At noon the following day, "clang... clang," the sound of steel filled the air as Eva swung Exelion at Milia, who parried the strike with Wilgram. Ard watched their duel, noting how it grew more intense with every clash of their blades. Suddenly, Baalbel's voice echoed in his head.

"Your Majesty, Xeria should have arrived by now. Has she made it yet?" Baalbel asked.

"Hmm... not yet. When did she leave?" Ard asked in his mind.

"She set out yesterday evening. She should be there by now, but I can't reach her. It's likely she's already entered the Forest of Illusions," Baalbel replied.

"We'll wait a little longer. If she shows up, I'll let you know," Ard answered.

"Understood, Your Majesty," Baalbel replied.

Ard turned around. From his vantage point on the hill, he looked toward the village entrance—the road that led into the forest. Below him, he could see his friends gathered in front of the longhouse where they had all been staying. When he looked back toward the entrance, he spotted a woman. Behind her were several giant spiders carrying two men wrapped in webbing on their backs.

Ard immediately leaped down. He informed Baalbel that Xeria had arrived, hearing the relief in the demon's voice. When he reached the gate, Xeria saw him and started to drop to one knee, but Ard quickly stopped her before she could draw any unwanted attention.

"Come on, Xeria. Take Abel and Julius to the village chief's house," Ard said.

"Understood, Your Majesty," Xeria replied.

Ard led Xeria and the giant spiders toward the chief's house, followed by the curious stares of the elves, who were fascinated to see such massive creatures in their village. A few moments later, Abel and Julius were freed from the webbing and placed on beds. Eledar immediately began examining Abel, while Ard, Eva, Miria, Milia, Pyria, Alicia, and Xeria watched from the bedside. Meanwhile, Claudia, Beatrice, Rosalind, Geoffrey, Ainsley, and Irwin took Adeline for a walk so she wouldn't have to see Abel's true condition.

After inspecting the mark on Abel's body and the wound on his chest, Eledar looked surprised for a moment. Then, he smiled and turned to the group.

"This mark isn't a curse from Goddess Ophelia; rather, she has simply marked him. The reason Prince Abel is in this state is because he was struck by a type of poison from an angelic weapon. I can heal him and remove the poison, but I cannot remove the mark," Eledar explained.

"Is that true, Chief? Thank goodness. Please, I'm asking for your help to heal him," Ard replied.

"Of course, but healing him will take quite some time. It's best if he stays here for now. Tell Baalbel to continue posing as him for the time being," Eledar replied.

"Alright, I'll tell Baalbel. Xeria, you make sure to pass the message to him as well," Ard said.

"Certainly, Your Majesty," Xeria replied.

"And what about Prince Julius, Chief?" Mirea asked.

Eledar shook his head. He turned and unbuttoned Julius's shirt, which looked far too small for his very portly frame. The mark on his body was identical to Abel's, but he had no physical wounds at all, which left Ard, Eva, and the others confused.

"Hmm... so he isn't injured at all?" Eva asked.

"Correct. The mark given by Goddess Ophelia has separated his soul from his body. He is still alive, but he has no soul and will never wake up until it returns. I cannot treat him in this state," Eledar answered.

"Hmm... this is a problem. We can't just leave him in this village," Ard muttered.

"Whatever. Just bury him already," Milia snapped, looking at Julius with total disgust.

"Hey, don't bury him! If his soul ever comes back, he'll wake up again. How about cremation? We can just bury the ashes," Pyria suggested.

"Great idea. Let's get the fire ready," Milia agreed instantly.

"Count me in. I hate him too—the way he acted like a brat and almost got us killed back at the camp," Alicia added.

"What is wrong with you guys? Even if I hate him too, he's still a prince. If we mess this up, the Durnhill Kingdom will put a bounty on all our heads," Mirea argued.

"In this condition... he might as well be dead. It would actually be better if he passed away so his spirit and soul could return to the heavens. It sounds cruel, but there is nothing we can do to help him," Eledar added.

"Ugh, this guy is nothing but trouble. Sending him back to his kingdom is a mistake, burning him is impossible because he's technically alive... even like this, he's still a burden to everyone else. How annoying," Milia said, clearly fed up.

"Take it easy, Milia. I know he's your main enemy, but we have to figure out the best way to handle this," Alicia said.

Suddenly, Xeria raised her hand. Everyone turned to look at her as she stood by the side of the room, including Eledar.

"How about I just keep him in my nest?" Xeria asked.

