Chapter 296   - 295 - Reconnaissance(Part 1)

Point-of-View: Sylvar Miirphys

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Today's the 10th of May, the day after Sant had given us the scouting task, Bell and I were in a massive crater, the area that was to the east of the savanna. Damn, whatever made this crater must have been one hell of an explosion, holy crap. It's so big that I can't even see the opposite end of it from where I was.

"Hey, Bell...any idea where to start?" I inquired, as she began pacing around irritably.

"Tch, and how would I know that!?" She snapped in reply.

We'd been teleporting around randomly for a couple of hours now, and so far, nothing. We were taking a break now, and while I'd been resting, she'd been letting out her frustrations by kicking at stuff.

A few Dwarves and some others were here too, building a fortress to lay claim to this area, and they hadn't seen any humans anywhere nearby, so it looks like there aren't any in this area. All around the spot where they were building the fortress, there were a bunch of broken down stalls and torn apart tents, as well as some broken concrete structures.

It looks like people had used to live here, maybe trade too...wonder what happened. Also, I was curious to see what the humans of this world are like...Sant is under the impression that no pureblooded humans exist anymore, and that all the current humans likely have Demi-Human blood in them.

Which is...definitely possible. Anyway, getting back to the issue at hand...where do we even start? It's not like we have a map or something...and even if we did, it'd be outdated by like, hundreds of years. I let out a sigh as I walked back towards Bell, who didn't look any less calm.

"Bell, calm down, losing your temper is not going to help us in any way," I sighed, as she kicked at a couple of rocks.

"Shut up."

Goddammit, of the three other Elemental Sages, why'd I get stuck with her? She's seriously such a handful and a major pain in my ass.

"Look, think about it this way...we just need to find one group of humans and then ask them where the rest are...it's possible that the different settlements or nations of humans are enemies with each other, and if that's the case, then they might be willing to tell us where their enemies are," I pointed out.

So far, we hadn't run into any humans at all, not even bandits or thieves or anything. I'd heard that some of the members of the other races who'd been expanding the Laus Domain territory in other areas had some minor encounters with humans, but neither Bell nor I knew where those encounters had taken place...why didn't we go back to Sant and find out?

Because Bell's pride wouldn't allow it, and since I can't use teleportation spells, I can't go back there by myself. Oh, we had run into some Demons though, but they were no help...and killing them would be pointless because then they'd just go and possess someone else.

"Tch, I shall leave that to you, I will likely kill a human if I run into one, so I shall keep my distance to avoid disobeying Lord Laus's orders," She replied with a frown, before adding, "You are speaking strangely again."

Oops.

"I do not know what you are talking about. Anyway, we should get going-," I began, before trailing off as suddenly, the air ahead of us turned dark and shimmery, and someone walked out of it.

A woman with blonde hair, blue eyes, a busty body...and a black halo and black feathered wings, the opposite of Sant's golden halo and white feathered wings. I see, so she's Belia Lasmodeus.

"Hi, there! So, you two are the current Wind and Lightning Sages, am I right? You look kinda lost," She greeted us with a smirk.

Wait, what? The way she talks is so...normal.

"Tch, and you must be Belia Lasmodeus...you are the enemy of Lord Laus, we have nothing to say to you," Growled Bell with a glare, though she had a wary look on her face, as she gestured to those that were building the fortress to take cover.

Well, not that I can blame her for being wary, this woman is supposed to be the strongest being in this world alongside Sant...though it doesn't feel like she's here to start anything.

"Oh, please, I have no interest in those small fry, they're beneath me," Scoffed Belia, as she noticed Bell gesturing to the others to hide.

"How dare you-!?" Bell began to snap back, before I quickly interrupted...

"Calm down, Bell...let me handle this. What do you want with us?" I inquired cautiously.

"Oh, well, ever since I declared war on the Laus Domain, I've been using Observation Magic to watch the Elemental Sages...since, you know, I can't use it on Sant. Heh, you two have been teleporting around blindly all day, haven't you?" She remarked with an amused laugh, before adding, "So sloppy, Sant really isn't cut out for this, he's just not sharp enough. Had he had the basic sense to organize all the information his minions had gathered so far, and then given you two that information, you wouldn't be searching so blindly."

She was watching us the whole time? I...don't like that. It's kinda creepy to know that someone's watching you while you can't see them.

"You've made your point...why are you here?" I sighed, watching her with narrowed eyes.

"Hm? Well, now, you're a smart one, aren't you? Surprisingly level-headed too...I like you!" She grinned, sinking into the air and disappearing, before reappearing behind me and slapping my shoulder.

I quickly spun around and sprang back instinctively, as she let out a chuckle.

"Stop avoiding my questions," I remarked, reaching for my spear on my back.

"Sheesh, cut me some slack, it's been forever since I've spoken to an Elf and a Halfling. And I just thought you could use some help...for instance, I could mention that fact that there are currently three major human nations, one of which I'm currently occupying," She replied with a smirk.

From what I've heard, her primary goal is to cause chaos...in which case, she just might be telling the truth...taking that into consideration, it's certainly worth hearing her out...

