Just moments earlier, Aria had dashed to aid Ophelia when Calanis intercepted her. "My goddess desires the gem you hold," Calanis declared, advancing towards Aria as smoke shrouded the area. Aria could hear Ophelia and Idril nearby, but Calanis was determined to prevent her escape. Resolute to overcome this predicament, Aria braced herself. "Come and get it!" she challenged Calanis, brandishing one of her concoctions. "What a cheeky child!" Calanis retorted as she lunged at Aria. In response, Aria hurled one of her vials at Calanis' feet, which burst open to release a sticky blob. Calanis halted, wary of the strange blob, which gave Aria the chance to throw more smoke cans. She covered her ears before disappearing into the smoke. As Calanis scanned the area for Aria, the blob before her emitted a piercing shriek. This was one of Aria's original concoctions, the "Doncella Gritando". The noise was so intense that it disoriented her. She covered her ears and crushed the blob underfoot, but then vials came flying towards her from all directions. Before she could react, the vials burst, releasing a blinding light and dousing her with a liquid that seared and melted her skin. Calanis fell to her knees, writhing in agony. Within the smoke, Aria relentlessly bombarded Calanis with "Lágrima de Luna," another one of her original concoctions, highly effective against the undead and unholy.

Aria, seeing a glimmer of hope that she could defeat the Elf Queen, readied to throw another vial when suddenly, Calanis let out an explosive scream, clearing the smoke and sending Aria flying. Calanis flew towards Aria and caught her midair by the neck and hoisted her high. Her face and skin were melting and burning. "You impudent rat! How dare you!" she snarled, and without hesitation, she embraced Aria and sank her fangs into Aria's neck. Aria screamed as she felt the excruciating pain of her flesh being pierced by Calanis' sharp canines. An empty vial drops from Aria's hand. 

"Alice!" Ophelia cried out as she saw Aria being drained of her blood. Aria struggled to break free. Miraculously, Calanis' burnt and melted skin began to heal from drinking Aria's blood. "Let her go!" Ophelia demanded, threatening to attack Calanis with the Holy light. But she couldn’t get a clear shot with Calanis embracing Aria. She glanced at Idril, who was groaning in pain. Blood was seeping onto the floor from his earlier injury. She felt a sense of incompetence within herself, seeing her teammates down. Finally, Calanis released her fangs from Aria's neck, appearing ecstatic from feeding for the first time. She smiled joyfully as blood dripped from her lips. She looked at Ophelia with her red glowing eyes as she licked the blood off her lips. Aria groaned as she fell limp, drained of her blood. Calanis released Aria from her embrace, dropping her onto the stone cold floor. Still unsatisfied, she walked towards Ophelia and Idril. Ophelia saw her approaching and trembled with fear, but she tried to steel herself as she fired her holy light at Calanis. However, due to her trembling and panic, she kept missing. Just when Calanis was only a few steps away, she suddenly stopped. Her eyes sank as she felt something off. Suddenly, she fell to her knees, clawing at her neck and retching. Her skin suddenly cracked as blue flames burst from the cracks. She continues to claw at her neck and retch intensely as she burned from the inside. She screamed in pain and agony, writhing all the while. Ophelia and Idril were perplexed by the scene unfolding before them. Calanis burned in blue flames as she fell to the floor. At that same moment, the huge headless shadow knight guarding the exit disappeared.

Aria, still conscious, tried to get up, pale from the blood loss. Ophelia helped Idril sit up and then ran to help Aria get up. "What happened?" Ophelia asked Aria with curiosity as she supports her. Aria looked at the burning Elf Queen and then took out a healing potion from her satchel and gave it to Idril. "I... have faced her kind... before," Aria, in her weakened state, tried to answer Ophelia as she helped Idril drink the potion. Ophelia realized what Aria meant as she noticed a scar of a bite mark on Aria's extended arm. After administering aid to Idril, Aria collapsed from blood loss. "Alice!" Ophelia shouted as she caught Aria before she fell, but Aria had slipped into unconsciousness. "Alice! Wake up! Please tell me what to do to help you," Ophelia pleaded to Aria, but her pleas fell on deaf ears as Aria was completely unconscious now. "This is bad. We need to get her help!" Ophelia began to panic, unsure of what to do. Idril, who had regained some of his strength, gripped Ophelia's arm. "It's okay, let's help her get out of here," Idril said, attempting to stand. Idril then carries the unconcious Aria behind his back. Ophelia noticed the broken lantern and, with her hands already occupied, decided to use it instead, discarding the torch. As Ophelia glanced at the still burning elf queen, she felt a twinge of sympathy for the fiend. "Let's end her suffering," she declared, brandishing her wand with the holy light. 

However, in the blink of an eye, the woman in black appeared between them. Idril and Ophelia were taken aback, shocked to realize they had forgotten about her presence. She was within the range of the Lunaria's Hope's light, but oddly enough, it had no effect on her. Nevertheless, Ophelia even when trembling with fear and panic, assumed an offensive stance, ready to fight. The woman in black fixed her gaze at the unconscious Aria, and in that moment, something peculiar occurred. "Go... Now," the woman in black spoke, indicating that she wanted them to escape. Ophelia noticed the clanking of the woman's armor, as if she were restraining herself from moving. Without questioning the opportunity presented to them, Ophelia with Idril carrying Aria headed straight towards the exit fast. As they approached the door, Ophelia glanced back at the woman in black, but she had already vanished, along with Calanis. Ophelia let out a sigh of relief and opened the door, leading Idril towards outside.

