Mephilia straightened her clothes and took a deep breath. Yesterday’s sudden appearance would certainly have worried Vivian and Oliphia.

However, she decided it was best to keep things confidential from these two for now.

“You haven’t told Vivian and Oliphia about these matters, have you?” Mephilia asked.

“Of course not,” Minoga would never do such a thing.

“Good.”

Minoga went downstairs first.

“Princess Mephilia is fine now. Princess Liana has already calmed her down. You don’t need to worry anymore,” Minoga said.

“What exactly happened?” Vivian asked.

“If Princess Mephilia wishes to tell you, she naturally will. If she hasn’t said anything, then the time isn’t right yet,” Minoga didn’t want them to inquire too much.

“Understood.” They nodded.

They were following Princess Mephilia by their own choice, so they naturally wouldn’t do anything to harm her. Besides, they had absolute trust in Princess Mephilia.

They had witnessed many things Princess Mephilia had done and knew she was an excellent person. If she did something, she definitely had her own thoughts behind it. They just needed to believe in her.

About half an hour later, after Mephilia and Liana had breakfast, they came downstairs.

“I’m sorry for making you two worry.”

“Not at all! As long as you’re alright, Princess. We didn’t do anything, so there’s no need to apologize to us,” Oliphia said.

Seeing that they didn’t ask further, Mephilia glanced at Minoga, suspecting that she had done something unnecessary again.

Even if Minoga hadn’t done that, they probably wouldn’t have asked much, but still, she was grateful.

After yesterday’s events, the King of Lisat hadn’t taken any action. He hadn’t sent anyone to find or persuade Mephilia.

The two boarded the carriage, accompanied by Minoga. They first sent Mephilia back to the academy, then took Liana back to the forest where she trained.

A few days earlier, in Ambis’ back garden.

After watching Liana leave, Sephirena walked in.

“Princess Sephirena, don’t you need to come and nurture the Tree of Life today?” Gardenia and Jasmine came over to ask.

Of course, it was still Jasmine who spoke.

“Can you use illusion magic now?” Sephirena asked.

“Yes, with the help of Mother and Lady Ambis, I can briefly use illusion magic with external assistance,” Jasmine talked for Gardenia.

“I see...” Sephirena looked at the Tree of Life, then turned to Gardenia. “How long is ‘briefly’?”

“About three to five seconds,” Jasmine replied.

Too short.

Princess Liana would be in danger.

“What’s wrong, Princess Sephirena? Have you managed to use illusion magic? Or do you want to use illusion magic?” This was a rather important matter for Gardenia.

After all, Sephirena was like her idol, and Sephirena’s illusion magic had received the blessing of the Tree of Life, making it completely different from ordinary illusion magic.

“Give me some space. Don’t approach the area around the Tree of Life during this time,” Sephirena took a deep breath; she was about to face the fear deep in her heart.

“Alright, if you need anything, just call us anytime.”

“Mm.”

Sephirena stepped onto the lake surface and approached the Tree of Life. She knelt before it, placing the flower that the Tree of Life had given to Liana but she hadn’t managed to give, in front of it.

[Illusion Magic: Eternal Forest]

Ancient, aging trees replaced the lush, verdant forest. Instead, there were some nearly dead old trees.

The once vibrant garden was now filled with a sense of deathly stillness.

This was now Sephirena’s illusion magic. She had tried to change something, but to no avail. This illusion wouldn’t obey Sephirena’s commands and couldn’t be altered.

Sephirena had seen this illusion many times, but this time, there was a small oasis in front of her. This was her starting point, and also where the Tree of Life sapling was located.

“This is the first time you’ve seen my illusion, isn’t it... Or perhaps you’ve seen it many times already.” Sephirena looked around, feeling somewhat fearful and afraid.

The current scene seemed to remind her of that night, the night when her sister Tarashil died.

That day, she had also witnessed this scene: the forest being corrupted by the demons, death and silence everywhere, a repulsive, nauseating aura lingering in her mind.

At that time, she couldn’t understand and didn’t know what this was, what had happened to cause such a hellish scene.

