Pillar of Yita

Tata thought for a moment before answering: ”Your thoughts are chaotic, as if you’re searching for a fragment of memory and comparing it. You want to figure out where you have seen these words before.”

This was exactly what Fang Hong was thinking at the moment.

But Miss Fairy’s words only added to his confusion instead of clarifying his thoughts.

He replied anxiously:

”But the problem is, I’ve clearly never seen these words before, yet I can’t stop thinking about this. From the moment I left Princess Rupert’s manor until now, this thought has not stopped.”

”Perhaps you should confront it.” Tata answered.

”Confront it?”

”Because as facts have proven, escaping is meaningless.”

After saying this, Tata closed her mouth and said no more.

Because Fang Hong’s thoughts mirrored her own, and futile comfort only added to the chaos.

Indeed, her attitude somewhat calmed Fang Hong, who took a moment to settle his mind and then asked:

”Then, Miss Tata, do you know about the Abyssal Sea Scroll?”

Miss Fairy nodded.

Fang Hong looked at her in surprise: ”Miss Tata, you really know?”

Tata spoke again, her voice very calm, as if merely narrating a piece of history:

”These ancient words come from some ancient era. I know some people have studied them, but the slates unearthed from beneath the Abyssal Sea are not many, and people’s knowledge of the Abyssal Sea Scroll is intermittent.”

”Slates?”

”The Abyssal Sea Scroll is recorded on slates, Mr. Knight. The documents seen in later generations are all hand-copied or rubbings of the texts.”

Fang Hong suddenly realized that, apart from the documents left by the elves of the Numelin Era, all the Abyssal Sea Manuscripts were discoveries from beneath the Abyssal Sea. Paper documents naturally couldn’t last; only slates could survive.

Talking with Miss Fairy, he found himself not as anxious.

Particularly now that Nini appeared, insisting on him playing with her.

Fang Hong touched his little daughter—Fang Nini’s—forehead with his finger, making her giggle. Listening to her innocent laughter, his anxiety slightly eased.

He calmed himself, turned back and seriously asked Tata:

”So Miss Tata, are there any... strange rumors about the researchers of the Abyssal Sea Scroll?”

Tata thought for a moment and said: ”Indeed, some researchers have become deranged.”

Miss Fairy was clearly not the comforting type, causing Fang Hong to gulp involuntarily:

”Deranged?”

Fortunately, Miss Tata cared somewhat for her knight’s psychological health, and replied: ”Don’t worry, such instances are very rare. Most people can’t understand these words, and their interpretation of the slates is superficial. However, the Lizardmen have studied this deeply; they have a unique astrology that can interpret the content on these slates by comparing star signs.

But not all of them can. The older the slate, the more unreadable it is. Furthermore, these are ancient and sacred secrets among the Lizardmen, never to be shared. Additionally, the Numelin Elves once decoded part of the slates’ content, which evolved into Ancient Alchemy.”

Fang Hong listened, remaining silent for a moment.

He had a good relationship with the Lizardmen, and that Tada Lizardman master was a guardian of the Stars lineage, particularly skilled at reading slates.

But unfortunately, the other party was not here, and knowing this was of no use.

He asked again: ”Is there nothing unusual about the words themselves?”

”Just ordinary ancient words, Mr. Knight.”

”So they truly are the Abyssal Sea Scroll?”

Miss Fairy nodded gently.

”I once saw them in the Silver Tower.”

Fang Hong had absolute trust in his Miss Fairy.

He finally breathed a slight sigh of relief at her words, considered for a moment, then slowly reopened the drawer. What Miss Tata said was not without reason; escape was no solution, and he couldn’t remain in this state forever.

Since it was not a mental attack, he indeed wanted to see what these ancient words were all about.

And Tata watched the scene quietly, without objection.

At this time, Fang Hong took out the first page from the drawer—the most complete hand-copied text of the Abyssal Sea Scroll—he carefully held the dry parchment and turned his gaze on it.

Strangely enough, at first glance, he felt as if the moonlight became brighter.

Outside the window, the Istania girl had finished drawing water by the river.

She let down her skirt, walked up from the river, picked up the mat placed by the river, and placed it on her head, then positioned the clay pot on it, and with one hand supporting the pot, walked back in the moonlight toward where she came from.

Fang Hong watched the scene in the distance.

But at the same time, he was also looking at the manuscript in his hand, unable to concentrate, yet the curvy words seemed to come alive, jumping into his vision one by one.

He clearly didn’t understand the words on it, but a strange thought arose in his mind—these words were incomplete. Almost instinctively, he put his hand into his pocket, fumbled for a while, and pulled out a Colin Ishurian silver coin.

This silver coin had a value of thirteen Lysell, with one side engraved with the symbol of the Ouroboros representing Alchemy, and the symbol of the Gold Element in Eteliria Alchemy.

The other side was engraved with Lady Roman’s profile—a relief of a Scales underneath—a sixteen or seventeen-year-old girl with a face that wasn’t stern, known to non-believers as the laughing girl, hence the name.