Kieee!
Sturrala was in her study, scribbling something in a notebook when she heard a familiar bird cry. Her hands stopped in response as there was momentary disbelief expressed through her eyes.
she set aside the quill and opened the windows, staring at the familiar metallic eagle. No, not only was it now bigger than in her memory, it also seemed to be wearing a mysterious helmet on its head.
Sturrala noticed the metallic eagle revolving in the sky atop her mansion, showing no intention of descending for the time being, as if to alert her of its existence.
'How come he's alive?' She was unable to think up an answer for this, for she had indeed left him for dead back there. But here he was, seemingly stronger than before.
"How…is it possible?" Her mental state took another hit upon staring at the figure of Kowla next to Duketace. And what was astonishing was the fact that both father and daughter duo were Superior Invokers.
The last time she saw them, they were only Common Invokers, especially Duketace that had hit his limit and couldn't improve no matter what he tried.
Him lacking a future was one of the reasons that spurred her to take the decision that she did.
"Fine, since you're here, I'll meet you." She hurriedly regained her bearings, taking in deep breaths to calm down before bringing out her Invoked Spirit, riding it towards the metal eagle.
"Duketace…" She muttered, hovering ten metres away from her husband, "You're alive."
"Indeed," Duketace nodded nonchalantly, "I've come to trade, Sturrala."
"Trade?" Sturrala was taken by surprise as she said, "What do you have to trade? I pretty much took everything you had brought during our escape."
"That doesn't matter." Duketace grinned as he pointed at Pilkan, "Lord Pilkan not only saved me, but he also allowed me to break past my prior limits and become a Superior Invoker."
"Lord Pilkan?" Only then did Sturrala stare at the figure of Compass Carburettor who seemed to have fused with their seat, finding the other party's appearance odd.
A moment later, she recognised his face, exclaiming in shock, "Isn't this Pilkan from that branch family? What is happening here?"
"Currently in his body is an old Ascender." Duketace said in pride, "We're the personal servants of an Ascender. That's how our strength ballooned so much in such a short duration."
"What…do you wish to trade with me?" Sturrala asked in response, feeling tense upon staring at Compass Carburettor, noticing the faint mist swirling around his arms.
"You," Compass Carburettor said with a smile, surprising Sturrala as he continued, "I want you to become my subordinate. In response, I'll make you an Ascender."
"Impossible…" Sturrala intended to shout in disbelief before realising that she was dealing with an Ascender. She calmed down her tense nerves before asking in all seriousness, "What else?"
"Do it," Compass Carburettor smiled at Kowla in response who took out a whistle and blew hard into it. The sound wasn't audible to the human ears by a couple of minutes later, droves of eagles flew towards the archipelago.
The eagles numbered in the thousands. While on his stay at the island, Compass Carburettor helped raise the living conditions of the eagles, causing them to lay eggs at least double as compared to the previous years.
This was enough for the Lan Clan to not notice anything amiss as Kowla summoned a large group of eagles in her direction once they had escaped Peika's pursuit.
With that, they brought the eagle group with them, arriving at the archipelago. Sturrala's goal was to create a strong Clan while Compass Carburettor needed a large group of people to do everything he needed.
So, it was the best to bring Sturrala under his control.
Staring at the thousands of eagles flying in the sky, Sturrala was stunned before her face flushed red, barely able to reign in her excitement. The sheer number of eagles here meant that she could accelerate her plans.
Moreover, if what Compass Carburettor said was the truth, then her chances of becoming an Ascender would become higher under his guidance.
Even though she wished to remain an independent ruler, but that could wait until she became an Ascender first. Thoughts churned in her mind as Sturrala cunningly eyed Duketace and Kowla, smiling soon after as she stared at Pilkan, "Then, here's to a successful cooperation."
"Then, to congratulate you in advance, take this." Saying so, Pilkan threw a palm-sized slab at Sturrala, watching the other party fumble a little before catching hold of it.
"What…is this?" Sturrala asked, staring at the image inscribed on the front of the slab and the eleven lines on its back.
"That's the Forbidden Tale." Duketace said with a smile, watching Sturrala become stunned in response as his grin widened, "So you've heard of it."
"This…is the Forbidden Tale." Sturrala was shocked as she stared at Pilkan, "Who are you, sir?"
"Just someone that has been erased from history." Compass Carburettor put on an expression of regret and nostalgia, sighing as he stared at the sky.
He then shrugged his shoulders, staring at Sturrala to say, "You can put it in your Dreamland, you know. I created it using Eagle Mental Fragments."
"You…created it?" Sturrala almost fainted in response, 'So, the Forbidden Tale that caused so much chaos was created by this person?'
'If it's like this, then it makes sense why Duketace and Kowla had obtained a growth spurt in their abilities.' Thinking as such, Sturrala focused her Dreamland on the mini-Forbidden Tale, watching it appear in her Dreamland.
While it was there, she began to focus on it, barely feeling like she gained an answer to something profound when she sensed her Dreamland stir in response.
"So it is true that the Forbidden Tale can raise the harmony of one's Dreamland." She muttered in shock at the mystical phenomenon, staring at Duketace to nod in understanding, "So that's why you managed to become a Superior Invoker."
"All the defects in your Dreamland's foundation were resolved by this."
