With This Treasure, I Summon Primordial Weapons
Chapter 14: Buried City

Chapter 14: Buried City

"Graves..." The word left Raven’s cracked lips in a low whisper.

Her hand cut through the air before a crimson mana ring appeared before her, and her summon materialised a second later.

Godric, on the other hand, didn’t find the sight as unnerving.

There was something about those graves which seemed familiar. Not to what people normally did, but familiar to what those living on the outskirts could afford.

And just as the realisation struck him, a figure stepped from the shadow of one building, their figure almost indistinguishable under the faint light of the moon above.

"I can’t believe it..." a female voice cut through the air. "It’s been years since we had some newcomers!"

As she stepped closer, Godric saw a girl who didn’t look much older than him, maybe in her early twenties. She had chestnut hair and dark brown eyes. She wore clothing that looked as though she’d carved it from monster fur and held a weapon that looked surprisingly expensive... considering her crude appearance.

Godric’s weapon materialised in the palm of his hand as he took a step backwards. "Who are you?"

"Huh?" the girl blinked. "I’m human. Wait, what did you think I was?!"

At that moment, the girl’s earlier words replayed in Godric’s mind. ’It’s been years since they had newcomers? How could she have been here for years? And who did she mean by ’we’?’

"Who else is with you?" Godric asked, his gaze shifting swiftly between the girl and their surroundings.

"...You know pointing weapons at another human is punishable by death here. But I guess since you’re new, I’ll let you off the hook." She moved closer toward them, as though the beast flying above Raven’s head and the weapon in Godric’s hand were nothing more than decoration. "And to answer your earlier question, there are a lot of us here," she narrowed her gaze. "Enough to make sure you don’t try anything funny."

Godric stood quiet for a moment.

A lot of people would explain the countless gazes they’d felt at every turn.

But if there were other humans, why did they not reveal themselves right away? And why were they living in a city buried under a sand monster by day and revealed only by night?

"So..." the girl spoke again, taking a final step right in front of Godric. "Are you gonna put this thing away?" she asked, glancing at the weapon in his palm.

Godric lingered for a moment. He took a quick sideways glance at Raven, who looked just as suspicious as he was.

"Who’s your leader?" Godric asked.

The girl chuckled at the question. Her laughter sounded almost forced.

"Oh, he doesn’t deal with newcomers. Lieutenants are responsible for that, and the two of you are lucky enough to meet the newest and prettiest lieutenant there is!" she pointed toward herself with a smile that suggested she wasn’t joking.

Godric and Raven exchanged a long look.

If eyes could speak, hers would scream something along the lines of ’Is she serious?’

At least the girl’s erratic behaviour did confirm one thing to the two of them.

She wasn’t a threat to them, at least not right now.

Realising they were still in an odd standoff, Godric finally lowered and dismissed his weapon.

Raven followed a second after, dismissing her summon.

The girl in front of them nodded. "Good. My name is Astrea."

Just as Astrea introduced herself, Godric realised that the feeling of being watched slowly subsided.

Whether it was because they were standing in the graveyard, or simply because they met one of the so-called lieutenants, he couldn’t tell.

"I’m Raven, and this is Godric. It is very nice to meet you." Raven said with a courtly nod, which looked completely out of place considering where they were.

Astrea, however, didn’t pay attention to Raven’s practised and well-mannered introduction, and instead she smiled brightly as she circled around them, beaming with enthusiasm.

"It’s been far too long since we had some newcomers! Come, come! Let’s go meet the others!"

She waved her hand a couple of times, gesturing for them to follow her as she quickly took off, not looking back as she walked into one of the roads leading away from the graveyard.

Following after her, but staying slightly behind, Godric and Raven exchanged a low conversation.

"She seems... odd," Raven whispered.

Godric couldn’t disagree. The girl’s behaviour was erratic, to say the least, but in their current situation, and based on what Astrea exclaimed when she first saw them, following her was the best way to find out exactly what situation they were in.

"Stay on guard," Godric whispered. "If anything happens, we regroup near the graveyard."

Raven nodded just as Astrea turned around.

"Are you guys injured or something? Why are you walking so slow?"

Just as she said it, Astrea realised how dehydrated both Raven and Godric looked.

"Oh, where are my manners!" She came to a sudden stop, flipping the backpack off her shoulder and pulling out a bottle of what looked like drinking water from her bag.

"Here," she said, passing the bottle to Raven first.

Raven hesitated at first, but with her lips cracked and her mind ever-so sluggish from dehydration, she couldn’t afford another hour without water.

She grabbed the bottle and chugged until the water dropped slightly below the halfway mark.

Then she passed the bottle to Godric, who observed her for a moment, as if making sure Raven wouldn’t die of poison, before he unscrewed the cap and began drinking the rest of it.

’That’s better,’ he thought as he gave the empty bottle back to Astrea, who neatly packed it back into her backpack.

"Now... Where were we?" Astrea asked out loud. "Right! I was about to say, it’s not so bad in here, you know. Everyone gets assigned a role, and as long as you carry out your duties, then you get your rations. Of course there are rules... but they aren’t so bad! I mean, compared to the stupid laws back home... who decides it’s against the law to walk with your summon out in public?!"

Godric tuned out most of Astrea’s one-sided conversation. But upon hearing the last part, a realisation dawned on him.

A law that prohibited summoners from walking with their summon in public.

Something like that did exist, but not in Elyune City nor anywhere else in Starfall Kingdom.

It belonged to the Northern Continent, a place once known as the Valerion Empire, a place which had fallen to the endless Dungeon Gates and had been marked as a death zone nearly 5 years ago.

"How long did you say you’ve been here for?" Godric asked.

"Huh?" Astrea turned toward him. "Oh. I..." She actually had to think about it, counting something on her fingers that clearly didn’t require fingers to count. "...Six years? Give or take."

...

A/N: I hope you enjoy this novel. Support by adding it to your library and giving a power stone or two. Thank you!