At the Castle of Sylvenspire, Elf Queen Elbereth watched the golem's advance from a balcony at the highest point of her castle. Donning her war outfit, she commanded her subjects. Filled with rage and disdain, Queen Elbereth muttered to herself, "I will not be made a fool." With a wave of her hand, she signaled her attendant to inform the mage's circle to erect the "Grand Castle Barrier," a formidable protective barrier that surrounded the entire castle. Seeing the completion of the barrier, she opened her old red book and read a passage within it. In an ancient language, she chanted a spell. In a moment, dark clouds in the night sky converged, covering the full moon and concentrating on the golem. Thunder began to rumble as the clouds lit up.

On top of the golem, Asmodea saw the spell being cast above. "Oooh, that's a nifty spell," she playfully exclaimed as she gazed at the dark clouds above while sitting down. She examined the spell and remarked, "'Thunder Dragon', huh?" She then looked at Dorothy, who was also gazing at the dark clouds, then shifted her eyes to Thalia, who was still busy fighting the young boy. Asmodea sighed and asked Carwen, who was busy controlling the golem, "Aren't you going to do anything? If that spell hits you, you're all going to die, you know." Asmodea calmly warned her. Carwen, listening to the dark goddess's warning, looked above and, with a chant on the red orb, commanded Balsathor.

Queen Elbereth, who had just finished chanting, raised her hand and, while her gaze was fixed on the golem, shouted, "Thunder Dragon's Whip!" She made a slamming gesture with her hand, signaling the spell's activation. In an instant, the dark clouds lit up and released a huge lightning bolt directed at the colossal golem, followed by a deafening roar of thunder. The horizon lit up in bright light, blinding anyone whose eyes witnessed the lightning bolt.

The Queen opened her eyes as the spell finished, fully expecting to see the golem in pieces as it disintegrated. But to her big surprise, another thundering boom was heard as the golem took another step. Queen Elbereth was confused about what had happened. How did her spell fail? She thought to herself.

Unbeknownst to the Elf Queen, before the spell hit, Carwen had commanded Balsathor to defend them. Before the lightning struck, Balsathor intercepted the lightning's path by blocking it with a colossal rock spike spell, disintegrating the rock spike instead, making the lightning bolt miss the golem entirely.

Now the golem was right in front of the castle, but the Queen was not worried as she had the defensive spell erected. With only the barrier dividing between Elbereth and Carwen, their gazes locked as an unfortunate reunion took place.

Queen Elbereth stared at Carwen with rage, but as she looked closer, Carwen seemed to have aged a lot since their last meeting. Queen Elbereth, although angry, asked Carwen, "Carwen, my faithful servant, is that you? What happened to you?" Queen Elbereth shouted as she awaited Carwen's reply. But Carwen, ashamed and defeated, stepped back and covered her damaged face. But Queen Elbereth would be surprised by the next person she saw. Asmodea, with her grim smile and terrifying yellow eyes, met hers. Elbereth, who immediately recognized the dark goddess, quickly shifted her gaze as she knew Asmodea's 'Evil Eye'. With her gaze shifted, she shouted at Asmodea, "You! What have you done to Carwen!?" Her rage surged as she didn't expect this to happen. Asmodea, still smiling, didn't utter a word and stepped back. As Queen Elbereth was about to shout again, she sensed a presence behind her, but she didn't turn in that direction. "It's uncouth of a Queen to be shouting so crudely, don't you think?" a sinister and playful voice was heard behind Queen Elbereth. She didn't recognize this voice but was certain that it belonged to the dark goddess. "H-how did you get past the barrier?" Queen Elbereth, surprised, started trembling as she realized how deadly her predicament was. 

"It's a trade secret!" Asmodea playfully replied, sticking her tongue out and acting like a child. Queen Elbereth, filled with panic, issued an impossible command to her subjects. "Kill her! Kill this woman!" she shouted. But strangely, no one responded. Queen Elbereth steeled herself as she turned around and to her surprise, Asmodea is gone and oddly, her attendants and subjects were nowhere to be found. Feeling a sense of danger and unease, she hurried back inside her castle and planned to seek refuge with her circle of mages in the royal throne room. As she descended the stairs, the atmosphere grew eerily quiet, with only the sound of her deep breathing and the squeaking of her armor breaking the silence. Annoyed, she removed her armor along the way. When she opened the door to the royal throne room, her heart sank at the sight before her. Asmodea was smiling in the center, squatting as she examined the lifeless bodies of Queen Elbereth's mages and attendants scattered across the room, seemingly drained of blood. And to Queen Elbereth's shock, another person was sitting on her own throne.

                                     * * *

Back in the golem, Dorothy noticed that the dark goddess had disappeared and decided to make her move. Taking note of the direction of the wind, she takes aim at the unsuspecting Carwen and rolls a can towards Carwen's barrier, releasing a toxic gas. Dorothy knew that normal barriers could only block solid and liquid attacks for obvious reasons. As the toxic gas seeped inside the barrier, Carwen began to struggle for breath, scratching her throat. She dropped the red orb making it roll away from her. Without wasting any time, Dorothy put on her bird mask and sprinted towards the red orb, determined to obtain it. But Thalia noticed this and swiftly attempted to decapitate her, only to be blocked by Wynn, the platinum-ranked adventurer. "Don't underestimate me!" Wynn declared as he crossed swords with Thalia, further irritating her. 

