The group, having sent Shirone to the Chamber of Achievent and Sacrifice, arrived at the eastern altar.
When Jis showed the pass, a native opened the stone gate.
Jis translated that the minecart had arrived.
Amy’s group nodded, but Canis and Arin seed uninterested.
Arin had already understood the native’s words through her telepathic ability, one of her psychic powers.
The underground wasn’t very deep due to the minecart’s operation.
Rail tracks were laid along the volcanic ash-covered soil, and a native chewing gum welcod them.
Though his expression was gentle, the intense gaze unique to the Kergo people remained. It felt as if he had transplanted soone else’s eyes—alien and unsettling.
Jis also felt the eerie vibe. But being a professional in hospitality, he approached with a smile.
He extended his hand for a handshake, and the native accepted.
Jis: "The Loop handler has changed. I’m Jis, the new contact."
Native: "Jis? You don’t look like soone who’d do this kind of work."
The Kergo native could gauge a person’s temperant at a glance. Loop smuggling was a serious cri punishable by death in so cases. Jis, on the other hand, seed too mild for such a role.
Native: "Where’s Falcoa? He always ca personally to collect it."
Jis: "Ah, he’s dead."
Native: "Dead? Killed?"
The native made a slashing motion across his neck, and Jis nodded.
The native looked incredulous. Falcoa was strong. He was a man who resembled the Kergo in temperant. It was hard to believe that Jis had replaced him.
Native: "You have the pass, right?"
Jis: "Of course. Here, take a look."
The native, his smile gone, snatched the pass.
Amy’s group tensed up. They thought having the pass would be enough, but the native’s wariness was greater than expected.
Moreover, they weren’t here to buy Loop.
Falcoa was dead, and there would be no more Loop deals. If the natives found out, the situation would turn ugly.
The pass was genuine.
The native’s suspicions couldn’t hold up against the visible evidence.
The native guided the group to the minecart.
It was large enough to carry six people comfortably. A seesaw-like lever system was installed to push the minecart.
The native grabbed the lever and moved the minecart.
Normally, this was a two-person job, so Rian tried to help, but the native glared at him, forcing Rian to awkwardly step back.
The native’s strength was impressive. But it was over twenty kiloters to Toa Mountain. If he kept exerting himself like this, he’d collapse from exhaustion.
As the tracks descended, the speed increased. It felt like the air in their stomachs dropped.
The slope evened out, and the path beca flat, but the speed didn’t decrease. The tracks were designed to maintain montum by subtly adjusting the incline.
This chanism definitely seed faster than a carriage for reaching the autonomous region.
Rian: "Whoa! This is insanely fast!"
Amy: "Yeah. We’d better hold on tight."
The minecart shook violently. If it flipped at this speed, there’d be no guarantee of survival.
Amy’s group quietly crouched down. The native muttered sothing under his breath, his lips twitching.
The noise was too loud to hear clearly, but it was obvious he wasn’t saying anything nice.
As the minecart turned a corner, one of its wheels lifted slightly. It wasn’t a sharp turn, but the acceleration was too intense.
Arin held onto the edge of the minecart with one hand and pulled Canis’s collar with the other. As they entered a straight path, she asked Jis.
Arin: "How much longer until we arrive?"
Jis: "I’m not sure. Maybe another 20 minutes. This is my first ti here too."
Arin: "But you must’ve heard stories, right?"
Jis: "Not at all. Like I said earlier, this is a secret route even Falcoa used sparingly. The lower ranks don’t know much, and even the higher-ups aren’t fully inford."
Arin calculated roughly 20 minutes. She needed ti to explain her abilities to the group before they reached Toa Mountain.
Telepathy magic walked the line between eavesdropping and confession.
ntal domination could penetrate even one’s innermost thoughts, but it risked exposing her abilities.
ntal magic’s effectiveness diminished if the target beca aware of it, as they’d be on guard.
So, she usually sent faint ntal waves to eavesdrop on surface-level thoughts.
She extended her Spirit Zone, infiltrating the native’s shadow. Then, she added five more tendrils, connecting them to the group except Jis.
Once prepared, Arin asked the native:
Arin: "How much longer?"
Hearing Kergo language, the native turned to Arin. If they had been face-to-face, he might’ve noticed the mismatch between her lip movents and pronunciation, but Arin wasn’t one to make such mistakes. The minecart’s noise and speed also helped distract him.
Native: "About 10 minutes. But we’ll have to go further. The autonomous region’s slope is too steep for the minecart."
Amy’s group was startled when the native’s words were translated. But no one’s expression changed. They weren’t inexperienced enough to show their emotions.
Having heard Jis’s translation, they realized his translation skills weren’t exceptional. Perhaps Arin’s telepathic ability was just that impressive.
Amy (telepathically): "Arin, did you do this?"
Amy singled out Arin because her red eyes had briefly glowed earlier. The sensation of the Spirit Zone infiltrating was as subtle as a gentle breeze.
If it weren’t for her self-awareness, she might’ve been eavesdropped on without even noticing.
Arin (telepathically): "Yes. I connected the ntal channel."
Amy (telepathically): "You’re not reading my mind, are you?"
The thought of Arin reading her deepest thoughts was terrifying.
Fortunately, Arin shook her head.
A grandmaster of ntal magic could easily dominate a graduate-level mage, but they couldn’t even grasp self-aware mories.
Part of the reason Arin found Amy difficult was because of her red eyes.
