Liya floated in the air with her arms crossed, her patience clearly wearing thin.
The only saving grace was that since Lin Yue had entered some time ago, the giant dragon had stopped harassing them, giving the Varianne sisters time to break the seal.
But what time was it now?
The sky had cleared and the rain had stopped, yet there were still no results.
The two sisters held hands as if sensing something, and the mana that had been floating around them gradually dissipated.
“Are you finished?”
Liya immediately flew over, her voice urgent.
The two sisters looked at each other and shook their heads at the same time.
They could perform a temporary Mana Fusion, which would multiply their control while casting and significantly increase their synchronization.
Even so, they couldn’t break it.
It was as if this power was the natural enemy of the laws of the world.
“…”
Just as the three of them were at their wits’ end, the jade pendant suddenly trembled violently, depositing the two people in the air onto the ground.
The energy shield vanished, and the two lay peacefully on the floor, looking as if they simply hadn’t woken up yet.
“Mm…”
Feeling the stimulation from the outside world, Elara slowly opened her eyes.
‘I had such a wonderful dream… should I put it that way?’
She turned to look at the equally asleep Lin Yue and realized that everything had actually happened.
‘How wonderful…’
She slowly placed her hand on Lin Yue’s cheek, a soft smile appearing on her face.
Her nose twitched, and she suddenly caught a faint, unfamiliar scent on him… it smelled a bit like another girl’s.
‘Wait, why are we at Avelina Square? Wasn’t I at the underground seal…’
“Elara!”
“…”
As Elara was wondering, the three people in the sky descended.
Liya and Isabella, who were more familiar with her, surrounded her.
Isabena, feeling like a bit of an outsider, stayed closer to Lin Yue’s side to find a sense of security.
Roar!
At that moment, the giant dragon in the sky seemed to be attracted by something.
It dived from the clouds and landed in front of them.
Liya frowned and extended her magic staff, preparing to engage the enemy.
However, the Varianne sisters behind her suddenly fell to their knees as if their mana had been drained dry.
“Bella!”
“Mm…”
The power of laws within their bodies was slowly guided out, making contact with Elara’s still-floating jade pendant.
The giant dragon closed its eyes, appearing to transmit some kind of power to the jade.
Eventually, the jade pendant changed its shape from a wolf’s head to a dragon’s.
Having finished this, the giant dragon beat its wings powerfully and flew straight toward the boundless firmament until it vanished from sight.
Liya watched the dragon disappear and slowly lowered her staff.
“A Forbidden Monster…”
…
“It’s gone.”
The group looked up, watching the giant beast finally depart, their hearts heavy.
Liya extended her mana detection deep underground and discovered that the core of the seal had not been destroyed.
It remained as it had been before, completely undisturbed.
‘The main body, huh…’
She estimated that from today onward, news of the incident at Avelina would spread across the entire continent.
There was no telling what kind of impact it would cause.
But they were all still alive, and the crisis had been averted.
It wasn’t a bad ending.
The jade pendant floated toward Elara, glowing with a white light.
She caught it firmly, and in an instant, she could actually sense the presence of every monster within a ten-mile radius of Avelina.
It felt as though… as long as she willed it, she could control every monster within that range.
Compared to before, this was a qualitative leap.
“Thank you…”
She lightly stroked the dragon head on the pendant and smiled.
Immediately, a magical light appeared in her eyes, and a brilliant radiance erupted from Avelina Square with her at the center.
In an instant, it covered all of Avelina.
All the monsters still lingering at the main gate of Avelina acted as if they had received a divine decree.
They turned and ran back toward the wilderness.
The students cleaning up the battlefield and those who had just woken up from the influence of the red light all witnessed this miraculous sight.
After resolving everything, she suddenly felt a bit tired.
She wanted to lie on Lin Yue’s chest and drift off to sleep… but she obviously couldn’t do that with so many people watching.
“Elara, you…”
Isabena looked at the smiling girl with an uneasy expression.
She knew Elara could control monsters, but she hadn’t expected her to even be able to…
Moreover, the aura emanating from her had nothing to do with the word “Witch” at all.
Instead, it was more holy and pure than the power of so-called gods.
“Mm… I kept it from you for a long time.”
Of course, among the people present, none were truly ignorant of the situation anymore.
“Gah…”
Suddenly, Liya raised her staff and fired a beam of light directly behind Elara.
Zip—
Elara was stunned to see Liya attack.
She tilted her head and dodged the blast.
“Li… Liya?”
‘Liya wouldn’t have changed her mind and tried to kill me because she saw I can control Forbidden Monsters, right…’
She didn’t have much strength to resist right now.
The monsters were far away, and Liya could kill her easily.
“Behind you.”
Liya lowered her staff expressionlessly and leaned against it with a lazy look on her face.
Elara tilted her head, confused by what she meant.
“Gugu?”
A small black figure scurried out onto Elara’s shoulder.
It looked as though it had been frightened.
It tremblingly poked its head out from Elara’s body, not daring to let go for a second, fearing that Liya might wipe it out on a whim.
‘This is…’
The group focused their gaze and found a tiny black dragon clinging tightly to Elara’s shoulder, timidly observing its surroundings.
The little black dragon was about half an arm’s length.
Its scales had a matte texture, shimmering with a dull luster like obsidian.
The edges of its scales were embedded with extremely fine silver lines that appeared and disappeared under the light.
It had a round head, and a pair of bat-like membraned wings were tucked against its spine, the skeletal veins as clear as an ink-colored spiderweb.
Its brown vertical pupils darted around with childlike curiosity, and a small wisp of black smoke occasionally puffed from its nose.
It looked just like a frolicking little black fur ball.
It lacked even a hint of a ferocious beast’s intimidation, leaving only soft, squishy cuteness.
Elara’s eyes lit up.
She teased it with her hand as if she had found a new toy.
“How cute.”
A juvenile form of a dragon-type monster hadn’t been seen in the world for countless years.
During that time, continental dynasties had risen and fallen, and magic had evolved.
Many people thought they were extinct, leaving only the one beneath Avelina.
No one expected…
“It looks a lot like Lin Yue.”
“It’s a bit like Lin Yue…”
Liya and Isabella, two people with similar personalities, spoke at the exact same time.
The little black dragon let out a yawn as if it hadn’t finished its nap.
With a flash of white light, it dove into Elara’s jade pendant and refused to come out no matter how she called.
“Elara…” Liya continued, “What do you plan to do?”
The meaning behind the question was obvious.
Possessing such formidable power and the ability to summon Forbidden Monsters meant her choice between good and evil was vital for the entire continent.
As long as it grew normally, that little black dragon would definitely not be weaker than the Forbidden Monster from earlier in time.
Liya couldn’t let her go free just because of their personal relationship.
This was her responsibility as a sixth-tier Archmage and a professor of Avelina.
“I…”
Elara glanced at Lin Yue, who was still sleeping on the ground, and said with a firm gaze, “I will use this power carefully.”
Following her gaze, Liya understood what was in her heart.
She nodded, choosing to believe in her—and choosing to believe in Lin Yue.
Just as everyone relaxed and prepared to rest before making further plans, Isabena, who had been staying beside Lin Yue, suddenly sensed something.
“Lin Yue… not a single trace of mana flow remains in his body…”