Chapter 372: Shopkeeper is Dead [2] But even through her grief, her survival instinct forced her to act. Her eyes landed on the shelves full of premium items, and she immediately began grabbing the most powerful enhancements available. Luxury fruit smoothies, mystical herbal teas, instant coffees—she consumed them all rapidly, desperate to restore her strength. The items flooded her system with renewed power, her depleted reserves refilling while her attributes surged far beyond their exhausted levels. With a portion of her strength restored, she tried once again to retrieve Noah’s body from outside, reaching through the shop’s protections with every ounce of power she could generate. But Darian, now fully aware of what she was attempting and absolutely furious at being outmaneuvered, held Noah’s corpse with unyielding determination. His dark element magic anchored the body in place while the other grandmasters added their own strength to prevent any chance of body retrieval. No matter how much power Lola channeled into the attempt, she couldn’t overcome the combined strength of multiple grandmasters working together. Noah’s body remained frustratingly out of reach, held hostage by enemies she couldn’t fight without leaving the shop’s protection. She was trapped in a sanctuary that had become a prison, surrounded by unimaginable power but unable to use any of it to reclaim the one thing that mattered most.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​ Darian cursed his terrible luck and turned furiously toward his assembled subjects. "Bring me Kael immediately!" The reason for his summoning was simple, Kael Walker was the grandmaster mage who spent the most time observing and interacting with the dead shopkeeper and Lola. Kael had been engaged in holding back approaching light elf forces at the clearing’s perimeter, but he immediately abandoned that position when his king’s command reached him through communication crystal. Within seconds, he moved directly to Darian’s side, bowing respectfully despite the obvious chaos surrounding them. "You summoned me, Your Majesty?" Kael asked carefully, sensing the dangerous fury radiating from his king. "Why didn’t you mention that the demon possessed authority within the artifact?!" Darian shouted, his composure completely shattered by rage and humiliation. "Why was I not informed that she could eject intruders or exercise such privileges inside that establishment?!" His voice carried genuine threat, the kind of anger that could result in severe punishment or even execution for perceived incompetence or betrayal. The other dark elves present took subtle steps backward, recognizing that their king was on the edge of violence against anyone who had contributed to this disaster. Kael’s expression showed genuine confusion mixed with concern at the unexpected revelation. "Your Majesty, I never knew this capability existed. During all my observations and transactions with them, they never demonstrated or even hinted at such authority. The demon always remained subservient to the shopkeeper, acting as guard or assistant rather than co-administrator." He spread his hands in a gesture of helpless honesty. "If they possessed such powers, they deliberately concealed them from everyone. I can only report what I witnessed, and nothing in their behavior suggested the succubus had independent control over the shop’s functions." Darian’s fury didn’t diminish at the explanation, but he recognized that punishing Kael for information that had been deliberately hidden would be counterproductive. His anger needed a more appropriate target. His eyes suddenly snapped toward the approaching figure whose aura had been growing steadily stronger during their confrontation. Queen Seraphina had finally arrived, and the expression on her face promised violence. Seraphina finally arrived at the scene, her single remaining arm still radiating light magic while her face twisted with pain and fury. The injury Lola had inflicted was clearly taking its toll despite her attempts to stabilize the wound, blood still seeping through the magical tourniquet she had created. Both groups of followers immediately tensed as their leaders confronted each other. Dark elf grandmasters positioned themselves defensively around Darian while the three light elf grandmasters who had been dealing with the cat moved to flank Seraphina. The two commanders also arrived. Everyone waited for commands that could trigger the catastrophic battle that had been building for hours. The tension was suffocating, both sides exhausted but prepared to fight to the death if their monarchs demanded it. Seraphina’s eyes first landed on Noah’s corpse lying on the ground, Darian’s dark spear still protruding from his chest. Her expression mixed hatred with grim satisfaction. The mysterious shopkeeper who had saved her whilst also providing resources to her enemies, and indirectly caused so much chaos was finally dead. Good. One problem permanently eliminated. But her satisfaction was fleeting as she remembered why she had pursued so desperately in the first place. Her gaze snapped to Darian with renewed intensity. "Where is it?" Seraphina demanded, her voice carrying absolute authority despite the pain she was clearly suppressing. Darian frowned, genuinely confused by the vague question. "What