Naria let out a low exclamation—it was a flower that didn't exist in the world.

It seemed to open in the center of a large black spider web, and the black metal as thin as a hair grew into twisted and intricate petals, wrapped in the shimmering runes of the center of the flower. The light flowing on each filament, like a terrifying cold light on the edge of a sharp blade, glows with a refined blue, as bright and dark as breathing in their gaze. Under the firelight, a thin black slit in the heart of the flower has lost that kind of pressing momentum, more like the sleepy eyes of the ice dragon when he is sleepy.

"Lydia?" Naria guessed, "I've heard she likes it...... Flashy stuff. ”

But she had to admit that the "thing" was so gorgeous that you couldn't take your eyes off it.

"She likes to make spells more ornate, but not to make them less powerful. Scott corrected her, "It does look like her style...... But she shouldn't have that time. Icabold has always stayed here. ”

“...... So maybe Icabold did this at her behest?" said Ed softly.

Naria looked back in surprise - the malicious speculation, the unfounded suspicion...... It didn't sound like Ed would say anything at all.

“...... Take a look around. Scott held up a torch to light up the surroundings, "Someone has been fighting here...... With spells. ”

They were completely distracted by the flower just now, and they didn't even notice the mess around them. Large and small stones, broken coffin fragments and the remains therein, all kinds of small objects accompanying the burial...... Scattered everywhere. The trail left by the spell was like a scribble of several giant paintbrushes, almost covering the ground around the flowers. It's just that the closer you get to the flower, the fainter the traces become.

"No one in the temple has this kind of power except Ikabard...... If Lydia had been here, they would have been friends and foes. Scott looked at Ed. "I know you don't like Icabird, and so do I...... But Sean believed in him, and Felicity believed in him. If you still have a little bit of trust in them...... Trust Icabard, too, who may be aloof and on his own, but not enough to be in the company of necromancers. ”

Ed slowly lowered his head in his calm gaze, silent.

“...... Sounds like you think it's Icabard's masterpiece?" Naria broke the silence with some panic. "But why is that?"

"I don't know. Scott candidly admits that "he should have completely sealed this gap to the Otherworld...... But somehow he harnessed its power. I think the fog out there ...... It's like protecting the entire Collins Temple—it's like Icabard's style. ”

"You call that 'protection'?" Narya couldn't agree with that, "there's this effort. Why didn't he protect the dead people outside?!"

"I don't know...... But he is not omnipotent. Scott sighed, his voice lowering slightly, "I'm not omnipotent...... I should have guessed this, I should have stayed here......"

There's endless self-reproach in that. Sadness. with anger.

- Dead here are also his companions, perhaps his former friends. Ed has only been here for less than half a year...... He spent ten years here.

Suddenly aware of this, Naria bit her lip guiltily. The man in front of her was so powerful, so powerful that she could barely think of him as a human...... But he still has a human heart that hurts and hurts.

"Let's go. Scott whispered, "At least for now, for everything that's going on here...... There's nothing we can do. ”.

No sooner had they stepped out of the Old Temple than they heard a familiar roar from the sky, in the mist. The voice was as low as thunder in the distance.

"Is?" Naria's eyes lit up and she turned to ask Scott. "He came with you?"

Scott shook his head: "I asked him to stay and protect Criesburg...... But we've probably been gone for too long. ”

He looked up at the sky and called out loudly. After a few moments, the fog began to roll rapidly, and the wind carried water vapor in the face, and white wings loomed in the mist.

"Where are you?" the ice dragon roared in exasperation, flapping its wings hard, "I can't see anything!"

The fog receded momentarily under the strong wind, and the ice dragon's body became even larger in the haze, and Nalya quickly pulled Ed and ran over, flapping its strong front paws to make it lower its head.

Ed hesitated.

"We ...... Can't let them just lie there. He looked at Scott and whispered beggingly.

"Of course not, but not now. Scott sighed and patted him on the shoulder, motioning for Nalya to pull him up.

They flew into the sky and looked down at the ground in silence. It was nearly noon, above the fog, the sun was shining, and the Collins Plains, shrouded in mist, seemed to be a boundless sea of clouds that could only be seen from above. The mist stopped at the edge of the forest, as if it was blocked by some kind of barrier...... It's like preventing any creature from entering the plains of Collins.

