Murai couldn't see a thing for a couple of seconds.
Adjusting his eyes, he soon viewed the sight beyond this tunnel. It was a phenomenal view in elevation similar to the cliff at the start of Gate 2.
Here, there were no Islands, nor a large amount of water. He saw a narrow platform set into yet another cave's flank, surrounded by castle walls that weren't notable yet. He was on some sort of watchtower with walls barely his height at the front. It was an observatory with a tunnel going into the cave behind him. Ground was smooth and made of carved blocks of grey stone. Then, he glanced beyond this observatory; a brand new realm was all for his eyes to see.
The Surface was full of such scenery, but not the Depths that depicted underground places, all kinds of Dungeons, weird dwellings, cave systems, and who knew what else. Depths were vaster than the sight Murai was looking at, yet resembling many wonders of this world.
Similar to what he had seen, Gate 3 was a humongous cave that had a much better look, appearance, and validity than its size. It was no longer sporadic in its meaning or purpose like hundreds of pillars protruding from water.
This one was a literal realm, albeit stretched into far distances, gutted into the physical rocks kilometers beneath Death Valley. Longer than the eyes could see from this place, the width was a dozen kilometers wide, and various at some portion, similar to the height that was also enormous. At the start where Murai was, the ceiling was at least five kilometers tall, but it changed many times toward the horizon.
There was an atmosphere here, filling the ceiling with clouds, and occasional rain dropped from there too. There were also some bright objects on the ceiling, but for now, Murai wasn't paying them much attention.
Down bellow, the ground itself was incredibly versatile and vaster from this elevation than it seemed. For a literal underground cave, Murai almost opened his beak in surprise.
The stretching ground was mostly flat under this tall observation deck for quite a few kilometers. Why? There was a castle beneath it as well as a city. Beyond that were many mountains, hills, cities, buildings, and so on. The cave looked weirdly convincing to be a natural realm, but someone created this place.
It wasn't as obvious, however. This place's sheer length and size were way out of the normal proportions, but the signs were there. Mostly the waypoints and cave walls looked as if someone dug them out. Still, most would believe that some natural phenomena caused or created this sort of cave. Not Gods.
In large worlds, natural disasters had many faces, ranging from mild to the kinds that would eradicate any live forms, or turn the planet into lifeless rock. Earthquakes could shift tectonic layers, creating mazes and gaps in crust and caves, massive windstorms would turn the earth upside down in shredding cyclons, while floods could wipe mountains from the planet, let alone some cities.
Murai thought this wasn't the case, or were Gods considered natural disasters? Or was this... something else? This place looked far better than a random strike of nature. A bright light came from the ceilings that held the sources of light and heat. Murai had to adjust his sight against it, winking and shaking his head to take a better look up.
Smooth rocky surfaces were the walls above, and the ceiling stretched in the same patterns as the ground below, but it was much more even, albeit cracks and holes were in many spots, leaking water or air inside. Light came from the bright crystals looking like round light. They were humongous, acting and looking like a sun, and surrounding them were many smaller crystals that grew around them.
Murai couldn't guess how someone with a right mind would make this. Perhaps only some bored God within the Pathway of Earth would use their boredom to create such an underground cave system. Or was this the power of slavery? He knew some races capable of creating this place with enough numbers, but what this place needed was more than such work.
Everything needed time to create things, and for them to matter or work, taking care of surroundings or proper structure was even more important. There was some neat order to the entire picture he was seeking. Some locations had keen aesthetics, looking like rich plains with trees, bushes, and thick forests. Far away, some small towns or villages looked tiny and unlike what was below.
There was a city stretching from this section of a wall, filled with detailed and well-established architecture, and the variety on the land was impressive and large for a cave.
This was a true realm. A brief look into the way of the Hell Havens without being the Hell itself.
Few would dare to take such places for something feasible. Not even some dwarven races, dragons with their lofty wealth, or earthers, who were facing extinction so they often hid underground.
Murai ended up walking from the tunnel and stood on a large tall pillar with smoothly developed caste walls. Beside him were the stairs leading to the lower levels of the entrance to Gate 3, cascading and spiraling down to other pillars. From there, one would see what was below. There was a rich castle driven into the cave, acting as an important place. The city was also there, but it wasn't part of this castle.
