While the knights and scholars were able to ride in the carriages, the soldiers jogged alongside them on both sides in formation. Even with the soldiers on foot, their travel speed was surprisingly fast. Everything was going smoothly until Lazuli looked ahead and her eyes widened in alarm.
“Uhh… Are we heading straight toward that wall?”
The rest of the group peeked over and saw that they were indeed heading straight toward a dead end. Sol turned to Rex and asked, “Is this another fake wall?”
To his question, Rex shook his head. “No, I’m 100% sure it’s real.”
Unlike the previous time, he didn’t get any strange feeling that made him ignore the wall. With his improved perception skills, he was confident it was real.
“Huh?!” Nataly yelled in surprise. “Then why aren’t we slowing down?!”
Aron looked at Sol and asked, “Should we jump off?”
Sol glanced at Zaman, who was doing his best to hold back laughter as they rapidly approached the wall. Before Sol could respond, the driver holding the horse's reins pulled out an odd looking cube and raised it. The cube glowed, and the wall ahead glowed in a similar fashion as runes appeared on it. The wall then shook and slid downward, revealing a passage ahead.
The carriages continued through the passage unimpeded. Before the squad could ask about it, Zaman explained, “What the driver is holding is a Midamol Key. It’s something we found with the assistance of the Saintess in one of the abandoned mineshafts. Though it looks rather plain, it serves as the key to accessing the real passages in the dwarven tunnels.”
“The real ones? So are the other passages just distractions?” Sol asked.
Zaman nodded. “For the most part, yes. Some connect to abandoned mines or other unimportant structures, but the only way to reach the dwarven city is with a Midamol Key. The key opens the real path, and the rest of the way is a straight line.”
The tunnels were set up so that anyone unaware of the true passage would spend their entire lives searching in vain. For the dwarves who once lived there, it was a convenient system, as they didn’t have to navigate the maze. As long as one had the key, the route was a straight shot to their city.
As they continued, the tunnel they were traveling through slowly expanded, merging with other tunnels as they traveled along. Almost 50 tunnels converged into the now massive passage they were in.
It didn’t take more than 15 minutes for them to arrive at a set of massive metal gates, where a large group of humans and orcs stood guard. Though both groups were stationed to guard the gate, they weren’t protecting it from possible intruders, they were guarding against each other. The groups stood 10 feet apart, wary of a surprise attack.
Their carriages parked on the human side, and they all hopped off. They didn’t have to wait long before the clacking sound of bully goats pulling five carriages approached and stopped on the orc side. The first to disembark was an orc in full body armor, covered in countless battle scars. This was the Great Champion Nomrak, second to the Frostaxe Chieftain. He was followed by an orc familiar to the squad, Kirgar.
The two stopped a few feet away as Nomrak looked down at Zaman. “Royal Knight Commander Zaman… How’s Vivian doing?”
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The Commander, unfazed by the imposing height difference, corrected him. “It’s Grand Knight Vivian, and she’s fully recovered from the wound you gave her. She’s back at her post, ready for another round if you come to our border again.”
The two stared at each other in silence, as if trying to read each other’s thoughts. Sol and his squad, along with everyone else, silently hoped this didn’t turn into a brawl. A fight between these two could destroy everything around them, including them. Luckily, a deep, loud laugh erupted from the Great Champion instead.
“Bahahaha! Good! As expected of her, she’s not easy to kill. Let’s hope next time we fight, it’s for sport.”
Zaman nodded. “Agreed.”
Nomrak then turned his gaze to the royal knights behind Zaman. After searching for a moment and not finding what he was looking for, he asked Kirgar, “Which one of them is he?”
Kirgar pointed at Sol and said respectfully, “He’s the Savior, Great Champion.”
The Great Champion looked directly at Sol, sizing him up. Under his gaze, Sol instinctively knew that if this orc wanted him dead, he wouldn’t be able to resist.
“So, you’re the one who gave us this chance,” Nomrak said. “Regardless of your reason, the entire Frostaxe Clan is in your debt.”
Sol, surprised by the sudden shift in focus, shook his head. “I did it for both our nations. There’s no need to thank me.”
“No, we must. The Frostaxe Clan is not ungrateful,” Nomrak insisted. He reached into his spatial ring and retrieved something. “That’s why our Chieftain has declared that you and your compatriots are now friends of our clan. These tokens will serve as proof.”
He held out five necklaces, each with a beautiful orange opal encased in silver blue metal. The opal was engraved with the image of an axe, the Frostaxe Clan's symbol.
Nomrak continued, “With these, you can freely traverse our lands and enter our cities. No Frostaxe will dare bother you as long as you wear them. They are also enhanced by out best enchanters to shield you from the cold.”
Hearing this, Sol took a quick glance at the items description with [Analysis].
[Warming Jade
Unique
Skills:
[Ice Resistance] Lv 8, [Temperature Regulation] Lv 8]
The Great Champion then paused, glancing at the knights standing with Sol, he now realized there were seven of them.
Confused, he asked Kirgar, “... I thought you said there were only five of them?”
Kirgar was equally puzzled, noticing two new girls who looked nearly identical to the one he had killed. “There were… I’m sorry, but are you two the sisters of the one I…?” He trailed off, unable to finish the sentence.
Lapis shook her head. “No, I’m the one you killed.”
“Huh?!”
...
After a brief explanation, the two orcs were caught up. There was no reason to hide the fact that Lapis had been revived, as the method could only work for descendants of Serpent Devouts.
“I see… I truly apologize for killing you,” Kirgar said, apologizing once more.
“It’s fine. We were enemies at the time,” Lapis said, not seeming to mind that he had killed her. She understood that, as enemies, it was natural for him to try to kill her, just as she would have ended his life if she could. Now that they were no longer enemies, she had no intention of seeking revenge, as it would be a waste of time.
“You are truly a compassionate human. I thank you for your kindness.”
“...”
Lapis made no attempt to correct his misunderstanding. While Zaman, Nomrak, and others were moved by her apparent forgiveness, the rest of the squad, especially Lazuli, who knew her best, struggled to contain their laughter.
Understanding the situation, Nomrak said, “I will send word to make two more tokens for the twins. By the time you return, they will be ready.”
Lapis nodded, while Lazuli, surprised, said, “Me too? Thanks!”
She hadn’t expected to receive a token as well for something she wasn't involved in, but she wasn’t about to turn down a free gift.
Zaman, who had been silent thus far, knew he needed to return to the capital soon and moved to the main subject. “Are your men ready to go in?”
Nomrak nodded and turned to Sol. “They’re our finest shamans and sages, alongside 50 orc fighters for protection. They’re ready to go whenever you are.”
“We can go now,” Sol said.
With his confirmation, the two groups reboarded their carriages and used the Midamol Key to activate the large gates. The gates slid open, dust falling from years of inactivity and creating a cloud of smoke as they fully opened. The ten carriages, accompanied by 100 soldiers from both nations, entered through the massive doors, ready to face whatever awaited them inside.