kscans

Chapter 202 - Episode 3: Scars of the Ancient Past

The horse-dragon carriage sped along at a pace that left regular carriages in the dust. From its high window, I watched as Wyvern Mountain loomed before us. To our left and right, a little over thirty knights in two distinct sets of armor rode sixteen horse-dragons, flanking our vehicle.

We traveled along a road, or more precisely, alongside the remains of one. The wide stone pavement was broad enough for two carriages to pass each other. Though now rough and uneven from the roots of weeds and shrubs, it must have been far better kept than the Kingdom's roads back in its day.

It helped us reach this point without losing our way. Then again, considering the sheer scale of the ruins ahead, getting lost was never a real concern.

"It's larger than I expected."

I remarked to Maytyl as I gazed at the remnants of the city wall up the road. Huge holes gaped in places and the upper sections had crumbled, yet it still seemed to rival the Royal Capital's walls in height.

"This is my first time seeing it too. Even if people know it's here, no one would be reckless enough to try and come this far. I'd love to take my time and investigate."

Maytyl replied, fiddling with a golden cylinder in her hands. She called other people reckless, yet she seemed to be enjoying herself a little. Of course, the Imperial Princess's wish would likely not be granted. Dagobard, the leader of this expedition, had clearly stipulated how many days the horse-dragon unit could be away from the Empire.

As a side note, it was a condition of my participation that Dagobard held command during travel and combat.

"I will not forgive you if anything should happen to Her Highness."

Crenne, who sat between Maytyl and me, said. She was the one who had opposed both Dagobard and Maytyl going to a dangerous place at the same time. I wished she would say that to the person who had rejected her perfectly reasonable advice. Well, since I was the one who asked Maytyl to do the task she was currently working on, I couldn't really talk back.

Still, how did things get so out of hand, even for a matter as critical as investigating the Great Catastrophe hypothesis. With the next leaders of both the Kingdom and the Empire acting as my escorts, one could argue that I was in the most precarious position of all. The world is full of surprises, to think safety and self-preservation could be so contradictory.

The ruined city wall drew closer. In one spot where it had collapsed most significantly lay the remains of a tower, toppled over as if to point its spire at us. One can only imagine how tall it must have been when it stood.

Noticing our approach, a wyvern perched on the wall took flight. And that wasn't all. A great number of wyverns were taking off from Wyvern Mountain as well.

"Here they come again. That's quite a few, so we're going out too."

Maytyl and Crenne grabbed their magic staves and headed for the driver's platform of the horse-dragon carriage. Just a little while ago, they had been dealing with a pack of magic wolves that had attacked from Rubel Wald to the west. According to Craig, in the Kingdom, each one of those would be considered a boss-class monster from a Monster Flood.

The attacks from the Imperial Knights steering the horse-dragons and the Kingdom's magic staff users riding with them were devastating. Any that slipped through were simply picked off by precise shots from the horse-dragon carriage.

However, being so close to their nest, the wyverns were a nuisance. They were numerous, and with their magic full to the brim, they launched wave attacks in complex trajectories. Even so, the power of our unit simply outmatched them.

With the next leaders of both nations in command, morale was naturally high. And the sporadic monster attacks we'd faced so far had acted like training drills. As a result, our coordination was on a completely different level compared to when we left Muldras. You could almost call us a provisional allied army.

Moreover, the Spiralflame, with its purified wavelength, had double the firing speed and double the magic efficiency. On top of that, the targeting circuit attached to the tip had even increased its accuracy.

We had no shortage of Magic Crystals thanks to the cores from the downed wyverns. But the Magic Catalyst in the cartridges was starting to run low. The more you use it, the more it degrades. And the more the catalyst sells... whoops, I shouldn't say any more.

◇◇

We passed between two massive stone structures that appeared to have once been the main gate. Inside, the remains of a grid-patterned city came into view. As far as the eye could see, every road was paved with stone. Perhaps due to the cold climate, it had not been swallowed by the jungle like ruins on Earth.

The buildings, however, were in a terrible state. It seemed they had made use of abundant forest resources, much like Muldras. Rotted wooden pillars protruded from collapsed stone. Here and there, trees that had grown over the past four hundred years had encroached upon the structures. Looking at the walls, I saw a white, powder-like substance clinging to them. It might be wyvern droppings, or perhaps the trails of something like a Mucus. The slime mold monster was probably what had destroyed the city walls. Inside the ruins, there were also numerous gouged-out tracks in the ground.

And yet...

"It seems to have been quite prosperous."

Maytyl said. I nodded. The road to get here, and the considerable size of each collapsed building, spoke volumes. The one that had jutted from the wall was not the only tower. While not quite a skyline of skyscrapers, it appeared there were once many tall towers. All of them now in ruins.

It wasn't quite a lost ancient civilization, but it gave a sense of the economic scale of a nation that spanned the current Kingdom and Empire.

