Hearing this, Satotz's eyes widened even more, his expression filled with astonishment, as if he had just heard something unbelievable. Could it really be connected to the legendary Demon King's song, Dark Sonata?
"If it's Dark Sonata..." Satotz began.
"Then it seems we can finally understand the changes in this skeleton," Larry finished, looking thoughtfully at the bone glowing faintly with white light. He had been unsure about the cause of the bone's peculiar changes before, but thanks to Larry's explanation, everything started to make sense, it was the influence of Dark Sonata.
Just then, the death aura on the bones suddenly began to flutter, as if stirred by a gentle breeze. Among the three of them, only Larry could see this clearly. Just like the scene from yesterday, the death aura seemed to swirl and flow into Larry's shadow until it vanished completely. If anyone else had seen it, they might have thought Larry's shadow was made up of death aura itself.
The main difference from yesterday was that today, it was Gengar who was consuming death aura. After Marshadow had tried them yesterday, it found their "taste" wasn't very appealing and decided to save them for Gengar instead.
According to Larry's estimate, it would take at least a trip to the Dark Continent to find a death aura that would catch Marshadow's interest. Among the six continents, Dark Sonata's death wish was already one of the strongest, but even that wasn't enough to impress Marshadow.
"The death aura above have been completely eliminated. You can safely put it away now," Larry said to Satotz, confirming that the death aura were gone.
With the influence of Dark Sonata removed, the skeleton, though shaped by those dark energies, was no longer dangerous. What was once a risky object hiding deep dangers had now become a rare and valuable artifact. Satotz paused for a moment, then realized Larry had taken steps to remove the death desire. After thanking him, he carefully packed the skeleton back into his hiking bag.
"Based on our guess, this Dark Sonata is probably deep inside Kazu Mine Valley," Pyon explained. "Especially in places where this kind of skeleton appears, it's likely the location of Dark Sonata." She glanced quietly at Satotz, knowing it would be much easier to navigate if someone familiar with the area led the way.
"I know this place fairly well, so let me take you to the spot where you found this skeleton," Satotz offered. He picked up on the hint immediately and said the three of them would work together, just like they did during their trip to the Solvren ruins. Since Larry and Pyon weren't ordinary people, they didn't need to wear mining uniforms. But Satotz was used to spending long periods in the mine, so he was dressed in a full set of mining gear.
Without needing to gather any extra tools, the three of them headed down toward the bottom of the mine valley. Satotz led the way, with Larry and Pyon following closely behind in a triangular formation.
Their conversation mostly centered on Larry and all the impressive things he had accomplished this year. First, he defeated numerous top contenders in the Sky Arena and earned the title of the strongest fighter there. Then he won the championship at the Foodie Paradise cooking competition. And during an auction in Yorknew City, half the members of the A-level criminal group known as the Phantom Troupe were killed under his watch.
A few days ago, the tournament took place. During the live broadcast, Larry killed an intruder, an event that was widely promoted across the six continents, making it well-known to most people. However, some of his other achievements, like winning the food contest and wiping out half the spiders, were mostly shared within the circle of people with telekinetic abilities.
As Satotz and Pyon listed off these feats, Larry realized just how much he had accomplished. His reputation was quietly but steadily growing among those with mental powers, reaching almost legendary status, something not seen since President Netero's time.
Meanwhile, Satotz's year had been quite uneventful, mostly spent repairing ruins or digging for fossils on Yoshi Island. He considered this a happy life, as he was able to focus on what he truly enjoyed.
As the three of them chatted, they carefully followed a spiral path, gradually descending deeper. Suddenly, with a loud "boom," a strange creature appeared beside them.
It had a slightly pointed head, short limbs compared to its plump body, and its fur and features resembled those of a mouse. Its small eyes were almost hidden beneath fine fur, giving it a peculiar, mysterious look.
The most distinctive feature of this creature is its thick forelimbs, equipped with incredibly sharp claws that gleam with a metallic shine. These claws are its primary tools for digging through the soil.
At first glance, it resembles a giant mole, but unlike ordinary moles, its fur is marked with spotted patterns. "Oh, this is a spotted mole, a very common creature around here," Satotz explained to the two, glancing at the animal.
Not only does it look quite cute, but it also reminds one of a screw mole at first. Perhaps, as it matures, it might resemble a dragon head mole.
"Even though this mining valley is mostly filled with rocks, soil, and fossils, some creatures still live here," Satotz continued. "For example, the spotted mole is one of them, and it's actually one of the most numerous creatures on Yoshi Island."
Just as he finished speaking, two more spotted moles appeared nearby, almost as if responding to his words. Their small eyes seem to reflect a surprising intelligence, which made everyone smile.
"These moles dig through the soil with their large, razor-sharp claws, so sharp they can even cut through metal," Satotz explained.
"That's why you often see tunnels of various sizes in the mine, ranging from fist-sized holes to passages large enough to hold several people. Almost all of these were dug by spotted moles."
In a way, the moles help miners by creating these tunnels, making it easier to extract resources. However, this is a double-edged sword because the abundance of mole tunnels can cause the ground to collapse unexpectedly.
As Satotz spoke, the group arrived at the lowest cave in the entire Kashi Mine Valley. According to him, this was where he had found a bone fossil. Larry suddenly had a thought and asked, "Wait, are you saying there are many mole tunnels underground?"
"Yes, though no exact count exists, there are definitely many empty passages beneath the surface," Satotz confirmed. His explanation cleared up the doubts both Larry and Piyonn had before and confirmed their suspicions.
Based on Piyonn's previous research, this so-called "dark sonata" was never discovered by anyone. Occasionally, faint music could be heard, but no sudden accidents or deaths had ever occurred.