Getting some answers!

Ian directly appeared in front of the face of the gargantuan Elephant Zunesha.

He stared directly at this massive beast in front of him

Its eyes sunken deep into its eye sockets, but even so, Ian could discern that they were turquoise ringed irises. He had great eyesight after all.

If another person looked at Zunesha they would find it hard to see its eyes. They were in fact so hidden one would think they were nonexistent.

Its ears were tattered and frayed at the edges. No doubt due to its age, and it having to weather the atmosphere of every island it passed. Ian made a note to see if he can do anything about it right now.

Ian noticed that Zunesha was studying him too but he didn't mind.

But Ian proceeded to introduce himself.

After all, this was a one thousand years old Elephant. And it deserved some respect.

"Hello! My name is Ian D. Louis." Ian introduced himself calmly.

But upon seeing Zunesha stay silent he continued on.

"I heard the resident on the island call you by the name Zunesha, is it really your name?" It was possible that the name was just given by them, and that since Zunesha was self-aware, that it had another name.

The minks didn't even know that Zunesha could speak, after all. But there was also the possibility that the name was indeed passed down from generation to generation. Personally, Ian guessed that it was the latter.

Again the elephant stayed silent for a bit.

Before this time he replied.

"Indeed!" Zunesha confirmed Ian's guess.

"Although I remain thankful for your help, I must ask, for what purpose do you seek me, Ian D. Louis?" Zunesha stated as soon as it finished confirming what Ian was thinking.

And at this Ian took a few seconds to think things through.

He didn't know how much would this elephant know, but at the very least he wanted to know its reason for wandering or why it was punished.

With that in mind, Ian looked at Zunesha.

"For what reason do you wander the sea?" Ian asked.

He was not going to directly ask of course. As that would mean he already knew that Zunesha was being punished by someone. And he was not supposed to know that.

No, if he asked that, Zunesha was definitely going to be alert.

Zunesha himself after hearing this took a second to look profoundly at Ian.

'This is the one 'he' was talking about… I suppose it wouldn't hurt to tell him!' It thought to itself.

As it remembered when he had mentioned the coming of Ian in the past…

"It is a punishment if you must know…" Zunesha said, and it sounded to Ian as if the elephant was mad tired at that moment.

Ian for his part already knew that. What he did not know was why the elephant was punished. And who, yes who, was capable of punishing such a massive lifeform.

"Punishment you say? Why though? Have you done something to earn it?" Ian asked him.

His thoughts wandering to what could be so worse as to punish him to wander the seas for hundreds of years…

Yeah, he couldn't come up with something, not to mention, he felt the elephant was not really bad.

Zunesha contemplated on what to say for a bit.

"For a crime, I committed in the past…" Zunesha began. "I had been quite young at the time, barely two hundred years old… there was a war happening, and all of us were called… except at my young age, I had been scared of dying, as such due to my cowardice I had run away. The war thus was lost, and I was punished…" Zunesha explained. A hint of bitterness in its voice that Ian could understand. Anyone would find it hard to admit their shortcomings…

"Do not ask me against who was the war fought, you can make your own guesses, but it is forbidden to say anything more about that! You will eventually find out on your own anyway!" Zunesha continued on not leaving any time for Ian to ask questions.

"So as punishment to that, you were tasked with traveling all around the world?" Ian asked it.

He could already make a few guesses. What was the war? Most likely the war against the great kingdom. The one where it was betrayed.

But he didn't understand what the relationship of the great kingdom was with Zunesha. Plus it had said 'all of us', meaning more like it.

Would Kurma also be among those? Ian had this thought. His father had said at one point that there were massive beasts in this world with unimaginable power. Kurma was one. Zunesha another… after all, even though Ian was quite strong, Zunesha would be able to kill him, if it was capable of touching him, that is.

His body though evolved, just could not hold the same amount of strength as a massive thirty-five km tall beast.

Not to say that Ian would not be able to easily kill it. But this was a comparison of raw strength. And in that, Zunesha easily wins…

"How long ago was this war?" Ian continued asking him. If he knew the exact time, he might be able to confirm his guess.

Again Zunesha thought for a bit. And then replied.

"I was barely two hundred years old. And now I'm a thousand years old!" He didn't state it directly but Ian understood that it was 800 years ago. Meaning at the time of the void century.

So Ian's guess was in fact correct. This war was the war the great kingdom fell in.

"Well, I don't believe that you running away would warrant 800 years of punishment… there must be more to this!" Ian stated as he said.

He knew that there was something more. Obviously, the war was lost, and the elephant deserved some sort of punishment, but for it to wander the seas for years and years, it had to have another reason…

Zunesha was searching for something… or rather somewhere… Ian knew well about this.

He just didn't know what they were searching for.

But Ian had a feeling that somehow, the minks, Samurais, fishmen were all related somehow.

One was searching for something, one was promised to be brought to the surface, and the last was hoping their country would be opened to the rest of the world… Somehow all of this was related…

"Make your own guesses, Ian D. Louis! This is all that I'm allowed to say!" Zunesha responded.

Ian nodded his head.

He understood that he was not going to get anything more from Zunesha about this.

Still like it said he did manage to get quite a few things from it.

For one, he now knew why Zunesha was being punished. Then there was also the fact that he now knew Zunesha was somehow related to the great kingdom, and by extension, the 'D' people who Ian thought are the great kingdom rulers.

Another thing is that it had confirmed that there was some beast strong enough to command it and punish it when it had said that 'all of us were tasked to fight…'

Also if there wasn't a beast like that, why would it obey such an order for years… not even capable of protecting itself until ordered… no it definitely existed and it was scary strong…

Perhaps that was the unknown existence that had talked with Ian. After all, that existence had said at the time that it was fortunate for Ian that he had met one of them at the Florian triangle…

Ian was starting to get tired of all these riddles. But the day to reach the last island and understand everything was close.

"Thank you, Zunesha!" Ian thanked the elephant.

"As you replied to my questions to the best of your ability, I'll help you up somewhat!" He said as he came closer.

His energy had helped many in the past, and Ian had no reason to believe that it would not be able to help Zunesha, except that it might take more times, and several tries rather than one.