"Here...... It won't be like this forever, will it?" asked Naria softly.

No one could answer her question.

Naria fell silent and said no more. She remembered the sea of flowers in May on the Collins Plains...... I remember the first time she drove across the plains, the stunning scenery unfolded in front of her eyes. She misses those flowers like she misses all the happy and simple days that are gone.

What else is going to happen?......

That's another question that no one can answer.

"That's probably all he knows. Alan shook his head at Scott and sighed, "Let him go and rest for a while." ”

Scott looked at Salz, the rescued young paladin still in a trance, shaking his head blankly at Fili's gentle questioning, occasionally speaking, and spitting out sentences that were short and broken.

This paladin, who was lucky or unlucky, didn't even see the enemy at all. He accepted Browder's orders and searched for Helena's body in the old burial chamber with several companions, but when he couldn't find her, he left the island of the Holy Sepulchre alone to inform Browder and inquire about his future actions.

Halfway through the boat, fog suddenly began to rise on the lake.

At first, he didn't pay much attention to it, as there was often fog around the island of the Holy Sepulchre. But soon he realized uneasy that the fog was thicker than ever, and the boat was getting slower and slower, until it came to a halt altogether.

The magically driven boat had no oars at all, and he froze for a moment in the thick fog, and finally reluctantly untied his shoulder armor and rowed back to the temple, which was already not far away, with two hands.

The temple was also shrouded in fog, and he couldn't see anything clearly, but he could hear faint roars and screams...... Realizing that the temple was under attack, he tried to come to his aid, but got lost in the familiar temple and tripped over a corpse.

It was the corpse of Holwald, a young priest...... Salz's narrative becomes extremely chaotic after this, with dark shadows in the fog, blood on white marble, cold corpses one after another, unanswered calls, boundless fear and despair...... That had almost destroyed his soul.

He couldn't even tell when he had found Rem, and how the mortally wounded but undead paladin had dragged him through the fog and forest to Criesburg.

"I don't know where else to go...... he told Fili in a daze, "I just know you're here...... The Sage is here too...... He's a saint, right? a real saint? They say he's not...... I do not know...... I do not know...... Why is this happening......"

He bent down, fell on his knees, and began to cry silently.

Filly wiped a drop of water from the corner of his eye.

Scott tapped him on the shoulder, not bothering the weeping young man, and took Filly aside.

"How's Rem doing?" he asked, "he might know more." ”

Rem Flender was his old acquaintance, one of the few remaining high-ranking paladins in the temple, who was not very gregarious, but very attentive. He may not have survived just because he was lucky.

"Let him sleep a little longer. Filly wiped his face wearily, "He's covered in wounds, and he has been stabbed in the chest...... I really don't know how he managed to get here. ”

"Among the corpses of the temple are the people that Eren brought back from the Windwhispering Forest...... I don't know if they took advantage of the chaos to escape, or if someone released them. Scott whispered to him, "Icabold should still be alive...... But if he wants to hide, no one can find him. ”

"his Ikabard!" Filly cursed under his breath, "and...... his Sean Fletche and his hellish secret!"

Scott smiled wryly.

"I respect him as much as my own father......" for a moment Filly's expression seemed to cry, "but what did he do?"

“...... You don't really believe those accusations, do you?" asked Scott.

"No, I don't believe it...... But what the hell does he need to keep everything he does secret? If more people knew, we wouldn't be so caught off guard!"

"He's just...... Wants to protect everyone. Scott sighed, "He always thought he could solve all the problems alone. ”

Fili glanced at him.

"IMHO. He said, "You have exactly the same stinky problem as he is...... Don't wait until it's irretrievable like this to regret it. ”

Scott was stunned for a moment, and changed the topic back in a bit of a panic: "Anyway, Ante can't do this alone." I don't know who he teamed up with, or if someone took advantage of it...... It's not over. ”

"Of course it's not over!" Filly growled, his tone furious and gloomy as never before. He glared at Scott thoughtfully for a few moments, and then suddenly asked a strange question: "Scott...... Have you ever thought about reclaiming what belongs to the Chrissus family?"

"What do you mean?" Scott frowned in confusion, "this castle?"

He didn't know what else he could "take back".

“...... this country. Filly replied.

(To be continued......)