Elowen had disappeared abruptly, leaving no trace behind. People were worried that he might have been snatched by some monster, and only after Alistair's reassurance did they calm down—he was one of their strongest fighters after all. However, Melina and Alistair both knew that it wasn't a coincidence that Elowen had disappeared. He, without a doubt, had been preparing for this very moment.

"This can't be good…" Melina muttered nervously, biting into her thumbnail. "We have to find him before…"

Leon came up to Melina and tapped on her shoulder nervously, looking around.

"What is it?" Melina asked.

The mage leaned in close and whispered so nobody else could hear. "Is there perhaps magic that can track somebody?"

All the elves instantly turned to look at Melina. This man had completely forgotten that their hearing is far better than that of humans.

"The elves can hear you, Leon," Melina noted bitterly.

"What? Really?" He exclaimed and looked at Remi.

"Yup, I can totally hear you," she said. "Not a single subtle bone in this man's body."

"Is it possible, Miss Melina?" Illitran asked, walking up to her.

It was a good thing that elves were already aware that she could use magic, even if they didn't quite understand how.

"If I had something that belonged to Elowen, I could find him," Melina said, recalling her tracking spell. It'd be tricky, trying to use it without the assistance of the System and with Sienna's mana rather than her own, but it should be possible.

"Do we have something that belongs to Elowen?" Alistair called out.

Everyone searched through the belongings they brought along, but couldn't find anything belonging to the silver elf. He didn't own much in the first place, and all he owned he kept on his person.

"Dammit…" Melina cursed under her breath when suddenly Sienna poked her snout against her. "What is it, Sienna?"

The wyrm motioned into the darkness, eager to show her something. Melina followed her, and some distance away, they saw a scrap of cloth snagged on one of the sturdy branches of a rock pine. Melina picked it up and inspected it. It looked like the corner of Elowen's black and silver tunic.

"He must have been in a real hurry if he made a simple mistake like this," Melina noted, holding the cloth.

"Is that enough?" Alistair asked.

"I'm not sure, but it might. Can you keep others away while I do it?" She asked.

"Of course. Illitran, Remi, guard Melina, and make sure nobody interrupts," Alistair said and returned to their camp. As the Captain, he needed to be present.

Meanwhile, Melina, along with the two elves and Sienna, hurried some distance away, where nobody could see or overhear them. It was a rather vain attempt to keep Melina's magic a secret. Everyone in the group was already aware that she was a System user. But it was best not to advertise the extent of her abilities.

"Sienna, lend me your strength," Melina said as he sat down on the ground to concentrate on the spell.

Sienna growled approvingly, letting the mana flow freely between them. Remi and Illitran stood watch, not uttering a single word.

Melina began. She concentrated on the piece of cloth in her hands, thinking hard about finding Elowen. The spell resisted her. She'd never done without the System before, and she could feel how the mana refused to move. Sweat beaded on her forehead as she slowly untangled the confused mana and circulated it around the cloth.

Intent was the most important thing when doing magic, so Melina began to chant "Find Elowen" under her breath, trying to grasp him. But mana swirled around the cloth, confused and not able to find the right direction. She thought that the cloth might not be a strong enough connection when she realized she had done things wrong.

She should have been concentrating on the tunic itself. The separated scrap should have a strong connection to the remaining tunic. The moment she did, the magic snapped in place. The ripped cloth was eager to return to its original state, giving Melina a clear-cut image of where Elowen's tunic and Elowen himself were.

"I found him!" Melina said, opening her eyes. Through the cloth in her hands, she clearly felt the tug in the direction where Elowen was. And it felt like he was already a good distance away. "We need to hurry!"

They hurried back to the camp.

"We found traces of where Elowen has gone," Illitran announced while Melina hid the cloth scrap in her sleeves. "He's gone quite a distance away."

"Why would he do that?" Barrett asked in confusion.

Alistair thought about it for a moment, then announced. "The mission is cancelled. A small group will go to retrieve Elowen while the rest will return to the Human Realm immediately."

"What about the materials, Captain?" Remi asked. "Won't Guildmaster be mad?"

"Safety comes first. Nighttime is far too dangerous in the Monster Realm, especially when our group has been split apart."

"Who will go to search for Elowen?" Illitran asked.

"Sienna, Melina, and I will go," Alistair announced.

"Captain! You can't go just the three of you. Melina isn't even a fighter!" Barrett protested.

"With all due respect, Captain, I agree," Remi protested. "It's far too dangerous!"

"I'm the strongest fighter here. Could all of you even defeat me if you went against me at once?" Alistair said firmly, looking over the group.

They flinched back. Although they were good fighters, none of them had the System. Alistair did. He had powerful skills to aid him, not to mention the stat provided boosts.

