As though parched earth had finally been flooded with a clear spring, as though dawn had risen from the depths of despair, Night Frost felt as if she were lying at the heart of that spring, her clothes soaked by its sweetness…

What an incredible panacea. Night Frost almost wanted to ask for some, but there was only so little left in the elf lady’s iron box. She decided not to impose. After all, the elf clearly regarded it as a treasured possession.

Besides, this thing couldn’t save lives. Compared to that, Night Frost was more interested in learning how the Mana scrolls were made. Once she mastered the technique, she’d gain another source of combat power.

So Night Frost asked without the slightest hesitation. However, before she inquired about the scroll-making method, she felt she needed to understand the elf lady better. She first asked for her name and her life story.

The elf lady told Night Frost that her name was Lurie Ailufei.

Elves originally had no names. They only needed to sense one another’s aura to know who they were. But after the destruction of their forest, the elf race had no choice but to flee to human lands for refuge.

Humans, however, lacked the elves’ ability to recognize others by their aura. So, for the sake of identification, the elves used human language to give themselves names similar to those of humans.

“Lurie… That’s a lovely name. (Dragon Tongue)”

Night Frost nodded, praising Lurie’s naming ability.

Unlike a certain author, who needed half a day just to come up with a name.

“I’m very interested in the scrolls you use in battle—the one you gave me just now. (Dragon Tongue)”

Night Frost glanced at the scroll that had been continuously drawing Mana from her palm. Perhaps it had finally absorbed its fill, because it was barely consuming any Mana from her body now.

Still, she had expended too much Mana earlier, leaving her spirit somewhat fatigued. It wasn’t a serious problem.

Lurie didn’t hide anything from Night Frost. She explained the scroll’s origins and gave her a simple overview of how to make one.

The basic method wasn’t a secret. Because of the elves’ trade with outsiders, many races had learned how to create simple scrolls.

However, even after learning the method, the scrolls they made weren’t as effective as those crafted by elves. Elves were born with an exceptionally strong perception of Mana. They could precisely control it and carve it into parchment.

“But humans aren’t without skilled engravers. Some of them are born with a sensitivity to Mana no weaker than an elf’s. They can even manipulate Mana to launch certain forms of attack. (Dragon Tongue)”

“They resemble the elf race in some ways, but there’s a fundamental difference. Most of them are women, so we generally call them Sorceresses. (Dragon Tongue)”

Night Frost froze slightly when she heard the word “Sorceress.”

The Magic Maidens of the lower realm were astonishingly similar to the Sorceresses Lurie had described. From the sound of it, the two groups had practically been carved from the same mold.

“What’s the fundamental difference between them? (Dragon Tongue)”

Night Frost was curious about what Lurie meant. Could there really be a difference in the way they manipulated Mana?

But as for differences, Night Frost did remember that the ways of unlocking the various Cantatas of Chapter Three, as well as their incantations, had some subtle distinctions.

“The power of we elves comes from the Tree of Life, which was bestowed upon us by the gods. The Tree of Life nurtures elves, and we inherit part of the gods’ might—the extremely powerful ability to sense and control Mana. That’s why every elf is born a prodigy of magic. (Dragon Tongue)”

Lurie paused and refilled Night Frost’s cup.

This time, it wasn’t that clear, sweet spring water. It was only ordinary water.

“Humans are different. They don’t actually have the gods’ favor. The birth of the Sorceresses seems to have been an accident in humanity’s long history. (Dragon Tongue)”

According to Lurie, Sorceresses were still members of the human race. They were simply born with a greater ability to sense and control Mana than ordinary humans.

“Take ordinary Monsters, for example. Some are born with immense talent and possess the potential to become kings. Others can only struggle to survive in dark corners… The strong survive, and the weak are eliminated. (Dragon Tongue)”

Night Frost found it difficult to disagree with Lurie.

Her explanation might contain some errors, but it was still a guess about the origins of the Magic Maidens. Lurie’s knowledge was far richer than Night Frost had expected. She was entirely different from the way she had seemed while using magic during the day.

This was probably her talent.

“I may be straying a little, but most Sorceresses aren’t welcomed by humans. Many of them seek greater power to distinguish themselves from humanity. They abandon their identity as humans and begin worshiping vague, elusive deities. From those gods, they receive supreme might—but they’re no longer human. (Dragon Tongue)”

Lurie had reached the heart of the matter.

In certain aspects, she saw things with remarkable clarity. Perhaps the Sorceress of this Abyss was like that. Perhaps the Magic Maidens of the lower realm were the same.

Most of them worshiped unknown deities. Some even sought to draw closer to them. They yearned to become gods, to stand at the very top of the world and rule over everything within it.

Their wishes received an unknown response. Because of that—or perhaps because of their own selfish desires—they obeyed the gods’ will and began searching for the unknown corpses sealed behind Keys and gates.

As long as they used the Keys scattered throughout the world to open the corresponding gates, the horrors within would burst forth…

They would grant the Magic Maidens power, while bringing disaster to the lower realm.

