Chapter 472: 89. Misunderstanding
The next morning, Fisher and his group, who had set out early towards their destination, soon caught a glimpse of a towering stone giant tower amidst the rolling hills at the end of the wilderness.
Surrounding the towering giant tower, tall trees with purple long leaves and petals sprang up like magic, enclosing it as if it were protected by a hundred-meter-high city wall.
“Is that the Ideal Nation?”
Tang Zeming Asuka was the first to speak up. Since coming to this world, she had seen such marvelous and spectacular scenes more than once, but in comparison, this place was indeed somewhat shabby compared to the Royal Capital of the Tree Continent and the Angels’ Holy Realm.
“That’s right, it is currently an eyesore to the elves. We should be careful; it’s possible that any small grass or tree by the roadside is a disguise set by the elves for surveillance.”
Hearing this, Tang Zeming Asuka immediately pressed her lips together and bowed her head, cautiously focusing on her feet, trying to avoid the grass and plants by the roadside. Even Mikhail and Neceria began to walk awkwardly.
Gouwen seemed hesitant to speak, but Fisher shot Hela an exasperated glare, then reached out to tap Tang Zeming, who often stared down at her toes and would only “heave ho, heave ho,” reminding her.
“She’s just messing with you; the elves have other ways to gather information about this place. They are Mythical Beings and wouldn’t resort to such means.”
“Eh, eh?”
Tang Zeming Asuka, realizing belatedly, raised her head in surprise, then suspiciously looked at Hela. Upon seeing her mischievous smile, she finally understood that Fisher was speaking the truth. She puffed her cheeks but felt frustrated and couldn’t say anything.
Then, she silently glanced at Fisher and mumbled softly, “Fisher-sensei is getting better at understanding Angel Hela; I can’t tell the difference at all.”
Before Fisher could respond, Hela, cheerful and smiling, turned around and said to him, “This means we have a mutual understanding, right?”
“Understanding my foot.”
Fisher coldly dismissed her teasing, and Hela didn’t mind at all, still floating ahead with a smile.
But to be honest, Fisher was indeed becoming more familiar with her antics, as if he were getting to know her better.
Yet he always felt that this familiarity was an illusion, as if he had not yet glimpsed her true self.
Was it because of the game she mentioned?
Or was it because it wasn’t the seventh day yet? Speaking of which, this was already the second day, wasn’t it?
Thinking of this, Fisher couldn’t help but glance ahead, only to see that because Hela was floating, her white robe descended with gravity, concealing her bare feet. Fisher felt a flicker of emotion and asked, “Isn’t it obvious that you’re floating like this? What do you mean by saying you won’t be discovered?”
“You’ll know when the time comes.”
Fisher said no more and led the group into the dense forest and uneven mountains. From here, they could hear the chatter of people coming from a nearby settlement, lending some humanity to the land.
But the closer they got to the center, the more uneasy he felt, and this unease felt oddly familiar, as if the death that had once entangled him was beginning to stir again. This feeling was eerily similar to when he was in the Tree Continent.
Deep in the forest, the surrounding normal trees became increasingly sparse, gradually replaced by enormous and crooked trees. Fisher had seen these trees before in the Chuan Kingdom, all branches symbolizing Duke Chuan’s strength.
Just as Pandora had mentioned, the traitorous Duke Chuan had escaped here as well. These trees, resembling sharp thorns, subtly formed an invisible barrier. Although intangible, Fisher clearly sensed their intent to reject him.
“These are Chuan’s powers; these trees are all symbols of his strength. We shouldn’t go further. Chuan is a Mythical Being, and he should be able to sense our arrival. Let’s wait here; someone should come soon.”
Gouwen clearly had more knowledge about the elves than the others. He quickly made a judgment and reminded those around him.
Fisher nodded, but as he looked at the purple light pulsing on these trees forming a barrier, his gaze flickered slightly, not knowing what he was thinking, his expression ambiguous.
They waited outside the barrier, but after a long time, the first arrivals were not from the Ideal Nation ahead but from the dense forest behind.
“Is this the country spoken of by the great elves?”
“We… shouldn’t have gone the wrong way.”
Fisher turned back with the others and saw a group of ragged, wild-looking humans. They dragged their families and formed a long line, carrying various items as if they had traveled a long distance to arrive here.