"Sienna is even more powerful than that. The two of us have the best chance of finding Elowen. And Melina is the only one able to calm down Sienna in case something does happen, so she must come along," Alistair said.

The Elves didn't argue any further. They knew that the real reason why Melina was necessary was that she was the one tracking him.

"Captain, please, let me come along too," Barrett insisted.

"No, Barrett! I also need strong fighters to defend the supply team. You, Illitran, and Remi are crucial for it," Alistair said firmly. "Inform the Guildmaster of what happened the moment you get back."

"Very well. But we'll be returning with more warriors in tow," Barrett said sternly. Alistair nodded.

Melina realized that they needed a form of communication with the adventurers, so they wouldn't rush after them into the Monster Realm. She picked up a rock and hid it in her palms. Without anyone noticing, she imbued it with mana.

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"Leon," she called the mage.

He hurried over, looking frazzled by the whole situation. "Yes?"

"Take this," she said, pressing the rock into his hands.

"What's this?" He asked curiously. "Rock?"

"I've imbued it with Sienna's mana. If you channel mana into it, you should be able to feel Sienna's location."

Leon looked down at the rock nervously, then nodded.

"I pray we don't need it."

The adventurers hurriedly packed up the unfinished camp, while Alistair and Melina got onto Sienna's back. It wouldn't be the comfiest ride—Sienna's scales were rather tough—but at least they'd be able to move around quickly.

"Let's go," Alistair said, and Melina nodded.

Through her connection to Sienna, she pointed the wyrm in the right direction. She took off immediately, making Melina slide back. But Alistair held onto Sienna's neck firmly and stopped her from sliding off.

"Hold tight. We might need to make Sienna a saddle," Alistair said.

"It'd be better if we didn't need it…" Melina muttered.

The wyrm followed the magic trail quickly, weaving among the dense trees with ease. She didn't seem to be bothered by their weight at all, although Melina wasn't surprised. Even if she looked rather lean, beneath those scales hid rugged muscles, fueled by many, many pastries.

"What do you think he's trying to do?" Alistair asked.

"I have some suspicions, but, System, I pray that I'm wrong," Melina said.

"What? You don't think he could have gone to…"

"I hope not. I really hope I'm wrong… If it were somebody else we're talking about, I'd say no. But this is Elowen."

She didn't need to explain further. Alistair's grip tightened around Sienna's neck, and Melina could feel his angry breath in her hair.

"I'm going to beat him into a pulp once we catch him."

"If we catch him."

Sienna was fast, but elves were also fast runners, and he got quite the head start. Not to mention that the wyrm was taking the safest route possible. If she noticed a monster nearby, she'd take a detour.

The scenery around them changed the deeper they traveled. There were fewer rock pines around, instead replaced by the increasingly larger fungus trees. They also became more varied in both shape and color. Some glowed with bioluminescent light all through, while had only a few bright spots or lines.

"Alistair, is it me or does it feel like…" Melina shuddered, looking at the all too familiar scenery.

"Yes… Sienna, stop," Alistair said.

"Why did you stop her?" Melina asked.

"We should turn back," he said firmly.

"But Elowen—"

"Forget him. He chose to come here. He can suffer through the consequences on his own," Alistair said coldly.

"It's not only about what happens to him, but also what happens to us, if he and the Monster Lord decide to join forces. Or rather, if the Monster Lord and elves join forces. It'll be an all-out war between Human and Monster Realms," Melina said, and urged Sienna to continue. "We're very close. All we have to do is knock him out and drag him back to Sunglow. Then the Guildmaster and the Duke can deal with him as they see fit."

Alistair cursed under his breath, but didn't object. They both knew what was at stake here. Melina hoped that maybe she had been wrong, and Elowen hadn't gone to the Monster Lord. How could he have even known that this particular passageway was so close to his home?

Sienna rushed forward at Melina's command. Melina could feel the scrap of cloth almost vibrating from the elf's proximity. But the further they went, the thicker the air grew. It was becoming difficult for Melina to breathe.

"Are you alright?" Alistair asked, noticing her discomfort. He was completely fine.

"The air… It's filled with mana," Melina wheezed out. "I can't keep up the spell anymore. I need to concentrate on clearing the excess mana out of my body."

As an [Archmage], she had felt nourished when she last came to this place. She could take the ambient and use it to power her spells. But her body couldn't endure such large amounts of mana, so the best she could do was cycle the excess mana away from herself.

When Melina and Alistair saw the tall, familiar tower, they knew that they had been too slow. Elowen stood at the foot of the tower surrounded by a group of drows, just like the one that had attacked Melina. Some distance from him stood the Monster Lord. He turned his head towards them in a slow motion. When Melina next blinked, he was standing right next to them.

