The image of the tall, slender figure clad in gold remained seared into her mind. It evoked a suffocating pressure Aki had never experienced before. The mere thought that the entity had chosen to target Amanda first caused frustration mingled with rage to erupt within her heart.
To Aki... Berlinda was her benevolent master, a figure she obeyed strictly and unconditionally. But Amanda was different... This senior disciple was someone she "wanted to protect" from the depths of her soul—not out of duty, but due to a bond akin to sisterhood.
“Aki... that thing which transformed from the spear is terrifying,” Amanda whispered, her voice trembling. Even though she trusted her master’s skills, the image of the enemy’s formidable power still haunted her.
“......” Aki did not reply. She dedicated her entire focus to isolating her senses, straining to hear footsteps from behind.
“Aki... let me down here. Wouldn't it be better if you went back to help Master? I promise I will find the best hiding spot,” Amanda offered, guilt-ridden at the thought of leaving their master to handle two god-level adversaries alone.
However, Aki remained silent, using every auditory sense to gauge the speed of their pursuer... The sound of footsteps—faint, yet as swift as lightning—was closing in. At this pace, even if she dropped Amanda and ran unburdened, there was no guarantee she would be faster. To force herself to keep fleeing while exposing her back to such an enemy would be no different than waiting for death.
Aki slowed her pace. Though her gaze remained fixed ahead, she spoke decisively to the one on her back. “Running won't save us... We have to stop and fight. We might have a better chance of surviving that way.”
Aki’s words made Amanda’s heart drop, but she knew well that her junior disciple never spoke lightly. If Aki chose to fight, it meant this was the final resort. “Alright...” Amanda swallowed hard, gathering all her courage. “I will use my magic to help you!”
Aki nodded before setting Amanda down at her side. “Senior, it will definitely aim for you first. Cast a defensive spell and be ready.”
Though Amanda was the senior disciple, in this situation, she obeyed her junior’s commands strictly. She immediately cast an orange-red magic circle upon her left hand in preparation, while Aki tightened her grip on the last short knife in her left hand, her eyes fixed on the empty space before them.
“It’s here.”
The warning had barely faded when a golden shadow materialized directly before them in the blink of an eye! A palm, bathed in destructive power, thrust toward Amanda’s head, intending to claim her life!
Aki kicked at the side of the golden figure’s torso to deflect the trajectory, while simultaneously, Amanda raised her magic circle to block.
Clang!
The magic circle shattered instantly under the massive impact, but Aki’s kick caused Dark Asanee to stagger slightly, opening a gap for her to follow up and drive her short knife into his chest.
Dark Asanee parried the knife away effortlessly with the edge of his right hand before thrusting his left hand in a counterattack! Amanda wasted no time; she created a new, darker orange magic circle to intercept the blow in place of her junior.
In the moment the attack was blocked, Aki spun and struck the back of her right hand across Dark Asanee’s face with full force!
Wham!
The face of the man in gold snapped back from the impact, his body staggering once again... However, this being seemed to know no pain. He turned back immediately without pausing for breath. His sharp right palm slashed toward Aki again instantly.
Aki ducked to dodge. The hand-edge, sharp as a great axe, swept past her head. Amanda hurled the ring spell she had prepared earlier at the enemy, but another slash of his palm shattered the magic circle just as before.
Aki saw an opening and sprang in close, hoping to finish it, stabbing the short knife toward the enemy’s flank. But what happened was beyond expectation... Dark Asanee used his "fist" to catch the tip of the blade directly.
Kling!
The short knife snapped in her hand! The hand of this man was like the weapon of a god; it was harder and sharper than any common steel could withstand. Before Aki could recover from her shock, Dark Asanee thrust his other hand toward her torso.
“Aki, look out!” Amanda screamed.
Aki raised her right arm to guard, bracing herself for the pain or perhaps even the loss of the limb. But suddenly...
Fwip— Thwack!
An arrow pierced the air, striking Dark Asanee’s shoulder and disrupting his attack rhythm. He was forced to pull the arrow out before it could dig deeper, but he didn't forget to kick his right foot at Aki, sending her tumbling across the ground.
Their savior was Farran! He had risked taking a shot from a great distance. Luck was on their side that his aim remained true despite his haste.
Dark Asanee ignored the pain of his fresh wound. He twisted his body back toward his original target... Amanda! He raised his right palm high, intending to split the girl before him in two with a single strike.
Thud!
The sound of a knife-hand striking something solid, yet invisible! The unseen barrier halted the attack mere inches from Amanda’s forehead.
Amanda, who was exhaustedly preparing to cast a new wave of defensive spells, widened her eyes in confusion. Dark Asanee also frowned. He slashed with both arms continuously, but they kept striking an "invisible wall" every time.
