Horace Loux forcibly suppressed the strange, lingering sense of a "pull" within him.
Now was not the time to investigate it.
Setting foot on the damp lakeshore soil of Liurnia did not mean safety. Quite the opposite: for outsiders, the real challenge had only just begun.
He was the leader of this westward-bound group, the pillar supporting several thousand elderly tribespeople, women, and children, along with over a hundred warriors.
The immediate priority was not solving mysteries, but surviving.
He swiftly ordered them to find a relatively level clearing near the woods by the lake and make camp there.
Tents went up quickly, and simple defenses began to take shape around the camp's perimeter.
The elderly and weak were settled in the protected area at the very center, while the warriors took turns standing watch and hunting.
At the same time, Horace Loux selected twenty of the sharpest warriors, divided them into four teams, and sent them out in four directions.
"Do not engage. Do not expose yourselves. Only observe," he instructed sternly.
"I want to know what forces are nearby, what their insignias look like, how many people they have, and what they're doing. Pay particular attention to anyone wearing robes and carrying a staff, or wearing unusual armor. Also, look out for land suitable for farming, safe sources of water, and... beasts or monsters that might be hostile toward us."
Intelligence was the foundation of gaining a foothold.
He had to establish as quickly as possible just what sort of Liurnia they had arrived in.
Over the next two days, the scouts returned one after another with reports. The picture they pieced together surprised Horace Loux considerably.
Liurnia Lake Region was not currently the "capital of True Magic" he had imagined, jointly governed in harmony—on the surface—by the Carian Royal Family and the Academy of Raya Lucaria. Yet it was also far from the future chaos in which the Cuckoo Knights ran rampant and rival forces held interlocking territories.
There was a clear standoff here, a taut tension in the air.
Occupying the magnificent complex in the center of the lake region, the academy of Glintstone Sorcery that towered into the clouds-Raya Lucaria-was a group of sorcerers who revered Glintstone Sorcery and were, to some extent, detached from worldly affairs.
They were powerful and proud, with a near monopoly on knowledge of True Magic, but seemed to have little interest in the practical governance of the land around the lake, focusing instead on research into the stars and origins.
Standing against them as an equal was the Carian Family, descendants of the "Astrologers."
They were not royalty. Rather, as nobles, they commanded numerous "Glintstone Knights" sworn to their service and controlled vast tracts of land in the northern lake region, including Caria Manor.
Their leader was a young, talented woman skilled in Moon True Magic.
Relations between the two sides were tense, with occasional friction.
The academy's sorcerers looked down on the Carian "knights" for "vulgarizing" True Magic by using it for battle and governance, while the Caria Family resented the academy's monopoly on knowledge of True Magic and its aloof attitude.
Their clashes were usually small, but hostility ran high.
The "Cuckoo Knights"? The scouts had heard no such name.
Clearly, the mercenary force that would become both a major military pillar of Caria and a source of trouble in the future had not yet been formed or brought in on a large scale.
Rennala, "Queen of the Full Moon"? The scouts had learned that the Carian Family was indeed currently led by a young lady renowned for her powerful Moon True Magic and wisdom, and held in great esteem. But the title of "queen" had not appeared.
The Carian Family remained nobility, not royalty.
Horace Loux rubbed his chin.
The timing... was earlier than I expected.
Rennala should already have returned from the Mountaintops of the Giants, but had yet to raise the Carian Family to royal status.
The conflict between the academy and Caria had not yet escalated into a struggle to the death. On the surface, the lake region still maintained a fragile balance.
Had I come too early? No. A gleam flashed through Horace Loux's eyes.
Perhaps I've come at just the right time.
Before the situation became fully entrenched, both the academy and Caria urgently needed strength.
This relatively "unclaimed" gap offered the best opportunity for outsiders like them to find a foothold and secure benefits.
The Carian Family needed strength to counterbalance the academy, and also needed to expand its influence.
Though warriors like them from the Wasteland were regarded as "barbarians," their martial prowess was genuine.
If they could establish some form of connection with Caria, even merely as mercenaries, they could exchange their services for protection, land, and even opportunities to gain access to knowledge of True Magic.
As for the True Magic Academy... its attitude toward knowledge might be open, but it was extremely wary of anyone from outside its ranks.
Making direct contact was too risky.
A plan gradually took shape in Horace Loux's mind: find a way to establish contact with the Carian Family, demonstrate their value, and obtain a relatively outlying territory where they could farm, fish, and hunt, to serve as a temporary home.
At the same time, he could try developing the Great Runes system further among a small number of warriors, as a unique "bargaining chip."
He himself needed to seek opportunities to encounter and learn this world's systems of True Magic-whether Caria's Moon True Magic or the academy's Glintstone Sorcery.
Yet just as he began making plans with high aspirations, the scouts sent north returned with news that chilled his heart.
"My lord, we've established our general location." Cole pointed at the rough map Horace Loux had sketched in charcoal on a piece of tanned hide.
"We're currently on the eastern shore of Liurnia's lake, roughly... northeast of Academy Gate Town."
Horace Loux's gaze moved across the map.
According to his memories of the game, the eastern lakeshore was a relatively enclosed area.
To their north lay the "Eastern Tableland," and farther north was the "Ruins Labyrinth."
To the southeast was the "Carian Study Hall," while to the northwest, beyond a broad stretch of lake and the True Magic Academy, lay "Caria Manor," controlled by the Carian Family.
"If we leave the eastern shore by land..." Cole looked rather grim.
"We either go south, around the southern end of the lake, but the terrain there is complicated, and it might be close to Stormveil's sphere of influence; or we go northwest, but that means passing through the northern lake region, where there seem to be Caria checkpoints and patrols. The shortest route... is directly west, but there..."
He pointed at a spot on the map, precisely where the towering True Magic Academy stood.
"What about by water?" Horace Loux clung to one last shred of hope.
Another scout shook his head. "My lord, to our east... it's mostly sheer cliffs. Besides, we have no boats."
Horace Loux's heart sank.
"This is bad," he muttered.
Pastor of Vows Miriel, also known as Turtle, should be very ancient.
Based on his text, he presumably lived through at least the Primeval Erdtree era, and possibly even the Crucible.
According to the Green Turtle Talisman's text: [Turtles are well known as a nutritious ingredient, symbolic of inexhaustible stamina.
However, those who call turtles wise beasts consider the practice barbarous.]
Among the people of Caria, or at least among sorcerers, turtles are regarded as creatures possessing wisdom.
You can see this from the various True Magic Sorcerer's Towers.
At this point, we have to mention the truly "wise" ones over at the Moonlight Altar. Who designed something so ridiculous? Why not just make us search all of Liurnia for wise beasts?
Before you continue