Can the sadness that magic cannot take away be offset by love?

At the entrance of each cave, there was a rectangular wooden plaque with blurry characters engraved on it.

Iris turned around and, sure enough, found the same wooden sign in the same spot next to her cave, which read: Residence of Candidates for the Medicine King Valley Entrance Examination.

An entry-level assessment?

This may be related to the upcoming mission.

She carefully stroked the wooden plaque, and with her fingernail scratched at the faintly visible protrusion on the back of the plaque. A small piece of wood fell off, revealing a roll of paper hidden inside the plaque.

At the same time, a broadcast voice came from my mind:

"You have unlocked the B-level dungeon quest: Arrive at the Medicine King Valley entrance assessment location—Praying Incense Square—before 2 PM."

"Reward for completing the task: 100 points."

Only after hearing the broadcast did she have time to unfold the note and read its contents:

"Welcome to register for the Medicine King Valley entrance examination. The examination will be held at Qixiang Square at 2 pm today. Please attend on time."

"Medicine King Valley has always upheld equality and freedom, and looks forward to your joining us."

The phrase "equality and freedom" that was added to the note compared to the quest announcement caught Iris's attention, since dungeons never added useless details.

She put away the note, looked down at the rising mist below, and noticed that the plants that were in contact with the mist looked more dejected than she had seen before. She looked up at the sky surrounded by vegetation in her field of vision, then looked away, lifted her right foot, and was firmly supported by a thin layer of ice formed from ice elements.

She then lifted her other foot, and the same thin ice appeared beneath her feet. In this way, she walked step by step toward the top of the cliff. With each step, thin ice would appear beneath her feet to support her, and after a few steps, the thin ice would naturally dissipate.

As we walked upwards, other figures would occasionally appear among the dense green leaves, each using their own methods to move towards the top of the cliff.

Halfway there, a monk standing beside her raised his hand and threw two balls of fire downwards, igniting the plants below. Those below immediately erupted in a series of angry curses.

The mage stopped and looked up, meeting Iris's gaze. He smiled at her in a friendly manner and said, "Henry Jones."

His companion waved his hand indifferently, creating a barrier beneath their feet to prevent those below from escaping upwards. He then glanced at her, nodded, and continued upwards without a word.

Iris: "..."

Is this a gesture of goodwill or a provocation?

Henry smiled apologetically at her: "My friend, xxxxx, that's just his temper, but he's not a bad person."

Iris wasn't interested in either of them, so she didn't listen carefully to him introduce his friend's name. She only remembered his name because she noticed that he had provoked Angelia before entering the dungeon.

She glanced briefly at the mage tower badge on the other person's chest, then turned and walked away without a word.

Henry's expression stiffened slightly, but he then forced a smile and followed behind her.

Iris couldn't stand someone constantly glancing at her back, pretending to be casual. After walking for a while, she stopped, turned around expressionlessly, and said, "If you keep following me, you can leave the instance now."

Seeing that she seemed serious, Henry quickly greeted her and pulled his friend away in another direction.

As he left, he gave Angelia, who had been watching them intently from a distance, a meaningful smile.

Angelia turned her head to look at Lucius, whom she had just found. He had lost both his parents in an instant just minutes ago, and his brother, whom he relied on, had to withdraw from the competition. The burden on his shoulders suddenly became heavier—to get into the top 10,000, preferably into the bonus round, to gain more chips for his suddenly disadvantaged family, to control the overall score as much as possible to prevent Ernest's score from falling into the top 10,000, and to keep an eye on the Novello family and Iris Adela's movements, as well as the provocations of the Mage Tower team represented by Henry Jones against Angelia, or rather, against the Ramirez family.

—These are the thoughts that Angelia herself has come up with. Lucius may have thought of them, but he may need some time to calm down, even if it's just a few minutes.

Angelia gazed at the other's pupils, which he was forcibly keeping calm, and while temporarily taking on all the responsibility of observation and thought, she considered how long it would be best to let him rest before reminding him of that matter.

He was reminded of their current predicament—given that both family heads had died one after another, the young family head's situation outside the instance was unknown, a powerful enemy force was in the same instance as them, and Iris Adela might not be able to provide them with any assistance in this round.

Henry Jones's provocative attitude towards Angelia was quite obvious, and Iris knew this. She also knew how difficult Lucius and Angelia's situation would be, both openly and secretly, under the current circumstances. However, when Henry Jones took the initiative to talk to Iris, she only showed "disgust" at being disturbed, rather than "hostility" that contradicted his position.

Henry's actions weren't purely a gesture of goodwill, but rather a test of Iris's attitude—how difficult this round will be for the two remaining important players of the Ramirez family, will you offer them help? If so, you'll definitely hate me for making things difficult for them.

The result of the test was that she did indeed hate Henry, but not because of Angelia and Lucius, but simply because she didn't like having anyone following her. Otherwise, she would have gotten rid of him long ago for the sake of Angelia and Lucius, instead of just giving him a warning to get away immediately.

Having realized this, Henry Jones was satisfied, so after receiving the warning, he fled very quickly, not forgetting to provoke Angelia again from a distance in mid-air.

In fact, the departure of the two family heads had a significant impact on Angelia. She was not as calm as she appeared, but she knew she had to hold on—the two family heads were not her biological parents, and she was already feeling so bad, so what about Lucius?

His condition couldn't be much better right now, and it was already quite difficult for him to control his emotions so quickly. She didn't want him to spend any more energy worrying about her feelings.

She calmed herself down by repeatedly analyzing the situation, and as the two continued to rise in mid-air, the chaotic state of her mind eased somewhat.

After the incident, Ernest didn't even have time to leave them a word of advice. The pressure he faced outside was no less than what they faced on the field. Angelia knew very well that they could only rely on themselves this round.