Vol. 6 Ch. 116

The next day, Leon got to see for himself just how much of an “old fossil” Rebecca’s so-called “old fossil” really was.

And at last, he understood why Elusa had looked so awkward when he and Rosvisser offered to tag along with the team.

“Mr. Casmod, I deeply appreciate your contributions to the Empire and its people. But archaeology is a profession that belongs to us specialists. The only reason we’re allowing the three of you to accompany us is out of respect for my student, Elusa. So once we begin working, I ask that the three of you not interfere.”

Leon had never been the type to carry any kind of celebrity airs or act like a heroic big shot. Even when standing in the middle of a crowd that worshiped him, he’d always kept an easy expression.

But to be hit with this kind of subtle power play from the old archaeologist right out of the gate—that did catch him slightly off guard.

Still, his sharp instincts kicked in immediately. He leaned over to Rosvisser and whispered,

“There are all kinds of people in the Empire. Don’t take it personally—he might talk like that to everyone.”

Rosvisser smiled faintly. “It’s nothing. I actually think it’s good when people have some personality. That’s how you should live.”

Her Majesty the Queen had lived for over two centuries—what kind of person hadn’t she encountered by now?

And besides, given her identity and status, there really was no need to lower herself to bicker with some minor figure in an archaeology team.

Much less when she knew exactly what kind of person truly posed a threat, like Elusa.

There were people who could keep her tossing and turning all night just by standing nearby and calling Leon’s name;

And then there were people who could scream themselves hoarse right in her face and she wouldn’t bat an eye.

Hearing his wife say this, Leon relaxed and turned to Elusa’s teacher.

“Understood. We’ll follow your lead.”

The old man nodded, still stone-faced and unsmiling.

“Then let’s head out. If all goes well, we should arrive at the tree before noon.”

“Yes, Professor,” Elusa replied.

The group boarded the carriage.

Of course, if Rosvisser were traveling at her full speed, she could have flown from the Empire to the ancient tree in under ten minutes.

But as the saying went—marry a chicken, follow the chicken; marry a dog, follow the dog.

Since she’d agreed to accompany this human, she naturally had to adapt to their human methods of travel.

Not to mention, she actually quite liked carriages as a mode of transport, because she got to stay close to Leon in a snug, private little space. That alone made it worthwhile.

“Leon, Miss Mevis didn’t take offense, really. Professor Javier always speaks like that. His tone might not be gentle, but he’s a genuinely good man,” Elusa said.

“If it weren’t for him pushing me constantly over the years, I wouldn’t have made so much progress.”

Leon smiled. “It’s fine. No offense taken. Thanks for explaining.”

Elusa let out a sigh of relief.

The carriage trundled slowly across the dry terrain and through the woods. Several hours later, the group finally arrived at the archaeological site’s destination—the ancient tree.

Standing at the entrance, Leon took a long look at the towering giant of a tree in front of him and couldn’t help but murmur,

“To grow to this size… it must have weathered countless years of wind and rain.”

Sha—

Rosvisser stepped lightly through the leaves underfoot and strolled up beside him. Arms folded across her chest, she gazed at the ancient tree as well, a mischievous smile playing on her lips.

“Not bad. Looks about the same size as the one where we got a little frisky back in the Empire.”

“What tree where we—oh!!! Shut up!!”

Rosvisser smirked silently.

Soon, Professor Javier began giving orders.

“We’re about to enter the interior of the tree to conduct our excavation work.

“As always, don’t overlook even the tiniest clue—whether it’s related to the era, historical events, artifacts, or anything else we can gather, collect it all.”

“Say it again—what’s the Empire Archaeology Team’s motto?”

“Restore truth through details.”

“Alright, everyone—let’s get to work.”

Though already advanced in age, the little old man had a surprisingly strong presence during this pre-expedition briefing.

The other archaeology team members were also pumped up and began filing into the entrance of the tree.

“Let’s head in, too.”

Elusa turned back to Leon and Rosvisser. “You’ll need to stay close to me. If the inside turns out to be a tomb, it might be laid out like a maze. Easy to get lost.”

“Got it. Understood.”

The couple followed Elusa into the tree.

The moment he stepped inside, Leon noticed the clear difference in temperature.

It wasn’t just cool anymore—the inside of the ancient tree was actually cold.

But still tolerable.

They walked a few more steps in, and the light from outside could no longer reach them.

Leon and Rosvisser simultaneously lifted their palms, facing upward, and soon, one red and one blue glow lit up in their hands, illuminating the surroundings.

Using elemental magic for light was a staple of the dragon army’s night operations, and one of the basic skills for any mage.

But the moment Elusa saw this, she rushed over and grabbed both their wrists.

“Hey! Don’t—”

Before she could even finish, a voice echoed from ahead of the group.

“Elusa, did you forget to tell your friends the rules?”

“Yes, Professor.”

Elusa responded promptly, then turned back and whispered,

“Professor Javier doesn’t like magic. So the rule in our team is—if it’s not absolutely necessary, we don’t use magic while working.”

