"HEY, you're still going!"

Kage turned to the girl, his expression sharp and venomous like an irritated snake. This caused Talia to quickly recoil, going silent for a moment.

Kaito saw this and intervened.

"I think she just wants us to stick together. It'll help in the examination. Together we might have at least 60% more chance at exploring and discovering hidden hints."

Silence followed Kaito's words. He was looking at Kage, and Kage was looking at him, but it was difficult to read what was on Kage's mind because there was no expression on his face. Kaito waited.

Kage turned his head toward Talia.

"Have you gotten your marker?"

Talia was silent. She pointed to herself to confirm Kage was talking to her. But he just stared. With no response, she blinked.

"A marker? What's… oh! Is that what those sealed scrolls are about? I saw some people with them, but I was already running toward the forge smell—copper and coal, you know that scent? And I just had to get here! Wait, is that important? Should I have—"

Kaito was stunned. Kage did not look stunned—in fact, he seemed to have expected this, which was why he'd directed the question particularly to Talia.

'They are airheads. The only thing they know is the relationship between fire and metal, and the only reason they're the richest Clan is because Ironstorm is incompetent!'

Kaito restrained the urge to laugh. He pulled out his sealed scroll.

"We need this marker to unlock our seal. I was able to find one in the tidal cave that rises and falls intermittently every twelve hours. Did you not get that before coming here…?"

Talia's voice dropped, dejected and confused.

"Oh, well, see—I smelled the forge from THREE VALLEYS AWAY! Copper, coal, that specific heat signature when steel reaches optimal tempering temperature. You can't mistake it! So I ran—full sprint, maybe two hours?—and when I got here the forge was perfect! Look, LOOK!"

She gestured wildly at the array of swords, her expression suddenly radiating pride, almost shifting the point of the matter in her head.

"I've been working non-stop! This one's folded seventeen times—good tension, good tension—and this one has a curved tang for better weight distribution, and oh, you said markers? We need those?"

Kage sighed.

"Lin Jianhong once wrote, 'Genius is not superior human capacity. It is asymmetric human capacity.'"

Kaito gave him a suspicious look.

"What does that mean?"

Kage ignored the question and looked at the sword in his hands.

"As payment for this, I will help with the second marker. Your incompetence is your responsibility, so I will do nothing regarding the first marker. Whether or not you are able to meet up for the second will be on you."

He shifted his gaze to Kaito.

"Or he can decide to help you."

Kage simply turned and left the forge, leaving the two to themselves.

Talia glanced at him, her amber eyes bright as they should be.

"Perfect! PERFECT! If we work together—cooperation increases success probability by—well, a LOT—we can definitely reach the tidal cave! I can carry you if you want! Seriously! My stamina's like reinforced steel under proper heat treatment—I once ran for six hours straight hauling iron ore and barely broke a sweat! Well, I broke a lot of sweat actually, but my legs didn't give out! I could probably carry both of you if needed—"

Kaito sighed.

"There's a 50% chance we may make it back late, but Kage over there is offering to help us with the next clue, so we may be able to make up the time loss. However, we have to make every moment count. I appreciate your proposal to carry me, but I'd rather not have my feet leave the ground unless it's by my own strength. I don't really trust people."

Talia was silent for a moment.

"Oh! Oh okay, that's fair—totally fair! Personal boundaries, I respect that! Thank you, Hirose! I'm DEFINITELY repaying this—I'll forge you something, maybe a utility knife? Or a grappling hook? Both? I'll make both! Just give me a moment—"

She spun around, already moving toward her scattered materials.

"—I need to grab supplies! Food supplies—dried rations, maybe some of that meat I roasted earlier—and water containers! We need at least two liters each for optimal hydration during extended physical exertion! And my tools—can't forget the hammer, the tongs—wait, do you have rope? We might need rope! The cave probably has slippery surfaces and—"

Kaito exhaled.

Meanwhile, Kage walked deeper into the ruins, past the forge and currently standing in what looked like a yard covered by overgrown verdant vines.

However, it was an elevation point, and from where he was standing, Kage was surveying all around him, viewing the lines of the trees and beyond them. Between the east and west, begging to be seen, were two stone towers.

Kage muttered:

"Where two towers slept in ancient days… seek the tongue of the east and west."

He shook his head.

'These people really need to make this less obvious.'

For people who were observant and keen with details, this examination was bound to be easy for them to an extent, but for people who were very oblivious to their surroundings, they were bound to either find it very difficult or just fail.

Kage pressed forward, descending the midst of the trees down the elevation. He finally reached the extended part of the ruin after crossing another clear stream.

The place was surrounded by trees planted in rows like an old courtyard, and stone paths were partially visible beneath the vegetation.

The towers themselves stood in the center of the yard amidst trees. Each of them was thirty feet tall, connected by a collapsed bridge.

As the moonlight poured upon both towers, the inscriptions upon them shimmered faintly. The East Tower was covered in the old dialect of eastern calligraphy, while the West Tower was covered in the archaic form of western calligraphy.

If there was anything that Kage prided himself in thanks to this examination, it was that he was such a voracious reader. Whether it was old, new, or even forgotten, languages were another interest of his as they deeply tied to philosophical books which he would literally kill to read.

Kage read the inscription on the East Tower.

"Water flows east. Blade points to sky. Heart lies in the center. Three become one part."

He knew there were three markers beforehand, but this further confirmed his belief.

'Water flows east pointed to the Tidal Cave. Blade points to sky was obviously the towers. And Heart lies in the center…'

Kage paused his thoughts before concluding and instead turned to the West Tower.

"Fire burns westward. Shield faces earth. Mind dwells above. Three form one truth."

Kage narrowed his eyes slightly.

'Perhaps, while they give clues to the markers, they also give clues to the next marker at the same time…'

He looked down.

'Heart lies in the center.'

Kage sighed and walked into the East Tower. As he entered, he was greeted by utter darkness, but a blue flame ignited immediately, casting the place in a ghastly radiance.

He laid his eyes on a stairway that led to the top of the tower. But Kage ignored it and instead began stomping his feet around. He finally found somewhere that sounded with a hollow thud.

A wide grin spread across his face.

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