After countless hours of travelling with the rchant, the scenery finally changed. As I gazed around, the sea of trees turned bald. The weeds on the ground also died out and turned into crisps without having the season of fall. We were on top of a hill of so sort, but the view remained the sa.
There were no animals wandering in the vicinity, especially monsters that could attack us. I expected that sothing or soone would greet our figures, since this was our vulnerable ti. But as the ti passed by, nobody erged behind the bushes.
"We are here," the dragonewt announced, and placed down on the ground.
"Where exactly are we, rchant?" I asked, and looked around. "There's nothing but sticks and stones in this area. I think we're lost, if you'd ask ."
The rchant said nothing and continued motioning his fingers forward. I followed his signs and trundled onward, doubting sothing would change.
"Are you sure this is the place? I can see nothing else but the dull field up ahead," I confessed, and scratched my head.
It was like what I had ntioned to the dragonewt. There was nothing more but the dying plain below us, with cut logs and other crumbled stones. The scene ca from the chaotic Kingdom of Mainland, where the city got destroyed by the adventurers and non-player characters.
But within a few seconds, those boring scenery changed. The world in front of flickered as if there was sothing there our eyes cannot see.
Upon reaching out at the invisible barrier, my system finally notified about this peculiar presence.
[You have entered the Dragonewt's Zone or Dragonewt's Kingdom. Please be advised that you will feel a sudden sensation of nauseousness upon arriving at the other side.]
"Sorry, what?"
Just like the arrows Ryoshi presented before, this place had a barrier of so sort covering the plain's other side. As my hand went inside the foamy screen, that shield sucked like a vacuum.
It took a second before my bottom could hit the ground. And as soon as I landed on the floor, dozens of murmuring voices echoed through my ears. Upon peering my eyes open, a group of dragonewts flocked around , with their hands pointed at my figure.
"What is a human doing here?"
"This place should be a sacred area."
"Should we call the soldiers?"
"Does the king know about this?"
Each of them voiced their concerns as soon as they witnessed my presence. Most of them disapproved of my appearance, while others had widened their eyes in glee. I could tell that these dragonewts did not expect my appearance, considering their genuine expressions on their faces.
As I glanced around, there were countless huts stationed nearby. When I squinted my eyes, a road of so sort greeted my eyes, with so equipnt similar to the humans. I could only think that civilization still reached this place, but the people remained concealed from the outer world.
Well, since the outside had feral monsters and greedy creatures, hiding from the war beca the safest route. Nobody could kill anyone if those creatures hid from the outside.
Within a few seconds, soone arrived from the barrier. When I turned around, the rchant greeted my eyes, with a smirk on his face. It was as if the rchant was a different being when inside this realm.
The dragonewts surrounding us cheered when they witnessed the rchant. I tilted my head in confusion while searching for an answer for this occurrence.
"You must be confused about what's happening. Co, I will show you the way," the dragonewt insisted, and offered his hand.
I grasped his hanging arm and pulled myself with it. As soon as I stood from the soil, the rchant led the way, while nodding at the cheering crowd.
I still couldn't deduce what was happening in our surroundings. If these dragonewts hailed for this rchant, maybe this creature in front of had exceeding status? Despite his rchant title, this realm called him as soone else?
"That face you're making, Red. I can tell that you already found the answer to my identity," the rchant whispered.
I asked, "What does that an?"
"You will know once we get there," he replied.
This rchant read like a book as he spoke his words. That dragonewt did not even have to turn around to check my reaction.
I did not want to assu, since this dragonewt saved from despair a couple of tis. If it were not for this lizard, I would have already drowned from that stream before reaching this place.
We continued walking until we arrived at the road my eyes caught earlier. It had the sa route as any other path near the forest. But the pavent did not have the sa features as the ones that the Mainland had from what I had rembered.
As I gazed at my sides, dozens of dragonewt and their families greeted the rchant in front of . But when they directed their eyes at my figure, they glared in my direction before returning to their hos.
"Why are the dragonewts averting their gaze when they et mine? I thought that the dragonewts were harmless creatures?" I asked, while looking at the far away dragonewts.
My mother told stories about the world and its people. It also ntioned dragonewts and their calm nature. They rarely get themselves into a fight, despite their superior prowess and physique. Those lizards did not use their advantage and continued being a rchant, selling goods to adventurers and non-player characters.
There were so dragonewts that beca rcenaries and fought for their devotion. But that did not matter to right now.
"We are inside my hotown where everyone is a dragonewt except for you. Of course, not everyone would react kindly if they see soone or sothing different. Not everyone is like you, Red. You have a kind and cold heart, unlike any other."
The rchant took aback when he ntioned those lines. But everything he had said hit the nail, especially the forr sentence. Creatures with intellect could think differently when faced with different circumstances. And this event was the perfect example for that, considering that I was a human roaming around in Dragonewt City.
However, I did not mind his witty remarks and continued following his footsteps.
After a few seconds, we arrived at a structure that had similar designs of a citadel. That building stood tall among any other constructions we passed by earlier. It even had guards stationed at the front gates, guarding soone important inside.
As we approached the door, the two dragonewt imdiately told the personnel behind to open the gates. Those two lizards gawked their eyes in my direction, wondering what a human was doing with this rchant.
But instead of voicing their concerns, the two dragonewts let in without uttering a word. I could only guess that questioning soone with higher authority was not open around this place.
Those two dragonewts even gave a salute to this man upon greeting him inside.
We resud our walk towards the isle and approached three tunnels heading onto various directions. It did not take a second before the rchant went onwards and opened the gigantic gates. Clicking sounds echoed from behind and eventually slid the door open, revealing a glamorous throne room inside.
As I looked ahead, a chair befitting for a king greeted my eyes. There were paintings hung above the wall, with different art styles from this realm. This place also had original furniture unavailable inside the Mainland.
The dragonewt cleared his throat and asked, "Have you found an idea who I am after looking at this place?"
"Are you the noble rchant who sells stuff to the king?" I answered.
The dragonewt before heaved out a sigh before giving a reply, "Close enough. But I expect more stellar answers than that."
If the dragonewt said those lines, it only ant one thing.
"Are you the king of this realm?" I asked once again, and gulped down the chunk of salvia inside my throat.
"Aye. I am the king of Dragonewt Kingdom! My na is Stormfly, leader of the lizard race, and the holder of the Ruby Obelisk."
Now that the dragonewt ntioned, I accepted Alice's offer for an obelisk. Before I could even react to the dragonewt, I searched myself to find the obelisk I received from Alice. If that puppet lied to , all my efforts would turn into nought.
"If you are looking for the Sapphire obelisk from Alice, It's in your inventory," Stormfly, the dragonewt exclaid, as he pointed his hands at the system's window.
"You know about systems…? And you know about Alice?" I asked, and stepped away.
Nobody should know what happened inside Wonderland, except for the four of us who battled Alice. And Alice was the only one who told about that offer, which killed those two players.
Since this rchant knew what happened, I raised my guard and prepared my penitent's blade.
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