Southern Federation.

Burmara Town was a small settlement, home to roughly a thousand citizens. It was the very town where Rowan and his family had been settled earlier, while Anna and the Magi had ambushed their pursuers a dozen miles away.

Now, everyone had returned to this town. They had slain Ballard and his men, narrowly survived the assassins of the Silent King, and finally been rescued by Berger and Blackie.

And yet, here they were… back in Burmara Town again.

The Copper Bear Tavern was the most renowned dining and drinking establishment in this small town. At present, all the Magi had gathered inside in the main hall, while Rowan and his family slept upstairs in a comfortable room.

The poor family had endured grave danger and could finally rest without constantly having to look over their shoulders. With the threat of the pursuers neutralized, the Magi, too, were free to enjoy a well-earned night's rest.

Currently, the five Magi and one magical beast had occupied a seating area in a corner of the tavern, away from the boisterous clamor of the local residents enjoying food and drinks after a long day's work.

Berger and Blackie occupied one side of the table, while Kaspar sat beside them, his nervousness plain for all to see. After all, he was sitting right beside two powerful beings at the legendary Mana Core Rank!

Opposite them, Anna, Ada, and Daryl sat in silence. Daryl took great amusement in seeing Kaspar behave so awkwardly. He had never seen the man act this way. He had always been high and mighty, but now, in front of the gnome, he was like a little child. Oh, the irony.

Anna and Ada paid no attention to Kaspar. In fact, they even ignored Berger. Their eyes were glued to the cute little black puppy resting on the table before the gnome.

They could hardly believe that the same ferocious giant wolf from earlier had transformed into something so utterly adorable!

Berger casually smoked from his pipe, savoring the flavor of tobacco. He cast a side glance at Kaspar and couldn't help but frown a little. "The hell is the matter with you?" He asked.

"Nothing, sir!" Kaspar straightened his back. "Nothing at all! Everything's fine!"

The gnome couldn't help but roll his eyes. But he left the man alone. Instead, he continued to smoke leisurely from his pipe. No one dared to speak. A few moments later, a steward brought forth a plate of freshly cooked food, then gently set it on the table.

Once he left, Berger snapped his fingers—an act of a simple hand seal—creating an invisible barrier around the group that muffled any sound from escaping.

"Now, we can talk," said the old gnome. Resting on the table before him, Blackie too opened his eyes to a slit, his gaze fixed solely on Anna.

Before the gnome could speak, the crimson-haired princess politely interjected, her voice calm but firm. "My Lord, there is something I wish to ask."

Berger deeply looked at the young woman, and a moment later, he gave a light nod.

Anna cleared her throat, then asked in a solemn voice, "Earlier, you called Adam the Dark King, and not The Deceitful One. That means you believe that all of this… is part of a grand conspiracy meant to defame him, correct?"

The gnome lowered his head, his eyes flickering with conflicting emotions. At last, he said, "That is precisely what I'm here to find out."

Anna couldn't help but frown. Even the rest of the Magi at the table found the gnome's words puzzling.

"How so?" Asked the princess.

Berger remained silent for a few moments, then said in a low voice, "Before he was… attacked by a Mana Core Magus, Adam secretly told me to find you. First, he wanted me to protect you from your pursuers. Second, he believed that you, being the one who knows him best in this world, could clear my doubts."

Everyone at the table was shocked by those words, especially the revelation that Adam had been attacked by a Mana Core Magus. Could a Mana Vortex Magus survive a strike from such a powerful being? None of them thought it possible.

Anna covered her lips with a trembling hand. Her eyes were wide with shock as she asked in a shaky voice, "He… what?"

The gnome glanced at her, shaking his head. "You underestimate your little brother, Anna. He…"

Berger carefully chose his words, fully aware of how absurd they might sound.

"He and I took out a Mana Core cultist together. And I have reasons to believe that he had slain another Mana Core Magus even before I arrived on the battlefield," Berger began.

He paused, letting the weight of his words sink in, then continued, "And that's not all. He even brought six undead knights, each as powerful as a Mana Core Magus, into the spirit world to give the rest of us a fighting chance against the necromancers."

Anna and the rest were utterly thunderstruck. Kaspar, however, was the most shocked out of them all. After all, he himself was a Mana Vortex Magus and knew the limitations of a Magus at this arcane stage. So the words Berger just said sounded to him like nothing more than fairy tales. And yet, for some inexplicable reason, he couldn't bring himself to deny them.

At that moment, Blackie thought of how, when Adam had returned from the spirit world, his aura had changed. A foreign presence, one that seemed to transcend even the Mana Core Rank, clung to him.

He suspected that Adam had faced a powerful and horrifying entity there and somehow returned from the brink of death. But considering that the people before him were unaware of the existence of higher worlds and that there were arcane ranks beyond the Mana Core Rank, he chose to remain silent.

Anna's heart was gripped by utter fear. She couldn't help but ask in immense worry, "Is he… is he alright? No… is he even alive?!"

She couldn't even begin to wonder just how much pain and suffering Adam must have gone through in the Battle of Ravenfell, only for him to be branded a traitor at the end of it all. Her heart ached with fear for her brother's life and how the world treated him.

Berger's eyes flashed with warmth, and he said, "Rest assured. That little brat is still alive."

Blackie nodded in agreement as well.

"How are you so certain?" Anna pressed further, unwilling to accept such a simple reassurance.

The gnome waved a hand, and a small object suddenly appeared on the table. The moment Anna's gaze landed on this item, all her worries melted away.

"Thank goodness…" she whispered, tears welling in her eyes.

Before her lay the very object that had once led Ballard and his men to her…

A Soulmark Lantern.

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