"This place looks strange; the architecture is unlike anything I've ever seen or heard of," Thalira Luna murmured, narrowing her eyes as she stood on the sand before a massive tower, crumbled and slightly leaning.

More than 1 hour had passed since they reached the islet. Thanks to the Practitioners on their side, whose builds favored investigation, they had tracked down this peculiar place and came precisely because it seemed unusual. Yet apart from the towering ruin before them, the ground lay barren and the surroundings empty: nothing but dry soil and silence.

"Could it be the core of the Sanctuary the Revered Wanderer Merchant mentioned?" One of her aides asked, studying the masonry's geometry, his silver pupils gleaming, a clear sign he was invoking a skill, as he searched for meaning in every seam.

"I don't think so. He said we would recognize it instantly once we found it, and I see no obvious sign this is the core," another answered.

For the last hour, the Lunari had waited, circling the odd tower, mapping its angles and the terrain around it, and cataloging every visible and invisible threat before making contact or stepping inside.

As they worked, something shifted in the surrounding void. Out of the darkness between the islets, a second group drifted closer and touched down in silence, their heavy, dark-green bodies settling on the parched ground.

"They're Gorathim," one of the Lunari Practitioners said in a firm tone, recognizing the massive frames, the deep green of their skin, and the bulging midsections as the last of them settled.

Thalira had already noticed them. Her gaze rested calmly on the newcomers as they completed their descent. "If they're here as well, it means they reached the same conclusion—this islet has something special."

The Gorathim's arrival did not unsettle Thalira or the other Lunari; if anything, it relieved them. It confirmed that the tower was not ordinary—if even the Gorathim had been drawn to it, their long examination had not been in vain.

"I greet you, Lunari," Brakhtar Gorat said, drifting forward over the dry ground, his massive bulk gliding with measured control as he addressed the group before him.

Though not long ago they had been enemies who had cost each other dozens of lives, in a place like this, Brakhtar knew a measured approach made more sense than hostility.

Thalira did not seem to share that view. "Brakhtar, if you didn't come here to fight, leave. We were the first to find this place."

Her features remained serene, her silver eyes steady on her enemy, but her words were openly threatening—she was ready for battle at any moment.

Brakhtar's expression did not change. The small eyes in his broad head held steady, wise, and unflinching. "The fighting spirit of the Lunari fascinates me. But tell me, Thalira Luna, is this really the place to let it loose?"

He looked up at the towering ruin. "This structure is unknown, and the unknown is always full of danger. Would you consider a truce and search it together?"

At that, a thoughtful look touched Thalira's face. Gorathim, with [Sense] as a primary stat, were skilled at investigative methods; having them on her side in a place like this would be sensible, even under a short truce.

Yet her thoughts were not all favorable. "I refuse. Leave, or fight."

As useful as an alliance might seem, working with an Aether-Path team came with its own risk. Their mind-related skills were a constant threat; if anything went wrong, they could die before they even understood where the strike had come from.

"Forgive me, Lady of the Lunari, but I can't retreat. Not today." Seeing the inevitable, Brakhtar's face hardened as he readied himself for a possible battle.

The tension spiked on both sides, every Practitioner readying for a clash, when a new disturbance pulled their focus outward.

From the darkness between the floating islets, a larger party drifted into view, descended in silence, and settled on the parched ground.

"Look, Maruun, I told you my nose never fails me. The top 2 are already here." Loudbark Hound, perched on his giant flying dog, laughed with unrestrained energy as he took in the 2 groups arrayed across the islet.

Maruun snorted, his fishlike wings giving a short, irritated flutter. "If you're that good, why did we keep detouring and seem lost for the last 10 hours?"

Since they had set out, the mixed-race party had trusted the Houndkin's investigative skills; as time passed, they realized how poor that choice had been.

Maruun Aqua muttered under his breath, eyes fixed on the 2 groups ahead. "Why did I even trust a Nether Path Practitioner with navigation?"

The looks on the Lunari and the Gorathim said enough. They were preparing for war, and the newcomers' arrival threatened to throw everything into chaos.

Yet the strange tower and the attention it commanded made retreat unthinkable. Maruun led his party forward across the dry soil until they formed a cautious line within speaking distance, close enough to signal intentions without trespassing into either side's space.

"Friends from Gorathim and Lunari. Apologies for the intrusion." Maruun's frown eased into a careful, friendly expression as he offered a greeting, making it plain they carried no hostile intent.

Thalira Luna and Brakhtar Gorat set their own tension aside for a heartbeat and studied the arrivals, as if searching for a particular face among them.

Thalira leaned toward an aide, voicing the thought she had already read in their eyes. "I don't see the Velari among them. Are they planning a sneak attack?"

Brakhtar's trusted aides seemed to share the same concern; they stayed silent, yet the stillness between them felt like the hush of a mind skill, a quiet exchange behind unmoving faces.

"Whoa—why are they looking at us like that?" Loudbark's fluffy tail tucked for a moment, and he took a half step back, feeling the killing intent bleeding off the top 2 races before them.

Rhadak, the Obsidren team leader, answered with a deep, ancient voice. "Obviously, they want us to leave—or be killed."

The mixed-race team might have outnumbered the Lunari and the Gorathim, but without Adyr at their side, a real fight would put them at a clear disadvantage.

To face monsters like Thalira and Brakhtar, they needed a monster of their own.

Then, as if the thought had summoned him, the one who could even the field arrived.

Adyr cut through the void on massive white wings, his full matte black tactical uniform stark against the dark. He drifted toward the islet, unhurried, his gaze moving calmly over every figure gathered there.

"Looks like I made it in time, huh?" A faint smile touched his face as he settled beside Maruun, and the party's tense shoulders eased at his arrival.

His arrival wasn't luck. The Gaze-and-Presence combo had let him mark this islet long before anyone else, but he lost time on the way, refusing to leave the rare resources on the intervening islets. Even so, he reached this place before anyone acted, which meant he was not that late.

"Adyr, my good brother, you came at the perfect time." Maruun moved to meet him, relief plain on his face.

***

A/N: Thanks for all your support; it means a lot for the novel. Since it's the first day of the month, golden tickets would help me a lot :]

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