Fire Mage

A wave of blistering heat washed over the plaza as flames roared from Isla's maw, devouring the gathered Orcs in a torrent of red-orange inferno.

Myl instinctively shielded her eyes, though the heat hardly bothered her body anymore, thanks to her becoming Rank-5 Mystic. When the fire cleared, only blackened corpses and smoldering stone remained.

Isla returned to her humanoid form in a flash of molten glow, her crimson hair swaying as she cracked her neck and stepped over the scorched remains. Her eyes shone with restrained fury.

"Why did you kill them?" Myl asked, her voice quiet but firm, eyes lingering on the charred bodies.

Isla snorted, barely glancing at the corpses. "I'm just pissed at these morons." She turned to the west, gaze distant. A gust of wind tugged her hair as she whispered, "In this twilight land, only a few beings threaten my position. I want to know which bastard is scheming behind my back."

"You've a guess?" Myl asked, cautiously. She could sense the growing storm in Isla's heart, but also felt something more—an unease buried beneath rage.

Myl took a few slow steps, her boots crunching over burnt pebbles. Deep inside, something about this place pulled at her—a flickering memory long buried.

'My mother Qoz still did her best to protect me when I was a child, and she died later.'

This was where she was born, yet all she had were fragmented instincts. No mother's face, no lullabies. Still, there was a sense of belonging.

'There is also Aunt Bethe from the opposite house. I can't even remember her face. Haa, I can't return to Edhen due to the strange restriction,' she thought. 'And this town… it feels abandoned. Where did the Night Goblins, Red Humans, and Lava Orcs go?'

She narrowed her eyes, touched the Keeper's Watch, and activated the 'Spiritual Scan' function.

An illusory map of the whole Miner's Den appeared before her, startling Isla.

Blue dots appeared in some parts of the town, near gates, and also within the nearby quarry mountain.

Her expression turned grim.

No signs of life beyond a few Four-Eyed Orcs hiding deep in tunnels, scattered Lava Orc patrols, and a few Night Goblins in the mines.

Everyone else had vanished from this town.

"What is this?" Isla asked.

"A device made by my teacher. It's like a map." Myl kept her words short and added.

"There are only a few residents in the town. What do you think? Do you guess who took them?"

"No idea. But it must be one of those rulers."

"Rulers?" Myl asked in puzzlement.

"There are a total of seven Rank-5 Beings who rule this Twilight Land," Isla finally said, breaking the silence. Her voice was cold, analytical. "The strongest among us is a Rank-5 Efreet, ruling Flamebind City. But Efreets are proud bastards and loathe slavery. They still worship the Flame Bird as their guardian deity and rarely involve themselves in petty schemes."

"Second is the Ruler of Madness Land. I know almost nothing about this creature. But one thing's for sure—it can erase memories like brushing away dust and even manipulate people. I highly suspect this bastard is involved."

Myl frowned. "Why?"

Isla motioned to the far north with a sharp nod. "Because Four-Eyed Orcs live closer to Madness Land. Their minds aren't particularly strong. Easy prey for memory-altering magic."

She paused, narrowing her eyes.

"The third one is the Chaos Maiden. She came to me a few years ago. Spouted nonsense about an Immortal chasing the World's Will and asked me to ally with her. Some noble mission. Naturally, I refused." Isla's lip curled in disdain. "Then she built her own fortified settlement on the eastern edge of Twilight Land—Champion's Fort, I think. Suspicious brat."

Myl silently committed the names to memory.

"The fourth one," Isla continued, "is a Lava Giant living in the southern Lava Mountain. He's an idiot. No friends, no ambitions. I doubt he's involved."

Myl raised a brow but didn't comment.

"The fifth," Isla said, voice darkening, "is the Corrupt Ember Golem. He rules the northern Twilight. Cunning and twisted. After getting exiled from Ember Castle, he started dominating every race in the region. Built a massive city filled with strange machines and artifact labs. Rumors say he taught the Four-Eyed Orcs how to forge those cursed shields and metal staves."

"Sounds like a dangerous one," Myl noted.

