Hearing Helagol's answer, Modir pondered for a moment, and then suddenly asked in a low voice, "I'm suddenly curious … A long, long time ago, at a time that I have forgotten, did I really come to this place?"
Helagol looked into Modir's eyes, and nodded gently after a long time. "Yes, you have visited Tarlonde — although you did not directly set foot on this land."
Modir's eyes widened slightly. "So the curse on me was left here?"
"I'm afraid not." Helagol slowly shook his head. "At least from the clues that we have, until you left this land, you were still normal — and normal for a long time after that."
Modir was silent, and no one knew what he was thinking. After about half a minute, he looked up again. "Is it because you can't tell me about this part? For example, it involves the secrets of Tarlonde, or it points to something that can be a 'threat just by knowing'? If it's the latter, I can understand. After all, I've been traveling for so many years … I've always come into contact with some strange things. "
"Yes." Helagol nodded. "Now we can't discuss this matter in detail — mainly because I'm not sure about the risks behind it. But if we have some progress on our work here, I'll contact you immediately. "
"I believe that." Modir finally smiled again, and then he sighed softly and turned to look at the exit of the room. "Then let's call it a day. I should go back and meet my companions."
"Do you still plan to go back to the adventurer's camp?" Helagol looked a little surprised. "I mean … as a Legendary mage, you don't actually need to carry out those missions in the adventurer's camp. I can arrange a place for you to stay in New Agundor. Although Tarlonde is in a difficult situation now, at least in the core area, we can still provide more comfortable and thoughtful conditions. "
Modir thought for a moment and said with a smile, "Forget it. Staying in a land full of unknowns and opportunities, but not being able to explore freely, no matter how comfortable and thoughtful the living conditions are, it is not a good thing for an adventurer. I prefer to stay with Rolla and the others in the adventurer's camp. Even if I don't go out, I can still hear countless novel and interesting stories from the adventurers, which is more interesting for me. "
"… I respect your choice." Helagol nodded slightly. "Do as you please. But if you suddenly remember something or need any help, you can contact me through any of the Dragons in the camp. I've already talked to them."
…
After leaving the big house and returning to the gathering point of the temporary camp in the Crystal Rock Hill, the first thing Modir saw was Rolla and a few other familiar adventurers who were loitering around the side of the protective door. A smile appeared on the old mage's face as he strode towards them. Rolla and the others quickly noticed Modir's approach and came forward to greet him.
"Are you guys back from your patrol?" Modir looked at Rolla curiously and asked casually as he approached.
"We've been back for a while," the young huntress said with a smile. "You've been gone for a long time. What did the camp commander talk to you about?"
"As expected, it has been a long time …" Modir muttered to himself in a low voice. Then, he waved his hand casually. "Nothing much. Just asking about my background and the Fire Elemental Lord. That's all."
"That's all?" The two-handed swordsman in the team, the one who was pushed out by Modir with more than a hundred layers of shields, suddenly looked disappointed. "I thought I would hear some 'internal arrangements' …"
Druil at the side patted him on the shoulder. "Hey, it doesn't make much difference whether you hear it or not. Anyway, you just need to drink a few more cups later and everything will be arranged …"
The adventurers joked around like this, and a few teammates who had become familiar with each other began to talk and laugh. However, the huntress Rolla did not join in. She keenly noticed that the old mage's condition seemed to be a bit off. After a moment of hesitation, she could not help but ask, "Mr. Modir, are you … okay? You don't look too good. "
"Me? Look? " Modir was stunned for a moment before he subconsciously patted himself on the cheek. "I'm fine … but maybe a little tired. Sigh, I'm an old man after all. I can't compare to you youngsters …"
As the old man's voice trailed off, the faces of the adventurers around them became weirder. The robust two-handed swordsman even subconsciously studied Modir's seemingly old and hunched body. To be fair, the two-handed swordsman did not dare to guarantee anything based on his understanding of the old man in the last few days. At the very least, he was certain that he would be bedridden for a week after three rounds of hand-to-hand combat with the old man. And if both sides were to go all out, he was confident that he could spit blood all over the old man's face in one round … Did such a Legendary mage not consider the feelings of others when he lamented about life?
Rolla's gaze was always on Modir's face. The latter now seemed to have completely recovered, but she firmly believed that she was not mistaken. For a short while just now, she clearly saw that Modir's eyes were out of focus, as if his soul had left, and the remaining body was completely driven by instinct to talk. This reminded her of the undead she encountered when she was carrying out a mission in a deserted underground palace in her early years … Of course, that ugly and rotten walking corpse looked completely different from the old mage with flesh and blood in front of her. What she felt was a 'feeling', a feeling that only she could understand.
However, the old mage had completely recovered, and that strange feeling was no longer there. The young huntress blinked and could not find any clues, so she could only deny her own judgment.
She probably saw wrongly.
…
Helagor watched as Modir left the room. He sensed that Modir's breath was getting further and further away. Then he waved his hand gently, and a series of soft clicking sounds came from the door not far away. After the door lock was completely closed, some draconic runes that were originally hidden on the door, wall, roof, and floor gradually emerged. Under the illumination of the light, they shone with a mysterious and ever-changing luster.
The former dragon priest carefully observed the state of each rune, and only then did he let out a sigh of relief. Then he came to a pale gold pillar-shaped device placed in the corner and activated the energy cycle in the device. A few creaking noises came from the inside of the newly repaired device, and the crystal membrane covering the upper half of the device finally condensed into a clear image — Andal in the form of a Giant Dragon appeared in the image. His huge head was facing Hao Ren, and his dark red mechanical eyes were flashing.
