Preparation in Three Places

In the center of the darkness, where demons dwell, stood a grand and eerie palace. Within the palace resided the Demon King, ruler of all Abyss.

In the throne room, kneeling before the Demon King, was a Demon General with an androgynous face.

He is handsome and beautiful, making any human will envious of his appearance.

This demon is Asmodeus, who had survived a tremendous fall from thousands of meters accompanied by a massive fire attack from Cien.

For several days, Asmodeus had to be nursed back to health due to his injuries. Now, he had returned, although not fully recovered, his power was still to be feared by humans.

Asmodeus knelt before the Demon King, feeling guilty for his failure in Mandora. He sought permission to return and conquer the Land of the Sand.

For the Demon King, what Asmodeus had done could not be considered a failure. From intelligence reports, he knew that Mandora was currently struggling with the Lusting poison.

Moreover, Prince Hanibal was severely wounded, greatly diminishing Mandora's strength.

Abyss only needed a slight push to make the Land of the Sand to crumble. Therefore, this time the Demon King did not require any strategy.

He ordered Asmodeus to prepare his army and invade Mandora to take it over directly in war. To further ensure his victory, he said, "I shall send Zalabal to accompany you. With two Demon Generals attacking, there's no reason for you to fail."

Asmodeus bowed, following the orders, though he felt annoyed as he had to share this mission with another Demon General.

Asmodeus left the room feeling uneasy. In the corridor, he encountered one demon he did not wish to meet.

"Heh, Asmodeus. What are you doing? Pleading to His Majesty about your defeat?" the demon named Azazel taunted.

"I haven't been defeated yet, Azazel. My plan in Mandora is still progressing. It's only a matter of time before the kingdom submits to my grasp!" Asmodeus replied defensively.

"Bla bla bla... with your current strength, I doubt that's possible. I remember when you were first found, your wounds... tsk tsk, they were severe. Quite embarrassing for a Demon General to display such weakness," Azazel sneered.

Asmodeus seethed with anger, his previously handsome and beautiful face now contorted into a furious expression, his cheeks turning a deep shade of red.

"You dare say that to me?! Do you not realize your own situation? What have you accomplished with your target? Nothing! Utterly useless!"

"Hahaha," Azazel laughed, retorting, "I haven't done anything, yet my target is already crumbling towards destruction. Relax, with just one wave of attack, that kingdom will fall easily."

Azazel continued walking past Asmodeus, reveling in his satisfaction as if the crumbling situation of his target kingdom was his own doing. Asmodeus snorted in response.

"Azazel!! You can stand there and laugh smugly now because of A'wan's achievement!"

Azazel stopped and turned back, squinting his eyes at Asmodeus.

"A'wan was a loser who died at the hands of humans. His accomplishments meant nothing with his demise from Kastia," Azazel retorted.

Hearing that, Asmodeus smirked, "A'wan wasn't weak, Azazel. He died because of three individuals. Two from Huntara and one from Farnodt. If I were you... I'd be cautious. Hope we can meet again, Azazel. Because if not, I'll be laughing gleefully at your grave!"

With that, Asmodeus walked away, chuckling to himself, leaving Azazel feeling frustrated. What Asmodeus said had caught his attention ever since A'wan's death.

"Huntress from Marina..."

Azazel muttered, recalling one of the people who killed A'wan.

This name had piqued his interest, as he couldn't let anyone stand in his way of taking over the target, the kingdom of Farnodt.

Currently, Farnodt was vulnerable.

Azazel had planned to launch a direct attack on Farnodt and finish everything in one strike.

He had already researched the powerful figures in Farnodt, but he found no information about the Huntress.

This was why he felt that the Huntress could be an obstacle. However, in the end, the Huntress was just one person. A stumbling block that could be easily overcome.

With full confidence, Azazel continued walking to meet the Demon King.

He would propose his plan: a frontal attack on Farnodt, a war without tactics, a pure and straightforward battle. A massacre!

Azazel was certain that with Farnodt's current situation, he would emerge victorious.

***

Elsewhere, in the city of Almarin, Westya, Niles and his caravan finally arrived at Ethel's house. He was warmly welcomed by the Director of C-Owl.

Cherry, who had returned home, immediately hugged Ethel tightly.

She felt guilty for leaving her work in Ashur, but Ethel reassured her that she had done nothing wrong. In fact, Ethel was grateful to Cherry for bringing news about Cien.

Upon hearing Cien's name, Cherry brightened up, eager to share many stories with Ethel. However, her excitement was interrupted by a woman standing behind Ethel, surprising Cherry.

"Casey?! Wait, how did you get here?!"

