Hop's words made everyone suddenly realize; Lucy hurriedly looked at the old star spirit sleeping soundly not far away, "Old Master Kru, wake up quickly, I have a question for you."
Although the Southern Cross star spirit is erudite, it has a bizarre flaw: it falls asleep instantly when it has nothing to do, and only its contract holder can wake it.
Startled by Lucy, Krukus immediately woke up; before Hache finished Lucy's question, he chased after, "Old Master Kru, do you know who this huge frozen fellow is?"
Krukus looked up at the frozen massive demon and said, "If I remember correctly, this should be the Great Demon, the immortal 'Dailiora'."
"Dailiora?" Elusha silently repeated the name, her brows furrowed.
Krukus continued, "That's right, Dailiora, the demon known as 'Catastrophe', who has destroyed many cities and nations, a true destroyer."
"It is said to be immortal; no attack can kill it, and wherever it goes it leaves only ruins and death."
"About ten years ago, in the northern lands of the Ishiugal continent, Dailiora was sealed by a great mage who wielded the 'Ice Form' magic; since then its whereabouts were unknown, and we never expected it to appear here."
The identity of the huge demon was no longer their concern; everyone turned their gaze to Grey in unison.
The great mage who sealed Dailiora used the 'Ice Form' magic, and Grey is also an Ice Form mage.
From Grey's reaction upon seeing Dailiora, he and that great mage... "Her name is Ulu, she is my master."
Grey suddenly spoke, his voice trembling slightly, his eyes hollow as if recalling a painful past, "Ten years ago, Dailiora destroyed my hometown... my family, my friends, all..."
"It was Ulu who took me in and taught me magic."
Saying that, Grey's hands unconsciously clenched into fists, his nails digging deep into his palms, "Later, to seal Dailiora, Ulu used the forbidden magic 'Absolute Ice Bind'... sacrificing her own life, she became an eternal ice seal."
His words abruptly stopped, his expression filled with pain.
Hometown, relatives, master... in a few words, Grey's tragic past.
Hop saw that Grey was still withholding something, but he didn't have the habit of tearing at a companion's wound; instead he looked at the massive demon, "So, Dailiora shouldn't have been on this island."
"Someone moved it to Garna Island."
Elusha suddenly said, pointing at the excavation marks at the edge of the underground space, "It seems this area was only opened up in recent years."
Naz clenched his fist, fury burning: "Who did this? Why would they do such a thing?"
While everyone was deep in thought, Hop suddenly thought of something, abruptly looking up at Dailiora's frozen body; the underground space lay directly beneath the Moon Temple.
Garna Island is the place in the world with the densest moonlight, and the Moon Temple sits at its core, the spot most bathed in lunar glow.
According to the temple's stone tablet, in the temple where moonlight is strongest, a magical array can refine and condense lunar energy into a spell called "Moon Droplet."
"Old Master Kru, do you know what a 'Moon Droplet' is?" Hop looked at the South Cross star spirit, who was about to fall asleep again.
The drowsy Krukus instinctively recited what he remembered, "'Moon Droplet' is a legendary spell that gathers moonlight into a beam, concentrating massive lunar power; it is said to be a magic that can erase all other magic..."
"Eh? Doesn't that mean..."
At that point, everyone was startled.
No need for Hop to explain; everyone understood his thought.
Someone transferred the frozen Dailiora to Garna Island, attempting to use the 'Moon Droplet', which can dispel all magic, to break its seal!
"Impossible!"
Grey snapped his head up, "Ulu's 'Absolute Ice Bind' is the ultimate forbidden move of all ice magic; it will never melt! It cannot be undone!"
But that's the fact: Moon Droplet is an extremely concentrated lunar magic, and the holy nature of lunar power inherently possesses a strong ability to purge negative effects.
Hop retorted coldly, his calm eyes fixed on Grey's unmistakably nervous expression, "Moreover, this is Garna Island, the land bathed by the moon; concentrating Moon Droplets here would be twice as effective."
With that said, Grey finally calmed down.
"From the first appearance of the purple moonlight until now, at least three years have passed..." Elusha's face grew solemn, "Perhaps the mastermind's plan is about to succeed."
"If we want to stop it, now is the best time!"
"But what should we do?"
Lucy is still a fresh rookie; faced with the formidable-sounding Dailiora and Moon Droplet, she has no clue.
"Why not ask Old Master Kru how to stop the 'Moon Droplet'?"
As she turned around, she realized the South Cross star spirit's summoning time had expired; it had already returned to the star spirit realm.
Turning back, Lucy saw her companions giving her strange looks, feeling embarrassed.
No, as a star spirit mage, relying on star spirits isn't... Elusha spoke, "To terminate a Moon Droplet is simple; this kind of magic usually requires a large number of people and a sufficiently big area to cast the array."
"We just need to defeat the hidden perpetrators, then destroy the casting site, preventing the lunar convergence from hitting Dailiora."
"I get it, we just need to tear down the Moon Temple, right?" Naz crossed his arms, feeling clever.
"Don't take destroying a historic site for granted..."
Hop pointed at the soil layer above Dailiora's head, where there was a straight upward shaft, "If my guess is right, that leads to the temple summit, where the Moon Droplet array is."
"Then what are we waiting for!"
Grey's eyes flared with anger, "No matter who they are, I will never let them succeed! The seal Ulu forged with her life, I will not allow anyone to break it!"
He formed an ice ladder, and without hesitation he rushed up; Naz followed closely.
"Wait! Grey, Naz, keep your guard up! Watch out for ambushes!" Elusha chased after, uneasy.
Lucy was also carried by Habi.
In the blink of an eye, only Hop remained.
Sigh, what a bunch of hot‑headed folks.
Hop glanced at the shadow behind Dailiora, "I was going to invite them to gang‑join you."
Heh, caught you.
From the shadows emerged a half‑height figure wearing a mask and a cloak, who said, "I am Jerrot, even the Fairy Queen has not noticed my existence; you nameless wretch are a pleasant surprise to me."
----------------------------------
I've already uploaded over 40 new chapters on Patreon!
If you're enjoying the story and want to read ahead, feel free to check it out.
Your support truly means a lot to me!
patreon.com/Kazenova223
Thank you so much for being here!
And if you're having fun with the story, don't forget to drop a Power Stone for me!