Magus Academy.

A beautiful young girl could be seen walking out of the headmaster's office. However, instead of a healthy glow, her face possessed a pale complexion, as if she was terminally ill.

She appeared to be so full of thoughts she even took the wrong path towards the magus academy portal gate. Immediately, the girl turned around and went to where she wanted to go.

Terra City.

The place where Lord Izta's city was at.

As the girl walked through the streets of the city and made her way towards the majestic castle seen in the distance, she could feel her steps gradually become heavier as time passed. Ache and painful sensations appeared on her chest, as bad thoughts started to sprout in her mind.

The girl was so distracted she didn't even notice that she had arrived at the castle, where three young men seemed to have been waiting for her.

The moment they saw her, one of the boys immediately rushed towards her.

"What did he say, Klea?!" the muscular youth said.

Facing the youth, the girl only shook her head and said with an extremely dejected look. "The headmaster, unable to say anything. He..." Taking a deep breath to calm her emotions, she continued, "He even denies the mission exists."

Hearing this, one of the two boys who boasted an oriental look stepped forward and opened his mouth.

"This... is similar to what Tatjana said, isn't it?" A serious expression could be seen on Chumo's face. "Could what she said to be true? That the headmaster is the mastermind behind everything?"

These words only served to further make the girl's body tremble, instead of relieving her worries. She naturally tried so hard to stop the turbulent emotions flowing out of her, but her efforts only managed to make a single tear drop on her cheek.

Seeing her pitiful condition, the remaining boy swiftly approached her. Julian patted her trembling shoulders, as he tried to console her.

"Take a deep breath, Klea. Don't worry. He will be fine. I'm sure he will be back soon enough, like he always does."

However, Klea didn't get any better when she heard those words. In fact, she became even more emotional.

"You don't know that, Julian... It should have been only a few days' mission, but It has been three weeks"

One of Lord Izta's wives, Magus Camilla, who was present, stood up from her seat and spoke in a casual manner.

"Unless you can get real confirmation, worrying won't help you. It only makes things worse. So follow your friends' words and calm down.

When the magus said those words, Klea and the others realized the confirmation she meant was actually about Lord Izta, who was currently at the frontline and probably in a worse situation than Emery. The words successfully made them, especially Klea, less anxious, as they knew there was nothing they could do besides waiting for news.

Seeing the group had calmed down to some extent, Magus Camilla of course sent Yuria to find more information about the matter.

Two days mission, five days drifting in desolate space and two weeks stranded on the desert island. Each day wasted on this god-forsaken planet meant one day less that they could use from the academy facilities.

As the first ray of the sun shone on the island, a groan of frustration could be heard resounding in the air.

"We have the second Magus Game next week. It will be such a waste if we miss it!" a red-haired beautiful girl said in frustration, stomping the ground.

The girl had been working so hard to finally receive the reward she well-deserved, but now she was stuck on this desert planet with no way of knowing when she would be able to return. She had no desire to waste time in this place, when she could use it to better prepare herself for the oncoming competition.

Unfortunately for Annara, it seemed there were others who disagreed with what she had in mind.

"Magus Game?!" Silva asked with a 'are you serious' expression on her face. "That is literally the worst possible reason for you wanting to come back! The three of us, perhaps, were the only witnesses to the great secret and the confrontation between the bloodlines. We have to be careful and not rush our way back just because of a silly game."

Her long rebuke, however, was met only with ridicule.

"All I care about is my own progress. Those higher-ups can kill each other up to them, as long as it doesn't affect me." Annara rolled her eyes.

Silva scoffed when she heard her reply. "Huh! Then remind me why are you on that planet again? I wonder why, when it was clear you don't care about the matter with bloodline!"

"Well like I said. It's a mission!" Annara shouted, as she snapped her head towards Silva. "Don't you get it, girl?! I'll do whatever to get more benefits and leverage for my future."

However, it seemed surrender wasn't part of Silva's dictionary as she forged on.

"You know... I think you are a liar! You are part of the traitorous people who defected to the elves, aren't you?"

"Huh! now you are just pitiful, cursing without proof"

On the other hand, sitting on the side, Emery rolled his eyes for the umpteenth time as he watched the two bickering. The two girls seemed to love arguing with each other so much they basically did it every hour. In fact, Emery was astounded by the fact they still weren't tired or fed up with this.

In the end, Emery was convinced they were actually enjoying their quarrels, leaving him the only one depressed hearing them.

Realizing their bickering would not end unless their throat parched, Emery quickly intervened as his ears really couldn't take it anymore.

"Alright, girls. Let's get back to the important topic. Any useful ideas on how we can get back?"

In the last two weeks, the three of them had been hoping that either Magus Heorgar woke up from his current state or someone picked up their rescue beacon. But looking at their current situation, it was clear that none have worked out.

"I think we should talk about that Beholder again." A doubtful expression appeared on her face, even as Annara herself said this.

Silence fell in the surrounding area, as the group digested her words. They knew p the Beholder was not like any other creature. The creature might not be as strong as mythical creatures, but it possessed a terrifying ability that made the prospect of fighting it make people rethink their decisions.

The Beholder was known to have a total of eleven eyes. These eyes were exactly what made it really infamous. One single glance from any of them would paralyze a magus, or worse, turn to stone.

"Haven't any of you heard of anyone who has killed a Beholder before?" Emery asked, trying to find some information about the creature they might be able to use.

Unexpectedly, a nod came from Silva. "Yeah, I've heard of it. But not in a dark confined space like a cave and certainly not by a group of acolytes. So, unless we are absolutely certain, I'd say waiting for rescue would be the ideal choice here."

Hearing this, Annara couldn't help but say, "Why do you keep disagreeing about this?!"

Silva seemed about to ask what she meant by that, when Annara continued her words.

"Don't think I haven't noticed yet! I have seen your little smile here and there! You you actually are enjoying your time here, aren't you?!"

"Are you crazy?! Who wants to stay here, especially with you?!!" Akin to a barrel of gunpowder, Silva exploded with no less intensity.

Annara, however, caught a little glimpse of her worried glance at Emery. As if hit by a divine revelation, a loud gasp escaped from her mouth.

"Oh my god!" Annara had a look of disbelief on her face. Pointing her finger at Emery, she continued, "This is because of this guy here!? Are you serious, girl? This is pathetic! The guy already has someone waiting for him, you know!"

The red-haired girl then went ahead and let out annoying voices, as she imitated Emery voices and repeated the conversation she secretly heard between Emery and Klea before he went on the mission.

Hearing this, Silva actually glanced at Emery. Unable to retort any of Annara's words, she walked out of the room, leaving in the middle of the night.

Annara turned to Emery, who was looking at her dumbfoundedly, and shrugged casually as if she had done nothing wrong.

"I'm not joking, you know? You better deal with her. After all, we're going to need everyone on board if we want to have a chance to kill that beholder."