Chapter 263: Fire on the River Bank
Chapter 263: Fire on the River Bank
After apologizing to Ella, Evelyn and Elysia no longer bothered about Theo's matter anymore, as they said. Then, they were just chatting lightly with the others while looking at the expansive view of the land from a height, even though it was changing rapidly due to Gravy Ark's speed.
"By the way, you girls are still wearing the modest dresses, and you are still wearing the formal outfit, boy. Was it intentional or was it just because you forgot?" Maximilian suddenly asked after telling a little story about his recent research because of Evelyn's request.
"Eh?"
"Huh?"
The confused and somewhat shocked responses of the three girls and a boy were immediately thrown out. They glanced down at the clothes they were wearing. Sure enough, they forgot to change into more comfortable clothes before leaving.
"Ah-um, yes, it looks like we forgot, Sir Maximilian." Ella scratched her cheek a little.
"Uhh, looks like this will be fine. We're just sitting here waiting to get to our destination, right?" Elysia tried to convince her friends that everything was fine.
"Hum, I think so." Evelyn nodded, but she saw that the boy near her was also following her. "Eh, why are you nodding too, Fran? Your current outfit isn't much different from the casual adventurous attire you wore before."
"Well, what can I do, Evelyn? I just nodded because I have the same opinion as Elysia. After all, men's clothes don't have as many variants and types as women's." Fran lifted his shoulder in a half shrug and spread his hands a little.
"Ho, hum..." Evelyn was speechless because it couldn't be more than real.
At that moment, they saw a thick black smoke drifting into the air in the distance. It reached tens of meters in the air. Something was happening down there, and it didn't seem like a peaceful thing.
"Thick smoke? Is there a fire down there? Forest fire?" Fran put her hand on her forehead and tried to look into the distance, but it was useless. Then he took out the binoculars and tried again.
At the same time, Ariel and Maximilian already knew what was going on down there. They only used their magic vision, and everything was clearly visible even though the distance was still quite far.
As they got closer to the scene, Ariel slowed down the Gravy Ark and raised the altitude.
"What's going on down there, Fran? Please lend me your binoculars. I also want to know the source of this thick smoke." Evelyn tugged into Fran's clothes as he was busy finding out what was going on down there.
"A fairly large fire is breaking out. It looks like a village or camp. The red rooster is even creeping into the forest too. Here." Fran shared what he saw and gave the binoculars to Evelyn.
"Hum, a pretty big fire in a camp with hundreds of people nearby. They are fighting two big lizards on the big river bank over there. How? Are we going to help them?" Elysia informed the detail and asked because she realized that Gravy Ark had slowed down a lot.
"Impressive eyesight. Can you see that far with only the naked eye, Miss Elysia?" Ariel was impressed by Elysia's remark. She looked back, waiting for the girl's response.
"Hehe, my eyesight is indeed good." Elysia gave an innocent smile. She didn't want to explain about her concentrated vision or anything else.
"What? Then it's bad for them, right? Miss Ariel, please slow down the Gravy Ark. We need to see the event more clearly and if necessary, we'll lend a helping hand for them." Ella folded her hands in her lap. She seemed quite concerned and restless.
"Our Gravy Ark has slowed down and is traveling at a low speed, Holy Princess. We will stop at the right point to observe the details of the incident before we decide to help." Ariel declared and stood up. She observed the event, which took place several kilometers away with precision.
"Whoo! Just like Ely said, I can see that there are two large earthen lizards that can spit fire. Many people are fighting the two big lizards, but it looks like they are on the losing side. Oww, their camp was burnt down and the forest nearby was also affected by the fire." Evelyn reported what she saw at the battle on the river bank.
"Then we need to help them immediately before any victims fall. Let's go down and drive the big earthen lizards away." Ella looked over at everyone, hoping the others would share the same opinion.
"No, going down there to interfere without knowing anything is unjustifiable. However, if that is your wish, then I will go down and help them to drive the two earthen lizards away, Holy Princess." Ariel denied Ella's proposal, but she came up with another solution for it instead.
"But, is that alright with you alone, Miss Ariel?" Ella asked out of concern. She also didn't want anything amiss to happen to Ariel.
"It's okay, Ella. Miss Ariel is strong enough to repel those two oversized lizards with ease. She is a Saint-level holy knight for the good of the world." Elysia smiled as she lightly stroked the worried girl's back.
"But, hngh..." Ella wanted to talk more, but she immediately pressed her lips together when she looked at Elysia. She realized she was being a little outrageous about her opinion.
