Chapter 302: Friend or Foe?

Elyria floated opposite Nivea, gently swaying in the air. The memories were still going round and round in her head.

"Well, I remember when Wayland attacked us," Elyria said quietly, looking up at her. "At first, we thought he was our enemy, but then it turned out he was actually our ally..."

Nivea sat perfectly still, pointedly looking away and pretending she couldn't hear a word Elyria was saying. Elyria fell silent for a moment, then asked her outright:

"Tell me honestly. Did I annoy you? Like back then, when you left to join this council?"

Nivea flinched at the sudden question, quickly turned her head, and looked at her. In a subdued, halting voice, she muttered:

"Well... um... it's not like that."

Elyria gave a sad, faint smile.

"Then why did you leave back then?"

Nivea answered bluntly:

"To return to my true form. Isn't that obvious?"

Elyria lowered her eyes, and unmistakable hurt crept into her voice.

"Well, you didn't even say goodbye to me... I think you could've at least warned me or something... instead of making me find out by seeing it with my own eyes."

Nivea couldn't take it anymore. She abruptly sprang to her feet, knocking against the chair, and blurted out in a breaking voice:

"Well, I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I really didn't mean to, I swear, I didn't! I don't know why things turned out that way, but... I just don't know! It's just..."

She immediately cut herself off and collapsed back into her chair.

At that moment, the door behind Nivea swung open, and Arthur and Kai came noisily tumbling into the room. They were in the middle of an animated argument, gesturing as they talked, but when they noticed Elyria and Nivea sitting frozen at the table, they slowed their pace and headed toward them.

Elyria, still processing what she'd just heard, looked at Nivea with renewed excitement and genuine curiosity. Forgetting her recent hurt, she leaned forward.

"All right, then... Can you teach me how you regained your true form? And how long did it take?"

Nivea gave her a long look, nodded briefly, and got up from her chair.

"Come on."

The two of them took off toward the staircase, floating up above the steps as they headed for Nivea's room on the third floor.

"Just be careful..." Nivea began, glancing back at Kai, who had just practically flung himself onto a chair and was already reaching for the food. "One monkey might get in there."

Beneath the three-story house, Abel's underground laboratory lay in silence and half-darkness. In the farthest corner of the room, a thin spatial rift flickered almost imperceptibly — a tiny, stable tear that opened into an entire pocket dimension. A glance through the narrow opening revealed a vast clearing stretching out beyond it.

There, lying directly on the grass, was the unfinished hull of a future flying ship. The heavy metal plating had a dark finish, but with a distinct, cold, pale sheen to it.

Abel was inside the pocket dimension, working with intense concentration. All the necessary tools and technical components hovered in the air around him, held in place by the power of his mind.

Without taking his eyes off the complex wiring diagram, Abel gave a slight wave of his hand and issued a mental command. In the same instant, a power wrench — a tool used to precisely calibrate and secure energy nodes — shot toward him and settled perfectly into his hand.

Keeping the tool in his grip, Abel climbed inside the belly of the unfinished ship. The wires tangled beneath his fingers, but every movement was precise down to the millimeter. He connected the wires, tightened the fasteners, and adjusted the main circuits. After fifteen to twenty minutes of uninterrupted work, he reached the main technical compartment and shut its cover.

With a dull click, the compartment retracted completely into the hull, becoming seamlessly integrated with the ship's body. Only one narrow service gap had been left intentionally — a thin seam that would allow him to make urgent adjustments or replace emergency components if necessary. Even just prying the cover open would require tremendous strength and surgical precision.

Abel straightened up and inspected that section of the hull. The metal looked seamless and solid, save for structural gaps running along its surface that allowed the free circulation of pure energy.

Glancing to his right, where coils of loose wires and unfinished structural ribs hung suspended in empty space, Abel silently moved on to finish the rest of the hull.

Meanwhile, out in the sunlit clearing, Yan and the little girl he'd rescued were walking forward. Yan kept an easy pace, matching her short little steps while holding her hand firmly.

The clearing was quiet, with only the rustling of the grass breaking the silence. After a while, Yan spoke up, asking gently but directly:

"Where are your parents?"

The girl lowered her head, a shadow passing over her face. She answered quietly, her voice heavy with sadness:

"I don't know... They were here, but then they just disappeared for some reason. I don't know where they are... They're okay, aren't they?"

Tears welled up in her eyes, threatening to spill over.

Yan sighed, giving her little hand a slightly firmer squeeze before answering:

"I don't know. But who's stopping us from hoping for the best? Right?"