When they were already out, it was still dark, but dawn shouldn't be too far away. Ophelia looked behind her and was surprised to see that the exit door has already vanished. Resigned to leave this place as soon as possible, Ophelia suggested, "Let's hurry back. Aria needs to be treated by a proper healer." She urged Idril to move faster as they walked along a paved path in the forest. The only source of light came from the Lunaria's Hope inside the lantern on Ophelia's belt. The silence was deafening, not even the sounds of insects could be heard. Ophelia and Idril remained silent, lost in their thoughts about the recent events and their miraculous escape from death. Idril glanced at Aria, whom he carried, still unconscious. Suddenly, a thought crossed his mind. "Who is Aria Nightbloom?" he finally broke the silence, asking the question more to himself than to Ophelia. But Ophelia had also been pondering the same question and replied, "That name sounds really familiar." She looked at Aria and then at Idril. Ophelia whispered, "She called herself Alice, didn't she?" Idril, not fully understanding the significance, knew one thing for certain. "Whoever Alice is, she is our savior," he stated, his voice crackling with the surge of emotions he felt as he regarded Aria. "She... she believed in us, even though we condemned and betrayed her, even though I had lost faith in myself." Tears began to stream from his eyes as they continued walking. Ophelia, who had also been saved by Aria, bowed her head. "She is truly amazing. After everything that's happened, she never gave up hope on us." She muttered, feeling a deep sense of regret for her past actions. Tears also welled up in her eyes, but she refused to consider herself a crybaby especially in front of the elf boy. She looked at the night sky, trying to stop her tears from flowing.

After what felt like an hour of walking, they came across a path heading uphill. Idril and Ophelia supported Aria as they made their way up. Finally, in the distance, they saw blue lights. Dawn was also approaching. They approached the group of people, which turned out to be their fellow examinees. Most of them had filled their lanterns with holy fire. They all seemed to have come back alive from the dungeon. Some were weary and tired, while others breezed through the exam.

Ophelia, spotting the proctor James not far from the group, ran as fast as she could to him. "Sir James! Please, you have to help Alice. She needs immediate help from healers!" Ophelia, trembling and her voice crackling, pleaded with all her heart, worried about Aria's condition. James looked at Ophelia, seeing her tired and weakened state, but her resolve was unwavering. He then looked at Aria, who was being carried by the tired and weak Idril. Without delay and without question, he took Aria and carried her on his back.

"You two, stay here and rest. I'll take her to the healers and come back," James instructed Ophelia and Idril as they fell to their knees in their exhausted state. James then left with Aria. Ophelia and Idril felt worry and guilt over the recent events. They remained silent as James disappeared from their view.

Morning came, and Aria slowly opened her eyes, gradually regaining her vision. She found herself in a room that smelled of medicine and potions, surrounded by occupied beds. Realizing she was in the infirmary, she moved her head and felt a slight twinge of pain in her neck. Remembering the bite from Calanis, she touched her neck and discovered a bandage covering the area. Weak from the blood loss, Aria noticed her belongings nearby and spotted her satchel. Determined, she mustered her strength to reach for it. Rummaging through the satchel, she found a vial filled with a red liquid. Sitting up, she drank from it, and soon color returned to her cheeks, and her pale skin regained its normal hue. Aria sighed with relief, grateful to have survived the encounter with the unholy being.

After a few moments, her first visitor arrived. Ophelia, the young drow mage, who seemed to have not rested since yesterday, rushed to Aria's side. She embraced Aria, crying and apologizing for betraying her. Aria, touched by Ophelia's remorse, stroked her silver hair and reassured her. "I'm so happy to see you again, Ophelia." Aria's forgiveness only deepened Ophelia's guilt, and she continued to cry, seeking solace in Aria's lap. Suddenly, Aria noticed Idril, the elf archer from their team, entering the room. He appeared silent and embarrassed, hiding a bouquet of flowers behind his back. Aria smiled at him and expressed her relief that he was safe. Idril blushed but remained too ashamed to say anything. Seeing Ophelia still crying, he decided to come back later, understanding that she needed time with Aria.

Once Ophelia had calmed down, she observed Aria's no longer pale complexion and expressed her curiosity. Aria reached into her satchel and showed Ophelia a vial filled with red liquid. "This is called the 'Bloodletter.' I use it in severe cases of poisoning. It replenishes lost blood at a rapid rate. It's effective for replacing tainted blood, but it does have some drawbacks. I always keep some for emergencies, although I failed to ingest one after the incident."

Aria explained the purpose of the vial to Ophelia in simpler terms, ensuring she could understand. Ophelia was in awe of Aria's abilities and praised her. However, Aria's worry resurfaced as she asked about the outcome of the exam. She feared they had failed, blaming herself for their potential failure. Ophelia gave Aria a mysterious look and replied, "Well..."