Dungeon of Pride, Laplace

"You are the only one who can sense my presence Vesgard" the bark on Aldebaran parted appearing like a smile.

"Isn't it because you deliberately didn't cover your presence?" the former retorted.

"Haha, even if I didn't cover my presence, believe me it is not so easy to sense me. Anyways, what do you mean by your words?"…

Vesgard was silent for a while, his eyes followed Aldeberan's and stared at the eastern sky of the forest.

"I have known you for a long time to know that your identity is special. You claim yourself as just a simple guardian of this land and the other seven kings seem to be readily accepting that. However, I always had doubts about that"

"I always wondered why this land needed to be guarded. Where did that thing you are protecting come from and what does this forest mean to you? The memories of the world that I have inherited isn't complete as such, I can only make my own assumptions"

"Of course, these are just my thoughts and there are many things that I don't know but I know one thing. Having known you, I'm sure… you are waiting for someone or something to happen that would change this world forever".

"Hoh, why do you say that?" Aldebaran's eyes sockets narrowed causing the emerald light coming from it to dim.

"Didn't I tell you I have known you for a long time? As your friend I have seen you procrastinating about the old times and the future that you want to see. I can't tell when you are excited about something and tired enough to wish that you had died already"

"However, all of this changed since a couple of years ago. You seem to be no longer lost in the memories of the past and seem more forward looking as if eagerly waiting or expecting something to happen"

"Let me guess, these changes started to appear when I last visited you. At that time, you were sheltering the Forest Spring Spirits who were being hunted by the humans due to their insatiable greed. It was also around the same time when the dungeon emerged. If I had to take a shot, I would say that it is because of these aforementioned reasons"

"You… you are expecting something out of that dungeon aren't you? If not, as the guardian of land who has fought and repelled back the advances of the demon continent so many times, you wouldn't have allowed this demon to setup his dungeon here. This forest is precious to you, it reminds you of your old memories or perhaps is associated with it"

Vesgard spoke, his sharp eyes landed on the being next to him.

Hearing what the former had to say, Aldebaran's glowing emerald eyes dimmed and his figure had also stopped moving. The next second, he erupted in a thunderous laughter, his voice booming across the entire mountain peak.

"Haha, I guess I should expect no less from the Wind Lightning Draconic Falcon, one fo the subsidiary races of the dragon clan. You are indeed worthy of being from that clan".

As he said that, his slightly stiff body relaxed. Of course, he was all tree and braches, there was no skin or muscles to know for sure that he had relaxed. It was just a figure of speech based on how the tree barks dropped down, giving him a relaxed atmosphere.

"You might be right, I am indeed looking for something, a change to be correct. This world has become stagnant like a caged trap ever since that time. Of course, at that time, even I was too little and immature to understand the aftermaths and repercussion that it would bring to our world" Novel Fire - novelfire.net

"Everyone was helpless, they could only rely on him. And what did they do in return? Deviating from the goal they start fighting among themselves and cause bloody wars. If that's not looking on him then what is? The people of this world have forgotten their true purpose"

"A change needs to occur. Finally, that wind of change which is only a small breeze right now, has arrived. Only this wind of change can save this world. I have been waiting for a long time now, so long to give up hope many times. However, in the end, still believing in my duty and the old memories, I continued to guard this land"

"You say that this forest is precious to me? Well of course it is, it is the very place that I was born in, it is the very place I met master. Of course, it was not called the Ghastly Winding Forest nor was it located here at that time"

Lost in the world of his own, Aldebaran recounted some events from the past. His words vague, painted a picture of an ancient world, events from the past that had been completely forgotten by the people of the present time.

The goal they had been mentioned and the being who sacrificed himself to save the world and whose expense they are still living on.

"Who are you talking about? What do you mean the Ghastly Winding Forest was not located here? What has this do with the things that I just mentioned?"

The more he heard his explanation, the more questions popped inside Vesgard's mind.

"Even if I tell you now, you won't be able to do anything. It is still too early and you won't be able to handle the repercussions of the information. There is no need for you to be so impatient. You are still young and unlike me, you still have long years to live. With time, you will naturally have answers to all those questions" Aldebaran answered.

The former pondered deeply at those words before fianly nodding his head. "Alright, I'll stop asking you questions and wait to see what kind of change you hope for myself. However, can I ask you one last question?"…

"Go ahead?"…

"Do you believe that the dungeon would survive this ordeal? Gil-Garna and his group are sure to attack the dungeon from that shortcut they found. It seemed like Yverza and Shasurna are also on board. Three of the seen kings, this kind of power isn't something that a newly emerged dungeon can handle. This wind of change that you are talking about, I'm afraid that it will get snuffed before it can even grow into a full fledged gale?"

Vesgard questioned. Although he was not interested in the dungeon, based on what he understood from Aldebaran, this dungeon and the demon who created it seemed to be special.

However, no matter how special one was, in this world, strength was the final determiner of everything. If you don't have strength, you are just another stepping stone on the path of someone else who is stronger than you.

One needed time to grow stronger along with other various factors that are associated with it. However, if one is denied even that, then it is the end for them. The same was the case with the Dungeon of the East. It was special no doubt, being able to rise in rank so fast. It had already overturned the unwritten law of this world in its head. But it was still too premature and unexperienced.

It had only been over four years since the dungeon emerged in the forest. Given the timeframe of its emergence to till now, it would be appropriate to say that it was not ready to face beings on the level of the Seven Kings and the clans they led.

If the dungeon falls, so would the demon and the wind of change that he mentioned about would also be gone forever before it could even stabilise itself in the world.

"Haha, I was wondering what you will ask. So it turns out you are worried about the dungeon" Contrary to what Vesgard expected, instead of being worried for this wind of change he mentioned, he looked all relaxed and free of worries.

"Don't worry, he won't be defeated by the likes of Gil-Garna and his group"…

"How can you say that? Gil-Garna is a variant ogre of his race who was able to reach the violet horn. With the inheritance of the ancient beast he received and the various shadowy movements he had made these past decades, his strength has grown even further"

"The black ogre tribe is also far stronger than before. This is not mentioning the fact that he is joined by Yverza and Shasurna who are not any weaker" Vesgard seemed unconvinced.

"Hmm, it looks like I won't be able to convince you witth simple words. Then how about this, what if I tell you this, I have personally tested the strength of the demon myself"…

"What?!!"

As soon as Aldebaran mentioned that, his expression changed and he couldn't help but doubt his ears. What did it mean for Aldebaran, the ruler of the ancient treants, the guardian of the forest and the strongest being here, testing the strength of the demon himself?

Putting aside the fact of how the latter performed, just the fact that Aldebaran went out of his way to even test the strength of the demon himself proved how highly he viewed the other party.

"How did he perform?".

The bark on Aldebaran's face arched appearing almost like a grin "He aced the first trial I set for him even though I made it so that it was impossible to clear. As for the second trial, it is ongoing you will have to wait for a while. Ah, about that... don't worry you won't have to wait longer to know the result"