Frieren and Melina carefully guarded the secret pact.
Thanks to the note's reminder, a few cryptic words within mentioned a connection to the Dragon Communion Priestess, marking it as an important item.
As someone seeking out Ancient Dragons, she certainly wouldn't miss it.
After all, Lansseax had asked her to look after his colleague, Crusesax. If she could help, she would. Befriending the denizens of the sky city and strengthening the Dragon Communion ritual for herself was a win-win situation.
"Also, do you know where Mister Igon is?"
"I've heard of that cat-dragon man. He should have gone towards the Dragon's Pit. His legs are weak, so he won't have gone far."
"Thank you."
The silver-haired girl gazed in the direction Thiollier pointed, her face filled with anticipation. As expected, none of Miquella's followers were simple; they must hold many secrets. For an inconspicuous apothecary to be tied to the Dragon Communion Priestess was a delightful surprise.
She also asked about the Valleybottom Forest, but unfortunately, he knew nothing of it; even the squad members didn't dare set foot there easily.
It seemed everyone in the Land of Shadow deliberately ignored its existence.
The more it was so, the less she should avoid it. Frieren couldn't afford to be complacent; the Scorching Outer God had already set its sights on her. Even skirting the edges would draw its attack.
It would be better for her to eliminate this hidden threat herself.
Otherwise, what if that thing suddenly erupted while she was dispelling the barrier and integrating the Land of Shadow? That would be a disaster. Most importantly, she could not allow two powerful enemies skilled in mental attacks to exist simultaneously.
"I truly envy you, Lady Frieren. You always seem to know your goal and see it through."
"You're never lost, are you?"
"I have been, but when I think about what needs to be done, the confusion fades. A long life has taught me one thing: one cannot be too idle. What about you? You seem carefree, but there must be a deeper reason you dared to come to the Land of Shadow."
"I won't ask what it is. Just grasp it, hold onto that feeling."
Hearing this, Thiollier fell silent, shaking his head with a bewildered look, then murmured, "I'm looking for someone I can't quite remember."
"Who?"
"Trina. That's the only name in my mind."
"She sounds like a gentle person. It's alright, Thiollier. Since you've remembered this much, you'll recall everything sooner or later. We'll meet again."
"Take care as well, Lady Frieren."
After a brief, polite farewell, the spirit steed set off once more, galloping away. Only the masked man remained, still lost in thought, unable to shake the fog from his mind.
Why couldn't he remember? It was the one person he should never forget.
Sitting behind her on the horse, Melina gazed deeply at the confused Thiollier, then turned her head and asked,
"What's your judgment, as a mental power expert?"
"It's Miquella's handiwork, but with an added layer of memory interference. Unlike the other followers, he learned something detrimental to the unalloyed Empyrean, so Trina must be crucial. We must both remember that name."
"But we can't press Thiollier for answers, or we'll alert the enemy. Still, I believe this large-scale enchantment can't be maintained for long."
"Of course."
The two reached the same conclusion in unison.
In other words, the moment the charm is broken will signify Miquella's final push for his ascension ritual. The entire plan for the Land of Shadow will enter a race against time.
Therefore, it was best to eliminate some of the peripheral threats in advance. Otherwise, there was no ruling out the possibility that unstable elements like the Frenzied Dragon and the Lord of Frenzied Flame might all erupt at once. The worst-case scenario had to be nipped in the bud.
At the same time, the spirit steed passed through the forested area. The roadside was lined with pale blue, flower-like creatures.
They had three holes on top, resembling a dazed face, making them strangely cute. The creatures of the Land of Shadow were as varied as ever, just like the Lightning Ram encountered before—a dangerous nature packaged in a harmless appearance.
"Ah!"
Suddenly, a low cry of pain rang out, growing louder and louder.
The person seemed to be suffering immense agony, as if it were some kind of torture scene. Following the sound, Frieren indeed saw a person sitting on the ground, clutching a blood-stained leg.
"You must be Mister Igon. Do you need healing?"
After the polite inquiry, Frieren immediately cast a Sunlight Heal, covering him. No time to waste; rescue first, ask questions later.
Bathed in the golden light, he finally recovered some of his senses and hastily offered his thanks, but his pained gasps continued. A closer look revealed they were burns.
From a very special kind of dragon breath.
It had a certain adhesive property, continuously tormenting its target with what must be excruciating, heart-piercing pain.
"It hurts... my hand, my foot... the places that were destroyed."
The constant pain was making him delirious. Melina joined the healing, providing a Barrier of Gold, but it only halted the injury's progression without changing the soul-deep damage.
"Bayle... Bayle, you avatar of terror! I'm telling you, I'm still alive!"
"I crave your heart, I crave it so much I can't stand it! Sooner or later, I'll let you taste fear too! Aaargh!"
