Project GB is an official initiative by Re:Library.

Gorath did not rush to pursue. Instead, he looked toward the butterfly lying collapsed on the ground and spoke with grief, “It’s over… Her Majesty can no longer recover…”

Zane frowned slightly. “What exactly are you trying to do!? Does it really require three Unique ranks to continuously supply energy?”

Rather than answering, the spirit snapped angrily, “Damn adventurers… you’re no different from that despicable elf!”¹　

“What? Wasn’t this your doing?” Zane retorted. Seriously, they hadn’t even had the chance to act before he had already beaten them to it!

The Boss fell silent, his gaze turning hostile.

‘This is bad. Either this guy has brain damage, or he simply isn’t the thinking type to begin with; otherwise, how could he have done something as absurd as wiping out his own allies?’

Unlike Zedana, his defense was far higher than the other three bosses. And when it came to earth-based enemies, thick skin was practically a given. Their earlier clash had already proven as much.

On top of that, there was a good chance he possessed some kind of recovery skill.

Maybe it was time to try a different approach.

“Wait. Tell me what happened to your Empress. Maybe I can help.”

The Boss froze for a moment. “You? What could adventurers possibly accomplish!?”

“This has nothing to do with being adventurers.” Starry shook her finger lightly and analyzed, “You said that this light elf is the one responsible for harming your Empress. But look at her. She’s only at the Unique rank. How could she possibly be a match for the Phantomwing Empress? There might be some misunderstanding here.”

“Hah!” The remark clearly struck a nerve.

The burly spirit’s eyes widened in fury. “If Her Majesty hadn’t been in her cocooning state, how could she have fallen victim to such a sneak attack? She has always been kind and approachable, even caring toward strangers, and yet… she suffered such treachery!”

‘Well, damn… she made her move right while the Empress was in her weakest phase… this is one of those *fortune favors the bold* situations.’

But that also meant they had to temporarily distance themselves from Treka. There was no way the Boss would believe something as absurd as two consciousnesses sharing one body. And in the end, this was indeed Treka’s doing.

“She’s really that kind of person…? And here I was risking my life to save her… what a joke…” Starry closed her eyes as she spoke. “In that case, I’m done with her. Whatever you want to do with her is none of my concern.”

“Hmph. Pretty words. The revival ritual has already failed. She’s of no use anymore.”

‘No use? Perfect. Then how about letting us leave?’

“Wait… revival ritual?” Zane suddenly caught onto something. Reverting from Swiftshadow Wolf back into Wishkeeper form, he straightened with renewed energy. “I think… I might have a way to save her.”

The innate sacred aura of the Wishkeeper lent her words a surprising degree of credibility. Gorath’s expression twisted into a knot as he hesitated. “No. We wait until Linnoska wakes up.”

She was the village’s… no, the illusory realm’s brain. The very first being the Empress had granted life to. Whenever there was uncertainty, asking her was always the right choice.

‘Wait for her to wake up? No way. That crazy woman might wake up furious and unleash a frozen wasteland, killing everyone here in an instant.’

“If I were you, I wouldn’t say that.” Zane feigned calm as he continued, “The longer your Empress remains in this state, the lower her chances of recovery. And that water spirit clearly isn’t waking up anytime soon. Are you certain you can bear that responsibility!?” Zane suddenly barked.

At those words, cold sweat broke out across Gorath’s forehead. Clearly shaken, he hesitated before saying, “I’ll stay and watch.”²　

“Of course.”

…

They turned the Phantomwing Empress’ body over. The girl’s lips and eyes were tightly shut, her serene and dignified appearance stirring a sense of pity. If one didn’t know the truth, it would be easy to assume she was merely asleep.

Without further hesitation, Zane placed his small hand gently over the butterfly’s lower abdomen.

“Invoke: Revival.”

Magic power poured out of his body in a continuous stream. In less than a second, his mana bar was completely drained. That magic began to swirl and gather, forming a water-blue sigil that hovered in the air before slowly descending.

Gorath watched nervously, on edge. At the slightest anomaly, he would immediately move to protect his Empress.

There was no sound at the moment of contact. The sigil passed through the girl’s body without resistance. The area it covered showed no visible change.

‘Did it fail?’ Zane felt a flicker of unease, but he still allowed the skill to continue its course. The process was painfully slow, taking a full ten minutes to complete.

Compared to the first time he had used it, which took half an hour, this was significantly faster. Perhaps it was due to the difference in mana, or maybe the disparity in individual strength.

At this point, Zane couldn’t help but wonder whether the Phantomwing Empress was truly as kind and approachable as Gorath had claimed. If she wasn’t, then Zedana’s death alone would be more than enough reason for her to erase them completely.

But there was no other choice. Backing down here would mean this account was effectively ruined, either trapped within the illusion or suffering stat loss through death.

One minute passed. Two minutes passed. Still nothing happened.

‘Come on… I’ve already used the skill, so stop pretending to sleep!’

The Boss’s gaze gradually turned hostile once more.

Just as Zane began to grow restless, something changed above them. From the half-collapsed ceiling of the palace, translucent particles drifted in from nowhere, slowly floating down as they gathered into the butterfly’s body.

‘What… is this?’

“This is…?” Gorath stood there, equally at a loss, unable to make sense of what was happening.

Compared to before, this process dragged on far longer. The countless particles drifting through the air showed no sign of stopping. Zane and the Boss both held their breath, not daring to make even the slightest movement.

“Mmm…” A soft murmur broke the silence.

Out of the corner of his eye, Zane glanced over and saw Linnoska slowly rising to her feet, rubbing her head. The water spirit blinked groggily, her gaze sweeping across the scene—Zane and Gorath sitting beside the Empress, while the palace around them had been reduced to utter ruin.

She could hardly believe what she was seeing. ‘Had this guy… actually defected to the enemy!?’

“Gorath, what are you doing!?” Linnoska roared. The sheer force of her shout was no small matter, nearly half of the suspended particles shattered outright.

The earth spirit whipped his head around in sheer panic, raising a finger to his lips in a frantic shushing gesture.

Anyone witnessing this scene would have struggled to stay calm. The ritual had already failed, yet here were ally and enemy sitting together as if nothing was wrong.

Linnoska said nothing more. Before Gorath could relax, the temperature in the air suddenly plummeted. A frigid current surged through the hall without warning. Wherever the icy wind passed, the particles were obliterated. Not a single one remained.

The earth spirit froze on the spot, completely stunned, while Zane Blinked away to evade the attack.

As the process was forcibly interrupted, the Phantomwing Empress’ body gave a faint, almost imperceptible twitch.

“Her Majesty is awake!!” Gorath cried out in ecstatic relief, never taking his eyes off her.

“What?” Linnoska stared in disbelief.

In the next moment, the butterfly actually sat up from the ground, staring blankly at the strange group gathered around her.

Tilting her head slightly, she asked, “Who… are you?”