Slag shuffled into the metalworking shop, stepping past the workbenches, anvils, and the magnificent forge. He moved toward a storage room in the back, then came out a few minutes later with a gleaming blue pickaxe. The item had a dark black handle, slightly thicker at the base like an axe handle to keep it from flying out of your hands when you swung it.
Leor could see right away that there were no inscriptions on the item. That could only mean one thing. "An enchanted pickaxe?" he mumbled to himself as he accepted the heavy item into his hands.
Slag grinned as he saw the expression on Leor's face, waving the young man away as he headed back into his shop.
"Go on then! Get your ore. I've got work to do here!"
After Leor left the metalworking shop, he stopped by Drelk's to look for a larger pack. The small one that he carried would not be enough to store all the material he wished to bring back.
The old elf pulled a large leather backpack out of storage for him. It looked like an oversized traveling pack, the interior large enough for Alina to climb inside and curl up in a ball if she wanted to. It was perfect for the job he had in mind.
Now that he had all his equipment, he began to head out. He looked a little comical with how much he carried. He wore his red draconic plate armor chest piece, his enchanted cloak on his back with the oversized pack on top, the mythril pickaxe in his left hand, his weapon in his right hand, and to top it all off he had the miniature guard captain's crossbow strapped to his thigh.
Leor double-checked the coordinates on the parchment he carried. All the directions used the fortress entrance as their starting point, so as soon as he stepped out the wide doors he was on the route. It was a bit difficult, because the instructions had been written long before Drelk had taken over this fortress. They could be hundreds of years old for all Leor knew.
The mountain had changed over that period of time. He would be able to find the general location of the ore veins, but after that it would be challenging. For example, the directions to the Sunsteel on his parchment read:
"Travel a half mile north from the fortress entrance, then scale the mountain in an easterly direction for three hours. You will know you are close when you reach the wineberry field…"
What are the chances that a wild wineberry field was still in the same spot it was that long ago? Leor had a feeling that the chances were quite low. Still, he could only do his best. Even if he failed, he had been itching to get outside and put his new body to the test, so that was what he intended to do.
As the fortress faded into the distance behind him, gleaming white scales covered Leor's body in a wave, his eyes giving off a golden glow. Instantly he felt the burden of his equipment all but disappear. The strength of his Beastly body was such that the small amount of weight was insignificant.
It was still early morning, but in case he needed extra time to search for the ore veins, Leor decided to move swiftly. Soon the steady rhythm of footsteps hitting the rocky soil and the sound of breathing filled his ears as he ran.
As Leor moved up the side of the mountain, he noticed for the first time that his vision was not the same as it once was. When he turned to look down at the plains below, he could see in detail like he never had before. He could make out individual blades of tall grass waving in the wind at the base of the mountain. It was extraordinary. The only catch was that his vision deteriorated rapidly when the light dimmed.
After considering it for a few moments, he concluded that it probably had something to do with his nature as an opposite version of the Umbral Ouroboros. The great serpent had been a creature of the darkness, but because of Leor's light-natured Will, he had become a mutated version of the mighty Beast. The Umbral Ouroboros would have had excellent vision in the dark, because it lived its entire life in such places, so Leor could only guess that his own vision would be greatly enhanced in the light.
Whether his guess was correct or not, his enhanced vision should be a great help in finding the precious Sunsteel.
Leor had only been climbing the mountain for two hours when he began to see bright purple berry bushes growing in the rocky soil around him.
"Hmm… I guess the wineberries did manage to survive," he mumbled. It was a lucky break indeed.
Especially since Leor must have been moving much faster than the person who created the instructions intended, because he reached the area in two hours instead of three.
Leor took a moment to stop and rest, drinking some cool water from his canteen. Then he began to move more slowly, keeping his eyes peeled for the rock structure he was looking for. After another half hour, he passed through the wineberry area and knew he had gone too far.
"Damn, I missed it somewhere."
Leor circled back around to the right, moving further north before heading back down the mountainside. Like this he moved through the wineberry area again and again, slowly checking each section.
Finally, when he had nearly moved through the entire area, Leor caught sight of a rocky plateau a few miles away from the wineberry grove. Double-checking his instructions, he saw that it was the exact structure he was looking for.
"I see…" he mumbled, glancing at his directions as he realized that the wineberries had indeed moved. They had drifted at least ten miles since the directions were written, to the point that the rocky plateau that should have been in the center of the grove was now a few miles outside it.
Leor quickly put away his parchment as he set off toward the high plateau. When he reached the base, he strapped his pickaxe to his back. Unfortunately there was not enough room for the polearm, so he was forced to leave it behind on the ground.
As he gazed at the side of the wall of rock, he could see the indentations where handholds had been carved out by someone. Thanks to that, he was able to scale to the top with ease.
The plateau had two platforms. A first flat area near the top, and then a second column of rock that rose out from the center of the first platform. It was like a column built atop a much larger column. Thankfully Leor only needed to climb to the first platform.
He pulled himself over the ledge, removing his pickaxe from his back as he began to walk around the outside of the large platform, searching for the ore.
When he had almost finished searching the southern half of the platform, he came across what he was looking for. There on the side of the rock was a long, glimmering Sunsteel vein. It could be clearly seen that someone had taken a small portion of the ore at some point in the past, but the vein was thick and deep. There was plenty here for Leor's purposes.
He held the enchanted pickaxe in his hands, letting his Willpower flow into the pick before reaching up and delivering a strike to the stone. The first hit sent a deafening crack echoing through the mountainside, but hardly chipped the sturdy rock.
"Tsk." Leor tightened his grip around the pick as he prepared to deliver a much stronger blow, but just as he was reaching up over his head, a loud cry split the air.
"CAAW!"
It sounded like the angry scream of a crow in the air above him. Leor glanced up just in time to see two glistening, sharp claws diving through the air toward him. He stumbled backward to avoid the strike, nearly throwing himself off the top of the platform by accident. The young man's face turned pale as he realized his mistake, swiftly moving away from the edge in a startled manner.
He turned toward the creature, his brow furrowed deeply as he examined his foe. It did not make sense that he hadn't felt the monster's defiled Will before it attacked him, but after a few seconds he quickly understood why.
The creature standing on the platform before him was not defiled, though with how bad it looked it was hard to tell at first glance. It was a Beast, a giant avian creature with jet black feathers covering most of its body. It was only "most" of its body because large patches of feathers had been torn away, and ugly scarred skin filled the Beast's body in many places.
It was obvious that this creature had not been living an easy life. A crazed expression seemed to fill the Beast's eyes as it lunged toward Leor, using its long beak to try to tear into his skin.
He attempted to calm the creature down, raising his hands in the air as he spoke in a disarming voice.
"Just wait! I'm not your enem—."
His explanation was cut off, forced to dodge in a dangerous manner once again, as the creature launched itself at him like a madman.
"Fine! To hell with you then!"
Leor swung the heavy pickaxe in his hand at the attacking creature, his powerful body adding deadly strength to the blow. The tip of the pick struck the attacking Beast right in the forehead, crushing its skull and instantly killing it.
"It's your own stupid fault! I would have let you live." He cursed the dead Beast, then shoved its body over the edge of the tall rock.