Chapter 643

Chapter 28 The Desert and the Great Lizard – Part One

I sat for a moment in the earthen house outside the cellar. The old mayor had gone out to arrange matters, and a girl named Betty stayed close by me, her little face somewhat uneasy.

Before long, someone brought a cloth towel and a veil. Seeing that I was clumsy with them, the young girl ran over proactively, helped me tie up my hair, wrapped it with the cloth towel, and when I put on the veil, my entire face was covered tightly, leaving only my eyes exposed.

With simple preparations completed quickly, I left the earthen house with the young girl. From afar, I could see the old mayor had arranged for a beast of burden to be brought over. Though cumbersome, the creature looked rather gentle, led by a man holding its reins. He pulled it in front of me, smiling foolishly at me. I glanced at him, frowning.

“I don’t need this.”

“That’s not right!”

Upon hearing my words, the old mayor hurried over from the side: “My lady, danger lurks everywhere in the desert, much of which you can’t imagine. If you wish to return to town smoothly, you can’t do without this capable fellow…”

“I don’t need it.”

I reiterated firmly, emphasizing, “Just give me my backpack and plenty of water bags, that’s enough.”

To shut him up, I thought for a moment and added, “Actually, this way will be faster.”

“This…”

The old man looked awkward, pondering before saying, “But surely you need someone to guide you?”

“Alright.” I nodded.

Regarding this point, I had an idea long ago.

“She will do.”

I pointed at the young girl who had hidden behind the old mayor, “Let her follow me. That’s enough.”

As for why…

I felt this young girl seemed a bit naive; she might be the easiest person to fool in this town.

If it were anyone else, I wouldn’t be confident in fully unleashing my chaotic power without being discovered.

Based on the contents of Elona’s manual, although this town didn’t have any taboos against the Fire of Vocation, they likely disliked and even feared the power of the Abyss. They might even understand its origins. Before clarifying these people’s intentions, I didn’t want to reveal any of my cards in front of them.

“Grandpa…”

Seeing that I was pointing at her, the young girl immediately turned pale, tugging at the old mayor’s clothes, looking up at him pitifully.

“Uh…”

The old mayor’s expression changed as well. Of course, he didn’t want his granddaughter to go out adventuring with me. Just as he was about to find an excuse to decline, I waved my hand, silencing him: “She has lived here for ten years. Don’t tell me you don’t know anything about surviving in the desert. I just need someone reasonably good-looking to follow me and guide me. Other than that, there’s no need to worry, and there won’t be any danger. I’ll bring her back before sunset.”

This completely silenced the old man.

Seeing my firm stance with no room for negotiation, he finished speaking and paid no further attention, directly taking the water bags and cloth pack off the beast of burden, slinging the cloth pack around his shoulder, putting both water bags inside, patting the young girl’s tightly shrunk shoulders, then turning to leave.

In the end, Robert sighed, “Ah, girl, just go with her…”

“Grandpa, I’m scared…”

“It’s alright, it’s alright… Her Ladyship is not a demon or a bad person… She won’t eat you…”

The old man was consoling his granddaughter while I slowly walked towards the town entrance. After a while, footsteps followed me from behind.

“My La—Lady…”

The young girl panted as she ran over. Without turning back, I softly said, “Call me Queen.”

“Oh…”

The young girl ran beside me, slightly stunned by my words, looking at me with some fear in her azure eyes, full of uncertainty.

“Q—Queen…”

But she still obediently called me.

Sigh…

Why does it sound so strange?

It’s not like it’s an odd title; everyone calls Victoria that…

Forget it, let’s keep it normal.

“I was just joking.”

I winked at the young girl: “Just call me sister.”

“…Okay.”

The young girl realized I was teasing her, lowering her head and responding gloomily.

Hmm…

She seems to have the personality of someone easily bullied.

“Um, lizards. You know where their nests are, right?”

“I—I know… Father led me to a few…”

“Then take me to the place where they’re most numerous first.”

“G—Good…”

……….

Lanier giant lizards’ nests are scattered throughout the desert. They are practically the largest, fiercest, and most dangerous carnivores in the Epalista region.

According to what the young girl said, there was a sand dune about ten kilometers east of the town…

Atop the mountain was a particularly large cave belonging to a giant lizard. The townspeople had discovered it long ago and had once organized a hunting expedition there. However, people died during that event, so they later considered it a dangerous area and no one approached it again.

