Yarra’s Adventure Notes
Chapter 1106 - 219: Bags and Boxes

Chapter 1106: Chapter 219: Bags and Boxes

"What have you found now?" Pannis asked lazily and sauntered over to the scorpion-tailed lion, climbing onto its back and yawning as he inquired, "What’s up with this place? I don’t see anything odd."

"Do you see this crack?" Dillie scratched at the wall and said, "Something about it feels off to me."

"You suspect there’s something hidden behind it?" Pannis was taken aback, shaking his head, "I think you’re overthinking it. The crack is too narrow; almost nothing can fit through it except for paper. Do you think Catherine’s grandparents would secretly hide a few pieces of paper here? It’s not some top-secret document, and we’re not on the bustling streets of the Holy City, so there’s no need to hide things so stealthily. If they really wanted to leave a message, they could have just written it directly on the wall—it would be better than hiding it in this little crack."

"I understand what you’re saying," Dillie’s expression remained grave and serious, "but this crack is different."

"Are you serious?" Realizing that Dillie wasn’t joking, Pannis quickly stood up from Dillie’s back and studied his old friend’s face before nodding, "It looks like you are serious. Alright, let’s check out what’s hidden in this crack together, hoping not to be disappointed."

As they peered into the crack, Pannis began to understand why Dillie insisted. Though they could see nothing through the narrow slit except darkness, a faint scent wafted out. The smell was subtle and blended with the damp, musty air escaping the crevice; even with Dillie’s specially constructed nose and Pannis’s keen sense of smell, they couldn’t determine what it was. They only had a vague impression that it was slightly different from the odors naturally present here, and it was this anomaly that had caught their attention.

The faint odor was strange, resembling something that had been left in place for a very long time and had completely decayed. If not for the fact that there had been no sightings of magical beasts in the Forbidden Land of Living Souls since the Fourth Epoch, Pannis might have thought it the scent of a small dead animal.

Examining the fine crack in the rock wall for a few seconds, Pannis realized it was too thin for any weapon to pry open. After some thought, he tore a piece of paper from Vivian’s notebook and slowly inserted it into the crack, carefully infusing Aggression into the thin sheet of paper, turning it as hard as a crowbar.

Knowing this was no time for distractions, the equally tense and focused girls held their breath, watching his movements in silence. Pannis smiled at everyone, took a deep breath, and applied a slight pressure with his wrist. Accompanied by a soft crumbling sound and a cascade of stone fragments falling from the wall, a crisp snap signaled a large, flat piece of rock peeling off from the rock face, revealing a space behind it.

Behind the rock was a small stone cavity, so shallow it couldn’t even accommodate a curled-up child. The cavity was exceptionally clean, devoid of dust, weeds, or even moss - its cleanliness astonishing. However, the most shocking aspect was the presence of a leather pouch placed in the center of the cavity, bulging as if it held a small box inside.

"It looks like the scent we smelled earlier was from this leather pouch," Pannis and Dillie exchanged glances and nodded, "But how could this thing have ended up behind the wall?"

"I’ve got no idea," Dillie said as he drew closer to examine the broken edges of the fallen stone, perplexed, "Looking at the coverings outside the hole, it doesn’t seem man-made at all. No matter how you look at it, it seems to be a naturally formed rock wall."

"Not necessarily; it could indeed be man-made," Pannis disagreed, "I remember Mages have a technique that can create walls, although it’s rarely used, so I’m not particularly familiar with it."

"There is such a method," Vivian chipped in as she knocked a fragment off the stone slab and examined it in her hand, "Yes, this is the effect of Stone-condensing Liquid. Look at this stone slab that seems like a wall - see the core in the very center with those cylindrical columns? That’s actually the core of the wall. First, they weave a net of vines, placing it where they want to seal off, and then apply a layer of Stone-condensing Liquid or Potion, which swiftly permeates and integrates with the vine net, replacing the moisture. Over time, the net absorbs the surrounding earth Element, transforming the vines into a stone net, and then gradually into a slab until a wall like this is formed. This technique is unique to our Alchemy School. However, I must admit, its applicability is incredibly limited, and very few people know about it."

"Clearly, the Mage who did this knew," Pannis pointed to the leather strap in the cavity and said, "And they even left behind a gift. Could this have been left by a previous expedition?"