"I see...if I say that we'll stay away from the nation you're occupying, would you mind pointing us in the right directions of the other two human settlements then?" I inquired hopefully.

"Well, duh, that's why I'm here! We may be on opposing sides, but I have no problem helping my enemies if it makes things more interesting and chaotic! And I'm fine with revealing all three locations!" She replied with a grin.

What?

"Why would you do that? Wouldn't it be in your best interest to keep the location of the human settlement that you occupy a secret?" I asked suspiciously.

"Oh, please...if my goal was taking over the world or something like that, I'd have already done so ages ago! No, a one-sided victory is the most boring possible outcome...I want a vicious bloodbath where all sides experience and suffer immense despair!" She exclaimed with a wide grin on her face, before adding in a chilling voice with a dark smirk, "Chaos is my goal, my objective and my motivation...it's as simple as that."

I...don't think she's lying. She's completely insane...and the complete opposite of Sant. He desires peace and stability, and she wants the opposite, she wants to watch the world burn.

"Alright, then, tell us...where are the current human settlements?" I asked, deciding not to respond to...whatever that was.

"The closest one is called Silvland, it's straight east from here...then there's the Rustlands, which is to the south-southeast, and finally, Abyss, The Dark Nation...to the north-northeast of here. Silvland is also straight south from Abyss, and the Rustlands is straight south from Silvland. That's all I'm going to say, it's more fun if you find out the rest by yourself than if I tell you," She remarked with a grin, before adding, "Alright, I'm going to get back to observing, so-...woah, close on!"

She was interrupted as Bell shot forward and fired out a powerful lightning bolt at Belia, who dodged it with a gleam of excitement appearing in her eyes.

"Uh, Bell...what are you-!?" I began to exclaim.

"You fool, if we can kill her here and now, we will no longer need to worry about the war!" Snapped Bell, interrupting me as she attacked Belia.

I mean, she's not wrong, but...I don't want to fight an opponent who can probably definitely defeat me! But also...Bell will definitely die if I don't help. This is the worst...I let out a reluctant sigh before taking my spear into my hands.

"Stay still and let me kill you!" Snapped Bell, swinging rapid electric punches at Belia, who was just barely avoiding them.

"Ooh, almost had me there!" Responded Belia in an amused, carefree tone, as she continued dodging effortlessly.

More violent lightning streaks began bursting out from Bell as she got more and more riled up, as I fired off powerful jets of wind from my feet to blast myself to Belia's left in the blink of an eye, a massive blast of wind charged up in my right hand.

"Bell, move!" I exclaimed, before firing the wind blast at Belia, hitting her and sending her flying away rapidly and crashing onto the ground, her body skidding away and slamming onto a small wooden structure.

"Tch, you very nearly struck me with that as well," Growled Bell, standing up with a frown.

"More importantly, did I get her?" I replied warily, shifting my gaze to the spot where she'd crashed onto.

"Who are you talking about?" Suddenly came Belia's voice from right behind me, before blowing into my ear, sending chills down my spine.

I quickly spun around and swung my spear towards her, which she blocked by catching the blade between her fingers. What the-...her appearance has changed, a black pattern had formed all over her body, a dark aura surrounded her and it was terrifyingly clear that she was now way stronger than she was a few seconds ago.

Bell then zipped around and sprang up behind her, a blindingly massive lightning bolt in her hand. She fired it towards Belia's back with a fierce yell from point blank range...when suddenly, the lightning disappeared.

The air behind Belia was shimmering, and the lightning had disappeared into the shimmer...Bell began to spring back, but then, in the blink of an eye, Belia swung the back of her fist around towards Bell, striking her chest and sending her flying away at a breakneck speed, before crashing onto a part of the half-built fortress with a devastating impact, a massive dust cloud rising as she crashed.

Holy shit...okay, there's no way I can do anything in this state, I need to transform, and quickly!

Hey, Aero, I need you power!

"Yes, I understand," Replied the Wind Spirit, before unlocking my full Wind Sage power.

An explosion of wind burst out from me as I felt my power start to surge immensely...alright, I don't think I stand much of a chance here, but still, I won't go down with a-!

"Oops, got a bit carried away," Suddenly remarked Belia, letting go of my spear with a sheepish grin, before adding with a smirk and eyes full of desire, "But if you really want to fight, I'm more than happy to oblige...it's your choice."

What? I can't read this woman at all...but right now, I'm not gonna look a gift horse in the mouth...

"I'd prefer to avoid fighting...so leave," I replied, backing away warily.

"I was right, you really are a smart one. Also, the way you talk, you're not a regular Elf, are you...," She smirked as she opened and sunk into a portal, "...heh, I can't believe that Sant let a former human become an Elemental Sage...how interesting."

And with that, she left. How did she know-...wait, the way I speak? She spoke sort of like a modern human from my old world too...but she can't be a reincarnated human with their memories intact, Sant would have mentioned that. Maybe I'm overthinking it, but I think the more likely explanation is that she's changed and evolved overtime...while Sant has remained unchanged for centuries.

I don't like that, it gives me the impression that Belia is a lot more flexible than Sant is, and if that really is the case, then-...oh, crap, hold that thought, I need to go and check if Bell is still alive!

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