The night sky was gray. The pale moonlight slipped through the leaves' gaps. The night wind rustled with a gentle sound, carrying the scent of wet soil and old leaves.
Laguna was sitting against the cave wall when he suddenly felt something odd. The air around him changed. The silence of the night felt too perfect, as if there were invisible eyes watching him.
"... Someone is watching us," he muttered.
He pulled a small knife from his belt with quick movements. Then, he threw it toward the thick bushes outside the cave. Thunk! The knife stuck into a large tree trunk.
"Eeep!"
A small scream was heard, followed by the sound of a body falling to the ground.
Laguna rushed out. Behind the tree, there was a young elf girl in dirty adventurer clothes. She winced as she sat on the ground—Eve.
"Eve? What are you doing here?" Laguna asked as he pulled his knife from the tree.
Eve attempted to smile, but her anxiety showed through. "I... uh, lost."
However, the sound of her stomach growling immediately betrayed her words. GROOOWWL.
Eve's face immediately turned red. "U-Ugh... that wasn't part of the plan."
Laguna chuckled. "Come in. We still have enough food supplies."
They went back into the cave. Laguna took a leather bag and handed Eve a piece of bread and a few pieces of dried meat. Without further ado, Eve devoured them with great enthusiasm.
Julia looked at her in surprise. "You're eating like you haven't eaten in three days."
"Because you haven't," Eve answered without any embarrassment as she chewed.
After Eve seemed to have calmed down a bit, Laguna sat down beside her. "When you got here, did you see anything strange?"
Eve shook her head while wiping her mouth. "No. Just the forest and the fog. But I feel like the atmosphere here is... different."
Laguna nodded with hesitation and told her what happened in this village. Laguna looked at Eve. "Will you help us?"
Eve looked into Laguna's eyes, then nodded. "I don't know where to go, so... I'll come along."
Laguna stood up and patted his shoulder. "Good. But for now, get some rest. We'll start moving tomorrow."
A few moments later, everyone was fast asleep. But not Laguna. He sat cross-legged in the corner of the cave, taking out a small metal box from his bag—his Drone Vision.
He started to take it apart and fix it. He added an optical camouflage system to make it invisible.
"Perfect," he whispered when he was done.
With a small controller in his hand, he activated the drone vision. The device hovered in the air without making a sound and glided out of the cave toward the village.
In the dark of the night, the drone glided through the trees, heading toward Harvey's house.
A few minutes later, the light of a lantern was visible. Harvey Moses came out of his house alone. He walked toward the hill behind the house, taking deliberate steps up the path.
The drone followed from above, keeping its distance.
At the top of the hill, Harvey stopped. He looked left and right, making sure no one saw him.
Then, he took out a black stone from his pocket and placed it on a small pillar hidden among the bushes.
GROOOOM.
The ground trembled with a faint motion. From the grass in front of Harvey, a stone door appeared with stairs leading down to the ground.
Harvey stepped inside without hesitation. The door began to close, taking its time.
The drone followed in, just before the door closed completely, and recorded everything in silence...
The narrow stairs spiraled down, stretching far beyond sight. The only light was the lantern Harvey carried. Its dim light flickered on the damp stone walls. Shadows danced like dark creatures.
In the distance, Laguna's Drone Vision hovered, maintaining a safe distance. Only the light of Harvey's lantern served as a guide. Laguna studied the control screen with great concentration.
"What exactly is this place..." he muttered under his breath.
A few minutes passed. The sound of cling cling clang! The sound was faint from a distance. Like iron being forged in a continuous process. Then, a bright light began to appear at the end of the hallway.
The drone entered a very large open space. There, dozens of dwarves were working hard in the underground forge. Fires were burning, hammers were hitting iron, and sparks of metal flew in the air. In the center of the room, a large cylinder stood. Roots spread out from all sides, almost as if they were giving off energy.
Inside the cylinder, a pitch-black orb floated with a faint purple aura around it. The energy felt heavy, like it was pulling the light around it.
