chapter 19:

Inside the tent, Merlin was checking on Sugiri, confirming there was no problem with her. Merlin told the kids that they could leave; however, Suguro told him there was something he needed to tell him. 

" Doctor I heard you are looking for rare herb's, and I know of a rare herb found on a mountain." Hearing this, Merlin looked at Suguro with interest. 

"My father told me about this herb; he used to tell me about a day he went hunting and saw flowers that was all white, with gusts of snow surrounding it."

"Then did your father pick up the flower?"

"Yes, Father did pick it up, but as soon as it is raised off the ground, its pure white colour fades and its petals take on a black shade."

 "Where did your father find the flower?" Merlin asked curiously.

 "I don't know the exact place, but it is somewhere in the northern mountains." Having a lead, Merlin spoke, "You can take your sister back to your house." 

Watching them leave Merlin's casted 'breeze lift' and flew to the mountain's indicated by Suguro. The climate here is more cold compared to other regions. This is the perfect condition for the flower of snow veil to grow. As he flew to the peak of the mountain, he saw a group of flowers emitting an ice element. 

"Reporting: Nature energy is concentration on the flower and it is a suitable material for the substitute of flowers snow veil."  Merlin slowly dug out the flower from its roots so that it would not damage.

"Now let's get out of here. I'm not sure why, but I feel uneasy remaining here." Merlin casting breeze lift went back to the village. After few minutes, a group of people arrived they were dressed like white clocks. "The person who came here left before we arrived."

"should we report this to the master?"

"There is no need; they should not be willing to focus on any trivial matters; continue the search." While they were discussing their plan, none of them noticed a small bug with a black and white spot on the ground.

Back at the village Merlin smiled. "Look like I found something interesting. might as well check around after a bit. AI keeps an eye on the bug and allows it to follow them." Merlin came to concentrate on his prize from the mountain after giving the system instructions.

 "System how much ice element and natural energy are stored in the flower." 

" Reporting: Based on the preliminary analysis, the flower contains 35% ice element, 37% nature energy, and the remaining 28% chakra. To further increase the efficiency of the flower, the host needs to expel chakra and maintain the other elements by 50%." 

Merlin took out a storage scroll and put the flower in it. "I can now concentrate on following the bug's lead and the flower's energy won't be wasted." Merlin finished enough preparations for his journey while he waited for nightfall.

Merlin found an underground tunnel by following the path of bugs. Casting shadow veil Merlin stepped into the cave. With the help of darkness, it would be hard to spot him. As he reached the corner of the cave, he heard some people talking. "How is the development of the poison?"

 "Caption: The poison is developing steadily; however, we require more time to perfect it."Listening to their conversation, Merlin slowly went inside the cave without alerting anyone. In order to understand the layout and how many people are in the camp, Merlin released the bug's and waited for their feedback.

 ' There are a total of 7 people here. There is a secret entrance on the ground leading downward. The center room is where experiment data are stored.' I should force them to leave the central area.' Without making any sound, Merlin activated his chakra, resulting in a huge explosion outside the cave. Hearing the sound of the explosion, the group looked at each other, and the leader of the ground spoke, "Two of you stay here; we are going to search." 

Watching them leave, Merlin released a root bind to capture the remaining person who stayed behind. The remaining person who was looking at the computer in front of them did not notice roots slowly crawling up to them. As the root reached him, it increased its speed, tying them. Without wasting time, Merlin came in front of them, cast Domination Grasp, and put them to sleep. "System, can you hijack their computer and copy their data to the system database?"

" Reporting: 3 minutes required."

 Looking around, Merlin started to collect samples of various liquids in there. Completing the copy of information from the computer, Merlin turned his gaze to the two who were caught. Replacing the memory of the movement they caught, Merlin left the place.  

Outside the cave, "Caption, there are no abnormal situations spotted." "The sound might be caused by Shinobi of the land of snow; let's return to the cave and observe." Reaching the cave, the squad saw the remaining two members waiting for them. "Did anything happen after we left?"  

"No sir." 

"Continue your work. Increase monitoring of the situation outside."