The castle itself was nearly a kilometer tall and wide, with a multitude of smaller buildings that looked like barracks, cottages, or small mansions in this section of a cave. Only the castle was etched into the red and brown looking cave wall, while its walls were mostly soft and light-looking limestone.
Pillars rose high above, depicting thick sizable towers, observation decks, and who knew what else. Some thought it held meaning to reach the nonexistent sky.
The one Murai ended up on was the highest peak, overlooking most of this Gate as a nice first impression.
Some would love this; others would piss themselves. Rarely, some would lose the feelings in their legs after seeing such places existed, since there was a living civilization in millions. That was Gate 3, Hellscape.
Gate 1 was laughable in comparison. Gate 2's Islands of Greatness was a bit better, but its structure was stable yet dull. Perpetual bridges and pillars with arenas on top of them were all to that place.
Here? Murai gaped with his eyes and even his beak opened as if he wanted to argue about something. At least in the close range of his vision—right after he jumped into the frontal wall—he saw a bustling city around the castle, thousands of buildings made streets and clear districts full of creatures, people, races, and beasts or demons of all kinds.
The castle itself was light in color, unlike the city or the military barracks below. Built to last and act as a stable and pivotal role in this place, it was never under any siege. No one would dare to think of that. Its symbol was far too high.
Far beyond the starting city, roads stretched alongside rarer buildings. Beyond them, dozens of kilometers further were trees and jungle as far as one could see, occasional planes, and rocky hills until mountains and rough terrain spread next. There was mostly fog, rain, and glistering light above and around the jungle, obscuring the further view.
This place had its ecosystem made up of imaginative premises and old works of world creation, or reclamation. This one had its history spanning at least a few millennia, but it was much older than that. Murai was far too old to not understand that. A life would always find a way to survive even in the harshest of conditions. If enough resources went into the creation of stability, growth, nature, Laws, and mana, life flourished.
Day and night cycles were also important; so were warmth, water, and oxygen. Those were important for life to flourish, but not for power to rise. Power was merely an aftereffect of life that could stop, so without the power to gather life itself, the universe would be a dead zone.
High in the ceiling, quite far but not beyond the jungle, a massive glowing sphere made up the sun for this area of the cave, giving light to this city and castle. It wasn't hot or wild in mana, brightness, or light. It did what it should: allowing this place to flourish and cycle.
Surrounded by the bright crystals or gems, the sun dwarfed them all in mass and light. Its milder glow indicated it was the middle of the day.
The night was easy to spot. There would be suffocating darkness with its dullness and dreadful fog around, changing the aura of the entire cave.
However, it wouldn't be much of a problem. Artificial Suns would never disappear, but fog and dense darkness shrouded them at night, turning this cave into a dangerous time. Many cliffs and shelters, and occasional mountains and caves provided a constant dark environment. Being underground ensured that idea, so some lack of light wasn't the end of life. One could always find it. This place had a lot of it.
There wasn't just a single sun that stretched around the ceiling. Many others were ahead, giving distinct areas of this Gate a much-needed touch of light and life.
Murai liked it straight away because it looked like a paradise! His new paradise. No one will stop his incoming ideas and time.
“Welcomed to the Hellscape, Murai, Challenger of this temple.” Lorry introduced this place, speaking proudly, and floating right beside Murai's face.
Murai was a bit lost over this big picture. Even his eyes and senses went over this whole sight numerous times, processing everything for some reason. He looked down to the city, observing the demonic nature of this Gate that seemed far too orderly and nice.
He didn't know why he stared. It looked like the best city that he had seen in this life. It was stable and clever, with distinct streets and population. He had seen much vaster and more impressive landscapes and lands across the universe, yet this duck found it impressive.
This thing would have been passable at best for his past self.
The whole sight went through his calculation in his mind. Size, length, and differences in aptitude and land entered his mind. From this section of the cave, the width of Hellscape was at least ten kilometers at the start, but it was widening slowly, or sharply, before twisting, changing, turning, or shrinking.
There were irregular sights everywhere, ranging from caverns, valleys, mountains, and even rivers. There were sources of water that raged from some parts of the ceiling or walls, creating a source of water for plants and vegetation that wasn't lacking in the slightest. Oxygen and the atmosphere existed because of them, while the flow of mana was nearly endless in any form. Murai noticed it too, similar to the push of wind that acted like mana in this place. It was a bit wilder.