He was just like Melina had remembered, no, even stronger than that. His marble skin emitted a light glow in the dark while he stared at Melina with eyes that looked as if they were made up from stars. His long hair cascaded down his shoulders like waterfalls, which turned into mist at their tips. He was the most powerful entity in this world.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't my archnemesis that has come to my home to once again send me to my grave," he said in his powerful voice. His breath exuded mana, which shimmered as it settled around him. Then he raised his hand for an attack.

"Sienna, jump!" Melina commanded, using their link to send a strong signal for the wyrm to dodge.

She jumped a good distance away. The place where they were standing a moment ago exploded in an icy vortex. Monster Lord went straight for Sienna's weakness.

Monster Lord lazily turned towards them and pointed in their direction. Sienna jumped, and he followed with his hand. The result was the poor wyrm jumping all over the clearing, followed by an icy vortex. There were more and more of them, making it harder for her to dodge. Until finally, Sienna faltered as she nearly jumped into one.

The sudden change in direction sent Melina and Alistair off her back. Alistair reacted instantly, grabbing Melina and zipping away some distance with his <Lightning Dash>.

"Stop! Killing her will only make matters worse!" Elowen bellowed, but couldn't move from his spot due to the drow.

"Silence, fool! This woman will suffer the same fate I did! She'll die knowing that her death will bring destruction to her world. You, Melina Dufour, who previously destroyed the Monster Realm, will now die by my hand!" The Monster Lord announced and produced a giant ice spear, which he launched at Melina.

Without hesitation, Sienna let out a burst of flame, which melted the ice while Alistair grabbed Melina close and held his shield in front of her.

"Over my dead body!" Alistair snarled.

"That can be arranged," Monster Lord said in an amused voice, and began launching one ice spear after the next.

Sienna did her best to melt them while Alistair dodged what he could and blocked what he couldn't dodge. Not once did he let go of Melina, while she was barely able to keep her breath steady with the abundant mana in the air. It was threatening to overwhelm her.

"Dammit! I told you to stop!" Elowen snarled, withdrawing his sword.

"If you draw your sword against me, elf, then I shall consider you too my enemy," Monster Lord warned.

"We're not your enemies! Let us explain!" Elowen pleaded.

"Enough! I see that you too side with the destroyers of worlds. Get him," Monster Lord commanded.

Playtime was over. The numerous drow soldiers that were previously still went into action, attacking Elowen. He produced a dome of wind, sending them flying all over the place. But it was nothing more than a mild setback as they landed on their feet and resumed their attack.

Meanwhile, Monster Lord intensified his barrage, launching ice spears, fireballs, lightning, and pressurized water jets at them. Sienna wasn't bothered by fire or water, taking those hits to protect Melina and Alistair. Alistair activated <Stormbringer's Legacy> and absorbed the lightning, sending it back at Monster Lord in a giant burst of energy. He dodged it easily and intensified his attacks.

But Melina was paralyzed as more and more mana swirled around her. She gripped her chest and slumped to the ground, unable to breathe.

"Once a mighty Archmage, now nothing more than dead weight! I'll make you watch how they die a slow, agonizing death. You will understand the suffering that you brought upon this land!" Monster Lord snarled and released a wave of pure magical energy. His drow soldiers instantly disappeared into the shadows.

But for Melina, Alistair, Sienna, and Elowen, there was no dodging it. Sienna and Alistair both jumped to protect Melina with their bodies. However, the wave didn't affect Sienna. It earned a displeased grunt from Alistair and Elowen. Melina was hit the hardest despite being shielded from the magic.

She screamed in agony as pure mana was sent into her body, ravaging it from the inside.

"Once you ruled over magic, now it shall be your downfall," Monster Lord said coldly.

Melina couldn't even hear him. All she felt was pain—unlike any she felt before. She was paralyzed by it as it pinned her to the ground.

"You will watch," Monster Lord said, preparing another attack, but she knew that this time it was aimed at Alistair.

He's going to kill him. No, no, no! Anyone but him! NO!

Melina couldn't watch him die again. But her body was in so much pain she couldn't move. She wanted it to move, but it couldn't. It refused to. All she could do was stare in horror as a powerful beam of energy burst towards Alistair.

"NO!" She screamed and jumped up to her feet, ignoring the agonizing pain. She pulled on the surrounding mana as it ravaged her every cell, threatening to break it apart. She could feel blood burst out of her mouth, but didn't pause, guiding the mana to build <Aegis Shield> in front of Alistair.

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[Your skill has ranked up. Skill <Archmage's Shadow> has reached Rank S.]

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