Chapter 7: End of Council
In the Vita Continent, there are many territories whose mystery has not been fully unraveled and was marked as a forbidden area after many Knights perished while exploring them.
Some forbidden areas are so mysterious that many powerful Knights never return after venturing into them. However, there were still some forbidden areas whose Knights who ventured brought a lot of information, and the Mystic Valley is one of those areas.
In the northeast of the Crimson Duchy, the entire rocky plateau that separates its border with the Principality of Sirius extends from the right of the Blackrock Gate to the Duchy of Russell. From this gate on the left, the Blackrock Plateau extends to end with the Mystic Valley, right at the junction between the Crimson Duchy, the Duchy of Barth, and the Principality of Sirius.
The Principality of Sirius controls the only passage that connects the Crimson Duchy directly with the entire central region of the realm and in case of war, they would have the geographical advantage as they control the Blackrock Gate which is a large fortress with steel walls between the rocky plateau.
The royal family could send armies to the Crimson Duchy whenever they wanted, not the other way around.
Of course, it would be possible for the Crimson Duchy to dispatch their armies to the central regions of the realm by bypassing neighboring duchies such as Duchy Russell and Duchy Barth, however, Duke Marvin knew that this method is not viable if they end up having a war against the royal family. This is also one of the main reasons why he plans to send Makai to develop in the Mystic Valley, as it is possible to enter the Principality of Sirius through it.
Unfortunately, Mystic Valley is a forbidden area and that's exactly why everyone in the Collins family sitting at the table is looking at Makai with pity in their eyes.
Seeing how stunned Makai looked, Ferdinand understood this as if Makai was scared and thought, "My little younger brother, you sure didn't expect this..."
"Hahaha... My father is still sensible, how could he choose a bastard like your heir?"
No one had noticed the gleam of happiness in Ferdinand's eyes, much less, they had no idea of his thoughts, as they were still looking at Makai with pity. However, the duke's next words made Ferdinand's face go rigid and he lost the sparkle in his eyes.
After Makai processed the information about the Mystic Valley, unlike the rest of his family members who thought he was being discarded by being sent to certain death in a forbidden area so he has no chance of inheriting the title of Hereditary Duke, Makai knew that this was not the case, as he had seen some images in his memories that made him understand his father's true intention.
Makai was stunned at that moment was for another reason, which was the cold voice of the system echoing in his mind and the blue background panel with green-colored data being processed appeared before his eyes.
[New mission triggered]
[One of the Knights World broadcast portal maps has been discovered. Go to Mystic Valley, look for a suitable location, and use the Glacial Castle building card]
Just below these green dice, Makai observed a small purple card with the background of an imposing white castle with a large and majestic sky blue gate where, on either side, there are two large towers with the statue of a gigantic oriental ice dragon embracing it on top.
On the head of this large ice dragon are several long, sharp horns. A few dozen meters above the blue castle gate, its head leans back like a large serpent ready to pounce and her deep icy blue eyes seemed to be staring at Makai disdainfully.
Seeing this imposing castle, turbulent waves began to rise in Makai's heart as he recognized it, "This Glacial Castle is the castle of the Ice Dragon Emperor in the game World of Knights and, its territory, is where the portal to the first floor of the abyss is..."
"Forbidden Areas... Mystic Valley... Snow Globins... Abyssal Forces... Dammit! This world is even related to the game World of Knights..."
"There is some mystery surrounding the game and the system that made me transmigrate to this world..."
"Probably that short circuit in my computer when I teleported to the 100th floor of the abyss wasn't an accident..."
Makai was finally sure, this world of Lazerorth is related to the history and geography of the game, World of Knights, when he spotted the Glacial Castle and processed the information in his mind.
He still had many doubts about the mysteries that surround him, but he had to leave his thoughts for another moment when he was approached by the duke.
"Makai, do you know why the Blackrock Plateau has its black rocks?"
When the Duke asked such a question, not only had Ferdinand's face hardened, but many intelligent members of the Collins family seemed to understand why the Duke had asked such a question and they could not hide the amazement in their eyes.
Makai quickly processed the information that popped into his mind that the reason the rocks of the Blackrock Plateau are black is because they are connected with volcanoes in their depths and that the black rock dwarves built underground cities in them to make use of volcanic veins.
Aware of this, Makai replied, "Although we in the military do not engage in trade-related matters, we are still aware of the forces with which the Royal Family cooperates..."
"Does the father intend for me to cooperate with the Dwarves of Blackrock?"
Seeing that his son had already understood his intention without needing to directly answer his question, the duke nodded with satisfaction, "Good. That's right..."
"As we are in late autumn now, when you arrive at the borders of Mystic Valley, it will still be in its first month of winter, the most dangerous period. You must first create a fort on your border to use as a logistical base when cooperating with the dwarves of Blackrock..."
