, given their survival skills, shaking off a novice like him would have been effortless.

But should he follow them? Fang Heng hesitated. If he continued south, he would eventually reach the bay near Elpaxin, though he had no idea how long that would take.

Tarta also reminded him from the side, "Leaving the original direction may cause us to get lost, Mr. Knight."

"How about this?" Fang Heng finally made up his mind. What he was mainly worried about was Elpaxin's situation—this was Rainbow Alliance's traditional sphere of influence. He had developed something of a shadow over Major Guilds and felt it was necessary to understand the situation before entering enemy territory.

"We'll follow this direction for one hour. If we still haven't seen anyone after an hour, we'll turn back the way we came." He took out his pocket watch and waved it. It might have been the most valuable thing he had left—a gift from a Kapuka craftsman apprentice, assembled by his own hands.

Tarta nodded.

So the two continued on their way. The terrain ahead gradually flattened, and the last traces of hilly land disappeared. The forest became level, finally revealing the true face of this lowland woodland.

Several streams converged here, forming a dim, shallow-water marsh. Island-like patches of high ground were scattered throughout the swamp, while the vegetation consisted mainly of banyan and mangrove trees.

The massive banyan trees were no less impressive than the ancient White Oaks he had seen. They grew together, their huge aerial roots extending beneath the water and developing into thick trunks. Some formed walls of dense, leafy branches.

Fang Heng also saw two Long-tailed Spear Storks. The gigantic predators, standing two meters tall, nested atop the banyans. A freshwater crocodile's corpse hung from a trunk, and they used their sword-like beaks to tear open its scales and pull out its innards to feed the chicks in their nest.

The moment he saw them, he jumped in fright and hurriedly held his breath as he retreated with Tarta. Long-tailed Spear Storks were only level-six creatures, but flying creatures were far more troublesome than land predators. The walker could barely launch attacks against airborne targets.

On the other hand, it would be much easier for Long-tailed Spear Storks to kill them.

Fortunately, when food was plentiful and they had not been provoked or threatened, most wild animals and magical beasts would not actively attack humans.

Fang Heng went around that area. After walking another quarter of an hour, he finally found traces left by the people ahead once more. It was a dagger, lying in the grass and gleaming brightly.

The troublesome part was that a Dragon-feather Emu was nearby. This flightless, monstrous bird had indigo feathers, a fiery-red crest, and a strange, enormous jaw. It had also intended to pick up the dagger as an ornament to attract a mate. When it spotted a competitor on the other side of the grass, it flew into a rage, spreading its gorgeous feathers and letting out an angry screech at Fang Heng.

Of course, Fang Heng was not about to give up the hard-won clue to it.

He stepped forward, trying to drive the large bird away.

But unexpectedly, the bird, which stood taller than a person, spat a blast of fire directly at him.

The people of Corin believed these flightless birds possessed dragon blood. Fang Heng was starting to believe it. He hurriedly rolled to the side to avoid the fireball. Flames scattered in all directions, but because he had dodged properly, his evasion value only dropped by a little over ten points.

"Sword Plover, go!"

He pointed forward, and two flashes of cold light shot out as the walker pounced down. But the Dragon-feather Emu reacted sharply as well, stepping back and causing the Sword Plover's strike to miss. Its blade-legs plunged into the muddy water.

The walker instantly lost its balance, but so did the Dragon-feather Emu. A pale-blue number appeared in Fang Heng's vision. Pale blue indicated evasion damage, and it was as high as one hundred and fifty-seven points.

That damage was enough to affect the Dragon-feather Emu's balance.

Sure enough, it took a step back into the mud, its body tilting as it prepared to regain its center of gravity. But Fang Heng turned his palm and scissored his middle and index fingers—the walker suddenly extended two blade-claws from the muddy water and slashed forward.

A flash of steel passed by, and the emu's thick claw was severed instantly.

Its bulky, person-tall body lost balance and toppled forward.

The remaining copper frame on Fang Heng's glove and the agile rails mounted on it spun wildly. The walker's second pair of legs suddenly shot forward and stabbed beneath the mud to stabilize it. Its entire body twisted, and its two pairs of blade-claws swept upward in a brilliant semicircle.

The strike cleanly cut off the monstrous bird's fiery-red head. Its liquid sac had been destroyed, and the flammable fluid came into contact with the air, exploding into a burst of sparks.

The Sword Plover walker hurriedly dove down and submerged itself in the water to avoid the flames. Its wooden structure feared fire but not water. Though the gear assembly would probably need cleaning after getting mud and sand inside.

The entire battle had ended in the blink of an eye. Only then did Tarta slowly blink and look up at him.

"This is a level-four creature."

Fang Heng wiped away some sweat and nodded. "That was a little close. Luckily, it was close-range combat. At that range, a high-accuracy walker naturally counters it."

"But judging by the stats panel, Sword Plover should not have been able to defeat it."

"Still, the walker is much stronger than a Clockwork Sprite." Fang Heng sighed. A level-four creature was roughly equivalent to a level-three adventurer. In other words, his performance just now had already reached the standard expected of a Combat Profession.

Combat Profession—

He could not help looking at his hands. Slender and long, they were still the hands of a craftsman.

Tarta had already flown over. Only then did he come back to his senses and walk over to fish the walker out of the water. He turned it upside down, letting the water and mud inside drain out.

At that moment, the fairy girl picked up the dagger.

"Mr. Knight, this does not seem to be Battle Gear."

"This dagger..." Fang Heng froze when he saw it—a seven-ring Star Radiance stamp had been engraved on the blade.

"You recognize it, Mr. Knight?" Tarta asked, holding the dagger in both hands.

"This emblem is the mark of Star Gate Port. This is a trainee's dagger."

Fang Heng nodded.

"Star Gate Port? A trainee?"

Fang Heng scratched his head, unsure how to explain the Chosen to her. But then the fairy girl reacted and asked, "Mr. Knight, is this about the Chosen?"

"Huh? You know?" Fang Heng was stunned.

The cover should have been uploaded already. Everyone should be able to see it after clearing their browser cache. Mirror made the cover's typography and graphic design, so thanks to Mirror. I painted the background myself, which took about six hours. Qidian currently does not allow image uploads, so if you want to see the original, you can check the forum for The Tower of Aethelria.

In the future, I may post artwork related to this work in the group, including concept art and maps. Unless something unexpected happens, I will draw all of it myself. The group has not been organized yet, so I will invite people in after it is ready.

Also, there was a small bug in yesterday's chapter, mainly involving the stats. I forgot to add the values in parentheses to the total attributes. Those who are not overly sensitive about the numbers can ignore it.