The Father's Whereabouts

The two chatted for a few more moments, finished their drinks, and headed to their respective rooms to rest.

Matt remained immersed in the excitement of their victory, humming an ancient war song as he walked, while Kalei, heavy with exhaustion and thoughts of the future, slowly made his way to his bedroom.

Having been busy for a full day and night, Kalei was utterly drained and fell into a deep sleep the moment his head hit the pillow.

In his dreams, he seemed to return to that soul space, but this time, there were no eerie eyeballs—only a tranquil starry sky and pristine white earth.

When Kalei awoke from his slumber, it was already the latter half of the following night.

He opened his eyes to hear a familiar voice: "You're awake."

Kalei turned his head to find a large Black Raven perched by his window, preening its feathers.

The moonlight shone upon the raven's sleek plumage, reflecting a faint luster that made it appear both mysterious and elegant.

Kalei quickly asked, "Thisalee, you've returned. Did anything happen? What became of that Satyr leader?"

Thisalee replied languidly, "Regrettably, I followed that fellow far to the north, but he still managed to escape. However, you needn't worry; I have already notified the Cenarion Circle. They will coordinate with the Forest Keeper of Moonglade to monitor that region and ensure the safety of the forest."

Kalei's heart stirred as he asked, "The north you speak of—is it the Ironwood Forest?"

Thisalee shook her head. "Not the Ironwood Forest; it is further north. I am referring to the Fractured Scar Valley. The terrain there is complex, filled with broken canyons and steep cliffs—the perfect place to hide."

Kalei said, "Fractured Scar Valley... I suggest you search further north along the valley. When I was tracking Ordos, I heard him mention a location north of the Fractured Scar Valley called something like the Fel Fire Path. The name alone suggests a connection to the Fel Fire Valley; perhaps it is another lair of the Satyr."

Thisalee remarked, "Fel Fire Path... that place is indeed highly suspicious. Very well, I will pass this information to Moonglade and have them investigate it thoroughly."

Kalei added, "You had best tell them to be careful. It may not be as simple as it seems."

Thisalee replied, "Understood. Let us set that aside for now. How is your curse?"

Kalei stretched and said, "The curse is gone; Priestess Laria has already cleansed it for me."

Thisalee asked, "Is that so? That curse was no simple matter. Did you encounter any trouble?"

Kalei shook his head. "No, everything went smoothly." He did not tell her about Xavius for the time being, lest she also be targeted by him.

As they spoke, a sudden commotion erupted outside.

Kalei asked, "What is happening out there? Why is it so noisy?"

Thisalee chuckled, "What, you don't know? The news of the Sentinel Corps' great victory in the Fel Fire Valley has spread throughout Maestra Town, and the citizens are preparing for a grand celebration."

So that was it. Kalei was not surprised; Night Elf society was like that—much like their cousins, the High Elves, they were always throwing feasts to celebrate.

Thisalee teased, "You don't seem very concerned, considering you are the protagonist this time."

Kalei asked in surprise, "I am the protagonist?"

Thisalee laughed, "As the greatest hero of this battle, if you aren't the protagonist, then who is?"

Kalei waved his hands quickly. "Thisalee, please don't mock me. I didn't even participate in the actual battle."

Thisalee said, "Though you did not fight, you discovered these Satyr and risked your life alongside me to scout information on them. Who could say you had no part in this victory?"

Kalei smiled. "In that case, I suppose I did contribute. But enough about me—what about you? If we are talking about contributions, yours were the greatest."

Thisalee said without false modesty, "I did indeed play a vital role in this battle, but I will not be attending the banquet. I have many things to do and cannot waste time here."

Kalei asked, "Are you here to say goodbye?"

Thisalee smiled. "Yes. I am very glad to have shared this adventure with you, and I hope we can cooperate again in the future."

Kalei replied promptly, "It is my honor."

Thisalee flapped her wings. "Very well, I must be off. Farewell, Kalei." With those words, she vanished from his sight in the blink of an eye.

Kalei raised his hand, wanting to ask, "What about my Magic Backpack?" But in the end, he felt too embarrassed to bring it up.

Yet, at that very moment, a palm-sized object fell from the sky and landed precisely on his bedside.

It was an exquisite little bag, embroidered with intricate runes that glowed faintly in the moonlight.

Kalei grabbed the item, weighed it in his hand, and his mouth curled into a grin.

You have discovered the magical item: Magic Backpack.

Name: Magic Backpack

Quality: Excellent

Normal Effect: Can contain 2 square meters of items

Special Effect: None

Description: A spatial bag crafted using ancient Elven Empire technology; cannot store living creatures.