"Don’t joke around; that’s impossible," Vivian immediately denied without hesitation, "You don’t understand Stone-condensing Potion. The potion takes effect over centuries, and if it had only been forty years, what we would have seen upon entering would have been a withered vine net with perhaps some attached stones. It would need at least a hundred years for the vine net to transform into a stone net, and to form a wall as we see now would require an estimated four to five hundred years. That’s why I say the application of this potion is so narrow."

"Four hundred years?" The unexpected answer momentarily stunned Pannis. He glanced at the stone wall that had fallen to the ground, then at the leather bag in the small cave, his brow furrowed in thought as he spoke, "It’s certain that four hundred years ago, this place was still at the heart of the Forbidden Land of Living Souls. There should have been almost no one able to enter, yet there was a mage who built a wall here and left behind a bag. Now that’s interesting. Who would do such a boring thing?"

"Are you stupid?" Dillie, anthropomorphically rolling their eyes, said, "Why think about such pointless things? If you want to know what’s going on, just open the bag and see what’s inside. Maybe the contents will give you the answer."

"Uh, I must have spent too much time with you these past few days, your influence has made me sluggish," Pannis said with a sheepish smile. "Alright, you make a fair point this time. You all stand back, I’ll see what’s inside."

"Hold onto your shield," Catherine handed over her most treasured Magicsteel Shield, cautioning him, "Be careful. It could be a trap. You might not die, but don’t be too careless, either."

"Don’t worry, I understand." Pannis did not refuse and took the Magicsteel Shield, placing it in front of him, feeling the lingering warmth on the handle, a slight smile on his lips as he slowly approached the leather bag.

"Something’s not right, very not right." The moment Pannis’s fingers touched the leather bag, he quickly drew back, frowning, "There’s a problem here, it’s just too strange."

"What’s... Huh?" Catherine too leaned in closely, scrutinizing the bag carefully before she, too, let out a surprised gasp, "This bag’s style and design are off. It looks more like the style that has been popular in recent years, including the edging technique and stitching skills; these only became fashionable in the past few years."

"That’s why I was surprised," Pannis said, staring blankly at the leather bag, "And go ahead, touch the bag - lightly. Basically, as soon as your fingers touch it, that should be enough."

The knight girl reached out, puzzled, and as soon as her fingers touched the leather bag, she understood what Pannis meant. Her fingers hadn’t yet applied any force before they sank into the leather, poking several holes in the bag as if it wasn’t leather at all, but rather a clump of cotton.

"Why is it like this?" Catherine said dumbfoundedly, "It looks like the latest model of bag, but how did it rot like this? It falls apart at a touch. It really does seem like it’s been left for four hundred years."

"Uh, I’ve heard some artists say that popular styles cycle through," Lina guessed, having been exposed to various artists in the northern district of the City of Knowledge, due to Michelle and Ansha, "Every few decades, the trend becomes retro. Maybe this bag is like that too."

"What cycles is the Element of fashion, not the actual styles and designs, let alone the sewing techniques," Pannis shook his head, "This definitely isn’t what you’re suggesting. Forget it, you all step back a bit, I’ll open the bag slowly to maintain its integrity, and we’ll see what’s inside before investigating the reason."

Opening a leather bag that had been stored in a damp environment for hundreds of years wasn’t difficult, but preserving its integrity was a daunting task. Pannis held the shield with one hand while his fingers danced dexterously on the bag, and after more than ten minutes, his forehead sweating, he finally completed the task.

However, when the bag was fully opened, his expression became even more troubled, not just his, but everyone’s expressions were extremely vivid, almost staring blankly at the place where the leather bag had been.

There, in place of the leather bag, was a square wooden box, about thirty centimeters long. Wooden boxes are common and ordinary; every household probably has a few. Yet, the biggest issue was that this wooden box looked brand new, whether the main wood of the box or the metal nails on the fixed corner boards, they all looked undifferentiated from new ones. Especially the metal nails, which glanced under the light of the fire, gleaming with the luster of metal, not a single sign of rust tarnishing their surface.

"Can someone tell me what’s going on here?" Dee’s tail even stopped wagging as it pointed stiffly into the air, full of bewilderment, "The bag crumbles at a touch, yet the box looks brand new. Is someone really playing a joke on us?"