Arin (telepathically): "Don’t worry. This is like a tunnel. In ntal magic, the human mind is divided into twelve layers. This corresponds to the 11th layer, surface psychology. Only thoughts that pass through the final filter are transmitted, so I can’t read your innermost thoughts."
Amy (telepathically): "What about the 12th layer?"
Arin (telepathically): "That’s the realm of reason above the surface. Things like forced smiles or pretenses. Anyway, if you strongly reject it, the channel will break. Of course, if you say you don’t want it, I’ll cut it off."
Amy (telepathically): "No, it’s fine. If it’s just surface psychology, this is incredibly convenient. Let’s keep it like this."
Arin (telepathically): "Thank you. I excluded Jis. The transmission channels for the others are blocked for now. I’ll open them now. Just don’t show any reaction."
When Arin opened the transmission channels, Rian and Tess’s thoughts flowed in.
Rian (telepathically): "...I want to talk too! Why can’t I...! Huh? I can hear now."
Tess (telepathically): " too. Tess, can you hear ?"
Tess (telepathically): "Yeah, I can. Wow, this is really cool."
Amy realized just how convenient Arin’s ability was. Though they were looking in different directions, countless conversations were happening through the ntal channel.
It was also fascinating to encounter magic not taught at magic school.
Dark magic was a niche field. Despite its versatile applications, it had a fatal weakness.
The darkness attribute was weak to light.
Moreover, ntal magic was tricky to use against opponents with higher ntal strength.
But at Arcane’s level, things were different. And Canis and Arin were direct disciples of Arcane, a grandmaster of dark magic.
Amy (internally): "This is amazing. This will be a huge help. Oops!"
Amy glanced at Arin. In her excitent, her inner thoughts had risen to the surface.
Arin smiled in response. Even Amy’s calculated thoughts made her happy.
Human hearts are far more driven by desire and selfishness than what’s shown on the surface.
For Arin, who had spent her life reading such emotions, a kind inner thought was nothing.
In any case, telepathy magic would prove invaluable in ergencies or even during battles. Canis and Arin’s inclusion made the group even more formidable.
Rian (telepathically): "Hohoho! This is so fun! Amy, isn’t that native annoying? He was sneaking at my chest earlier."
Amy (telepathically): "Really? He seed to be ignoring us."
Tess (telepathically): "I’m getting hungry. Will there be food when we get there?"
The ntal channel was filled with chatter, complaints, and gossip.
Rian and Tess, unfamiliar with magic, squeezed out unnecessary thoughts, trying to make use of the channel.
Strictly speaking, such thoughts couldn’t even be called thoughts. It was proof that the environnt dominated the mind.
Canis (telepathically): "It’s too noisy. Arin, lower the volu. Or just turn it off."
When Canis spoke, the volu of the voices in the ntal channel decreased. It felt like whispering in one’s ear.
If you didn’t focus, you couldn’t hear it well, so the chatter gradually died down.
Tess, who had been enjoying the gossip, protested.
Tess (telepathically): "What? Why lower the volu? I can’t hear well. Turn it back up."
Canis (telepathically): "If it’s not strategic talk, don’t use the ntal channel. Do you think this is a girls’ chat room? And it’s Arin’s ability. Who are you to tell her to turn it up or down?"
Tess clicked her tongue. But since her expression didn’t change, it seed she hadn’t let her guard down.
As the chatter subsided, Arin explained why she had revealed her ability.
Arin (telepathically): "As you know, this is telepathy magic. I didn’t use it on Jis. He’s an outsider, and I don’t want my ability exposed. Even if we could trust him, if he reacted to my ability, it could alert the enemy."
Since Jis could understand the native language, as long as they didn’t give anything away, they could quietly move on.
Rian (telepathically): "This is really convenient."
Canis (telepathically): "Hmph, consider it one of the perks of our alliance. Even if Shirone passes the trial, if we form a party, using Arin’s ability will be essential."
Canis’s pride in his partner was annoying, but it was undeniable how impressive it was.
Canis (telepathically): "And there’s one more thing. The reason Arin used telepathy is because there’s sothing we haven’t told you."
Amy (telepathically): "Sothing you haven’t told us? What are you talking about?"
Amy’s eyes sharpened. Though Shirone’s success was a condition, unexpected variables in a temporary alliance were unwelco.
Canis (telepathically): "It’s nothing major. We didn’t hide it on purpose; we just didn’t think it was necessary to ntion. Anyway, the reason Arin and I wanted to pass the trial is that the Kergo natives aren’t friendly to outsiders. In fact, they’re hostile."
It wasn’t a big deal. They hadn’t expected a warm welco from the start.
But they also didn’t think there was a reason for hostility.
The autonomous governnt and the Kergo tribe had chosen a symbiotic relationship, and many natives in the ruins were influenced by civilization.
Canis (telepathically): "The reason they’re hostile is because the Galliant governnt made a mistake. When they first ca to the island one hundred years ago, they promised significant compensation. The natives, realizing they couldn’t stop the tide of ti, agreed to negotiate. That’s how the tourism business started. Did you know that initially, even the autonomous region was open? But now, all exchanges have been cut off."
Amy (telepathically): "Hmm, I can understand that. My father also faced strong resistance when he first entered the colonies. It’s an inevitable part of such things."
Canis (telepathically): "That’s part of it. But the Galliant governnt went too far. Way too far."
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