But she could see many similarities to the Elf Forest, and this uneasy feeling had lingered in her mind ever since.

Now, she probably understood the situation.

This was likely the scene from millions of years ago when the demon race invaded. The demons had corrupted the entire Elf Forest, turning it into this state, into a living hell.

Sephirena stood up. “Wait for me a little while. I’ll be back soon... or perhaps I’ll never return.”

Sephirena walked towards the depths of the forest. She knew this path all too well.

Even with her eyes closed, she could skillfully walk to the depths.

All the plants here had withered, and there was no trace of any life force, let alone the little spirits.

In this illusion, it was as if Sephirena was the only one who existed.

But she knew very well that there was someone else waiting for her here, someone she most wanted to see but also most feared seeing.

As Sephirena walked on, she saw a touch of green in this gray world.

Walking further, she could even see colorful flowers, streams, the sound of birds, little spirits dancing joyfully, and the Tree of Life nourished by the Spring of Life.

That small sapling was nothing compared to the branches at the edge of this Tree of Life.

Standing there, Sephirena felt like an ant, while the Tree of Life before her looked extremely healthy, as if it had never been corrupted by the demon race, still lush and vibrant.

This was also the only normal place in Sephirena’s illusion.

It should have been like this.

Sephirena looked around, searching for that familiar figure. She should be nearby.

Sephirena searched while walking towards the Tree of Life, finally stopping beneath it. She looked up and saw an elf wearing a white dress lying on the trunk of the Tree of Life.

At this moment, she seemed to sense the gaze from beneath the tree shade. She looked at Sephirena and revealed a gentle smile. “Sephirena, you haven’t come to play with me for a long time.”

“Sister Tarashil...” Sephirena was entranced. This elf was naturally the long-deceased Tarashil.

Sephirena didn’t know why she would appear in this illusion. This should have been a joyful thing, but Sephirena knew very well that her sister was already dead. The Tarashil before her was just an illusion.

Tarashil jumped down from the trunk and reached out her hand. “What’s wrong? You look so unfamiliar.”

“You are not Sister Tarashil,” Sephirena bit her lip, trying her best to stay lucid.

This was originally an illusion used to deceive others, but now, it seemed the one being deceived was the user of the illusion magic herself.

“Oh my...” Tarashil showed a somewhat sad expression. “Is that so?”

“Is it because I haven’t visited you for too long, making you somewhat unfamiliar with me? I’m sorry, Sephirena, I still need to take care of Mother, so I can’t leave. I can only stay in this area,” Tarashil bit her lip, gripping the hem of her dress, speaking somewhat sadly.

“...” This is fake, this is fake, all of this is fake.

Sephirena kept telling herself this in her mind. She couldn’t be deceived by this person before her; she was just an illusion in this forest.

How could she, as the user of this illusion magic, be deceived by an illusion she created?

“It’s normal for you to be angry with me. I’m sorry, Sephirena. We can no longer play carefree like when we were children. After becoming princesses, we shoulder certain responsibilities that force us apart,” Tarashil said with tears in her eyes but a smile on her face as she looked at Sephirena.

“But I’m happy that you remembered me and came back here to see me.”

“...” This is fake... this is...

“Just coming back occasionally makes me very happy. Don’t force yourself to do things you don’t like. You have other excellent qualities; you don’t have to stay here all the time. I’ll take care of your share as well.

“You were never particularly good at this. Everyone has their strengths. You always lacked the patience for these detailed tasks, but many times, you agreed to do them for me.

“Although it always ended up in a mess, and I had to clean up after you in the end, I was happy. You were improving, overcoming things you weren’t familiar with, and making changes. I was truly happy.

“Besides, you’ve already done very well, haven’t you? You can now repair the Tree of Life on your own. Not everyone has time. Switching schedules is a very normal thing; we’ve done it many times before, haven’t we?

“It’s just that this time, there was a small accident. Sephirena, you don’t need to blame yourself for this. You’ve already tried your best, and I’m very grateful to you for continuously helping me find the truth during this time,” Tarashil smiled.

