On the morning of the third day after Mira left, I was playing UNO with Aefina, Loli, Nia, and Mo Mo. As for why Aefina was here—she’d claimed she wanted to hug me, so she’d transformed into human form extra early and barged into my room.

Frankly, it was annoying. How could someone barely 1.8 meters tall share peaceful physical contact with a dragon boasting a twenty-meter wingspan? Forget hugs.

“About time, isn’t it?” Mo Mo suddenly said something cryptic.

She sat on the table, levitating her cards with magic—a hilarious sight. The cards were sized for humans, comically oversized for palm-sized Mo Mo.

“Yeah, seems about right,” Nia replied, twisting her body to glance at the clock. I still didn’t get why a Slime needed to *twist* to look behind herself. Picture a gummy candy being wrung out—that was her shape.

“Same rules as always. You call Mercy and Spirit. I’ll fetch Sacrifice,” Nia announced, hopping off her chair. “Got stuff to handle. Game’s over for now.”

“Huh? Why?” I’d called Mercy and Spirit when I found Loli injured too. Why involve Sacrifice this time?

“…You’ll see soon enough,” Nia dodged my question. “Head to the front gate. Stay calm when you see it.”

“Mo Mo, want me to call Spirit for you?” Watching Nia leave, I felt useless. Mo Mo flew slowly anyway—Nia had assigned her the closer tasks. Might as well help.

Mo Mo didn’t hesitate. “Please. Just tell Spirit: *‘It’s time.’* She’ll understand.”

So I took Aefina and Loli upstairs and knocked on Spirit’s door—only my second visit here.

“Hmm? What is it?” Spirit cracked the door open, peering through the gap with one blood-red eye lifted toward me. “Mr. Luo Sa… something wrong?”

Her gaze sent chills down my spine.

“I’m here for Mo Mo. She said to tell you *‘It’s time.’* You’d know what it means.”

Spirit gasped softly. “*Today?*” She slammed the door shut.

I stood frozen—until she reopened it, head poking out. “Give me a moment to prepare. Wait here if you don’t mind. We’ll go together.”

“…” None of us—me, Aefina, or Loli—had lived here long enough to know what this was about.

Spirit’s “preparation” wasn’t like a girl primping for hours. She emerged in five minutes flat, white attaché case in hand.

“Let’s go… Wait, Aefina and Loli? Didn’t see you there.” She’d only opened a slit earlier. Fair enough.

“Morning!” Loli chirped in gibberish only I could understand.

Aefina just nodded silently. She barely spoke to strangers.

“Hurry. Miss Nia’s probably already there.” *Miss Nia*—I’d noticed the Eight Virtues didn’t all call her the same. Valor, for instance, called her “Boss.”

At the gate, Mo Mo hadn’t arrived yet. I’d expected her first—Spirit’s five-minute prep should’ve given others time.

Just as I thought that, Mercy’s voice came from behind: “Sorry to keep you waiting. Preparing the potions took longer.”

She held a black attaché case. Honestly, black *was* the standard color.

“No worries. We just got here too,” Spirit waved it off. Truthfully, we had.

“Everyone’s here. Let’s move,” Nia declared, bouncing on her feet before leading the way out.

The moment we left Nia’s property, Sacrifice, Mercy, and Spirit wilted.

Aefina stayed human—she’d wanted to cling to me earlier, but walking made that tricky. I ended up piggybacking her.

“Hurry… I’m dying…” Mercy urged Spirit, voice strained.

“…I know. Don’t rush me.” Spirit slowly unzipped her case, fumbling for a scroll on top. Even this simple motion seemed exhausting.

She tore the scroll open. Light erupted, spreading like ripples into a ten-meter-wide circular barrier. Instantly, the three looked relieved.

“What *is* this?” I asked, though I had a guess.

“The Eight Virtues came with the house—like guardians. Powerful, but they can’t leave the territory without collapsing. This scroll lets them move freely inside the barrier,” Mo Mo explained.

“Why go through all this trouble?” I still didn’t get why they’d summoned these three.

“You’ll see,” Nia deflected again, turning to Sacrifice. “Sacrifice. Do it.”

Sacrifice nodded, closed her eyes, and glowed emerald. “*Forest’s Call—heed my command.*”

“…” I braced for drama. Nothing happened. She stayed frozen, green light unchanging. Was this a joke?