This was the first time Fisher saw the humans of the Dragon Continent in this era. Watching them cautiously eye their surroundings as if fearing some enemy would spring out from nowhere, he couldn’t help but recall the times he had heard about the age before the Mother had bestowed magic.
When these humans spotted Fisher and his group in front of the Ideal Nation, they didn’t initially look at Fisher or Tang Zeming Asuka but instead focused on Gouwen and Neceria. Their gazes repeatedly scanned the non-human features on them, filled with a wariness Fisher had never seen before, as if they were highly volatile explosives yet to be detonated.
Neceria only glanced back, and the lined-up humans seemed to be startled and held their breath as if frozen, afraid that these two seemingly formidable subhumans would wipe them all out.
Most strangely, Fisher sharply noticed that the leader of this group of humans, upon seeing Fisher and his group, first looked back, and the three elderly people in front, holding pieces of fragmented stone tablets, seemed to report back to the leader. The middle elder pointed at the stone tablets and slid his finger upward, pausing at the top section.
In an instant, Fisher realized what these humans were doing. They were essentially indicating the approximate alert rank of these two subhumans to that leading human so they could assess the threat before them.
And when the elder behind reported the rank, the chieftain immediately made a decision: retreat.
Thus, both parties watching in silence from the forest did not even start their first formal conversation, as this group of humans was already familiar with the process and swiftly turned to run, dispersing as they fled. Fisher guessed it was to prevent the subhumans from capturing them all in one go.
“Stop, everyone.”
At that moment, a gentle voice suddenly came from behind Fisher. He turned his head and saw Duke Chuan, dressed similarly to the previous encounter, standing inside the barrier. He spoke the language of the Dragon Continent, and the fleeing humans seemed to trust him greatly. They quickly paused, turning back to cautiously look at Duke Chuan and Fisher’s group.
“Would you mind stepping aside? They are my invited friends.”
“Of course.”
After Fisher and the others made way, Duke Chuan opened the purple barrier meant to repel outsiders, addressing the group of humans, “Come in, everyone, welcome to your new home; you are safe now.”
“Thank you, great elf.”
Watching the ragged humans form a line as they entered the barrier, they took care not to go near Neceria, seemingly more frightened of her than of Gouwen because she had far more non-human features.
In the Dragon Continent, subhumans were countless, and humans usually had a limited range of activity. Clans were not as frequently in contact as in Fisher’s time, with many spending their lives migrating in nomadic tribes. Even exhausting the lifespan of generation after generation of humans would not allow for the complete documentation of all the subhuman races.
Of course, some patterns could still be summarized: generally speaking, the more peculiar a subhuman looked, the quicker they died.
In fact, among Mythical Beings, elves did not conform to this rule; they simply had never seen Mythical Beings before.
Tang Zeming Asuka’s gaze followed the last human entering the Ideal Nation encircled by the barrier. After the final human stepped inside, Duke Chuan then turned his gaze to Fisher and the others standing before him.
Seeing this, Gouwen immediately wanted to step forward first to salute, but unexpectedly, Duke Chuan raised a hand to interrupt him.
“No need for such formality; both Margaret and I already know your purpose. She has seen you through the loom. Please, come in; your sincerity is evident; you didn’t bring any angels with you. Margaret wishes to talk with you.”
Upon hearing this, Fisher and the others looked at the angel Hela, who stood behind them, with some surprise. Upon realizing their gaze, she simply smiled and waved her hand, signaling everyone not to reveal her too obviously.
Duke Chuan did not stay here for long. He quickly turned his head towards the Ideal Nation and departed, leaving the opened barrier behind along with Fisher and his group, who exchanged glances.
“How did you manage that? He didn’t recognize you at all.”
As Fisher followed Duke Chuan forward with the others, he quietly asked Hela, who was floating behind him. She happily floated to his back and pulled out a round mirror made from a type of wood that Fisher had seen before, but the mirror’s surface resembled a water surface.
Though it was a mirror, its entire body was made of a certain type of wood Fisher had encountered before, and she didn’t completely reveal the mirror, only discreetly exposing a small corner and explained to him,
“You should know that my ability is actually akin to the power of dawn. The ability to change my appearance isn’t something I was born with; it comes from this mirror. I found it while wandering in the Dragon Continent; it likely belongs to an unknown elf. With it, I can freely change my appearance without being detected by any means—perhaps only the demigods and true gods might notice, but I’m not certain.”