“Sister Tarashil...”

“Things are becoming more and more troublesome,” Liana said, sitting in the carriage, spreading her hands.

“The commotion Princess Liana has caused during this period is much greater than those previous incidents,” Minoga smiled.

“Then I’ll just go back to how I was before,” Liana said irritably.

But what Minoga said was true. Although Liana had been beastly before, she only did small things, at least in the eyes of the nobles.

The big ones, Liana wouldn’t dare to provoke, and Countess Rose would stop her. The small ones had no say.

Not like now, where she was constantly getting involved with a territory lord or a kingdom heir.

“Please don’t. The current Princess Mephilia would truly break,” Minoga said very seriously.

“I’m just joking. Don’t be so serious,” Liana rolled her eyes at Minoga, who seemed genuinely worried that she would turn back into that little beast.

“That’s good,” Minoga sighed in relief.

“Crown Prince Hodwen and Second Prince Oester will likely use every means possible to deal with Princess Liana,” Minoga wasn’t worried about this when she was by Liana’s side, but during the fake death, she would have to leave Princess Liana’s side, otherwise, the plan wouldn’t proceed.

But now, given how much these two hated Princess Liana, they might do some forbidden things. Although Liana was very confident, Minoga still worried.

“That... depends on Gardenia’s performance,” Now, the only issue was with Gardenia—whether her illusion magic could stabilize.

Even without the support of illusion magic, Liana could continue, but having an extra safeguard would definitely be better and more convincing.

For instance, suddenly having a beast appear and kill her, just like the snow wolf that day.

“Are we going to Lady Ambis’ garden now?” Minoga asked.

“Yes, Sephirena is there too, so let’s go directly,” Liana said.

“Alright.”

The two headed towards Ambis’ garden.

After getting off the carriage, Jasmine quickly appeared before Liana.

“Good afternoon, Jasmine. Why are you alone today?” Liana asked.

“Princess Liana, come with me quickly,” Jasmine grabbed Liana’s hand and ran towards the garden.

Minoga followed them, and they stopped at a distance of three hundred meters from the Tree of Life sapling.

“This is...” Without Jasmine’s explanation, Liana could sense something strange.

Sephirena was kneeling before the Tree of Life, and the branches and leaves of the Tree of Life were now entangling Sephirena’s arms in an eerie manner.

“Princess Sephirena used illusion magic,” Gardenia didn’t care about the so-called magical consumption at this moment; her expression was solemn.

“Isn’t that a good thing? She can use illusion magic again,” Liana said.

“It should have been so, but Princess Sephirena’s state is clearly abnormal. She has maintained this state for four days now,” Gardenia said. “Illusion magic essentially continuously consumes magical power to maintain stability. If Princess Sephirena keeps this state, her internal magic will be completely depleted.”

“Four days?!”

Wasn’t that since they parted that day?

It had already lasted this long? No wonder Gardenia was worried.

“Even though elves can quickly recover magical power using the natural forces around them, even so, four days is too long. Princess Sephirena’s body is almost at its limit,” Gardenia said.

“After reaching the limit and losing the supply of mana, can’t she exit this state?” Liana asked.

“No, illusion magic relies on the user’s mana to maintain stability. Once it loses the supply, it becomes very unstable and erratic, ultimately trapping the person in the illusion they created, permanently,” Gardenia’s expression was grave.

“If Princess Liana hadn’t come back today, I would have entered Princess Sephirena’s illusion magic and forcibly awakened her,” Gardenia said.

“What are the risks?” Liana knew very well that although Gardenia said she was waiting for her, she was actually waiting for Minoga.

“I might get lost in the Elf Forest. After all, this is illusion magic. Besides the caster, no one knows where she is or what the illusion looks like. The worst consequence would be getting lost in the illusion with her, never able to come out,” Gardenia said.

“...” Lost in the illusion forever?

Liana looked at Minoga. “Have you encountered illusion magic before?”

Minoga shook her head. “The elf race is already rare, let alone elves who use illusion magic.”

So, Minoga might also get lost in the illusion, but with her strength, she should be able to forcibly break through it.