Once they gained that power, they had already severed themselves from humanity. Why would they care about the lives of mere ants?

“I’ve strayed too far… (Dragon Tongue)”

Lurie stopped speaking. She took a sheet of parchment from a drawer and began making a simple engraving on it.

Her method resembled Night Frost’s way of carving Array Patterns. No tools were needed. Pure Mana alone could weave the Array Pattern.

Once the Array Pattern was complete, Lurie sprinkled Blood over it and added some strange potion.

When a faint halo of light began to shimmer across the scroll’s surface, the scroll was finished.

It contained Lurie’s Mana. Whenever she needed it, she could release that power from within the scroll.

The Mana sealed inside could take many forms. It could contain frost, flames, or something else entirely.

If the scroll was slapped against a weapon, it could even provide the weapon with a simple enchantment.

It was incredibly useful.

Night Frost accepted the scroll Lurie handed her and examined it carefully. Then she cautiously placed it inside her Spatial Box.

“I’ll take this one. I might need to find some time to study it properly… (Dragon Tongue) Well, it’s getting late. We should rest early. We still have things to do tomorrow, don’t we?”

Night Frost finally suggested going to sleep.

Li Dogegg, who had been woken in the middle of the night, could finally return to its dreams. It cursed Night Frost’s inhumanity under its breath, then turned around and fell asleep inside her Spatial Box.

Once Li Dogegg was asleep, Night Frost had lost her ability to communicate through language. She could only point toward the bed.

Lurie understood at once. It was time to sleep.

Night Frost pulled out a piece of snakeskin and spread it across the floor. She was preparing to rest, but the moment she tried to lie down, Lurie grabbed her hand.

“You don’t have to sleep on the floor. (Dragon Tongue)”

Night Frost had no idea what Lurie was saying. It wasn’t until Lurie forcefully dragged her onto the bed that she understood.

Lurie wanted her to sleep there.

A faint floral fragrance lingered on Lurie’s bed. Her blanket was incredibly soft and smooth, though Night Frost had no idea what it was made from.

The Eye Orb clicked its tongue twice before crawling into a corner to get to work, leaving Night Frost and Lurie plenty of private space.

Night Frost noticed what it was doing and immediately grew anxious.

Was she really that kind of person?

They were just two girls sleeping together. She wasn’t going to do anything indecent!

After using magic to clean herself, Lurie climbed into bed as well.

The bed wasn’t particularly large, so Lurie and Night Frost ended up pressed together. As an elf, Lurie carried the same floral fragrance as the blanket.

Almost exactly the same…

So that was Lurie’s scent.

Night Frost couldn’t help but lose herself in it.

There was one thing about elves that wasn’t very convenient, though—their ears.

Night Frost preferred sleeping on her side, but that meant pressing against her ears. She found it extremely uncomfortable.

If they slept facing one another instead, their ears were nearly the same length. It was all too easy for them to poke each other.

Whenever that happened, their ears became terribly itchy, making Night Frost even more uncomfortable.

Lurie, however, seemed used to it.

Or perhaps she couldn’t feel it at all?

Either way, Night Frost closed her eyes.

If she couldn’t sleep, she might as well restore her Mana.

But the restless Lurie suddenly rolled over and wrapped her arms around Night Frost. Every so often, she mumbled the words “Aru.”

The next morning, Night Frost woke with heavy dark circles beneath her eyes.

To be honest, she didn’t even know how she had fallen asleep the night before…

Lurie seemed rather restless in her sleep.

At some point, Lurie had already gotten out of bed. Night Frost removed her clothes, activated her bracelet, and donned the elf-style Magic Armor.

After tidying herself up, she prepared to leave.

Leave?

No matter how hard Night Frost tried, she couldn’t open the folding door. It seemed the metal bar outside had been drawn shut.

If she wanted to use force, smashing the door wouldn’t have been difficult.

But this was Lurie’s property. Destroying it outright didn’t seem appropriate.

So Night Frost waited a little longer.

Then she heard the sound of a metal plate being inserted into the lock. The sealed door slowly opened.

“Lurie…”

Night Frost had just begun to speak when she realized the person standing at the entrance wasn’t Lurie.

It was a tall male elf.

A magnificent greatsword hung at his waist, its surface faintly glimmering with beautiful Array Patterns.

Outside the door, Lurie’s voice rang out. She was desperately shouting two words in Dragon Tongue:

“Run! Run!”

But Li Dogegg still hadn’t woken up. Night Frost could only rely on the situation before her to guess what she was supposed to do.

The male elf glanced at Lurie behind him. Then, in somewhat clumsy Dragon Tongue, he spoke to Night Frost.

At that moment, Night Frost finally managed to shake Li Dogegg awake inside her Spatial Box.

She heard the first sentence at last.

“…The elder wants to see you… (Dragon Tongue)”

But the moment Li Dogegg appeared, disgust surfaced on the male elf’s face.

His greatsword left its sheath.