Aiden stared at what Catherine was holding, a flicker of surprise passing through his eyes.
Wasn’t this the Crimson Blood he’d given Brock earlier?
He didn’t know much about the Red Dwarves Clan, but based on how Brock and Fiona had acted before, the pull of Crimson Blood on the Red Dwarves was clearly imnse.
"Brock actually left this for ?" Aiden felt a pang of surprise, almost as if he’d stumbled on sothing unexpected.
Slowly, he reached out and took the container with the Crimson Blood. He glanced inside and noticed only about 5ml remained.
"What exactly happened to Brock and Fiona?" Aiden couldn’t help but ask.
Catherine’s expression softened with a touch of helplessness as she answered slowly:
"I don’t know much, but it seems to be connected to Fiona’s brother."
Fiona’s brother?
Aiden imdiately rembered: Fiona had ntioned her brother was locked up in the Red Dwarves Clan’s prison.
Was it possible the leader of the Red Dwarves Clan—the King of the Red Dwarves himself—was planning to execute Fiona’s brother?
That would explain why Brock and Fiona had left in such a hurry.
"That makes a lot of sense," Aiden thought to himself. "If that’s really the case, pulling out the Scarlet Skull Goblet might be able to help Brock and Fiona."
He quickly asked Catherine if she knew which direction Brock and Fiona had headed.
She told him they went north. Then she looked at Aiden carefully and added,
"Even if you rush over, you probably won’t be able to change anything. The current King of the Red Dwarves is unpredictable, and he deeply dislikes both humans and Miko."
"Sigh... We all have our own battles to fight. Trust in Brock; this is the path he chose."
Catherine shared sothing Aiden hadn’t known before: the reason Brock was so determined to help Fiona was that her mother was the daughter of an old friend of his.
"He told when he was drunk," Catherine said softly. "That old friend sacrificed his life to save Brock, killed by a Miko."
"If he doesn’t make it back this ti, then maybe it’s for the best," Catherine said calmly.
Her expression was calm and distant, but Aiden could see a hint of sadness and helplessness in her eyes.
Aiden took a deep breath, turned quickly, and walked outside.
A flicker of surprise crossed Catherine’s eyes. She instinctively called out,
"You’re really going?"
Aiden didn’t turn around. Instead, he raised his arm and waved casually.
"It’ll be fine. We’ll be back soon."
...
North of The Black City, deep within the Abyss, over a thousand kiloters away in a secluded valley,
A flickering campfire lit up the darkness, casting a serious glow on two faces.
Fiona held a twig, gently stirring the burning logs.
"Brock, do you think my brother is still alive?" she whispered. Her voice was so soft, as if she was afraid Brock might hear her doubt.
Brock, sitting by the fire, looked up at the dark sky."Don’t worry," he said firmly. "We’ll make it in ti."
"Based on Malcolm’s habits, if he plans to execute your brother, it’ll be at noon, two days from now."
"That’s exactly when our Red Dwarves Clan celebrates. It’s also the day Malcolm loves the most to show off his power and Strength."
Brock tried his best to comfort Fiona. After a while, she curled up and slowly drifted off to sleep.
They had been traveling all day, exhausted to the bone.
They wouldn’t have stopped to rest if not for the high risk of danger ahead.
Once Fiona was fast asleep, Brock let out a quiet sigh. He reached into his pocket, as usual—only to pause mid-air and shake his head.
"I almost forgot," he muttered to himself. "I gave the last of the Crimson Blood to Catherine for safekeeping."
"No matter what Aiden plans to do in Red Dwarves Clan territory, having more Crimson Blood will surely help him."
"It’s a pity... I had promised to bring him back with ."
Brock felt heavy-hearted. Malcolm was a man beyond normal logic.
Back then, Fiona’s brother had challenged Malcolm and lost—but he wasn’t killed.
Everyone assud that as long as Karls stayed in prison, he’d survive.
But now, Brock had learned that Malcolm was planning to execute Karls.
"What exactly happened?" Brock thought hard, trying to figure it out.
A bad feeling settled in his gut. Going back to Red Dwarves Clan territory this ti was going to be extrely dangerous.
"I wish there was a way to change Malcolm’s mind," he sighed again. "But that guy is just too unpredictable."
Compared to Malcolm, Karls had more potential. He was taller, braver, and most importantly, the son of the previous Red Dwarves King.
