Sword of Dawnbreaker

Chapter 552 - 551: A New Gateway

Treasures?

Gawain paused slightly and then turned his head to see Amber bouncing excitedly nearby, holding a shining object, emanating a sense of self-satisfaction.

Despite always appearing greedy and penny-pinching, she immediately jumped out to report after making a discovery.

Gawain waved Amber over, looking at her with curiosity: "What did you find?"

"Look," Amber handed the object to Gawain with excitement, "a ring!"

It was a silver-white ring, with a simple design and a hint of magical wave, obviously a magic creation, and upon seeing the ring, Gawain’s gaze became frozen.

After a strong sense of familiarity, he finally recalled where he had seen a similar item.

This is the Mithril Vault’s ring, distributed to high-level clients for contacting agents—the Communication Ring!

"This should be a token from the Mithril Vault, right?" Amber, who had seen Gawain’s Mithril Ring, had a dragon-like keen sense for any shiny precious metals, and had noticed it early on, "I remember you also have one."

"Indeed it’s a token from the Mithril Vault..." Gawain murmured, "Dropped by that dragon? Is it possible that even the Dragonkin are clients of the Mithril Vault?"

"Well... that might be up for discussion," Amber stuck out her tongue, then took out another item from behind, "because I found not just this one ring..."

Amber pulled out a palm-sized delicate metal box.

This metal box was originally locked, but now its lid was forcibly opened, with the latch showing distorted and deformed, and inside the box was a neatly packed set of Mithril Rings, each nestled in a black slot...

This time, Gawain was finally dumbfounded.

"All these rings are Mithril Rings, right?" Amber watched Gawain’s expression change, "Carrying around one ring can say you’re a client of the Mithril Vault, but carrying around a box of rings..."

Gawain’s expression became serious: "Either that dragon robbed the Mithril Vault, or... is part of the Mithril Vault—perhaps responsible for the safekeeping of members’ proof."

The rationale is quite straightforward—a person carrying one house key is ordinary, a person carrying several house keys might be wealthy, and someone carrying a half-pound of keys... is either a locksmith or a dorm manager...

If this box of Mithril Rings was indeed left by that dragon, the implications behind it are intriguing.

Of course, Gawain doesn’t dismiss the possibility of a dragon robbing the Mithril Vault and making away with a box full of communication devices, but intuition tells him that a more likely explanation is a connection between the Dragonkin and the Mithril Vault.

And when this possibility arises, Gawain suddenly feels that many mysteries of the Mithril Vault are explained—their power, their secrecy, their forces spanning the continent for centuries, even unaffected by the chaotic wave—all become understandable because this organization is fundamentally not crafted by mortals, but has shadows of the Dragonkin.

This, however, raises yet more questions: why would the extremely secretive Dragonkin who never appear in the real world establish such a "commercial organization"? What is their purpose on the continent? Is the Mithril Vault truly just a "vault"? Are there more organizations like the Mithril Vault, controlled or established by hidden races on this continent?

Gawain’s thoughts drifted far, but he quickly forced himself to reel back these stray musings.

Right now, it’s merely a box of Mithril Rings discovered, and these "tokens" just happen to appear in an area where a dragon once roamed, and the clues are far from sufficient. Even if these rings were truly left by that dragon, and even if that dragon was indeed a member of the Mithril Vault, there are multiple potential explanations; perhaps the wealthy Mithril Vault just happened to employ a dragon?

Given the insufficient clues, it’s too early to hastily conclude "Dragons are the actual controllers of the Mithril Vault," but since there are clues, Gawain decided to tentatively link the Dragonkin and the Mithril Vault, both mysterious entities, together. He’ll continue investigating if he finds more clues about them in the future.

After securing the Mithril Rings, Gawain exhaled slightly, quietly planning to contact the high-ranking agent named "Melita Ponia" in the future, maybe... he could glean some information from her.

He lifted his head, surveying the surroundings: the Steel Cavalry were standing guard nearby, while Soldrin with two warriors was collecting material samples at the bottom of the pit and sketching the dragon’s claw marks.

Besides this, the crater no longer held further valuable clues, and it’s very late now. Remaining in the Black Forest would bring more uncertainty and risks.

It’s not yet the time to conduct large-scale operations in the dangerous area covered by the Black Forest.

Thinking about this, Gawain called out to Soldrin: "Gather samples and prepare to retreat, we’re heading back."

"Yes!"

When the team returned to the Shadow Testing Grounds cave, the sky had already turned completely dark.

A large number of portable magic crystal lamps were set up inside and outside the cave opening. For the first time in hundreds of years, the artificial lights of civilization illuminated this dark place. Building materials urgently summoned from Cecil Castle were being sent here continuously, along with engineering machinery subjected to Weight-Reduction and more construction personnel.

When Gawain returned to the cave, Sir Byron was leading the soldiers to guard the temporary defense line near the opening, while a noticeably robust, heavily dressed middle-aged man with a full beard was directing workers to clear the rubble around the opening, seemingly preparing for subsequent construction.

