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“How did I…” Treka struggled to open her eyes, her consciousness slowly clawing its way back.

“Ah!” The moment her vision cleared, three pairs of eyes loomed directly above her, staring without blinking, nearly scaring the life out of her.

“Big bro, she’s awake!” A hand stretched out from Zane’s right shoulder as Lyra called out excitedly.

“I can see that.”

…

After a round of explanations, the situation finally settled.

“Lyra, can you send us out?” Zane asked as he turned back toward her.

“Send you out?”

“How should I put it… to the world outside this place.”

Though the explanation was vague, she seemed to grasp it halfway and nodded, her expression brightening. “Oh, I get it! There’s also a big bro and Sister Starry in the outside world!”

Zane’s eyes lit up. “Then that’s it!”

“But… the big bro over there doesn’t seem to recognize me…”

“Doesn’t recognize you? Wait…” If that was the case… “Does that mean the me outside can move?”

“Mhm!”

Could it be Starry?

“Right, then can you see this elf sister outside?”

“Let me check…” After saying that, Lyra closed her eyes in concentration. Several minutes passed before she lowered her head, looking dejected. “I can’t find her…”

‘Can’t find her?’ Thinking about it, the way this illusion worked felt like their consciousness had been pulled away, leaving their original bodies behind in a vegetative, unresponsive state.

Zane and Treka were probably special cases. If Starry was truly the one controlling their bodies, then if the two encountered each other, a clash would be inevitable. And if Treka’s original body had already escaped…

‘Damn, wouldn’t that mean the real Treka had turned into a wandering soul?’

“Lyra, send me out first.”

“Okay.” The butterfly girl nodded obediently. Her index finger danced through the air, and a faint violet glow drifted down like falling dust.

In an instant, the scene before Zane shattered and faded. When he came back to his senses, he found himself standing inside a cave.

‘Finally… out.’

All he had wanted was to hunt a gnome, yet he had ended up trapped in that illusion for an entire day, going through one heart-pounding event after another.

“You’re back?” Starry murmured softly.

“Yeah, I’m back.” Zane turned to look at her.

…

“She was taken by Kesius?” Zane’s lips parted slightly in shock.

“I’m afraid so,” Starry replied.

“…” The worst possibility had still come to pass. Although, by a twist of fate, he had managed to escape the illusion, Treka was still trapped inside.

“Lyra.”

“Hm? What is it?”

Ignoring Starry’s astonished gaze for the moment, Zane’s expression grew serious. “If the real body is far away, can the consciousness inside the illusion still awaken?”

“I don’t know…” Lyra thought for a long while before answering in a discouraged tone.

“It’s fine, don’t force yourself. By the way, are those people and the other creatures still alive?”

“This I know! They’re all staying in a small valley, getting along quite well!”

‘Getting along well, huh… more like they didn’t dare provoke the local overlord.’ Just as Zane was about to ask more, a burst of noisy chatter suddenly echoed from outside.

“Damn that spirit tree, it nearly skewered me clean through,” a burly man grumbled, still shaken.

“Hmph, that’s because you’re an idiot. If you hadn’t gone and attacked the trees for no reason, why would they come after us?” another man retorted, his voice sounding no older than thirty.

“I just thought those trees looked suspicious. If I didn’t test them, who knows when they might’ve ambushed us.”

“Enough!” A sharp female voice cut through their argument. “There are clear traces along the way. Someone came here before us.”

“No way… then His Highness Maedon…”

“Until we see the truth, those worries are unnecessary,” the young man said calmly.

“Eutis is right. His Highness Maedon must be waiting for our rescue,” the woman added.

“Sigh, if the imperial capital weren’t in such a tense state, how could it be just the three of us…” The man suddenly stopped mid-complaint.

Three figures had appeared before them. Among them, a blonde, blue-eyed girl raised her hand and waved brightly. “Konnichiwa!”

“What is she saying?”

“Who knows.”

Only the woman froze where she stood, the words slipping out before she could stop them. “Lady Wishkeeper…?”

…

“We were ordered to search for His Highness Maedon’s whereabouts. We heard that recently, anyone who entered the Spiritwood never returned, so we came here,” the black-haired woman explained. Though she wore a loose brown-and-white blouse, it did little to conceal her striking figure.

“I see.” Zane nodded in understanding. “I’m here looking for someone as well.”

“No wonder we found traces of others earlier… so they were left by you.” At that moment, Eutis could not hold back his curiosity. “Lady Wishkeeper, may I ask… who is this person?”

It was only natural for him to ask. Those half-human-sized wings were far too conspicuous.

“Lyra, the empress of this forest,” Zane replied succinctly.

“Big bro, who are they?”

“They’re here to find someone. Don’t be afraid.” Then he turned to the trio. “Wait a moment, I’ll go look.”

One minute later, Zane returned, dragging along a young man who looked to be around twenty years old.

“Your Highness!!” The three of them cried out in unison, rushing forward in excitement as they quickly took him from Zane’s hands.

The woman lowered her head deeply, her voice filled with sincerity. “Thank you for your help, Lady Wishkeeper. We are eternally grateful.”

The other two followed suit, bowing in gratitude.

Zane felt a little embarrassed and waved it off. “It was nothing, really. Just a small favor, no big deal.”

A golden light burst forth in a radiant flash, and with a soft whoosh, he leveled up instantly to Level 32.

“…”

‘Come to think of it, did I even accept this quest before?’ He had no recollection of it at all.

“This is His Highness Maedon’s token. As long as you carry it, no matter what you do in the imperial capital, you’ll be granted a certain degree of convenience. If you ever have the chance to visit, it will surely be of use,” Ariana said as she took out a silver-blue token. Engraved upon it was the name “Maedon,” written in bold, forceful strokes.

According to official information, the imperial capital would only open at Level 50. Compared to now, the resources and powerful figures there would be on an entirely different level.

The value of this token might be far greater than it appeared. Even so, this was something he had stumbled into by sheer coincidence. The difficulty of this quest was clearly no joke. Being rated S-rank was more than justified.

Following the normal process, one might not even know how they died.

They hurried off with Maedon in tow, clearly pressed for time. They did not even stop to ask about the origin of the butterfly.

“Lyra, have you released everyone?”
“Mm, I’ve let them all out.”
“That’s good.”

Aside from Maedon, there were still some NPCs here. If the Phantomwing Empress was truly neutral and benevolent, then all of this could only have been the work of the malicious will within Treka.

No matter what, the light elf had risked her life to save him in the illusion. He had to help her. Still, he needed to return to Wynwater City first. He had been out of contact for an entire day, and there was no telling what had happened to the others.

As for Lyra, he would let her stay here for now. After all, the strength of a Legendary creature was no joke.

The moment Zane took out a Return Scroll, tears welled up in Lyra’s eyes as she looked at him, her voice trembling. “Big bro… are you abandoning me?”