"These are dark and difficult times," the old hag, who was also Celine's Master, sighed as she gazed at the sky.

As one of the Demigods of the World, her sensitivity to sense something that could threaten her existence was very high.

Among her peers, the only one that could threaten her was Tarasque, but she knew that the Pacifist Demigod would not openly attack anyone unless they attacked it first.

"Master? Is there something wrong?" Celine, who had just returned after foraging in the forest asked as she placed the basket filled with herbs on the table.

"Yes," The old hag said as she sat on her favorite chair, "but you don't have to worry about this, Celine. At least, not yet."

Celine stared at her Master in confusion. Her Master was one of the most powerful beings in the world of Hestia, and it was very rare for her to see the old woman feeling depressed.

This old woman was notorious for her witchcraft, and no one in the Demon Continent would dare to annoy her. Although many treated her as an evil being, Celine treated her with love and care.

Aside from her sister, Celeste, Celine treated the old hag as her mother. Even though they weren't related by blood, the old witch and Celine treated each other as family.

The name of Celine's Master was Baba Yaga. A very powerful demon that had terrorized the world, more than a thousand years ago. Now, she lived in seclusion and enjoyed a peaceful life in the depths of the forest. Away from the affairs of the world, and away from the politics of the realm.

'This unsettling feeling… Just where is this coming from?,' Baba Yaga thought as she held a crystal ball in her hand. 'All I know is that it is coming from somewhere beyond my reach.'

The ball in her hand glowed, but the only thing the witch saw was a blaze that threatened to consume everything. No matter how hard she scried, she couldn't find the source of these flames that made her heart tremble.

"Celine, stay here for the time being," Baba Yaga ordered. "Don't leave the Demon Continent for the next few days."

Celine nodded her head. She didn't have any plans at the moment, aside from spending time with her Master until the prophecy came to pass.

"Don't worry, Master," Celine replied. "I'll stay with you for the time being."

A smile appeared on Baba Yaga's wrinkly face. "Good."

As Celine's Master, she didn't want her Disciple to come to any harm, especially when it was something that she couldn't foresee no matter how hard she tried.

—---

"Where are we going, Elliot?" Chloee asked.

"Don't worry, we won't go very far. Just the outskirts of the City of Orion," Elliot replied. "Where just going to meet a few friends."

Chloee frowned, but she still decided to follow Elliot. She noticed that although the Angelic Familiar was smiling, his body language was telling her that he was feeling anxious.

The two familiars left the academy and headed to the City of Orion. Elliot said that he would be meeting his friends, and asked Chloee to accompany him. The little fairy thought that since Elliot had just arrived in the academy, he needed someone to act as a tour guide to the city.

Since she wasn't doing anything important, she decided to accompany him and take him to the best places to eat in the City of Orion.

However, after arriving at the city, Elliot flew towards the west. Chloee found this strange, but she didn't say anything and continued to follow the Angelic Familiar whose smile had already disappeared from his face.

"Are we going to the Wild Squirrel Forest?" Chloee asked after seeing that they were headed into the direction of the forest, outside the outskirts of the forest. "Elliot, do you plan to catch a squirrel?"

Elliot allowed a chuckle to escape his lips before answering Chloee's question. "I'd rather hunt squirrels than face the things that we are about to face."

The Angelic Familiar didn't say anything else and continued to fly. Half an hour later, they arrived at a clearing inside the depths of the forest.

There, a robed figure stood at the center. A blue bird was perched on the person's shoulder. The moment the bird saw Elliot, it immediately uttered a shriek and glared hatefully at the two approaching familiars.

"Did the two of you wait long?" Elliot asked as he hovered in front of the robed figure.

"Just two days," the robed figure replied in an irritated manner. "First you ask me to come here as soon as possible, but the moment I arrive, you ask me to wait until you come to find me. Tell me, did you ask me to come just to humiliate me?"

Elliot wagged his finger at the robed figure while clicking his tongue.

"I'm not that bored," Elliot replied. "Since I ask you to come, naturally it is something of importance. But before that, remove your hood. Talking to you like this is getting awkward, don't you agree?"