Gawain recognized the middle-aged man—he used to be a mason for the Cecil Clan, named Gordon, and during the first Cecil defense battle, he received special commendation for his outstanding performance. Now, this gentleman mason was one of the heads of the Cecil Castle’s construction department.

"Mr. Gordon," Gawain approached the building supervisor, "how is the progress?"

Gordon, now an Administrative Office official who came from a stonemason background, hurriedly saluted: "Sir Byron! We’ve cleared the space outside the cave, and by this time tomorrow, my brothers and I can build a two-meter-high wall."

"Very good," Gawain nodded, "It will be a tough job tonight, but we must get the works up as soon as possible—this is definitely not a safe place outside."

Gordon, hearing this, glanced apprehensively at the distant, dark Black Forest. Despite being tall and strong, anyone would face a test of courage against the formidable reputation of the Black Forest—but fortunately, with General Byron and the brave Cecil Corps stationed here, along with the personal encouragement from the leader, reliable magic-guided artillery, and the legendary hero Duke, there’s nothing that boosts courage better.

He nodded firmly: "Guaranteed completion of the task!!"

Gawain nodded and, accompanied by Amber and Soldrin, headed towards the depths of the cave. At the central temporary resting place in the cave, he found Aunt Heidi who had been waiting for a long time.

Aunt Heidi, apparently worried for a long time, immediately came forward when she saw Gawain, her face unconcealed relief and relaxation: "So glad to see you safe—any discoveries?"

"Indeed, we’ve discovered something extraordinary, but let’s talk about it after we return," Gawain waved his hand, "I just saw the construction team—Gordon was involved in some of the additional construction work of the Northern Rock Fortress, was he not?"

"Yes, he’s the expert in this field. He led the reinforcement of the Northern Gate of the Rock Fortress and participated in part of the reconstruction of the rocky ridges Town. After winter, these projects were handed over to the local building team of rocky ridges Town," Aunt Heidi said curiously, looking at Gawain, "Ancestor, do you have any plans?"

"The passage between Cecil and the southern slopes of the Dark Mountain Range has been opened," Gawain nodded slightly, "I want to retain this passage—set up a door here."

Aunt Heidi blinked and looked around at this vast cave—the powerful magic crystal lamps used for construction illuminated the once-dim Shadow Testing Grounds, with numerous engineering equipment, building materials, and weapon installations categorized and stacked on various rocky platforms within the cave. In fact, when she saw the ancestor summoned such a vast amount of resources from Cecil Castle, she vaguely guessed the old ancestor’s intentions.

"We cannot always shrink back to the north of the Dark Mountain Range when facing the threat of the chaotic wave; if the civilization boundary doesn’t advance, it will retreat," Gawain said, "The Anzu retreated once, directly losing one-third of the southern land, and the kingdom’s southern bulwark was hence shattered beyond recognition, so we must not be content with the status quo."

He looked towards the massive crack in the southern part of the cave, gazing at the dark night beyond.

"Climbing over the mountain ridge of the Dark Mountain Range is too difficult, the defied Fortress is our natural passage. This crack outside leads directly to a gentle slope on the southern side of the Dark Mountain Range, although it’s not suitable for defense, it’s easy for advancement outward, allowing us direct entry into the Black Forest. I plan to transform this giant cave-based Shadow Testing Grounds into the ’Southgate Fortress,’ armed with rail cannon, rainbow cannon, and reinforced concrete. Such a man-made fortress is no worse than primitive rock walls, and by then we will have a gateway to the south."

Aunt Heidi understood Gawain’s intentions and, after a brief thought, nodded slowly: "Yes, I’ll start arranging it immediately."

Gawain said no more as he gazed at the dimly dark sky in the southern part of the cave, his eyes steadily determined.

The impact crater appearing in the Black Forest, the mysterious Extra-Terrestrial Object, the whereabouts of the dragon unknown, the shadow behind the Mithril Vault, and the sudden crack opened at the end of the defied fortress...

This world seems increasingly unsettled, and as the ruler of this land, he must grasp every strand of value available in this uneasy world.

If utilized properly, a dangerous gap can also become a gateway for advancing southward.

It is Anzu Year 737, 1st day of the Revival Month.

On this very first day of spring, the Cecil Southgate Fortress began construction. After seven hundred years in a corner, the descendants of the Gondor Empire for the first time tread upon the edge of the wasteland.

It is also on this day that the short-lived truce between the Anzu Kingdom’s military and the Eastern Legion comes to an end. On the confrontation frontline in the Eastern Holy Spirit Plain, the atmosphere becomes tense once again.

It is likewise on this day, at the edge of a forest in the southwest of the Dark Mountain Range, far from Cecil, that the large crater is filled with smoke and dust.

A young woman, wearing a light purple gauzy skirt, a light purple veil covering her face, surrounded by an aura of mystery and elegance, sits quietly pondering her "human" life that spans tens of thousands of years by the smoky edge of the crater.

"On the last circle of spiraling, I shouldn’t have been tail-spinning, gliding to decelerate would’ve worked just fine... could it be I have gained weight recently... no, it must be the wind direction... where is my box?!"