Chapter 108: The Silver Mountains Part 3

The next day, we packed up the campsite and headed towards the village with our carriage. Fortunately, we managed to arrive before noon. After asking the villagers, it seemed Khalid hadn't arrived yet, so we secured an inn and explored the village.

Preparing a meal for Tondra wasn't a lie. As I looked around the village, I bought twelve goats, three mules, and various grains and vegetables produced locally and loaded them on the backs of the mules.

I asked the merchants about the Sherpas of the Silver Mountain Range. Perhaps feeling good about this rare transaction, the merchant was very friendly and shared stories about the Sherpas.

"The Sherpas live up on the village's higher grounds."

"How many households are there?"

"Well… not even ten anymore, probably?"

"I see."

"Eight? No, seven? And they're all old folks. The young ones have all gone to the Empire."

It was a lament-like response. I nodded my head to the merchant, bought a basket of treats to gift the Sherpas, and left the market.

"The Sherpas live up on the village's higher grounds."

Even though it was called the higher grounds of the village, it was just a few houses clustered together; they weren't really visible from the main village and were actually closer to the entrance of the mountain range.

"I don't know if there will be anyone to act as a Sherpa, but it's still worth hearing them out. Lloyd and El, please stay here and wait for Khalid."

"Understood."

"Yes, Master. Be careful!"

I packed the basket of snacks, got on Storm, and headed towards the upper part of the village where the Sherpa houses were gathered. As I got closer to the Silver Mountains, the snow began to fall, and the wind became piercing. Fortunately, Storm was unfazed by such conditions.

-Knock, knock, knock.

I knocked on the door of the oldest-looking house where a light was on.

-Creak.

After a while, an old man opened the door.

"Hello, sir."

I greeted the old man before handing him the basket of treats. "My name is Theodore." When I said that, the old man tilted his head in confusion.

"Theodore?"

"Yes, that's my name."

"It sounds familiar…"

Apparently, my reputation hadn't reached this far. I smiled politely and introduced myself.

"I am a druid. I need to climb the Silver Mountains soon, and I've come to seek your wisdom."

"Climb the Silver Mountains?"

"Yes, I must climb the mountains."

The old man looked quite surprised. Seeing his reaction, I realized that there truly were no more people climbing the Silver Mountains.

For now, the old man invited me into his house. He brought out a warm cup of tea, told me to wait for a moment, and then left the house. It seemed he was going to gather the village sherpas. As I watched the small fire crackling in the hearth, the door opened again, and the old man returned with other elders. I stood up and greeted them politely.

The Silver Mountains were once a tourist destination for Ansgar nobles. The sherpas made a living guiding them. After the fall of Ansgar, they served the nobles of the Barak Empire to sustain themselves. But now?

With the dragons gone and the Silver Mountains becoming dangerous, the place was no longer a tourist destination for nobles. As a result, the sherpas gradually disappeared.

So, now only these elders knew how to climb the Silver Mountains. These old, weak, and weary elders.

Asking them to guide me would be impossible.

I looked at the elders with the most courteous smile I could muster. They all appeared shocked. Climb the Silver Mountains? Why? Maybe twenty years ago, but not now. I could hear their murmurs so I opened my mouth.

"I can't tell you why, but it is something I must do."

At my words, the elders exchanged glances with each other. One of them finally responded.

"The last time we climbed the mountains was twenty years ago. Even then, we only reached halfway up. Now, none of us can climb the Silver Mountains."

"It's alright. I didn't come to ask you to accompany me."

Well, if there had been someone younger, I might have considered it regardless of the cost… but asking these elders, who needed canes to walk, was out of the question.

"Just like I said, I've come here seeking wisdom. How to climb the Silver Mountains, what to watch out for… there are no others as knowledgeable as you."

The elders nodded their heads in agreement. It made sense, as these were the sherpas who once climbed the Silver Mountains with ease, even without magical tools.

"I am willing to pay any price. Please, I need your advice."

Anything about the Silver Mountains—climbing techniques, danger points, and more. If I could obtain even a fraction of the sherpas' knowledge, my chances of survival would increase. I wanted to raise those chances desperately.

