With the gleam of a sword streaking toward him, Noah stood up and narrowly dodged the blow. Everyone exchanged wary looks, and then he shouted:
— N-N-N-no, wait!
He noticed that, unlike previous times, the attack had come at him much more slowly. Had he been even a little less alert, he would have been seriously injured.
He realized that by dodging the attack, he had smashed against the tree he'd been leaning on. With little room to maneuver, he began scanning his surroundings for any possible escape routes when, in a brief glance, he caught sight of the moon shining before his eyes.
A perfect, gleaming blue orb high in the sky. And moments after that hazy vision, Noah barely registered the pounding of his heart until he saw the light green eyes of a woman just ahead—now brandishing another sword pointed directly at him. In that instant, he understood what had happened. Apparently, more time had passed than he had thought.
After lightly spinning the blade of her sword, the woman said:
— Wait?
She walked calmly over to Noah's side and, standing with the blade resting at his neck, continued:
— Do you have anything more to say? Or do you really know where the young lady is?
"And how would I know...? Am I a psychic? You haven't even told me what she looks like!"
The four exchanged quick, silent glances, and after nodding briefly, the woman went on:
— She's a young lady, probably about your age. She has long black hair and green eyes… And now, she's likely with a middle-aged man, also with long black hair, and a woman of similar age.
At those words, a fleeting thought crossed Noah's mind:
'But that description is almost… No, that old man definitely doesn't fit. But that man who was there earlier now…'
Noticing his sudden silence at her words, the woman pressed,
— Do you know who we're talking about?
'It can't be… it can't be them… But if it is, dealing with those five will be much easier with two more people to help...'
"...So then?"
Noah fixed his gaze on the woman's cold eyes—eyes that clearly revealed she wouldn't hesitate to kill him—and, after really taking them in, said:
— I think I know where she is.
He trembled noticeably, though as soon as he took the step to stand up, his trembling ceased.
She observed him for a moment and, after sliding her sword back into its sheath at her waist, declared:
— Then, get up. Show us the way.
Noah hesitated slightly as he stood.
'If it really is them, these people must be from a higher realm… The system had mentioned that this kind of person is behind the Frozen Fire, so that wouldn't be a surprise. But… they don't seem very strong, so I doubt that's it. And besides, they refer to her as 'miss'—which suggests that perhaps she only holds a higher rank than I imagined, and they're just acquaintances.'
As he took the lead and walked toward the house where Fusu and Ting were, he found himself increasingly immersed in thought, including:
'But why would they hide from people they know if they're friendly with one another…?'
This idea sparked many questions and doubts, compounding his confusion.
---
While gazing at the moon through the wooden window in front of her bed, Ting pondered:
'What did Uncle mean by 'beneficial'...? The greatest benefit that kid would get is marrying me!'
She slowly rested her head against the window frame and continued:
'I'm obviously beautiful… very beautiful. But that clearly doesn't matter much to him, considering he barely even glanced at me before leaving the room. But if it wasn't about that, then what was it? What made him agree to a proposal he clearly viewed as absurd? And why did he ask me to try absorbing Qi? It was as if he doubted I could do something so simple. Was he really thinking I was utterly useless? Or did he truly believe I wouldn't be capable...?'
As she stared at the moon and the raindrops falling from the sky, the girl allowed herself to be completely lost in her thoughts. However, at that very moment, her uncle suddenly burst into the room, startling her and making it impossible for her to concentrate, exclaiming:
— Come on! We need to go now!