The First Legendary Beast Master

Chapter 1420 And It Will Find You

Pots were brought out, and a small pouch of seasoning was found within a travel bag slung over a young manʼs shoulder.

Karl noticed that the man only had one hand, the other arm ended above the elbow. So, he would struggle to do most farm work, and any other sort of manual labour. It would explain why an otherwise healthy looking fellow was on pilgrimage with these old folk.

Though, Karl did see a few gaunt young women with children, so he couldnʼt rule out that some were just starving or orphaned and hoping for the best.

”Do you use a holy relic to create the food?” The one armed man asked.

Karl shook his head. ”No, I know the spell. My species has an innate gift for magic, like most of you. But Iʼm at the Mythic Rank, so Iʼm not quite so limited in my options.

Your leader is a cleric, is he not? Doesnʼt he have the gift?”

The young man shook his head. ”The old man isnʼt well. His magic is failing, and he canʼt cast anything without coughing up blood these days. But he agreed to guide our pilgrimage for as long as possible.”

That explained it. Priests of the Dragon Church could create food in the Golden Dragon Nation even before the Elite Program came about, and before the resurgence of his era started.

So, they should be able to do it during this era as well.

The food started to cook over a small fire, and Karl took a moment to use his affinity for the Fundamental Rule of Mana Manipulation to search the area. He could sense himself, and Cara. The old man was a weaker fluctuation, an Awakened Rank Cleric. But other than the minor lingering holy aura on the stones of the temple, there was nothing else to be found here.

No buried holy relics, no signs of the stones.

But in the distance, Karl could feel a disturbance. It could be a dungeon entrance, perhaps an anomaly or instance of some sort. That seemed like a good spot to start, and if these pilgrims continued their path, it would take them right past it.

[Are we going to take a slow walk with these people?] Cara asked as she waited for them to do something interesting.

[I think so. One of them likely knows more than theyʼre letting on, and I want to know something about the area before we get there. It will take less than a day to get to the location I can sense, even at their pace.

But I will set up healing totems for the night, so that theyʼre all fed and rested when itʼs time to go.]

[Sneaky. I like it. Theyʼll probably think that itʼs some sort of divine favour.]

Karl tried not to laugh. [Well, I am the Avatar of the World Dragon. Thatʼs almost the same thing, right?]

Cara stayed in badger form, but brought over a bag of spices for the food, while Karl assessed the carrying capacity of the pilgrims before making a single large sack of oatmeal.

”A bit of variety, so you donʼt have to eat the same thing every meal. Youʼll have to portion the remainder between everyone, because none of you are in the sort of shape to be carrying a whole sack of rice and beans.

But there are plenty of you to get it done.” He explained.

A few of the pilgrims laughed. They were in terrible shape, half starved, diseased and weakened. But if they could carry enough to see themselves through the week, they would be far better off than they were this morning.

They were under no illusions that they would be returning home alive. But they did hope that they could complete the loop to make their prayers at all the holy sites to bring luck to their families.

Once the food came out, the exhaustion and despair of their trip seemed to fade away. Finally, they had one less thing to worry about, and a much better chance of finishing their trip.

That was Karlʼs time to act.

”While I was here on a different mission, I would like to know more about your pilgrimage. Do we have a storyteller in the group?” He asked.

One of the older men shifted his chair, so he was facing the larger portion of the group. ”I suppose I can do it. I know all the stories. But Iʼll start from the beginning, since our guest is clearly not a local.

In the time of the System, what many call the resurgence of the gods, this land was ruled by a mighty King, known to history as Caramon The Just. It was a time of legend, when Mythical Dragons roamed the land, mighty Giants and Divine Beasts threatened entire cities.

Mighty bastions, they were. Made of magical stone, and towering a hundred metres tall, the cities of the old world were monuments to divine construction.

That was the world that King Caramon was born into.

Not as the heir of a mighty warlord, but as the bastard son of a village chieftain. However, with the might of the System, a lowly birth meant nothing to the Greatest King To Ever Live.

He grew his power and united everything from the ocean to the Great Lakes of Cyhosasa, land of the Supreme Lady. Only when he reached the lands of the Dwarves in the east, and the flourishing trade empire of the Bomgon Sultans across the ocean, did he stop his unification of the people.

Under the fair laws of Caramon the Just, the people worked together, bringing prosperity and security to all.

But no good thing can last forever.

As he began to grow old, King Caramon built a series of divine cities and temples, intended to extend his memory long past his time in this world.

That is the pilgrimage that we are on now.

Making a loop of the ancient nation, visiting the old holy cities, both living and

ruined, along with all the known temples, in an attempt to gather some measure of the divine favour that once blessed these lands.”