Chương 224: Chapter : 224

The private library was enormous. Shelves stretched from floor to ceiling on every wall, packed with ancient manuscripts, rolled scrolls, leather-bound journals, and crumbling codices. The air was cool and dry, preserved by some kind of magical climate control. A thin layer of dust covered everything, suggesting that even Hephaestus did not visit this room very often. Heart returned a few minutes later carrying a massive, iron-bound encyclopedia that was so thick it looked like it could stop a cannonball.

She slammed it onto a workbench with a heavy thud that sent a puff of dust into the air.

"The Comprehensive Index of Obscure Magical Fauna," Heart said in her flat, gravelly voice.

"This is the most complete record of rare and unverified magical creatures in the Empire. It has not been updated in seventy years, and half of it is probably nonsense. But it is what we have." Sayma was already at the workbench. Her tired eyes lit up with a spark of hope as she opened the heavy iron cover. The pages were yellowed and brittle, covered in tiny, fading handwritten text that was barely legible. She had to squint to make out the words.

She flipped through the pages carefully, her long fingers moving with surgical precision. Creature after creature scrolled past. The Fanged Serpent of the Ashlands. The Mirror Fox of the Crystal Caverns. The Whispering Moth of the Dead Marshes. All fascinating, none of them helpful. Sayma's heart was sinking. Her fingers were getting slower. The hope that had flared in her chest when she first opened the book was guttering like a candle in the wind. She was running out of pages. Running out of time.

Running out of options. Then she found it.

"Here," Sayma breathed, her voice barely above a whisper. Her finger stopped on a page near the middle of the book. There was a small, faded illustration of a majestic deer with a long, crystalline horn. The text beneath it was written in cramped, ancient handwriting. The others gathered around as Sayma read the fading text out loud.

"The Glayin. Classification: mythical. Status: unverified but documented by multiple independent sources. Habitat: exclusively within the deep interior of the Silverleaf Jungle, eastern border of the Belmontia Empire."

"Keep reading," Iris urged softly. Sayma continued, her voice growing more excited with every line.

"The creature is incredibly rare and highly elusive. No confirmed sightings have been recorded by Imperial surveyors in over two centuries. The Glayin's horn possesses extraordinary mana-purification properties and is cited in several ancient texts as the only known substance capable of neutralizing Class-S mana poisons." Naomi's hand tightened on the edge of the workbench.

"Class-S mana poisons. That is what Blue Decay is. That is exactly what Luna has." Sayma nodded quickly and kept reading.

"The creature's exact location within the Silverleaf Jungle is a closely guarded secret, known only to the reclusive Dimitri tribe, an off-grid indigenous clan that inhabits the jungle's deepest regions. The Dimitri have no known diplomatic relations with the Empire." The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

"The Dimitri tribe," Ken mumbled lazily from the back of the group. He was leaning against a bookshelf, his eyes half-closed, but he had heard every single word.

"So we need to find a hidden tribe in an uncharted jungle. Cool. No problem. Sounds like a fun weekend."

"It is not a weekend trip, Ken," Naomi snapped, but her voice lacked its usual heat. She was too focused on the information to be truly angry. Hephaestus leaned against the workbench, arms crossed.

"The Silverleaf Jungle is dangerous. Uncharted territory, aggressive magical beasts, and if this Dimitri tribe is as reclusive as the book says, they probably will not welcome visitors with open arms."

"We do not have a choice," Iris said, her voice quiet but iron-firm. She looked at Hephaestus with grateful, sincere eyes.

"Thank you, brother. You may have just saved Luna's life." Hephaestus waved a grease-stained hand dismissively.

"I just opened a door. You are the ones walking through it." He paused, then added softly, "Be careful in that jungle, Iris. I do not trust those woods." Iris nodded. She turned to her team, her violet eyes burning with resolve.

"We have one week. We find the Dimitri tribe, we find the Glayin deer, and we save Luna. That is the mission. Let us go." Sayma carefully copied the relevant pages from the encyclopedia, jotting down the location details and tribal information in her notebook. Her pen moved fast and sure, capturing every word, every diagram, every footnote. She pushed her glasses up with a hand that was no longer trembling. They had a lead. They had a direction. They had hope.

Heart watched the whole process with her arms crossed and her scowl firmly in place. But just before they left, she reached into her coat pocket and handed Iris a small, heavy compass made of brass.

"This is a military-grade navigation tool," Heart said gruffly.

"It works even in high-mana interference zones. Like jungles." Iris looked at her in surprise.

"Thank you, Heart."

"Do not thank me," Heart muttered, looking away.

"Just bring your people back alive." Iris tucked the compass into her pocket and nodded. It was more than she had expected from a rival unit. It was a reminder that even in the Succession War, some people still had decency. Ken followed the group out of the library, his hands stuffed in his pockets, his expression as lazy and unbothered as ever. But as they walked through the corridor toward the exit, his dark eyes flicked toward the private library one more time. There were other books in there.

Books that were not on the workbench. Books that nobody had looked at. Books with maps and journals and handwritten notes stuffed between their pages. Shelves and shelves of them, gathering dust in the dark. A small, barely noticeable smile crossed Ken's face. Then it was gone, hidden behind his usual mask of sleepy indifference. He shuffled after the group, yawning loudly. The walk back to the estate was quiet. The cool night air helped clear their heads.

Sayma clutched her notebook to her chest like a treasure, the copied pages safe inside. Naomi walked beside Iris, her hand resting on the hilt of her dagger, her eyes scanning the dark streets out of habit. Iris walked with her head high and her steps firm. She had the information she needed. She had a target. She had a timeline. Now all she needed was the courage to walk into an uncharted jungle and find a mythical creature that the entire world had forgotten existed. No pressure at all.

"Hey, can we get breakfast before we hike into the deadly jungle?" Ken asked nobody in particular.

"Just asking. For a friend."

"No," Naomi, Sayma, and Iris said at the exact same time.

"Worth a shot," Ken muttered. But his dark eyes were watching the road ahead, and his mind was already three steps ahead of everyone else. Planning. Calculating. Preparing.