The truth

After several hours of winding detours beneath the cold light of the stars and bright moon, the carriage reached the southwestern edge of the Withered Forest.

"This is it. We're less than a hundred meters from the Hidden Lake now," Kanni said from horseback, studying his unfolded map.

The three inside the carriage climbed out one after another and surveyed their surroundings. Dark woods and tangled branches filled their vision, with no sign of the Hidden Lake.

"Are you sure this is the right spot? Why can't I smell even a trace of lake water?" Cobert asked doubtfully.

Kanni glanced at him, and he immediately turned his head away, unwilling to meet his gaze.

"This should be the place. Do you see that tree?"

Following Ma Linya's pointing finger, they looked toward a withered tree a dozen or so meters away. It towered above the others, and its crown was different-not grayish white, but a dark purple, like the color of moss.

They approached the tree, and Ma Linya pressed her ear against its trunk. After listening carefully for a few seconds, she said with certainty, "Five o'clock. A hundred and twenty paces."

Following her directions, they walked exactly a hundred and twenty paces before abruptly stopping. There was no ground for their hundred-and-twenty-first step, only a stretch of darkness.

"Impressive, Lingya. If you took that sound-locating ability to the Black Market's gaming tables, you could become an estate owner in a single night."

Kanni gave a rare smile at that. So this old fellow likes gambling too? I'll have to find a chance to play a few rounds with him.

Just as he was about to speak, Ma Linya raised an eyebrow and said with displeasure, "Gambling is gambling. Why dress it up as gaming? I hate gambling more than anything. Besides, who would dare go to a place like the Black Market alone?" She still remembered clearly how her younger brother had lost an arm after going there to gamble. Afterward, the family had been forced to sell most of their farmland, and their lives had spiraled downward. Less than two years later, he had died one morning in a brothel. Within another year, her adoptive parents had met violent deaths on that cold, lonely, clamorous night. Ever since, she had been alone.

Looking at the little lake buried beneath branches, Zeng Mu surmised, "The cut ends of these branches are still fresh. Someone must have put them here."

Kanni nodded and added, "That's right. Those Vikings really can't sit still. They've occupied Creek Valley, yet they still thought to conceal this Hidden Lake. They clearly planned everything well in advance."

The Hidden Lake was far from tiny, covering a full three mu. Measurements showed it was two meters deep as well. If they brought all its water back, it would sustain the thousand-odd people of Sand City for five or six days.

At that thought, delight appeared on their faces. It meant their mission was already halfway complete, and half of Sand City's crisis had been resolved.

"Quick, Nameless! Get that Wood Elemental Artifact thing out and pack the whole lake into it. Then we can reach the city by noon and celebrate with meat and wine," Cobert urged.

Zeng Mu nodded. His fingers had barely entered his pocket when he suddenly stopped and said warily, "Someone's coming."

Before the other three could say anything, a cold gust sliced through the air behind them, closing on Ma Linya's waist in the blink of an eye.

At that perilous instant, Zeng Mu lifted his foot and kicked the arrow's shaft faster than the eye could follow. With a whoosh, the arrow swung around like a fish flicking its tail, then hissed into a tree trunk, quivering from side to side with a humming sound.

"Who's there?!" Kanni shouted angrily.

"I should be asking you that."

As the voice faded, more than a dozen people pushed aside the branches and appeared before the four in a triangular formation.

They were enormous, with even the shortest standing nearly two meters tall. All wore armor and two-horned helmets, with blades, axes, and clubs strapped to their backs. They stared over with the imposing presence of shaggy bears, their gazes fierce enough to kill an ant.

They approached and examined the four closely, trying to find some trace of what they were looking for.

The man at their head had a white axe emblem on his breastplate, clearly marking him as one of their White-Pattern Leaders.

He looked at Kanni's hostile face, smiled contemptuously, and asked, "What are you lot sneaking around here for?"

"Leader, there's no need to think too hard. Just look at those three faces. They're most likely scouts from Sand City," the veteran beside him muttered.

Before he could continue, Cobert immediately spoke up. "You've wronged us, sir! We're no scouts from Sand City. We're all civilian merchants."

Having drawn their attention and taken control of the conversation, Cobert pulled a bronze badge from his pocket and continued, "Please look, gentlemen. This is an herbal merchant's badge. Without question, I'm a Fulin Taiyou merchant through and through. These three are guards and assistants I hired for this journey. We came here because we ran out of fresh water and needed some lake water to keep ourselves alive."

"I've traveled this route countless times, so I know my way to this Hidden Lake that most people don't even know exists. But this is my first time drawing water here. Everyone knows we Fulin Taiyou People have style and taste. Just look at this lake water-filthy, green tinged with black. Who knows how many crawling creatures and wild beasts have been here? Who would willingly drink such dirty water unless they had no other choice?"

