Chapter 379: She Had To Go There

As long as Noah continued supplying mana, the dragon could repair its damaged body.

He immediately poured mana into it.

A faint blue glow spread across the dragon’s injured wing. Frost began gathering around the torn scales, slowly attempting to reconstruct the damaged structure.

The process was working. But it was slow. They were already falling.

"Pull up!" Noah shouted.

The dragon beat its wings desperately. Its injured wing shuddered, barely generating enough lift to slow their descent.

Tharlyssa watched from behind, her expression twisting into a cruel smile.

She raised her hand, preparing another attack. But then she noticed something.

Noah wasn’t attempting to escape anymore.

Even with blood dripping from the corner of his mouth and his dragon struggling to remain airborne, he continued directing it downward.

Straight toward the burning surface of the World Tree.

Tharlyssa’s smile faltered.

’What is he doing?’

The answer became apparent a moment later. The dragon had lost too much altitude.

Its damaged wing could no longer support its enormous body, and the freezing energy Noah supplied was insufficient to repair it in time.

They were going to crash. And below them lay the blazing crown of the World Tree.

"NOOO!"

Tharlyssa’s eyes widened. Yet Noah was about to plunge straight into the inferno.

Her scream tore through the sky.

She shot forward, abandoning all thoughts of attacking as she desperately tried to reach him.

But the distance was too great.

Noah tightened his grip on the dragon’s scales as they descended toward the burning surface.

The crimson flames surged upward, swallowing the sky beneath them.

The dragon let out a final, agonized roar.

WHOOSH!

Both Noah and the dragon disappeared into the blazing flames covering the World Tree.

Tharlyssa came to an abrupt halt.

She stared at the spot where they had vanished, her crimson eyes trembling in disbelief.

She couldn’t move.

Then her face twisted with horror.

"NOOOOOOO!"

Her desperate scream echoed across the burning canopy.

He had actually fallen in.

The white-haired boy she had been chasing, the one she had wanted to capture and keep for herself, had disappeared into the very flames that had turned the entire capital into a living nightmare.

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A streak of blue lightning flashed across the street.

In the next instant, an elf’s body collapsed to the ground, a deep wound carved into his chest. Standing a few meters away was a woman with dark blue hair and emerald eyes.

It was Ophelia. Just some distance away from her.

A golden spear streaked through the air, radiating brilliant golden light as it pierced the chest of another Blood Elf.

The enemy’s body jerked before collapsing lifelessly onto the ground.

Lyria rushed forward and retrieved her spear from the dead Blood Elf. She gripped the weapon tightly, breathing heavily as she surveyed their surroundings.

"We’re clear here..." Damien announced from several meters away.

Unfortunately, their troubles were far from over.

The teleportation gates remained inoperative, leaving them trapped inside the capital. Meanwhile, Blood Elves had spread throughout the city, attacking anyone they encountered.

Children, elders, ordinary citizens, they spared no one.

The streets that had once been filled with laughter and bustling activity had descended into a nightmare.

Screams echoed between buildings, fires illuminated the darkened streets, and the stench of blood hung heavily in the air.

With no way to escape, Lyria and her friends had joined forces with their instructors to fight the invading Blood Elves and protect whoever they could.

Every passing moment brought another battle.

And yet, despite everything happening around her, Lyria couldn’t stop worrying about two people.

Noah and Instructor Morgana still hadn’t returned.

She had no idea where they were or whether they were safe.

Her grip tightened around her spear as she raised her head and gazed toward the enormous World Tree.

Its magnificent crown, which had once stood as a symbol of the elven kingdom’s prosperity, was now engulfed in terrifying crimson flames. The unnatural fire spread across its vast branches, illuminating the entire city with an ominous glow.

Lyria stared at the burning tree, her pink eyes reflecting the flickering flames.

’Those flames...’

A thought suddenly crossed her mind.

’If they’re cursed flames... something that corrupts whatever it touches... then maybe... just maybe, my ability could work against them?’

Her expression grew complicated.

There was an ability she possessed that she had barely ever used throughout her life. She had never found a suitable opportunity to put it to the test, nor had she fully explored its potential.

But now, as she watched the World Tree burn, she couldn’t shake the feeling that her ability might be the key to stopping the disaster.

However, there was one major problem.

The World Tree was simply too enormous.

Even if her ability could affect the flames, could she really use it on something of that scale?

Could she reach the entire tree? She didn’t know. And that uncertainty gnawed at her.

Yet, deep inside, a strange feeling continued to grow.

It was almost as though something was drawing her toward the World Tree. As though the tree itself were calling out to her.

Lyria clenched her fist, gritting her teeth as she struggled with her thoughts.

’What should I do?’

She lowered her gaze for a moment before looking around.

Her friends were approaching her, their expressions weary after the recent battle. Like her, they had been fighting continuously, and the exhaustion was beginning to show.

Lyria hesitated.

’Should I discuss this with them first?’

She glanced back at the World Tree. Something about the sight made her heart ache.

She couldn’t explain why, but the longer she stared at the burning tree, the stronger the strange sensation became.

It was calling to her.

Lyria slowly tightened her grip on her spear.

Then, making up her mind, she turned and walked toward her friends.

She wanted to tell them what she had been thinking.

But more than anything else, she wanted to go to the World Tree.

Even if she didn’t understand why, she couldn’t ignore the feeling growing inside her.

She had to go there.

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