The robed figure snorted, but still removed the hood from their head.

A familiar pretty face appeared in front of the two familiars. It was none other than William's ex-fiance, Rebecca.

Chloee glanced at Elliot and was about to ask for an explanation when the Angelic Familiar raised his hand to stop her from talking.

"Listen, right now, we don't have much time," Elliot said as he looked at the two girls, and the blue bird that was perched on Rebecca's shoulder.

The bird was none other than Meredith whose rank had dropped to the Centennial Rank after its battle with William. Even now, the Blue Bird hated the Half-Elf with a vengeance. If not for Rebecca's urging, it wouldn't have accompanied her on her journey to the City of Orion, where the Hestia Academy was located.

"We need to create a high-level magic circle that will amplify your magic power, Rebecca," Elliot said. "We must do this within two days. Have you brought the items I asked you to bring?"

Rebecca nodded, "I brought them all. But, what kind of high-level magic circle are you planning to make? I don't know much about them."

"Don't worry, Meredith will teach you how it is done."

"And what makes you think that I will cooperate with you?" The Blue Bird spoke in contempt as it eyed Elliot as if he was its mortal enemy.

Aside from the Angelic Familiar's hair color, hair style, and bearing, Elliot's face was an exact copy of William, which made Meredith's blood boil.

The Blue Bird had regretted the fact that it hadn't been able to kill the Half-Elf when it had chosen to self-destruct in order to end William's life. To this day, it held its grudge deep inside its heart, and it would do anything if it meant being able to end the life of the hateful Half-Elf who had killed her through disgust.

"Don't you feel it?" Elliot asked Meredith whose magical power was slowly increasing. "Or are you pretending not to feel it? Your rank may have degraded, but you were once a Demigod. Surely, your instinct was as still sharp as it was back then, no?"

He wasn't afraid of the Blue Bird because its rank was only that of a Centennial Beast. This was one of the reasons why he had asked Chloee to accompany him in order to deter the spiteful Phoenix, who was out for vengeance.

"So, what of it?" Meredith replied. Its voice was laced with hate, but Elliot's words had caught it off guard. "Are you saying that you know where this feeling is coming from?"

Elliot nodded. "Like I said, we don't have much time. You can feel it too, right? With every hour that passes, that powerful pressure is coming closer and closer. If you don't cooperate with us, that malevolent feeling you are experiencing will come to find you."

Meredith narrowed its eyes. It was still half in doubt of Elliot's words, but there was no denying that the Familiar had aptly described what she was feeling. Its instinct was screaming at it that something beyond the scope of its powers was coming beyond the horizon.

For the time being, it decided to push aside its grudge and find out the reason for its anxiety.

"What do you want me to do?" Meredith asked.

Elliot sighed internally because the first hurdle had been overcome. As long as he was able to get Meredith's cooperation, the next stage of his plan would proceed smoothly.

"I want you to make a high-tier magic circle that will bend space," Elliot explained. "We will use the items that Rebecca has brought to empower it."

Meredith frowned before shaking its head. "It will not be enough. I saw the items she brought, and it will not be enough for whatever you planned to do."

"You don't have to worry about this," Elliot casually waved his hand. "The only thing you need to do is to create the magic circle, and reinforce it with the items that Rebecca had brought. I will handle the rest."

Meredith snorted due to the Familiar's disregard for its opinion. However, it was still curious about what Elliot was planning to do, so it decided to cooperate for the time being.

"Remember, you must finish the magic circle within two days," Elliot said with a serious expression. "I don't care if you hate me and William, but for your sake, you better not try something funny. I swear that if the magic circle isn't complete within two days, I will personally bury you in night soil."

Meredith shuddered as the traumatic memories once again flashed inside its head. The Ice Phoenix looked at Elliot's face and felt its heart tremble. The incident that happened in the Savadeen Mountains had left a deep scar in its heart.

If that were to happen another time, the Ice Phoenix, who had guarded its domain for hundreds of years, would never be able to lift its head high ever again.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by Aunomay Read