are you talking about?" Seraphina’s eyes narrowed with dangerous impatience. "Don’t act like a fool, Darian. You know exactly what I’m asking about. Where is it?" Darian’s frown deepened as genuine confusion replaced his initial wariness. "I have no idea what you’re referring to. What is ’it’?" Seraphina studied his expression carefully, her enhanced perception searching for any sign of deception. But his confusion appeared authentic, his body language and micro-expressions showing no indication that he was concealing possession of the prize she had sacrificed so much to obtain. Does he truly not know about the teardrop that was in the shopkeeper’s possession Seraphina thought, her mind working through the possibio. That seems impossible given the circumstances, but his ignorance appears genuine. She mentally reviewed what had occurred since she last saw the precious fruit. The teardrop had been in the shopkeeper’s hand when he first touched it at the World Tree. He had fallen unconscious immediately after making contact, suggesting the artifact was being processed by his body. The last she had seen it, the fruit was still clutched in his grasp, a small portion appearing to have been consumed or absorbed before she lost visual contact during the chaotic pursuit through the forest. After that, the demon’s defensive efforts and the distance involved had prevented her from confirming whether he still held it. Darian couldn’t have possibly used the teardrop himself, otherwise his power would have surged dramatically and become immediately obvious to everyone present. The enhancement such an artifact provided would be unmistakable. The dead human lying on the ground couldn’t have used it either, given his unconscious state throughout the entire pursuit and subsequent execution. So the only possible scenario that made logical sense was... The demon must have taken it for herself, Seraphina concluded with bitter certainty. Either she consumed it during the battle to fuel her resistance, or she secured it before entering that cursed shop where we can no longer reach her. The realization that the prize she had sacrificed her arm and so much else to obtain was now beyond her grasp, protected by whatever defenses that shop possessed, filled Seraphina with rage that threatened to overwhelm her remaining rationality. But looking at the assembled forces before her she held off. Darian and his grandmasters still fresh and ready for combat, while her own forces were exhausted and depleted, so necessity forced restraint. She was injured, missing an arm, and her remaining grandmasters were in poor condition after the prolonged battles. Darian clearly didn’t want to fight her either, despite his superior position. The demon remained inside the shop where she apparently possessed enough authority to potentially cause problems. Starting a full-scale war with the light elves while that variable remained unresolved would be strategically foolish. Neither monarch wanted this confrontation to escalate further, but neither could afford to show weakness that might embolden the other. Seraphina spat at Noah’s corpse with contempt, the gesture expressing her fury at how this mysterious human had managed to cause such catastrophic disruption even in death. Everything that had gone wrong tonight could be traced back to his interference in their world. "Keep the corpse," Seraphina said coldly, her single remaining arm gesturing dismissively toward Noah’s lifeless body. Her tone made it absolutely clear this was a withdrawal rather than genuine concession or defeat. She had witnessed Darian’s failed attempts to breach the shop and recognized the futility of remaining. The shopkeeper was dead, the teardrop was likely inside with the demon, and her own catastrophic injuries demanded immediate attention. Seraphina turned to leave, her remaining grandmasters moving to escort their wounded queen back toward light elf territory. But Darian’s voice stopped her before she could take more than a few steps. "Wait." Seraphina paused and turned back. "What could you possibly have to say that’s worth delaying my departure, Darian?" "I propose we combine our forces to breach that shop," Darian stated bluntly, gesturing toward the innocuous-looking establishment that had resisted all his attempts at forced entry. "The demon is trapped inside with everything that shopkeeper possessed—including whatever you were pursuing." "Your own attacks did nothing," Seraphina retorted with dismissive contempt. "I watched your assault simply vanish against whatever protections that structure possesses. What makes you think additional attempts would yield different results?" Darian’s expression showed calculated determination rather than blind optimism. "Individual attacks failed, yes. But combined assault from more than ten grandmasters simultaneously, with our forces working in coordination rather than opposition? The total attack power should overwhelm whatever defensive threshold that artifact maintains." He gestured toward their assembled forces. "You have five grandmasters here, I have six including myself. That’s twelve grandmaster-level combatants focusing their full power on a single target simultaneously." Seraphina’s expression showed she was actually considering the proposal despite her initial dismissal.