Chapter 44 - 42: Return To Oakhaven
The dense, ancient canopy of the Elaric Forest thinned as the dirt trail paved into a wide, cobblestone road. Before them, rising against the horizon, stood the fortified gray spires and massive stone ramparts of Oakhaven.
At the woodland border, the glowing form of Elaria came to a stop. Her ethereal feet hovered inches above the soft moss as she looked back toward the dark expanse of the woods.
"This is as far as I can accompany you," Elaria spoke softly, her gentle voice resonating like rustling leaves. "My existence and influence are bound directly to the hidden ruins and this ancient forest. I cannot step beyond its threshold."
Victor halted, his dark coat settling around his ankles. He met her green eyes with a cold, respectful nod. "You have done enough. Thank you for guiding us out."
Internally, Victor’s mind was already calculating every potential risk. We must never reveal a single detail about the hidden ruins to anyone, he thought coldly. And we need to leave Oakhaven for the capital city, Thaloris, as soon as we regain our strength.
Turning to the group, Victor’s pitch-black eyes narrowed, his tone dropping into a low, uncompromising register. "Listen to me carefully. The relics of the ancient civilization and everything we witnessed inside those ruins are dangerous beyond your imagination. Powerful factions, noble houses, and entire kingdoms would slaughter everyone in this group without blinking an eye just to claim a fraction of what we hold. Not a word of this leaves your lips."
Kael’s grip tightened on the straps of his harness, nodding solemnly. "Understood, Victor."
Elaria smiled faintly, preparing to recede back into the shadows of the canopy. "You may return to this forest whenever you wish. Through the Warden’s Blessing I bestowed upon you, I will always know when you tread beneath these trees. In time, as your strength grows, you will unlock further lingering effects woven into that very blessing."
Kael bowed his head deeply toward the spirit. "Thank you, Elaria. For everything. I wouldn’t be standing here without you."
"Stay safe, Elaria," Elena added genuinely, giving the dryad a warm, fond farewell.
Lyra kept her silver eyes fixed on the spirit. While her sharp instincts remained inherently suspicious, she inclined her head in silent acknowledgment that Elaria had kept her word and brought them out safely.
With a soft chiming sound, Elaria faded into a shower of pale green light, dissolving completely back into the forest.
As they turned toward the open road, Victor’s chest felt strangely tight. The dryad’s mention of hidden blessing mechanics and the shock of finding the Elixir of Life in place of the Tears of Ancient Dragons echoed heavily in his thoughts.
Is everything going to change now? Victor questioned internally, a faint spike of cold anxiety rising in his gut. The web novel narrative is bending. The timeline is shifting. Am I losing control over the future?
Seeking a tangible anchor in the midst of uncertainty, Victor mentally invoked his hidden interface, opening his status windows to check Lyra’s diagnostic metrics.
[Target: Lyra]
[Loyalty: 100%]
[Obsession: 100%]
Seeing those absolute, unshakeable numbers brought a sudden wave of calm back to his calculating mind. His composure restored, Victor closed the interface and led his party down the wide road toward the city gates.
As they drew closer, the sheer scale of Oakhaven became apparent. The city was a roaring hive of activity ,throngs of traveling merchants, armored adventurers, heavy trade caravans, and noble carriages squeezed through the grand outer archways.
However, Victor’s Fate-Shattering Perception immediately picked up on something unusual. Guard patrols line the stone walls in double frequency, and several remarkably heavy, high-tier mana signatures were concealed among the crowds near the guard towers.
This isn’t just a standard frontier trading town, Victor analyzed quietly. It’s an active strategic stronghold.
Stopping briefly in a quiet shaded grove near the road, Victor reinforced their absolute secrecy. "Remember: we never entered the hidden ruins. We never encountered ancient golems or the mercenaries, and the Elixir of Life does not exist."
He turned his gaze toward Kael, looking at the massive double-headed axe wrapped in dark cloth across the youth’s back. "Kael, keep the Dragon Slayer Battle Axe completely concealed. Fortunately, in its dormant state, its spell-matrices are totally sealed and radiate zero mana. To any outsider, it will appear as nothing more than an unusually heavy, high-grade steel axe. Wear it naturally once we return to Thaloris, but do not draw unnecessary attention to it here."
"Got it," Kael agreed, adjusting the cloth wrapping securely around the dark mithril blades.
They joined the line of travelers and passed smoothly through the high iron gates into the outer district of Oakhaven.
As they walked down the bustling stone streets, Kael suddenly paused, his eyes widening slightly as he adjusted the axe on his back. "That’s strange..."
Victor’s Fate-Shattering Perception instantly flared, focusing on the weapon. A faint, invisible pulse of crimson energy was silently rippling through the wrapped metal, flowing directly into Kael’s spine.
The axe isn’t just bound to him, Victor realized, his eyes narrowing into cold slits. Something dormant deep within the metal is slowly awakening and recognizing him as its true master.
