Underground Exploration, Part Two

"Mm…"

When Zola and Youwei woke from their sleep, confusion appeared on their faces.

How had they suddenly fallen asleep…?

"You’re awake?"

When they looked up, Mr. Gandalf was watching them with concern.

The confusion on their faces immediately vanished, replaced by guilt—they had suddenly fallen asleep, and Mr. Gandalf must have been terribly worried!

"Sorry, we—"

Just as the two of them began to speak, Adam explained for them:

"The fruit you ate seems to contain something that calms the mind and induces sleep. Eating too much of it will make you pass out, so try to eat less—just enough to stay alive."

So that was it!

The two of them suddenly understood.

As expected of a scholar engaged in research—he had discovered the effects of that fruit so quickly!

Now that the two had woken up, the group naturally continued onward. It was several more days before they found the mountain range Zola and Youwei had mentioned.

It was called a mountain range, but there was actually no soil or vegetation there. When they looked up, the black "mountains" rising from the ground before them were entirely made of some kind of continuous pitch-black mineral. Adam had no idea what it was, though.

Adam began wondering whether this was truly the mountain from the prophecy. Especially since, during the entire journey from the lake to the mountains, he had not seen a single tree.

"Mr. Gandalf, should we keep going?"

Adam turned back toward the two of them and smiled.

"Sorry to trouble you, but I’ll have to ask you to sleep a little longer."

"Huh?"

Before a sense of foreboding could even arise within them, the Sleep Card had already sent them into an infant-like slumber.

Adam spread his wings and flew into the air, looking down over the mountain range from above, but he still found no trace of any trees.

"Could it be… that the mountain, water, tree, and soil were all metaphors? Did I misunderstand?"

After a long silence, Adam summoned a Clow Card.

"Release!"

A graceful figure emerged amid pale winds and drifting mist, wearing a gentle smile.

"Wind, please search the surroundings. See if there’s a couple roughly like this."

Adam took out the photograph Eugene had given him.

"Or somewhere that fits ‘to the left of the mountain, to the right of the water, above the tree, below the soil.’ We’re in an underground ruin now, so pretty much everywhere meets the condition of being ‘below the soil.’"

Using The Wind to search was not actually a good idea. This place was unlike the Lake of Fire Prison from before; the area that needed to be searched was far too vast. Before he fully mastered the Wind Card’s magic, his magical power could not support a carpet search over such a large area.

But so many days had passed, and their previous route of exploration had reached a standstill. Adam was getting anxious, so he could only resort to the stupid method of searching one area at a time…

"Leave it to me."

Wind glanced at the photograph, then transformed into countless wisps of breeze and swept toward the farthest reaches of sight.

Before a certain tent, a small team was roasting something over a fire. Suddenly, a breeze passed over them, and one of them could not help picking up the compass beside him and performing a few calculations.

"Great Observation above: yielding and gentle, centered and upright, observing the world beneath heaven."

"Captain, your occupational habit is acting up again?"

The speaker glanced at him and smiled as if he were used to it.

"It’ll be ready soon. I’m telling you, once this thing is roasted, it tastes a bit like chives. Good thing we brought salt with us…"

"That gust of wind just now was unusual."

The man called captain set down his compass and looked in the direction the wind had come from.

"Someone is casting magic."

"…Looks like some people still haven’t given up."

The man roasting some kind of plant fell silent for a moment, then sighed.

"I wonder if they’ll send more reinforcements from back home to rescue us."

The captain replied without hesitation.

"The Ministry of Magic definitely won’t just sit by and watch us remain trapped in this ruin."

"I wasn’t talking about the Ministry of Magic. I meant The Office."

This time, the captain fell silent.

The Office, whose full name was the Traditional Culture and Religious Affairs Liaison Office, was China’s true "Ministry of Magic." Compared to the Chinese Ministry of Magic, whose influence was limited to Hong Kong Island and whose power had been continuously shrinking in recent years, The Office was far more powerful. Strictly speaking, the Ministry of Magic was a subordinate department of The Office.

Judging by the current state of this ruin, if The Office did not intervene, the Chinese Ministry of Magic alone might not be able to get them out…

But this expedition into the ruin had been entirely the Ministry of Magic’s own initiative. Anyone with eyes could practically see what they had been plotting behind the scenes. Would The Office truly send people to save them?

In the end, the captain could only force out one sentence.

"Whether they do or not isn’t something we can decide. Keep holding on and wait for rescue."

Amid the howling wind, Wind condensed into her human form before Adam. Seeing that Adam’s face had gone somewhat pale, she shook her head apologetically.

"I didn’t see the people in the photograph nearby, nor did I find any trees. I’m sorry."

"Whew… Don’t apologize. What did you do wrong?"

Adam rubbed his slightly swollen temples. He did not know whether it was from excessive magical exhaustion or merely psychological, but his head hurt.

"I understand. Come back."

Before returning to the Clow Card, Wind thought for a moment and spoke.

"Perhaps you could ask The Earth to look."

"The Earth?"

"It’s only a guess… We’re beneath the soil right now, but isn’t there still soil beneath us?"

Adam’s eyes lit up at the Wind Card’s words.

That was right! The first underground level was underground, but what about the second underground level?

He could not ignore the possibility of more space below just because they were already deep enough and had not found a way further down!

The more he thought about it, the more plausible it seemed. Adam could not help wanting to try it immediately.

"Don’t rush, Adam."

Wind gently placed both hands on Adam’s shoulders, stopping him just as he was about to take out The Earth.

"You’re already exhausted. Rest first."

"…All right, I understand."

Wind was right. Even if he summoned The Earth in his current state, he would not be able to explore very far downward.

I should rest first…

"Adam, how did it go today?"

When Adam appeared in the dormitory, Eugene, who had been waiting for him, hurried over. Then he noticed something off about Adam’s complexion.

"Your face, what—"

"I’m fine. I’m just tired. We’re almost there."

Adam stopped Klon from continuing, then looked at his brothers, who had turned toward him after hearing Klon’s words. His expression did not betray the slightest flaw.

"I found some clues today. I’ll go check them out tomorrow."

Eugene opened his mouth.

"Actually… if you can’t find them, then forget it."

"Huh?!"

Not only Adam, but the other three also could not help looking at Eugene.

"I mean… I, I never met them either… so… I don’t miss them that much."

Eugene hooked the fingers of both hands together and lowered his head.

"I was prepared long ago for them to die in some ruin someday. Now… it’s just that… that day has really come, that’s all."

"…Let me keep looking."

Adam patted him on the shoulder.

"Me going to that ruin now isn’t just because of your parents anymore. I found several-hundred-meter-long ribbonfish inside… The taste is average, but the place has enormous potential as a food resource."

"…Mm."

Looking at Eugene, who still had his head lowered, Adam sighed.

This kid did not even react to several-hundred-meter-long ribbonfish, and he still claimed he did not miss his parents?