Leon raised an eyebrow. “What kind of ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) rule is that? What about adaptability?”

With magic, archaeological work became much easier.

And now they had two magical heavyweights in the group, but they weren’t allowed to use any of it. That was just asking for trouble.

Elusa exhaled, helpless. “They say when Professor was younger, he was really into magic research, too. But during one failed experiment, his only child got injured. Since then, he’s never touched magic again.”

“Add in his naturally obsessive personality… and he doesn’t let anyone in the team use magic carelessly either.”

Hearing this, Rosvisser extinguished the dragon flame she’d summoned for light, crossed her arms, and said lightly,

“Well then, when in Rome…”

“Thank you for understanding, Lady Melkvey.”

“Everyone, light your torches. We’ve confirmed the oxygen levels here are sufficient—it’s been tested already,” Javier’s voice came again from the front.

With that, members of the team began lighting torches one by one, illuminating the path ahead.

Elusa lit hers as well. “Let’s keep moving.”

“Mm.”

As they followed behind Elusa, Leon leaned in to whisper to Rosvisser again.

“You’re being really easygoing today.”

“What, are you saying I’m normally pushy and unreasonable?”

“No, no, I was going to say you’re even more beautiful to—”

Rosvisser gave a faint smile, brushing her elegant chin toward Elusa’s back.

“I just don’t want your white moonlight senior to think you married a petty wife.”

“Of course not! My wife isn’t petty at all. Everyone in Samael knows~”

“Hmm? So you admit it, then?”

Leon’s steps faltered. His heart skipped a beat—bad sign.

He swallowed and asked cautiously, “Admit… what?”

Rosvisser stopped walking, slowly turned to him, and smiled wickedly.

“Your… white~ moonlight senior”

“Good grief.”

So this was the trap she’d set for him!

“This beautiful misunderstanding, my dear wife—would you be willing to hear my excuse—I mean, explanation?”

But Leon could tell Rosvisser was teasing, so he just played along.

“An explanation? Sure,”

Rosvisser said.

“But only if you take off your shirt, put on a lace half-blindfold, bind your own hands, and kneel on our bed while you explain. Got it?”

“Is it appropriate to be discussing lace blindfolds during a serious archaeological operation?”

“What’s inappropriate about it?”

Leon chuckled and opened his mouth to fire back. But before he could get the words out, the ground beneath their feet suddenly trembled violently.

“What’s going on?! An earthquake?!”

“But the surveys and records didn’t mention any fault lines nearby!”

“Everyone stay calm! Watch your surroundings! Find a secure spot before checking on your teammates!”

The tremors intensified. Cracks began forming visibly in the ground.

Rosvisser immediately crouched into a defensive stance, spread her dragon wings, and shielded Leon and Elusa with each hand.

Just as she was about to flap her wings and use her hovering ability to dodge the quake, a powerful suction force burst from beneath the ground.

“Help, help me!”

Elusa turned toward the voice just in time to see one of the team members being pulled into a fissure by the suction.

“This is bad! Everyone, run—now!”

But it was too late.

The suction got stronger and stronger, dragging one team member after another into the crevices.

At the same time, the quake didn’t stop.

Stones and debris began raining down from above Leon’s group.

“Watch out!”

A chunk of stone was about to fall on Rosvisser’s head. Leon lunged and shoved her aside.

BOOM—BOOM—BOOM!

The rocks crashed down, and in the next instant, boulders followed, completely sealing off this small interior space and separating the couple.

The earthquake stopped shortly after.

“Leon! Leon, are you okay?” Rosvisser’s voice came from the other side of the rubble, full of worry.

“I’m fine.”

Leon turned back and glanced at Elusa, who was still shaken, then stepped toward the pile of rocks and tried to gauge whether the debris was connected to the upper part of the tree. If he moved it recklessly, it could trigger an even larger collapse.

In that case, while he and Rosvisser could protect themselves with magic, the rest of the archaeology team might not be so lucky.

“We can’t damage the structure here lightly.”

Leon understood. “Let’s see if there’s another way to regroup. We brought the full ancient tree excavation map—we’ll find a way back.”

And we’re fairly familiar with the area.

No one could’ve predicted this kind of accident.

But running off was not Leon’s style.

“Alright. Be careful,” Rosvisser replied.

“You too. Stay safe.”

Once their quick check-in was done, Leon turned and walked slowly toward Elusa.

By now, Elusa had calmed down a bit. She let out a long breath and said,

“This kind of thing has happened before—but I didn’t expect it to be so sudden this time.”

Seeing Elusa composed again, Leon was a little surprised.

He’d thought he’d have to comfort her. But it turned out she’d recovered on her own quickly.

As expected of a top graduate from the Dragon Academy—even without front-line experience, her mental fortitude was top-tier.

“Let’s go find Professor Javier and the others.”

“Alright.”

Elusa’s torch had fallen into the crevice earlier, so now Leon had to use lightning magic for illumination.

The two of them stepped deeper into the tree’s hollow, bathed in blue electric light.