“Patience. It should be here soon.” Nia’s voice sounded… off. Almost tense.

Thirty minutes later, Sacrifice still hadn’t moved. Even Nia’s smooth face seemed to frown—or would have, if she had eyebrows.

Before I could ask, Aefina—clinging to me—jerked upright. She stared in one direction, puzzled. “Luo Sa. That way.”

“What about it?” I didn’t look. Experience taught me: if Aefina sensed something first, I wouldn’t see it anyway.

“Mira’s scent.”

Aefina shifted forms instantly, coiling her tail around me and launching skyward.

Nia reacted just as fast. She flattened herself like paper, scooped up Mo Mo, and shot after us like a cannonball.

“…” Loli blinked at our vanishing trail. After a pause, the tiny figure charged into the forest after us.

“Loli, don’t wander off!” Spirit yelled too late. Loli had already bolted beyond the barrier’s edge, not slowing for a second.

Aefina and I never saw Loli follow. Her full-speed flight was terrifyingly fast—we reached the spot in minutes.

But instead of landing, Aefina veered sharply upward. The sudden turn would’ve thrown me off if not for her magic shielding me.

“Aefina, what’s wrong?” I asked once she hovered high above the treetops.

“Mira’s there. But humans too. Hold tight.” She shifted back to human form, gripping my hand as we plummeted toward the ground.

***BOOM!***

We crashed down beside a group of human adventurers, snapping a tree trunk. Dust blasted weaker members off their feet. Every head snapped toward us.

As the dust settled, two figures emerged.

Aefina and I stood atop the broken tree, looking down. The clearing revealed the adventurers—and who they surrounded. My fury detonated like a bomb with its fuse burned out.

Only one person warranted this much attention: Mira.

And her state ignited pure rage.

Her left wing was shattered, jagged bone exposed. The right was tattered like a grounded Rathian’s. Her right arm hung limp, a deep gash splitting the muscle. The left was slightly better—except a throwing knife pierced her palm, tip jutting from her knuckles, hilt buried in her grip.

The paper strip she used to cover her upper face was half-torn, revealing one tightly shut eye. Her metal face mask was dented inward, as if punched.

Beyond the obvious wounds, her body was a tapestry of cuts—worse than Loli’s when I’d found her. Arrows jutted from her scales. Only her tail was intact, slick with blood that wasn’t hers. The headless corpses and crushed chests nearby proved it.

Anyone would blame these adventurers for her condition. And before our crash landing, they *had* been fighting her. Seeing reliable, kind Mira broken like this—Aefina and I burned with fury.

“Aefina.” I whispered her name. She wordlessly placed the dagger she’d lent me into my palm.

Yes. I’d handle this myself. What Mira taught me—I’d practice on *them*.

Before I could leap down, a golden streak shot past me like lightning. It ricocheted between adventurers like a Modified Magic Star Bullet. Each impact left a neat hole in a heart. Thirty bodies hit the ground in under ten seconds. Only Mira remained standing.

“Trash.”

Nia materialized beside Mira, coated in blood, sneering at the corpses.

"..." In truth, Mira had long since reached her limit; she was just forcing herself to hold on. After Nia appeared, Mira, knowing she was finally safe, collapsed at last.

"Luo Sa, help carry Mira. We're heading back," Nia said, her voice thick with mixed emotions—anger, relief, helplessness, and concern. "Save your questions for later. First, let's heal Mira."

Then Mo Mo, who arrived late, finally explained: "Pity and Spirit were meant to heal Mira, while Sacrifice was for communicating with small animals to find her—but Aefina found her first anyway."

So I carried Mira on my back, sat on Aefina, and flew toward Nia's house, with Nia and Mo Mo trailing behind.

"Huh? Where's Loli? Isn't she with you?" Spirit asked as we returned, noticing Loli's absence.

"What? Loli didn't come with us?" Mo Mo glanced around and sure enough, Loli wasn't there. When she and Nia left, Loli was right here.

"Loli chased after you! I thought you'd meet up," Spirit said impatiently, stomping her foot.

"So Loli is lost?" I looked at the unconscious Mira on my back, then at Spirit, feeling the situation was getting tricky.