As they were walking, Austin told them to look for a waterfalls that seemed to flow in a different pattern. He told them that the place is where the leprechaun could reside.
As they walked in silence, making sure that they never miss it, Austin told him a tale that happened in this mountains many years ago, about his friend who found a pot of gold but never dared touch it.
His friend was on a quest to find the hidden cave that was rumored to be behind the waterfalls. Austin and him had heard stories about the cave, but no one knew exactly where it was located. So his friend, Maxwell, was determined to find it and explore its depths.
He had been searching for days, but he had no luck. He had hiked through dense forests, climbed steep mountains, and crossed raging rivers. But still, he had not found the cave.
As he was about to give up, he came across a small village. Probably the village where FIona and her family is. He asked the villagers if they knew anything about this hidden cave, and they told him about a waterfall that was said to hide the entrance.
With renewed hope, Maxwell set out to find the waterfall. He hiked through the forest, and after a few hours, he heard the sound of rushing water. As he got closer, he could see the waterfall cascading down from a high cliff. It was beautiful, and he couldn't help but stare in awe.
But he knew he had to keep moving. He searched around the waterfall for any signs of the hidden cave. Suddenly, he noticed that the water was falling in a strange pattern. He realized that there was a small opening behind the waterfall.
Without hesitation, he swam through the waterfall and entered the cave. Inside, he found a vast network of tunnels and chambers. He explored the cave for hours, marveling at the stalactites and stalagmites that hung from the ceiling and rose from the floor.
As he was about to leave, he stumbled upon a hidden chamber. In the center of the room, he found a pot of gold with a small rainbow that glowed with an otherworldly light. He knew that he had found something special, but he knew to leave it alone.
Besudes, he only wanted to explore and research about leprechauns. He wanted stones from the cave, water from it for ingredients in brewing potions.
With his mission accomplished, Alex made his way back out of the cave and emerged from behind the waterfall. He felt a sense of accomplishment and pride in what he had achieved.
"Your friend is pretty simple-minded, no?" Atlas commented. "He only came for potion ingredients and left the pot of gold alone. Did he see the leprechauns?"
"Well, yes," Austin said, continuing his statement. "That's why the leprechauns liked Maxwell. He ignored the pot of gold when they were watching him secretly and they led him to places in the caves where he could get more rare ingredients."
Meredith couldn't help but laugh. "Your friend is like a nerd! Only collecting what he wants and study more about it."
"True," Austin agreed, letting out a chuckle. "The legend's true, you know. If you found leprechauns and then you're on their good side, they grant you a wish. And Maxwell just said if my friends need me, you grant them regardless as I trust them."
Atlas and Meredith looked at Austin in surprise as they have access to the clue from the beginning yet they made a lot of effort into looking for answers.
"Then why must we go through all of that, then?" Atlas asked, Austin stopping as they could already see the waterfall from afar.
"Of course, we have to see if they are still in the mountains. Years have passed and if there are a lot of people, leprechauns could have migrated. With the recent curse on the man, it meant that they may not have relocated after years had passed. They are still here," he answered, Meredith sighing.
"But you could have gone earlier?" Atlas asked, Austin shaking his head to disagree.
"Even with Maxwell's favor with the leprechauns, they are not that fond of other people. Even if I show them one of Maxwell's gifts from them, they will still doubt me. So it's better to come prepared."
"That's why you have the four-leaf clover?"
"Yes," Austin answered, patting his bag. "And I not only have one, but a bag full of it. You see, not only do they love pot of gold, they love this, too. Since it's rare, they'll definitely get it. They don't go out often to look for these, too, since they are concealing their identities, protecting their pot, too."
"What exactly do they do with it?" Meredith asked, Austin's answer now making sense as he further explained the function of the four leaf clover to them.
"Notice how there are mostly male leprechauns than females? They rarely populate. With the help of the four leaf clover, it is the only way to propose to a female leprechaun to populate. Since it is rare and they rarely go out to search for it, four leaf clovers represent their effort in mate finding."
As it made sense, Meredith threw another question.
"Why can't they leave their pot of gold? Is that really important?"
"The pot of gold represents their life. Have it stolen, they're a joke to their kind. And when a pot of gold is broken, they die along with it. It's their weakness," Austin said, a scoff heard from Atlas.
"Now I understand the anger of the leprechaun who put the curse on Celine's husband."
As they were now by the entrance of the waterfall, they do find the entrance like how Maxwell found it in Austin's story. As they took a few more moments to themselves, they all looked at each other before entering the cave as they know that once they are inside, there's no turning back.
They are already a step away from getting the next clue to the next location where another clue might be given. They're not going to back away from this now even though they know they might be threatened by a leprechaun.