As Hela introduced this, she casually floated closer, resting her head against Fisher’s shoulder and smiled, whispering into his ear, “But once the mirror is activated, I absolutely can’t move; my energy will make the surface unstable, easily exposing me, which is why I didn’t move earlier. I can’t craft, so I don’t have many holy artifacts as cards like other angels do; this is my trump card. I’m only telling you, so don’t tell anyone else.”
Her soft, warm, breathing voice brushed against his earlobe, making Fisher feel a slight tickle. His eyes trembled for a moment, and instead of turning around, he spoke up.
“I think I saw that kind of wood in Jianmu Palace before; there was a door made of three kinds of wood called the [Supreme Door], symbolizing the three favored children of the World Tree. The wood representing [Ch] is very similar to your mirror; it could be her item. I don’t know how you got it. I saw her in the Duke of Peach’s barrier before; I don’t know what connection she has to this matter.”
“In that case, I’m pretty lucky, huh? After all, lucky angels are never unlucky.”
“What kind of nonsense is that? And are you even listening to me?”
“Hey, don’t you like watching me smile?”
Hela immediately put on a pitiful expression. Her face was as alluring as Cupid’s, and when she began to cry, it could invoke endless sympathy, as if even the heart felt her sadness, prompting one to join in her tears.
Fisher had already undergone preliminary training from Renee, making him surprisingly resistant to this combo attack. He not only remained unaffected but even managed a cold chuckle in response.
“Not bad.”
But Hela was, after all, different from Renee; she was far more dangerous and lethal.
If Renee’s attempts at this would result in her fuming and teaching him a lesson with punches, Hela’s expression only grew increasingly more cheerful, as if she had stumbled upon something highly amusing, her eyes sparkling with excitement.
“Bam!”
In the next moment, Fisher’s cheek was suddenly kissed lightly, breaking his cold demeanor and making it rigid.
“Sorry, you’re just too cute; I couldn’t help myself.”
“You…”
Fisher nearly channeled Sir Book’s essence, uttering a classic line, but upon turning to look at Hela smiling against his shoulder, the beauty that unconsciously spilled from her sparkling eyes halted the forthcoming words.
Perhaps she was right; he indeed quite enjoyed seeing her smile, even though she always seemed to be smiling.
“Ah, has my charm enchanted you, my only believer?”
Hela’s observation was incredibly sharp; even a one-second distraction was detectable. The mischievous smile on her face made it increasingly difficult for Fisher to cope, exhausted from the encounter.
“What believer?”
“Cupid’s believer! You’ve been struck by my arrow; do you think you can run?”
“By the way, where did that arrow go before? You didn’t recall it, and I haven’t seen it since.”
“Shh, that’s a nifty tool I’ll use later.”
Hela winked at him playfully.
While they whispered to each other quietly, completely unaware that besides Tang Zeming Asuka, everyone else had walked ahead with deadpan expressions, especially Gouwen, whose expression was a blend of complexity and inexpressible emotions.
Even Duke Chuan, who walked ahead, turned back with a very strange and hesitating expression.
Gouwen thought he was questioning Fisher’s behavior, and while he had previously experienced how remarkable this human was at Lord Shiran’s, Duke Chuan’s expression was so absurd that Gouwen felt compelled to say,
“Don’t be surprised; he’s like this. You want to hit him, right? I do too.”
“…Doesn’t he favor subhuman women?”
“Technically, he likes them all.”
Gouwen rolled his eyes, gritting his teeth as he spoke.
“…Men too?”
“Exactly, men too… hmm?”
Gouwen furrowed his brow, suddenly realizing something was off, but quickly he caught on to what it was, turning back in surprise to find that upon sensing his confused gaze, Hela’s smile had become even more interesting.
Gouwen suddenly had a sinister suspicion—could it be that Hela was currently seen as a male figure in others’ eyes, and she hadn’t told Fisher?
“Ah, that… yeah, he accepts all sorts.”
Gouwen couldn’t help but snicker, covering his mouth to stifle his laughter, which shocked Duke Chuan once again, not less than his earlier reaction to Lord Shiran.