After leaving the eastern part of town and walking for a short distance, the wind and sand noticeably intensified. My feet were on soft yellow sand, and I wrapped myself in a spacious robe, with a dragon claw attached to my waist. My head was covered tightly with white cloth, and I wore a veil over my face. Despite this, I still felt fine sand continuously entering my clothes, which was extremely uncomfortable.

The little girl was dressed similarly. She also carried a small leather bag on her back. Perhaps because we occasionally chatted along the way, she wasn’t as tense as before by the time we reached here. She now ran ahead and stopped in front of a purple tree, looking up for a moment.

“Sister…”

She called me while taking out a small knife from her cloth bag. She muttered something, as if in prayer, then slashed the tree trunk with the knife. White sap-like liquid flowed out, and she quickly used her palm to catch it, spreading the liquid on her arm.

“What are you doing?”

I walked over, tilted my head, and asked her with some confusion.

“To prevent sunburn…”

As she applied the sap, she cut open the wound further with the knife to let more sap flow out. “This is a Purple Crown Tree. Its white sap is its nectar. We often do this… collect the nectar and apply it to our skin to prevent sunburn, mask our scent, avoid fierce beasts in the desert, and also repel insects… You should apply some too…”

Oh…

Since it can protect the skin, I might as well apply some.

So, I imitated the little girl’s actions and smeared the sap on my exposed hands and neck. The white sap became transparent when applied to the skin, feeling cool and refreshing, very comfortable.

“Is the desert very dangerous?”

After applying the sap, we continued our journey. The little girl walked half a step ahead of me. Hearing my question, she thought for a moment and replied, “Yes… There are many venomous insects in the desert, and the scorching sun can dry you out. Therefore, you must drink water in moderation. We have only reached the outskirts of town. The east has sand dunes, making it easy to determine directions. But if we want to go far, to places with nothing but yellow earth, we need to use a star chart…”

She said, then rummaged through her small bag and took out a strange circular disk about the size of her palm, holding it in front of my eyes. “Here, this is it. If you don’t know how to use it, you won’t survive here.”

I took the disk and looked at it, seeing intricate numbers and carvings on it. I couldn’t understand any of them, so I found it uninteresting and returned the disk.

“Just keep an eye on it.”

“Okay!” The little girl nodded emphatically. “But we don’t need it right now…”

The morning sun was still relatively mild, but I was already starting to feel the heat. The sandy ground was soft, and every step sank deep, making walking difficult. I got thirsty faster, and thinking about how much hotter it would be at noon made my head feel bigger. I couldn’t help but want to drink water and even pour it on my head, but the little girl stopped me.

“Water is very precious. You can’t use it like that. If we run out, we’ll be in trouble…”

“I know… I’ll just take another sip.”

I should have brought more water bags.

While walking, I was drenched in sweat. Although the long robe could protect against the wind and sand, it couldn’t withstand the heat. Sweat soaked my collar, making me feel extremely uncomfortable. It had been a long time since I had suffered like this. I couldn’t use Frost Order, and my body wasn’t as strong as before. The weakness of ordinary people gradually overwhelmed me, making me feel depressed.

If it were before, I would have flown straight there…

There wouldn’t be so many troubles…

Thinking this, I yearned even more for regaining my strength.

After walking for a long time, we encountered a nest of venomous insects. The sandy dune, full of holes, was almost as tall as a person. Countless black, centipede-like strange insects buzzed around the entrance, their legs densely packed. Although they could be eaten, I had no such intention. I felt my scalp tingling and my spine chilling, pulling the little girl away in panic.

However, after that, I ate several birds.

In this desert lived a type of red bird with a long beak that feeds on venomous insects. These birds were not social, but they were often seen near places with venomous insects. Every time they flew overhead, I would make the little girl close her eyes and count to ten before opening them. During this time, I would quickly release dead smoke to devour them.

The little girl always listened obediently.

She counted loudly, afraid that I might think she was disobedient and open her eyes before reaching ten.

When it was nearly noon and the sun became even more intense, we arrived at the foot of a sand dune. The little girl held her knees, panting for a moment, then pointed to the highest sand dune in the distance.

“There… That’s it… We’re almost there…”