The horse-drawn carriage stopped with a jolt, its wheels groaning as wood and iron scraped against the rocky ground of the long-neglected road. Louie Anderson took control and pulled the reins with all his might, trying to calm the two horses that had been restless for some time. The animals' breaths were labored, white vapor billowing from their muzzles in the cold Tohron air.Louie frowned. "Come on... just a little more," he hissed, but the small whip he swung didn't make the two horses move. They whinnied, refusing to move forward, front legs raised, almost causing the carriage to tip sideways.Louie was forced to continue the journey alone. The coachman hired to look after his carriage suddenly fled without saying anything. What made Louie even more confused was that the coachman he had hired didn't take anything from inside the carriage or even ask for his full salary to be paid. Louie briefly thought that the coachman might have fled because he was afraid of something he had ac

The snow kept falling, relentlessly, like a white blanket swallowing up the last colors of the dead city of Tohron. Louie's steps were heavy, as if the frozen ground beneath his feet intended to drag him down to the depths of the earth. His breath turned into a thin mist hanging in the cold air, each breath making his body tremble.He paused for a moment in front of Rumpa's woodworking workshop. The workshop door was tightly closed, and the old wood creaked in the wind. Louie knew he wouldn't get an answer there again. The only information that managed to surface only made things more complicated: Tha was indeed there. However, his presence was like a shadow swept away by a storm; no one knew where he went afterward.And that teleportation potion bottle... that was the last clue he found. A small object that proves Tha didn't just pass through but may have gone elsewhere using that teleportation potion.Louie then wondered why the blood witch had stopped by Rumpa's wood workshop. 'Wha

That night, the fortress on the border of Winnie City was shrouded in silence. The snow was still falling slowly, wrapping the fort's courtyard in a shimmering white layer illuminated by the pale moonlight. Javier sat in a small room lit only by an oil lamp. Anthonius stood near the window, looking out as if trying to read the future from the falling snowflakes.On the table, Louie's report was open. The paper was filled with detailed notes about Rumpa's woodworking workshop, teleportation bottles, and tense conversations with the woodworker himself."She's still alive," Javier whispered, as if confirming Louie's words. And Zamman is with her. We can't just sit still, Anthonius. We have to do something."Anthonius turned his body, looking at his younger brother with heavy eyes. "I know. But we must be careful with our steps. One mistake, and Meuz will accuse us of betrayal. You know how he looks at anyone who keeps secrets."Javier clenched his fist. "If not us, who else will look for

The first-year potions classroom still felt lively even though Anthonius had long left the room. Every first-year young witch was still whispering, turning towards Luda as if she were a puzzle that needed to be solved immediately.Luda sat stiffly in her chair, her fingers trembling on the table from nervousness. She wanted to disappear, slip behind the shadows, or simply shrink to the size of a crystal bottle so she wouldn't have to endure those piercing stares."Why... why does it have to be him who shows up?" she thought. If it were just Javier, it might not have caused this much of a stir. But Anthonius, the Crimson Knight General, a living legend—his presence by Luda's side seemed like a special mark that could not be erased."Crazy, huh?" A male student's voice broke her reverie. He had golden blonde hair and a handsome face, but it was full of a self-assuredness that was almost arrogant. His thin smile was like a test. "Nice name. But... what's your relationship with Anthonius?

The simple wooden cart creaked slowly along the frozen, uphill road towards the mountain pass. The snow fell gently, like white dust blanketing the world in silence. Inside the cramped cabin, Tha sat leaning back, her thick robe wrapped around her newly recovered body. In her lap lay a leather pouch containing gold coins, rubies, and sapphires—the reward from the last mission given by Azalea—as well as several pieces of pure orichalcum metal, which is known to be extremely rare and is the main material for S-rank weapons, as a bonus.However, Tha's eyes were not fixed on the coins. She stared out the window at the snow-covered expanse of pine forest, at the high mountains whose peaks were shrouded in white mist. The silence gave her room to breathe, space she had never had when blood, the clashing of swords, and the sound of arrows still dominated her every step.Zamman sat across from her, leaning back casually with his arms folded. "You refused the teleportation potion just to see a