After sharing some of the food she had on her, Serena decided to get some rest. Since her roommate was refusing to elaborate when she questioned him about how he knew such things, that was all she could do to pass the time.

As she drifted off to sleep, she dreamed vividly about being chased across a field by wolves. They were chasing her, and she ran faster and harder, but never seemed to make any progress. She wondered briefly if they weren't real, and perhaps she was merely imagining them.

She wasn't that inaccurate in the prediction either.

"They didn't seem to touch the food and water." A voice said, tone gruff. "That is going to make it awkward."

Serena twitched at hearing someone say that but it felt like she was fighting through a fog. Ravana was whispering in the back of her skull to settle down and not draw their attention. Perhaps that was why she felt that she was being suppressed.

However, a few seconds later, she heard footsteps approaching and realized that someone else must've come along with the man. There was also a bit of a metallic clanking sound.

"Quit blabbering you big lapdog," Ella, of all people said. Gone was the nice grandmother act and in its place was a cold disregard for what is happening. "Leon isn't having any difficulties with the robed man over there. Put your feelings aside and pick her up."

"I'm trying, but..." Her companion muttered softly, sounding frustrated. "I don't think we should be sacrificing someone who is connected to the gods."

"Unfortunately, our village comes first. Balar will understand!"

Her friend hesitated. "You're sure?"

Ella snorted. "Of course! What other reason do you need?"

With that, one of them approached her bedside and reached down to grab her arms.

Serena snapped out of it and stared at the man about to grab her.

He gave her a look of confusion before shaking himself free of whatever spell he'd been under. As soon as those thoughts went through her head, he growled low in his throat. It sounded angry and annoyed, but also hungry.

His eyes narrowed as he saw her staring. "You aren't going to start screaming are ya?"

"What? No, I—"

Before she could finish speaking, something happened. Something strange. The air around him began to shimmer and ripple, then suddenly the man grew much larger. By the time Serena blinked away the surprise, she found herself looking at an enormous beast.

It stood upright, standing almost ten feet tall, which meant that even taller than her. Its legs were strong and muscular, while its chest and shoulders bulged with muscle underneath thick brown fur. Only the front half of it was covered in fur, leaving the rest exposed. He had black stripes running down his face and neck, giving him a rather menacing appearance. His tail was short and stubby, ending just above the ground, where it curled slightly behind itself.

"There would be no point in screaming," Serena said, her voice shaky. She wanted to scream and jump out the window if she could. The best would no doubt catch her before she so much as moved shakily.

Thankfully, she managed to keep herself from doing anything rash. Instead, she simply glared at the creature.

The beast roared again, causing Serena to flinch. That noise...that was terrifying. Yet she still did nothing more than glare. This thing looked too powerful to run or fight against. If only she could escape—

That thought crossed her mind when she heard another roar. When she turned back toward the door where a vaguely lionlike figure was carrying away Lucian, the beast lunged forward.

A massive paw slammed onto the floor and Serena barely managed to get out of bed. With a grunt, Serena landed hard on the stone tiles of the room. Before she could move, however, the monster pounced on top of her.

Instinctively, Serena raised both hands. One to block and protect herself, the other palm out in an attempt to channel mana to blast him away. But before she could use it properly, the claws dug deep into her flesh.

Pain shot across her entire arm as they pierced deeply enough to make her cry out. Her hand slipped off the claw as she tried to pull it loose, making her lose grip on what little magic she currently possessed.

As soon as she felt the pain, she knew how bad this was. Even though she didn't know exactly what she'd done wrong, there was no way she should've gotten hurt like that. Not without any warning. And certainly not after all these years.

But now wasn't the time to panic. Now was the time to focus. To find a solution. So she did just that.

"No," Serena whispered, closing her eyes tightly and focusing. She searched for some faint trace of the magic she knew had once rested within her. Then, she focused harder. Focusing until she couldn't feel the blood trickling down her arm. Until she could forget the agony. All that mattered right then was finding that spark. Finding that tiny flame of power within her.

Then, slowly, ever so slowly, she started to sense something. A light grew inside of her. Slowly building, burning brighter and hotter with every passing moment. Soon, she realized it was getting stronger by the second. Much faster than it should have been.

And then, finally, it came. Just as she was beginning to wonder whether she'd imagined everything, the sensation became overwhelming. Almost painful. Like someone had shoved their fingers into her brain. Or maybe stabbed her in the heart. Whatever it might be, it was genuine and extremely uncomfortable.

