The Legendary Mage (Alavin)

"That bitch! You played me! I'll deal with you soon."

Grennan hurriedly attempted to flee, but a dark shadow flashed through the dense trees ahead and disappeared with a swish, vanishing with astonishing speed.

"Damn it! Who's there? Show yourself!

"Stop skulking about.

"Is that you, Lucan?

"Come out, are you going to kill me? My grandfather is Vandill, an Elder of Cobalt Strike!

"In this land, for a thousand leagues, there's none who dare to provoke Cobalt Strike.

"Come out! Show yourself!"

Grennan gasped for air in panic, instinctively reaching for his sword, only to realize he had left his treasured blade back in his room and hadn't brought it along. The more he shouted, the more nervous he got, and the more he frightened himself.

"Stop shouting. There's no one here." A voice suddenly came from behind.

"Who!" Grennan spun around, facing the youth who walked out from the woods. "Who are you?"

"A man of the Mallister family."

"I've never seen you." Grennan had barely finished when he felt a flicker of recognition.

"I've seen you." Alavin, sword in hand, approached Grennan.

"If you've seen me, you should know who I am. I warn you, don't make a move." Grennan intentionally raised his voice.

"Stop your yelling, your companions are already dead." Alavin stepped closer to Grennan, not stopping, forcing Grennan to retreat.

"What do you want?"

"Your life."

"Wait, you look familiar, we've met somewhere before. You are... you're that criminal, Alavin! What are you doing here?" Grennan remembered he had heard about Alavin crippling Galos at the Arena days before.

"What do you think?"

"You've escaped? You've got some nerve..." Grennan quickly shut his mouth, afraid to anger this madman.

Alavin suddenly chuckled. "Scared?"

"What do you desire? I can grant it. What do you wish for? I can help you achieve it." Grennan, upon seeing a smile on Alavin's face, knew there was room for negotiation. This madman surely wouldn't dare to kill him; the consequences would be too grave, more than he could bear.

"I desire..."

"What is it? Speak, man."

"Your life." Alavin suddenly lunged at Grennan.

"Stay back, stay back, argh..."

Terrified screams echoed through the dense forest, particularly harrowing under the cover of night. The woodland nearby was devoid of travelers, not even a patrol in sight. They had all been reassigned by Lucan to other regions.

In the dead of night, Alavin stood on a distant hill, looking out over the vast, now quiet mining district, his eyes teary. His fingers dug into his palm, blood dripping freely. "Half a year! Wait for me, just half a year! I will return, I must... I must..."

In the small courtyard of the mining district, Oda, Helna, and other kin stood in the darkness, watching the direction of Alavin's departure. They held their hands together, silently praying that he would stay alive Three days after Alavin's departure, the manor confirmed Grennan's disappearance. Vandill hurried back from the mines to lead the investigation, but nothing turned out. Not only had Grennan vanished, but two Protégés of the Cobalt Strike had also gone missing. Strangely, the other Protégés in the manor had no idea where they had gone, or even when they had left.

They searched every nook and cranny of the estate and found not a trace of Grennan, as if he had vanished into thin air.

Vandill suspected Lucan and his associates were behind Grennan's disappearance, but in recent days, most of them had been patrolling the mining district. Those who remained were not powerful, none above the rank of Stage VI, and could not have harmed Grennan, let alone make him disappear without a trace from the heavily guarded manor.

Vandill expanded the search perimeter. Alive or dead, he needed evidence.

Two days later, Grennan's body was discovered in the forest just outside the mining district. The scene suggested a mercenary ambush followed by a Magi-Monster's feast, a sight too ghastly for words.

But Vandill refused to believe it was that simple. He knew his grandson well. Grennan was a coward and afraid of his own shadow; he wouldn't have ventured out of the mining district into the deep forest on a whim.