"Half a year…" murmured Hal to himself in disbelief. "We've really been here for over half a year already?"
Seeing the man and the other three looking at him for answers, Valyr bitterly smiled. "Yeah. Once the next day comes, we would have officially been stuck here for seven months."
Thanks to the small mishap that happened during their return from the Gates of Enlightenment back then, Hal and the others understood that the time Valyr had given them was in relation to the outside world.
If they were to convert into the time they spent inside the inheritance, then it would only amount to roughly two weeks.
However, even though all of them knew that they had only spent two weeks within the inheritance, looks of hesitation had already begun to appear on the faces of the four.
In their minds, they thought that they would only need to spend a few days inside the inheritance to get the things they needed and the Imperial Production Guild needed.
In fact, they estimated that they would disappear from the outside world for three or four months to take care of everything.
But because Valyr had introduced the existence of the Triad Gates to them, they begun to forgot about such thoughts, instead enjoying the rewards that were given to them for their efforts.
Thus, their stay ended up becoming far longer than it would have initially been.
Knowing what was brewing in the outside world before they even entered the inheritance, the four wore solemn expressions on their faces as the gears in their minds madly turned.
On the other hand, Valyr gave them the leeway to ponder over things in silence as he returned his gaze to the timer at the bottom.
[Remaining Time: 154 days, 16 hours, 32 minutes, and 52 seconds.]
'Only five months left before Greater Beyond's public release,' thought the young man to himself, inwardly letting out a sigh at how much time remained.
Though a small part of Valyr was glad that he only had to wait for that much time to continue enacting his plans, he mostly felt regret over the fact that he could not make greater use of the time he had been given.
Sure, entering the inheritance had allowed his strength to improve by leaps and bounds. On top of that, his skill set had improved in all areas thanks to the rewards given by the inheritance.
However, that didn't mean that he couldn't achieve the same thing in the outside world, possibly needing a far shorter time to do so after the dilation in time was considered.
Nevertheless, even though he felt a bit of guilt at the fact that he could not make use of skills to help his fellow humans in the skirmish against the orcs, his mind was still focused on the inheritance.
After all, there were many things within the inheritance that remained unsolved, such as the human civilization before the Great Cataclysm, the existence of the last leader of humanity, and so on.
Aside from that, he had yet to obtain his rewards from the Gates of Awakening, as well as attempt to enter the last organization making up the Triad Gates.
The Gates of Transcendence.
"So, what do you guys plan on doing next?" asked Valyr as he closed his screen.
In response, the four looked at him in silence, their expressions easily telling him that they wanted to hear what he was planning to do first.
Shrugging his shoulders, he then told them, "I understand if you guys plan on leaving the inheritance. After all, we've already obtained a lot of rewards by clearing the trials that were thrown our way."
"With that being said, the strength that we've cultivated within this inheritance so far would undoubtedly be of great help, considering that the skirmish between the humans and the orcs is now in full swing."
At those words, the four looked at him in disbelief, their stares asking him where he had gotten such information.
After explaining to the others that the final trial had given him the opportunity to find out what was going on in the outside world, Valyr noticed that the four seemed to have made up their minds on leaving the inheritance.
Yet, the four continued to remain.
Of course, that was because Valyr hadn't told them his plans yet.
"In any case, I won't be leaving the inheritance as of yet," said the young man, his tone calm. "For one, I have yet to receive the other rewards I've gotten from the Gates of Awakening."
"Aside from that, there's still the Gates of Transcendence that is yet to be explored."
'There's also the mission Ryvrthe gave me, as well as that empty space in the center of the ruins. All in all, I still have a lot of things left to do inside this inheritance,' thought Valyr as he gazed at the others.
Surprisingly, his mention of the Gates of Transcendence prompted the expression of the others to change, reminding them that they have yet to receive all of the rewards the inheritance had to offer.
But there were still a couple among them that seemed to have made up their minds on leaving the inheritance for good, prompting Valyr to faintly nod as he asked once more.
"So, are you guys going to keep staying? Or are you guys going to leave the inheritance?"
"I'm staying," responded Hal, the conflict in his earlier gaze now replaced by firm determination.
"I'm also staying," said Vera, causing Valyr a bit of surprise as he faintly nodded.
Seeing that half of the four had chosen to stay, the young man looked at the two that had yet to respond, wondering what their choices would be.
"I… would like to leave," said Loreina as she flashed an apologetic smile at the others. "I've already obtained a lot from the inheritance. It's time for me to help my fellow people."
"I would like to leave as well," Faulus said after Loreina was done, his expression a somewhat eerie calm.
Though the others did not find anything amiss with his words, Valyr felt a hint of urgency hidden beneath the man's voice.
Looking at him, he also felt that there was something off about Faulus that he could not put his finger on.
Thankfully, just as he was about to help the two that chose the latter option to leave the inheritance, the answer to his confusion revealed itself in the form of a private message.
However, after reading it, he begun to blankly stare at the man, not knowing how to respond.
"Valyr…"
"They've gained control again."
