After listening to the tale of Bartholomew Kuma, Artemis was stunned. Her thoughts wandered, tracing the lines of Kuma's self-sacrifice, all leading back to a single, impossible question: "How can a person be so selfless?"
Alista Tudor let out a soft, knowing laugh. "That is just his personality. He never became a villain, even though he had every chance to become one. Yet he didn't, because… he is good. There was no situation that made him, no family, just himself." Alista emphasized the moral core. "Yeah, he didn't survive; his fate was the worst. But his influence made others' lives much better. That is where he shined."
Artemis nodded, a profound wistfulness in her heart. 'I wish I had a father like him.' A comfortable silence settled between them again.
Artemis stayed awake in the corner of their camp. Her thoughts were a whirlpool of duty versus instinct: should she kill him or continue to monitor him? Meanwhile, Alista Tudor also stayed awake in his corner, his mind sharp. He couldn't fully trust Artemis, knowing her secret mission.
Morning came, and the two Sleepers descended from the statue, starting their forward journey. They headed in the direction of the Castle.
They encountered several groups of Carapace Scavengers, but noticeably, there was no sign of the Carapace Centurion. 'It seems Sunny, Nephis, and Cassie have passed through this area,' Alista deduced.
Even though Alista and Artemis lacked a dedicated scout, they were able to survive thanks to their complementary skills: Alista's [Instincts] gave him advanced warning and battle awareness, and Artemis's [Navigation] Attribute provided a clear path, guiding them in that direction
After a week of intense travel, made possible by the speed of Artemis's mounting [Drift Horse] Echo, they encountered a colossal landmark: the Bone Ridge.
The Bone Ridge was a towering structure, visible from afar, standing out in ivory splendor against the crimson coral and the grey sky. It was formed from the skeletal remains of a colossal sea monster lying on an enormous mound of chaotically growing coral, its arching spine protruding high above the ground.
Artemis looked at the skeletal remains with awe. "I wonder what type of creature lived here?"
Alista spoke in a tone laced with genuine fear. "Whatever it is, it is not alive."
Artemis scoffed, hiding her own apprehension. "Better hope whatever killed it stays dead." They immediately started climbing the Bone Ridge before the Dark Sea returned.
They reached a safe elevation, and Night came, accompanied by the swift rise of the Dark Sea.
The labyrinth around the ridge was littered with the remains of dead leviathans, whose bones created natural arches and palaces. Coral grew especially tall and dense near them, as if burying the whiteness in a sea of crimson. It appeared that the coral was literally growing out of the old bones, spreading outward like solidified rivers of ancient blood.
The beast forming the Bone Ridge was so immense that a portion of its spine remained above water even at night, making it an ideal stopping point for their journey. They passed through its cracked skull, whose upper jaw formed a cavernous cave, and entered the hollow expanse of its spine. The bone surface beneath was as wide as a road, resembling a highway running through a tunnel lit by beams of light filtering through the gaps between the massive vertebrae.
Alista looked at the sheer scale of the remains. 'It is much bigger than what I read in the Novel.'
Both of them set up their camp inside the ridge. As they were resting, Alista felt a distinct, powerful urge—a pull from his Flaw—to battle. The urge pointed sharply forward, deeper into the structure. Alista looked at Artemis.
"I will look forward," he announced, and left the camp.
As Alista traveled deeper, he eventually reached a vantage point and saw it.
The Sea of Ash lay west of the crimson labyrinth. From a distance, the labyrinth seemed to lose its color there—the crimson blades of coral turned grey and misshapen, as though struck by some unknown disease and drained of all life. The stone-like coral appeared brittle and fragile, ready to crumble to dust at any moment. The dead coral stretched endlessly, eventually giving way to a sea of ash-grey sand—an ashen wasteland that looked alien and strange after weeks of navigating endless crimson pathways.
Alista frowned. 'It is the damn tree,' he realized, recognizing the area that housed the terrifying Corrupted Terror.
Alista knew better than to approach that creature unprepared. Furthermore, he remembered the landscape that followed. 'After the tree, there will be a crater that can't be traversed easily by foot.' Even if the [Drift Horse] went at top speed, they wouldn't be able to traverse the full distance before nightfall, meaning the Dark Sea would trap them there. Moreover, even if he wanted to create a boat, he lacked the materials and the knowledge to construct one sturdy enough for the Dark Sea.
Alista returned to the camp quickly and spoke to Artemis with deep concern.
"We might have a problem."
Artemis looked at Alista, her eyes sharp and questioning. "What is it?"
Alista described everything he had seen: the chilling sight of the Sea of Ash lying just beyond the vibrant crimson coral, and the eerie presence of the massive, central structure—the Ashen Barrow, dominated by the gigantic, ancient tree. He didn't extensively mention the true nature of the danger , but he made sure to emphasize the desolate, unnatural state of the land and the insurmountable crater that lay beyond it.
"It seems dangerous, but we can't go around the labyrinth," Artemis mused, recognizing that attempting a massive detour would take too much time and expose them to unnecessary risk, especially with the Dark Sea rising nightly.
Artemis paused, processing the navigational information with the instinct of a Legacy. "We should go there, and figure out the next step when we arrive. Whatever it is, we will... figure it out together." Her voice held a note of stubborn determination.
Alista frowned, the necessity of the situation overriding his caution. 'It seems we have no choice.' Their path was being dictated by the landscape itself, forcing them directly toward the novel's major conflict zone
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