Eccar remained standing in front of Arty and Sylmira. The silence between the three of them grew heavy the more they thought about the gravity of the situation.

For a moment, none of them spoke. The wind blew across the dead forest, rustling the charred branches and scattering burnt leaves like flakes of black snow.

Arty stared at Eccar's face, seemingly searching for hope or reassurance, anything. But she found only exhaustion and dread. It frightened her.

Sylmira steadied her breathing, then finally asked, "If that being defeated all of you… and what we faced was just an avatar… what happens now? Is this… Zerathul is still somewhere out there?"

Eccar looked toward the ruined treeline and exhaled. "Yes. Zerathul is still out there. And I'm certain that he will coming at us again. Maybe not today. Maybe not tomorrow. But he knows we exist now. He knows we'll try to stop him."

Arty swallowed hard. The faint tremor in her hands returned.

Sylmira wrapped her arm protectively around her student, as if shielding her from her thoughts alone.

Eccar continued quietly, "And there's something else. I also felt necrotic energy that infected the land… we still don't know its full condition."

Arty's eyes widened. "What do you mean?"

"You feel it too right?" Eccar said.

Arty and Sylmira nodded.

"After facing Zerathul I'm starting to think it wasn't a coincidence. His plan wasn't over. Something was still proceeding in this world."

Sylmira stiffened.

Then she exhaled slowly, her shoulders dropping as she spoke. "We've been tracking the necrotic energy for days now… and we sent scouting teams of high ranking adventurers to the northern valley to investigate the source. Those were people who knew how to handle corruption and high-tier monsters. But…" Her voice tightened. "There hasn't been a single report from them. Not even a distress signal."

Eccar's expression darkened further. "Then the worst might've happened."

Sylmira nodded. "Considering everything… yes. I fear that the team has already fallen. Or worse, something is spreading from the point."

The wind shifted, carrying a faint metallic scent.

Arty shivered, not from the cold but from the realization that every direction seemed to hold another disaster.

Sylmira's mind swirled with too many burdens at once. The necrotic energy. The entity named Zerathul. The avatar of the storm being earlier.

The unknown fate of their adventurers. The fear gripping her people. And then Arty…

Her eyes softened slightly as she looked at her student.

Arty was putting on a normal face. But Sylmira had felt it the moment Arty's aura had twisted into something entirely different when she battled the storm being.

She sensed something ancient, destructive, and completely foreign to her student's usual Magic flow for a moment before.

And afterward, it vanished as if it never existed. Back to normal.

Sylmira didn't believe for a second that Arty was fine.

She would speak to Erend about it later. Privately and directly. Whatever had awakened in Arty was not something she could ignore.

"For now," Sylmira said, pushing aside the rising dread before it crushed her, "we need to return to the castle. We're exposed out here, and these ruins won't give us any answers."

Arty nodded quietly. "Yeah… let's go."

Eccar helped Sylmira lift Arty to her feet.

Together, the three started walking toward the distant outline of the castle gate.

The rain had weakened to a cold drizzle, tapping softly against the ground.

The wind no longer raged, it felt strangely calm, like the world was holding its breath after something terrible had passed.

As they walked, Arty finally spoke up, her voice soft. "Eccar… what about Erend? Is he… is he okay?"

Eccar glanced sideways at her. "He's fine. He went to your world to stop the attack there."

Arty stopped for half a step, eyes widening. "O-Our world is also under attack?"

"Yes," Eccar answered. "The same avatar of that being—the one you had killed—also manifested there. But Erend arrived in time. If he's there… things should be under control."

Arty's breath steadied a little, but worry still lingered in her eyes.

They continued walking through the ruined courtyard, their footsteps splashing softly in the shallow puddles.

Lanterns flickered along the castle walls. Soldiers on the ramparts looking at them. Their faces showed exhaustion and unease.

Soon, the towering gates opened for them, and they entered the protective shelter of the castle.

The storm was gone. Only drizzle remained.

—

Far away, Aesa soared over the darkening horizon and approached the grand ramparts of Astoria.

Her wings flapped behind her as she floated higher then stopped at the very edge of the barrier that shimmered like a vast dome of pale blue light.

She scanned the city beneath her. Rooftops, towers, and streets glowing faintly under the protection of Magic. The barrier held strong and nothing was truly destroyed.

Relief washed over her.

At least this place was relatively safe for now.

Aesa descended slowly, her wings folding behind her in a shimmer of cold mist.

She landed a few steps from the gate, her boots touching the wet stone with a muted thud.

Frost gathered in a thin circle beneath her feet, then faded as she consciously suppressed her Magic.

She didn't want to startle them more than she already had.

"Is that the enemy? They actually managed to seal him?" she thought as her eyes narrowed at the golden cocoon on the cart.

Her presence drew immediate tension when they saw her.

Adrius and Lysander snapped their attention the moment they saw her.

The soldiers pushing the cart froze. The atmosphere thickened with alarm.

Aesa raised one hand.

"Peace," she said calmly.

She willed her Dragon traits away. Her aura dimming, her icy scales retracting beneath her skin until she looked like an ordinary human woman with white hair.

The soldiers tensed even harder for a second, then slowly relaxed.

Adrius stepped forward cautiously. Lysander followed, eyes fixed on her every movement.

"You are…" Adrius began, trying to grasp the presence he felt. "Dragonborn?"

"Yes," Aesa replied. "My name is Aesa. Erend and Eccar go back to their worlds. That leaves me to help here."

—