The Castle in the middle of nowhere.

"You were mistaken, Akh'ila."

"Shut up, Ertu..." Akh'ila replied but turned away her gaze in shame.

"No. I won't." The man in front of her sat on the couch and rested his chin over his hands with a grim expression. "You have violated the rules of The World's Words. You have killed the Mortals without a warning or even without a solid reason. It's one thing doing something like that with the hands of your believers, but it's completely different when you do it yourself. What were you thinking?"

"It's not a problem." She shrugged off the accusations. "The World's Words won't retaliate."

"Oh, I know. They don't have to." He eyed the woman for a moment before giving her a cold look. "She will."

"She's but a child! Don't make me laugh!" The woman smacked the table, hissed painfully, and massaged her hurt hand. Despite that, she added defiantly, "I will take everything from her..."

"How many of her faithful have you killed? Huh? How many temples or even chapels have you destroyed?" He interrupted her in annoyance.

"Six followers for now..." Akh'ila admitted, but then she brightened. "But she has only one temple..."

"Oh, yes. Only one." The man covered his eyes and rested his head back on the couch. "And what a temple it is... It's the biggest and grandest temple, yet I have never dared to see it in person. I dared not get close to that ominous city, for the monster living there probably wouldn't be in a mood to even listen to me. You have awakened the dragon, Akh'ila..."

"One temple is just one temple," she defiantly and proudly pointed it out.

"Are you even listening!?" He smacked the table so hard he toppled a bottle of wine.

"I hear you..." She shrugged and smiled confidently. "But look where my temple is."

Ertu gave her an incredulous look and fell silent. He blinked a few times as if testing her seriousness before slowly standing up. She observed him with a satisfied smirk as he paced around the room. She wanted to say something about her power when Ertu simply touched the wall. He crushed the wall with his bare hand and let out the most disappointed exhale she had ever heard.

"You fool..." He threw himself on the luxurious sofa again, causing the furniture to creak in protest. "I don't want to hear your boasting anymore. Tell me everything you know about the Deity you have challenged..."

"I know only that she is young..." Akh'ila yawned, bored by Ertu's childish behaviour. The wall he destroyed was almost completely rebuilt.

"For the Heavens, Akh'ila!" He tugged on the bridge of his nose. "Listen to me very, very closely. I will tell you everything I know because you are the only Goddess powerful enough to help me salvage this situation. But you can't help me if you die."

"Please..."

"SHUT UP!" He shouted at her so loudly that his voice shot the dust around the room. "The Goddess that you challenged and angered is named Verka. She is the daughter of Vali and Tisiphone."

Akh'ila, whose face so far showed only a hurt pride, paled considerably. The two Gods of Vengeance were once one of the most powerful Gods in the entire world. To think they had a daughter... She suddenly felt very thirsty and took a generous sip of water. Her hands were shaking, making Ertu nod with a faint smile.

"I see you finally start acknowledging the gravity of your situation."

"I admit it's a shock. No one heard about those two for decades..."

"What is a few decades for us?" He scoffed at her.

"Good point. That explains why Jukk'nala and Hur'zhun have failed to subjugate that minor kingdom..."

"Hahahahaha!" Ertu covered his eyes with his hand while he bitterly laughed. "Oh, you naïve... We will get to that. So... It seems that Vali and Tisiphone are very much alive, but they gave up their powers to Verka. She inherited their powers and status rightfully and became a focus of faith while you just usurped the tiniest part of it. To be honest, you are partly right... Verka is still young, but her power is vast. Vali would have been tearing down your puny temple by now. Tisiphone would have hunted you and taken away everything dear to you. But Verka... No. You see, she is somehow connected to the monster I mentioned earlier. She works differently."

He looked at the surroundings in amusement and coldly smiled, making her shiver. "You are surrounded by trash, Akh'ila, while Verka has a part of the Temple but lives in a mansion that any King or Queen would instantly have called their palace. According to everything I learnt, Avalon is a place where roads are paved with gold and rivers run with gemstones."

"But only a part of a Temple?" She couldn't fathom the idea of sharing a temple with anyone.

"Yes, Akh'ila... Verka does not need a temple, and she does not need priests... Thousands of fearsome warriors call her name each day. They are her faithful followers and priests. Each one of them has built a temple for her in a part of their souls... And you? But this is not even the scariest part. Oh, no..."