Meanwhile, as Dorothy was about to reach the red orb, a rock spike suddenly pierced her side, pushing her aside. Carwen, who had healed herself, seized the orb once again. "Worthless woman!" she shouted at Dorothy as she prepared to engage her in combat. Despite the pain and bleeding from the attack, Dorothy stood up, holding her wounded side. "I'll kill youuu!" Carwen screamed like a maniac, waving her hand and launching rock spikes at Dorothy. But Dorothy remained unfazed, sensing her reinforcements arriving just in time. Iris, the beastman spearman, defended Dorothy from the rock spikes. "I knew we should've come along!" Ruda exclaimed as she cracked her knuckles, equipped with iron gauntlets, steam hissing out of them. "Be careful, you two. That woman in black is dangerously fast," Dorothy warned them about Thalia, who had easily killed the gold-ranked adventurers. She completely ignored Carwen, which only fueled Carwen's anger even more.

                                    * * *

"How dare you sit on my throne!" Queen Elbereth shouted angrily and irritatedly at the veiled person who had taken her seat. Asmodea glanced at the person on the throne, remaining silent as she awaited the unfolding events.

"Thank you for keeping my seat warm in my absence, my dear," a chilling voice of a woman responded to Queen Elbereth. She gasped in despair at the sight of the person before her. It was a beautiful elf woman, with skin as white as snow, pure white hair, and a flowing white gown. Her piercing red eyes glowed, and a red gem adorned her forehead. But it was the sight of blood on her red lips that made Queen Elbereth shiver.

"You don't have to be afraid, my dear. I didn't come here to harm you. After all, you are my blood," the woman assured Queen Elbereth, licking the blood off her lips.

"Ca-Calanis..." Queen Elbereth stammered, recognizing the Elven progenitor and former Queen of the Elves. Calanis stood up from the throne and calmly walked towards Queen Elbereth. Frozen in fear, Queen Elbereth closed her eyes as Calanis raised her hand.

After a few moments, Queen Elbereth opened her eyes and saw Calanis holding her crown. "It's Queen Calanis to you, my dear," Calanis proclaimed, fitting Queen Elbereth's crown over her head. "Ah, it fits like a glove," she added, a sinister smile on her face. Elbereth, no longer a Queen, stood there frozen, locking eyes with the new Queen of Sylvenspire.

"Oh, I almost forgot," Calanis uttered, holding Elbereth's red book in her hand. Elbereth's heart sank as she saw the red book, her hand still clutching it. Trembling, she glanced down and screamed as she saw her decapitated arm, blood spurting profusely from the stump.

"Silence!," Calanis commanded, and instantly, Elbereth's screams ceased, her mouth closing itself. Elbereth's mind was overwhelmed by a surge of emotions. Calanis gazed at her with her red, malicious eyes and spoke, "I despise uncouth people, especially in royalty. But since you are my great-grandchild, I will give you one chance to prostrate yourself before me." Calanis smirked at Elbereth, who was on the verge of tears.

                                   * * *

As Wynn was occupied battling Thalia, Dorothy and her companions faced off against Carwen for the golem's orb. Ruda lunged at Carwen, striking from above, her fist pounding against Carwen's transparent barrier. "I hate mages," Ruda muttered to herself, frustrated that she couldn’t land a solid attack on Carwen. Meanwhile, Iris examined the barrier's integrity, watching carefully for an opportunity to strike.

Carwen grunted with each attack made on her barrier. Holding the orb in one hand made it difficult for her to launch offensive attacks, leaving her no choice but to defend and rely on Thalia for offense. But Ruda was no fool. Slowly but surely, her continued barrage of attacks on one point made the barrier less stable each time. "I know barriers are not foolproof, old lady!" Ruda shouted as she made a crack in the barrier.

With Iris at the ready, she immediately threw her spear at the cracked point, breaking the barrier and impaling Carwen in the right shoulder. Carwen grunted in pain but still held firmly onto the golem's orb. "You will all die a painful death!" Carwen shouted menacingly. But Ruda gave her a strong right punch on the face, turning her head more than normal and making a cracking sound. Carwen dropped to the ground, but she still clung to the red orb as if her life depended on it.

Thalia, seeing Carwen being overwhelmed, became riled up. She overpowered Wynn, pushing him back, and dashed straight to kill Ruda. But before she reached her target, she was intercepted by Iris in her true beastman form, gripping Thalia's hand, her dagger just inches from Ruda's neck.

"My, my! I love good company!" a woman's voice suddenly rang out. Everyone turned their heads to see Asmodea exiting a portal. "Please, don't stop on my account!" she playfully remarked as she walked to the side. But another person walked through the portal. Calanis, the beautiful Elf Queen, walked gracefully as the portal closed behind her. The moonlight reflected off her pure white hair, and her white gown flowed with the wind.

Wynn, Dorothy, and her companions stopped and slowly regrouped as they felt a very ominous presence in front of them. Carwen, beaten to a pulp, slowly drifted her gaze to Calanis' head, adorned with Elbereth's crown. "Where's my Queen?" Carwen asked, struggling to stand upright.

"Whatever do you mean? Do you not see my splendor? Or are you blind?" Calanis replied, a bit annoyed at the question. "Where is Elbereth?" Carwen asked once more, worried about her queen. Calanis rolled her eyes at the annoying old elf. "You mean that embarrassing excuse for a great granddaughter?" Calanis replied as she walked slowly towards Carwen.

Wynn, Dorothy, and her companions watched in disgust and disdain at the unfolding scene as Calanis answered Carwen. "Why, she's here," she said, throwing the decapitated head of the former Queen of Sylvenspire at Carwen's feet.