"Looks like we can take a breather from the wyvern attacks."

"..."

The horse-dragon carriage stopped in a plaza that looked like the site of a former theater, carefully avoiding the crumbling buildings.

Craig and Dagobard came before us. Everyone gathered near the remains of a building that looked relatively sturdy.

"Where do we start?"

"We will search for traces of the monster that destroyed this city. Princess Maytyl, I'd like you to measure the magic veins."

The first objective was to find the scars of the Great Catastrophe left in the city, to collect samples to confirm the image from the prophecy. If they matched, it would be powerful evidence that the next catastrophe would be the same as the one four hundred years ago.

I had brought paper and ink to make rubbings, but the surface weathering was far more severe than I had anticipated.

"The towers lying on the ground might be our best bet."

I said timidly to Dagobard.

I approached the remains of a particularly large tower with Dagobard and Craig. A horse-dragon pulled on a rope, flipping over a large stone that had been half-buried in the ground. There were also the remains of charred logs that might have been beams.

"Found them."

When we cleared away the dirt clinging to the surface, wedge-shaped marks appeared. There were several lines that looked like claw marks. We found the same on several other stones we turned over.

I poured ink into the claw marks and pressed paper against them to make a copy. It seemed close to the image Alfina had described, though she would have to make the final judgment.

We had accomplished our goal. But my heart was not at ease. When I looked at Craig and Dagobard, I saw them both directing harsh gazes at the remains of the tower's outer wall. The sheer number of vertical and horizontal scars etched into the flat stones was chilling. We had to assume the city was attacked by a massive number of monsters.

Of course, that only increased the probability that our hypothesis was correct.

"What do you think? Can you tell what kind of monster's claw marks these are?"

Craig asked Dagobard.

"Even the magic wolves that attacked us earlier were a different species from those in the Empire. It's hard to say. However..."

Dagobard traced a pair of scars with his finger. I noticed they were two parallel lines.

"A dragon's forelimbs usually have three claws. The wyverns had two, but... the size is different."

So, the possibility of a giant wyvern-like monster instead of a dragon. Considering its flight capability, could it be... no, wait. This wood...

"But aren't these scorch marks from a breath attack?"

Craig pointed to the carbonized wood.

"There's no guarantee it was only one type of monster. After all, a city this prosperous was suddenly destroyed."

Dagobard looked inside the exposed tower. I could see broken plates and furniture. There were many different kinds, all richly colored and decorated. And scattered among them were crushed skeletons. It suggested they had lived relatively normal lives right up until the monster attack.

"You're right. To think if this were the Royal Capital..."

At Craig's words, Dagobard and the surrounding knights fell silent. The cruelty of sudden annihilation. One could say that is the nature of a catastrophe, but...

"Ricardo. Come over here."

It was Maytyl calling for me. Using the Iris we had unloaded from the carriage, Maytyl was waving a mana-sensitive plate. Her expression was a mix of curiosity and confusion.

"Look at this."

What I felt when I looked at the plate was a pure chill. As expected, there was a strong, crimson wavelength in the band displayed there. But, on the higher energy side, I could see a thin band. It was the same wavelength emitted by the prophetic crystal that had been tormenting Alfina.

Maytyl placed two mana-sensitive plates side by side.

"This one is pointed at the magic veins of the Blood Mountains. The fact that it's stronger in both mass and quality than the Empire's magic veins isn't exactly unexpected. Considering the distance, what's inside must be incredible. And..."

Maytyl showed me the other plate. On this one, too, was a faint purple band.

"The measurement results from Wyvern Mountain. Judging by the direction, it's probably right around that glacier."

Maytyl pointed at the mountain. The white on its peak was likely ice. The several white lines extending from it were glaciers. Separated by cliff-like rock faces where wyverns danced, I could see the blue surface of a lake on the mid-slope. Below that, it was all forest.

"You're saying that mountain is giving off the same reaction as the Blood Mountains..."

"That's right. It's fascinating, isn't it."

"Your Highness, surely not. We can't. A wyvern nest of all places is..."

"Hey, Ricardo, you want to investigate, don't you."

It was true. The chance to see a place emitting the same kind of magic as the Blood Mountains without having to go inside them was an unparalleled opportunity. And it was the same as that crystal...

"Didn't you anticipate this as well, Ricardo?"

The thing I had asked Maytyl for was indeed meant for investigating this kind of terrain. But...

"No. Not only the summit, but even approaching the glacier is too dangerous."

Dagobard said. It was easy to understand that being right next to a wyvern's nest, and on ice no less, would be tough even for the horse-dragons.

But I couldn't just ignore a wavelength identical to the crystal's. There had to be a way. Even if we couldn't go up to the glacier, could we at least collect Tree Rings from the trees in the mountain's forest... No, wait a minute. That lake on the mid-slope is more than that...

"Prince Dagobard, would it be impossible to get even to that spot?"

I pointed to the blue lake surrounded by the red forest.