The following day, just as Thisalee had said, the residents of Maestra Town erected a massive stage in the central plaza and held a grand ball to pay tribute to the heroes who had suppressed the Satyr.

Kalei was honored to be one of the protagonists, sharing the spotlight with his old acquaintances, Arenia and the ranger Jinli.

The three had not expected to meet again so soon after the Furbolg crisis. Arenia was still her usual aloof self, though her attitude toward Kalei had improved significantly, while Jinli was much more vibrant and even insisted on taking Kalei on an adventure.

Because Kalei had achieved two great feats in just a month or two, his reputation in Maestra spread thoroughly after the banquet—whether it was the street vendors, the priests in the temple, or even the high-ranking officers at the fortress, everyone would nod and smile at him with deep respect.

Kalei was unsure if this was a blessing or a curse. He did need influence to change the current state of the Night Elves, but he also feared that having too much fame would make him a target for those with ulterior motives. One could only say that everything has its pros and cons.

Kalei attended banquets in Maestra for three consecutive days. Unable to bear the endless stream of invitations from the citizens, he bid his teacher farewell on the evening of the fourth day, mounted Big Black, and quietly returned to Moonshadow Village.

Kalei had originally feared that the villagers of Moonshadow Village might have learned of his news, but in reality, he had underestimated the insularity of these rural folk; they were almost entirely indifferent to news from cities over a hundred kilometers away.

This provided Kalei with some measure of comfort. He spent a peaceful day at home with his mother, and the next day, he set out to search for his father's whereabouts near Fel Fire Valley, following the clues he had obtained from Ordos.

Kalei was already familiar with the road from Moonshadow Village to Fel Fire Valley. He departed at nine in the evening, riding Big Black, and after traveling for an hour or two, he arrived at Fel Fire Valley.

Following the war from a few days prior, many traces of battle still remained within Fel Fire Valley. Kalei took a glance from the outside and, without lingering, followed the mountain range bordering the valley to search for the waterfall Ordos had mentioned.

Since the area around Fel Fire Valley connected to the Mount Hyjal Range, it was filled with deep mountains and canyons. It took Kalei nearly an hour of searching before he finally found a waterfall on the north side of Fel Fire Valley.

Kalei rode Big Black around the cliff edge above the waterfall several times, but finding nothing, he followed the cliffside down to the base of the waterfall.

Below the waterfall was a pool of water, and in front of the pool lay a sizable canyon flanked by steep, towering cliffs on both sides.

Kalei dismounted and stood by the edge of the pool, looking up toward the top of the waterfall. He roughly estimated the total drop to be about twenty or thirty meters. For an ordinary human from Earth, jumping from such a height—even into a pool—would be a brush with death.

However, the intelligent races on the Azeroth Continent were different. Azeroth was a world of magic, and the physical constitution of the intelligent races in a magical world naturally could not be compared to those of ordinary worlds.

On the Azeroth Continent, even the physically weakest humans were more than twice as fit as humans on Earth. The Night Elf possessed even better physical constitution than humans; jumping from this waterfall, one might still survive with a bit of luck.

Furthermore, Kalei's father was a Druid. Although he was only a novice, as long as he could cast a spell to protect himself during the fall, his survival rate would increase significantly.

Kalei calculated in his heart and felt that the possibility of his father surviving was high, but for the sake of caution, he decided to carefully inspect the area around the waterfall.

Although forty years had passed since his father jumped from the waterfall and ordinary methods could no longer detect any traces, a Druid naturally had a Druid's ways.

He cleared his mind, sat cross-legged beneath the waterfall, and released the natural energy within his body, probing the conditions around the waterfall bit by bit.

After nearly two hours of meticulous searching, he finally had a result. He opened his eyes, took off his coat, and jumped into the pool to search carefully. Soon, in a corner of the pool, he found a massive vine that had been almost completely rotted by the water.

He took the vine, left the pool, and climbed onto the bank, smiling as he looked at it.

Now he could be certain that his father was likely still alive after jumping from the waterfall, and this vine was the proof.

This vine indicated that after jumping from the cliff, his father had immediately cast Entangling Roots onto the cliff face behind the waterfall. Then, during his descent, he had grabbed the vine that grew out from the cliff face due to the Entangling Roots and landed in the pool below.

Although the vine eventually snapped, causing his father to suffer a significant impact and perhaps even injury upon hitting the water, such injuries would be unlikely to prove fatal to a Night Elf.

He could even guess that after falling into the water, his father did not linger, but immediately cast a Healing spell on himself before running away along the canyon.

But if things were truly as he had surmised, then a new question arose.

Since his father had not died from the jump and had successfully escaped from the Satyr, where had he gone for these past few decades, and why had he not returned home?