Chapter 3937: Moving Array (Part 2) "That’s impossible to say." Menadion replied. "The runes of the ring are ancient, and its enchantment belongs to an unknown branch of magic. The tower needs to reverse-engineer the ring from scratch, just like you would. "It’s a mammoth task, even with the help of the Yggdrasill wood." "It will be a while, then." Solus noticed a familiar couple approaching her, yet she couldn’t hear a word they said until she dispelled the Hush Zone. "Hi, Aunt Loka. Hi, Malyshka. What are you doing here?" "And hello to you too." Silverwing said. "I’ve been looking for you for a while. Have you ever heard of something called a communication amulet?" "Opps!" Solus took the amulet out of the pocket dimension, finding several missed calls. "I’m sorry. I’ve been swamped with work in the Desert and forgot to take it out once I was done." "Apology accepted." Silverwing nodded. "What’s your excuse, Ripha?" "I’m glued to Lith’s ass, so I never got one." Menadion replied. "If you want to talk to me, you have to either call him or Epphy." "What is this sweet smell?" Baba Yaga was in her Maiden form, that of a sixteen-year-old-looking girl with golden hair and blue eyes. "Chocolate wands, Malyshka. Do you want one?" Solus asked. "Gladly." The Maiden gave the cookie a tentative bite first and then wolfed it down. "It’s very good. My children would love it for dessert." "Yeah, about that, do you know how creepy it is hearing someone looking like you talking about children instead of siblings?" Menadion shuddered. "Why the Maiden instead of the Mother?" "Because Lochra finds it hilarious when people mistake me for her mother, and I’ve decided to give her a taste of her own medicine. Isn’t that right, Mommy?" Baba Yaga used a high-pitched voice as she clung to Silverwing’s arm, drawing lots of gazes to them. "Mother and daughter make a cute pair." Some said. "She sure must have had the girl young." Most people said. "Either that or she’s way older than she looks." "Wow, they nailed it in one, Mommy." The maiden giggled like a little girl. "Okay, fine! I’ve learned my lesson." Silverwing blushed up to her ears. "Now get off me!" "Yeah, she’s beautiful, but nothing compared to Elina." A man who had lived in Lutia back when it was still a village scoffed, earning the First Magus’ eternal wrath. "And don’t get me started about the pipsqueak." An old lady said. "At that age, Rena was much taller and beautiful. She won the Spring Maiden festival by acclamation, and nobody ever walked the stage with such grace aside from Tista." Baba Yaga had lived for untold millennia, and very few things could anger her. That comment was one of them. "Pipsqueak?" The Maiden snarled. Her back was turned on the crowd, so no one but Solus and Menadion saw the rage driving any semblance of innocence away from Baba Yaga’s features. She still retained her youth and beauty, but now looked like a tyrant on the warpath. "Don’t mind them, Malyshka." Solus shrugged. "Lith’s family raised the bar so high that everyone says that I’m short." ’Because you are.’ Silverwing thought but did not say, hoping that a good mood would make Solus more agreeable. "Why were you looking for me, Aunt Loka?" Solus asked. "Because I’ve watched the videos of the battle against Ruugat of the Earth." She replied. "That happened weeks ago." Solus tilted her head in confusion. "Why the sudden interest?" "Because I thought it was another of your tower miracles until Malyshka here told me that’s just part of the truth." Silverwing said. "That Lith is an evolved human just one step behind Valeron." "So what?" Solus asked. "So, he’s also one step behind me." Silverwing didn’t know whether Solus was playing dumb or if she just didn’t care. "So, maybe you and Lith can help me unlock my apex form. "It shouldn’t be identical to Valeron’s, but since he was also a human, our apex forms should be very similar. I was hoping you could convince Lith to give me a hand." "I don’t see that happen. Lith is the kind of guy who can hold a grudge indefinitely." Solus replied. "Besides, why do you need our help?" "It’s easier if you look at my life force yourself." Silverwing said. "Okay." Solus nodded and opened a Warp Steps leading to the outskirts of the Trawn Wood, and from there she used the Warp Mirror to move everyone to the Infirmary. "Place your hand on the crystal, please." The First Magus extended her arm and forced her body into a fully physical form to hide the secret of the white core from the Infirmary’s diagnostics. By the time the Hands of Menadion flooded her with world energy that the Ears and Eyes could easily detect, all traces of the communion between the First Magus’ body and mana core were gone. The holographic screen displayed a life force that resembled a colossus comprised of countless white threads that pulsed with emerald energy generated by a mana organ that overlapped with her heart. Solus recognized a few mana organs that Silverwing and Lith had in common, but the similarities between them ended there. The First Magus had no elemental sphere in her head or anywhere else. There were no whirlpools on her back, and the total count of her mana organs was below Ryla’s. "How is this possible?" Solus was flabbergasted. "This makes no sense." "I agree." Silverwing plopped on the nearest chair. "I never heard about apex forms before we raided the World Tree. I discovered my mana organs long ago, but after trying and failing to activate most of them, I gave up. "I had eternity to live and was in no rush. My naïve perspective shattered when Yaga told me that you and Verhen run circles around me and that I’m sitting on the untapped mine of my potential. "I’ve tried everything I could think of, again, before coming here. I’m not used to begging, and I don’t know if I could live with it, so please don’t force me to do it, Solus." "What about Malyshka?" Solus asked. "I don’t know anything about Valeron’s apex form aside from how destructive it was." The Maiden replied. "We weren’t on good terms due to my children, and he didn’t live long enough for me to get to know him better. "As for Lochra, I would love to help her, but everything I’ve learned about human evolution I owe it to you, Quylla, Ryla, and Lith. I won’t betray the secrets of one friend just to unlock those of another." "And for that, you have my thanks." Solus gave her friend a deep bow. "I can talk to Lith about this, Loka, but I don’t think he’ll agree unless you put something of equal value on the table." "What? Why?" Silverwing asked in outrage. "Sure, I tried to kill him once, but so did Dawn, and now they are on good terms." "No, they are on speaking terms." Solus replied. "And only because Dawn taught me and is teaching me everything I know about telepathic defenses. I let her approach me because I needed her. She never asked me anything from me or Lith."