Igon's constant cries sounded more like venting.
Compared to the pure pain from before, there was now a mix of unwillingness, frustration, and fury. He disregarded everything, his focus likely fixed solely on the Frenzied Dragon.
The two healers exchanged glances and both shook their heads.
This was no longer just a matter of physical injury; the man was somewhat maddened. If a joint diagnosis by the two top healers of the Lands Between yielded no results, then it was a sickness of the heart. He probably wouldn't regain his senses anytime soon.
What a pity.
He had most likely fought the Frenzied Dragon Bayle and knew some information, but he was also severely wounded.
"In truth, it's a miracle you're alive. Rest well. At worst, you can just challenge it again."
Igon shuddered, and finally spoke: "The Frenzied Dragon is strong. Even the Ancient Dragon stationed there can't handle it. But I will have my revenge sooner or later. Is your destination also Jagged Peak?"
"Yes. As long as you have the will to fight, we will meet again."
"It's a promise! Hahaha, it's rare to find someone who dares to challenge Bayle, as reckless as I am. But you are strong, so perhaps there is hope. As a token of my thanks, I will lend you my aid when the time comes."
With that, he collapsed with a thud, his breathing gradually steadying. It was unclear if he was meditating or had fainted. What nerve.
To just fall asleep in the Land of Shadow.
It seemed Igon didn't need anyone's unsolicited help; he radiated an aura that kept others at a distance.
So Frieren didn't linger. She set off again, galloping wildly on horseback, gradually approaching a massive rock formation.
Steep obstacles blocked her path. But where there's a will, there's a way. She had arrived.
Melina unfolded the map and nodded. "This is the Dragon's Pit, the path to Jagged Peak. No wonder Igon was here."
"It's also the way to pass over the Valleybottom Forest from above."
"That place is the epicenter of the Frenzied Flame contamination, which everyone avoids at all costs. I suggest you go around."
"There is no going around. The moment you try to flee, the enemy will surely come for you."
"And... someone's coming!"
A Red Phantom!
It had been a long time since she'd seen such an invasion. However, Frieren hadn't activated a summoning sign, so it definitely wasn't a player.
The opponent's appearance was strange: crimson all over, with a head resembling an Ancient Dragon's, yet it walked upright, wielding a greatsword. An Ancient Dragon-Man?
Before she could get a closer look, the opponent had already swung its blade, sending a wave of sword energy straight at her spirit steed.
With a clang, the silver-haired girl leaped up to intercept it. As she dismounted, she used the momentum to unleash a vertical Carian Greatsword slash!
Clang!
The Ancient Dragon-Man deftly rolled to evade, but the swirling magic still managed to cut a wound on its body.
Both Frieren and Melina noticed that this was a transformed state, achieved at the cost of sacrificing equipment. This meant it was actually quite fragile and would have difficulty handling heavy, powerful attacks.
So what was the benefit of this trade-off?
The next moment, the Ancient Dragon-Man suddenly leaped, forming a dragon's head on its upper body. It opened its bloody maw and spewed magma, a scorching torrent of attacks descending upon her.
Unfortunately, for the agile silver-haired girl, it was nothing. A light hop was all it took to neutralize it.
Of course, that didn't mean she underestimated it. On the contrary, the effect of the dragonflame was stronger than expected. The Sorcery: Scholars' Shield that constantly protected her was actually dissipating, and her skin felt dry.
"It must have used this transformation to enhance its dragon incantations."
ROAR!
Immediately following was a pouncing Dragonmaw. Quick on the uptake, Frieren met it with the Gavel of Haima, blow for blow.
With a deafening crash, the massive glintstone chunk slammed hard against the dragon head's forehead. The impact sent the Ancient Dragon-Man staggering back several steps. If it hadn't managed to stabilize itself in time, it might have lost its balance completely.
How could a mere sorcery have such powerful physical impact?
The Ancient Dragon-Man cursed inwardly, but the territory of the Dragon's Pit would absolutely not tolerate outsiders. Anyone who trespassed would face its might.
He dodged to create distance.
He barely avoided a pursuing Sorcery: Collapsing Stars, but the next moment, a Night Comet pierced through his body, leaving a wound. It was a hidden attack, concealed behind the glintstone sorcery!
Careless.
Sensing things were not in his favor, the Ancient Dragon-Man leaped away several times to create distance, almost panicking.
Frieren did not pursue, continuing her observation instead.
It was obvious that while her opponent was a bit fragile, its damage resistance and constitution were developing in the direction of a dragon's physique. A normal body of flesh and blood would have been gasping for breath after having a hole punched through it.
Of course, another reason was that the ancient power in the Land of Shadow was potent, which helped it withstand the injury.
Suddenly, the Ancient Dragon-Man drank a flask of wondrous physick and recovered.
