After completing the extermination of the cult, Zack's group stayed in that stone tower for an extra hour to continue inspecting it and make sure that there wasn't anything else that they should destroy before leaving.
During this hour, Zack's arm received the treatment of a few of his companions who specialized in medicine, and even if they didn't manage to make his arm recover, they managed to make the wounds stop hurting.
After they had destroyed any item that could be dangerous and looted all the resources that could be useful, they began their journey to return to Xeles.
The journey went by without any incidents, and in less than four hours they managed to return to the city.
As soon as they returned, each one of them split, and while some went directly to the nearest tavern, others went to their main base to inform them about the results of their mission. One of those was Zack, because, as the leader of the team, he was its main representative.
When Zack arrived at the castle, he went to the second floor, and there they walked to a wooden door and knocked on it.
"Come in, it's open," the voice of a man said from behind the door.
Following those instructions, Zack opened the door and entered the room to find himself inside a little office with a man that looked like a scholar inside it.
That man was Jules Dencre, and he was the director of the Ventar Academy Branch that had remained on the old landmass to secure the evacuation of every commoner from this land. Because of his importance, he was responsible for many things, one of them being the anticult groups that operated around Xeles.
As soon as Zack entered the room and Jules saw him, the old man stood up from his desk and quickly approached Zack to examine his arm.
"What has happened to you, young man? If I knew you were going to fight against a small cultist base, I would have ended up sending many more people. " the man said as he examined Zack's arm.
"The fight itself hasn't been very difficult. The main problem has been the cult leader, who knew a few tricks and caught me by surprise." Zack tried to explain.
"How serious are your wounds?" the man asked.
"As far as I know, I may be able to move my arm again, but probably not enough to use it in combat, mainly because my arm's energy channels are destroyed, so I wouldn't be able to use any kind of martial art with it or operate my long sword efficiently," Zack replied while lowering his gaze.
"I'm very sorry about that. I know how much effort you put into your team. I guess that after this, you will retire from the front line. Am I right? " The man asked.
"If possible, I would like to continue helping in any way possible. I know that I would not be even half as useful as I was before, but I would like to try to learn some more offensive spells or maybe start using a one-handed sword. That way, even if I'm not as strong as I was before, I may be able to help in some missions. " Zack explained his plan to Jules.
After that, Zack began to explain exactly what happened during the raid on the cultist base, and a few minutes later, he was already about to leave for his room.
"Before you go." Jules said when Zack was about to open the door to leave."Have you thought about visiting the new continent? I know that you had always said that you didn't want to leave this land because someone needed to stay to protect those that hadn't left yet, but over there some people needed help, and I'm sure that someone with your expertise would be useful there. "
"I don't want to run just because I have a wounded arm. The corruption around here is more abundant with each day that passes, and if those that try to fight it leave, things will get out of control in no time." Zack said seriously.
"Don't think about it as running. As far as I know, the new continent is different from anything that you could find around here. It is a land filled with opportunities as well as dangers. All those things could help you to find your new path, and maybe when you return you will be able to do much more good to these lands than when you left. " Jules said while trying to convince Zack.
"I will think about it, but my response will probably be no," Zack said while leaving the room.
After that, he went directly to his room to rest, and as soon as he arrived, he let himself fall into his bed.
He would lie if he said that he had never considered traveling to the new continent. Any person who came from there would describe incredible regions brimming with resources that any cultivator of this land would kill for. As far as he knew, the concentration of elemental energy on those lands was much higher than in the old landmass, and that caused incredible things to appear all around.
Even though all of that managed to cause curiosity in Zack, it wasn't enough for him to leave his men behind, so even when he was about to fall asleep, he didn't doubt it even for a second.
I hope you liked the chapter and that you had a nice day.
See you tomorrow.