*ding!*

[Congratulations. Mirror Tower Shield has gained 4 levels and reached Level 128]

That was it. That was all the levels Meera had gotten from her fight with the dragonling. Maybe the witch was right. Maybe I should have killed the thing. But then there would be no guarantee that the other dragonlings would leave peacefully. This way, they know not to mess with us.

She had given herself this reassurance for perhaps the fifth time as the witch carried them away from the battlefield. The sun's light was peeking through the trees, and they had barely gotten a few hours of sleep. Meera's body ached all over. Her Stamina was at quarter strength. She wanted nothing more than to remove the bed she had shoved in her Dragon Hoard Belt and sleep the day away. But when did she ever get to do what she wanted?

She sighed and moved on to her only consolation from the last fight.

*ding!*

[Class Ability Activated. You have stolen the skill Shadowflame Devastation. Shadowflame Devastation – Type: Active. You can breathe forth a torrent of shadowflame, a dark and twisted inferno that incinerates everything it touches. The flames sear through armor and flesh alike, leaving nothing but ash and despair in their wake. Would you like to acquire this skill?]

*ding!*

[Class Ability Activated. You have stolen the skill Infernal Roar. Infernal Roar – Type: Passive. You can scream a deafening roar infused with the power of the underworld, causing fear and panic in nearby enemies and weakening their resolve. Would you like to acquire this skill?]

Meera's eyes widened as she read the skills. They were both excellent, but she was immediately drawn to the first one. She had felt its effects firsthand and barely survived. Just one touch was enough to burn away the muscles from her bones. She wiped a hand on her face, and the pain of losing her skin, muscles, and eyes was still fresh in her mind. Then there was the burning sensation.

I don't think I've seen a more devastating skill. Maybe Heaven's Wrath was the only thing that could give it some competition.

If her hunch were correct, Shadow Affinity would boost this skill. Then she could eliminate Inferno Storm and add a powerful Shadow Affinity powered skill to her arsenal. She quietly racked her brains on whether she should go for it or not.

Why don't phones exist in this place?

She wanted to call Pallas and get his advice on this. Now that she had thought about it, she felt bad for not saying goodbye to the Wardens in person. She shook her head she had more important things to do.

As for her skill issue, she took a shot on her hunch, accepted Shadowflame Devastation, and gave up Inferno Storm.

*ding!*

[You have acquired the skill Shadowflame Devastation – Level 1]

She tried to sleep but couldn't. Onyx neighed quietly to the side. She had him keep watch while she and the witch got some rest, but this world was even worse than the last. At least on Rhione, she wasn't constantly attacked on sight.

The witch snored without a care in the world to her right. Meera didn't like how peacefully she slept, so she kicked her shin.

"Ow!" she cried, immediately sitting up.

"Wake up. It's time to move," Meera said, standing.

Kalrina looked like she had more to say, but she simply yawned.

Onyx sauntered over. "What's wrong? Is it time to cave the witch's head in?"

He was too trigger-happy about taking down the witch. All night, he had been asking if he could trample her or smash his hoof down on her head. It was funny and a bit concerning. She had only seen the timid side of Onyx before this. Seeing this murderous Onyx made her wonder if he could be an ally in her fights like she had used him to mow down the Mistblades or in the fight against the mad researcher, Edwyn.

"You'll be caving no one's head in, horse," Kalrina spat. Turns out she wasn't a morning person.

"Let's head out," Meera said. "We can't have the dragons picking up our trail."

Kalrina rubbed the sleep from her eyes and spoke mid-yawn. "What makes you think they ever lost it?"

Meera sat up straighter at that. "Then what are we lounging around here for?"

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

"We need a break once in a while, love. Now, let's get on top of your friend, and he can take us—"

"Absolutely not!" Onyx snapped. "Meera is okay, but you could be crawling like a worm, and I still wouldn't give you a ride.."

Meera shrugged. "I see no argument in that logic."

Kalrina groaned. "Why do you both loathe me so much?"

Meera shared a look with Onyx, and they spoke simultaneously. "Do we really need to answer that?"

Kalrina sighed and tried to argue, but Meera and Onyx ignored her as they broke their meager camp and got ready to move out. Meera rode on Onyx while the witch had to summon up a horse of her own—a mirror horse. It was about the same size as Onyx and copied the ghostly stallion's every move down to the neighing motion, though without the sound.

It didn't take a genius to figure out that she did that to annoy Onyx. More than once, Meera had to calm her horse down before it slammed into the witch's horse.

They were making good progress, or so Kalrina figured. Meera wondered where they were headed. Whenever she asked, Kalrina commented that they were heading toward the Saint's home or where he was supposed to be. Eventually, Meera got fed up with her all-knowing attitude.

"For the tenth time, how do you know this Saint is even there?" Meera asked. "Have you ever been there?"

"Well, no…" Kalrina confessed. "But Veridiana, the head of the sisterhood, always forbade us from going in the general direction we are heading in. And the Saint was one of many rumors around the keep." She tapped her lips and arched an eyebrow. "Of course, the other popular rumor wasn't better either."

"Hold up." Meera pulled on Onyx's hair, coming to a stop. "We're going all this way, fighting through hoards of dragons on a rumor. A rumor?"

