After stepping inside, Sven's gaze fell upon Natalie.
His wife, though they both knew that title had always been a lie.
"General Sven… I'm sorry, but I think it's time," she said softly. "They deserve to know the truth."
Sven exhaled deeply, rubbing his temples. "I had hoped this day would never come."
Placing a gentle hand on her shoulder "Natalie, you sacrificed twenty years of your youth for my selfish request. I can never repay you for that."
Natalie gave him a small smile. "Being the old king's grand mage, this was bound to happen eventually. But for now… go to them. Ex-General Sven."
With a respectful bow, she stepped aside.
Sven hesitated now slow and uncertain. His fingers twitched as they reached for the door handle.
He had faced death, betrayal, and war without a second thought but now.
Standing in front of this door, preparing to say his last goodbye to the children he had raised for eighteen years, he felt truly weak.
Forcing himself, he pushed the door open.
The room was empty.
Confused, he stepped inside, glancing around. "Ina? Sam?"
Silence.
His heart raced as he checked the other rooms, getting more scared with each empty room he found.
By the time he got back at Natalie "They're gone!"
She glanced at the clock just past midnight. Too early for them to leave.
Sven's hands trembled as he turned furniture, searching frantically "Damn it! Where could they have gone?"
Natalie, though visibly saddened, answered without hesitation.
"They're going to the garden."
Sven froze.
She didn't expect them to slip away without saying goodbye.
Even if what she had done was wrong… she had still hoped they would say they're farewell.
Sven frantically searched for the map, rifling through drawers and turning objects, but it was nowhere to be found.
"Don't worry," Natalie watching his panic. "They have it."
Her reassurance settled his nerves even slightly.
But when his eyes flicked to the clock, his stomach dropped.
1 AM.
The children were in danger. If the guards spotted them fleeing the town, it would be over.
He grabbed his sword, ready to chase after them.
Only for Natalie to step in front. "Let me handle this,"
As she closed her eyes, intricate magical circles swarming around her.
Layering upon one another, expanding in size until they filled the entire room.
"I hope you'll forgive me Ina for saying those words to you."
No one in town noticed.
But every mage in the Iron continent could only say one name "It's Grand mage Natalie's magic."
A magical Bubble expanding non stop getting big at rapid pace. But invisible and impossible to be broken.
As it covered the whole Iron continent.
Deep within the royal castle, the magical barrier that monitored the border blinked rapidly then dark.
Far beyond, as Ina and Sam sprinted through the wilderness, Sam's necklace pulsed with an unnatural blue glow.
In the next instant, they become invisible.
They didn't notice. They were too focused on running.
Through dense forests and rugged terrain, they pushed forward.
Hours passed. Dawn began to break over the horizon.
They had covered nearly forty kilometers in just five hours.
And yet, the location that was marked on the map… was still a few hundred kilometers away.