Akh'ila trembled, realising how much she screwed up. She silently observed Ertu, wondering why he bothered to tell her about all this. Was it because only she could help him? Or was there another reason? She took a deep breath to calm herself and looked at him timidly, begging him with her gaze to continue. He seemed more serious than ever, desperate even.

"The most terrifying part is the place she lives in. Now it's time to tell you the bits I know about that mysterious monster. And there is not much." He cackled nervously. "About nine months ago, the heavens split open. The Castle of Blood Dungeon was obliterated, and a new Dungeon took its place: the Righteous Dungeon. Ever since, the entire world has slowly changed, and even you should have noticed that. The air changed; it became lighter and fresher than ever before. Stagnant mana started flowing as if the Pulse of the World had been returning. And finally, Cridia fell. As we have suspected, the Acolytes of the Uncleans were among its rulers. They all have fallen in the Righteous Dungeon. They all have died in Avalon."

Akh'ila's face was covered in cold sweat, and her heart was beating like crazy, but Ertu was also pale. "Avalon... I saw it from a distance and dared not to come any closer. The city, if that formidable fortress could be called a city any longer, is surrounded by flatlands and forests in all directions. I called it a fortress not without reason; it has three rings of gigantic walls and two moats. Within this city lies the Temple that you laughed so much about. It's called the Grand Temple of Avalon, and it's devoted to Gods Verka, Zephyr, Hera, Zeus, Hestia, and Eriar."

"I didn't know..." she whispered.

"I know." Ertu's voice was soft and comforting.

"So that's why the Acolytes were destroyed, so many Gods..."

"No. There is something or someone who wields a power so terrifying that even the Dungeon obeys him... Her. I don't even know that for sure! I will reply; the Dungeon obeys them. It's frustrating, but the city is protected by powerful barriers, spells, runes, and Heavens only knows what else. I managed to understand only a small shard of that protection magic, and I'm not even sure how to properly describe it. Nonetheless, I will try. You see, one of the effects cast around that entity is to prevent its identity from being exposed. The effect is so absurd that even if I knew who or what that monster was and I told you, you would forget as soon as you learned. Most likely, only those who have been informed directly by it would sustain that knowledge. The other protection barriers are exceptionally strong. I don't even know where to start if I want to learn more about the city. That's why no one can spy on Arcadia."

"How... Brilliant." Akh'ila sighed begrudgingly and slowly nodded her head. "But I guess the Acolytes would easily overcome such a thing..."

"We can't know that for sure." Ertu angrily waved his hand to cut any unproductive speculations.

"However, if that King is living in the Dungeon, we can simply provide it with enough mana to rebel against that man..."

"Now, now..." Ertu chuckled. "Now the funny part begins. The King of Arcadia is named Theon Avalon."

"Like that city?" Another voice asked, velvety and calm.

"Yes." Akh'ila nodded towards the dark figure in the room's entrance. "Shadow, how would your Core react if someone did something like that? I was under the impression that something like that would deeply offend the Dungeon."

"It would..." Shadow dryly replied. "But the Dungeon you speak of is young. It may not be able to defy the Mortals that inhabit it. The City may be big, but surely the young Dungeon has access only to the most basic of the resources. It wouldn't be a problem to raze it..."

"Don't make me laugh..." Ertu looked at Shadow. "You won't understand without seeing it. The most basic materials? Do you call the enchanted stones a basic material? If so, then why won't your master reinforce this entire city with it? Avalon has mighty walls and shields that can withstand any siege for years. The magi-cannons on the walls are ready to rip apart any enemy foolish enough to come close to that city. And finally, it has thousands upon thousands of unquestionably loyal soldiers. And that is just a single city... Theon Avalon somehow is controlling at least seven Dungeons."

"In that case, the monster you speak of is none other than Theon Avalon himself," Shadow replied hesitantly, as if even admitting something like that was unthinkable. "What about Jukk'nala and Hur'zhun?"

"I don't know for sure what happened with Hur'zhun," Ertu admitted. "But..." He exhaled heavily and looked as if he couldn't believe what he was about to say. "But Jukk'nala is dead."

"What?!" Akh'ila dropped the glass she was holding. It bounced two times before it smashed into hundreds of pieces. "How?! He had so many believers; even if his shell was killed, he should simply create a new one..."

