Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Merna stayed in the bas.e.m.e.nt of the Mage Tower for around two hours . Then she heard a soft click . The magic door's aura disappeared .

They lowered the security! Merna was overjoyed . However, she didn't hurriedly act . Instead, she remained in the corner . It was most likely a trap .

This didn't mean that they'd found her . Instead, they didn't find her yet but wanted to use this to lower her guard and make her come out of her hiding place . Thus, she kept waiting quietly . After another hour or so, she finally snuck out of the spot .

There were detection runes hidden all over the storeroom, but Merna's body shape was her advantage . She also had great vision . Even the most hidden runes were visible to her .

Carefully, she walked in the blind spots of all the runes . Three minutes later, she successfully got to the second bas.e.m.e.nt floor .

Here, her detection earring vibrated faintly . This meant she was getting closer to her target . It was less than 60 feet away!

Merna was overjoyed . Only a bit more . If I find the right location, I can save her!

Now, another thought appeared in her mind . It's been more than three hours . We agreed that I'd contact that old guy once I got in . Should I send a signal?

This idea circled in her mind before she sc.r.a.pped it . The Mage Tower is too scary . There might be other detective methods . I shouldn't risk it at the most critical part . Let's figure out the situation first .

Composing herself, Merna continued feeling her way forward . A while later, she was at the entrance to the third floor . Her detection earring was vibrating more strongly now . Katyusha was right before her!

Merna repressed her excitement and continued . After a while, she saw a magic door .

This magic door was different from the ones that had appeared because of the security alert . This one was semi-transparent with many magic runes overlapping on the surface . Looking through the tiny cracks between the runes, Merna saw Katyusha .

The Naga was curled up inside a circular pool, bathed in red light . This red light came from the Spear of Victory in her hand instead of from herself . There were many faint purple runes outside the light . They constantly corroded at the red light, trying to get inside Katyusha's body .

Even further away stood three Magicians . They guided the Secret runes forward . Under their effort, the Spear of Victory's red glow was already very dim and at the brink of defeat .

Merna was shocked . It's Secret magic . Ferde wants to control Katyusha!

She wasn't a Magician, but she was still familiar with each type of magic so she wouldn't get fooled by others . For example, she didn't make a rushed decision after this initial conclusion of the current situation . She started distinguis.h.i.+ng the runes carefully . After five or six minutes, she finally concluded that it was true .

Katyusha can't hold on for longer . I must alert that old guy!

Merna left the magic door and retreated to her safe corner in the second floor . She took out a small silver ring and started adding power in .

Her father had given this to her . It wasn't that powerful, but it had a unique technology for sending messages . It was very secretive .

Merna sent out everything she'd seen in detail . Because it had to be secretive, she sent the messages slowly . What he didn't know was that five pairs of eyes in the Mage Tower were watching her every move—Link, Eliard, and the three Legendary High Elf Magicians .

"It's contacting its owner, but the method is very secretive . I can't trace it . Who could it be?" Eliard whispered .

Link already had a candidate—Bryant . However, he couldn't be completely sure, so he didn't speak .

"The method is quite powerful," Evelina said . "I can't detect the signal at all . "

"The method is quite powerful," Evelina said . "I can't detect the signal at all . "

"Judging by its make, I think it's from the Abyss . " Elovan stared at the ring in the fuzzy mouse's front paw .

At that time, Celine's voice sounded in Link's mind . "Bryant moved . He's coming towards the Mage Tower!"

Alerted, Link replied, "Don't hesitate . Shoot!"

By now, the entire Scorched Ridge was still in high alert, and Bryant was walking towards the Mage Tower which was out of ordinary . Even if he wasn't responsible, his actions now were going to get him killed!

Simultaneously, Link started directly controlling the Mage Tower's Divine Punishment protocol . He set the target, adjusted the Mana, and gathered power in one smooth action, activating the Level-19 Divine Punishment laser .

Boom! A soft sound came from the balcony . Celine had fired at Bryant . Link saw fire streak past the corner of his eye .

