Chapter 361: The Teardrop! Noah glanced at Lola with a soft smile as she took care of the remaining threats with such overwhelming efficiency. The transformed state she had assumed was both beautiful and terrifying, but seeing her protect him so decisively filled him with warmth despite the dangerous circumstances. Finally, after all the violence and chaos, the teardrop was within his reach. Noah extended his hand toward the glowing fruit, his fingers closing around its smooth surface. The moment his skin made contact, power unlike anything he had ever experienced surged through his entire being. The concentrated life energy contained within the teardrop was so intense it felt like touching a compressed sun. Then the system’s familiar notification appeared in his vision, making him sigh in relief. [Processing Teardrop Fruit...] Noah felt his consciousness beginning to blur, the overwhelming energy from the fruit interacting with his system in ways that demanded his body’s complete attention. His legs gave out as vertigo overwhelmed his senses, and he collapsed toward the ground still clutching the precious teardrop. Lola’s wings carried her to his side instantly, her transformed state allowing her to move with speed that covered the distance before Noah could hit the earth. She caught him gently in her arms, cradling his unconscious body with care that contrasted sharply with the devastating violence she had just displayed. Her expression transformed from satisfaction at their victory to worry as she looked down at Noah’s face. His breathing was steady but he showed no signs of consciousness, his body completely unresponsive to external stimuli as the system processed whatever transformation the teardrop was creating. "Noah? Can you hear me?" Lola asked quietly, knowing he couldn’t respond but needing to voice her concern anyway. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎 Unfortunately, a sound like approaching thunder suddenly entered her enhanced hearing, destroying the brief moment of relief. Multiple powerful presences were converging on their location with speeds that suggested grandmaster-rank powerhouses. Queen Seraphina appeared at the clearing’s edge, her supernatural beauty marred by an expression of absolute fury. Her eyes immediately found the World Tree and then darted to focus on the unconscious shopkeeper being held in Lola’s arms. The teardrop fruit was clearly visible in Noah’s hand, already claimed by the mysterious human who had disrupted her carefully laid plans for decades. Rage erupted across Seraphina’s features with intensity that made the ambient temperature drop dramatically. Light began emanating from her body as her anger manifested physically through uncontrolled mana leakage. She had discovered the World Tree’s location through Shams, the ancient elf who had extracted the coordinates directly from Adrian’s memories at terrible cost to both participants. The memory search had succeeded, and Seraphina had immediately moved toward this location using every ounce of her considerable power to arrive as quickly as possible. But she was too late. The prize that represented potential victory in her war against the dark elves had already been claimed by the shopkeeper whose existence had complicated everything since his arrival in this world. Two additional figures appeared behind Seraphina—light elf grandmasters who served as her most trusted military commanders. Both carried themselves with the confidence and power of practitioners who had reached the apex of conventional advancement, their combined presence adding substantial threat to an already dangerous situation. The male grandmaster was tall and severe, his expression showing cold calculation as he assessed the battlefield and the corpses of multiple grandmaster-rank beasts scattered across the scorched earth. The female grandmaster appeared younger but carried herself with equal authority, her eyes already tracking potential attack vectors and defensive positions. Lola looked at the three new arrivals with a grim expression. She couldn’t understand how dramatically the situation had just deteriorated after what she had thought was their victory. Her fire wings remained manifested, the transformed state still active and providing her with peak capabilities, but facing three grandmaster-rank opponents including a queen who was also at the peak of archmage rank from her consumption of the luxury smoothie represented a genuine threat even to her current power. More concerning was Noah’s unconscious state. She couldn’t fight effectively while protecting his vulnerable form, and retreating might trigger pursuit that she couldn’t shake while carrying him. The tactical situation had transformed from victorious to potentially catastrophic within seconds. "That fruit belongs to the light elf kingdom," Seraphina declared, her voice carrying absolute authority despite the fury underlying every word. "You have stolen what was rightfully ours to claim. Surrender the shopkeeper and what remains of the teardrop immediately, or face destruction." Lola’s grip on Noah tightened protectively, her wings spreading wider in unconscious defensive posture. "This fruit belonged to whoever could claim it. We fought for it and won. Your arrival after the battle concluded doesn’t grant you any rights to what we earned." "Rights?" Seraphina laughed bitterly, the sound carrying no humor. "You speak of rights before me with our stolen treasure? I am queen of these lands, and everything within them belongs to me by sovereign authority." The two grandmaster commanders moved to flank positions, creating a triangle formation that would allow a powerful assault from multiple angles. Their movements suggested this wasn’t the first time they had executed such tactics together. Lola’s mind raced through tactical options, searching desperately for solutions that didn’t end with Noah’s death or capture. The bound ethereal cat remained nearby but wouldn’t provide meaningful assistance against three grandmaster opponents of this caliber. The surviving master-rank beasts had all fled beyond reach. They were alone, outnumbered, and disadvantaged by Noah’s vulnerable state. The situation couldn’t be much worse.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​ Lola’s mind worked frantically through their tactical options, her enhanced comprehension processing dozens of scenarios in the span of seconds. She was powerful, but fighting three grandmaster-rank opponents while protecting Noah’s unconscious body represented nearly impossible odds even in her transformed state. Then her eyes fell on the ethereal cat that had sworn service through the demonic contract moments ago. The creature remained nearby, bound by supernatural compulsion to serve faithfully. A plan emerged in Lola’s mind, potentially their only chance of survival. She reached into her storage with her free hand while keeping Noah cradled securely in the other arm.