"He is," Isla muttered. "But he's always been quiet, focused on research and expansion. Still, I can't cross him off."

"What about the last one?"

Isla's gaze turned westward. "A Rank-5 Devil Bird. Used to be a Crimson Bird—pure and majestic—but fell to corruption after signing a contract with something from another world. Its feathers turned black, and it was exiled to Twilight Land. I met it once. Don't know its true nature."

She turned to Myl and added with a hint of pride, "And finally, I rule this Savage Forest and the surrounding territories. These Orcs—this place—were mine. Yet they dared betray me."

The silence settled again.

Myl looked around the ruins of Miner's Den. The streets were lifeless. The stone walls cracked. The lava lake outside the town bubbled quietly, as though holding its breath.

Then she spoke, "Whoever's behind this has influence. They manipulated your own Orcs, erased memories, maybe even created fake alliances. If they've already struck here… they'll come again."

Isla let out a humorless laugh. "Let them come. I'll burn them all."

"No," Myl said, calmly but firmly. "We need to find the source. Kill one pawn, and ten more appear. But if we expose the puppeteer…"

Isla glanced at her sideways, one brow raised.

"You think like a strategist," she muttered.

"I had a good teacher."

For a long moment, neither of them spoke. Then Isla's eyes narrowed.

She shook her head and went inside the mansion.

Myl also followed her and soon walked into the hallway, the air heavy with the lingering scent of scorched ash. Outside, the world remained bathed in hues of twilight and lava-glow, but here, in the stone hallways of the mansion, only her footsteps echoed.

Her thoughts turned inward.

'This land…' She rested a hand against the rough stone wall. '…it feels like home. Not because of memories, but because of instinct.'

She had no family here. No mother waiting with a warm smile, no familiar home to return to. Yet something deep within her stirred whenever she walked these blackened paths. Perhaps it was the blood running through her veins—or the dream that brought her here.

A dream of destruction. Of Miner's Den engulfed in flames. Of screams drowned in molten stone.

"Was it truly a vision of the future?" she wondered. "Or a trap laid by something far more powerful?"

She frowned. The manipulation of dreams from a faraway world wasn't some minor magic. It was the domain of higher beings—Gods, perhaps. Or something worse.

Still, she couldn't leave this place to rot.

"Even if it's a trap," she thought, "then I'll tear it apart from within."

She made her way into the main hall where Isla was still pacing restlessly, crimson hair swaying like flickering fire. Myl spoke, cutting through the silence.

"Instead of killing everyone, we should gather the survivors and question them."

Isla scoffed, voice filled with fire. "Humph, I can just go and knock down those six bastards' doors and hear their answers from their own mouths."

Myl met her gaze calmly. "If you go now, you'll fall into their trap again."

Isla stiffened.

"They took control of your mind once," Myl continued. "Made you a puppet of some orc. You think they won't do it again?"

"You think I'll fall for their tricks again?" Isla's voice cracked like lightning over dry stone. Anger flashed in her eyes.

Myl's reply was quiet but sharp. "What if they've already taken control of another ruler? Two rulers? Or even three?"

Silence fell like a curtain.

Isla looked away. Slowly, her clenched fists loosened.

"We need to find out their objective," Myl said. "They're using slave collars. They've transported residents. But where? And why?"

Isla remained silent, though the fury in her eyes dulled slightly.

"We'll start with the survivors," Myl said, softer now. "There must be clues."

"…Fine," Isla muttered. "But I'm not apologizing."

Myl smiled faintly. "Can I use your house for a while?"

Isla arched a brow. "What are you planning?"

Myl didn't flinch. "I need a place to focus on meditation."

Isla stared at her for a long moment, gaze weighing her worth. Despite Myl's youthful goblin appearance, Isla knew better. There was power behind those amber eyes—strange and ancient.

'She may not have my raw strength… but she could fight me for a full minute. Maybe more.'

"Go ahead. Stay as long as you want." Isla finally said, waving a hand.

"Thank you." Myl nodded and added, "Please don't kill the residents of Miner's Den."

Without waiting for a reply, she turned and entered the mansion's west wing, disappearing into the shadows.

…