Maxwell was waiting for his brothers, they haven't returned to the castle yet.

This is not good!

What took them so long to come back?

He's getting worried about them. The birds...he can send them to find his brothers if they won't still return in the next hour. Then used them to spy on the enemy during day time!

Yes! That's what he should be doing!

Why did he fail to think about those birds' usefulness?

If they can't still return, he has to send the birds out there to check on what happened to them. But why wait? Why not do it now?

It's near the break of dawn. His brother can't stay longer outside, they will perish under the heat of the sun!

He's been staying in the waiting room and was not able to have a rest. He can't rest unless his brothers are back!

He rose to his feet and went to the bell on the wall and pressed it. He has to call the servant to bring to him the birds.

The old man Damazo appeared in front of the door. "My Lord...do you want anything?" he asked.

"Damazo, bring me the birds, quick!" he ordered.

"Yes, my Lord!" answered Damazo and left, going to get the birds outside the house.

A moment later.

Xenon and Lothaire finally arrived... rushing into the room and sprawled on the sofa.

Maxwell looked at them and examined their bodies for injury, he found none. He released a deep sigh of relief. "Where have you been, guys?" he asked them.

"We're outside... observing the enemies as we agreed upon last night," Xenon answered.

"But why it took you so long to return, guys? I got worried for nothing!" he asked, wanting to smack them for making him worry too much.

"Calm down, brother! We're safe, nothing bad happens to us!" Lothaire interjected.

"So, tell me what happened out there? What did you observe last night?" he asks them, eager to know what they discovered about the enemies.

"I saw seven enemies hovering in the air. I think some of them went invisible mode, that is why we can't locate their exact location. One of them can burn everything using his eyes and hands, the other one can burn anyone with his hands only. There's one Nephilim guy who can command the lightning and thunder. As for the rest, they were using powerful swords to dispose of the dark shadows and the monsters," explained Xenon.

"And how about those invisible beings? What are they doing? What are their weapons?" Maxwell asked curiously.

"I think they are using some kind of poison, the deadly type. We have never seen them but we can sense that they seemed to stay near the opening and released the poison. However, we can't pinpoint exactly what kind of weapon or poison they are using..." Lothaire replied.

Maxwell was silent for a moment. "It looks like our enemies are powerful beings!" he commented. "Wait...did you see Esmeralda around the castle last night?" he asked remembering her suddenly.

Xenon and Lothaire shook their head. "No - we didn't," they replied in unison.

"I didn't see Esmeralda last night, but I have a feeling that she was there the whole time. I just can't see her..." Lothaire answered.

"Maybe, she went invisible mode," Xenon took a wild guess.

"You could be right!" Maxwell agreed.

"If we keep releasing monsters and dark armies and our enemies keep slaughtering them. I wonder how will this end?" Lothaire said.

Maxwell smiled. "Brothers...don't worry. Our enemies need to rest, eat, and sleep too. We have been releasing monsters during night time. I guess, they are weakest during day time. Let's changed our time of releasing monsters, let's released them during daytime for a change," he said.

"So...how are we going to dispose of the ones that have been patrolling the area around the castle so that they can not inform their comrades that we are releasing the monsters during the daytime?' asked Xenon.

Maxwell grinned. "Leave it to me. I have a better plan running inside my head right now," he assured them.

"What is it, brother?" Xenon asked curiously.

"I will use my birds to hunt for those who are spying around the castle. I'm sure those Nephilim men have stationed someone to watch over the castle and spy on our activities. That is how ready and efficient they are," Maxwell said.

Xenon nods his head. "I guess you are right on that matter, brother."

Maxwell saw the old servant Damazo brought the two birdcages outside the glass door. "Just leave the cages on the floor and you may take your leave," he told him.

"Do you need anything else, my Lord?" Damazo asked while putting the cages on the floor and pushing them forward with the stick passing through the invisible blazing barrier.

"Nothing for now. I will ring the bell if I have some task for you to do later," Maxwell replied.

"Okay, I'll take my leave now," Damazo said and left the room.

Lothaire eyed the birds. "What are your plans with the birds, brother?"