"Whoa, and turn him into a nursery for your kids? No way!" Ard and Eva shouted at the same time, knowing exactly what Xeria meant by her habit of collecting human bodies for her eggs.

"No, I won't turn him into a nursery for my children because he's still alive. I'll just store him on the ceiling, wrapped up in my webbing. Besides, if he's with me in my lair, no one will ever find him. Even if he is found, I'll be the one they come after, not any of you. Right?" Xeria replied with a hopeful smile.

Ard and Eva considered the offer. The others weighed it as well, including Eledar, realizing that Xeria's proposal was the most practical solution they had. Milia suddenly turned and grabbed Xeria's hands.

"Fine, take him! No charge, he's all yours," Milia said cheerfully.

Everyone turned to look at Milia. They all ended up smiling, though a few—including Eledar—shook their heads.

"Very well, Xeria. I'll trust him to you. I assume you two agree?" Eledar asked, glancing at Ard and Eva.

"Well... for now, it's the best way. But promise me, no putting your eggs in his body," Eva warned.

"I promise, Your Majesty," Xeria replied happily.

"Go ahead and take him, Xeria. You have a portal that goes straight to your nest, right?" Ard asked.

"Yes, Your Majesty, but I ask permission to shift my form for a moment to wrap him up," Xeria answered.

"Alright, go ahead. Everyone else, back up," Ard said.

Alicia, Milia, Pyria, and Mirea stepped back. Suddenly, Xeria shifted into her half-spider form, her eight massive legs appearing. Without a second thought, she moved in. Her front legs began spinning Julius's body, wrapping him in webbing until he was completely covered from head to toe. Then, Xeria opened a portal and tossed the neatly wrapped Julius inside as if she were throwing away a piece of trash. After that, she shifted back into her human form.

"It is done, Your Majesty," Xeria said with a smile.

"Thank you, Xeria, for getting that half-pig of a human out of my sight," Milia replied.

"You're very welcome," Xeria said.

Ard turned back to look at his brother lying on the bed. He stared at the mark of Goddess Ophelia on Abel's chest, right near the wound.

"How do we get rid of that mark? And why was Abel even targeted?" Ard asked.

"Maybe Goddess Ophelia saw him with Edmund and Julius. They were always together, after all. She probably thought Abel was one of Edmund's friends," Eva suggested.

"That's possible," Ard muttered.

"As for removing the mark, you should ask the Dragon God if you ever meet him. Even Elder Gaias can't erase it. But at least your journey hasn't been a total waste," Eledar said, glancing over at Milia and the Wilgram hanging from her waist.

Ard fell silent, his eyes fixed on Abel lying still on the bed. Seeing the pensive look on his face, Eva reached out and took his hand, standing beside him as they both looked down at Abel. Pyria, Mirea, Alicia, and Milia also grew quiet, their gazes shifting toward the bed. Xeria stood like a statue by the door while Eledar returned to his examination of the prince. After a moment, Alicia turned to Mirea.

"Don't send a letter to Nikolai telling him about any of this. It will only cause more trouble, that's for sure," Alicia warned.

"Hmm... of course not. It's definitely for the best that Nikolai stays in the dark about the condition of his brother and Prince Abel," Mirea replied.

"Promise me, don't you dare do it behind our backs," Milia warned.

"She's right. Please, don't go looking for more trouble," Pyria added.

"You guys... do you really not trust me?" Mirea asked.

"Not at all," Alicia, Milia, and Pyria replied in unison.

Mirea immediately went over to Ard, wrapping her arms around his and peeking out from behind him at the three girls accusing her.

"What's going on?" Ard asked.

"They think I'm going to send a letter to Nikolai and tell him everything. They're being mean. Kiss me," Mirea answered.

Before anyone could react, Mirea suddenly lunged forward and kissed the startled Ard. Seeing this, Eva immediately pulled Mirea away while Alicia, Milia, and Pyria charged in. The room erupted into a chaotic mess of bickering and sharp-tongued arguments. Xeria and Eledar could only watch, smiling and shaking their heads at the scene.

Ard, who had been so gloomy just moments before, began to smile again. The girls' antics had pulled him back to reality. He stepped forward and pulled all five of them into a single, large hug.

"Thank you. Because of you guys, I'm not gloomy anymore," Ard said.

"Hehe, of course," Eva, Alicia, Milia, Pyria, and Mirea replied happily. Even so, they continued to trade looks with each other that clearly said, "This isn't over—we're settling this later."

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.