“Are you confident?” Liana naturally wouldn’t ignore Sephirena’s situation, but she couldn’t let Minoga take this risk either. It was too dangerous, even if Minoga was a Judge.

“I am stronger than her.”

These simple four words gave Liana an unparalleled sense of security.

“Then I’ll go bring Princess Sephirena back,” Minoga stood up, preparing to enter Sephirena’s illusion space.

But she was stopped by the Tree of Life.

“What’s this?”

“Mother?” Gardenia was confused. Why would the Tree of Life reject Minoga? This had never happened before.

The Tree of Life was rejecting them.

Why?

“Can’t we forcibly enter?” Liana asked. If they delayed any longer, Sephirena would be in mortal danger.

“We can, but...” Minoga glanced at the small sapling. If they forcibly entered, the Tree of Life sapling would definitely be the first to be dealt with.

This sapling had a unique symbolic meaning for humans and elves and absolutely could not be destroyed, otherwise, it would bring unbearable consequences.

“...What about you, Gardenia?” Liana asked.

If there was really no other way, they would have to let Gardenia go in. If time was almost up and she hadn’t come out, then they would let Minoga forcibly break through.

The Tree of Life was certainly important, but Liana would absolutely not watch them die in vain.

“Mm.” Gardenia nodded, but unfortunately, the Tree of Life was still resisting her.

“It’s not working...” Gardenia shook her head somewhat helplessly.

So they had to choose the violent method?

But Liana noticed that Gardenia seemed to have something to say but was hesitating. “If you have something to say, you can say it. What if it works?”

“Perhaps... Princess Liana could enter this illusion,” Gardenia said.

“Me?” Liana was confused. “I’m neither an elf nor a Judge, and I don’t have strength like Minoga. How could I go in?”

“Because Princess Liana is favored by Mother, a benefactor whom Mother is grateful to,” Gardenia explained to Liana what had happened that night.

“...Can I really?” As soon as Liana stepped forward, Minoga grabbed her arm.

“I absolutely will not let Princess Liana take this risk,” Minoga’s attitude was very firm.

Although Liana had grown recently and made progress, she was still too weak compared to Sephirena.

Elven illusion magic was far more terrifying and powerful than imagined.

Liana didn’t yet have the ability to resist illusion magic. Once she went in, she might get lost in the illusion.

Minoga naturally wouldn’t let Liana do such a dangerous thing.

“Don’t worry, I’ll be fine. I’m just trying to see if I can really go in,” Liana said.

“I won’t let go, Princess Liana,” Minoga’s gaze was firm.

“I really won’t do anything dangerous.”

“I’ll contact Princess Mephilia now. After knowing about this, Princess Mephilia will definitely rush over. After those things happened, Princess Liana should understand what this means, right?” Minoga said.

Liana was stunned. “You’ve learned to threaten me?”

Mephilia was definitely being watched by others, the heirs and vultures alike. Once Mephilia was alone without protection, those two would definitely act against her.

And Liana knew very well that if Mephilia knew about this, she would definitely come immediately, without any hesitation.

“I’m sorry, but Princess Liana, if you really want to do this, I can only do this,” Minoga said.

“You don’t trust me.”

“Princess Liana, even if you say these things now, it won’t help. Even if you hate me later, I will still do this. I don’t want to do something I’ll regret,” Minoga wouldn’t back down.

“So you’re prepared to make me do something I’ll regret? You should understand me well. What would I think if Sephirena died in front of me?” Liana said.

“Even so, I won’t let you go in. No matter what you say.”

“Princess Liana... let’s give up,” Seeing the somewhat tense atmosphere, Gardenia spoke up.

Hey! She’s your idol, the princess of the Elf Forest! How could you say such a thing?

“It’s very difficult for someone entering an illusion for the first time to come out,” Gardenia was also concerned for Liana’s safety, which was why she made this decision.

Now, they had to choose between Sephirena and the Tree of Life.

