The Castle in the middle of nowhere.

Galahad rode in silence, which would have been suffocating if he had cared for such insignificant details. Riding right next to him, emitting a bright hue, was Stella. Her delicate features set her apart from the others around, but like him, the Faé Queen was indifferent to the dreadful aura of this place. The two scions were amidst the fully deployed Legion. The First Legion marched, silent, indifferent, and menacing. Even the predators living among these eternal shadows feared the Legion. But the army wasn't alone. Fenrirs and Greater Wolves of Avalon marched along it, carrying the Faé mages on their backs. The rear formations of that force were guarded by the most formidable of Avalon's servants: the Praetorian Guard.

"There is a significant amount of dark magic in front of us, Galahad," Stella informed briskly, pointing at something beyond their line of sight obscured by the swirling dark mist.

"So, they were speaking the truth."

"Maybe..." A pulse of energy originating from Stella's hand dispelled the swirling fog for a brief moment. "I can't sense anything living under that field."

"Most of the Legion is not alive." Galahad shrugged with a chuckle.

"Since when have you developed a sense of humour?"

"Ha, ha..." He raised his hand, and upon seeing that signal, two detachments of Hussars rushed forward. "I want to test that dome. It's the same as the last one?"

"No. It's much weaker than before."

"Shame..."

"Shame? To crack that protection field last time, we needed the might of three Queens." Stella furrowed her brow. "Are you that delusional, brother, to think we could achieve that without them?"

"Ahhh... I forgot about that part."

In the meantime, the cavalry reached the dome and started attacking it. The details were hard to discern, but it seemed their attacks had no effects.

"Was it wise to send them and lose the element of surprise?" Stella cocked her head and looked at Galahad, who shrugged.

"In terms of this single battle? It was highly unwise. But in terms of the entire campaign? It was a necessary experiment."

"Hmm..." She nodded. "I can accept that reasoning."

The barrier started sizzling with power, and a giant spark smashed the Hussars, instantly vaporising a few of them. The rest of them broke away from the electrocuting barrier a moment later and headed back towards the friendly lines. Stella yelped in shock, her eyes wide, and she flew in the air using her wings.

"Stella?!"

"Use mages to break the barrier! Advance once it's broken!" she cried and sped up.

"Mages!" Galahad yelled towards his soldiers, and he didn't wait long before various mighty spells started to fly over his head.

As before, the dark dome was bombarded by spells. While those couldn't even match a fraction of the power unleashed by the Queens that day, they still contained significant firepower. The Legion artillery joined after a moment needed to deploy, and the shield started waning under the strain. At first, the barrier simply shrunk, but as the minutes passed, it seemed like there was no further progress. Since Galahad couldn't do anything else, he simply watched and wondered where Stella went. He sensed her nearby, so maybe she wanted to observe the dome from up close. There would be plenty of time later to learn why she flew away. Thirty minutes had passed since the beginning of the siege of the dome, and Galahad started wondering if he shouldn't disperse the ranks of the Legion and surround the dome. However, the dome started cracking before he could issue any kind of order. Loud snaps and cracks pierced the silence of the Shadow Realm as bright lines crossed the dome’s surface. In tense anticipation, Galahad waited another fifteen minutes for the dark shield to give up altogether. It eventually snapped with an unpleasant, almost organic plop, releasing the foul odour of death.

"Forward."

The simple order pushed Legio Fulminata into action. Galahad took a better look at the structure guarded by the dome. It was much smaller than the wooden fort surrounding the Dragon's Gate. This time, there were two differently-sized structures instead of one larger one. The smaller one resembled some kind of a warehouse or barn, while the second one was round with a flat roof. The First Legion advanced without finding any opposition, which greatly surprised Galahad. The last time they fought the Devilkins, their army was full of fierce and formidable enemies, not to mention thousands of undead. The eerie silence that welcomed the warriors of Avalon would have been nerve-wracking if the army of monsters had cared for such things. As Galahad got closer, he finally heard the noises of the struggle and headed straight in their direction. On the opposite side of the Devilkin's structures, Stella stood over a creature half her size which was bound by various spells, struggling desperately to break free. It had grey skin with red, vertical, slightly shining lines and bat-like wings. Its red eyes had a small black pupil that sparkled with futile mana discharges as it tried to cast a spell that could break through Stella's magic.

"I see..." Galahad said as he dismounted his horse. "This was the reason for your haste... Didn't you say there was nothing alive under that dome?"

"Humu." She nodded happily, clearly proud of herself. "That creature wasn't under the dome. It was observing the nodule from a distance, and I barely managed to cancel its casting and seal its magic. I dragged it all the way back here."

"That's great..." The General looked at the creature with uncertainty. "I think?"

"It's a magnificent catch, brother!" Stella was overjoyed. "I'm not even sure if it's a person or a trained magic beast, and yet, I had to utilise my full power and use my most powerful spells to capture it alive. We must take that creature immediately to Avalon, and no harm can befall it. It's so precious to us that I value its life over our own."

"Huh? Why so?" Galahad gave her an incredulous look.

"I believe it possesses the teleportation skill." Stella smiled widely.

"Guard it with your life." Galahad addressed the Praetorians, who grabbed the creature and took it away. "What is it?"

"We've never seen one before. According to Cahrona, it's called an Imp." Stella's eyes shone with excitement, but feeling her brother's sudden gloom, she tilted her head. "Something wrong?"

