Ailin stood there alone, not a single wizard paying him any attention. That sense of being forgotten was the second time he had felt it. The first time? That would have been when his soul aptitude regressed and his engagement was annulled.
That had been the darkest moment of his life. Fortunately, he still had it.
Ailin gripped the black ring in his hand.
"Grandpa
He wasn't thinking about trying to forge some kind of connection, of course. In Doron City, he was nothing more than a humble apprentice, while the other party was a lofty Second-rank
"Don't worry. Second-rank? That's nothing!" Merlin continued to channel Leilin's particular brand of mischief, boasting inside Ailin's head. "Once you find those two Children of Destiny and stir up the currents of fate, the Sacred Flame Candle's cultivation will rocket upward. Second-rank, Third-rank — it'll all be child's play!"
"Then I'd better move faster!"
Ailin clenched his fist and gazed toward the horizon, brimming with hope for one bright instant...
For Leilin, the matter of Ailin was nothing more than a small detour on his journey.
Although Ailin was a chess piece he had placed on the board at a whim, he had never demanded that the boy join the convoy or anything of the sort. After all, Merlin was already by his side at all times, keeping watch. That was more than sufficient.
Besides, he did not want to be too overt about it — to the point where Ailin or anyone else might catch on.
Leilin lowered his gaze slightly, concealing the fathomless light that flickered within his eyes.
...
After more than half a month of travel, the convoy entered the Central Domain.
The road had been remarkably uneventful — nothing of note occurred along the way.
After all, this convoy was composed entirely of Wizards. There was no shortage of formal Wizards, even those at the peak of the First rank, and on top of them all sat Leilin, a Second-rank Wizard. It would have been generous of them not to cause trouble for others, let alone have some fool dare to provoke them.
And because of the use of magic, the convoy not only moved at great speed but also had no difficulty traversing treacherous terrain.
Gorges, swamps, cliffs — obstacles that would have been insurmountable for ordinary people were, for Wizards, a simple matter of a few Levitation spells or similar magic.
"So this is the Central Domain of the Dark Poles? Its prosperity far surpasses that of the Eastern Domain!"
Leilin pulled back the canopy and glanced at the neat rows of crops along the roadside, as well as the occasional farmer working the fields. He nodded approvingly.
The Central Domain was the jewel of the entire Dark Pole region. Here, one rarely encountered roaming Dark Beasts, and the population density was far greater.
But now, Leilin could spot riders in leather armor galloping by from time to time — messengers. The farmers mostly wore somber expressions, suffused with an air of imminent war — the Northern Domain of the Dark Poles had fallen. The Dark Elves' armies, along with Dwarves, Goblins, and even Dark Beasts from foreign lands, could now march south through the northern border straight into the Central Domain, causing tremendous trouble.
Moreover, the Central Domain lacked strength, particularly elite Wizards, and had been forced to issue a general summons to all four domains, calling upon the academies to relocate.
"My Lord! Several leaders of mid-tier academies have come to take their leave. They will be heading to their respective territories!"
At that moment, a Wizard from the Nature Alliance came forward to report.
"Let them go. No need to come and say goodbye to me specifically," Leilin ordered calmly.
Immediately, a great many voices rose in the distance. Small convoys split off from the main body of the Nature Alliance like tributaries branching from a river.
"A pity," Leilin murmured, watching the mid-tier and small academies go their separate ways, letting out a soft sigh.
The resource points in the Central Domain were indeed valuable, but they had to be paid for with one's life.
If these academies could survive the great war, the territory they gained would be their reward. But if their strength was devastated — or worse, if they were wiped out entirely — then reclaiming those resources would raise not a single eyebrow.
The Central Domain's resources, though abundant, could not support this many academies.
Only through the crucible of war would the ones laughing at the end be the true victors. And yet, many academies had come anyway. They knew it was a gamble, but they had placed their bets without hesitation, hoping to strike it rich in the Central Domain.
"I wonder how many of these academies will still be standing after the war..."
Leilin sighed softly and drew the window shut.
"Pass the word — full speed ahead. Reach our territory as quickly as possible!"
On the surface, Leilin was still here representing the interests of the Nature Alliance, so he issued the order casually.
"As you command, my Lord!"
The order rippled outward through layers of magic. The roars of Land Drakes and Horned Horses echoed through the column, and the convoy's speed surged once more.
...
Meanwhile, in another direction, several dust-covered figures also crossed into the Central Domain.
"So this is the Central Domain?"
Verin brushed the dust from his body and gazed at the great city not far ahead.