"When the winter passes, you should look for a suitable place within the Mystic Valley to settle down... As a smart boy, you should understand what it means to open lands in the Mystic Valley, right?"
Seeing his father's solemn gaze as he asked such a question, Makai replied seriously, "I understand the father's intention."
Duke Marvin didn't doubt and continued, "As for the question of danger surrounding the Mystic Valley... When winter comes next year, I will personally lead my elite cavalry to explore its depths."
Hearing that the duke was even willing to venture out to explore the depths of the Mystic Valley, the Collins family members breathed cold air. They were now filled with doubts, was the duke doing this as a precaution against the Royal Family, or was he giving Makai special care?
They no longer knew the answer. The only thing they knew was that even the royal family had already dispatched their elite armies to explore the depths of the Mystic Valley for several winters that had passed, but without any exception, every attempt was a failure and they only suffered losses.
After so much failure, they classified it as a forbidden area and anyone who wanted to explore the Mystic Valley was at their own risk.
That was why upon hearing the duke's words, they could not quietly accept, after all, if the duke and his elites were to perish, it would be a huge blow to the Collins family. Mainly, during the possible uncertain situation that they will face in the future if they are really accused of rebellion by the royal family.
However, as dismayed as they were, no one dared to question their decisions, as everyone in the Collins family knows full well that when the Duke makes a decision, no one could make him change his mind.
At that moment, Ferdinand raised his voice attracting everyone's attention when he asked, "But father, everyone knows that, like the Blackrock Highlands are part of the kingdom, the Blackrock dwarves reached a cooperation agreement many years ago with the royal family and they are your exclusive blacksmiths..."
"If even members of the left party are forbidden to cooperate with the Dwarves of Blackrock, how will the fourth brother cooperate with them?"
His expression was that of a worried brother when he asked and the ignorant would understand that Ferdinand was a good older brother and he was asking such a question because he was worried about his younger brother, but really, only Ferdinand knew the reason for him asking such a question was to know what means his father would be using, after all, from the duke's tone, he seemed confident that the Dwarves of Blackrock would cooperate with Makai and it made him jealous.
Hearing his eldest son's question, the Duke was no fool, he knew what his intentions were, but he pretended not to know when he replied, "Many years ago, I had an adventure in the Mystic Valley when I ended up saving the life of a dwarf..."
"Grateful, he gave me a token as a guarantee that he would accept my request, as according to him, his life belonged to me..."
"At the time, I was not interested, but it was only after I investigated his token that I came to know its origins."
At the same time, the duke took out a small hammer carved from black wood that would fit in the palm of his hand, then he threw it sliding across the large smooth black stone table as he said, "Makai, you will take this token with you..."
Seeing the token thrown by his father stopping right in front of him, Makai picked it up and observed with interest. At the end of either side of the small hammer carved from black wood was what appeared to be the inscription of red runes with mysterious symbols and Makai could only make out the words said, Thoradin Vondal.
The duke continued to say, "He represents the request that the dwarf Thoradin Vondal owes me. Take him with you and he will not refuse cooperation."
Makai leaned over to look at his father and nodded his head seriously as he said, "As the father entrusts me with this token, I will certainly make an excellent cooperation with Uncle Thoradin."
Seeing this scene and hearing the meaning of that little token, Ferdinand had a cold look in his eyes and his thoughts are unknown.
The duke nodded, "I believe you will make good use of it."
Then he turned his eyes from Makai to Suelen and said, "Seventh sister, as you are the Countess in charge of the northeastern territory of the duchy, you should keep an eye out for the Royal Family's movements at Blackrock Gate..."
"Besides, it won't be a problem to free up a small piece of land for Makai to create a logistics base on the border of the Mystic Valley, right?"
Seeing that her older brother looked solemn as he mentioned the Blackrock Gate, Suelen was also serious. She understood very well that things were going to get hectic in her territory that had always been peaceful, but when she heard her brother mention Makai, she laughed amusedly, "Brother, don't worry..."
"I will keep an eye on the golden cloak... Also, I will take good care of my nephew Makai and give him the support he needs."
When his aunt Suelen mentioned the golden robes, Makai knew she was referring to the Royal Family, but when he saw that mischievous smile when she said she would take good care of him, Makai didn't know why, but he got nervous.
The duke nodded upon hearing his sister's response. Then he got up and, facing everyone, announced: "Very well. In five years, my heir will be decided after his achievements are calculated..."
"In the meantime, everyone should prepare for the worst possible situation..."
"This Council ends here. You can leave now."
Hearing that the council was over, Makai took a deep breath and was about to get up to leave, but was interrupted by his father's voice echoing in his ears.
"Makai, you stay!"
Makai couldn't help but think, "Here it is, the father's true intention to send me to the Mystic Valley."
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