Almost at the same time, the Divine Punishment laser appeared too . Whoos.h.!.+ An almost invisible beam of light shot out from the tower towards Bryant .

If Bryant wasn't prepared, he would definitely be dead . Even if he'd escaped from this, he would die under Celine and the Mage Tower's later attacks . But in that moment, Link suddenly felt something strange, along with an indescribable feeling of danger .

His focus sharpened to an unprecedented level; his thoughts whirred . In his eyes, time slowed down and almost stopped .

At the same time, Link felt the world change oddly . The light outside the window and room dimmed and dimmed .

What's going on? Dark magic is swallowing light… No, it's not dark magic . It's time magic . Even the speed of light is slowing, freezing . Less light is reaching my eyes, so the world is darkening!

Spatial magic could restrain practically all existences in the world, but other than singularities, it couldn't affect light . So even though Link used spatial magic to seal Katyusha, she didn't turn into a shadow . One could still see her clearly because light could still travel freely within the frozen s.p.a.ce .

But not even light could escape from the effects of time on this realm . When someone froze time, everything there would look dark .

But not even light could escape from the effects of time on this realm . When someone froze time, everything there would look dark .

Light was dimming quickly, but Link's thoughts were still burning brightly . So that divine rune freezes time . What a great method!

As that thought flashed past, he focused on his neck . There, a pocket watch-like thing hung from a Mithril chain . A runestone was hidden inside the watch . It was the Order Compa.s.s that he had made to defend against time attacks .

Realm Essence followed his thoughts and entered the Order Compa.s.s . That instant, Link's entire body, and soul shook . Then a gold thread appeared from his chest .

The thread organized itself, instantly forming the apparition of a gold pocket watch . There was a clock with one hand . The needle measured milliseconds . Each circle was one millisecond .

Before, the hand had spun extremely quickly . Now, Link saw it tick by bit by bit . It was so slow but was still getting slower .

Time is freezing! Link's heart shook . The world in his eyes was already very dark . In this darkness, he saw Eliard, Evelina, Elovan, and Milose .

These four were all Legendary or close to it . Faced with this kind of change, all of them had reacted . Shock was written in their faces, and their eyes were all trained on Link .

Under their gazes, Link's thoughts focused on the millisecond hand on the Order Compa.s.s . It was still slowing down . Link had to speed it up .

He forced Realm Essence onto it . Move!

Click . The hand quickened only a tiny bit, but Link had used all his might . One-fifth of his Realm Essence had been burned .

It wasn't enough . The divine rune's power was too strong . His power wasn't enough alone .

He gazed at the four Magicians . They were looking at him too . For people at their level, they could completely figure out each other's thoughts by applying their gazes to the current situation .

The four Magicians couldn't move, but power extended from their bodies . They snaked to the needle on the Order Compa.s.s and applied force to move it .

He gazed at the four Magicians . They were looking at him too . For people at their level, they could completely figure out each other's thoughts by applying their gazes to the current situation .

The four Magicians couldn't move, but power extended from their bodies . They snaked to the needle on the Order Compa.s.s and applied force to move it .

Link did the same .

At this moment, the five strongest Magicians in Ferde put their powers together .

Click, click, click . The needle moved much faster . The ticks were like cracking ice in everyone's ears .

The five continued to use their power . Click, click, click . Time had stopped slowing and was regaining speed, recovering back to normal . The room brightened again .

This didn't mean that the Order Compa.s.s was more powerful than the divine rune . Instead, it was that the five Legendary Magicians working together surpa.s.sed the level of the small divine rune .

If one's power wasn't enough, they would fail . This was the basic law .

No matter how many tricks one had, if they didn't have enough power, it would be useless . They still wouldn't be able to change the world .

The divine power inside the rune still wasn't enough . Paired with the repulsion that Firuman had against divine objects, Link's group won this battle .

What had been frozen went back to normal . What followed was the chilling alarm ringing throughout the Mage Tower .

"Alert! Alert! Invader discovered! Invader discovered!"

Bryant was inside the Mage Tower!