Kalrina flashed a big smile. "Don't worry. This one is true. I'm sure because it can't be the other thing everyone said."

Meera gritted her teeth. "Which is?"

"An Archdragon," Kalrina said so casually as if it were a children's playhouse.

"Are you fucking kidding me?"

"Relax, if it were truly an archdragon, the Sorceresses would only be found in history pages."

With all that assurance, they continued stumbling through the uneven ground of the forest. Meera clutched Onyx's sides as tightly as possible. She felt she would be thrown off at every step. She had half a mind to dispel Onyx and walk or fly, but Onyx covered a lot of ground quickly.

It was about late afternoon that Meera saw another human in the forest. She wore tight-fitted clothing and a cloak with the hood up. The cloak almost made her blend into her surroundings. She would've missed her if not for Meera's Mirrorstrike Vision skill.

When Meera's vision landed on her, she disappeared behind a tree. Curiously, Meera hadn't turned to look at her, but it left like she had jumped to cover right when Meera's vision landed on her.

Then another woman appeared some distance to their left, and again, she disappeared when Meera noticed her. Something was up. Meera's eyes widened as she remembered Lainor, who belonged to the Cult of Aetheron.

"Say that Lainor belonged to the Cult of Aetheron, right?"

Kalrina curled her lips down in a sneer. "Idiotic fanatics who worship the great dragon of doom. They think Aetheron will spare them when he rises, which should be anytime now since the Champion has shown himself."

She didn't even think about that while running from one place to another. Neel's presence showed that the prophecy was true, as was Aetheron and his rising. It gave those who followed him legitimacy, so it would be logical for them to go after Neel to stop the prophecy.

But why were they coming after her?

Numheia's words came back to Meera. The great prophecy you've heard is not entirely accurate or even complete.

Meera looked to the sorceress who had dispelled her illusion and looked like the beautiful woman she remembered. She was the one who had told Meera the inaccurate great prophecy. But that was the version she had heard, so she hadn't lied, but it also meant Meera had to find someone else.

Just then, another hooded figure leaning against a tree slid back to hide behind it.

"Keep your eyes peeled," Meera whispered. "Something is up. We're surrounded."

Kalrina, to her effort, didn't immediately look around. "I noticed one, too. I should've told you about the ones who are hunting me."

Meera glared at her. "There are more people after you? Are you serious? Who is it?"

A lady jumped out from behind a tree, spooking Onyx. He neighed and jumped twice, but when Meera reminded him, he was already dead. He calmed down almost immediately.

"Welcome home, dear sister," the woman said, removing her hood. She was a beautiful woman with a small mole above her upper lip. Back home, she would've definitely won some beauty pageants. Where Meera was concerned, she was better looking than Kalrina, who seemed to have overdone her beauty to the point that she was unapproachable.

Kalrina gave her a broad smile. "Aksha, how nice to finally see you. How long has it been since I've seen you? A decade?"

"You haven't seen me for that long, but I've seen you quite recently," the woman called Aksha replied.

[Sorceress of Rebirth – Level 482]

Meera looked at the witch. "Who is this?"

Kalrina opened her mouth to speak, but Aksha overtook her. "Let me give my introduction. I am the sorceress called Aksha, and these are my daughters." She spread her arms wide, and all the women Meera had seen earlier stepped out from behind the trees. There were many more than Meera had seen—about two dozen, maybe more.

The daughters of Aksha took off their hoods as one, and Meera's jaw dropped a little. They all looked like Aksha. It was not that they had a likeness to their mother. It was more like they were carbon copies of their mother. It was like she had cloned herself when giving birth to them. She used Identify on each of the daughters, and their tags and level were precisely the same as Aksha's.

"Freaky, isn't it?" Kalrina remarked. "I'm sorry, dearie. I really should've told you about her or them. Must've slipped my mind, given all the dragons that wanted to make a meal of us."

"I'm here to bring you back for the crime of murdering your fellow sister, Isolde Auron, and stealing a forbidden book from the keep's library," Aksha said. "I do not care whether you come peacefully, but you will return with me."

Meera rolled her eyes. "Of course, you're a thief and a murderer too."

"It's a long story, dearie. I'll tell you about it someday."

Aksha looked at Meera for the first time, as did all her daughters. It was creepy. "If you get in our way, Meera. You will share her fate."

"How do you know my name?" She asked.

"We know many things about you…"

The way she let that hang gave Meera the impression that she knew about her being Neel's sister.

"Well, since you put it that way." She flourished a hand towards Kalrina. "She's all yours."

"Now, who's not trustworthy? I did not expect that of you. I thought that if one of us were going to betray the other, it would have been me." Kalrina sighed before raising her hands. "Fine, I'll come peacefully, just don't do anything to my pupil."

Aksha squinted her eyes at that.

Meera set her jaw. You bitch.

"Don't worry, the Champion's sister is coming too." Aksha spilled Meera's secret.

Kalrina's head snapped to Meera so fast that she was sure the witch must've pulled a muscle. "You are what? A whole bunch of things make sense now. And all this time, I kept thinking you resemble someone." She chuckled as she shook her head. "So, are we going peacefully to the Sorceresses of Akhessai?"

Meera drew a deep breath. "No…"