Victor recalled the original novel’s lore,the Dragon Slayer Battle Axe held a hidden,evolution locked behind an unknown requirement that the original narrative had never fully detailed.
Kael is the true bloodline descendant, Victor thought, choosing to keep his mouth shut. Interfering now might disrupt the natural catalyst. I will let the weapon awaken on its own schedule.
Stepping past a crowded market square, Victor established their immediate operational priorities:
First, return to the inn and regroup with Aria.
Second, secure a safe space to recover from the physical toll of the ruins and allow everyone’s depleted stamina to replenish.
Third, deploy Aria into the city’s underground channels to investigate Garrick. A Tier 6 warrior does not simply disappear without leaving a trail, and Victor needed to know if the mercenary leader had somehow survived the dungeon collapse.
Fourth, check for any sudden developments regarding the Imperial Academy or the Church of Light during their absence.
Fifth, uncover why the world’s core timeline was twisting away from the original narrative.
As they crossed into the bustling main district toward their inn, a loud commotion near a public notice board drew their attention. A herald in formal imperial livery was shouting to a packed crowd of townspeople and merchants.
"...By order of the Holy and the Bishop Varos! Prince Valen has officially been invested as the Honorable Holy Knight of the church, standing side-by-side with the revered Hero, Lucas! Furthermore, the Church’s high diviners continue their realm-wide search for the prophesied Saintess revealed in the Great Oracle...!"
Victor listened from afar, his expression cold and unreadable. The Church is already cementing their political grip on the royal family, elevating Valen to shore up Lucas’s standing. The pieces are moving faster than in the original novel.
Shaking off the noise of the street, the party finally reached the secluded, high-end inn where Aria had been waiting.
The moment they stepped through the heavy wooden door into the private upper hallway, Aria appeared. Her eyes locked onto Victor, a rush of profound, intense relief washing across her sharp features.
"Lord Victor... you’ve returned," Aria murmured, stepping forward to guide the exhausted party toward their private quarters.
"Get everyone to their rooms," Victor instructed quietly. "They need rest."
Aria efficiently led Kael and Elena down to the comfortable suites in the lower wing. Elena immediately set to work fetching warm water and clean bandages to tend to Kael’s minor cuts and bruises from the Blood Trial, while Kael collapsed onto a plush chair, resting his new battle axe within arm’s reach.
Meanwhile, Victor supported Lyra into their shared upper suite. Though she had maintained a stoic, unyielding posture throughout the entire journey, the severe drain on her mana core had finally caught up with her. The moment her boots crossed the threshold, her knees gave out. Victor caught her, lifting her onto the wide bed.
Before he could pull away, Lyra let out a quiet, subconscious sigh, wrapping her arms tightly around his waist and burying her face into his coat. Depleted of every drop of energy, she instantly fell into a deep, unconscious slumber, clinging to him like a lifeline. Victor knew her drained mana reserves meant she wouldn’t wake for hours.
Gently detaching her arms, Victor laid her back against the pillows and pulled the heavy blanket over her shoulders.
He stood up, adjusted his dark coat, and walked out into the silent hallway, heading directly toward Aria’s private quarter at the end of the hall. He needed answers about Garrick, the Church, and the state of the city immediately.
Reaching her door, Victor raised his hand and knocked twice firmly. "It’s me, Aria. Open up."
From inside the room, a sudden, startled rustle of fabric echoed, followed by Aria’s breathless, trembling voice. "O-Oh! Lord Victor?! You’re... you’re not resting? What about Lady Lyra?"
"Lyra is asleep," Victor replied through the thick wood, his voice calm and authoritative. "I need to speak with you about something important regarding our next move."
A sharp pause hung in the air, followed by the hurried sound of soft footsteps.
"P-Please wait a moment, Lord Victor!" Aria called out nervously, her voice laced with a strange, flustered edge. "G-Give me just a few minutes... I need to get dressed!"
Victor stood patiently in the dimly lit hallway, his arms crossed over his chest as the second hand on his pocket watch ticked silently away.
After a few minutes, a soft click echoed as the brass lock turned.
"The... the door is open, Lord Victor," Aria’s faint voice called out from within. "You may enter."
Victor pushed the door open and stepped inside.
The room was bathed in the warm, dim glow of a single mana lamp resting on the nightstand. Victor’s eyes landed on Aria standing near the foot of the bed, and his gaze locked in place.
She wasn’t wearing her usual travel attire or servant robes. Instead, she stood before him wearing only one of his spare white dress shirts that he had left behind in the room the fabric oversized, draping loosely over her shoulders and barely covering her upper thighs. Her hair was ruffled, her cheeks flushed a deep, burning crimson, and her chest was heaving with rapid, shallow breaths.
And as Victor’s cold eyes traced downward, he froze.
A clear, glistening fluid was slowly trickling down from between her inner legs, dripping silently down her bare, trembling thighs onto the hardwood floor.