Cobert's explanation was orderly and well supported. Combined with his endless gift for embellishment and patter, his defense left them unable to find a single flaw. They began to wonder whether they had been overthinking things.

Just then, a middle-aged Viking warrior with an unkempt beard hurried over from behind. He approached O'Connor, their leader, and lowered his voice. "Leader, we checked the carriage. There's plenty of merchandise inside, mostly herbs. The rest are little things for people's amusement. There are even dried fish bladders for use in bed..."

After hearing this, O'Connor turned back and scrutinized the four again, his eyes gleaming. Only after a long while did he finally speak. "It seems I was overthinking things. Since you have nothing to do with the Knights' Order, you aren't our enemies."

"But remember, you're not to set foot here again. Take your water and leave at once. If you get in our way, I won't mind adding a few more lives to my tally." His voice was quiet, but the chill in his words left no doubt that he would do exactly that if they disobeyed.

Cobert nodded with an eager smile. "Yes, yes, of course. I wouldn't dare miss a single word you've said, sir. We'll leave as soon as we've drawn our water."

"Let's go." With that, O'Connor turned and left. The warriors followed him, gradually disappearing into the dark, indistinct depths of the forest.

As they walked, one of them said uneasily, "Leader, are we really letting them leave? Something feels off about them. To avoid any complications, why not finish the job once and for all..." He made a slicing gesture across his throat.

O'Connor dismissed the suggestion. "Forget it. In a situation like this, even an ant would seem suspicious. That's your own immaturity showing, not proof that there's anything wrong with them."

"Besides, our leader ordered us not to slaughter civilians indiscriminately. And that fellow in charge is one of the Fulin Taiyou People. If we mishandle this and word gets out, even our leader will be blamed by his superiors. Neither you nor I can bear those consequences. Know what matters and what doesn't. Don't sacrifice something important over a trifle. Understand?"

"Yes," he replied with a nod. The other warriors abandoned any thought of trying to persuade him.

Their squad had come under Idiveer's orders to establish a camp around the Withered Forest, where they were responsible for keeping watch and scouting to prevent a surprise attack. Thus, the more discreet they remained, the better. They were to avoid causing any major disturbance, since no one knew whether enemy scouts or informants might be lurking somewhere in these dense woods.

Despite what he had told his subordinates, O'Connor still felt vaguely uneasy. In particular, when he had looked at the slender young man among the four, he had sensed some kind of power in his eyes, sharp as a sword's edge. Instinctively, he had been unable to hold his gaze for long, yet he could not tell what that power actually was.

Recalling the Fulin Taiyou man's explanation, he finally settled his unease with a thought. An exceptional guard...

By the time they returned to their camp several hundred meters away, Zeng Mu had begun his work.

He took out the white pearl that was the Wood Elemental Artifact and activated it slightly. Green light flared, enveloping the four and bathing them in a soothing warmth and coolness. Even the ground beneath their feet seemed to soften, its texture growing finer.

Facing the little lake, Zeng Mu pointed a finger. The glowing green pearl rose into the air, drifted slowly to the center of the lake, and began to spin.

The water burbled, gathering into a swirling vortex before rising into the spinning green pearl.

Darkness sank away, branches stood exposed, purple-green scum lifted from the surface, and pebbles emerged.

Within just a few minutes, the little lake vanished, leaving only a muddy lakebed and a white column of spring water pulsing slowly upward.

"That spring puts out an impressive amount of water. No wonder a Hidden Lake formed here," Kanni said, his face full of awe.

"In two months at most, the little lake that vanished into thin air will be back," Ma Linya added.

With a rushing sound, the green pearl's glow withdrew. Zeng Mu raised his hand, and it drifted slowly back into his palm.

Sensing the vast quantity of lake water inside the Wood Elemental Artifact, Zeng Mu looked gratified and said excitedly, "We've got what we came for. Let's go. We're heading back to Sand City right away."

The four returned to the carriage and set off westward in high spirits.

It was around six in the morning, and dawn was just breaking. The sun had yet to appear, but its glow already colored the once-gray cirrus clouds. Under the gentle breeze high above, the rosy clouds stretched into long, fine strands, interweaving side by side as though God were weaving a towel from a woman's hair. Looking up with arms spread wide, one could almost feel it drifting gently down to settle around one's neck.

Less than an hour after they left, a figure emerged from the woods. When he saw the empty Hidden Lake, his face filled with utter astonishment.

He was the Viking warrior from earlier, a veteran who had spent decades ranging across Sand City. In terms of age, even O'Connor, their leader, had to address him as an older brother.

Although O'Connor had put aside his suspicions about the four, the veteran's instincts told him there was more to this than met the eye. That was why he had returned to investigate. Never had he imagined that the Hidden Lake would have vanished into thin air.

"Damn it, a Wood Elemental Artifact!"

"They... they're from the Holy Temple Legion!"