Yarra's Adventure Notes-Chapter 1318 - 104: The General’s Questioning

The frontier encampment of the Sighing Desert differed from any architectural style, having been constructed solely for long-term deployment in the desert. The outermost part of the camp was a circle of dried tanglegrass, a type of shrub that often forms a continuous barrier. The branches and leaves of each tanglegrass plant intertwined with each other, inseparable, and they could thrive in extremely harsh environments. Even if they withered and died, they wouldn’t collapse or scatter for two to three years, retaining significant toughness. Therefore, whether alive or dead, tanglegrass served as an excellent sand barrier. The residents of the Country of Sand often used them to protect vital facilities from being buried by sand. During the construction of the encampment, General Dreide had gathered a significant amount of water resources and potions that promote plant growth, artificially planting this wall of tanglegrass around the camp in a short time. More than a month later, although the tanglegrass had all died, its function as a sand barrier remained intact.

A few meters behind the sand barrier was the outer wall of the encampment, which was made on-site entirely from crystals burned from the yellow sand. It even extended several meters deep into the ground to ensure the walls would not collapse. Upon entering the main gate of the outer wall, one would find the interior of the camp open and unobstructed, without any buildings, only a very few large tents erected sporadically across the camp, indicating signs of human presence.

Entering one of the tents, one could see several downward staircases. After over a month of trials, the allied forces finally determined that, apart from military operations, daily life could only be carried out underground to avoid the harsh environmental conditions of the Sighing Desert as much as possible. This avoided the casualties due to heatstroke and frostbite that had occurred daily at the beginning. However, constructing buildings underground in the desert required a hefty price. Thankfully, there was no need yet to consider permanent occupation; the buildings just needed to last a few months.

Thus, the troops had amassed a large number of Caster Professionals to carve out large spaces underground for the camp. The walls were similarly created through high-temperature burning followed by rapid cooling, allowing the space to withstand the pressure from several meters of yellow sand above. As for the foundations of the underground buildings, they were hardened through petrification spells released by Mages. This method of construction was indeed resource-intensive and required daily replenishment of a significant amount of energy to strengthen the sandy foundation below, preventing the buildings from collapsing for various reasons. However, this expenditure was worthwhile as it allowed the large garrisoned troops to maintain their full combat effectiveness, ensuring they weren’t utterly defeated by environmental conditions even before a battle had begun.

Five meters down in the underground building, the desert’s heat and cold seemed to have been isolated in another world. The temperature in the conference room was cool and moderate, making those who had long endured the intense desert sunlight comfortably reluctant to leave. On the conference room table, there were several large bottles of icy water and a fruit plate in the middle. Although it contained no fresh fruit, it was filled with an assortment of dried fruits and vegetables, a small privilege enjoyed by the senior officers.

"This place is really nice," Pannis said, sitting in a soft armchair with his feet propped on the round conference table, grabbing a bottle of water and gulping it down, feeling his parched body inflate like it was rehydrating, and he comfortably exhaled a breath of cool air, lazily commenting, "Too bad, it can only support us for two more months at most; after that, the camp will reach its limit."

"Yes, you... hahaha." Catherine started to say something, but when she turned around and saw Pannis’s face, she couldn’t help but lean over the table, covering her mouth as she let out a burst of muffled laughter. ƒгeewebnovёl.com

"What’s so funny?" Pannis, touching his face, which usually had a masculine charm but now sported several bruises, especially around the eyes that were swollen a deep blue as if they had been painted on, rubbed the bruises and indignantly said, "Aunt Aide, you’re laughing too? It was your handiwork after all."

"As if your own blows were any lighter. Besides, weren’t you the one who provoked first? My leg’s nearly broken." The female general, showing no visible injuries but continually holding her waist and limping on her right leg, rolled her eyes and turned away as she heard Pannis’s accusation, "I can’t keep up with you young people’s ideas. I’ll leave you to it, take your time. Oh, and ladies, there’s been something on my mind since earlier, a very important matter."

"General," Catherine gathered her composure, stood up, and said, "It’s about the aura on our bodies, right?"

"Yes." The female general nodded gravely, "There were others present before, and it was not convenient for me to inquire. Now that we’re alone, I won’t hide it. I want to know why there’s a death aura emanating from you. Although the death aura here is heavy, and everyone is slightly tainted by it, yours is different. Today, the death aura on you was especially pronounced, clearly emanating directly from the Undead. Could it be, that you are in the presence of the Undead?"

"Ah, I knew we couldn’t hide it from you." Catherine smiled wryly and sighed, "However, I thought you would raise this question the moment we met today."

"You are friends of that young lad, Kyle, and guests specifically requested by Her Majesty the Queen. Personally, I find you absolutely trustworthy," the female general said. "But as the commander of a large troop, I must be responsible for all soldiers under my command, and I had to clear up this matter. However, I believe you have your reasons, so there was no need to expose this in front of others."

"You brought them both as well? That makes things much easier." Because she was too familiar with the two little Undead, Pannis didn’t sense their unique presence immediately until Dreide mentioned them. She quickly spoke to Dreide before Catherine could, "Aunt Aide, you needn’t ask about this; it’s confidential, and Flare knows about it too."

"Can you guarantee it?" Dreide asked bluntly, "Are you sure there will be no issues?"

"I can guarantee it; those two little ones have been with us for several years and there absolutely won’t be any issues," Pannis nodded and continued, "Moreover, not only can I guarantee it, but Flare can too. In fact, including them here was part of Flare’s plan from the start. She had everything calculated from the beginning."

"Alright, since you can guarantee it, I won’t say much," Pannis’s response verified the presence of the Undead, but the joint assurances of heroes Kyle and Flare were very influential, at least to the elven General Dreide. After a moment of hesitation, the female general said, "However, just make sure they do not appear in front of others. It’s too sensitive now."

"Please rest assured, Your Excellency," Catherine affirmed. "I will not let them out while we are in the camp."

"That’s good." The female general nodded. "Then, you take your time to talk; if you need anything, just find a guard to notify me."

Dreide closed the conference room’s door from the outside, and the room immediately fell into a deep silence. The previous playful and relaxed atmosphere seemed like a phantom, vanishing in the blink of an eye, leaving only an oppressive air behind.