He wore a loose grey robe of rough linen, and perched on his shoulder was a spider marked with golden stripes, occasionally peeking its head out.
"That's right! Once we pass through Tolan City, we can press deeper and reach the Central Domain's capital!"
At Verin's side was
"Can you get your Abyssal Frost Spider Queen to go back? It's going to draw attention here!" He glanced once more at the spider playfully crawling up onto Verin's shoulder and smiled ruefully.
"Squeak squeak..." The golden spider seemed to understand human speech. At Memphis's words, it immediately let out a threatening hiss.
"
Verin translated for Memphis. "Also — if you dare suggest that again, it'll eat you."
"Fine!" Memphis was practically speechless.
This Abyssal Frost Spider Queen was the trophy Verin had brought back from the Dark Elves' holy ground. Originally, they had planned to kill or subdue the creature as a contribution toward a ceasefire between the two sides.
But somehow, the Abyssal Frost Spider Queen had simply followed Verin, becoming something akin to a Wizard's contracted magical companion.
This had shattered Memphis's composure, and when he learned it might have been the work of his ancestral talisman, he had nearly smashed his head against a wall in regret.
He had always known his family tree included great nobles, but he had never imagined they had left behind such a powerful contract — one capable of binding an Abyssal Frost Spider Queen!
This was a Second-rank creature! If he had been the one to control it, perhaps the entire Frost Spider Knight Order would have switched sides. But as things stood now?
Memphis glanced wryly at Verin.
The Abyssal Frost Spider Queen was in their possession, but the proud Dark Elves refused to acknowledge that an outsider could control their sacred beast. On the contrary, they considered it a colossal humiliation and had even launched an endless hunt for them.
With the Dark Elves' grand scheme now in ruins, Memphis had used his connections to obtain several pieces of intelligence by chance. The Dark Elves were orchestrating a massive conspiracy in the Central Domain of the Dark Poles — one that could potentially destroy the very foundation of humanity!
Upon receiving the news, Verin could not sit still. A powerful sense of duty drove him to leave Jenny in safety and slip into the Central Domain with Memphis.
"So what do we do now? Do we pass the intelligence on to the Wizards?"
Verin suddenly realized he had no idea how to proceed.
"Just the two of us?" Memphis pointed at his own nose, then at the Abyssal Frost Spider Queen on Verin's shoulder, a bitter smile on his face.
"A Dark Elf and a suspicious human with an Abyssal Frost Spider Queen?"
"I'd wager they'd throw a spell at us before we even got a word out. And that's not even mentioning the fact that intelligence of this magnitude would need to be delivered through their Second-rank Wizard to be taken seriously. Aru's concealment won't fool anyone of that level."
"And the moment a Second-rank Wizard sees the Abyssal Frost Spider Queen, they'll likely kill it on the spot. After all, through the bloodline connection, once this spider queen dies, the Dark Elves' Abyssal Frost Spider mounts will suffer a period of weakness — to say nothing of cutting off their future supply of mounts. It would be a devastating blow to the Dark Elf empire. What do you think they'd choose?"
"So in the end, there's still no way," Verin said, slumping down in discouragement.
"But it's not entirely without hope," Memphis's tone shifted.
"What hope?" Verin's eyes lit up.
"Remember the Wizard Leilin you told me about?"
"Lord Leilin?" Verin's voice took on an involuntary note of reverence. He had always regarded Leilin as a mentor and held the man in the highest esteem.
"That's right! That very Wizard Leilin! Did you know? He's actually a powerful Second-rank Wizard!"
Memphis lowered his voice as well, maintaining a measure of respect for a powerhouse of another race.
"From what I've gathered, not only did he assist Vintix in slaying a Second-rank Matron during the Battle of Doron City, he had previously defeated another Matron on his own! In my people's intelligence archives, he's already been classified as an eight-star terror-level figure!"
"Lord Leilin — he's really that strong?"
Verin's eyes widened. He had personally witnessed the power of a Dark Elf Matron.
Back in the Dark Elf empire, he and Memphis had been hunted by one. If not for the Abyssal Frost Spider Queen's protection, they never would have escaped alive.
The terrifying strength of a Matron had been seared deep into their minds.
And now, Memphis was telling him that Lord Leilin — the man who had once been his teacher — was a Wizard even more formidable than a Matron?
Verin's emotions were a tangled mix: pride, exhilaration, and also regret and wistfulness.
"Yes," Memphis nodded. "Even though we're not of the same race, I deeply admire him."
"And this Lord Leilin — he must hold a position of tremendous authority within the Wizard world. He has ties with you. If we bring the intelligence to him..."