Chapter 299: Captured

Chapter 299: Captured

While reinforcements from various sides slowly approached the Cedar Kingdom, Eileen and Maya were also traveling light along the coastline. On the shore, there were more and more beasts forced to migrate. Some power ful individuals and groups had already settled down, while the weaker ones were still crying out in fear, fighting, and struggling to adapt to the new changes.

Seeing this, Eileen knew the invaders had stopped their advance, and her tense emotions eased a bit.

The surrounding environment was changing. Even though she couldn’t see Mana, Eileen knew the concentration and influence of Mana were increasing.

After being with Bran for a long time, some strange phenomena caused by changes in Mana were no longer unfamiliar. At first, they felt fresh and interesting, but slowly she became numb to them. However, that feeling gradually turned into an instinct.

She originally didn’t plan to go deep into the south, but as more birds and beasts flooded in and traces of Mana affecting the environment became more obvious, she couldn’t help but want to figure it out. The paths of marching armies were usually relatively fixed, and the effects could hardly spread too far. But the scenes before her eyes left Eileen puzzled.

Accompanied by Maya, the journey was smooth, but the beasts along the way were unlucky. Maya was full of curiosity about all sorts of unseen things, and her way of satisfying curiosity was very special—eating! She had no dietary restrictions, even biting a stone once.

While finding it amusing, Eileen gradually realized this might actually be a good method. As Maya ate more and more things, she gradually became mature and experienced. The various scents floating around were no longer unfamiliar. What was there? Was there danger? Maya’s judgment became more and more accurate.

The road ahead was boring, monotonous, and interesting all at once. When resting at night, around the lit bonfire, Eileen told stories about Bran again. “He wasn’t strong back then; even the cat beside him was more dangerous than him. He was often beaten by his Sister. For a while, he wandered around with a pair of black eyes, not feeling ashamed at all. On the contrary, his Sister was extremely angry…”

Watching Eileen’s almost delirious narration, Maya finally couldn’t hold back and snorted, making the bonfire flicker. Seeing Eileen turn her head, Maya stretched out her claw and wrote a few words on the ground: “He is not human.”

Eileen blinked first, then shook her head vigorously, and looked at the words again with uncertainty.

“You can write? Our writing?”

Maya snorted disdainfully and made the firelight flicker again. “Your writing is roughly the same as that of my past companions.”

“You actually know how to write?”

Maya was very dissatisfied with such a question. “I am a dragon, not an ignorant beast.”

Seeing that Maya cared very much about this, Eileen tactfully changed the subject. “Who did you say is not human?”

“Bran is not human.”

As soon as these words were written, they earned a glare from Eileen.

Maya grew anxious. She smoothed the ground in front of her again and wrote heavily, “He really is not human!”

This time, she received a light tap. “Don’t talk nonsense! He once saved you. Don’t hold a grudge against him because of me.”

Maya grew a bit frantic. “I’m not trying to curse him by saying he’s not human. He really is not human!”

Eileen looked at this line of words, and her expression gradually became serious and solemn. “Then who is he? And what is he?”

“Dragons are very sensitive to Mana, and our way of perceiving the World is also very different from yours. No matter what Bran originally looked like, he has now lost his flesh and blood body, because I can’t smell the scent of flesh and Mana mixed on him.”

Maya smacked her lips, her claws continuing to write nonstop. “The people here are really strange. Your friend Zoya, that sly girl, also has this tendency. She seems to be losing her flesh and blood too.

You can’t have a future with him. You also can’t have a bunch of healthy children with him.”

These words made Eileen blush slightly, and she let out a soft sigh. “We are just friends, and because of some things, our relationship isn’t as good as before.”

Eileen patted Maya and continued, “As long as he is safe, what does it matter if he has lost some flesh and blood? As long as it’s not some other Monster impersonating him, what does it matter if he is human or not? I’ve known for a long time that some things could never have a future.

Back then, when he sat under the tree for longer and longer each day and looked around less and less, I knew there would be no future. There would be no future for anyone, including Danny who has always been by his side. It’s just that some people will stay with him longer, but I won’t.”

Eileen raised her head to look at the night sky. After a long while, she asked, “Since you can write, why can’t you speak?”

Maya lifted her neck, pointed her claw at her throat, and then let out a low growl that caused the nearby woods to stir. Then she wrote on the ground, “Try learning to speak like me.”

Eileen couldn’t help but laugh, gently patting Maya. “Even though I can’t learn, I will still learn from you. Maybe after a while, I’ll be able to understand.”

That night, Eileen and Maya talked a great deal. Because Maya had been pent up for too long, she couldn’t stop writing and drawing on the ground. All the grievances and frights she had suffered on the journey from her homeland finally poured out. It wasn’t until dawn that Maya reluctantly stopped her claws.

The human and the dragon walked and chatted, and before they knew it, the beasts around them gradually became scarce. The air also grew more humid. Even under the scorching sun, the treetops and grass blades were covered in Water Pearls.

Maya, who had remained vigilant, twitched her nostrils a few times and tilted her head toward a small hill not far away. Then she and Eileen stealthily crawled up.

As soon as they peeked over the top, Eileen was stunned.

On the distant beach, a vast camp stretched as far as the eye could see, reaching the horizon. Outside the camp, some simple defensive stakes were scattered about. People lazily hid behind the stakes, sitting or standing. Not far away on the sea surface, more people were playing in the water.

From here, those people didn’t look very different from her. But at this time, it seemed strange that so many people were playing in the water.

The entire sea surface was filled with people rising and falling with the waves. Both men and women wore very little, only having armor plates on their vital parts. Eileen watched for a long time but grew more and more confused. Many things were unclear from such a distance, and she didn’t dare get too close.

Her life experience in the northern city gave Eileen a deep understanding of the weirdness of Wizards. Facing possible Wizards, she didn’t dare be careless at all. So, after a while, she signaled to Maya, and they quietly retreated the way they came.

“Let’s go back.” Faced with such a large scale of invaders, Eileen felt a bit timid.

Maya nodded her huge head and silently followed beside Eileen.

After nightfall, everything was the same as usual. But in the middle of the night, Eileen, who was deep in sleep, was startled awake. In front of Maya’s feet, a captive had appeared at some unknown time.