Helagol frowned slightly. "Is there something wrong with your body?"
"Don't worry, I'm in good shape." Andal nodded gently. "I just need to release my body and manually check the condition of these ancient implants. After all, although these antiques in my body do not rely on the Omega system to operate, they have been operating for too long. I don't want these old things to be in any state during this critical period. "
Then the old ancient black dragon shook his head and looked down at Helagol. "Let's not talk about me first. How's the situation on your side? Have you made contact with Wizard Modir? "
"Yes, the situation is a bit complicated." Helagol nodded. "His memory and mental state are not quite right. In addition to not being able to remember his full name and origin, he also has a disordered memory of his adventuring career. We can rule out the possibility that his memory was deleted all at once. This should be a long-term, internal disorder."
Andal was silent for a moment and said in a low voice, "It sounds like … you can't confirm that he is Modir Werde in person?"
"There's no way to confirm it. He doesn't remember at all. Even if I took out part of Modir's travels, he had no impression of it." Helagol shook his head, but then he changed the topic. "But … I think he is."
"… When we suddenly knew his name in the adventurer's list, you and I were immediately reminded of Melita's report. Although we also suspected that it was just a coincidence, there were too many coincidences to ignore." Andal's voice was low. "In the Lolun Continent, 'Legends' are a rare group. In the recent tens of thousands of years of history, there may not be a second Legend named 'Modir' among the humans. At the same time, he was also an adventurer who visited Tarlonde in search of some 'lost object' …"
"The only problem is that humans can't live for six centuries. Modir Werde should have died six hundred years ago."
"Humans can't open the coffin after seven hundred years. But this kind of thing happened." Andal shook his head. "There are not so many 'sure' things in this world, especially when it comes to the supernatural."
"I agree with you. This is one of the reasons why I dare to judge that it is Modir Werde," Helagol said slowly, and then suddenly changed the topic. "Speaking of which, in the process of contacting the 'adventurer,' I found something."
Andal's mechanical eyes immediately narrowed. "What did you find?"
"After he finished reading part of 'Modir's Travels' and heard the surname 'Werde' from me, he quickly fell into a state of confusion. The whole process lasted less than a minute. Then he forgot what had just happened, and did not remember the content of the travel book. His memory went back to before I took out the travel book." Helagol described what had just happened in detail. "At the same time, I observed that the stability of his soul dropped sharply. To prevent any accidents, I did not try a second time."
"… Fell into confusion after hearing the surname? And lost his memory after that? "Andal's tone suddenly became serious." This sounds … reminds me of the undead. "
"Yes, reminiscent of the undead, but not completely. At least he knew that his name was Modir, and the undead could not remember their own names at all. Besides, once the soul of the undead has a backlash, the consequences are not as simple as confusion and temporary amnesia." Helagol nodded. "Modir is a living body of flesh and blood. I am sure of this. He is alive, but the state of being alive … is not quite right. I am more inclined to believe that his soul has suffered a very serious injury. This injury did not kill him, but it imprisoned part of his' life essence 'in a state of neither life nor death. This is probably one of the reasons why he could wander the world for a full six hundred years. "
Listening to Helagol's judgment, Andal fell into a short period of contemplation. A few minutes later, he broke the silence. "What about the detection of 'contamination'? Did you detect any contamination factors? "
Helagol's eyes once again swept across the shining runes in the room. After a moment of contemplation, he shook his head. "No contamination was detected. Whether it is other spiritual contamination from the gods or the specific contamination that points to the 'reverse tide,' there is no residual reaction. Modir is just a mortal in a strange state of existence. "
"… But I am still worried." Andal sighed softly. "He had entered the tower, and this matter is related to our former god … Although from the clues back then, Modir Werde was not contaminated by the reverse tide when he left Tarlonde, but you know the uniqueness of the tower. Even our former god could not interfere with what happened in the tower."
The room fell into silence for a moment. After a moment, Andal spoke again. "What's your decision?"
"The tower has been making me more and more uneasy recently," Helagol said in a low voice. "And after the appearance of the adventurer Modir, this uneasiness has become more and more intense.
"I think we should contact Gwen Cecil, at least let the Cecil Empire know of the adventurer's existence. The descendants of the Werde family there may have a way to verify the identity of their ancestors. At the same time, we can also discuss with Gwen about the tower of the reverse tide and see what the human emperor, who is also good at dealing with the gods, thinks. Finally … "
At this point, Helagol stopped with a slightly strange expression. He seemed to be hesitant. Andal guessed what the former dragon priest was thinking. He raised his head slightly, and a dim red light flashed in his mechanical eyes. "We can also ask Lady Enya's opinion on this matter."
Helagol sighed softly. "Although Lady Enya is now just a remnant of humanity, at least her memory inheritance is complete. We should ask."
…
At the northern border of the Cecil Empire, the coastal city of North Harbor was welcoming the bright noon sun. The fine waves were hitting the anti-wave facilities outside the harbor. The majestic bow of the Winter pointed to the sky. This huge sea fortress was docked at the edge of Pier No. 1 in the military zone. At the front of the upper deck, Byron, wearing a navy cloak, stepped forward and looked at the familiar city and coast. He could not help but smile.
"This is really a 'long journey,'" he muttered. "I wonder if the girls at home miss me …"
A low roar from the sky interrupted his soliloquy. Byron looked at the sky. In the bright light of the giant sun, he saw the figure of the red dragon sweeping through the clouds and hovering over the city. In the majestic roar unique to dragons, the red dragon in full mechanical armor seemed to be greeting the Winter on the pier.
Byron smiled and waved back at the red dragon in the sky.
(End of Chapter)
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