Altaïr had no idea how Francesca managed it. He had not seen her carrying any large quantity of explosives, yet after only a few minutes of preparation inside the tomb, a terrifying blast tore through the burial chamber.
Flames erupted from the tomb passage and lit the night sky in an instant.
The small underground mausoleum collapsed completely in the explosion, leaving behind nothing but a rubble-strewn ruin.
After once again offering a silent apology to the blameless spirit of the tomb's owner, the group boarded the Sandship.
They first returned the Wyverian Elder, who had been dragged all over the desert with them despite his advanced age, to his tribe. Without stopping to rest, they then hurried back to Sun Worship Town through the night.
At Sun Worship Town's Wingdrake post, Francesca sent an urgent letter to Guild headquarters. She enclosed a detailed report and a photograph of Isis's flickering phantom.
Only after everything had been taken care of did they finally have a chance to breathe. Even the usually carefree Isis remained somewhat shaken.
What they had experienced inside the tomb had frightened them as badly as an unexpected encounter with an Elder Dragon.
After such a bizarre incident, none of them felt like continuing their leisurely journey.
—--
They rested for an extra day in Sun Worship Town. Once Morgan obtained the high-quality heat-resistant alloy he had been eagerly awaiting, the group set off again in the Sandship and returned to the Knowledge Seeker, anchored in the northern desert.
Whether by coincidence or as a natural consequence of their report, an urgent Wingdrake message from Guild headquarters reached the Knowledge Seeker the day after their return.
Lady Lania had been ordered to assume temporary command of the Knowledge Seeker.
Altaïr had expected the scholars to protest, and some of them did voice objections. To his surprise, however, Mr. Alva, whom he had assumed would lead the opposition, firmly silenced every protest and demanded that the scholars obey the Guild's orders to the letter.
Most of the scholars remained at the oasis to continue dissecting and studying the "Demon King." The Knowledge Seeker lifted off with a skeleton crew and headed for the tomb's coordinates deep in the sand sea.
—--
Several days later, the Knowledge Seeker returned.
Curious about what had happened, Altaïr asked Lady Lania. She made no attempt to conceal the answer. "Now, not even the ruins remain."
Seeing her and Mr. Alva work in rare agreement, with their responsibilities clearly divided, Altaïr suspected this was not the first incident of its kind they had handled.
The mysterious machinery incident had come to an end. The Guild and the major academic organizations might continue investigating and take further action, but none of that had much to do with Altaïr and his companions anymore.
—--
The dissection and study of the "Demon King" were also nearing completion.
The Hunters received relatively few materials. After all, the quest had essentially been a research project organized by the Royal Academy, which had committed considerable manpower and funding. The "Demon King's" corpse, along with most of its materials, would naturally be transported back to the Royal Academy as research specimens.
Fortunately, Mr. Alva was considerate enough to understand what the Hunters truly needed.
The Hunters received the hardest parts of the "Demon King," including its dark-crimson horn, heavy carapace, and heavy tail casing.
There was enough material to forge either a complete set of armor or one heavy weapon.
After a brief discussion among the Hunters who had directly participated in the hunt, they awarded Isis the right to use the materials.
Given the choice between new armor and a new weapon, she chose the weapon without a moment's hesitation.
For one thing, she had only recently acquired the Kuarusepu Armor Set. Its performance was excellent, so she had no reason to replace it anytime soon. Her Glavenus Gunlance, on the other hand, was beginning to hold her back at her current level.
She desperately needed a true High Rank weapon. Altaïr already had several...
The other reason was that, although Diablos armor offered outstanding performance and was highly prized by heavily armored Blademasters, tanks were the exception.
Its signature giant-horned pauldrons could not sit flush against a shield in a Defensive Stance, making the user's guard unstable (Guard -10). Almost no tank would choose the set as their armor.
Diablos weapons were a different matter. The heavy weapons in particular, built for pure physical destruction, had always ranked among the very best.
Isis adored the "Demon King's" single horn, which stood nearly as tall as two people. Every so often, she would hoist it up and give it a few swings, plainly unable to wait for the weapon it would become.
That was why Altaïr changed their next destination.
The oasis where they had hunted the "Demon King" lay in the Dede Desert, in the northern Great Desert, only a short distance from Val Habar as the crow flies.
A master smith Isis knew lived there, making it the perfect place to deliver the materials and commission the weapon.
As it happened, Morgan also needed a skilled smith.
He had taken quite a liking to Gunpowder Infusion, the Hunter Art that boosted his Bowgun's firepower with an extra charge of high-yield gunpowder. To avoid anything as disastrous as a barrel burst, he urgently needed to reinforce the weapon's structure with the heat-resistant alloy he had obtained in Sun Worship Town.
After saying goodbye to the Vanguard Hunting Party and everyone aboard the Knowledge Seeker, Altaïr, Isis, and Morgan planned to leave the oasis and walk to Val Habar. It was only a two- or three-day journey.
Just as they were about to set off, a Sandship carved a graceful turn and pulled up sideways in front of them.
"Come on! I'll give you a ride!" Francesca called with a bright smile from the helm. "The Knowledge Seeker will remain here for a few more days while they finish the dissection anyway. I can drop you off and browse Val Habar's shopping district while I'm there. It's been years since my last visit."
No one answered her.
The three people, two Felynes, and even Hakucho all turned at once toward the other person aboard the Sandship.
Holding the sail lines, Serl gave them a slightly awkward smile. "Pawdrick said his heatstroke was so severe that he couldn't move, so he asked me to take his place and help Francesca handle the Sandship."
After a brief silence, realization dawned on Morgan. "So that's why Brandley and the others insisted on dragging me along last night to help sedate the pregnant Black Diablos. They kept saying it was 'for safety'..."
Serl had nothing to say.
Francesca rolled her eyes fiercely. "Are you getting on or not? Keep talking nonsense, and you can all walk!"
"We're getting on, we're getting on." Isis led the way, and the others boarded the Sandship amid laughter.
"Full sails! Let's go!"
Francesca directed Serl as he adjusted the sails, preparing the Sandship to surge forward.
However... the Sandship merely creaked and groaned, inching ahead in fits and starts.
Everyone looked at Francesca. Bristling at the implied criticism, she snapped, "It's not my handling! There are too many people, and the ship is too heavy!"
Altaïr sighed softly. "She's right. Five adults and two Felynes, several of them fully armed Hunters. Oh, and a pile of Diablos materials, plus that single horn, which must weigh as much as two or three people by itself.
"This ship is badly overloaded. Once a strong wind catches the sails, it can still move, but getting started will be difficult, and it could easily lose speed and stop."
"Then what do we do?" Francesca pressed.
Her skill at handling a Sandship had improved by leaps and bounds over the past few days, but she still lacked the experience of a native of the Great Desert who relied on one for everyday transportation.
"Isis, Morgan, let's get off and push. Once the wind picks up and the ship gathers speed, we'll jump aboard and ride for a while. When it slows down again, we'll get off and keep pushing."
"..."
"...Do we absolutely have to take this ship?" Morgan asked, his face filled with despair.
"Yes!"
While Francesca stared at them speechlessly and Serl prepared to climb down and help, Isis put her full strength into a shove. The motionless Sandship lurched forward and began to glide.
* * *
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