Commander Iria tied a rope to a big tree and used it to get down to the underground path which she just discovered. Just as she expected, the path curved to the left, presenting a long route before her eyes. However, it was quite dark and her vision of the path wasn't clear.
Using the rope, she climbed back up to the ground again. Then she mounted her horse and returned to the camp.
When the Commander entered the camp, Zire saw her and he quickly ran to her.
"You returned early today, Commander. Where are the others?"
"I need to return right away," Iria Alewine replied and halted. Then she turned to Zire. "Prepare a torch and you will come with me."
Zire was quite confused when he heard the Commander. However, he nodded without asking any questions. "I understand."
Zire quickly went to his tent to get prepared while Iria Alewine also entered her tent. The first thing she did was glancing at the map.
She finds that underground path in the northern outer part of the Celia Forest and it curved to the left. When her eyes trailed to the left, she saw the source of the Deris River.
That must be the path which she searched for more than a week!
The Commander quickly walked out of her tent again. Soon, Zire came to her with two torches and the two left for the Celia Forest.
*
Zire glanced down the path which his Commander discovered. There was an underground path in the Celia Forest? It put him in awe!
"I get down once but it's too dark. I can only see that there is a long path in the left," Iria Alewine explained and added, "It's getting dark. Let's go down and take a look."
Zire quickly nodded with an exciting smile and the two get down to the underground path.
The path in the left was quite long just like the Commander said. As such, the two spent a few minutes following the path. Then there was another curve to the left again. The cycle repeated almost ten times!
The Commander and Zire spent more than three hours walking the path. However, they didn't even realize it because of the fascinating feeling.
Who would have thought that this kind of path existed beneath the Celia Forest?!
Finally, they reached the end which seemed to be a cave. However, it wasn't just a cave. At the end of the path was a waterfall. "I bet that waterfall covered the entrance to this underground path," Commander Iria said to Zire.
"But that's strange, Commander. Even if it's behind the waterfall, why did no one discovered it?" Zire asked with a confused face.
"We will soon find that out," Iria Alewine simply said and continued walking towards the waterfall. Then she halted and observed the ground. "It ends here," she muttered.
"It just ends?" Zire blinked and asked, "What does that mean?"
Iria Alewine simply smiled and reached out her hand to the waterfall. Cautiously observing the ground, she took a little step forward.
"Commander, be careful."
"Hold me," Iria promptly said and Zire complied right away. Then she closed her eyes and stretched her head towards the waterfall as much as she could.
The moment Iria Alewine opened her eyes, she was taken aback by the sight presented right before her. Though it was already dark, she could still spot many things, thanks to the brightness provided by the moon and stars. She realized that the place they were in was a few metres above the ground! Below was trees, grasses and of course, the Deris River!
The moment Iria Alewine pulled back, there was a little smile on her face which only made Zire more curious.
"What is it like, Commander?"
"You should take a look too," the Commander said and Zire nodded.
With Iria holding him so that he won't fall, Zire stretched out his head to the waterfall and observed the same scene. However, he was more than quick to pull back!
"It's the Deris River and some parts of Helsia!" he exclaimed with disbelief.
Iria Alewine nodded. "Do you now know why people can't discover this? It's because it is located a few metres above the ground. Who would have thought that there is an entrance to an underground path in the middle of a waterfall?"
"Commander, this waterfall is the Eria Falls, right? That means we are already in the land of the Helsians!"
"You're right," Iria Alewine promptly said. "Once the war starts, we can use this path to enter the capital of Helsia. We can use ropes or other means to get down there."
There was a smile of excitement and relief on Zire's face. "You're amazing, Commander! Even the intelligent King Rozalez will have no idea about this."
"It's too early to be happy, Zire. We still have to make a perfect plan to pull this off," Commander Iria simply said. "Let's get out first. It's already night and I'm sure that others will be worried about us."
With that said, the two get out of the underground path and by the time they returned to the camp, it was almost midnight.
Just as Iria predicted, Rion and Jolene who were in the camp were more than worried now. However, relief was evident on their faces when they saw Iria and Zire. However, the Commander didn't expect to see Prince Orius too.
What was he still doing here at this hour?!
"Commander, what took you two so long? We were so worried," Jolene promptly said when she stood opposite Commander Iria.
"We were caught up with something but we have good news," the Commander replied and shifted her gaze to the Second Prince who was making his way towards them.
"You've returned," Orius Aventine calmly remarked and asked, "Where were you?"
"In the northern outer part of the forest," Iria quickly said. "I'm glad that you're here, Your Highness. Zire and I discovered something great today. Let's get inside and I'll tell you the details."
Something great? Rion and Jolene exchanged glances with confusion while the Prince still maintained his calm demeanor. "Alright. Let's go inside," he responded and entered the tent with Iria and the three soldiers.....
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