When they crested the final sand dune, everyone came to a halt.
Mira stared at the sight before her, her eyes widening.
Under the moonlight, a patch of green spanning several hundred paces stretched out in the middle of the sea of sand.
A pool of water lay quietly in the center, its surface reflecting the stars and the moon, shimmering with a faint silvery light. Around the pool, the seabuckthorn shrubs had already grown to half a person's height, their branches spreading out and their leaves gently swaying in the night breeze.
“T-that... is that...”
Mira’s voice trembled, and she reflexively squeezed the hand of the child beside her.
The tribespeople behind her also came to a stop one after another, everyone catching their breath the moment they laid eyes on the oasis.
“That is Silver Sand Lake.”
Ksaz stood by her side, the pride in his voice impossible to suppress. “Sir planted it all with his own hands.”
“With his own hands?”
Mira turned her head to look at him, her face filled with disbelief. “You mean... this oasis was created by him alone...?”
“Not entirely.”
Ksaz shook his head, his gaze drifting toward the slender figure standing by the distant pool. “Sir says this oasis is the result of everyone's hard work, but I know that without him, this place would still be nothing but yellow sand.”
“It was Sir who planted it bit by bit, planning everything step by step, to turn it into what you see now.”
Ksaz spoke with absolute sincerity. “Lord Elon once said that growing a single tree in the Golden Sea is harder than growing an entire forest in the heart of the Empire. Yet, Sir not only planted trees, but he also kept them alive.”
Mira noticed that when Ksaz spoke of “Sir,” what shone in his eyes was not just gratitude, but something bordering on faith.
Mira did not speak further. She simply looked back at the oasis under the moonlight. Everything was so orderly, as if the people here had been living this way for a very, very long time.
Her eyes welled up slightly.
Her people had not seen real greenery for nearly a month.
During their long trek through the desert, all they had seen was endless yellow sand and withered branches buried by sandstorms.
But now, this vast expanse of green was laid out right before them, within arm's reach.
A soft sob suddenly came from beside her. Mira looked down to find the child staring up at her with red-rimmed eyes. “Mira, can we... stay here?”
Mira bent down, gently pulling the child into her embrace. “We will,” she replied.
She looked up again at that slender figure. At this moment, Shane was crouching by the pool, looking down to inspect the growth of a seabuckthorn shrub.
Mira suddenly felt that this necromancer did not seem so terrifying after all.
On the other side of the group, Eileen was observing everything with an attitude completely different from Mira’s.
Instead of stopping to marvel like Mira, she walked a lap around the edge of the oasis, her steps light as if she were on a casual stroll. Her pointed ears twitched slightly in the moonlight, as if catching some faint sound.
She quickly strode up to Shane and leaned in close to his face without warning, her grey-blue eyes shining bright, her tone bursting with uncontrollable excitement. “Are you really a necromancer?”
Forced to lean back slightly by her sudden proximity, Shane maintained an expressionless face as he pulled away to create some distance. “You already knew that.”
“Knowing it and seeing it with my own eyes are two completely different things!”
Eileen did not care about his coldness at all. Instead, she took another half-step forward, her gaze sweeping over their surroundings before settling back on Shane's face. “You did all of this by yourself?”
“My words don't count. Just believe what others say.”
“Why should I believe what others say?”
Eileen blinked, tilting her head to look at him. “I’m asking you right now.”
Shane stared at her for two seconds, then turned back to continue inspecting the seabuckthorn.
Eileen was not annoyed either. She followed behind him like a child who had discovered a new toy, firing off one question after another. She spoke so fast, it was as if she was afraid he would run away. “Is that silver sand ectoplasmic crystals? Why are there so many of them forming around the pool?”
“And those chickens—why do their eggshells have mana fluctuations?”
“How did you think of putting undead to work?”
The corner of Shane’s mouth twitched slightly. He stopped and turned around. Eileen nearly crashed into his chest but braked just in time, looking up at him with a broad grin.
“You ask too many questions.”
“Then you can just answer a few of them.”
“Why should I answer you?”
“Because I'm curious!”
She spoke as if it were the most natural thing in the world, showing not the slightest embarrassment at being shut down.
Looking into her remarkably bright grey-blue eyes, Shane felt a rare wave of helplessness. “Get settled first.”
He turned around and continued walking toward the pool, leaving her with one last sentence: “Once you've cleared up everything you need to explain, it won't be too late to ask me questions.”
Eileen stood in place, watching his retreating figure. The smile on her face gradually widened, and she quickly caught up.
By the time they walked past the pool, the warm glow of campfires had already spread.
Eileen was about to say something else, when she saw a fiery red figure walking quickly toward them from between the tents.
Alicia's pace was slightly faster than usual.
Her gaze swept over Elon's shoulder and locked precisely onto the light blue figure beside Shane. Her steps faltered for a fraction of a second.
An elf.
Her brow arched slightly, but she quickly regained her composure.
Walking up to them, she first glanced at Shane to confirm he was unharmed before turning her gaze to Eileen.
“And this is?”
“Eileen Azir,” Shane introduced briefly. “She claims to be a Ranger of the Elven Empire, but practically nothing she says is true.”
“I brought her back first for you to decide her fate.”
Hearing Shane’s words, Eileen’s lips curled up. She took a small step forward and gave the princess a rather non-standard curtsy. “Greetings, Your Highness. I have heard so much about you.”
Her gaze lingered on Alicia’s face for a moment, as if drawn by something, before naturally sliding back to Shane. She leaned her body slightly toward him, showing absolutely no embarrassment at having her lies exposed in public.
Alicia noticed this subtle movement.
She did not let it show on her face, merely nodding slightly. “Since you have arrived at Silver Sand Lake, rest easy and settle in.”
“We can talk tomorrow. Get some rest tonight.”
“Thank you, Your Highness,” Eileen replied cheerfully, but her gaze never left Shane. As she spoke, she unconsciously leaned closer to him again. “So... where am I staying?”
Elon stepped in at the perfect moment, raising a hand to point toward the west. “There is an empty tent over there. I'll have someone prepare it shortly.”
“Can I stay next to him?” Eileen tilted her chin toward Shane, her tone entirely sincere.
The air fell silent for a brief moment.
Alicia’s expression did not change at all, but her fingers hanging at her side tightened by half an inch before relaxing a second later.
Her voice remained steady, maintaining her usual gentle demeanor as a princess. “The tent arrangements are handled by Instructor Elon. You can go with him.”
“Alright!”
Eileen agreed readily, completely oblivious to any tension.
She turned around and waved at Shane. “I'll head over first then. See you tomorrow!”
Alicia stood in place, watching the light blue figure walk away with Elon before pulling her gaze back to Shane.
“You certainly seem to run into people wherever you go.”
Her tone was light, betraying no obvious emotion, but her violet eyes flickered in the firelight.
Shane glanced sideways at her. “Ksaz found her on the way.”
“I know.”
Alicia paused after saying that, then added, “But she seems... very interested in you.”
“She said she's curious.”
“Mhm.”
The princess did not press further, but as she turned to walk back to the camp, her strides were slightly longer than usual, as if trying to reach her destination before something could catch up to her.
Shane stood where he was, watching the fiery red figure disappear among the tents. He glanced down at the lingering herbal scent on the back of his hand, then crouched back down to continue inspecting the seabuckthorn shrub.
Rate on N.U.
