Still, Ethan had, from the start, remained cautious about the authenticity of the map as well.
That was why he had invited Desmond and Galeion to help verify the map further. After getting it examined through their own sources, both of them found out that this map must be the real deal and eventually decided to accompany him on the expedition.
Meanwhile, Ethan’s relationship with Maximus had also deepened considerably after the latter finally opened up about his past and his desire to regain Lia a few months back.
Both of them had promised William to become strong enough to deserve his assistance and to be good enough to assist him as well.
Ethan understood that hunger for strength well enough. That was why he had invited Maximus to join them as well.
Meanwhile, the girls had their own plans, and William was nowhere to be found, which Ethan, Max, and Desmond had some hint about why, but they did not talk about it much on this trip and decided to focus on the ruin exploration.
At the end of his preparations, only Deson and Galeion had tagged along; Ethan was sure there were experts from both of their factions tailing them at all times, and this development reassured Ethan. Meanwhile, on the surface, he acted ignorant, pretending to be a hot-blooded young man who was excited to go on an adventure.
As for convincing Klaus, it had been quite easy to get permission from him; in fact, he had sent him away a bit too enthusiastically.
There was also a trade deal going on with some high noble; maybe his master was excited about that.
Desmond was not restricted much by his father since the dwarven emperor had secluded himself in his smithy, researching some new material.
Maximus’s movements were not restricted much anyway, especially after his elder brother Edward fell sick and developed a minor mental problem. Almost everyone is focused on him giving Maximus a worry-free opportunity to leave on an adventure.
The only unexpected addition to the group had been Alfred.
Initially, everyone had hesitated to allow him to accompany them. Yet somehow, through persistence, strange logic, and surprisingly convincing words, Alfred had managed to force his way into the expedition.
That incident alone had made Ethan realize just how valuable persuasive ability could sometimes be, though it wasn’t like he did not welcome the idea of him tagging along; after all, he was the heir of a duke, so surely there would be experts sent for him, too.
A while later, Alfred finished thoroughly looting every corpse left behind by the bandits before finally climbing into the back of the carriage.
The moment he sat down, everyone stared at him strangely.
Desmond’s face twitched slightly before he finally voiced the question lingering in his mind.
"Are you sure you are the son of a duke?? And that too, someone as rich as Draconis??"
The dwarf genuinely struggled to believe it.
He had never seen a noble heir behave so greedily before, especially one willing to strip dead bandits of even the smallest valuables.
Alfred answered without embarrassment.
"I am robbing them just like they robbed many innocents; this is my way of ensuring justice!!"
Desmond’s expression twitched even harder after hearing such shameless reasoning.
Eventually, no one bothered responding anymore.
Silence gradually settled over the carriage once again as everyone returned to meditation or rest.
Meanwhile, Alfred leaned quietly against the wooden wall of the cart while observing the sword resting across his lap.
In truth, Alfred Draconis had died nearly six months ago during the incident involving the Clayman Cult.
The one currently occupying this body was Kang.
In his previous life, he had been known across the world as Mystic Kang, one of the strongest beings of an ancient era.
Back then, the Aris Continent was not even called Aris, and it had not been separated from the major landmasses of the scarred lands.
It had been a completely different age.
The demons had only recently appeared during his time, and humanity had crushed them repeatedly beneath overwhelming force. The other races of the world existed separately and constantly fought one another for dominance.
Alliances between different races had been almost unimaginable.
That was why, after awakening 50,000 years into the future inside the body of a young noble, Kang had experienced endless confusion.
Even now, he still found it difficult to fully understand the current dynamics of the world.
Why were all the races united?
What was the point?
As far as Kang remembered, demons were little more than pests that could easily be exterminated.
So why had alliances against them become necessary?
Those questions constantly lingered in his mind.
Still, he had carefully controlled himself and avoided asking anything suspicious that might expose him.
However, the biggest shock came later.
The natives of this scarred world had actually betrayed their own races and formed cults that worshipped demon gods.
The very same demon gods Kang once forced to sweep the floors of his palace.
Every time he thought about it, frustration welled inside him.
How had the world degraded to this extent?
After awakening fifty thousand years later, all he could find were weakened descendants carrying mere traces of the former glory of their races.
Still, Kang believed there was a reason he had been brought into this era.
He believed the Supreme Mother had sent him here with a purpose.
To unite the Scarred lands again.
To establish dominance over the demonic race once more and also elevate humanity’s level to its former glory.
And perhaps most importantly...
To fix the utterly absurd and stupid cultivation structure of this era.
Kang’s expression darkened slightly at the thought.
Some fool had apparently named the third cultivation stage as the "Godhood Realm."
Every time Kang remembered that, he cursed the unknown individual internally.
The amount of exaggeration and gaslighting involved was unbearable, in his opinion.
As the carriage continued moving through the silent forest, Kang slowly shifted his gaze toward Ethan’s figure.
"Heaven’s blessed," he murmured.
Then his eyes moved toward Maximus.
"Heaven’s forsaken."
A faint, amused smile appeared on Kang’s face.
For heaven’s blessed and heaven’s forsaken to travel together as comrades...
Even after 50,000 years of life experience, Kang still found the situation absurdly odd and amusing.
He leaned back against the cart and shook his head lightly.
"What a day to be alive!"