In that moment, Farran and Aki, having regained their footing, leaped back into the fray. Farran tossed a sword hilt to Aki while he readied the Tvíh?gg bow—equipped with sharp blades—for close-quarters combat.
Aki seized the sword... It was slender but radiated a powerful aura. This was the "Magna Blade," the weapon created by the god Modi and entrusted to Farran by the god Magni.
The two engaged Dark Asanee in a chaotic melee immediately.
With Farran’s unique bow-fighting style, he was able to entangle and parry Dark Asanee’s attacks continuously, until...
Slash!
The edge of the Magna Blade sliced into the golden-clad man’s back. And this time... golden blood flowed! The coordination between Aki and Farran was causing Dark Asanee to falter and sustain a wound for the first time. Although he still showed no signs of pain, his body was clearly taking damage.
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As for Amanda, the air in front of her suddenly distorted, and the figure of a young woman with long, tied-back hair slowly materialized...
“Fiona... it’s you! You can turn invisible?” Amanda exclaimed.
Fiona offered no reply. In her left hand, she gripped a large shield with a cracked upper rim, while her other hand tightly clutched a green apple. She was gasping for air after holding her breath for so long.
Despite her panting, Fiona asked without turning, her eyes still fixed on the battle ahead. “Amanda... can you still cast spells?”
“I can... I must,” Amanda replied firmly, though her body was thoroughly exhausted.
“Good... then we will charge in to help them together!” Having said this, Fiona immediately sprinted into the lead.
Amanda strode forward on her small feet with all her might, casting her proficient ring spells, though their color had now faded to a yellowish-orange.
But suddenly, a strange phenomenon occurred. Dark Asanee’s body floated upward uncontrollably before transforming into a long object and shooting back in the direction Aki and Amanda had come from at lightning speed.
Amanda immediately looked back, intending to chase after the enemy, but Fiona grabbed her shoulder and said, “Don't follow it.”
Amanda stopped instantly. Fiona, having grabbed her shoulder, suddenly collapsed backward, completely drained of strength. As the shield in her left hand hit the ground, the cracked section shattered into pieces, but her right hand still tightly gripped the green apple as she panted.
Aki walked back to Amanda and said, “That hag Enya probably recalled it to use as a weapon to fight Master.”
“Should we go back to help Master?” Amanda, though physically the weakest in the group, possessed a heart stronger than anyone.
“We won't make it. We really won't make it,” Aki spoke with grim pessimism.
Tears immediately flowed from Amanda’s eyes.
Farran, who had been catching his breath a moment ago, regrouped with his companions and said, “Let’s return to Ainen-dor.”
“Wait. What about my great-grandfather?” Fiona suddenly started up, speaking urgently.
Yes, what about Galdur? Where had he gone?
Amidst the retreating Elven army following Enya’s orders, the atmosphere was thick with uneasiness and tension. Many pairs of eyes began to fixate on the single blonde human man in the group... Torvin, whose status—whether guest or prisoner of war—remained unclear.
“Are we really returning to the camp by the stream? Won't we wait for Lady Enya first?”
The murmuring of an Elf soldier cut through the sound of marching footsteps, shattering the fragile silence. A buzz of argument erupted throughout the procession.
“Silence immediately! Did you not hear the orders? Lady Enya ordered us to lead the army back to prepare at the camp!”
The Elf captain in charge of the procession shouted to restore discipline, but it seemed this time, faith in the orders was wavering.
“But...” an Elf soldier from the rear shouted back. “This human is clearly the one who led the enemy to Lady Enya! Can we trust him?”
With that objection, the atmosphere shifted from suspicion to resentment instantly. Several Elf soldiers began to slow down, turning to surround Torvin.
“This human pretended to run away... maybe to blend in with us as a spy!”
“Humans cannot be trusted. He might be Modi’s spy!”
“Yes! Humans all worship Modi. I say we tie him up first, don't you think? We can wait for Lady Enya to return, then release him.”
The proposal was quickly accepted. “That’s good!”
“He can't be trusted. Tying him up first won't do any harm!”
Torvin, who had already been trying to avoid the gaze of these strange Elves, went even paler. Before this, Enya had entrusted him to a captain in the vanguard, but now that captain was nowhere to be found. He had become a suspect. He tried to stay quiet, but seeing the unfriendly eyes of the Elf soldiers surrounding him, ready to bind him, he had to speak up to save himself. “Hey! I am a Prince from Allasia, an important guest of Lady Enya!”
“Lady Enya ordered us to take you back... but she didn't order anything more than that. Right now, we don't trust you, so we must tie you up first!” The Elf captain spoke coldly before nodding to his subordinates.
“Tie him up!”
The Elf soldiers rushed in immediately.
“When Enya returns, you will all be punished,” Torvin tried to shout in resistance, but in no time he was pressed to the ground. Thick ropes were used to bind his arms tightly behind his back. From an honored guest... he had instantly become a prisoner.
