The palace's style followed the Stone Forest we've been through all the way, bearing the typical elven architectural style.
It mostly employed gold and green colors, the gold being an elegant hue and the green a light shade like that of freshly sprouted buds. High columns flanked the entrance, adorned with vine and flower carvings.
It was a pity, though, that the contamination here seemed even stronger than in the Stone Forest. Although it hadn't completely turned into the dark red color seen elsewhere, the building's exterior looked as if it had been splattered with blood, speckled with dark red mottling.
"Suddenly, Lillian spoke, "Legends say that during the war a thousand years ago, human wizards who had helped the Elf Clan were invited to the Elf Kingdom."
"And every wizard who visited the Elf Kingdom returned obscure in their words, yet they all mysteriously mentioned a grand palace filled with rare treasures!"
"Is this, by any chance, that palace?" Colin's gaze shifted, subtly focusing on the location given by Anando's Dice.
"I think it very likely is..." Lillian said, pursing her lips before adding, "The palace is what I most hope to find here."
"Thank you, Colin. If you hadn't keenly noticed, I would have never imagined that there could be new places above the blue sky..."
Lillian fell silent for a moment, then continued with sincere tone.
"No need to thank me, Senior Lillian... It was just a sudden inspiration on my part."
Colin was taken aback by her sudden acknowledgment, showing a hint of surprise on his face.
Above the blue sky lay another layer... a concept most people wouldn't consider, a limitation of their thinking.
At the beginning, he hadn't thought of it either, just vaguely sensed it, until this time Anando's Dice narrowed down the location and he dared to be certain.
"Being overly modest isn't a good thing, Colin," Lillian said with a soft laugh, as two faint dimples appeared on her delicate, pale face, forming a sweet smile.
It was a rare expression to see on Lillian's face.
"That flame shield earlier, and the Silent Spell you are using now... both are witchcraft I've never seen before.
But judging from their effects, they are at least Middle First Rank witchcraft.
However, if I'm not mistaken, you have just Advanced to First Rank Wizard less than a month ago..."
She went on, lips curling slightly, as if ice was melting, turning her stern serious face suddenly animated, looking at Colin mischievously.
Colin stayed silent, just smiling lightly.
In reality, Silent Spell was only a Lower First Rank witchcraft on the Golden Paper.
Perhaps because it combined two different effects it seemed special, leading Lillian to believe it was at least Middle First Rank witchcraft.
As for Lillian noticing his exceptional Talent in mastering witchcraft... that wasn't really an issue, and he had no intention of hiding it from her.
Lillian watched the silent Colin with a smile, then averted her gaze and continued as they walked towards the entrance of the palace:
"Let's go, in the legends, those wizards that visited the Elf Kingdom's palace each obtained their own treasures!
In other words, the Treasure Vault of the Elf Clan, at least of the High Level Elf Clan, is likely right inside this palace!"
Lillian's tone was exuberant, sweeping away her previous despondency.
Colin's heart also lightened a bit, at least with the effect of Anando's Dice, he knew that the palace before them indeed contained treasures.
When they approached the palace, they found the grand doors wide open... forcefully opened.
The left side of the golden door was barely hanging on, and a hole large enough for a person gaped in its lower half.
In front of the door, there were clear traces of combat, with two shattered Elf statues lying in the middle.
Lillian's brows furrowed as she cautiously examined the scene then turned to Colin:
"The marks are fresh... Colin, you were right. The reason we couldn't find that third party is probably because they've come here!"
"It's highly likely they're inside the palace." Colin nodded, examining the fresh combat traces before them carefully.
These fresh marks, combined with the results from Anando's Dice.
If there were no fourth party within the Elf Kingdom, then it undoubtedly meant that the fourth precious location revealed by Anando's Dice was where the elusive third party had been!
With this thought, he couldn't help but look up into the void in front of the palace... there, was the second location given by Anando's Dice.
"The group's strength seems to be not weak," Lillian added, her demeanor turning serious again.
Pointing at the elf-like sculptures at her feet, she said, "Even though these gatekeeper sculptures have fallen into disrepair over the years, as the gatekeepers made by the Elf Clan in the past, they surely wouldn't be weak."
While speaking, Lillian reached out to touch the smooth, milky-white ground.
Under the effect of the Silent Spell, her fingertip's contact with the ground made no sound, but the next moment, a shallow depression appeared on the stone surface.
Lillian withdrew her arm and looked again at the combat traces around her, musing for a moment before she conjectured:
"Those people must possess at least First Rank Advanced strength… At least the attacks they used here, at the entrance, are roughly First Rank Advanced... And from the traces of battle, it seems there was only one person."