Overall—after his calculations and sight—everything turned this place into many weird sections under his careful gaze. Almost like a chessboard put into some consideration.
He couldn't imagine how long this place was in the slightest, or how vast it truly was from the ground up. Too many things obscured his physical eyes. He wasn't even looking at a portion of the Hellscape. This place was a thousand kilometers long, curving and turning in many spots. What was before him was barely a portion of the first portion.
So he turned to Lorry, meeting his curious Soul Flames.
“Hellscape is a nice name. For once, it has a nice sound to it.” Murai quacked without hiding a strong impression.
Lorry cheered as if he won a bet. Lisa remained collected, yet she stormed to the end of the platform in a similar vision to Murai, furiously glaring everywhere as if her life depended on it. She almost flew ahead and got to work.
Murai ignored her for the time being and kept his attention on Lorry. “This is a rather funny place for my eyes and senses. It looks like a paradise if I am being honest with myself. As far as I can't see and feel, the task is yet to start. So, why is there a city below? I would love to talk about it. Gonna give me a walk-through of that? Are we ready for sightseeing? Is this vacation? I feel after what occurred in the last Gate, I deserve this!” Murai asked numerous questions that entered his mind at the same time, and all of them went out of his beak. Fervent and excited, his emotions flared his feathers and hoodie in a delightful aura.
Lorry stopped cheering and swirling his Soul Flames. “Right. Right. Lorry is sure this place is like night and day for Murai. It is a nice place for armies to do business. Countless Challengers or challenges live in Hellscape. Millions. It is partially etched into the Hell Haven. Some considered it like a waypoint or half-point access to this continent's Hell. It is creating a neat place for many lives because of it.”
“That is all flowery and nice, but what about Challengers? What awaits me?”
“That could be a peculiar thing,” Lorry said hesitantly. “Hellscape is Gate 3 itself and a place where the trial for Challengers starts to touch hellish difficulties. Here—not only in this castle—Lady Levandis provides proving grounds for anyone, as Lorry explained a bit before. Surface or the Depths, anyone capable can feel this place. Mostly for armies though. Trials make good training grounds, but not all Gates are perfect for that purpose. This one is.”
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“I thought you were exaggerating things a little,” Murai sighed in faked disappointment. “But it seems it doesn't seem to be the case. This place is vaster than the things above. I feel the souls of many, the density of dread is thick, and the insanity of mana spreads. Mana is rich and fights over me. It is faster in cycling and flow and something about my Beast Core wheezes.”
Lorry chuckled. “Is that a problem?”
Murai paused, angling his head up and down in throughs. “Nah. I like this place. Your world, or the world of your Lady, I will see it for myself. Will you stop me from unleashing my wrath at this Hellscape?” Murai sneered at him and wanted to explore this place like a tourist.
As much as he liked it, this sort of attitude was his normal reaction to interesting things in most of his latest lives. Though a major beginning was due to him, it was up to Lisa to decide how it would go.
A message from Mindarch spread to this single platform next, giving and revealing a task for Murai's Hellscape business.
Lisa tensed up her physicality, ignoring the sight below. Clutching the ring that she had, she wondered what luck Murai would have. With quite a grip and agitation, this was an important message for this Gate. Escape this place, give up, or continue, this could be their way out or way behind.
[Well, greetings again. Been a while.] Mindarch laughed, spoke like a foolish clown, and seemed more forced than usual. Even Murai could tell that; even when he was a duck that was way too excited to become a tourist.
“Sup. Tell me my game!” Murai cheered and flapped his wing up, pointing at the ceiling where nothing much happened. He gestured to the city below next, glaring at the buildings, the fragrance of adventure, and actual civilization.
Mindarch sounded a little dejected and weird, but it came as no surprise with the happening and things he had discovered quite quickly. And it wasn't pretty for sure, as some things involved him as well. Nothing was too troublesome for him, however. Very few things were.
This was his backyard. Even if someone like Levandis became angry with him, he wouldn't care. Mindarch could still get his points across because his independence was outside of the core of this planet.
However, he still sounded the way he did: as if someone blew the roof over his head.
[For now, the mission. Right. A mission. TASK! Ho! How exciting.] His voice rumbled and Murai listened next, folding his wings and readying his heart. [Gate 3 is a place of simplicity or vastness. Known as a Hellscape as a whole, what is before you is the starting location called Helltrim City.]
