Greatest Legacy of the Magus Universe

Chapter 2079 Esmond’s Guilt

It had been almost a year since Adam and his party had departed from the Free City of Davos and begun their expedition.

Esmond Greene, the man who had sponsored the mission, had been beside himself. After all, this was a rescue mission that he had sent the young adventurers into.

For the first few months, his anxiety hadn't been that great. He had believed that they would eventually return with news about the missing woman.

But once the half-year mark had passed, his concern had begun to grow.

The mission itself became secondary. What occupied his thoughts now was the well-being of Adam, Genevieve, and the other young adventurers who had gone with them. They had gone for far too long.

And with every passing day, Esmond found himself wondering whether they were still alive.

Eventually, Esmond arrived at Kinrani Valley and decided to camp there with his men, desperately hoping that the children would return soon.

He felt an immense sense of guilt for sending them into what could possibly have been their deaths.

Initially, Channing Oakley had accompanied him, waiting for Genevieve to return. Channing had always been like a parental figure to the girl. He loved her like his own.

But as more time passed, he became quieter. Then sad. And eventually, angry.

Angry at himself for ever allowing Genevieve to join the mission. He did not blame his friend, Esmond. He could only blame himself. He had known the dangers. He had known how young she was. Yet he had allowed her to go anyway.

Eventually, Channing had to reluctantly return to Davos. His duties as a professor at Sapphire Tower kept him busy, and he could no longer remain in Kinrani Valley indefinitely.

By then, he had already lost all hope. He slipped into deep depression, carrying the weight of what he believed had been his own mistake. Still, he would send letters to Esmond from time to time.

The questions were always the same.

Has anything happened in the valley?

Have they returned?

Any news?

And every time, Esmond had the same answer.

Nothing.

Nothing had changed.

Until today.

For the first time in almost a year, something had finally changed within Kinrani Valley.

Esmond charged forward with his men — two dozen of them — and quickly arrived at the base of the valley. They surrounded the survivors from all sides.

The survivors had just endured a hellish battle. They had survived the bloody meteor rain and escaped through the destruction and chaos of a crumbling secret plane.

They were exhausted and injured. Many of them were barely able to stand. They were in no condition to defend themselves against these unknown people.

Luckily for them, Esmond had not come to fight.

He looked around at the survivors frantically, his eyes desperately searching through the battered faces before him.

"Genevieve! Genevieve!" he shouted at the top of his lungs.

"Adam! Gene—"

"Master Greene?" Michael blurted out in shock. "Is that… is that really you?"

Esmond's eyes widened. He turned toward the source of the sound and found a youth who was so bloodied and battered as though he had just arrived from a battlefield. Around him were a few people whom Esmond did not recognize.

"Michael?!" Esmond's eyes widened. He quickly got off the horse and rushed toward the youth despite his limp.

"Michael, my boy!" Esmond arrived before him and pulled him into a tight embrace. "You're alright! Thank goodness, you're alright!"

He tightly clasped Michael's shoulders and looked him in the eye. "What about… what about the others?"

Esmond feared the answer to his question. His heart thundered inside his chest.

Michael replied with a sorrowful smile, "Koby and Kara died toward the beginning of our mission. And Darren…"

His eyes gleamed with a complicated light, which did not go unnoticed by Esmond.

"Darren died too," Michael continued. "As for Adam and Genevieve—"

"What about them?!" Esmond quickly asked, his voice shaking with panic. "Please, please, my boy. Tell me they're alive. Tell me Genevieve is—"

"She's alive."

A gruff voice echoed from Esmond.

The old man quickly turned around, his hand instinctively reaching for the sword fastened to his belt. He hadn't sensed this person until he spoke.

When he turned around, Esmond found that nobody was there. "Who—"

His words got caught in his throat when the space before him rippled like the surface of a still lake when a pebble was thrown into it.

A moment later, the outline of a giant grey panther appeared before everyone. Atop the panther's back, an auburn-haired young woman wearing a white bridal gown slept peacefully.

"Valerian!" Michael rushed toward the giant panther and hugged him tenderly. "You're safe!"

Meanwhile, Esmond felt as if a great weight had been lifted off his shoulders. He rushed to Valerian's side and gently lowered Genevieve to the ground. He frowned when he saw chains around her wrists and neck. Other than the fact that she was unconscious, she seemed unharmed.

Valerian handed the concealment artifact back to Michael. Then he walked toward Genevieve and lay by her side, guarding her vigilantly.

"What…" Esmond was at a loss for words as he observed Genevieve. "What happened to her? And where's Adam? Is he…. Is he alive?"

Valerian closed his eyes ever so slightly as he turned to a particular direction. He could still sense the bond that he and his brother shared. He sensed that they were in the spirit world.

"He's—" the giant panther said in a deep voice. "Never mind. They're here."

Suddenly, the space above them rippled once again. A small tear formed abruptly, and it disappeared just as quickly. Two figures shot out of the tear before it closed and landed beside Valerian.

Adam and Luca had arrived. Michael immediately rushed toward them and gave them a tight hug as tears streamed down his face.

Esmond finally breathed a sigh of relief as he saw Adam. "Thank goodness, you made it."

"I didn't expect you to be here, Master Greene," Adam said with slight surprise.

Esmond briefly explained what had happened in the material world for the past year, and how he had been camping near the valley in recent months.

After a long time, the old man couldn't help but say, "Adam, is… I mean… did you…"

He found that he couldn't even formulate the right words to say.

His guilt over indirectly being responsible for the deaths of Darren, Kara, and Koby weighed heavily upon him. Genevieve's current state and the fact that Adam and Michael had nearly lost their lives only made it worse.

The guilt prevented him from asking about the mission itself. He couldn't bring himself to ask whether they had found the missing woman.

Adam understood what was going through the old man's heart. He smiled and placed a gentle hand upon his shoulder.

"Come, Master Greene." Adam smiled and gestured to the shoulder of the valley.

"Let's take a walk."