This harvest was sufficiently abundant, providing ample motivation to leave.
But Law knew Ging and Salin definitely wouldn't want to leave just like that.
Although uncertain when the Gatekeeper Clan would attack again, Law also leaned towards staying.
Nevertheless, Law didn't give Ging a definitive answer because no one knew what might happen the next second.
Leaving the sorting and organizing to Ging and the others, Law went to find Nique.
The Nitro Rice cultivation area was allocated in a room corner, and even the swamp soil was transplanted here.
Soil capable of supporting Nitro Rice growth was, in a sense, a rare treasure.
In Nique's view, if Nitro Rice could develop in a swamp environment, the herb shouldn't be a problem either.
The biggest current issue was his uncertainty about the herb seeds' viability and growth cycle… he could only explore slowly.
As Nique gently buried the herb seeds in the soil, Law arrived at the cultivation area.
"Law."
Seeing Law approach, Nique quickly stood up to greet him.
His demeanor was like that of a diligent employee seeing the boss.
"Is the area sufficient? Need expansion?" Law glanced at the fenced swamp land.
"Enough, enough!"
Nique shook his head vigorously.
"Hmm." Law nodded, smiling. "If the seeds sprout, we'll allocate a separate area for cultivation."
"But, there's not enough mud."
Nique looked at the mud transplanted from the swamp.
"That's not a problem because the herb is worth another trip. However, I hope you can thoroughly research the herb. If the herb's growth environment requirements aren't high, it'll be good news for us."
"Alright." Nique nodded heavily.
"Thanks for your hard work."
Law patted Nique's shoulder, then went to Salin.
Nique watched Law's departing back, feeling somewhat flattered.
Moments later, Law came to Salin.
Salin was intently translating ancient script, with Bruna assisting nearby.
"Law, you're here."
Seeing Law, Bruna immediately jumped onto his shoulder, greeting him quietly.
Law smiled at her, then looked at Salin bent over the desk, also asking quietly, "Progress?"
"Very slow. Translating graphic script is inherently difficult. Moreover, Salin would rather slow down than reduce translation accuracy, so results probably won't come quickly."
"Is that so..."
Law looked at Salin, estimating this wasn't a good sign. After all, Salin was the type who, once immersed, was hard to stop… even hunger couldn't bring her back.
Initially somewhat worried, but later not too concerned.
When the time came, cooking a dish with strong aroma would be enough to make Salin pause her translation work.
After quietly instructing Bruna a few words, Law went to help Ging and the others with item classification.
Night deepened, and the tired team members went to their rooms to rest.
Early next morning, everyone hastily ate breakfast, left Hide-and-Seek, and continued exploring unexplored ruin buildings.
Law, Machi, Uvogin, and Nobunaga formed a team, having a relatively rare grouping.
The four entered a large rectangular walled building. With the aid of bright light from luminous algae, a mountain-like debris pile appeared before them.
Yesterday, they visited many buildings, discovering each had different structures and functions. Not every building stored seeds and embryos.
The mountain of debris before them gave a storage room impression.
But precisely because of the towering debris, Law's group of four felt a strange sensation, inadvertently connecting to distant memories.
They stood at the entrance, quietly observing the debris pile.
No one spoke… the room was silent.
Moments later, Law chuckled, breaking the silence. "Let's get to work!"
"Hmm."
Machi nodded lightly, with a gleam in her eyes, showing unconcealed joy.
Uvogin and Nobunaga stepped forward first, reaching the base of the debris pile.
"Uvogin, be gentle. Don't break so many antiques like yesterday." Before starting, Nobunaga wisely reminded.
"These things are antiques?"
Uvogin looked at the debris pile before him, eyes wide.
"What else?" Nobunaga retorted.
"Looks like useless junk."
"Idiot, didn't Law say? Every single item here, taken to the Six Continents, could sell for astronomical prices!"
"Really?" Uvogin scratched the back of his head, then casually pulled a broken stone rod from the debris pile. "For example, how much can this sell for?"
Nobunaga looked at the stone rod resembling a fire poker. Uvogin's question stumped him. He pretended to cough, saying seriously, "I estimate about ten million Jenny."
"..."
Uvogin silently stared at Nobunaga.
"What?"
Nobunaga felt uncomfortable under Uvogin's gaze.
Not far away, Law sighed softly. "I don't remember saying anything like that."
Machi suppressed a smile… she remembered Law saying something similar but not as exaggerated as Nobunaga understood.
Listening to Uvogin and Nobunaga's increasingly exaggerated exchange, Law said helplessly, "Two clowns."
After speaking, he directly took Machi's hand, heading to the second floor.
Machi looked at her hand held by Law. "You rarely take my hand actively."
"Ah, really?"
"Yes."
Machi's tone was certain.
Law felt somewhat awkward. After confirming their relationship, their alone time indeed seemed scarce.
To be precise, it was similar before confirming the relationship.
If Machi hadn't taken the initiative to follow this time, their relationship might be at a level higher than long-distance.
Of course, Law knew what kind of person Machi was. Even if he stayed on the Dark Continent for over a decade before returning, Machi would definitely wait for him wholeheartedly.
Thinking of this, he couldn't help feeling that Machi coming along wasn't necessarily a bad thing.
'Come to think of it, I really wasn't a qualified boyfriend.'
A sense of apology welled up in Law's heart. He subconsciously tightened his grip on Machi's hand slightly.
Though Law said nothing, Machi could vaguely guess what he was thinking. Silently, she gently leaned against his arm.
What she wanted had always been simple: to be by Law's side, life or death.
The two ascended to the second floor together, exchanged a smile, and began today's 'work'.
Time passed.
Soon, two weeks went by.
Items plundered from the Ancient Labyrinth City occupied an entire room in Hide-and-Seek.
Although numerous, actually useful items only constituted a small portion, such as herb seeds.
Most items were objects left by ancient humans, tentatively called 'antiques'.
These 'antiques', taken to the Six Continents, could be converted into substantial funds. But Law wasn't short of money. As items accumulated, he considered discarding some.
Additionally, Salin's translation progress finally showed some leads, and Nique's planted herbs sprouted.
Good news came one after another. Law thought about whether it was time to leave here, moving to the next destination.
He didn't plan to stay in the eastern Dark Continent but wanted to go to the western Dark Continent.
There, many places he hadn't successfully reached before… moreover, the World Tree was in an area near the western Dark Continent.
Regardless, the World Tree was a place they had to go.