Meanwhile...
On the Fallen Islands...
Above the island where Odin soared upon his winged warhorse...
The sky was shrouded in black clouds, while lightning, thunder, torrential rain, snow, and raging tornadoes surrounded him on every side.
Odin continued to fly silently through the heavens, watching the island below.
He had begun to wonder what he should do next.
He had already waited for several hours.
And yet...
No one had come.
Not the dragons.
Nor any other supreme power.
He furrowed his brows and thought,
"Is no one coming at all?"
He cast one last glance at the devastated island beneath him, where the storm he had created continued to wreak havoc.
On one of the nearby islands...
Specifically, the island protected by the Elven Saint...
The Elven Saint paced back and forth inside the fortress, her face filled with worry.
Ever since she had sensed, through her bond with the Sacred Tree, a strange weakness spreading through it...
That unsettling feeling had never left her.
Deep in her heart, she prayed that what she had sensed was nothing more than a minor disturbance.
But...
As time passed...
She became increasingly convinced that the situation was far worse than she had imagined.
She could clearly feel that the Sacred Tree's power had weakened.
And that was something that should never happen.
She stopped pacing.
Then she looked at the Elven Elders, the nobles, and the commanders of her army gathered inside the fortress.
With concern in her voice, she asked,
"Has there been any news from the Continent of Mira yet?"
One of the elders slowly shook his head.
He stroked his long white beard and replied reassuringly,
"No."
"No one has arrived yet."
Then he smiled gently and continued,
"But do not worry."
"The White Stag is protecting our homeland and the Sacred Tree."
"He has safeguarded them since ancient times."
"I'm certain everything is fine."
The moment the elder finished speaking...
One of the elven soldiers burst into the hall, panting heavily from his desperate sprint.
He shouted at the top of his lungs,
"Urgent report!"
"One of the islands protected by our people has been attacked by a Supreme Power!"
Silence fell over the hall.
The Elven Saint's eyes widened in shock.
Before she could utter a single word...
The oldest and wisest of the elders spoke firmly,
"Inform the dragons."
"We're already under immense pressure from the Demon Army."
"We cannot spare another powerful warrior to deal with this new threat."
The Elven Saint looked at him.
Then she nodded.
"You're right."
She turned to one of the elven messengers.
"Go immediately."
"Report everything that has happened to the dragon responsible for this region."
"They must act before the situation grows even worse."
The messenger bowed respectfully.
Then he hurried out of the fortress to deliver the message to the dragons.
Inside the hall...
The discussions between the Elven Saint and her elders continued.
As time passed...
The elders tried even harder to persuade her not to leave the battlefield.
They knew she wanted to return to the Continent of Mira to see the Sacred Tree with her own eyes.
But they strongly opposed the idea.
One elder said,
"Your presence here is more important than anything else."
Another added,
"The White Stag is there."
"He will protect the Sacred Tree as he always has."
While the discussion was still underway...
Another messenger entered the hall.
But this time...
He had come from the Continent of Mira.
He stood before the Elven Saint.
Then he reported everything that had happened.
He told her about the Dark Elf invasion.
He explained the Black Stag's scheme to deceive the White Stag.
He also informed her that the Sacred Tree had indeed been damaged.
However...
He assured her that the White Stag had already begun healing it himself...
And had entered a healing slumber to restore it to life.
The moment the Elven Saint heard those words...
She let out a small sigh of relief.
She trusted the White Stag completely.
She knew he would never allow the Sacred Tree to perish.
But...
Even so...
The anxiety in her heart did not fade.
Instead...
It only grew stronger.
The war had expanded far beyond what she had anticipated.
Now...
The Elven race was no longer fighting on a single front.
They were forced to wage two wars at the same time.
One on the Fallen Islands against the demons and their allies.
And another...
On the Continent of Mira...
Against the Dark Elves and the Black Stag.
For the first time since the war had begun...
The Elven Saint felt that her people were being stretched thin across multiple battlefields.
And she realized that the days ahead would be far harsher than she had ever imagined.
(Author's Note):
Hello everyone! Thank you for your continuous support of this novel; your comments and interactions mean the world to me.
Stepping away from our story here for a moment, I wanted to share another project I've been working on with great passion. I have started publishing a webtoon (comic) on the Webtoon platform titled "Me and the Wolf."
It is a [Comedy / Fantasy] story about a miserable young man and a cunning wolf who is constantly getting him into trouble! If you enjoy my writing style and the way I build scenarios, I promise you're going to love this comic.
I would be so grateful if you could go check it out, subscribe to the series, and let me know what you think in the comments there!
🔍 Search on the Webtoon app for: [Me and the Wolf]