"Is this really the magic stone of the infant dragon?" Eleni asked in fasation as she gazed upon the glistening, oversized gemstone.

  Draco was currently tending to Nikoos' broken arm, sending soothing healing waves owner his wound.

  "I believe it is," Vasileios replied, his eyes wide with intrigue.

  "This is the rgest magic stone we've ever entered." he reached out, gently running his fingers over the jagged surface of the ethereal-looking stone.

  Michalis watched Draco healing Nikoos from the distance, befng at his own wounds.

  "Isn't Draii being a bit unfair?" he muttered under his breath.

  Wing, he poured a whole bottle of potion over his shoulder wound before taking a swig of another potion.

  Dimitra, being attentive, caught Michalis' whispered ent.

  "Why would you feel that way?" she asked, her brow furrowed.

  Michalis looked a bit taken aback, having not intended for Dimitra to hear his musings.

  "Oh, you heard that," he said, shifting unfortably.

  "Well?" Dimitra pressed, waiting patiently for Michalis to eborate.

  Michalis sighed, his gaze dropping to the ground.

  "Well, I got ioo, but he didn't use his healing spell on me. Yet he's devoting so much time and effort to healing Nikoos. I know it’s silly but….” Michalis trailed off.

  Dimitra houghtfully.

  "I see. But your injuries don't look as serious as Nikoos'," she pointed out gently.

  "That's not the point," Michalis said, his voice tinged with frustration.

  "I just 't help but feel... left out, I guess." he added.

  Draco, having overheard the versation, called out to Michalis.

  "e over here, Michalis." he said.

  Michalis looked up, surprised, and made his way over to Drabsp;

  Draco had a slightly sheepish expression on his face.

  ‘Ugh, is he a girl. Why does he crave so much attention?’ Draco couldn’t help but wonder.

  "I'm sorry, Michalis," Draco said sincerely.

  "I had po heal yht after yht, but it pletely slipped my mind after Vasiliki gave you a potion." He pced a hand on Michalis' head, out of habit, he began lightly stroking behind Michalis ears, much to his tent.

  "I won’t fet ime. Let me take care of that for you." he said softly, watg Michalis almost purr in tent.

  Michalis quickly regained himself feeling a bit embarrassed as he noticed his other sibling gring at him, but he mao py it cool.

  “Don’t you start” he warned, eyeing Vasiliki, who was about so say something.

  “Tsk” Vasiliki cursed but kept her mouth shut, she was aware that it was her tur so she decided to foeditating.

  Draco's healing spell soon washed over Michalis body, soothing the aches and knitting the minor cuts and bruises.

  Michalis felt the tension in his body dissipate, and he offered his brrateful smile.

  "Thank you, Draii," he said, feeling relieved and a bit sheepish for his earlier outburst.

  With both Michalis and Nikoos now fully healed, Draco turo the group.

  "Alright, everyo's time to move on to the area. Before we do, I want to make sure you all have your samander wool equipped” Draco said as a precaution.

  From the 13th floor, hellhounds became a on foe and the Samander wool provided resistance against their attacks.

  The group quickly made the necessary adjustments to their gear, and soon arrived at their destination.

  Upon arriving, Draco's gaze fell on Vasiliki.

  "Vasiliki, you're up . Are you ready?" he asked.

  Vasiliki straightened her posture, a determined glint in her eyes.

  "Of course I am. If that idiot Michalis do it, so I," she said fidently.

  Draco couldn't help but chuckle at her petitive spirit.

  "Gd to hear it." He paused, his expression being more serious.

  "Your oppos will be very challenging for you, so if you ’t ha, please prioritize your life first” he warned.

  Draco had a hard time deg an oppo for Vasiliki.

  She was an ice mage who could cast her spells without ting.

  Though the potency of her ice spells were less potent without ting, she could still use t-less spells to buy herself time until she could perform her spell t.

  She was a magic staff user, so she would normally be weak in close bat, but she had a passive skill that was annoying in close bat, and Draco had drilled into her ways he ko deal with melee batants.

  Luckily, there were two mohat, when biogether, could make Vasiliki suffer a lot if she didn't try her best.

  The oppos Draco decided on after a lot of ptiohe Crystal Mantis and Bad Bats.

  These two monsters were the bane of most magic users within the middle floors.

  The crystals on a crystal mantis' body made it a monster very resistant to magic, making it a tough oppo for advehat solely relied on magibsp;

  Then there were the bad bats that created sound waves that disrupted tration.

  This was fatal fes who needed tration when casting spells, which could also lead to the spell self-destrug.