As Fisher entered the barrier, he soon discovered that the situation within the Ideal Nation was much better than he had imagined. The basin in this mountainous area was quite spacious. Aside from the enormous stone tower in the center, the rest of the settlements were all fairly orderly. Thanks to Duke Chuan’s Mythical Rank, the difficulty of constructing and living had been greatly reduced, and within just half a year, buildings from the Tree Continent had been replicated here.
The beings residing here had ranks mostly at humanoid levels, falling between zero to five ranks. In the Dragon Continent, these beings had a relatively harsh living environment, sitting at the bottom of the food chain, often bullied wherever they went, with humans being at the absolute bottom.
However, the relocated humans seemed to be living fairly well. In the center of their camp, there were no longer the Universal Warning Tablets Fisher had mentioned, which were “ubiquitous” as Eil stated, but instead erected a pillar of Chuan wood covered in legal texts.
The surrounding environment was quite good, and even Tang Zeming Asuka looked around for a long time. Although this place seemed quite backward compared to her modern life, the peace she felt was derived from the atmosphere.
The beings living here were not as restless as those in Tokyo, having escaped the dangerous wild life. For the most part, they seemed to be happy.
Due to the urgency of meeting the Transmigrator, Margaret, Fisher didn’t continue to observe the surroundings. He quickly followed the team, stepping in sync with Tang Zeming Asuka as they walked towards the towering giant tower.
Along the way, he gradually began to notice that the surrounding residents were looking at him and Hela with extremely strange eyes, which left him baffled.
Was it his fault?
After all, he was just a human in a white robe, slightly more robust; it shouldn’t draw this much attention, right?
So was it Hela’s issue?
While Fisher pondered, he suddenly came to realize something. He turned to look at Hela, who was humming happily against his shoulder—she seemed to enjoy singing. This wasn’t the first time Fisher had heard her song during their journey; he had just overlooked it before due to their hurried pace.
“What’s up?”
Facing Fisher’s curious gaze, she innocently asked first.
“I forgot to ask, since you used the power of that mirror, what do people see you as now outside of us?”
“Hey, I don’t even know!”
“…”
Fisher squinted at her. He didn’t need to guess to know that in the eyes of others, this girl was absolutely not a good sight, and he was more than willing to think the worst of her.
Under Fisher’s penetrating gaze, Cupid was gradually losing ground, but before he could receive her explanation, she had already pointed ahead in surprise, saying,
“Fisher, look quickly!”
Fisher furrowed his brows and turned to see before their队伍, beneath the towering stone tower of the Ideal Nation, a middle-aged human woman with golden hair dressed in a long gray robe walking out.
Although she appeared slightly older, her beauty remained evident, with her long golden hair cascading down, and her gentle, moist light blue eyes overflowed with the tenderness of an ocean.
Her gaze swept over, meeting Tang Zeming Asuka’s for a brief second. Then, the woman smiled slightly, waved at them, and spoke,
“You’ve come. I have been waiting for you for a long time since I noticed you entering the Tree Continent. Unfortunately, at that time I couldn’t help you and could only relay the truth in order to delay the Duke of Peach. Ah, though you probably saw me in the barrier, I still want to introduce myself.”
Standing on the steps below the stone tower, she introduced herself to Fisher and the group walking closer:
“I am Margaret Rene, a Transmigrator from France, 1956. Pleased to meet you all.”
“1956?”
Mikhail muttered, still trying to grasp what kind of timeframe that was. Tang Zeming Asuka glanced around, a bit embarrassed as she introduced herself.
“Hello, I am Tang Zeming Asuka from 1996. Nice to meet you!”
“Mikhail, New Russian, 2156. These others are also Transmigrators: Fisher, the whale doctor Gouwen from this world, Neceria of the Phoenix Race, and…”
Hela raised a hand to interject, answering quickly,
“A slave of the Holy Realm, Cain.”
Margaret paused slightly, then covered her mouth and laughed lightly.
“Sometimes I truly wonder if I really crossed over. To be honest, there are many names from the Holy Realm I have heard in my world. There might be some unique connection between them, but in any case, I represent the Ideal Nation in welcoming you, dear guests. By the way, come inside. I’ve prepared some tasty tea and snacks for you. It can serve as breakfast or early tea, whichever you prefer.”
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(End of Chapter)
