Atira suddenly stopped.

Ahead lay an expansive water surface, shimmering under the sunlight with a dark green hue like emerald.

Surrounded by withered trees at the water's edge, she quickly grasped a vine of a banyan tree and climbed up, hanging diagonally from the tree, hands grasping the vine to take a look into the distance. Then she let go, dropping down and dusted off her hands to the others, "Stop here, let's take a break."

The voice of the Elf Girl was soft, like the gentle afternoon sunlight filtering through the curtain vines and illuminating the desk, the dust particles moving quietly and gracefully, bringing peace to the heart.

The others stopped too. Gita let out a sigh, unbuckled the giant book's fastener, took it off his back, leaned his slender body against a decayed wood covered with moss, and wiped the sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand; sweat ran down his thin arms, steamy hot.

"You shouldn't have brought that old book," Tianlan said dismissively, fanning herself incessantly, her fair skin flushed pink. "It's not even a real Magic Guided Book, just a wooden model."

The long summer had passed, but the residual heat still lingered on the land.

"But someday I will carry a real Magic Guided Book." Gita replied crisply: "So I need to get used to its weight."

"I give up on you, at least learn to cheat occasionally," Tianlan shook her head. "No one would know, right?"

"I know, Luo Yu knows, Miss Fuli knows, and Sister Atira knows too, so many people know."

"But we would cover for you, right, Luo?" She looked towards the Trainee boy.

But Luo Yu shook his head. "The rules of the Knight Order dictate that we must supervise each other during the pilgrimage, and I am responsible for reporting his performance to the examiner."

Tianlan looked at him incredulously. "Aren't you friends? Don't you understand what's more important, friends or the Guild, especially since their demands are unreasonable?"

Luo Yu frowned and did not speak.

But Tianlan persisted: "Say something!"

The former finally said helplessly: "The supplementary articles of the 'Suva Declaration' aren't appropriate for every situation. As members of the Tabopolis Oak Knights, we know what the Guild needs better than a rigid piece of text."

The lady from France couldn't help but reach out and touch his forehead: "Are you crazy? You're not part of the Guild's management, just a mere Invoker, look what they've done to you." She turned her head. "Brother Ade, what do you think, am I right?"

Fang Hong was checking the condition of the Walker nearby and shook his head upon hearing this.

Eventually, he agreed to Atira's invitation to join the squad. However, Atira had really only invited him to accompany her on the return journey to Elpaxin, understanding his plight and offering help in a more tactful manner.

In the vicinity of the city, there was hardly a need for an accompanying Alchemist, especially since they were already on their return journey.

Of course, Atira probably also wanted to thank him for his help earlier, otherwise, the adventure team would typically be cautious in the wilderness and unlikely to casually include a stranger.

As for Tianlan's problem, Fang Hong wisely chose to remain silent. He learned many things at Morning Dawn Star, one of which was never to take sides during others' arguments.

He ambiguously said: "By the way, there's a question I've been meaning to ask, why did those people attack you?"

Tianlan, seeing he wasn't supporting her, felt somewhat deflated and grumpily took out a golden statue from her bag: "It's all because of this thing."

"Miss Fuli." Gita called out softly, shaking his head at her.

Fang Hong looked at him curiously, the little boy frightened and quickly lowered his head.

Fang Hong had already recognized the statue, a Numelin Holy Icon, usually carved in the image of a Feathered Serpent, a stag, and a cat—three animals that Numelin Elves believe to be the most magical. They are frequently unearthed in various ancient temples and holy sites but are usually made of stone; gold ones are rare.

This thing could sell for several thousand Lycel on the market, especially to Native collectors or explorers interested in Numelin ruins. But it seemed hardly worth trading for tamed Brown-Red Elephant Beetles and Crushed Red Crystals.

After all, the former was worth no less than the statue itself, and the Crushed Red Crystals capable of inducing insect frenzy through low-frequency resonance were not cheap either.

"It's just a worthless broken statue," Tianlan said dismissively about Gita's caution, noticing him shrinking like an ostrich, she couldn't help but play a trick.

Stepping cat-like to his side, she pressed both hands on his chest, startling Gita into screaming "Ah—," he quickly covered his chest with his hands, the big clumsy glasses falling off in the process.

"Haha." Tianlan chirped mischievously, reveling in her successful prank.

Gita blushed, almost crying.

"Don't bully Gita," Atira scolded her with a stare. "That statue is the mission of our journey, it can be used to open the gates of the Holy Temple in the Traveler's Forest; legend has it that the second Spire lies beneath it." She walked back from the tree, saying.

Fang Hong instinctively wanted to ask if her brother had been discovered there but stopped himself before speaking, opting instead to keep his mouth shut.

However, if this statue was indeed a key to an essential mission, it indeed had a value worth coveting, depending on how lucrative the mission itself was; if the Spire truly was related to the Elf Holy Grail, then this key was certainly significant.

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