“Actually, we don't need to retreat to the camp. The enemies that appeared were only a handful. By now, Lady Enya has probably finished them all off. Wouldn't it be better if we went back to receive her, or to witness her victory and that of the God Vidar?”
Enya previously never had her own army; she was the leader of an assassin group. But a few days prior, dwarves had come to assassinate her. When Queen Embla learned of this, she prepared a group of soldiers for her. in reality, this group of soldiers was not familiar with Enya at all.
“We received orders from the Queen to protect Lady Enya. To retreat to the base leaving Lady Enya behind... is this really right?”
The voice of a soldier in the procession rose again.
The captain, who was the leader, had also just been appointed to this new unit. Many of the Elf soldiers in this procession were comrades who had served together for a long time; the respect they held for Enya was minimal.
“Even though Lady Enya is the Queen’s sister, the Queen’s orders now must be paramount. I say we go back to protect Lady Enya. If something unexpected happens and Lady Enya falls to the enemy while we are not there, we will all face execution.”
The voice of a soldier from another corner of the procession rang out.
The captain began to feel hesitant.
“Captain, let’s go back for Lady Enya. If there is any mistake, we will accept the blame together with you. I believe the punishment won't be as severe as death.”
“Is that how it’s going to be?”
The captain shouted to ask his comrades for certainty again.
“We agree!” “Go back to help Lady Enya!” “By the order of Queen Embla! We cannot abandon Lady Enya!”
The roar of response from the Elf soldiers was deafening. Fear of the supreme ruler’s authority was greater than the fear of death on the battlefield. When the decision was unanimous, the Elf captain had no choice but to nod.
“Good! If you are all agreed... Army, about face! Head back to support Lady Enya immediately!”
Even Torvin agreed with this order. Although he was bound hand and foot and suffering from being carried on a long spear, rushing back to meet Enya was the most wonderful prospect. He was determined that once they arrived, he would ask her to order the execution of all these low-class soldiers to vent his anger.
Following the order, the Elven army moved back with haste. Torvin, carried like a pig about to be slaughtered, had to grit his teeth and endure the pain of being jostled all the way.
However... when the Elven army arrived at the battlefield, the duel between Enya and Berlinda had already concluded. Before them lay the lifeless body of Enya in a pool of blood, with a golden spear standing tall beside her corpse. The sight caused a shock that nearly stopped the breath of the Elf soldiers.
“This is...” The captain stumbled forward and collapsed near Enya’s corpse in confusion and despair. He inadvertently reached out to grab the handle of the golden spear.
Zap!!
The moment he touched it, energy resembling high-voltage electricity surged through his body immediately. Golden flames engulfed the unfortunate captain. He collapsed and died in a split second.
The horrifying image of death threw the army into chaos. Suddenly, an Elf soldier broke rank and ran out, shouting frantically, “We can’t stay! Lady Enya is dead! We’re all going to be executed for sure!”
That shout was like the final straw that snapped everyone’s sanity. All the soldiers scattered in panic to save themselves. The two soldiers carrying Torvin dropped the spear holding him and fled first, leaving the Prince of Allasia to fall and hit the ground hard.
“Hey! You idiots! Untie me first!” Torvin shouted at the top of his lungs, but no Elf turned back to look.
Time passed. Torvin lay in despair in the middle of the desolate field. He thought his life would end here... becoming a bound corpse waiting for wild beasts to gnaw on. Tears of self-pity flowed down his cheeks.
But then... the sound of hoofbeats came closer. An Elf soldier rode a horse straight to him and stopped. Torvin immediately recognized him as the first soldier who had shouted for everyone to flee.
The soldier dismounted, used a dagger to cut the ropes binding Torvin’s legs, but instead of releasing him, he grabbed the end of the rope still binding Torvin’s hands and tied it to the saddle. Then he jumped onto the horse and dragged the high-born prisoner forward immediately.
“Hey you! Where are you taking me?” Torvin shouted, asking in panic.
“Walk fast! Don’t talk so much!” The Elf soldier barked the order.
The two traveled through the darkness until Torvin began to notice the familiar sound of a waterfall... They had arrived near the fortress of Ainen-dor!
“You bastard! Why did you come here? This is the enemy base!” Torvin gathered his last breath to shout a curse.
“Hahaha, look carefully first, Prince...”
The Elf soldier on the horse laughed heartily before the illusion slowly dissolved, revealing his true form... An old man with a long white beard in a turquoise wizard’s robe.
“You... who are you?” Torvin widened his eyes, asking with a trembling voice.
“You don't need to know me... but know that Ainen-dor is not an enemy base for me. Hahaha!”
Galdur, the old wizard, laughed with delight before tugging the reins, dragging his high-value prisoner through the camp gates, where Fiona, his great-granddaughter, and their allies were waiting to welcome the “special guest.”