  Due to the Dragon Mind Art that Vasiliki had learned, she didn't o worry about her spells self-destrug, but she was going to have a hard time trating on shaping her spells well.

  Vasiliki took a deep breath, squaring her shoulders after hearing his warning.

  "I'm ready, Draii. Let's do this." she replied.

  Draco gestured towards the entrao the trial area he had prepared for her.

  "The's not keep your oppos waiting. Good luck, Vasiliki. I know you'll make us proud." Draco said.

  As Vasiliki stepped through the entrance, Draco couldn't help but feel a twinge of .

  He had carefully selected these oppos, to push Vasiliki's limits, but he hoped he hadn't gooo far. After all, her safety was his top priority.

  Drad the others watched anxiously, waiting to see how she would fare against her oppos.

  The area was a rge, open space, with high ceilings and a rocky terrain.

  Vasiliki quickly sed her surroundings, her grip tightening on her magic staff as the odd silence was quite unfortable.

  ………………………………………………………………………………..

  It wasn't long after Vasiliki had ehe musty, dimly lit chamber.

  The space was initially filled with an eerie silence, broken only by the distant sound of dripping water.

  Suddenly, a pierg screech echoed through the chamber, sending a chill down Vasiliki's spine.

  Emerging from the lower dark tunnel were three hulking crystal maheir razor-sharp scythes gleaming menagly in the faint light.

  Upon seeing the monstrous creatures, Vasiliki's eyes quickly darted around the room in search of the bad bats, a different threat she had been anticipating.

  Vasiliki khe bad bats were a higher priority than the crystal mantises, as their disruptive sound waves could potentially disrupt her tration, a fatal fw for a mage like herself who relied on her imagination and focus to cast her ice spells.

  Without hesitation, she po take out the bad bats as quickly as possible.

  Swish!

  Not giving Vasiliki any time a her pn, the three crystal mantises immediately charged, identifying her as a threat.

  The stale air in the room was soon shattered by the thunderous csh of ice shattering against the crystalline carapaces of the chargis.

  Vasiliki mao stand her ground, hastily strug an ice wall to block their vicious sshes.

  However, the mantises proved to be faster and more vicious than she had anticipated.

  G!

  The mantises' blows tinued raining down upon the ice wall, the impacts sending shockwaves through the chamber.

  "Tch, their crystal armour is tough..." Vasiliki gritted her teeth, already feeling a small strain on her magic reserves as she replehe ice wall being chipped away.

  Suddenly, a high-pitched screech pierced the air, and Vasiliki's attention was drawn to the shadows above.

  SKREE-SKREE-SKREE!

  Five bat-like monsters swooped down, their screeches unleashing waves of disruptive sound, f Vasiliki to win pain as her tration was disrupted.

  "Damn, I barely focus on anything with these pests around!" she muttered, her brow furrowed in frustration.

  Grittieeth, Vasiliki swept her free hand, juring a flurry of razor-sharp icicles that mao impale two of the bad bats.

  THUNK-THUNK!

  The monsters let out agonized screeches as they plummeted to the ground, their bodies shattering on impabsp;

  Sadly, the other three bad bats mao evade her attad tinued assaulting her with their sound waves.

  G-G-G!

  The crystal mantises pressed their relentless assault, their scythes battering Vasiliki's ice wall without merbsp;

  "I 't keep this up forever... I have to risk it," she muttered, sweat beading on her brow.

  Immediately, she stopped supp the ice wall, needing more space to execute a pn she had in mind.

  Vasiliki khe crystal mantises would be occupied with the remnants of the ice wall, while the bad bats always maintained a safe distance from her due to her passive 'ice armour skill, which was currently active.

  The skill created a chilling mist around a certain radius of Vasiliki's body, ready to sh out at any foe that dared to draw too close.

  Putting some distaween herself and the enemies, Vasiliki began to gather and mould a det portion of her mind.

  Soon she was ready, her voice resonating with power.

  "Fsh Freeze!" she called out, her eyes glowing with a slightly brighter hue as the magic activated.

  Instantly, the air around the crystal mantises froze, eng the creatures in thick yers of solid ibsp;

  CRACKLE-bsp;

  The monsters struggled against their icy prisons, but the ice was not going to yield easily.

  But Vasiliki knew she didn't have much time before they broke free.

  She o hahe remaining bad bats before that happened and begin her t to enhance her magibsp;

  However, the screeg creatures instead of retreating, came closer and resumed their assault, the disruptive howls making it difficult for Vasiliki to even think..

