Whoosh!
At the very moment Faulerei had finished his words, a platform made out of mana appeared beneath the feet of everyone involved in the journey to the Four Pillars' Inheritance. Not long after, these platforms began to hover off the ground as everyone was forced to use their own mana to stabilize themselves.
"Hold on tight." As Faulerei said these words, it did not take long for everyone else to realize that he had been the one to create the platforms. Though amazed at the level of strength the old man had shown them, everyone still focused their attention on stabilizing themselves as everyone began to head away from the kingdom under Faulerei's control.
…
Swoosh!
Though Faulerei was controlling the platforms of over 30 people at once, the old man did not seem the least bit burdened as everyone zoomed through the vast plains on the outskirts of the Algerie Kingdom. For some, the sight outside the kingdom was something they were just seeing for the first time, causing them to look around with expressions of wonder and awe on their faces.
As for Julian, Valyr, and a great portion of the reconnaissance teams part of the journey, they instead looked at the surroundings with a solemn expression. With how the orcs had infiltrated the Akashic Battlefield without anyone noticing less than two weeks earlier, all of them remained vigilant, reminding themselves that there was a chance for the orcs to ambush them along the way.
After all, with how large their group was, and how they were heading further into the outskirts of the kingdom, the orcs would eventually realize that they were heading to somewhere important.
Fortunately, during their entire journey, they did not come across any of the orcs whatsoever. Because of that, those from the reconnaissance team that remained vigilant all this time let out a long sigh of relief, considering that their purpose in coming along was to protect the candidates from any sudden ambushes.
"We're here." Seeing that they had finally arrived at their intended location, Faulerei dispelled all of the platforms he had been controlling all this time, allowing everyone to explore their current surroundings in greater detail.
Then again, for the most part, everyone quickly gathered the fact that they had arrived at what looked to be the inner depths of a considerably large forest. Though everyone was tempted to take a look at their current location through the system's map, Faulerei had made them swear an oath to not divulge any information regarding the inheritance's location to others.
With that, almost all of them had shifted their attention towards the large structure before them.
"A gate…" Muttering these words to himself, Valyr had a solemn expression on his face as he intently looked at what he felt to be the entrance to the inheritance.
Made out of what looked to be locally-sourced stone, the structure looked like a gate inspired by gate designs usually found in the east part of the continent. Aside from that, a few stone wheels of varying sizes were embedded on the ground in a specific position in front of the gate, all of them containing exquisite carvings.
After looking at the entire thing for a bit more, the young man began to wonder whether they had arrived at the right place, feeling nothing unique from the structure. At this point, many among the group began to feel like the entire thing felt like a large art piece made by a reclusive artist that wanted to leave a mark in the world.
However, these thoughts all changed once Faulerei walked deeper into the structure, stepping on the largest stone wheel found in the center.
"Haah!"
Swoosh!
As the old man flared the entirety of his aura, it was as if the structure had come to life. Out of nowhere, a ray of golden energy shone down on the large stone gate, only for this ray of energy to spread throughout the various stone wheels located throughout the place.
One by one, the carvings on the stone wheels began to be filled with this golden energy, starting from the stone wheels that were farthest from the gate before making their way inward. Eventually, most of this golden energy congregated onto four stone wheels found on the four corners of the largest stone wheel, prompting Valyr and the other candidates to look at each other before nodding.
"The entire structure has been gathering energy for the entire decade, all for the purpose of being opened once more." Nodding in satisfaction as he watched Valyr and the others step onto the four golden wheels, Faulerei looked at the others before deciding to explain more.
"However, unlike other inheritances, which would open automatically on its own accord, this structure would only open once it has achieved two conditions: the first being the accumulation of enough energy, and the second being the aura of a Legend."
At those words, the eyes of Valyr and the other three widened in surprise. Though they were amazed by the fact that Faulerei could still wield a lot of strength, thoughts of the old man being a Legend did not cross their minds at all. At most, they expected him to be an Epic, or at least be close to becoming a Legend.
"Now, with the four candidates having taken their respective spots, the entrance to the Four Pillars' Inheritance will open once I leave this spot." Glancing at Valyr and the others for a bit, Faulerei continued his explanation, this time addressing it to the four. "With that, I'll take this time to tell the four entering the inheritance a few reminders."
"First off, one day inside the inheritance is equivalent to two weeks on the outside," said the old man, causing frowns to appear on Valyr and the other candidates. Being the chosen talents of their respective guilds, all of them knew that their presence could provide a lot of help in the skirmish against the orcs. In fact, some of them even began to hesitate entering the inheritance because of it.
With how large the time dilation was between the inheritance and the real world, over three months would have passed if they were to stay in the inheritance for a week. What more to say if they stayed in the inheritance for a longer time?
At that point, they might not have a kingdom to return to.
"With that being said, though you could take your time exploring the entirety of the inheritance, I still hope you keep in mind the time difference between the two," continued Faulerei after giving the four enough time to think, to which the four eventually nodded in response. "Due to the immense difference in time, the ability to communicate with those from the outside world is disabled after you enter the inheritance, so I'd suggest you send your messages to your loved ones before you enter."
Hearing that, the four looked back at Faulerei with a calm expression, prompting the latter to realize that they had already done so before coming here. Nodding in satisfaction, the old man went ahead and gave the four his final reminder. "Though the first two reminders are important, this final reminder I shall be giving you is the most important of them all."
Perking up their ears, Valyr and the other three listened attentively to what Faulerei had to say. However, once the old man was finished talking, everyone looked at him with confused expressions.
"Ascend to Rank 3 as soon as you can."
