The Warriors of the Allied Tribes went on a hunting spree after crossing the natural barrier.
Knowing that it was only a matter of time before their enemies closed in on them, they hastened their pace and stocked up as much food as they could.
Fortunately, the plains were rich with game like deer and bison. They already hunted boars in the White Forest earlier, but it would still not be enough for thousands of people.
While the hunters went hunting, the lead Caravan continued to move forward.
Ethan sat beside Safiya, who was holding the reins of the horses.
In the distance, he could see a patch of blue waters, which was going to be their final destination.
He had already seen what was beneath that body of water, and it was none other than the Ancient City of Zentris.
It was a city built on top of a small mountain. During the day, the water in the lagoon would recede and return to the sea. At night, it would return, leaving only the city above the water, forming a natural moat.
When the Tribes had left Zentris, the city remained submerged underwater regardless of whether it was night or day.
Only the Tide Bringer’s presence would allow the Ancient City to surface again.
After two days of traveling, they finally arrived at the lagoon that was similar to a giant lake.
The sun had already set when they arrived, so the only thing they could see was the reflection of the moon on the water.
A great bonfire was set up, and everyone gathered around it in a good mood. Although it wasn’t anything excessive, everyone ate better that night as they knew that when morning came, the City of Zentris would show itself to them, allowing them to enter its walls.
For some reason, Ethan was feeling incredibly drowsy, and he was unable to stay awake no matter what he did. Because of this, he didn’t join the festivities and slept early.
Lily joined the Shamans and listened to their stories about the City of Zentris.
She wanted to know more about this mysterious city, which was said to belong to the Tide Bringer himself and served as the sacred grounds of the Lands of Alastor in the distant past.
Unfortunately, after the Tide Bringer left, the natural barrier prevented anyone from crossing to the other side of the White Forest. Only those who had the ability to fly or had a flying beast could venture further.
Even so, with the ancient city submerged under the water, they were unable to explore its secrets.
Just past midnight, Lily finally went to the wagon to sleep. As soon as she laid beside Ethan, the young man stirred and looked at her in a daze.
“Sleep,” Lily said before lightly patting his head. “We have a lot of things to do tomorrow.”
However, instead of cuddling with her, like he usually did, Ethan rose up from the bed as if he were in a trance.
He left the wagon and walked towards the lagoon with steady steps.
Lily, who didn’t know what was going on, followed behind Ethan to ensure that nothing bad would happen to him.
She even walked ahead of him and blocked his path, preventing him from going further.
“Ethan, if you continue to move forward, you will fall in the water,” Lily stated.
The handsome young man paused for a bit before smiling at her. His blue eyes glowed faintly, radiating with some kind of power that was hard to describe.
“Don’t worry,” Ethan said softly. “Everything is going to be fine.”
His voice was calm, gentle, and filled with confidence. It was as if he was telling Lily that everything was under his control and that she didn’t need to worry about him.
The young lady frowned, but ultimately decided to let him do what he wanted and followed closely behind him.
‘Is he still half asleep?’ Lily thought. ‘Maybe if he falls into the water, he will suddenly wake up.’
She had seen a few sides of Ethan as of late and, for her, the handsome young man was shrouded in mystery.
The Ethan who fought against the Three Great Tribes and the Orcs was strong. In fact, Lily had a feeling that if she fought against that Ethan, her chances of winning were low.
She didn’t even need to cross blades with him to know how powerful he was. As a warrior, her senses could easily tell that the purple-eyed Ethan was truly a monster.
The usual Ethan was carefree and easy to get along with. This was also the version of Ethan that had undergone the most suffering after the battle in the Stronghold ended.
But now, this Ethan in front of her was very different from the ones she had seen in the past.
His smile was sweet as if he was a child that was about to play with his favorite toy.
His presence made her feel refreshed as if she was being bathed by clean and revitalizing waters.
His steps were steady and filled with confidence, which was similar to the purple-eyed Ethan. But instead of feeling intimidated, she couldn’t help but feel attracted to him.
“Come,” Ethan said as he reached out his hand to her. “Trust me.”
The young lady looked at the hand he offered for a few seconds before placing her own on top of it.
Ethan’s smile widened, as he held her hand in a reassuring grip before continuing to walk forward.
When they were only a few steps away from the water, Lily started to feel a bit anxious, but Ethan continued to walk without a care in the world.
The moment his feet finally touched the water, Lily was prepared to pull him back just in case he dragged her with him to its black depths.
But what she was expecting didn’t happen.
Ethan’s feet floated above the surface of the water. He then looked back at her with a nod of encouragement.
The young lady hesitated at first, but after seeing that the handsome young man was standing perfectly still, she decided to take a leap of faith and took her first step. 𝗈𝑣𝑳xt.𝗰𝒐𝓜
To her surprise, she felt that she was stepping on something that could support her weight, so she decided to take another step forward.
Similar to Ethan, she found herself standing above the water as if it was… magic.
“Let’s go,” Ethan said softly as he walked while holding Lily’s hand.
The handsome young man led the way, and Lily followed a step behind him.
Suddenly, ripples started to form in the middle of the lagoon.
The moonlight was bright enough to illuminate the path, allowing the young lady to see something that was rising up in the water.
Those who were still awake at the shore finally became aware of what was happening.
They started shouting, waking up the rest of the tribe. At first, everyone thought that they were under attack.
However, when they turned to look in the direction where the warriors were pointing, they finally understood what was happening.
A city had risen up from the waters, taking everyone by surprise.
Those with better eyesight caught sight of the two people who were walking on top of the water, headed toward the city in the distance.
Now that the Ancient City of Zentris had finally made its appearance, the secrets that it hid for hundreds of years would emerge once again.