The Moon Thief

"We haven't had guest in a long time..." Behind the woman a tall and skinny man appeared. This man's emmited energy indicated that he was Level 2 Ainsar. Although the man looked like a typical old man, Heinald could see that his vitality was quite high.

"Elder Honyon?" The woman immediately bowed her head.

Heinald and the others bowed their heads to the old man in front of them. The old man in front of them looked carefully into the eyes of each member of the group and then smiled.

"What brings you to this part of the world?" The old man named Honyon,asked.

Heinald and others briefly told their story to the old man standing in front of them. This old man seemed to know the world outside of this area well. They started to wonder about the story behind this town and the people who lived here.

How and why did the people living here come here?

Elder Honyon took Heinald and the others to a large house. However, this house was large by this town's standards, normally the size of an average house in cities. Yana, the other elder of the town, also lived in this house. Elder Yana was Elder Honyon's wife. Elder Yana was also surprised when she saw strangers in her face after a long time. She was also a Level 2 Ainsar like her husband.

"Sir, when did you settle here?" Heinald asked after the two sides got to know each other.

"Under my father's leadership, we settled here 300 years ago. At that time, a great war was about to break out among the Ainsars, so my father moved everyone to this desolate area to protect Tulan Sect. We have adapted to this area over the years and never thought of returning to the upper world." Elder Honyon had a faint smile on his face.

"So what area is beyond this area?" Dane asked.This area was getting more and more of his attention.

"There is no zone beyond this zone." Elder Honyon shook his head.

"I guess Greenhell Cavity isn't as big as we thought..." Dane scratched his chin. Although he did not reveal it, he was quite surprised inside.

"Yes, and even though the monsters we encountered were not weak, we only encountered two monsters. Isn't that quite a small number?" Morena frowned.

"Wait! Have you encountered only two Magical Beasts?" Elder Yana had a solemn expression.

"This is not good!" Elder Honyon's smile faded.

"What is the problem?" Heinald asked.

"If the number of Magical Beasts is decreasing, that's mean one thing..." Elder Honyon's  expression darkened.

"Century Raid!" Elder Yana completed her husband's sentence.

"Century Raid?" Heinald frowned.

"Yes. All Magical Beast species in the region gather together and raid where they see a threat. They are not commonly seen in the environment as they all come together in one place." Elder Honyon explained.

"All of them? If they were all gathered together, wouldn't we see them?" Mady asked.

"The Greenhell Cavity is not as small as you might think ... There are different places that the Magical Beasts know and rule, but these places are not in sight. So you cannot notice." Elder Yana shook her head slightly.

"So who is leading these Magical Beasts?" Heinald asked.

"That's the real problem. When they raided our town a century ago, they were led by a Level 3 Ainsar power Ridhus Eagle." Elder Honyon exhaled loudly.

"An eagle equivalent to the might of Level 3 Ainsar !?" Heinald and the others' eyes widened. The might of Level 3 Ainsar would be considered the pinnacle of this continent. There were very few of them, and they would set the balance of power on the continent. Only large families would have Level 3 Ainsar.

This eagle, the leader of the Magical Beasts, was like them and maybe even stronger. A great unease arose within Heinald and the others. They knew this area was dangerous, but they could never have predicted that such an event would happen.

"So how did you survive previous attacks?" Dane asked.

"Our Tulan Sect has a Defense Formation inherited from our ancestors. We managed to circumvent previous attacks thanks to this formation." Elder Honyon smiled slightly.

"We should talk to the other elders of our sect. We ask your permission for now, we can continue our conversation with you later. I'll order to be prepared a nice place for you to stay." Elder Yana sighed softly.

*****

Beautiful and spacious rooms were prepared for them. They all had a serious expression on their faces, all lost in thoughts.

"What should we do?" Heinald had summoned everyone to his room to speak.

"We can leave before it's too late and try to get back to the upper world, but there is still no guarantee that we will not encounter a crowded Magical Beast group on the way." Morena said her thoughts in a calm voice.

"On the other hand, we can stay here and make some kind of agreement with these people. They have a Defense Formation that allows them to evade previous attacks. If we stay here and cooperate with them, we can both survive and gain experience and interests. Dane looked into everyone's eyes one by one.

"What kind of deal can we make with them?" Mady asked.

"I don't know. Maybe the elders will make us a good offer." Dane shrugged.

"So what will happen if this time attack succeeds in overcoming Defense Formation?" Heinald asked.

"Actually, we came here taking all the risks, but I know it's not the same for you. That's why we can't decide for you." Dane thoughtfully nodded.

"In fact, staying here with you will give me more confidence than traveling alone." Heinald nodded after thinking for a while.

"Let's get some rest first. After talking to the elders, let's decide exactly what to do." Morena said.

Everyone went to their room and lay down on their beds hoping to get some sleep. While Heinald was lying in his bed, he was also evaluating his situation. Traveling alone was not safe at all, and if he encountered a Magical Beast, his death was certain. But if he stayed here with the others he would have a chance, so he chose to stay here.

He once again realized how important power was whenever he was desperate. If it were strong, despair would only be a feeling that he would feel his enemies. If he got out of here, he would initially open a shop where he could sell potions. He would then search for ingredients for Spirit Potion and Astinuff Potion. When he became a Level 2 Ainsar, he would go after Hamra.

Heinald fell asleep with thoughts in his head. The thing that awakened him again was the knock on his door. When he got up from his bed and opened the door, he saw Ruske in front of him.

"Good morning, we will go to talk to the elder. We wanted to let you know." Ruske pointed back.

"Lets go!" Heinald nodded.

They all gathered together and went to the elders. The first thing they noticed was that the elders had an anxious expression. Although they tried to smile slightly when they saw the young people in front of them, their smile was more of a bitter smile. Heinald and others shared the topic they spoke about yesterday with the two elders in front of them.

"Actually, there is something you can help us with." Elder Yana nodded after thinking for a while.

"What is it?" Dane asked.

"All the Ainsars in our town strive to reach the Marrow of the Hipbone of Anthros Bison, which remains a relic from the founders of our sect. But we have not been able to reach it despite centuries of struggle, because Ainthros Bison was a Magical Beast with the power of a Level 4 Ainsar when it was alive. " Elder Honyon sighed.

"What!?" Heinald and the others shouted in surprise. A Magical Beast of a Level 4 Ainsar power had the might to steer cities in powerful kingdoms alone. It was almost impossible to deal with .

How could the ancestors of this sect have acquired such a relic?

"As you can imagine, it is an incredibly difficult task to break through the bones of a beast that was so strong in his lifetime. Even if we collect all the Ainsars in our town, we cannot deal enough damage. One hope is that if we work with you we maybe able to do some damage. If we can do a good amount of damage to this bone with you,we will share a copy of a High Rank spell from our founders. " Elder Yana smiled slightly.