All she could do was grit her teeth and bear the pain as she continued to search. Searching deeper, searching wider. Trying desperately to find it, trying to understand why she hadn't noticed such a small bit of power earlier.

She gritted her teeth, wishing that she could stop thinking altogether. Wishing that she could turn off her senses entirely and leave them alone forever. But unfortunately, that wouldn't happen anytime soon. Especially since she needed to save Lucian.

Magic flooded her veins, and she poured it into her right arm. In seconds, the wounds started to close themselves up, healing faster than normal. While some blood remained to stain her shirt and pants, the worst of the damage seemed to have already healed over.

With a gasp, Serena opened her eyes. They burned with tears and sweat alike as she stared up at the beast towering over her. His breath smelled foul, like rotting meat and dirt mixed. There was no telling what sort of disease he carried with him either. He was probably going to kill her next, but she refused to let that bother her. She would rather die fighting if she must.

For a moment, Serena feared it might attack again, but instead, it let go of her arm. She gasped in relief until she noticed the look in his eyes. They were afraid. It looked terrified. The creature backed away from her, baring its fangs and growling menacingly.

It was still far too big for her to take on head-on, which meant that she needed another option. Unfortunately, she didn't see many options available to her.

After taking several steps backward, the creature stopped moving completely. Its tail twitched nervously behind it while its ears flicked back and forth, listening carefully to anything around it. With a shake of the head, it turned towards the entrance. As soon as it reached the opening, the creature disappeared into the darkness beyond.

When she heard the door slam shut, she exhaled shakily. Her muscles ached horribly, and she could barely move anymore. What little strength she possessed left her exhausted. Still, she forced herself onto unsteady legs, forcing herself to walk forward. If nothing else, she wanted to get out of here before more monsters showed up.

Ella had seemingly left her alone with the beast that was now afraid of her. That was fine by her. She wasn't about to trust anyone who lived in this shady village, anyway. No matter how kind they pretended to be.

She looked down to her right arm, tensing it and flexing the limb to test it for any injury. The faint traces of blood tainted the paleness of her skin. There was a noticeable lack of bruises, cuts, or even the pierced flesh, and Serena couldn't help but be wary of whatever she tapped into that allowed her to heal so well.

She shook her head, clearing it as looked around for her supplies. The backpack and staff were completely missing, and for the first time in this new world, she was completely defenseless.

Panic threatened to overwhelm her, and she took a few deep breaths to calm herself. Serena couldn't quite shake off the feeling of being powerless at this moment, however. Without her equipment, there would be no way to protect herself if something attacked her. Worse yet, without her bag, she wouldn't have any of her materials and necessities.

"This isn't good," she muttered to herself quietly, looking at the space where her items used to sit.

"Perhaps, but it has yet to be seen as disastrous," Ravana said. His cool and detached voice managed to pull her from the spiraling abyss of what-ifs. "I am sure you can manage."

Serena blinked slowly, coming back to reality at the way he tried to assure her? Comfort her? It was strange, almost unnatural, coming from what little she knew of the man. She hadn't expected him to do such things at all.

He continued speaking, though not nearly as quickly as when he started. "While the villagers seem to run off with your supplies, you can take this time to try and reconnect with mana."

"And let Lucian die?" She scoffed, shaking her head. "There should be some kind of reward for helping him out. If nothing else, perhaps I could get a life debt from him"

Her gaze lingered on the sleeping Mint who was on the way to being healed completely.

"If it wasn't for Lucian, Mint might have never been healed. If Mint had died, I would have lost an invaluable connection to the Erl-King," Serena mentally said to Ravana. "I don't know what that strange energy that I felt was, but I am wary to use it."

Ravana seemed to consider her words quietly to the point she nearly missed his response. "I will teach you in time."

"What?" Serena asked, uncertain of what she heard.

"Given your current condition, it would be unwise to do a frontal attack on them. You need more power before you attempt anything like that," Ravana explained simply. "Due to the need, I could lend you my aid during this unfortunate event."

"You're going to help me fight them?"

"Not exactly," Ravana corrected gently. He paused for a brief second, thinking about how best to explain himself. When he finally spoke again, his tone was softer than usual. "We'll be doing something far different from fighting." His sadism was on full display, and she could somewhat feel a foreign sensation of sick satisfaction at what was about to unfold. "More like playing."