  SKREE-SKREE-SKREE!

  "Gah!" she cried out in pain, her head ag.

  The ice around the crystal mantises had already started to crad shatter as their struggles intensified.

  In a surge of desperation, Vasiliki swept her staff, expending a signifit portion of her mind to jure a wide-area wave of ieedles that surged towards the bad bats.

  FWOOSH!

  The icy torrent engulfed the creatures who had o evade now that they were closer to her, freezing them in mid-air.

  CRACK-bsp;

  The bad bats were impaled and encased in solid ice, their agonized screeches silenced forever.

  Turnitention back to the crystal mantises, Vasiliki saw that they had broken free of their icy prisons and were already upon her.

  G-G-G!

  Their razor-sharp scythes sshed and battered at her hastily jured defehe impacts sending tremors through the chamber.

  'Ugh, I o find a way to bypass their armour....' Vasiliki thought, her mind rag with options.

  Due to her hasty making of an ice wall to block their assault, it cked durability and quickly shattered uhe relentless assault.

  Vasiliki suddenly found herself exposed to a direct attack from the crystal mantises, whose bded arms were poised to strike.

  SG!

  Vasiliki's mind ed as she saw the desding bdes, and for a brief moment, her life fshed before her eyes.

  Perhaps due to her inteions, she instinctively triggered an effect of her 'ice armour’ skill.

  The ist surrounding her, immediately coaguted into a massive, jagged spear of ice, the tip shimmering with an eerie blue glow.

  "Die!" Vasiliki roared, hurling the projectile with all her might.

  FWOOSH-bsp;

  The icy spear pierced through one of the crystal mantis's armour, elig a deafening screech of pain from the monster as it began freezing from the i.

  The other two mantises charged regardless , their scythes raised high.

  Vasiliki braced herself, juring a final, desperate ice shield.

  G-G-G!

  The mantises' blows immediately battered her defences, web-like cracks spreading across the translut ice barrier.

  "e on... e on... hold," Vasiliki pleaded, her face torted with effort.

  Unfortunately, the ice shield was weak and shattered,.

  Vasiliki felt searing pain as one of the mantises' scythe sliced into her flesh, diagonally across her chest armour, her body t at the st mio evade full brunt of the attack.

  "ARGH!" she cried out, her knees bug uhe intense agony.

  Yet, in that very moment, the mortally wounded mantis crashed to the ground, its crystalline body shattering into a thousand glimmering shards with a resounding ch.

  Seeing their rade's demise, the remaining mantises hesitated, their scythes still poised to strike.

  Seizing the small opportunity, Vasiliki ighe throbbing pain and summoned ahird of her remaining mind.

  "Gcial Prison!" she shouted, her voice hoarse with exertion.

  FWOOSH-CRACKLE!

  Thick, jagged spikes of ice erupted from the ground, eng the two mantises in a t prison of crag frost.

  The mohrashed and struggled, but Vasiliki's spell held firm, trapping them in their icy grasp.

  Injured and exhausted, Vasiliki wanted nothing more than to colpse on the ground, her breath ragged and uneven.

  Yet, the thought of failure, of being the first to lose, especially after imagining the desding look on Michalis' face.

  This filled her with rerength. She could not allow herself to be defeated, not when she had e this far.

  With the two remaining crystal marapped, Vasiliki immediately began ting.

  Vasiliki hadn’t chosen to use her magic t now solely because it increased her ice spell potency.

  The spell had other effects, one of them greatly enhanced her ability to freely use the ice element.

  This part of the skills description was a bit vague for her at first, but with a lot of practice over the past few months, she had been able to create something iing out of it.

  As her intation reached its cresdo, the air around her grew increasingly frigid, the temperature plummeting rapidly.

  An ice pilr began to grow in front of her, stopping at around 3 meters i.

  The pilr then twisted and turaking on a vague humanoid shape.

  "It's not a plete spell yet, but how do you like that?" Vasiliki said, pride swelling in her chest at the sight of her creation.

  A vague humanoid golem now stood before her.

  Although it cked distinct facial features, it was heless funal, operating on Vasiliki's own senses and ands.

  It ell that cost a tremendous amount of mind and required a lot of trol.

  Thought inplete and un-mastered, it was currently one of the best spells in her arsenal.

  "Go!" Vasiliki anded, watg as the golem charged towards the two crystal mantises, who had already broken free from their icy prison.

  She struggled to stay scious, her mind dangerously close to a plete drain, but she couldn't afford to falter, not now.