Michael and Iveta were already halfway to Braestaig, making him realize that the woman hadn't said a word so far.

She was obviously embarrassed, and there wasn't much he could say to alleviate it. In such situations, the best option was to throw a straight ball.

"I'm surprised to see you and Artair together. How did that happen?"

[Well... I've been visiting the people in Wraithstead with all that's been happening here since the whole werewolf mess, and I heard he helped. Then we started talking, and one thing led to another...](Iveta)

"I see. What about Siofra?"

[Hmm? What about her?](Iveta)

"Well... doesn't it bother you that Artair has more than just yourself?"

[Eh? Why would it?](Iveta)

"Uhm..."

[Hahaha!](Iveta)

Seeing the Knight Captain laugh so copiously annoyed him a bit, but in the end, he kept quiet and waited for her to gather her thoughts.

[Sorry, I'm really sorry, Michael. Phew... When I opened the door and saw you, as well as the surprised look on your face, I thought you'd judge me for getting together with a Druid from Scosglen. After all, there's a pretty big bias between the Knights of the Cathedral and the glenfolk. I wasn't expecting your worries to be related to that instead.](Iveta)

"So, it doesn't bother you?"

[Why would it?](Iveta)

"Ugh... Yeah... why would it?"

[You're asking me? Hahahaha! I don't know where you lived before, but it's not uncommon for a man to have more than one wife. Also, since Artair and I get along just fine, why would it be an issue that he also likes Siofra? She's a fantastic woman, you know? When the village was collapsing due to the werewolf problem and the goatmen infestation, she was the one who kept the morale up. As for being jealous of her... I am a high-level Knight of the Cathedral. She is a normal person. There's no need to fight over Artair's affection between the two of us now, is there?](Iveta)

In the end, half an hour later, Michael said goodbye to the Knight, unsure what to do about the whole situation.

'As long as she's happy, I guess. Let's see... I still have to visit the Fat Goose Inn, which I'll do tomorrow. There's also the situation with the Great Tree and the runestones hidden.'

Pondering for a while, the Necromancer began planning the future based on priority.

In conclusion, as long as nothing important cropped up, he would focus on completing his Regional Progress in Scosglen before doing anything else.

'That means I'll need to start grinding Dungeons again. I can also finish two more Stronghold Events in Scosglen, but I haven't seen anything on the MAP yet. More exploration is needed, and through that exploration, I can also find more Quests.'

However, reality doesn't conform with best-case-scenario plans, as it turned out not even minutes later.

Since it was still early, Michael was planning to explore the way to the Fat Goose Inn since there was a Waypoint there. He could complete the Quest and open up another part of the MAP.

However, Beatrice contacted him through the Ring of Communication, forcing him to return to Kyovashad.

As he exited the portal, Mina tapped him on the shoulder and smiled kindly at him.

"Oh, hey, Mina! Back from the training?"

[Mhm. Everyone is working hard. It's impressive how strong-willed they are.](Mina)

"Are you sure it's because of that and not because of Martel's threatening?"

[Well... let's hope it's a combination of those.](Mina)

Through their conversation, he learned something had happened to the Nightmare Dungeons, and everyone was temporarily barred from entering.

This fact was further confirmed upon reaching the Pink Palace and finding everyone except Neyrelle and Evelyn in the garden. Connie and Gonk, as well as the other four Wanderer Representatives, were also present.

Michael pulled their attention immediately by saying hello to everyone first, kissing Helen second, and then turning to look at Beatrice seriously.

"Is it true? Has Lorath found the trail of the Pale Man?"

[Mhm. As I mentioned previously, he asked that you join him in Ked Bardu two days from now.](Beatrice)

"Did anything happen?"

[Not that I'm aware of. He's been moving solo recently, as I had my own matters to attend to. Only about two hours ago, he reached out and told me to pass the message to you.](Beatrice)

Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.

"Ked Bardu in two days. *Sigh* Looks like things will get shitty again. You best prepare yourself. Main Quest or not, last time we found Lilith's trail in Scosglen, Cerrigar almost burned to the ground, and the people of other settlements almost starved to death. Since this Pale Man summoned Lilith to the Sanctuary, it's safe to assume that whatever he's planning in the Dry Steppes, it's under her guidance."

[...how comforting. I'll make preparations.](Beatrice)

[We'll be on standby in case you need reinforcements.](Mira)

[I'll help as much as possible. I'm a bit worried, though.](Natalia)

Hearing the Night Lord's words, Michael turned to the beautiful pale woman and saw the dismay on her face.

[I'm worried we'll all have to deal with something Lilith did soon enough. First, she appeared in Kyovashad, and the end results were pretty obvious, with Nevesk almost being destroyed. Then, in Scosglen with the Keep being destroyed and Cerrigar nearly following. Now it's Dry Steppes...](Natalia)

"You're worried she has something planned for each region?"

[I know she does. Since we all found her Altars everywhere, who knows what else she has done.](Natalia)

Michael remained silent, even if he wanted to defend Lilith. It wasn't that he had gone crazy or thought the demoness innocent.

However, to claim that it was her fault for everything bad that happened so far would be too much of a stretch, especially in Scosglen, where the two legendary Druids were the cause and Lilith was the means.

Judging everything objectively, the people's greed, wrath, and hatred caused what happened. But this also made things that much stranger.

'Just what exactly is she up to? The key to Hell, as well as asking Astaroth for passage somewhere, she was denied entrance. The only place that matched was Hell. But why would she want to return when it was Hell that she sought to escape from through Sanctuary's creation?'

