The night grew deeper, and the camp on the outskirts of Mist Forest fell completely silent.
It was pitch dark. Only a few dark red embers remained from the campfire, flickering in the breeze.
Except for Misi, who was on watch duty sitting alertly on a treetop, loud snoring came from the tents of Balk and the others.
Inside Ailiya’s tent, it was pitch black. She wasn’t asleep.
Flap flap — Just then, the sound of light wings fluttering came from outside the tent. Following that, a faint magic fluctuation came from the ventilation hole at the top of the tent.
Ailiya’s eyes snapped open, a cold glint flashing in her ice-blue irises in the darkness.
She stood up silently, without making a single sound of fabric rustling.
Pulling open a narrow gap in the tent zipper, she saw a black crow, condensed from shadow magic and almost merging with the night, hanging outside the tent.
This was an emergency contact beacon of the Night Owls Organization.
Usually, it was Ailiya who unilaterally used the mental link of the contract to squeeze information out of Graves.
Graves couldn’t actively contact her through the contract. This shadow crow was clearly him using his old trade methods.
Ailiya extended a slender finger. The shadow crow immediately flew down to her fingertip, then turned into a wisp of black smoke that drilled into her brow.
A brief message appeared in her mind—
[Ten miles outside Fengyue city, Windmill Mill, come quickly.]
Ailiya raised an eyebrow slightly in surprise.
‘Initiate contact? This is the first time that coward has actively sent coordinates.’
‘Something unusual must be brewing.’
Ailiya quickly took off her conspicuous maid outfit and changed into a tight black night suit. The form-fitting fabric perfectly outlined her slender girlish figure.
She securely strapped the newly bought sharp dagger and several throwing knives to her thigh and waist.
Finally, she draped a wide black hooded cloak over herself, completely hiding her signature silver hair and cold features in the shadows.
Having done all this, she lifted a corner of the tent and scanned the camp through the gap.
Misi on the tree was facing away from her, focused intently on the direction deeper into the forest.
Ailiya took a deep breath, and the shadow magic within her coursed to its peak.
[Shadow Stealth]
Her body seemed like melting ice and snow, without stirring even a hint of magical ripples, directly melting into the small patch of shadow cast by the tent, disappearing without a trace.
Like a fish swimming in the deep sea, she used the shadows of trees, rocks, and tents to glide out of the camp’s warning range with a terrifying speed so silent that even her breath was imperceptible.
Along the way, neither the keen Ranger Misi nor the low-level magical beasts hidden at the forest’s edge noticed even the slightest disturbance.
Just as Ailiya was about to completely leave the camp area and was preparing to speed toward Fengyue city—
“So late at night, Miss Ailiya, where are you planning to go for a stroll?”
A rough male voice, carrying a hint of laziness but full of danger, came abruptly from behind.
Ailiya’s stealthy form suddenly halted. She instantly disengaged from the shadows and landed lightly on a thick branch.
Her gaze under the hood sharpened slightly. Her right hand had already silently gripped the dagger at her waist.
From the bushes behind, a burly figure slowly walked out.
Under the pale moonlight, Ailiya recognized the person.
It was exactly the Storm Swordsman who should have been snoring in his tent: Balk.
He was casually wearing a thin shirt with the collar open.
He held that signature greatsword in his hand, its tip pointing diagonally at the ground. His whole person exuded a heavy aura different from during the day.
“Lord Balk.”
Ailiya did not take off her hood, but replied in a cold, flat voice: “Not resting at camp at this late hour, but coming here to enjoy the cold wind?”
“Light sleeper. Hahaha, occupational hazard. I’m used to staying alert in the wild.”
Balk let out a big laugh, but there was little warmth in it.
His beast-like eyes were fixed on the small figure completely wrapped in a black robe on the branch, and his hand gripping the sword hilt tightened slightly.
“I originally just came out to take a piss. However…”
The smile on Balk’s face gradually faded, and his eyes became extremely sharp.
“I never expected that an ordinary head maid of the Kastian manor would be so proficient in such profound shadow stealth techniques.”
“If the wind hadn’t shifted just now and brought a scent that doesn’t belong to this forest, you would probably have slipped away unnoticed.”
‘Scent?’
Ailiya silently rolled her eyes in her mind.
‘Is this old guy part dog? How could he pick up the ordinary soap scent from my bath in this forest full of rotting leaves?’
Although she was complaining internally, Ailiya’s tone remained steady and calm.
“It seems Lord Balk is very familiar with the details of shadow magic.”
Ailiya stood on the branch, looking down at him: “And you also seem to be able to use wind attribute to sense subtle changes in the airflow around you. When we fought outside before, I don’t recall you having this ability.”
“This should be a detection technique unique to the swift wind school, right?”
Hearing this, Balk was stunned, obviously not expecting that not only was the other party not flustered, but she also saw through his hidden card at a glance.
“Just a technique I learned before, nothing special.”
Balk laughed self-deprecatingly and shook the greatsword in his hand.
“It’s only after suffering a lot of losses recently that I remembered to pick it back up. After all, storm and swift wind are not separate schools.”
The lesson from last time when this girl interrupted his spellcasting and kicked him in the face was still fresh in his memory.
From then on, he got rid of his blind arrogance and relearned the wind sensing he had studied in his early years.
“So, is there something you want by stopping me?” Ailiya was too lazy to reminisce and got straight to the point.
“That should be my question to you.”
Balk slowly raised his broad blade greatsword, pointing it directly at Ailiya, his tone filled with undisguised vigilance.
“Who exactly are you? For the sake of you once being a tavern employee, I think we don’t have to make things so unpleasant.”
“But you’re wearing this night suit in the middle of the night, sneaking out of camp without the Young Master’s knowledge. As the captain of this mission, I have to find out if you’re a threat.”
Ailiya looked at the blade glinting coldly in the moonlight, released her grip on the dagger, and spoke calmly.
“I am not a dangerous person.”
“I just act freely according to my own interests. I have never harmed anyone, and I have no ill will toward you or the Young Master.”
“Words are cheap, little girl.”
Balk sighed and tightened his grip on the sword hilt.
Hum — A layer of pale cyan raging Combat Qi began to swirl and rise around the broad blade greatsword. The surrounding fallen leaves were swept up by the wind, forming a visible vortex.
Balk lifted his head, his battle-filled eyes locked onto the prey on the tree.
“It seems we have to have a serious fight. This time…”
Balk grinned, showing a chilling smile.
“It won’t be like last time.”