“Fine,” Liana had no choice but to temporarily go along with them. “I have one more question. Why did Sephirena suddenly use illusion magic? Wasn’t she very resistant to it before? Did something happen before she used illusion magic?”

Gardenia thought for a moment. “Before using illusion magic, Princess Sephirena asked me how long can I use illusion magic. After learning it would only be three to five seconds, Princess Sephirena came to this place.”

Could it be for me? This wasn’t Liana being narcissistic.

After all, Gardenia using illusion magic was to help her. Normally, she wouldn’t use it at all, since it required a lot of preparation.

And three to five seconds was indeed too tight, which could put her in danger. The reason she had left Sephirena behind was also to ensure her safety.

This made Liana more determined to go in, but obviously, slipping by in front of them wasn’t realistic.

“What’s the dangerous part of illusion magic?” Liana asked.

“Can I tell you that?” Gardenia said irritably. This was like revealing all her cards to the other person.

“True,” Liana smiled somewhat awkwardly. No matter what, Gardenia was still an elf.

“But, if it’s Princess Liana, I suppose it’s okay,” Gardenia added. “However, Princess Liana must absolutely not tell anyone else.”

“Alright,” Liana nodded.

Gardenia leaned close to Liana’s ear and whispered, “Illusion magic is divided into several types. One is the simplest and most basic, generating various natural ecosystems around you and attacking you from within nature. For elves favored by the Tree of Life, there are multiple variations.

“One type makes the target indulge in past memories, experiencing past events, making you feel like you’re dreaming. In the dream, it changes past regrets, making you wallow in the past, unwilling to wake up.

“Another type directly places you in hell, making you experience endless trials and painful torment, directly killing you in the spiritual world.

“There are many, many more. Each elf’s illusion magic differs, so I don’t know all the details. But I can be certain that no one would willingly enter illusion magic.”

After hearing Gardenia’s words, their concerns were understandable. After all, she was indeed too weak. Perhaps she would be killed as soon as she entered the illusion.

“Is this really the only way? Do we really have to choose between the two?” Liana didn’t want to make such a cruel decision.

“I’m very sorry, Princess Liana, but now, this is the only option,” Gardenia had no other solution.

“What’s that flower?” Liana sensed something calling to her. After careful listening and observation, she realized it was a small flower beside the Tree of Life.

“That’s the first flower of the Tree of Life, with a unique significance, able to receive its blessing...” Gardenia looked at the flower and then also sensed that it seemed to be calling to Princess Liana.

Could this be a gift from the Tree of Life to Princess Liana? With this flower...

“Mother, is this a gift you’re giving to Princess Liana?” Gardenia asked. “If it’s true, please respond. Do you want Princess Liana to go in and save Princess Sephirena?”

A branch of the Tree of Life picked up the flower and pointed it in Liana’s direction. The intent was very clear.

“Is that really so... With Mother’s protection, it would indeed be much safer in the illusion.”

“Even so, it’s still not acceptable. Princess Liana’s base strength is far too weak,” Minoga said.

“Minoga!” Liana looked at Minoga with puffed cheeks. This person was really not listening to reason at such a time.

“With protection, at least I won’t be in mortal danger,” Liana said.

Gardenia’s expression was somewhat peculiar; she hadn’t said that.

“No.”

“I don’t want to do something I’ll regret. I don’t want to choose between the two. Minoga! If you had to choose between me and Mephilia, who would you choose?” Liana was being unreasonable now.

“Princess Liana...” Minoga was in a difficult position.

“Don’t worry! I’ll definitely return safely. With the Tree of Life’s protection, I’ll definitely be fine! If I haven’t come out before tomorrow arrives, you can forcibly go in and bring us out, okay?” Liana sensed some hope and quickly pressed her advantage.

“But...”

“Minoga, ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ you’re the best,” Liana held Minoga’s hand and swung it.

“Besides, didn’t you say I’ve created many miracles before? This time, I’ll definitely succeed too. When I faced so many difficulties before, I was alone, but even so, I still came out, didn’t I? Not to mention, now I have the Tree of Life’s protection. I’ll definitely be fine,” Liana looked pitifully at Minoga.