Avisak bit her lip in shock.

‘A girl? And a surviving descendant of the long-lost Daughter of the Desert…?’

Startled, she stumbled backward. At the same time, her foot crunched on gravel.

Crunch!

That sound triggered a reaction from the warriors around Kasar. Nihitan and Rigata quickly stood up. However, by the time Rigata reached where Avisak had been, she had already vanished from the spot.

Rigata sighed and scratched his head as he looked at the spot where only residual warmth remained.

“They already escaped.”

Kasar smirked and spoke.

“We might need to move up our schedule.”

All eyes turned to Kasar as he offered a challenging smile.

“So. Any thoughts on joining hands with Argon?”

Rigata and Nihitan’s eyes naturally drifted toward the Daughter of the Desert, who was lying on Kasar’s lap.

* * *

Avisak staggered away, barely managing to keep her legs moving.

‘That was close. I nearly got caught…’

After making sure she had distanced herself, she reflected on what she had witnessed.

‘That power moving the sand… It had to be the Daughter of the Desert.’

It was unbelievable.

The Daughter of the Desert, thought to have been extinct for centuries, still existed.

‘Well, since Enya was revealed to be the Daughter of the Forest, it gave the possibility that the Daughter of the Desert might still exist too…’

In this world, nothing was truly impossible.

Only then did she begin to understand why the tribes of the lawless Argon desert had shown such rare unity.

‘It was because of that girl.’

Knowing the Daughter of the Desert was alive changed everything. She couldn’t just stand by and watch.

‘…We have to take measures.’

The Allied Forces were originally formed to stand against the threats from the Argon desert.

‘Just as the Daughter of the Forest can freely command the skull spiders, the Daughter of the Desert must possess the power to control the pit vipers.’

If that girl was indeed the true Daughter of the Desert, the annihilation of the Allied Forces that was currently within the pit viper’s territory was only a matter of time.

Avisak gnawed at her lips.

‘Argon has long wanted the lush, fertile plains.’

Somehow, everything seemed too well since Tarhan had disappeared.

‘Now, I see why Kasar volunteered to scout and got himself captured by the Allied Forces on purpose. He planned to strike from the inside all along.’

They were on the verge of having their throats cut without even realizing it.

Avisak’s shoulders trembled.

She was the leader of the Perugia forces. If they were attacked unprepared, Gernan’s forces would be utterly decimated.

‘Maybe it’s a blessing in disguise that I figured it out ahead of time…’

She tore at her hair, worried about her troops.

‘I need to evacuate the Perugia forces at least.’

Her eyes sparkled with selfishness.

‘Do I really need to save the entire Allied Forces?’

Her priority was always the benefit of Perugia. She started to worry about her plans for moving forward.

* * *

Meanwhile, Yaru and Ihita were nearly at their destination in Aquilea. Even though they could have arrived in two days, their journey was delayed due to getting caught by a pack of wolves.

Yaru grumbled.

“Why are there so many wolf packs around the plains?”

Exhausted and barely able to keep up, Ihita couldn’t even respond. Although Claw Wolves lacked combat ability, they became quite a nuisance when grouped. Moreover, they were quick-witted and even strategized, making them difficult opponents.

Yaru gritted her teeth and muttered.

“There aren’t such beasts in the forest.”

Just then, a noise came from the brush. Yaru instinctively took a defensive stance as Ihita quickly hid behind her.

‘D*mn, almost there and more wolves…’

Yaru clenched her teeth. They were just a little further from entering Aquilea.

At that moment, a familiar face emerged from the darkness.

‘Inaken…!’

Her mouth dropped open in surprise. Inaken was one of the strongest fighters among the Nervana men. Finding a tribesman brought relief to Yaru.

At the same time, she felt a bit awkward.

‘D*mn, why did it have to be Inaken…’

In fact, she had nearly taken the Vow of Spring with Inaken before she met Nihitan. Yaru almost tried to flee out of habit. However, she realized the situation was dire and composed herself.

“Yaru!”

Inaken quickly caught up to her when he saw Yaru. He must have been scouting the area since his body had leaves and grass all over. As he approached Yaru, his tall figure looked every bit of a Nervana warrior.

“You’re still alive, I see.”

Yaru responded crookedly.

“Of course. You think I’d die before you?”

Inaken chuckled dryly.

After arriving in Aquilea, Yaru and Ihita luckily run into Inaken immediately. They soon headed to Piache’s apothecary. Everyone gathered in the tiny room used by the old apothecary woman, including Piache, Kiyan, Lehijin, as well as the elderly and also the subordinates of Rigata.

Ihita collapsed from exhaustion as soon as they reached Piache’s apothecary.

Yaru quickly began to update the leaders of each faction on the situation. She summarized both Enya and Fiarca’s sides of the story before hearing about Aquilea’s state from Piache.

When Yaru and Ihita arrived in Aquilea, Servia had already left for Garganta. The same went to Avisak’s forces, which had been left to ‘clean up’ in Aquilea. Piache’s faction, driven to near annihilation, had managed to survive by hiding in a den connected to the apothecary.

Yaru muttered bitterly after hearing about Tarhan.