"Any price, you say?"

Someone in the corner murmured then. I turned my head reflexively to look at them. The voice, it was different. It wasn't an old voice. It was clear and bright…

"The wisdom of the sherpas is not something you can buy."

It was the voice of a young woman. She stood up, removed her hood, and looked at me with challenging eyes.

"Aquila!"

One of the elders tried to stop her by grabbing her hand, but she shook off his wrinkled hand and twisted her lips into a smirk.

"Thinking you can survive the Silver Mountains by hearing just a few words… typical Imperials."

"First, I am not a thief. Second, I never thought I could survive the Silver Mountains by hearing just a few words. Third, I don't know why you think that, but I am not an Imperial."

"..."

"Aquila, you look young. The villagers told me there were no young sherpas."

"I am not a sherpa."

"But you seem to know as much about the Silver Mountains as the sherpas do."

She scoffed. Twenty, maybe? Seeing her youthful face, I could infer a few things.

She wasn't a sherpa.

But she knew as much about the Silver Mountains as the sherpas did.

So why wasn't she a sherpa?

She knew everything about the Silver Mountains but never actually climbed them herself.

There was no one left to climb the Silver Mountains anymore! I smiled as I looked at her. With a freckled face, curly orange hair, and green eyes, she looked both mischievous and like a fierce warrior.

Maybe, this woman could act as a sherpa for us.

Even if she wasn't a sherpa, she knew much more about the Silver Mountains than we did. If I could persuade her well, she would surely be a great help.

"It looks like you've never climbed the Silver Mountains either."

I subtly touched her pride. She bared her teeth and growled.

"I know everything about the Silver Mountains. I am practically the Silver Mountains themselves."

"You've never climbed the Silver Mountains, yet you claim to be their master? You expect me to believe that?"

"That's…"

"Aquila!"

Just as she was about to retort, an old woman shouted. This time, both she and I fell silent.

The old woman struggled to her feet while leaning on a cane. Aquila supported her. Looking closely, I noticed that the old woman and Aquila seemed to resemble each other. I quietly waited for the old woman to speak.

"It's been a long time since we've had a guest. You shouldn't act that way."

"But grandmother!"

"Be quiet, young eagle."

"..."

"Theodore, was it Theodore?"

"Yes, that's correct."

I answered politely. The old woman looked at me with cloudy, misty eyes.

"If you tell us why you wish to climb the Silver Mountains, we will help you as much as we can."

"..."

I remained silent for a moment. Could I really tell her this? But the old woman exuded a very resolute aura.

"I…"

I could have given a vague answer. But…

I didn't want to use lies to steal the knowledge the sherpas had accumulated over hundreds or thousands of years.

I looked into Aquila's green eyes, then faced the old woman again.

"I am going to meet the master of the Silver Mountains."

"..."

"Tondra."

"…You mean Master Tondra?"

There were sounds of people gasping all around. The sherpas seemed to know well about Tondra.

"It has been asleep for a long time…"

"I know. But I must meet it."

"..."

The old woman kept her mouth shut and started looking back and forth between Aquila and me. When Tondra's name came up, Aquila's face lit up even more and her lips started quivering.

"Grandmother!"

"...."

"If Master Tondra awakens, we can roam the Silver Mountains again!"

"...."

"Freely!"

Master Tondra?

We could roam the Silver Mountains again?

Surprised by her unexpected words, I frowned and looked at the old woman. Aquila's grandmother was touching her cane with a troubled expression on her face. I asked the old woman.

"Is there a connection between the dragon and the sherpas?"

"...."

"I've been honest with you, so now it's your turn to be honest with me."

"...."

"What is your relationship with Tondra?"

The old woman hesitated for a long time while pacing near the hearth. And then she finally spoke.

"...Master Tondra left us with some last words."

"What were they?"

"We were told not to climb the Silver Mountains until it awakens."

"But it's already been so long…"

"Yes. So, twenty years ago, we couldn't resist and climbed the Silver Mountains in search of Master Tondra."

"…"

"But we couldn't reach the top or meet Master Tondra."

"Then…"

"We lost many people back then."

The old woman muttered before staring into the distance as if she were dreaming.