"No worries, I'm alone is enough to deal with that. All things aside, I have concerns that the two earthen lizards have gone berserk because of the people from the burning camp." Ariel controlled the Gravy Ark to float closer and stopped exactly three hundred meters above the scene.
"Sir Maximilian, and the knights of the Reinhard Family... Please pay attention to the dangers and the unforeseen. I'll be back in a moment." Ariel turned around after putting Gravy Ark on standby. She conveyed that with a stern expression.
"We understand, Miss Ariel. We will risk our lives to protect everyone." One of the knights immediately stood up and responded with the fist in front of his side chest.
"Positive." The other three knights followed after with the same knight salute.
"Aye, leave the girls and the boy to us. I won't let misfortune come to them when you get down." Maximilian also stood up but did nothing afterward.
"Very well, Holy Princess, I will come down to help them. Please grant me your wish." Ariel knelt right in front of Ella.
"Miss Ariel, please help those who are in trouble down there by driving the two earthen lizards away. Please come back without any injuries." Ella clasped her hands, sincere in her words.
"Your wish shall be carried out without fail, Holy Princess." After saying that, Ariel returned to her feet. She took out a beautiful golden spear from her Space Bag. After deactivating Gravy Ark's light barrier, she jumped into freefall.
Ella approached the edge next to Evelyn and glanced down with her friend. She wanted to see Ariel in action to save the campers from two large lizards.
"Hey, you curious little girls... Be careful, you can fall if you sit on the edge like that." Maximilian lifted an eyebrow, feeling overwhelmed by the two girls.
To his surprise, the girl he thought was the wisest among the youngsters also got together with her friends. Elysia let Rosie sleep on the floor with a pillow, and then she also went to the edge to watch what happened below them.
"We'll be fine, Sir Maximilian. I'll guarantee it." Elysia waved her hand lightly with reassurance.
"Here we go again... Well, whatever." Maximilian facepalmed, shook his head, then approached the girls. He sat near them just in case.
Fran also drew closer to the edge because he didn't want to miss seeing the Saint-level holy knight in action with his own eyes. It could be a valuable experience for him, even if he didn't use the spear as a weapon.
Meanwhile, below them, a fierce battle occurred between many people who were teaming up against the two rampaging Spirit Beasts.
"Lord Jordan, our camp has been burned to the ground in the lizards' firestorm just now!"
Hearing a shout from his men, an aristocrat on the front lines immediately retreated. He left his aides and adventurers he hired to deal with the two berserk large lizards for a while.
"What about our supplies and precious materials? Are all Space Bags safe?" Jordan frowned in anxiety, hoping the worst didn't happen.
"Our food supplies and camps were completely burned out, but the things we brought were already secured by Aayan before anything caught fire. Look, he's there with all the Space Bags." The man pointed to the side, and Jordan turned his head that way.
Two hundred meters to the side, a pale man with round glasses was hugging the stack of Space Bags inside the small wagon. It was as if he was protecting his lover from the harm of any kind.
"Phew, thank goodness then. We can live in the open forest and food can be found from anywhere, but the valuable materials in all those Space Bags are top priority." Jordan rubbed his chest and let out a sigh of relief. Yet, he tried to recall why these lizards went berserk.
A few moments ago, some people went fishing in the river. After a tiring week of mining underground, it was time for them to eat fresh meat.
It was just a coincidence, and it couldn't be more than that. A large egg was found in the bush. His men searched the surroundings but found no beasts within a kilometer's radius. Without thinking any longer, they feasted on the egg dish and lots of fish to celebrate their success.
Who would have thought, a large lizard appeared from the river and went berserk. After repelling one with exhausting effort, the beast sought the assistance of a larger one and came attacking again.
And currently, they were only fighting fruitlessly against two high-level Spirit Beasts. Even with the more than a hundred people teaming up against these two lizards, they started onto the losing side.
"Damn you big lizards! It's just an egg, just make one more!" Jordan shouted loudly in annoyance. He squeezed his gauntlet-clad hands into fists, preparing to attack.
"Grrr!" The most giant lizard responded to the human's loud cry and attacked all out in a rage again.
Shortly before he rushed to charge with a fierce blow, a long golden spear fell from the sky. It fell near the most powerful beast.
*Bam!*
The golden spear caused a large crack in the ground and a blast wave that sent many people flying. Then, a stunning valkyrie clad in gold armor and purple cloth descended from the sky.