Harvey approached a dwarf whose armor appeared thicker than usual. He looked like a different person—likely the leader.
Without further ado, Harvey threw the lantern he was carrying right at the dwarf's head.
"How much longer must I wait, huh?! When will the item I requested be completed?!"
The dwarf grimaced while bending at the waist in a gesture of respect. "Forgive us, Master Harvey. The process has been delayed... the last item we needed has run into trouble."
Harvey glared at him, then slapped the dwarf's face so hard that his small body fell to the ground.
"Isn't your own brother responsible for that item?! That Rocky?!"
"Yes, sir... But we received word that Rocky has been... murdered. By the eldest son of the Ashford family."
Harvey's eyes widened in anger. "What?!"
"And since then, the place has been under heavy guard... especially after Aaron Ashford himself came to inspect."
Harvey clenched his fists. "Damn Ashford... Even his youngest son, that trash who can't do magic... now dares to look down on me from above!"
He pulled the dwarf who had fallen, lifting him with only one hand. "Listen well! I don't care how, but tomorrow... TOMORROW that thing must be ready! If not—you know the consequences."
The dwarf could only nod; his face was pale and trembling.
Harvey approached the tube with a deliberate pace. He placed his hand on the glass surface that enclosed the dark orb.
"Just you wait, Ashford... When this thing is mine, all of you will kneel. Your family, those arrogant nobles, and... the girl with that loser... will lick my feet while begging for mercy."
Laguna's Drone Vision screen turned off without warning. Harvey laughed with satisfaction in front of the mysterious tube in the last image.
"Damn!" Laguna slammed his controller to the ground.
Julia, who had woken up, rubbed her eyes. "Eh? What's happening?"
Laguna grumbled as he pulled at his hair. "I forgot to add the audio feature! I don't even know what they're talking about..."
He stood up in a hurry and began to wake the others. "Everyone, wake up! We have a big problem. Get yourselves ready now!"
Eve woke up with a worried look on her face. "What's wrong, Laguna?"
Laguna fixed them with a serious gaze. "Harvey's hiding something in the back hill. Something... very dangerous. We don't have much time."
They all looked at each other.
"No time for a good night's sleep now," Laguna said. She then turned to Simon and Mulan. "We'll split up for a while. Julia, you, and Simon should go back to the Ashford residence. Report everything to my father. Make sure he knows that Harvey has a secret base under the hill."
Simon nodded with determination. "Okay, we'll go."
Mulan looked hesitant. "What about you guys?"
Laguna turned to Eve, who had tied up her hair. "Eve and I will stay here and investigate the place further. We need to know what they're doing before help arrives."
"Why should I come with you?" Eve whispered, half-protesting.
Laguna grinned. "You have the talent of invisibility, don't you? We need that. Besides, you don't want to sit around, do you?"
Eve snorted, but did not argue.
Once everything was ready, they exited the cave and walked down the quiet path to Harvey's house. Their steps were quick but silent, their eyes alert in the morning darkness.
At the stables, the horses appeared healthy and calm. They sniffed the ground, enjoying the calm surroundings.
"Strange, no guards at all," Simon whispered.
"Maybe Harvey is overconfident," Laguna replied. He began to untie one of the horses and handed it to Julia. "Take this. Let's go now."
Julia mounted her horse in a hurry. "Are you sure you can handle this without us, Master?"
Laguna patted her shoulder. "Trust me. You have more important things to do right now."
Simon helped Mulan onto her horse, then mounted another.
"Come on, we have to hurry!" Julia made a gentle call. The three of them sped away, leaving dust in the air.
Laguna and Eve watched them go for a moment.
"Alright," Laguna muttered. "Now it's our turn."
But as he was about to turn around, Laguna froze in place. His eyes were fixed on Eve.
A shadow of someone appeared behind Eve. A tall figure with a knife raised high, ready to stab from behind.
"EVE! WATCH OUT!!"