"Hehe! It's simple, Cherry. My main task is to observe and assist Miss Lilinette. Since she has been taken away by the Grand Master, it's only logical for me to return to the main headquarters."

"...but, didn't you help Rondo in Ashur?"

"I helped him temporarily. But once the situation started to stabilize, I left. Rondo is more than capable. Oh, wondering why I arrived earlier? Well, I was alone and took a shortcut route. Unlike you, who had to take a longer and indirect path to avoid the Lusting quarantine."

"..."

Cherry fell silent, listening to Casey's confident explanation. It seemed like leaving her friends in Ashur during the crisis wasn't a big deal to her.

Ethel herself could only smile wryly.

She was surprised when Casey appeared at C-Owl's headquarters gates a few days ago. She was even more taken aback when she heard the other reason why Casey had returned.

"Miss Lilinette is not in Ashur, so my task there was completed. But I'm sure Madam will go to meet the Grand Master, right? If so, then I'll join too. Miss Lilinette is there. I will continue my duties in Death Valley."

Listening to Casey's reasoning, Ethel was at a loss for words.

Casey was a bit unique among her foster children, and Ethel knew that trying to change her mind about not going with her would be futile.

Ethel was convinced that somehow, one way or another, Casey would make her way to Death Valley to meet with Cien and Lilinette.

She could even imagine Casey arriving there before anyone else.

Over the next few days, Ethel conducted business transactions with Niles for the goods brought from Ashur, which resulted in reducing the number of caravans that would accompany them to Death Valley.

During this time, Ethel also made preparations for her departure.

She gave important instructions to Arl, who would be responsible for C-Owl in her absence for the next few months.

Binya managed to force her way into joining Ethel, delegating all her work to her secretary. She couldn't miss the chance to meet Cien again.

On the other hand, Arl, though regretful for not being able to join, prepared some guards for Ethel, who were also members of C-Owl.

They were not on par with knights but strong enough to handle some monsters and ordinary soldiers.

With the preparations complete, Ethel and Niles' entourage began their journey from Almarin.

They planned to make a brief stop in Ethyria to search for the two guides mentioned by Cien. Legia and Jamie.

Hearing Legia's name, Ethel was very familiar with her.

She knew that Legia was one of her daughter's subordinates. Therefore, Ethel had sent a message to Legia, but she had received no response at all.

It was unclear whether Legia refused her request or if she was simply not in Ethyria at the moment.

Besides searching for Legia and Jamie, Ethel also had to gather information about Kirana, who had been missing with no news until now.

She was deeply worried about her only daughter. If she could find her, Ethel intended to bring Kirana to meet Cien. She could imagine the joy her daughter would feel upon meeting her father.

"Ah, I should also inform Grenhall about Cien."

***

In another place, in Death Valley, during the night.

In the upper floor's living room of a shop, Cien was preparing by packing various weapons, equipment, and food supplies into his favorite coffin-bag.

Kirana was watching her father's actions with vacant eyes.

She had heard stories from the villagers and Lilinette about her father carrying around a large wooden box whenever he traveled.

And the box indeed looked like a coffin.

"Father, you don't actually put people inside that, right?" Kirana murmured, her voice reaching Cien's ears.

"Hm? I put Cherry and Lily inside this before," Cien replied.

"Huh?"

Kirana instinctively rubbed her nose with eyes closed. The thought of her cousin being inside the coffin-like box, carried around like some kind of luggage, left her baffled.

On the other hand, Cien didn't pay much attention to the coffin. As he packed his belongings, he looked at his daughter.

"Are you sure you want to come along, Kiran?" He asked.

Cien's question brought Kirana back from her reverie.

The young woman immediately responded with unwavering determination that she wanted to go with him.

Knowing that her father was setting out to search for materials for her personal weapon, Kirana couldn't just sit idly by.

It wasn't just Kirana who wanted to accompany Cien.

Legia, Reiss, and Terrion also expressed their desire to join the journey.

However, Cien refused Reiss and Terrion's request, as their presence was currently regarded as security personnel.

If they were to leave, the villagers would become anxious about their safety within Death Valley.

So, the ones undertaking the search for the Heart of Ice would be Cien, Kirana, Legia, and one other person, Ian.

Mia, who knew about Cien's goal, sent Ian to accompany them.

Ian served as both assistance and a source and to gather information about the Heart of Ice. As he is from Huntara and knew about the stories of Heart of Ice and the Myth of Fenrir.

Mia and Ian had no intention of taking the material away from Cien.

Their main aim was to gather information to be recorded in the kingdom's archives, serving as a reference for future generations of Huntara who might seek the Heart of Ice.