"Where is your inheritance?" Ed proceeded to quickly ask another question with the same solemn and pressing tone. But Dakgu didn't answer this time.
"Wh-what?!" He instead exclaimed in surprise. He had thought that Ed came from Sanctuary but it seemed he was coveting the thunder cry tribe's ancestry!
"Hurry and tell me" Ed wanted to quickly memorize the lightning steps or at least get a quick glance over it to integrate it into his own techniques. The quicker he headed towards the direction Dakgu pointed the higher the chances he could catch up to the attackers.
"I- I can't!" Dakgu felt that as long as he lived the tribe would continue to live on but if he gave away their ancestry then that would be the same as betraying the tribe. He wasn't willing!
Hearing the kid's response, Ed did not get angry. On the contrary, he understood that asking for such crucial information on a first meeting would beget flat out rejection. Were it not for the urgency of the situation he wouldn't think to ask. Well, not now at least.
"I need to catch up quickly" Ed decided to offer some short words of explanation. Dakgu seemed to be smarter than Durgash so much more was not needed.
"I-..." Dakgu was still reluctant, but for some reason, he felt guilty. He felt guilty as Ed's piercing eyes sent a shiver down his spine. As fear gripped firmly onto his heart and sent terror coursing through his every nerve, he couldn't help but feel guilty at the thought of not assisting the ones that came to his rescue.
When he thought this, he felt all the more that his life would be cut short. This decision to uphold his tribe's honor would mark the end of his journey!
"Fine" Dakgu heard Ed's words and couldn't help but do a double-take. Did he hear correctly? Ed's tone did not hold a hint of anger. As a matter of fact, Dakgu's pressure was significantly lessened as Ed took his gaze away.
"I'll leave you here" Ed told him with a hesitant glance before sprinting off. It was against his conscience to leave the kid like that but he had wasted enough time without any fruits for his labor.
Ed's legs had been wrapped in a soft green hue as the wind mana in his body condensed onto his strong legs. He darted around the trashed and burnt buildings kicking up dust and ash, the only trace that he had ever been present. He then skipped across pillars of the earth and swiftly left the settlement before Dakgu could even process what had happened.
For Ed, acquiring the lightning steps technique was not an urgent matter. For the time being, he could make do with his overwhelming attributes and level six mana manipulation.
If anything it was only good to have to test his lightning affinity as well as insurance for any future bodies he might come to own. They wouldn't all start off as attribute junkies and would need techniques to overpower the natives.
It was an aspect that Ed had not given much mind to but, his ability to carry his knowledge from one body to another was undoubtedly among his strongest. It was like getting a second life while possessing a bunch of cheaty knowledge.
[Assimilation is off cooldown]
'Eh, I guess am already like that' Huh.
More time passed, Ed did not even stop to instantly assimilate an item afraid to waste much time. Plus, his close call in the crypts taught him that when encountering the unknown it was smart to keep assimilation available.
Not even a minute after, his wind mana was exhausted and Ed was forced to decelerate. He still didn't stop as he continued running through the shadows on empty.
After some more trekking, Ed was able to see a faint light at the end of the forest. He knew what such a thing meant.
'A settlement' Or some sort of other structure. Ed doubted that forest fires were a natural or frequent occurrence inside of the dungeon leaving those as the only options.
Ed slowed down and came to a halt once he entered the area hardly illuminated by the setting sun. From there, he could properly admire the structure in front of him.
It was an area dominated by wildlife. Stone walls covered in green vines and a field of shrubberies. There was however a clear path of dirt that lead towards the structure's tall and rusty metal gate.
'This is a place full of history!' Ed thought with excitement. A long history meant lots of knowledge! He couldn't help but feel even more eager to investigate what happened to Sharog and the others.
Of course, no matter how eager he was he still thought to be careful. Lots of knowledge meant greater danger. Although he doubted the orcs would prove to be a greater threat than the humans on the outside it wouldn't do to get complacent.
'I only see two guards…' Ed's expression turned into confusion. He was deeply troubled by the revelation.
'Is this actually an abandoned settlement with two orcs coincidentally guarding it?' Ed knew this wasn't the case but… wasn't the security too pitiful? Or were they so confident in their walls?
If they were simply too confident then there had to be a higher power at work. Like maybe they were hiding some sort of all-powerful warding array.
'It doesn't matter, I should head closer' Thankfully the sun was setting meaning he would be much harder to spot. Ed made sure that the guarding orcs were glancing away before finally walking his way over to the aged stone wall.
Once there, he placed his palm on the grass-covered stone and…!
Nothing happened.
'It's just a normal wall' Ed couldn't help but feel slightly disappointed but glad at the same time. On one hand, this would be a piece of cake. On the other… he wouldn't receive an all-powerful warding array.
Ed made the earth beneath him lift him upwards. He planned to do exactly as he had done to Duma once. The main difference being that he was too brazen this time. The guards were rather far enough that they wouldn't notice him as long as he didn't make himself shown.
The moon which had made its appearance made him cast a long shadow on the ground next to him. Luckily the shrubberies made it hard to notice. Thus, Ed hopped onto the wall now given free reign over it.
'Wow' Ed was rather surprised by the settlement. It wasn't that it was technologically advanced but rather the sheer size of it. The housing stretched into the horizon in a rectangular fashion.
Once this small sense of astonishment left, Ed was left with a feeling of deep solitude and abandonment. The streets were dark and eerie as they were illuminated by the lonely moonlight.
'What happened here?' This thought popped into Ed's head but he didn't ruminate over it and instead began to run atop the walls. The easiest way to find out was to find the leader.
As he ran he only saw the desolate vine-covered buildings and the overgrown weeds that threatened to consume some of the buildings. This kept on for about a whole minute until Ed was finally able to get a glimpse of something new. Light. Torchlight.
In the distance, there was orange light, and what seemed to be a stone cathedral.
'Cathedral... ' Ed found it to be weird but didn't think too hard about it. The residents had been shown to believe in the dungeon as some sort of god. Such a large settlement had to have a developed religion. It was a basic for all primitive civilizations. More importantly…
Ed jumped off the settlement wall. He landed on a couple of earth pillars before finally reaching the ground with a thud. Once there, he dashed off.
'The clues are at the cathedral' Ed did not catch a glimpse of the movings of a large army. He didn't know if Sharog and the others were still alive. But if anything merited holding a meeting under torchlight in front of the cathedral was the sacred tribe's recent war.
"-be graced by god's divine will"
"""Amen"""
Ed who had been dashing towards the location heard voices. There was an aged voice who's message had been cut off and there were also the deep voices of the orcs as they listened to what Ed could only assume to be a prayer.
Following that, there was silence. Ed who was now only about a building away was curious but dared not take another step.
"Begin!" The aged voice then yelled as a shrill scream.
'Begin what' Ed for some reason felt a bad premonition.
"Hahaha! Die you heretics" "Feast!" "WOOHOO!"
Ed then heard a series of cheers and jeers. Ed didn't even bother to hide as he had heard more than enough. He rounded the block and his eyes didn't even need time to adjust as he could see a dirty stage illuminated by the orange torchlight.
With a swoosh, an axe cut through the air. Blood splattered and a head fell with a thud.
[Abdurok's decapitated head]
Warrior Orc of Sanctuary, part-time crystal miner.
It was an orc's head. One gagged and frozen in a perpetual state of anger and unwillingness.
'This…!' The striking image made Ed furious. His fists clenched and his vessels threatened to pop right off his head.. He was seething as the anger that the long journey had dulled reignited.