Maxwell smirk. "Well...I'll tell you later after I'm done with my ritual. These birds can help us eliminate some of those spy lurking around the castle. Since the birds are harmless creatures, those dumb stupid Nephilim assassin wouldn't pay much attention to such small creatures hovering above the branches of the trees, which is going to be their downfall eventually," he bragged.

Lothaire smiled devilishly. "Hmm...I can smell victory from now on, brother. What you have in mind must be a brilliant idea!" he roared.

"Exactly! I can't want to see the result of my little experiment. It's gonna be spectacular!" Maxwell boasted.

"Whatever it is, I wish you good luck, brother. I hope we won't fail this time," Xenon said, standing up. "I'm going to my room to rest," he said yawning.

"Wait..." Maxwell said.

"What is it?" asked Xenon.

"Based on what you have observed last night, do you think we still have monsters and dark armies left alive everywhere?" he asked.

Lothaire and Xenon looked at each other.

"Hmm...based on my observation and analysis, I think they all have perished under the hands of the enemies," replied Xenon.

Maxwell looked at Lothaire. "How about you?"

"Honestly, I thought the same," Lothaire responded quickly to his brother's question.

Maxwell sighed a little bit and shrugged his shoulder. "Well...let's just accept our defeat. They're simply a great and powerful fighter. Anyway, the war is not over yet! The real battle has just begun..." he said with a wicked smile forming on his lips.

"We're going to our room to rest, brother," Xenon said and he left the room together with Lothaire.

Maxwell nods his head and looked at the four birds inside the cage, his eyes gleaming with his devious plan.

Grinning evilly, he picked up the two cages, going to the ritual room.

~

Meanwhile, on the island, 8:00 in the morning.

The guys gathered around the front yard of the house, their faces were filled with worries because Grandpa Jegun failed to return to the island.

Everyone returned to the island safely after the battle with the monsters last night, except for Grandpa Jegun.

He is missing!

He usually goes home with any of them. This time he failed to return to the island!

The gloomy atmosphere surrounding them squeezed their hearts and minds painfully. They feared the worst already. What if he was slain by the monsters or one of the dark shadows and his dead body was lying somewhere around the castle?

That was the question that's been running in their heads right now, but no one is brave enough to express their concerns in words.

"Where could he be at this hour?" asked Zemeth in bewilderment.

"Normally, he should be here by now," Agran said in an agitated voice, his worried face exposed his fears inside.

Ramza patted Agran's shoulder. "Don't worry, Grandpa will return soon. Maybe he went somewhere...or maybe he was at the mountain right now. I'll go there now and check if he's there," he said and left.

"Agran, we're going back to the castle to find Grandpa there. If we found him, we will bring him here. And we will inform you right away if we didn't find him as well," Simus said. He looked at Ogeme, Bhork, and Dredo. "Let's go, guys!" he spoke to them.

The men took their leave and disappeared from the island.

~

On the mountain.

Ramza finally arrived. He saw Aspen coming out of the house. He called him. "Bro, did Grandpa Jegun come here?" he asked.

Aspen shook his head. "No. But why are you asking if he came here? Where is Grandpa Jegun? Did something happened to him?" he asked anxiously.

"We have not seen him since last night during the battle. We have no idea where he is at this moment. I thought he come here - that is why I'm here to check on him," Ramza said.

"This is not good!" Aspen said loudly. "C-could he be injured somewhere by the monsters or by the dark shadows?" he asked in a fearful voice.

"I hope not!" Ramza said feeling concerned and bothered by Grandpa's disappearance.

Aspen sighed deeply. "Come inside the house and drink some tea," he offered. "Don't worry, I'll help you find Grandpa," he offered.

Ramza went inside the house with Aspen and settled in the living room.

They didn't see Esmeralda coming towards them. She can see the distress on their faces. "What's wrong, guys?" she inquired.

"Grandpa Jegun went missing since last night," Ramza answered.

"Whaaat-?" Esmeralda's eyes widened in shock. Her heart beats faster. Oh, no! Not again! She already loses her mentor and now another friend was taken away from them?

This is not good!