[From this waypoint down and outward, you have a certain mission up to your benefits and mind. It is as simple as it could be, unlike Gate 2, or Gate 1. Well... I am lying. Gate 1 was just to go on and solve that maze. Gate 2s were...well, Islands of Greatness was certainly interesting.]
[Now, the task! Reach a specific entrance to Gate 4 by any means necessary. Force your way through barrages of enemies, run past them, bite their asses, buy your way in or out, or do anything you want, because it will turn into a Hunt. Anything goes. Your reward might be not set in stone, but the magnitude of points is determined on an individual basis and my readings.]
[Accomplishments matter, but there are some pictures I can mention. Those are Artifacts! Much better ones. And Vaults! Gate 4 has a rich accommodation of treasures. They are different kinds from the past vaults by the way.] Mindarch said importantly.
Murai didn't care. Artifacts were useless to him.
[Then, there is the main reason for everything!]
[Sector 45 is your destination.] Mindarch said and paused for a couple of seconds in awkward silence, as if unsure if he should continue. Nothing moved. Nobody spoke. Lisa even trembled, knowing what Sector 45 meant, but what mattered was next.
[Location: Ip'ur Mountain.]
[Difficulty is subject to changes and Hunt, but at its core, it is a Grade S location... and... well...]
Lisa shook in places she had never felt. Her soul skipped a beat and a wave of unknown emotions stirred her soul. Had she heard a joke?
[Usually, Challengers move onwards with their task, while the environment, demons, and anything in this place obscure their path. Tougher parts are... for later. Hunt will start. They want to catch you, just so you know. Increasing their reputations is all under my eyes and readings, of course. No Extreme will set foot before your eyes, but let's not get ahead of ourselves.]
[Balancing nature is under my premises, unlike... Uh... Nevermind. Not said anything wrong, I swear.] Mindarch awkwardly laughed and continued.
Murai found such premises awkward, but he let it slide. He couldn't wait to look through the city and see this place. His beak even twitched, his tail swirled in an unfamiliar act, and his eyes shone in white light.
[Dificulties and your way forward depend on your moves, surroundings, setting, or many other things. It creates a pivotal web of interest and strategies, so make or clutch your foes, survive, and reach your destination after getting through this castle. There is no time limit; there are no breaks. Move on and solve this place. It is a free place for you to explore and survive, but beware, this place bites back.]
[Oh, and essences are pending in flexibility. Every kill is subject to your hopes. You are free!]
[In fact, you can kill this entire Hellscape and it would still work. Though, I wonder what you would do with so many essences.]
“Or if it is even possible to crack this Hell apart,” Murai said. “It isn't possible, I know. Continue.”
Mindarch paused just for a moment before pretending that everything was alright.
[Anyway, Gods Bless us all, and good luck. Mindarch.... peace out.] Mindarch laughed and disappeared with his voice, hurrying away, and speaking quicker than usual.
“That is it?” Murai turned to Lorry. “A simple mission ahead? Sector 45? No information besides that. No rules either. That sounds... promising. Had I heard him right with those essences? Anything goes? Sounds chaotic.”
“Hopefully not so chaotic. It should be understandable that Challengers are here to challenge this place, so Lorry shouldn't reveal anything... major.” Lorry paused and glanced at Lisa who was struggling with her head and form. She was squeezing her head; most of her body was deformed in azure light as if she was drowning in a Celestial Pool.
Murai didn't see her, and Lorry was curious about what was wrong. He was hiding his shock quite well because he was a skull.
“So you will be a watchful dog for your superiors while doing the same thing as usual. Being useless like a candle in a volcano. Got it,“ Murai said to Lorry, obviously knowing that expecting something nice from this skull was useless. It came out of him without any shame.
So he turned to the latest hope that seemed better than usual, even though she could ruin it anytime. “Lisa?” Murai turned to her and ended her drowning expression that went far deeper into this entire situation than usual. It was no wonder. She took his task for hers, and what she heard was far from normal. She hoped to berate and shout at Mindarch before he disappeared, yet she failed herself.
Hellscape was still up to her benefit, whether there were problems ahead or not. They couldn't be worse than they were, right?
Oh, she was very wrong about it.
From her look, it seemed this Gate was the same mess as Murai. Mindarch confirmed that in numerous ways. He spoke almost nothing normal. Nothing about Godmark, or Archtouched. Nothing about this place, or anything else. This task was a bullshit.
