Chapter 1214: City of Mirrors Scouts

The only thing more dangerous than ignorance is blind confidence.

-The words of a man who went through hell multiple times in a single lifetime.

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*Bing-Bong!*

We interrupt this moment to inform the reader that we will be pivoting away from Zhen Liu for the moment, in order to preview the [City of Mirrors].

The reason being that the scene between Olstenna and Zhen Liu was deemed to be a bit too predictable by the writer of this work, so we’re going to skip it.

For those curious how it played out, Olstenna and Zhen Liu came to an agreement that they wouldn’t fight one another until after the latter got whatever was wrong with him fixed up.

As for whose eyes we’ll be seeing through for this next part... you’ll find out soon enough.

We now return to your regularly scheduled chapter.

Thank you.

*Bing-Bong!*

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"Oh, they weren’t exaggerating when they called this place the [City of Mirrors]," Rammada commented as he exited the entrance into the wandering ruins. "I wonder if I can-"

"Oi! Get a move on rookie, otherwise, you’re going to be left behind and left to the mercy of the wild monsters."

"Right, right!"

The sight he had taken in consisted of a large, empty city that looked like something out of a history book.

However, unlike those cities in the history books, this city seemed to have mirrors on or inside every single building.

The initial explorers had assumed that these mirrors were merely decorations or a part of the wandering ruins charm. It wasn’t until only a single survivor returned from that first batch that subsequent explorers learned that none of these mirrors were as simple as they appeared to be.

And that rookies shouldn’t be attempting to touch such mirrors unless otherwise stated.

"Don’t get distracted by everything shiny. First thing you learn about places like this is that every prize could easily be a trap."

"Right!"

This particular group of warriors were known as the Azure Lizards.

They were a mercenary group consisting of an Aether Lord named Biha as the leader,three Grandmasters, Aldo, Horen and Obun, and their latest recruit, an Aether Master by the name of Rammada that didn’t look over the age of eighteen.

Overall, their collective power was enough to be considered above average for this particular wandering ruin, which was fine by them.

After all, their main purpose wasn’t to claim any of the treasures in this ruin anyways.

"Alright, we’re here," the Aether Lord declared as the group reached an area that resembled a city plaza, complete with a fountain. "You lot have your cloaks ready?"

"Yes, sir!"

At the Lord’s command, all three Grandmasters pulled forth a Silver tiered Aether treasure known as the [Scout’s Cloak].

This particular treasure had the ability to provide the wielders a level of stealth that was so powerful, that even opponents that were three tiers above them couldn’t detect them. The only drawback was that the wielders weren’t allowed to attack anyone while wearing the cloak, or the cloak would immediately self-destruct and horribly injure the wielder.

The sheer amount of people who forgot about this little detail whenever they got their hand on one of these cloaks was disturbingly high.

Alongside these cloaks, the warriors produced from their person’s, a Bronze tiered treasure known as the [Scout’s Vision], a special monocle that could give information directly to a sister treasure known as the [Scout’s Tablet].

Needless to say, this treasure was in the hand of Rammada, their newest recruit.

Once all of the members save for Rammada were equipped with the [Scout’s Cloak], the Aether Lord gave his instructions.

"Alright, you know the drill, spread out, record everything with your [Scout’s Eye] that might be of interest but do not try and retrieve anything on your own. We don’t want to set off any traps or wake any beasts if we can help it."

"Yes, sir!"

"Rammada, keep the tablet steady and stay here."

"Sir yes sir!"

In the blink of an eye, the scouting warriors disappeared from view, leaving Rammada alone to monitor their progress via the tablet.

Granted, it didn’t provide a full real time view of whatever they were seeing. Instead, it created a carved out map that was populated with drawings and details that the handler of the tablet had to fill in for themselves.

Which is what Rammada did as he paced around the fountain to keep both his mind and body active.

"Okay, looks like Aldo is making way past the Garden of Hand Mirrors that we recorded last time and entering...what looks like an incredibly reflective pond? Okay, I’m just gonna mark it as the [Reflection Pond]," Rammada commented as he wrote in the name.

Map making like this was tedious work, but surprisingly profitable and fairly easy to do.

Especially in a situation where the entrance to the wandering ruin was being protected by two warring factions holding a ceasefire.

Despite their public display of peace, both sides clearly wanted to one up the other whenever they could help it.

"Ah, looks like there’s a hidden nest of...I don’t know what those are, but let’s just mark that as a hidden beast nest...and something to be included in the more expensive versions of this map."

Whether that meant claiming treasures faster than their opponents, leading them into traps that would lead to an untimely demise or even just straight up ambushing them, all of these plans required maps that could lead them around.

"And the Boss has stumbled upon what appears to be a hallway of glass statues shaped like animal skin wearing warriors...that feels ominous...maybe mark that as the [Hall of Mirrored Warriors] on all of the maps..."

However, there was one truth about the universe that every map maker and treasure hunter needed to know when it came to exploring wandering ruins.

"Looks like this room is full of-bah!"

Click.

Is that they always had more secrets than they appeared to have.

Rumble, rumble.

"What the..."

While pacing about the fountain, Rammada had stumbled upon a rock and had to catch himself before falling over with the tablet.

In the process of catching himself though, he had accidentally stepped on a hidden button that was covered with plant life.

Shortly after doing so, the fountain he had been circling had suddenly began to rumble and literally split open.

The next thing Rammada knew, the fountain had transformed into a set of descending stairs that led to who knows where.

"Oh my..."

Now, the professional in Rammada knew that smart move was to either wait for the arrival of his superiors so that they could explore it together, or that he should just record it on to the [Scout’s Tablet] and just go live his life.

However…

"This feeling…it’s so…profound…"

From the moment this secret passageway had opened, the rich smell of flowers and incense began to tickle at Rammada’s nose while an even richer energy he had never felt before had wrapped around him like an enchanted serpent.

"Maybe it wouldn’t hurt if I took…a little peek…"

Rammada was barely cognizant by the time he realized that he was walking down those stairs and into a world of complete darkness.

No one was around to see him enter a strange chamber that held only a single smoky mirror.

No one was around to warn him about the possible dangers.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH!"

And no one was around to hear him scream as that strangely pleasant energy turned incredibly hostile.

…Several minutes later…

"Man, what is taking those guys so long?"

Pacing around the central fountain, "Rammada" continued to track the whereabouts of his companions. While "he" didn’t mind tablet duty, "he" couldn’t help but get a little bored after having already filled out everything.

Eventually though, the scouting members of the Azure Gators finally returned to the central plaza fountain.

"Hey, looks like we all made it back in one piece."

"Sweet! No medical expenses."

"Rammada, did anything happen while we were gone?"

"Nope, not a thing boss."

"That’s good to hear. How’s the tablet?"

"Completely filled! All we need to do now is transfer over to some parchments and edit as needed for the tiers we need."

"Excellent!"

With their task fulfilled, the Azure Gators decided to call it quits for the day and head on back to the boomtown in order to rest, finish making those maps and finally drink their stress away.

The group didn’t bother to hide their presence anymore since they were just leaving the wandering ruins, so they decided to stow away all of their cloaks and monocles. However, they couldn’t help but notice that "Rammada" had yet to stow away the [Scout’s Tablet]. In fact, he was still writing away.

"Hey Rammada, I thought you said it was completely filled?," one of the Grandmasters asked.

"I thought it was, but it appeared I forgot to fill out one last little detail. Don’t worry too much, I’ll be quick."

"If you say so."