"Huh? What's going on? Why can't I summon him?"

Margaret opened her eyes, her face filled with confusion.

"Try again," Luna urged.

Margaret attempted to summon him once more, but the result was the same—failure.

That shouldn't be possible. As long as Merlin was still within this special dimension, Margaret should have the authority to summon him to their location.

"Alright, don't worry about it. Maybe Merlin has a special artifact that makes him immune to your authority," Liora said soothingly.

The others considered her words and found them reasonable. After all, Merlin was indeed mysterious and had many methods they hadn't anticipated.

Margaret gave a slight nod and accepted it as the only plausible explanation.

"Ahem! Alright. Now, I'll begin the explanation," Margaret said with a small cough.

Everyone except Liora and Lisa adopted serious expressions. From the beginning, they had been baffled by this mysterious place.

They had been wandering aimlessly and found nothing except for a strange corridor that seemed to stretch endlessly.

Margaret then began to explain everything.

After fifteen minutes, she stopped and asked, "Do you understand now?"

The girls fell silent. Each of their expressions turned grim.

After a moment, Luna was the first to speak up.

"Can we trust that man?"

Everyone turned to Margaret, waiting for her answer.

"Of course." Margaret nodded firmly. "I can guarantee he's trustworthy. His fate is in our hands—his soul is trapped in that painting and won't be able to escape unless the fake owner of this ship is defeated."

Margaret wasn't a fool. She had already thoroughly investigated why the man in the painting had given them this mission.

And the answer matched exactly what she had just explained.

The girls nodded and said nothing. Since Margaret had spoken, they chose to trust her completely.

"So, why wait any longer? Let's go find the fake owner of this ship!" Catrine said coldly.

Margaret shook her head. "It's not that simple. He's hiding very well. The room he's in wasn't detected by the card I used to summon you all. So the only way to find him is to search every room in this dimension."

Everyone's faces darkened. It was a grueling task. However, they had no choice but to accept it with heavy hearts.

Shortly after, they began dividing the tasks and scattered to search each room.

If any of them found it, they could inform the others using the bracelet artifact Merlin had given them earlier.

***

"Tsk! This special dimension is really annoying. I can't find a way out at all."

Merlin let out a small chuckle and looked around the hall. It felt as though he had been deliberately trapped so he couldn't escape.

However, Merlin wasn't afraid at all. He closed his eyes and asked, "Can you help me find a way out of this hall?"

Shortly after, Lyserra's voice echoed in his mind.

"Hit the urn on your right. That's the center of the formation trapping you."

Merlin followed her instructions and saw a golden urn standing in the corner.

If Lyserra hadn't told him, he wouldn't have noticed it at all.

Merlin cast a fireball spell, and the urn shattered instantly.

At the same time, the hall around him changed. As if an illusion had been broken, the space transformed into a dark corridor stretching ahead.

"Wow! It really worked!" Merlin exclaimed in amazement.

Even though he trusted that Lyserra wouldn't lie, seeing it work with his own eyes still surprised him.

Lyserra snorted coldly. "It was just a small illusion. Walk forward, and you should be able to find the exit."

Merlin nodded and followed her instructions. But before he had taken even ten steps, he heard the faint groan of a monster nearby.

Startled, Merlin quickly turned and saw a door marked with the number 110.

It was most likely the cabin of one of the ship's crew members.

Merlin frowned, but he didn't back down.

He walked closer, placed his hand on the doorknob, and pulled it open.

In that instant, Merlin was met with a terrifying sight—a black-furred wolf's face appeared right in front of him.

Its head was so large it nearly filled the entire doorway.

Boom!

The monster swung its claws and smashed the door to pieces.

Caught off guard, Merlin was knocked backward, his back slamming into the wooden wall with a heavy thud.

"Argh!" Merlin groaned in pain.

However, he had no time to recover. The monster had already lunged at him again.

Boom!

It swung its claws, aiming to tear Merlin apart. But the attack missed and struck the wooden wall behind him instead.

The view of the night sea instantly opened up before Merlin—but a second later, the wooden wall reformed, sealing the opening as if nothing had happened.

Merlin didn't have time to think about it. He kept retreating, dodging every deadly strike from the monster.

"Damn it! This is so annoying!" Merlin cursed.

The wolf's movements were incredibly agile and precise. Merlin tried to find an opening to counterattack, but he failed every time.

"System, analyze that monster!" Merlin commanded.

"[Ding! Analyzing… Ding! Found!]"

Name: Night Wolf (Mutant)

Level: Eight-level monster

Description: A nocturnal monster. Due to mutation, it possesses twice the strength of a normal Night Wolf. With your current power, it's impossible to defeat it. You'd better run now!

As Merlin read the information, a look of shock appeared on his face.

"An eighth-level monster? And it's a mutated type?! This is really bad luck!"

He didn't dare underestimate it. This monster was twice as powerful as an ordinary Night Wolf. The system was right—he didn't have the strength to defeat it.

Even if he could, it would come at a heavy cost.

Merlin didn't want to do something so reckless.

Suddenly, he spotted a small opening on the monster's right side. Without hesitation, he leaped upward, forcing the monster to follow.

Seizing the moment, Merlin used wind magic to push his body downward, rolling to the ground.

Without looking back, he immediately sprinted forward.

The monster howled furiously and gave chase. Thus, the pursuit between monster and human began.