“As expected, that man Tarhan was still alive. I didn’t expect him to head straight to Nervana forest… and even led young men like Reyhald and Cugnac.”

Piache seemed shocked by Enya’s actions. She opened her mouth in disbelief.

“That child, Enya, went to tame the Skull Spider there? Does she even know where that is?”

“Don’t underestimate Enya. If she was raised as the new spiritual leader of Nervana forest, it’s exactly what she would have done.”

When she sharply retorted, which made Piache glare at her, Yaru shivered slightly.

‘This old woman looks frail, like she was about to collapse, but her eyes are like a tiger’s.’

“That’s true.”

Kiyan supported.

“If Eireke had been alive, Enya would have learned that method long ago.”

Kiyan muttered bitterly

“Eireke wasn’t particularly talented in influencing, though…”

Lehijin, the leader of the Nervana men, added, “Actually, the fact that Enya has survived so long away from the forest means that she has a strong vitality. Like the daughter of the forest.”

Piache immediately countered.

“What are you talking about? Enya is very weak. Her leg disability is severe…”

Piache responded agitatedly.

“It’s because she hasn’t undergone the purification ceremony. Being away from the forest for so long. I guess that’s probably why she hasn’t had children for a long time.”

Piache’s eyes wavered, and she looked away, troubled. When Kiyan first saw Enya, she doubted her eyes.

“It’s almost impossible for a member of Nervana Forest to endure without the purification ceremony.”

She explained.

“Even the healthiest warriors need to undergo a purification ceremony every few months to cope, and Enya has survived all this time without such things. It’s nothing short of remarkable vitality.”

Yaru muttered.

“Maybe she was born with strong vitality.”

Inaken agreed, too.

“Right. Any normal tribe member would have died long ago.”

Hearing that the frail Enya might actually be stronger than anyone present, Piache’s pupils began to quiver.

Kiyan cautiously shared her thoughts.

“I think… if Enya really made it into Nervana forest, by now, her leg might have healed.”

“Surely not.”

Piache retorted.

“You’re underestimating the forest’s healing powers.”

Kiyan sharply replied.

“Of course, it seems like that man took great care of her.”

When she brought up Tarhan, everyone fell silent. The atmosphere suddenly grew solemn.

“Anyway, well done, Yaru.”

Kiyan said with lit-up eyes.

“So, it sounds like both Enya and Tarhan are heading towards Nervana forest then.”

Lehijin murmured softly.

“The daughter of the forest is heading to the forest… It seems God hasn’t abandoned Nervana yet.”

He nodded off slightly, appearing almost asleep.

Kiyan commented in relief.

“With Rigata and Nihitan among the Allied Forces, I guess there’s no need to worry about that either.”

Yaru replied.

“I plan to be the contact.”

She intended to visit the desert where Rigata and Nihitan were with the Allied Forces.

“If Tarhan has already left for Nervana, we must gather our allies from the Allied Forces immediately and head to Nervana. We need to support Enya.”

Kiyan agreed.

“That venomous crow of a woman from Aquilea will surely pursue Enya and that redhead from Perugia as well.”

Lehijin muttered somberly.

“The final battle will take place in the forest.”

A tense atmosphere began to envelop the room as everyone gulped in anxiety. At that moment, Yaru seemed distracted by something else.

“Speaking of which…”

She fidgeted as if she had spilled something on her clothes and looked around nervously.

As Kiyan was about to speak, a noise at the door caught their attention. Before Yaru could get up, Inaken stopped her and opened the door for her. Through the open door, a Nervana woman entered with a child.

“Yasmin!”

Yaru shouted and hugged the child who ran towards her.

Yasmin laughed heartily as she finally met her mother, and Yaru showered her neck and head with kisses. Kiyan smiled bitterly at the mother-and-daughter reunion.

Inaken still stood vigilant by the door, not looking at the scene.

“Then, we must prepare to head to Nervana forest. So we should arrive around the same time Rigata and Nihitan reach the forest.”

Kiyan declared, and Inaken quickly added.

“Preparations are complete. However, due to fewer guards available than before, our pace might be significantly slower.”

Yaru nodded in agreement.

“The real challenge starts now. We need to move a large group.”

While Fiarca, Yaru herself, and Nihitan and Rigata could move quickly with just a few people, leading the remaining non-combatant members of Nervana forest who were still in Aquilea was a huge burden for Inaken alone.

A very few individuals from Aquilea had also decided to follow. These were Ihita’s mother and her cousins, who worked in the herb fields.

“Another great move.”

Lehijin frowned, appearing tired.

Kiyan crossed his arms and was left with no choice.

Piache still seemed worried about Enya, muttering to herself.

“That skull spider…”

“Don’t worry. Fiarca is there. There’s no one better at finding the traces of the molting shell.”

Piache asked back.

“Molting shell?”

The shedding of the skull spider was common knowledge among the Nervana who lived nomadically in the forest. Where the skull spider passed, it left behind its shell, which served as clues to its movements.

“Shells are usually found around waterfalls. If they head in that direction, they shouldn’t get lost.”

The warriors of Nervana were trained from a very young age to protect the Daughter of the Forest from the rampaging skull spiders. Among them, Fiarca was the elite. Naturally, she had encountered the skull spider more than anyone else.

__