"So it is a human transformed," the silver-haired girl murmured thoughtfully. "So this is your fighting style..."
Relying on his ability to recover, he dashed forward to re-engage in close-quarters combat.
Clang, clang, clang!
The cat-dragon greatsword sometimes pierced, sometimes slashed, sometimes swept. Despite his slender frame, the wielder swung it with deadly precision, every strike a full-powered thrust aimed at a vital point.
But it was meaningless if it didn't hit.
No matter how he increased his speed, the silver-haired girl before him could effortlessly block and dodge, neutralizing every move, parrying each blow. She wasn't rushed in the slightest; one might almost think it was a sparring session. In reality, she was familiarizing herself with his fighting style.
He couldn't drag this out.
His own blade was finding its mark less and less. He had to either retreat to his home turf in the Dragon's Pit or make a desperate stand here.
Having made his decision, the Ancient Dragon-Man took a step back, his form flickering into a phantom image.
The roar of a fire dragon accompanied an explosive burst of dragonflame, enough to turn the surrounding dozens of meters into a sea of magma. This was a narrow valley formed by two massive rock walls; once the magma flowed, there would be nowhere to hide.
However, from the very beginning, Frieren had no intention of dodging. She raised her staff with a light tap, and the raging flames suddenly gathered towards her.
It was absorbed?
This astonishing scene left the Ancient Dragon-Man dumbfounded, too slow to react to the magic's incantation—
Incantation: Giantsflame Take Thee.
Crimson flames instantly exploded outwards, enveloping the entire Dragon's Pit.
The high temperature boiled the air, turning grass and trees to ash. The very ground seemed to sink, and the rocks on either side were blasted to smithereens.
Even Melina, standing behind, felt her skin tingle. Billowing smoke rolled forth, forcing one to cover their nose and mouth.
She wasn't surprised by her partner's ability to intercept magic, but by the fact that this dragon incantation was no simple matter. Its power was enough to leave everyone covered in dust and grime.
A head-on clash would have caused uncontrollable collateral damage.
And there was no dodging it.
No wonder Frieren chose to "borrow a knife to kill a man."
But at this moment, a glintstone light flickered within the mist, seemingly pursuing a fleeing, pathetic figure. The Ancient Dragon-Man had barely survived and was now making a run for its home turf in the Dragon's Pit, refusing to linger in the fight.
Melina hurried forward. Just as she regrouped with Frieren, a loud bang echoed from the Dragon's Pit.
Rubble cascaded down, blocking the path. The person inside had deliberately set off an explosion to obstruct the passage, clearly intending to make a stand.
"Now that's an unusual combat method."
The silver-haired girl wasn't angry at all; rather, she was intrigued.
Since coming to the Lands Between, she had mostly encountered enemies who fought to the death without retreating. Unless she actively suppressed her aura, even the dogs on the roadside would bark madly. A cautious strategy like turtling up today was indeed rare.
"Perhaps it's because the Dragon's Pit connects to Jagged Peak. If one isn't adaptable when facing Ancient Dragons, they'd have died who knows how many times by now."
"Blocking the way isn't a solution. We can't get through, and neither can Igon. Let's force our way in."
WHOOSH!
Just the magic being condensed made Melina feel a gale on her face. It made one wonder just how powerful it would be.
In an instant, a piercing beam of light erupted in a column, aimed squarely at the rubble-blocked cave entrance. The first impact pulverized the rocks into dust, which scattered into the air as a torrential wave of magic surged down the passage.
Just breaking open the entrance wasn't enough.
Frieren instead increased the power, making the Comet Azur even more terrifying. A portion of it even overflowed, tearing apart the natural rock ceiling, ripping a fissure in the mountain's peak.
Her magic had already reshaped the terrain. One could only imagine the carnage inside.
With her perception, Melina had of course sensed monsters within, seemingly similar to "Dragonkin," but it no longer mattered. Their presences vanished in an instant, all becoming targets for Comet Azur.
Only after a full breath did she lower her staff.
The cave entrance was now more than twice its original size, still swirling with wind, with faint roars echoing from within.
Mutilated limbs were vaguely visible; the monsters that had been waiting to ambush at the entrance were all slaughtered, not even leaving behind complete corpses.
They had misjudged the visitor's determination and power. They wouldn't be frightened off by a mere ambush in the Dragon's Pit; she would fight regardless.
"Looking like this... is it all taken care of?" Melina asked, walking inside and looking around.
"There's still a fish that slipped through the net."
Frieren pointed to a corner in the darkness. There, a pair of yellow, vertical pupils opened. A massive dark shadow stirred restlessly.
Though hidden in darkness, its terrifying form could not be concealed. Its imposing presence surged, baring its fangs at the two who had rashly invaded.
_____
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