"I don't know." Ertu just shook his head. "But he was somehow permanently killed."

"Maybe someone from the Arcadian Pantheon..." Akh'ila suggested with a voice that almost begged for it to be true.

"No." The man sighed. "Hestia was with the Arcadian army that besieged the Cridian Capital as Queen of Avalon. Zephyr and Zeus were seen there as well. I have no idea where Hera and Verka were back then, but they weren't in Avalon because I fully focused on Jukk'nala's visit. No God or Goddess was present in the City back then. I dared to use the most subtle tracking spell on one of the diplomats who accompanied Jukk'nala, so I know for sure they had met with Theon Avalon. Shadow is probably right. The monster I fear is probably the King of Arcadia..."

"Jukk'nala was very powerful. If Theon Avalon was able to kill him, it means he is Hggsswygb." Shadow's last word was unintelligible.

"What did you just say?" Ertu tilted his head.

"I said he is Hfueiolnf," Shadow replied patiently, but the last word was once again distorted beyond recognition.

"I don't know what you're saying..." Akh'ila said and shook her head in disbelief.

"Oh, I see... The effect you talked about. So, I guess I'm right. I'm..." Shadow stopped and suddenly sounded uncertain and even disturbed. "What was I talking about?"

"As you can see, even the scion of your friendly Dungeon is affected by that monster's power..." Ertu gritted his teeth, enraged that he was so close to learning something important about the enemy and yet failed to do so. With anger, he realised that he had forgotten something important they had all come up with.

"No matter..." Shadow sounded bored. "Mortals can't hope to win against a Dungeon..."

"Oh, no..." Akh'ila whispered and slowly put her hands on her head.

"What?" Ertu looked alarmed at her.

"The three warriors that died after they purified my chapels weren't mortals... I thought they were some kind of familiar but... But what if they were monsters of the Righteous Dungeon?"

"Then we must prepare..." Shadow admitted, suddenly disappearing.

Ertu sat in silence, still covering his mouth with his hand. Akh'ila, on the other hand, was shaken, and she slowly rocked in her seat, holding her head with her hands. A peal of distant thunder made them both shiver, and Ertu noticed that Akh'ila was quietly sobbing.

"She told me that she was coming for me..."

"What if you surrender and apologise?"

"Hahahaha..." She laughed bitterly. "What would you do if the enemy god begged you for your mercy, knowing that whatever you do will be accepted by the World's Words?"

"We still have to try..."

•••

The ships were sailing through the empty sky, majestically and in a wide, almost parade-like formation. Verka was sitting in the Admiral's quarters near the open window. She folded her legs and stared into the distance with an empty gaze. The unease in her heart ran shivers down her body, and she hated that. Deep down, she despised her weakness, and she hated that fear. She absentmindedly touched the necklace and closed her grip around the gemstone. It was the single piece of jewellery she wore, and as much as she wanted to lie to herself that it was only because of all the protective enchantments the intricately shaped emerald provided, it would be a lie. It was a gift she obtained from Theon. Verka smiled. The fact he wed her auntie technically made him her uncle. But he was more than that. He was someone she could finally call a reliable friend.

"My Lady?" A soft, concerned voice interrupted her.

"Come in, Admiral." Verka rested her head on the chill glass of the half-opened window and continued staring into the distance.

"We will arrive at our destination in less than two hours." The Elf walked in, but instead of angering Verka with formalities, she shocked her with the casualty. Janet Sparrow has simply sat down near the table and locked her gaze with hers. "You seemed troubled, Goddess Verka."

"I am... The Deity that challenged me probably laid down another trap. I'm afraid that many of you might die."

"We are the soldiers of Arcadia." The Admiral shrugged without much concern. "We are no strangers to death."

"But still, you are Mortals..." Verka sighed as her discomfort grew.

"During our lives, we face death many times. Earlier, we were despised and spat on by everyone. Until King Theon changed everything. He gave us all our dignity back, hah, not only that; he gave us all our lives back." Janet's cheeks turned red as she realised something, and the Elf lowered her head in apology. "I'm sorry..."

"No, no..." Verka's eyes shone with the burning desire to learn more. Could it be that she might find some Mortals that she could call friends? "Please, go on."