pdf-ebookys Chapter 90 A New Journey
Chapter 90 A New Journey
The next morning, at the east gate exit of Loren Town.
When Suren arrived, Charles's caravan appeared to have been there for some time, and Loft was leading several workers in counting and organizing the goods.
Charles's caravan consisted of six carriages.
Unlike the carriages Suren had ridden in before, these carriages had clearly been reinforced.
The horses were also dressed in relatively heavy armor, making them look more like warhorses.
While this configuration would reduce the speed of the carriage to some extent, it was a necessary precaution considering that the journey would take them through the wilderness.
A few people were scattered around in front of the first carriage, chatting about something.
Loft, who was sorting through the goods, noticed Suren and strode up to her with a smile.
"Good morning, Mr. Dantes! We'll be setting off in a while, and two other extraordinary individuals haven't arrived yet. You can use this time to chat with the other extraordinary individuals." He stretched out his hand and pointed in the direction of the lead carriage. "After all, the journey ahead is long, and getting to know each other better will make the journey easier."
Suren nodded, just about to say something, when he felt a tickle in his nose and couldn't help but sneeze. He took out a tissue to wipe it, and looked at Loft somewhat awkwardly, saying, "I'm really sorry, I accidentally got caught in the rain yesterday."
"As long as it doesn't affect the subsequent operations, it's fine." Mr. Loft didn't mind, smiled and nodded, then turned back to continue organizing the goods.
Suren was also very helpless, never expecting that even after becoming an "awakened one," she would still catch a cold.
He also tried to use "Ellie's Tears" to heal himself, but unfortunately, "Ellie's Tears" can only increase the body's recovery ability and cannot cure diseases. The relevant medicines are not available for the time being. Fortunately, it is not particularly serious, and with Suren's physical condition, he can tough it out.
He couldn't help but envy the extraordinary individuals of the "Eternal Oath Knights." According to Suren's observation, their physical condition should be able to make them immune to such a low-level disease.
This also served as a reminder to Suren that even as an "Awakener," he was still a mortal and needed to be more cautious in his actions.
Suren strode to the gathering of the superhumans. One of them, a burly, short-haired man with yellow skin, greeted Suren warmly, "Hello, Mr. Suren! My name is Henry Wood!"
Suren was somewhat surprised that the other party knew him, but he quickly recalled that he had seen the other party before—when Loft tested his abilities, this Mr. Henry Wood was doing squats in the corner.
"Hello, Mr. Wood," Suren nodded in response.
"Just call me Henry." Henry didn't think there was anything wrong with Suren's attitude, after all, there was no need for so much formality among superhumans.
Henry then briefed Suren on the team's current situation.
Suren recalled what Mr. Loft had said earlier: in addition to Suren, there were two "Awakeners," three senior "Seekers," and two newly recruited "Seekers" in this team of extraordinary individuals.
Through Henry's introduction, Suren learned that the two newly recruited "Seekers" and two of the senior "Seekers" were all Mr. Charles's original guards.
"Originally, the master had three powerful 'Awakeners' protecting him, but unfortunately, the other two died in that incident, leaving only me." Henry sighed, his tone tinged with lingering fear. "If my abilities hadn't been more defensive, I probably would have died there too."
Suren carefully examined Mr. Henry and noticed the distinct features of a Northerner. A guess formed in his mind, and he asked, "Mr. Henry, you seem to be from the 'Providence Frontier,' right? Did you once join the 'Shield of Watchers'?"
Henry looked at Suren with some surprise, then nodded and said with some admiration, "Your observation is truly keen. In fact, I am indeed a member of the 'Shield of Watch,' but I feel deeply inadequate in my abilities, so I came to the 'Duchy of Equilia' for training."
"Would the church allow its staff to leave?" Suren was somewhat surprised. According to the rules he knew about the Libra Church, staff members were generally not allowed to leave the church, let alone Henry, who was serving as a bodyguard for others.
Henry smiled, a hint of mystery in his expression, and said, "The internal rules of the 'Shield of Watchers' are a bit different from those of other churches."
He seemed unwilling to elaborate on the topic and instead introduced the other members present to Suren.
To Suren's surprise, Bald Toby was also in the group. According to Henry, Bald Toby was also a seasoned "Pryce" who was good at stealth and intelligence gathering.
Besides bald Toby, another woman named Margaret Cooper also caught Suren's attention; she was an awakened one.
The woman had long, sea-blue hair and amber eyes. She had a pretty face and was wearing comfortable trousers and a white vest, with a denim jacket over them and a cowboy hat.
This attire reminded Suren of the mysterious and powerful "Weaver of Fate".
Suren thought to herself, "Could this lady also be a member of the 'Weavers of Fate'? However, we can't make a hasty judgment based on her attire alone; we need to observe her further."
Suren kept this Margaret in mind, after all, the "Weaver of Fate" seemed to have a great interest in her, and she had to be careful.
Suren's gaze swept across the crowd, and after carefully counting, he found that everyone had arrived, but Mr. Loft had just clearly stated that two members were still missing.
Thinking of this, Suren looked at Henry with some confusion and asked, "According to the number of team members Mr. Loft mentioned to me before, everyone should have arrived by now. But he just told me that we are still waiting for two members. What's going on?"
"Mr. Karen, you may not know, but just yesterday two more extraordinary individuals joined our team." Henry's expression turned serious as if he had thought of something. "Those two gentlemen are also 'Awakeners,' one of whom is extremely powerful, but he is a bit... difficult to get along with."
"Not easy to get along with?" Suren was a little surprised. Even Henry, who was so outgoing, said that he was not easy to get along with. What kind of person must he be?
However, Suren wasn't too concerned. In any case, having two more "awakeners" meant that the trip would be safer.