Or maybe it wasn't the Hell itself, but as Lorath told it in his story, the Eternal Conflict that she tried to escape from. Hell, Heaven, Sanctuary... it was all the same.

As long as the fight between the two parties existed, there was no escaping it. In that case, whatever she was planning after being banished into the Void for Heaven knows how long it should be related to this.

[What are you thinking?](Helen)

Feeling Helen's touch on his arm, Michael recovered his bearings and looked at all the people around him, gazing strangely at him.

Smiling apologetically at them, he explained his line of thought.

[So you think Lilith is planning something that might put a stop to the Eternal Conflict?](Natalia)

"It would make sense, right? That was her goal from the beginning, but unfortunately, this fight between Heaven and Hell also infected the Sanctuary. Now, after being locked away in the Void, she might've devised a plan that could put an end to it once and for all."

[You do realize what that implies, though, right? For the fight to stop, either the two sides need to make peace...](Beatrice)

[Of for one side to disappear completely.](Mira)

"If you were Lilith, who would you choose to destroy?"

Everyone pondered and came up with various arguments as to why it would be Heaven and why it would be Hell, only to realize just how many valid reasons Lilith had for taking revenge.

Unfortunately, they were all wrong.

'If it's her, she would probably find a way to destroy both Heaven and Hell. Only in doing so could Sanctuary finally find peace. So what could be her solution? Obviously, she wants to return to Hell, but for what reason? Gather an army? Provoke an even more intense fight against the Heavens? Or maybe collapse the Burning Hells from the insides?'

Unfortunately, no matter how much he thought about it, he couldn't begin to guess what Lilith's plan was.

But he was aware of one thing, and it was 100% certain that it would happen. She would find a way to kill Inarius.

"In a way through which she could inflict the maximum physical and psychological damage."

[Well... even if we know that it's not like we can do anything about it.](Tia)

[That's true. With Inarius's ego, if we were to tell him to his face that Lilith would kill him, I have no doubt he'd directly smithe us.](Helen)

[It's also impossible to stop their clash. Especially if Inarius plans to invade Hell.](Mia)

[I'm more worried about Lilith returning to Hell. What if she gets an army there and invades the Sanctuary with it? Like returning to her throne as the creator. It's not too far-fetched, is it?](Hella)

[It's not, but I think the problem lies elsewhere at the moment. Not with Lilith and Inarius, but with the Nightmare Dungeons. Does anyone have any idea what the hell happened and why?](Aylin)

With those words, everyone remembered that today, the Sanctuary barred Wanderers from using their sigils to enter Nightmare Dungeons.

Aylin turned to look at Connie, but she shook her head.

[I already asked my dad, and he knows nothing. The Cathedral is also in the dark. As I told you earlier, we were kicked out when we were halfway through our Nightmare Dungeon with a message saying, 'All Nightmare Dungeons will be temporarily closed.'](Connie)

[Then, does everyone get the same 'Impossible to access.' message when trying to use a sigil?](Aylin)

Seeing everyone nod, a collective sigh followed. Losing access to Nightmare Dungeons for an extended period of time would severely damage the Sanctuary's mid-to-high-level power.

After all, without access to them, they could not gain experience for their Paragon Board or level up as fast.

[Let's not despair just yet. Since the Sanctuary did it, it must have its reasons. Among all forces out there, the Sanctuary is the only one on our side.](Mina)

[That's right. We'll focus on what we CAN do right now. How is the recruitment coming along?](Helen)

With the question posed to the Wanderer Representatives of all other regions, the topic shifted to a new batch of possible elites.

The girls haven't been staying quiet and instead invested coins, time, and other resources in producing the training arrays recovered from the Sisterhood of the Sightless Dungeon Martel found.

They already had thousands of first-tier arrays being prepared, and the second tier was also ready to be launched.

"You found everything needed for the second training array? What about the third?"

[Right now, we have the second array formula, which should be mass-produced soon. As for the third one, we recently translated it entirely, but we are still in the process of experimenting and making sure it is the correct formula. I have twenty-five Horadrim working on it as we speak. Those poor sods... they haven't slept a wink in the past week.](Mira)

[Let me guess, they kept bouncing ideas off each other, and they kept experimenting with them, therefore forgetting to sleep.](Aylin)

Seeing Mira clap while laughing uproariously at the spot-on deduction, Michael shook his head, feeling both pity and jealousy at the Horadrim.

With their vast knowledge, finding something like Akara's records which describe forgotten 'technology' should be akin to finding the Holy Grail.

The more he thought about it, the more the Necromancer wanted to learn more. That's why he pulled over Natalia under the wolf-whistles of Mira and the dancing eyebrows of Helen, asking her for more books about basic Necromancer knowledge.

[About Essence? Oh. Right. You're preparing for your Second Class Advancement. Hmm... The last book I gave you focuses more on the history of our Class rather than the intrinsic details, such as what it is Essence and how to use it. I'll send you some books later. I'll also send one of my old journals. You can find my personal experience there, as well as the experiments I ran and their results.](Natalia)

"Thank you. I really owe you a lot."

[*Sigh* Just make sure you come help once I tell you that Lilith somehow found her way in Hawezar. I'm really worried about the damage she'll cause.](Natalia)

"Even with the World Tree there? I really don't think she'll mess with Hawezar, just based on that."

'After all, even the Archangel of Fate is reluctant to interact with it.'

Promising immediate assistance if Lilith truly messes with Hawezar, Michael ended up getting three more books on Essence, skill usage, and necromancy in general, as well as an old journal with pages full of knowledge coming straight from the Night Lord herself.

Helen laughed at him, seeing how he carried those books to bed, planning to start reading them immediately.