She got hold of herself slower than usual, reforming her hands and the middle portion of her floating body. She could make herself cozier, appearing like a sculpted statue.
“Well... here we go to another mess,” she forced her face into a clear frustrated seriousness.“Hellscape is divided into 100 Sectors that go onward like a large road that is Hellscape. Sector 45 isn't bad or good. It might be even a little lucky or unlucky, as it's reaching close to the half of this cave as a whole but not far into it. That is about the only good news I can give you. We can work with that, but... Ip'ur Mountain is a problem, so...” She paused, her sona churned into a weird motion, and her arm stretched under a blink, catching cautious skull who was too late to dodge her.
“What do yo... Lisa want?” Lorry blurred out. “Lorry doesn't know anything about Ip'ur Mountain! What is wrong? This Guide knows nothing, Lorry swears.”
Lisa pressed her eyes toward his Soul Flames, glaring at his soul. “Don't give me this bullshit. Ip'ur is far too old and... out of the way, but all portals are purposeful and old. But not that place. Are you sure it is right? This... location. It is under no available path or history. You are faking it. Making it tougher for us for a reason.”
“No! It is right on swirling Soul Flames,” Lorry said resolutely. “Lorry knows Mindarch put it forth. None else did.”
“You... kidding... death.... skull” Lisa wanted to curse but she rather let him go. She figured that taking something out of this skull was hardly trustworthy at some points. Mindarch or something else was the reason why. Gods were the most probable cause.
Or Guide's premise. They were supposed to be useless in this Gate, so Lisa wasn't that harsh on him. Her mind won't change that. If the Guides would be different, their usefulness would reach new heights. In this large Gate, they were like a reminder to all denizens that a Challenger was here.
Turning back to Murai, her pair of eyes shone with a new light. Perhaps she realized something crazy, since hatred, confusion, and clear bother were on her face. Even Murai felt it, although without any Soul Read in sight. She stubbornly believed she could work with this mess, yet she hated it with a passion.
“Storm the rules, huh? Ip'ur mountain is a bullshit placement for this task, Murai Hisagi.” She said to him, flaring his sona and appearing a bit more sharper than ever. “Is it your luck? Is it a new portal? Well, you have no idea how bad that is for you. I know it, so allow me to get my mind across to yours. Sector 45 is halfway across this Gate, past the mountain ranges that may be a bit difficult for you to traverse through. Oh, and it is in the middle of a desert, so that is good.”
She sounded a bit annoyed and angry. This task was bullshit for a single reason: Ip'ur Mountain wasn't under her memories of available portals that went to Gate 4. That was the single most suspicious fact that was clear even with half a century of void.
There were never new portals because of established history and lines through Chaos Space. Especially to Paradise. Many old portals were scattered around 100 Sectors, and every one of them held pivotal roles in stretching the web of spatial transportation. Each was important, independent, and old like this entire Hellscape. Constructing new ones was impossible, thus they were all known under her knowledge.
Every Challanger's task was upon one such portal, ranging from Sector 0 or 100. Not every one of them was set into the motion of Gate 4, as each portal was subjective in its chaos. They could reach other portals, or go somewhere else within this temple. Not outside, Lisa knew, nor somewhere much further away.
If that were the case, things would get much easier. Lisa got information from Mindarch and Lorry regarding Razmund. That happened quite a while ago, yet she kept it hidden from Murai. Thinly, even many days old happenings were slowly revealed to her specifically.
She genuinely thought it was a good thing. Considering Murai and his mind, not telling him about this benefited him more. He needed to focus on his Islands. Here, it will be no different, but not in approach. She gave him that chance, so she planned to give him so much more.
Paths onto Gate 4 were numerous, similar to the ways how portals acted. Some were open to the public, others were hidden through the Sectors of this Gate, and some were even deeper, hiding because of their unique locations or purposes.
But they were known.
The spatial web of interest guaranteed the transfer of personnel, armies, trades, and pretty much anything. This web of portals was a consistent reliable way that Levandis created. It never changed.
Using them as brief bridges to the other Gates for Challengers seemed like a clever choice. Even creating tasks and challenges out of them was fine. Hellscape was her Gate after all, and not the original part of this temple.
Lisa knew all about this, so she figured out the biggest problem straight away. Each portal was old, listed, or researched thanks to numerous past Challengers and various information gatherings.