Just as Suren was about to ask for more details, Henry suddenly tilted his head and looked past Suren toward the direction behind her.
Suren turned his head in surprise, following Henry's gaze, but saw nothing. Just as he was wondering, two figures appeared at the end of the road.
Henry's reconnaissance abilities are quite impressive. Is that a trait of the "Shield of the Watchers" superhumans?
Suren couldn't help but mutter to himself.
From a distance, the two men appeared to be middle-aged, not dressed in formal attire, and looked like two dockworkers who had just started their jobs.
The two men did not greet Loft, but walked directly in front of the crowd. As usual, Henry went up to greet them.
Henry led the two men to the crowd and, as before, introduced them to everyone one by one.
However, at that moment, Suren felt a tremor in "Source of Knowledge". Then, a blurry vision cleared in his eyes, and the images of the two men disappeared, replaced by two women.
Suren was familiar with both women; one was the white-haired girl who fought to the death under the moon that night, and the other was the red-haired girl known as Kayla.
"The Eternal Covenant Knights"? What are they doing here?
Suren remained outwardly calm, but inwardly he was somewhat shocked, unsure of the other party's purpose.
Fortunately, they couldn't see through Su Lun's [Identity Web] during his "Prydringer" era, so now that he's at the "Awakener" level, his [Secret Appearance Thousand Faces] should be able to easily deceive them.
Seemingly noticing Suren's gaze, the two girls turned their heads and looked at Suren as well.
What struck Suren as odd was that the white-haired girl stared intently at his face for a long time, making him feel a little uneasy.
"This is Mr. Karen Dantes, a powerful 'Awakener'." Noticing their gazes, Henry introduced them at the opportune moment.
From Henry's words, Suren learned that the two men were named "Arthur Lucas" and "Kane Quill." Of course, these were definitely pseudonyms.
The white-haired girl, using the alias "Arthur Lucas," suddenly smiled and said meaningfully, "Actually, Karen and I are old friends. He's stronger than you think."
Suren's heart sank. He knew that the white-haired girl had seen through his disguise, but since she hadn't pointed it out, it at least meant that her attitude was friendly.
Thinking of this, Suren gave a smile that even she found fake and said, "Henry, you don't know, Arthur is actually quite fond of small animals as well."
Henry stared at the two men exchanging pleasantries for a moment, then quickly realized what they meant and said with a smile, "Now that you know each other, the journey ahead will surely be much easier."
After a while of small talk, Henry emphasized the upcoming journey and precautions, acting like a leader.
However, since they were all mercenaries hired for commission, no one else had any objections. There are usually not many complicated relationships among extraordinary individuals.
Everyone tacitly refrained from asking about each other's specific abilities, since violating the rules would result in consequences, and revealing one's abilities would increase the risk of death.
During this time, Suren kept thinking about the purpose of the "Eternal Oath Knights", but had to give up because there were too few clues.
After some time, Loft had finished counting and unloading all the goods. After informing Henry, he announced that the caravan was ready to depart.
Six carriages drove out of Loren Town one after another. Through the carriage window, Suren looked at the city where he had lived for more than 20 years. Although he had only been here for a month, he couldn't help but feel a little emotional.
Besides Suren, there were three other people in the carriage: Arthur Lucas, Kane Quill, and bald Toby.
The white-haired girl disguised as "Arthur Lucas" is sitting next to Suren, while Kayla and bald Toby are sitting opposite Suren.
Looking at Suren, who was gazing at Loren Town, bald Toby smiled and said, "Mr. Karen, are you a native of Loren Town? You seem a little reluctant to leave."
"I guess so." Suren lowered the curtains. "There's nothing to be reluctant about. One always has to look forward."
Bald Toby was stunned. He hadn't expected that the gloomy-looking Mr. Cullen could say such a thing. He touched his forehead and laughed heartily, "You're right, 'Libraton' is much more prosperous than Loren Town."
"Hmph, but there's more filth and crime there, and the living conditions are much worse." The white-haired girl sneered. "If given a choice, I believe most people would rather spend their entire lives in a small town."
Bald Toby could only give an awkward laugh upon hearing this.
Suren, however, looked at the white-haired girl with some curiosity and asked, "I've heard about the cases in 'Libraton,' but what I don't understand is, why is the security worse there when there are more powerful people?"
Before the white-haired girl could answer, bald Toby interjected, "Actually, before the Rift Era, the crime rate was very low. After the Rift Era, the Church struggled to manage public order, leading to a surge in the crime rate, though I'm not entirely sure of the specific reasons."
Suren stroked his chin. As far as he knew, the Rift Era was also the time when various underground organizations began to become active. Could it be that something had happened within the Church?
The white-haired girl glanced at the pensive Suren and decided to reveal some information. She slowly said, "That's because there's a problem with the desolate border."
"Desolate borders? Doomsday?" Suren asked instinctively, but the white-haired girl remained noncommittal, seemingly unwilling to reveal any more information.
Bald Toby had mentioned the rumors about the end of the world to Suren before, but Suren hadn't taken them seriously at the time. But if what the white-haired girl said was true, then it meant that something was indeed hidden behind the desolate borders, something that would force the church to spend a lot of manpower to deal with.
Ultimately, I still have too little information, and I don't even know much about the entire Protected Continent.
Thinking of this, Suren was about to ask about some information about the Protectorate Continent when a tickle in his throat made him cough.
At that moment, Kayla, who was opposite Suren, suddenly stood up. She stretched out her right hand, and a star rune lit up in the air, with a pale blue light entering Suren's body.
Suren felt a sudden clarity in his mind, a cool sensation spreading throughout his body, making him feel much more relaxed. To his surprise, he discovered that his cold had actually healed.
Bald Toby looked at Kayla with some surprise and blurted out, "You used to be a member of the 'Eternal Serenity Church'?"