"Little Klee missed me that much?"

Ryen teased with a smile, and Klee quickly nodded her little head.

"Yes! I also miss Acting Grand Master Jean, Sister Lisa, Sister Ningguang, Sister Ganyu… Klee misses everyone!"

Ryen rubbed Klee's head and said softly,

"Then next time, I'll take you all with me. There's a Firefly Forest over there—very beautiful. I'm sure you'll love it."

Hearing that, Klee and Nahida's eyes curved into happy crescents, and they both nodded eagerly.

"So you're back… and it hasn't been long since you returned, has it?"

At that moment, Madam Ping finally appeared, looking leisurely as ever.

Glancing at the sky, she smiled and said,

"I thought you'd be gone for two or three days. Didn't expect you to be back in just half a day. Well, that's good too—it saves Klee and the others from being sad."

"These past hours, little Klee and Lady Nahida have just been sitting in the garden, staring off into space."

At those words, Ryen felt a pang of guilt and reached out to gently rub Klee's and Nahida's heads. The two girls looked a little shy in response.

"So, only half a day—was the trip worth it?"

Madam Ping asked with a smile.

At that, Ryen's energy came back immediately.

"It was a huge gain!"

Madam Ping blinked in surprise.

"If that's the case, why did you return so soon? Don't tell me…"

She chuckled, clearly about to joke that maybe they didn't trust her to watch the place. But Ryen shook his head helplessly.

"It's a long story. The Twilight Forest has changed—things have become more dangerous. We came back to make some adjustments. I need to reorganize our exploration plans."

Hearing that, Madam Ping's expression grew a little more serious, and she nodded.

The group didn't linger outside any longer and returned to the villa.

Once everyone was settled, Lisa immediately leaned forward impatiently.

"Ryen, what exactly happened? That mage earlier…"

Ryen raised a hand slightly.

"I haven't figured out the best way to explain it yet. Let's start small—one thing at a time. Madam Ping, nothing happened here today, right?"

Everyone turned toward her. She nodded.

"All was normal. However, not long after you left this morning, the Qianyan Army came to say their farewells."

"They split into three routes: one team departed from the snow-mountain base, another headed south across the grasslands, and the rest built some boats to follow the river downstream."

"Oh, and the ones assigned to guard the Nether, along with those going to the End to collect dragon eggs, stayed at Base No. 1."

Ryen thought for a moment before asking,

"And the newly stationed Qianyan soldiers and the Knights?"

Madam Ping added,

"They've already been assigned to the major bases. However, Nether development will require them to spare some people for training."

"Overall, everything is running smoothly. Yixiao and Tongque have been keeping an eye on their situation."

"Since neither of them has sent back a report, I'd say things are going well."

If this had been before, such news would have brought everyone relief.

Especially Jean.

With the Knights finally getting on the right track, she could relax a little.

But now that the Twilight Forest had changed, she had no mind to focus on the main world.

Everyone's eyes once again fell on Ryen. Madam Ping, also curious, asked:

"By the way, how did things go for you today?"

At that, Ryen gave a wry smile.

"If you say it went smoothly, yes, it did… but if you say it didn't, that's also true."

"In short, we found three regions and explored two of them. One was the Firefly Forest—completely safe."

"The scenery is amazing, like something out of a fairy tale. So next time, I'm planning to take Klee and the others there."

"The other was the Ghost Forest. Inside, we discovered the Naga Courtyard and killed the Naga."

"Speaking of which, Nagas really do look terrifying. Thankfully, we didn't have Klee and the others with us when we fought it."

Everyone nodded in agreement.

If the kids had seen a Naga, it would have scared them half to death.

Ryen still hoped that, until they grew up, Klee and the others would only see dreamlike, fairy-tale things.

A child's world should be filled with beauty.

"You said the Twilight Forest has changed?"

Madam Ping finally voiced the question on everyone's mind.

Ryen sighed and gave a small nod.

"Yes. The Twilight Forest has become more dangerous… After killing the Naga, our plan was to go and defeat the Twilight Lich and take his Four-Artefact Staff."

"But halfway there, we ran into a Skeleton Druid…"

"That's a monster unique to the Twilight Forest expansion pack, and it belongs to something called Witchcraft Studies…"

Lisa raised an eyebrow, thinking aloud:

"Witchcraft?"

"It's basically the same as magic—just a different term," Ryen explained.

"The appearance of a Skeleton Druid means that, if we continue exploring the Twilight Forest, we'll have to deal with all sorts of magical attacks."

"At the same time, the treasures we can gain will also increase."

With that, Ryen took out the staff and ring obtained from the Skeleton Druid.

The staff's magic had already fully recovered; its purple aura was even more pronounced now, carrying an almost irresistible allure.

"To be honest, having Witchcraft Studies is actually a good thing for us. At the very least, we'll get even more valuable treasures from the Twilight Forest."

"And we'll gain more—and stronger—abilities."

"This staff is in no way inferior to the Four Artefacts. In your hands, it might even surpass them in usefulness."

Lisa's eyes lit up as she realized something.

"With this staff, we can learn so-called witchcraft—and actually cast it?"

~~----------------------

Patreon Advance Chapters:

patreon.com/Dreamer20