Hence, she knew every portal, including the essential locations, problems, and past. She went over her memories in an instant and realized that something fishy was about to happen. There weren't that many of them, so even secret ones were in her mind.
Ip'ur Mountain had none of them, as far as she knew. It was a bothersome place that had its unique purposes.
So, what then? The way to get this task going was still simple: Ip'ur Mountain at least existed, yet how to find something that shouldn't exist inside of it? That mountain was old, so perhaps she thought of it differently, or was it hiding something secret? Had she overestimated her desires and ideas because Murai was ridiculous?
Lisa glanced at Lorry again and asked if the location was correct.
Lorry had an idea what was going on, but tasks were up to Mindarch; not him.
Various erratic paths made up each destination that hid the portal. Usually, public ones were easy to find, and often ready for Challengers to take. Many were privately owned, so in these cases, it was up to luck or some games. Hellscape was a unique place that always used these portals. Against Surface Challengers, they were great.
When Levandis trained her troops here, involving too many portals was unnecessary. There were many better ways to train her troops, but this place had one thing pretty good. She could catch and clutch any lofty Surface Challenger much better.
From the start, most portals were quite an ordeal to enter and impossible to Breach.
For once, Lisa was thinking twice about what to say or think about this situation. She wished to be brief, but her mind was silent. Long and deadly, the task and their journey might be dangerous peril like getting an idea about Ip'ur Mountain or Murai. She shouldn't be brief in anything. She should talk to Lorry through everything. She knew many things, so even Murai would get all of her feedback and a passable journey through this hellhole.
Not only did she take this place a couple of times as a formal Challenger, but she took it further as a tester.
Her first time was the hardest. She accomplished quite good results in her first two Gates in the first attempt, but this Gate changed that. She wasn't familiar with this place that much, and finding the portal was quite heavy and conditional on luck and power.
Which were variables she wasn't willing to test right now. She will knock them aside like a joke! She had to.
She had no idea how insensible it was. Mindarch stated the task as a matter of fact before bailing out and disappearing to nowhere.
Lisa wandered off, knowing that her knowledge was her main power here, but it wouldn't be a total breeze. When one was familiar with the destination, it could become easier or harder depending on one's act or the Hunt. It was about flexibility and how well one could knock everything apart.
Lisa knew the true purpose of this Gate. It was an open invitation to feel a bit of Hell. Forceful yet truthful, finding a proper standing amidst the demons, devils, and creatures—that serve nothing but Chaos and insanity that Mindarch cared for—created a complicated situation.
Murai wasn't seeing the truth. “Just a mountain? I feared I challenged much harder things in Gate 2. Tell me more about what to expect out of it besides the torturous dive that is an upcoming journey and walk. Wait... That sounds much more awful when I say it like that. No way. This is as hard as the last Gate.” Murai nodded to himself as he saw the truth in this task. His truth.
He turned his full attention to Lisa, who should no longer have any breaks left in this situation. Thankfully, she didn't. She wanted to do as much as she could in this Gate and bear the results of her tries in Gate 2. There were some secrets or wrongdoings in here. All she needed was a more direct clutch over the situation and Murai will chirp like a sheep and get shit done.
Then, some unnecessary troubles should better disappear. She always talked as she wanted, making sure that Murai got her ideas, but she didn't get them in deserved light.
Traversing these lands in a good fate was never good. One had to be ruthless. Quick. Brutal.
She was yet to speak when Lorry laughed and floated upward. “Well, if the pair is done chirping and talking, let the case remain how it is. Lorry will be taking a brief pause, observing Murai's path in a different way. Murai's way towards the destination will depend on this Gate and Lisa and Murai. Everything is connected. Portals too.”
“You are bailing on us again?” Murai asked.
“Yes. If it's going to be needed, Lorry will appear and help. For now, Lorry has some places to be in and this Gate is subject to Murai's tries and Lisa's.... ideas. Good luck.” Lorry stated what he wanted and flew towards the castle below. He paused halfway down, glancing at Lisa. “It exists. That is all.”
He disappeared so quickly, that Lisa and Murai didn't know where to, but not as if both of them thought of him as someone incredibly helpful. At least Lisa caught his mumbling words in the last second and realized that Ip'ur Mountain was even more complex than she thought. This single reassurance didn't ease her anger because finding things about this unknown portal would become a big headache for her promise and task.