If Karls hadn’t been so young—just in his forties—the throne would have been his by now.
"Only forty," Brock thought. "He’s just co of age. If only we had a bit more ti..."
In normal cases, a Red Dwarves with strong power can live well over two hundred years.
And Fiona? She’s only in her twenties—still not fully grown, technically.
Compared to Karls, Fiona’s talent was truly quite ordinary.
Brock felt his mind in a complete ss. He simply wasn’t sure he could save Karls.
The worst-case scenario? Malcolm taking his anger out on Fiona. If that happened...
Brock turned his gaze to Fiona’s curled-up form, a look of absolute resolve flashing in his eyes.
A few hours later, Fiona woke from her sleep. She opened her eyes and saw the campfire had long since gone out.
Her pupils shrank in shock.
Brock was gone!
"Grandpa Brock !"
"Grandpa Brock !" Fiona called out, looking everywhere.
But she found nothing. Not a trace of him.
It wasn’t until she returned to the cold fire pit that she found a note.
After just a quick glance, Fiona’s body began to tremble.
[I can’t guarantee your safety, but I will definitely get Karls out. You can go wait for him in Greenvale first.]
[Please, do not act impulsively. I have a great plan. If you rush in, you might just cause trouble.]
[Fiona, you are a brave and tall Red Dwarves. Grow up, beco strong. I know you can do it.]
Greenvale was a small town right on the border where Red Dwarves Clan territory t the outside world.
It was safe, but it was far from both the prison holding Karls and the Red Dwarves King’s castle.
Fiona instinctively wanted to chase after Brock.
But then she realized: Grandpa Brock had likely left while she was asleep.
There was no way she could catch up now.
"It’s all my fault! If I hadn’t fallen asleep, this wouldn’t have happened!" Fiona clenched her fist and slamd it hard against her own head.
She was torn now. On one hand, she worried Brock was in danger. On the other, she feared that if she made a move, she might ruin his plan entirely.
Karls was vital, and Grandpa Brock ant the world to her too.
Fiona was frantic. Her eyes turned slightly red, and tears welled up in the corners, though none fell yet.
Slap!
A sharp, loud slap suddenly echoed through the night.
Fiona slapped herself hard, the tears flying from her eyes with the impact.
She took a deep, shuddering breath and whispered to herself, "Calm down. Calm down."
"Panic and crying solve nothing."
"My father is gone. My mother is gone. Now I only have my brother and Grandpa Brock . Absolutely, positively, I cannot let anything happen to them!"
"Find a way. Find a way fast!" Fiona muttered to herself over and over.
But no matter how hard she tried, no solution ca to mind.
Frustration and a crushing sense of helplessness flooded her heart.
Slap!
"Waste! Fiona, you’re the most useless waste of a person!"
Slap! Slap!
"What can you do? What is there to do?"
Fiona went completely wild, furiously attacking herself.
Everything around her felt suffocating, as if the world itself was mocking her incompetence.
Her heart, which had been beating normally just monts ago, suddenly grew heavy and slowed down.
An indescribable feeling washed over her, making her swing between rage, despair, and deep sorrow.
Just then, a streak of light suddenly appeared in the distant sky.
Fiona instantly lifted her head and stared at the streak of light.
There, flying swiftly across the sky, was a Miko in a black robe riding a large, gray winged python.
Even with the loose black robe, Fiona could clearly see the Miko’s impressive figure hidden underneath.
Alert, she instinctively pulled out her heavy hamr, her eyes locked on the Miko as he began to slow his descent.
"Red Dwarves? Great! I never thought I’d find one out here!" the Miko’s voice rang out, clear and full of excitent.
"Adorable... cough... tall and mighty Red Dwarves maiden, I am Miko Cheryl. It’s a pleasure to et you." Cheryl lowered his flying height and spoke quickly.
Hearing this, Fiona’s right hand, still gripping the hamr, relaxed just a little.
But a wave of sadness swept across her face.
Soone who couldn’t do anything herself didn’t deserve to be called "tall and mighty."
"Um, I can pay you a reward. Could you take to Red Dwarves Clan territory?" Cheryl continued.
Just then, five more Mikos riding gray winged pythons suddenly appeared in the sky behind Cheryl.
"Oh no, they’ve caught up to ," Cheryl’s face instantly fell.
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