The girl sniffled and let out a quiet breath.

"Yeah..."

Yan stopped gently, lowered himself onto one knee in front of her, and carefully wiped away her tears and runny nose with the edge of his sleeve. Looking her straight in the eyes, he said with confidence:

"I'm sure your parents are all right. Let me take you somewhere safe first, okay?"

The girl obediently nodded.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the clearing, Lucius Feramir sprinted forward at full speed, scanning the area through the special lens over his right eye, which allowed him to see mana currents. However, he couldn't find anything useful.

Unable to find the trail he was looking for, he snapped his head forward and kept running, cursing under his breath.

"Damn it, where is she?!"

A few seconds later, a powerful surge of mana suddenly rippled through the air ahead. Lucius broke into a wide grin as he sensed his target, then burst forward, closing the distance with every passing second.

Yan caught the movement out of the corner of his eye at that very instant. Lucius drew his sword from its sheath and, without slowing down, swung at the little girl.

Yan reacted instantly, raising his own blade. Their swords collided with a deafening clang. But Yan had braced his sword firmly at just the right angle. Instead of striking Yan or the child, the impact sent Lucius flying forward. He pulled off a clean somersault in midair before landing on the grass and skidding across it, using one hand against the ground to slow himself down.

Lucius sprang upright, quickly assumed a fighting stance, and fixed his gaze on Yan. Yan stepped in front of the frightened girl, who was desperately clutching at his clothes.

He gently placed a hand on her head and said reassuringly:

"Don't worry... He's an old friend of mine."

The girl looked up at him with wide, terrified eyes and asked in a trembling voice:

"Huh... f-friend?"

"Yep," Yan nodded. "We're just going to have a little talk. Could you turn around for a moment?"

The girl immediately did as she was told.

"And cover your ears and close your eyes, please," Yan added.

She squeezed her eyes shut and covered her ears tightly with her hands.

Lucius smirked as he watched them.

"I respect you and all, but friends...? Anyway, what do you want with that girl? Have you seen her mana? It's pure gold! People like her are exactly the ones we should be killing."

Yan's expression darkened, his eyes narrowing with anger.

"Have you still not figured out that wiping out all the mages and aristocrats would throw the entire world into chaos?"

Lucius immediately shot back, his tone hard and unwavering:

"And you really think that taking the peaceful route will bring harmony, justice, and balance to the world? The very things it's missing? Do you even realize that wiping them all out is far more rational?!"

Yan clicked his tongue in irritation, looking at him as though he were an idiot.

Lucius spoke through gritted teeth:

"I've killed so many mages I've lost count. And her fami—"

In that very instant, Yan launched himself forward. His sword materialized right in front of Lucius's face, poised to smash his jaw with a vicious backhanded strike. Caught off guard, Lucius instinctively jerked his head back and sprang away in a desperate attempt to escape death.

Yan's blade cut through empty air. Lucius landed a couple of meters away, ran his fingers over his lips, and gave a crooked grin.

Yan stared coldly at him.

"Don't you dare say something that horrible."

Lucius's grin widened as he raised his sword and pointed its tip directly at the girl, who still had her hands over her ears.

"You're doing all this for her, aren't you...? Not like she can hear us anyway."

Yan took a step forward and spoke coldly:

"Get serious. I'm sick of that carefree attitude of yours. Whatever happened to the serious side of you?"

Lucius's expression changed instantly. All traces of his feigned nonchalance vanished in a heartbeat, and his gaze grew heavy and oppressive.

"Yeah. It pisses me off too."

He smoothly swept his sword around himself. As the blade swept past his legs, they began to crumble and fade. Another swing, and his arms started dissolving as well.

Lucius let out a heavy breath, looking at Yan.

"I don't feel like fighting you right now anyway... You're getting weaker, Yan. It's about time you stopped doing what you're doing. Otherwise, it'll be the very thing that gets you killed."

As he spoke the final words, his entire silhouette faded away, vanishing into thin air without a trace.

The clearing fell silent. Yan exhaled, crouched down in front of the girl, and gently touched her shoulder, gesturing that it was all over.

The girl opened her eyes, looked at him, and began waving her hands questioningly, asking whether she could uncover her ears. Yan nodded, and she lowered her hands.

"That's it. I've dealt with him," Yan said gently. "Now, let's go. You'll stay with me for a while, all right?"

The girl gave a quiet nod, sniffling.

"O-okay..."

They set off across the grass once more.