"It's skill, teleportation, would explain how the Devilkin army managed to surround us the last time." The Death Knight King crossed his arms in front of him. "But to leave such a valuable asset alone is at least concerning."

"It may be valuable for us. But perhaps teleportation is a common skill among the Devilkins?" Stella suggested after a moment.

"Perhaps." Galahad agreed with a sigh. "However, according to Cahrona's testimonies, she seemed unaware of teleportation skill holders within their ranks."

"That's true..." Stella got immediately serious. "Why send couriers with reports if you can teleport? Especially when the distance to cover is measured in weeks or months?"

"Indeed, but that's just the beginning. Fighting the army, which has access to teleportation, would be hard at the utmost, and winning against such a foe is nigh impossible. Imagine deploying reinforcements exactly when and where you need them, creating unbreakable supply lines, or providing a flawless means of retreat for your forces. The possibilities are endless... So why would Cahrona Ashes be unaware of such a crucial asset?"

"I agree." The Faé furrowed her brows. "It doesn't make any sense. Cahrona was one of the highest-ranking officers in the Devilkin army. How is it possible she was unaware of such a thing? But that's not the only oddity I noticed. She was oblivious to the real scope of things during her time among her own kin. She had no idea about the tortures and cruelty her kin committed."

"Hmmm... I think we asked the remaining Devilkins the wrong questions." Galahad's voice became ice cold.

"What do you mean?"

"Hopefully, nothing." He waved his hand. "Let's investigate the structures before we report back."

Stella gave him a scrutinising gaze but shrugged and followed her scion brother. Galahad took a look at the Imp, guarded by the Praetorians, and only then did he notice something strange about it.

"Ummm... Stella? Why is that Imp wrapped in a ribbon with a bow?"

•••

The first building they investigated was a smaller barn. It was full of small, dirty cages, and the floor was covered in a thick residue of waste and dirt. Upon closer inspection, they decided to burn the barn after Stella purified it using one of the scrolls provided by Queen Irene. The second building was a sort of sacrificial chamber. Even Galahad, who normally was immune to the horrific sights, paused before entering.

"There is so much lingering suffering in here..." he mused as he passed the mutilated corpses of the victims sacrificed to seal the nodule.

"What could have been the reason for an entire race to resort to such violence and cruelty?" Stella touched the wooden portal to the chamber. "Was it hate? Or was it despair?"

"Or madness." Galahad sighed. "Not all Mortals seemed to be reasonable."

"That's true." Stella shrugged and took out another golden scroll. "I am going to purify this place."

Once again, a pillar of golden light enveloped the place. The malicious aura surrounding the nodule disappeared, giving way to a warm, gentle glow. However, this time, the entire structure, along with the remains of the people, dissolved into nothingness.

"That's it?" Galahad's voice was full of doubts.

"It's the Saintess Blessing. All who had died here were set free and moved away. But we have prepared a little something..." Stella took out a massive boulder from her storage space and began activating various runes etched into it. "Once I finish setting it up and we leave the guardians, we can return home."

"All right..."

The boulder started shining dimly with various colours, and Stella was still chanting under her breath. Galahad looked around to ensure the Legion was ready for an ambush. But the cohorts were vigilant while the cavalry patrolled the perimeter. Suddenly, a low humming noise almost startled the General. As he turned around, he saw his scion-sister examine the boulder with a happy grin.

"What's going on?"

"Once I purified this place, the nodule awakened, and everything seemed to return to the natural order of things." Stella was activating the next layer of runes as she spoke. "It seems that Queen Luna was correct. The nodule is directly powering the guardian stone with mana so we can activate not only defensive but also offensive runes."

"Hmmm... Does it mean that the dark barrier was powered by the nodule as well?"

"No. If I understand the nature of that barrier correctly, it is ritual-based magic. Remember that the Devilkins are trying to seal the Leylines of the World."

"That's true..." Galahad exhaled heavily. "Our predictions were wrong. We expected to find a significant force guarding this place, yet the only thing waiting for us was a single soldier. If not for your swift reaction, it could have fled away and warned the Devilkins. However, I see the logic behind that strategy. No matter how big their army is, they can't protect every single nodule and gate simultaneously. Placing an observer, especially one who can flee using teleportation, is a valid tactic to ambush any unprepared forces."

Stella touched the last of the golden runes and poured her magic into the stone. With an audible 'thump' of dense mana condensation, a large magic circle manifested on the rocky ground. A pale blue light started to dance around it, carving a circle into the stone. The nodule began feeding the circle with mana as if it were alive and recognised the circle as something that might help it.

"We can return home. There are a lot of things we have to report."

"Indeed." Galahad nodded.

After leaving two Skeleton Knights behind, the First Legion began its retreat. The King had designed the Skeleton Knights to be the guards of the Leyline cardinal points. They didn't have to repel any attacks; instead, they simply worked as a crude alert system, where once one of them died, the King would immediately know about the attack. The Guardian Stone would provide a formidable defence of the entire place. Hopefully, it would be enough to stall the enemy for the time needed for the Arcadian army to arrive. There was nothing more to do, so Galahad ordered the retreat.

"I almost wish we had fought them..."

"The King always says that the biggest victories are the ones achieved without fighting." Stella grinned.

"Yes. But he meant diplomacy, Stella."