Once upon a time, far from the Wastelands of Larsano-Kano, a conflict erupted between the Kingdom of the Azeralis Lands and the Republic of the Third Patriarchs of Valertaz. A conflict that had lasted for more than thirty-five years, where neither of the belligerents managed to gain ground, despite their strategies, magic, or technologies. The lily firs had lost their whiteness and now wore a scarlet robe due to the blood clouds of the conflict—assuming, of course, they had not been burned during the warring assaults of both nations.
Both states were human, but their difference lay solely in ideology. A war that had begun with their founding fathers: one believed in strength, the other in science. A few insults thrown here and there, and the flames of war were born in the icy plains of the Aldebor Peninsula, islands located at the entrance of the Sea of All Perils.
Nothing changed in this interminable war until the day the Patriarchs, the leaders of the republic, spent their last pennies—while the population was starving to the point of eating one another to live another day—on hiring warriors of immense power, renowned across the globe for their unparalleled ferocity: the army of the protective Faerie Kingdom, the fearsome battle-fairies—and other Faeries—of Sylvania.
Four months and three weeks had passed since the Hero's departure, and many things had changed. Before visiting the lady of his heart, let us turn to another woman who particularly interested him: Avelilinélia Malalalivia Talemilia Grave—Lilinélia to those close to her, Liline to the intimate, and if you are neither, don't be surprised to receive a kick in the behind.
She seemed to be the same woman as when Nalo-vace had departed, but something about her had changed. Her eyes were much duller, they had lost their sparkle...
The army of Sylvania was at rest.
Though the beginning of the battle had gone poorly because their informants had provided false information, the soldiers of Sylvania were celebrating joyfully after the beating they had received. After all, why worry when they had a future strategic prodigy among them? Not to mention her beauty and strength that gave every man in the battalion the motivation to wake up early each morning to see her before she locked herself away in her tent to think up new ways to defeat their enemies with as few deaths as possible—even though many told her not to concern herself with such matters as long as the kingdom won its battles.
This confidence the soldiers had in their strategist was not shared by the person in question. Though the conflict would resume the next day, according to the republic's war council, giving Avelilinélia time to revise the strategy to be implemented against the enemy, she was the most worried person on the battlefield. As stated earlier, the battle had started badly because of false intelligence, for it turned out that the soldiers equipped with extremely formidable robotic machines were not from the republic but from the Azeralisian nation.
Which changed everything.
They had not brought the right troops to face machines that launched explosive projectiles, creating massive craters throughout the territory.
It had been barely three and a half months since Avelilinélia had accepted the role of Karyoten, the chief strategist of the Sylvanian armies, but there was no doubt that the intelligence credited to her by the former queen was not overrated. Of course, she had received accelerated training thanks to the advanced simulation console Audisélia had purchased while waiting for the ministers to approve the kingdom's use of human technology, and she was aided by the former Karyoten, Caemgen Barskersclay, the Minister of Festivities. Still, it had to be noted that she had a certain talent to have managed to minimize losses during the second battle against the kingdom's robots.
She was currently studying the maps of the peninsula to determine how to lead her troops to the enemy base.
"Ugh! If I had Lady Audisélia on hand, I'd send them charging through the battlefield without a care... But could you all just shut up!"
Avelilinélia, alleged mother of fourteen children, hadn't been able to leave two of them behind—children she had taken in after her defeat at the hands of the Hero and after she sang at the Fairy's birthday. They were so attached to her, following her everywhere, that she couldn't bear to part with them, not even to go fight far from home.
"Iiii thiiiinnnk yooouuuu neeeeed tooo shooow moooore reeesssspeeeect tooo oooour foooormeerrrr quueeeeeen," said Caemgen.
"Axcel."
To cast a spell using only one word instead of the full phrase, one must either possess exceptional magical talent or have trained relentlessly to reach a level where full incantations become unnecessary. This proved she had indeed achieved mastered magic.
Caemgen Barskersclay was able to speak at a normal pace again.
"I'd gladly show her more respect, but I'm currently treating every man like a unit, and Lady Audisélia has the same value as the others on my game board, though she would be my legendary champion like in that 'video game' I had to play day and night without stopping, wearing that headset that constantly gave me headaches. How do people play those for hours without migraines? Another proof that humans are far more deranged than us."
"I know," replied the ex-Karyoten. "I'm only teasing. And the game is called 'Emperors and Conquerors VII.' I already told you to be more precise in everything you say, do, or undertake."
"I know. And avoid using that disgusting language in my presence."
Out of morbid curiosity, Avelilinélia had gone to research the dialect used by the fanatics of Marrynélia the Wicked Witch, expecting a demonic language practiced by the greatest demons accompanying Father Wara-gra'teni, one of the many enemies of the divine pantheon whom the second king of Sylvania and other Faeries had confronted—yes, she hadn't taken into account what Beneltig had told her. But she discovered it was merely an ancient human language used by idiotic humans.
"Sorry. It's true these events happened not long ago. Back to our current situation, I explicitly told her not to come so you could handle things without our weapon of mass destruction," he explained, "especially since she must be quite busy with the final stage of the crown race, which resumes in a few weeks. Or maybe she's in a foreign city..."
"You're becoming senile, Caemgen," said Avelilinélia. "The queen has not been with us for some time now..."
Caemgen squinted, then realized his mistake.
"It's true that things have changed for a while now..."
She laid her head on the maps on her table and nervously scratched her scalp.
"I could have had a better battlefield to train on."
"Don't think this is the hardest we'll face," Caemgen Barskersclay told her. "Even Audisélia had to deal with much tougher challenges despite her omnipotence. Just the battle of the blue pistol-shrimps on the ashen shores of Yma gave her far more trouble than other fights against seemingly stronger opponents, and I won't even mention the century-old warriors of Titaline. This is nothing."
"Saying that woman ever struggled in any war or battle sounds like a myth," Avelilinélia commented.
"Then imagine that she was once defeated."
"I've heard things, but even I am not that gullible, Minister Barskersclay. Who could have defeated the one blessed by Eclina?"
"It's a long story. I just wanted to tell you that even our illustrious kings, despite their strength and presence, faced hardships; otherwise, some would still be among us. So don't worry, act with discernment."
Avelilinélia lifted her head and patted her cheeks before returning to work. She wrote a concentration rune on her forehead and threw herself, body and soul, into studying an offensive strategy substantial enough to allow the Patriarchs' army to end this interminable war.
Fifteen minutes later, she suddenly had the idea to study the topography and the underground tunnels of the surrounding islands and found something surprising: she had heard that the two nations, before their separation, were known for their coal and precious metal mines, and what she saw on the maps confirmed what she suspected.
She began drawing on the maps, scribbling a few annotations and checking on other maps whether the route she planned for her army wasn't a dead end. She then presented it to Caemgen, who had been meanwhile caught up in the whirlwind that was Nula and Falo. She explained the plan to the former Karyoten and asked for his approval.
"That's ingenious," he noted. "A most well-crafted tactic. But if we want to implement it, we must begin preparations right away."
Avelilinélia called a soldier outside to serve as a messenger.
"Tell the dwarves and the few strong men we brought to head immediately to mine entrances three, seven, and eight and follow the path outlined on these maps," she ordered. "And have the mages place magical traps on the spots marked with crosses. Ah yes! Go to General Viterberk III and tell his men to prepare to enter the mines from below at the same points."
"Understood, Strategist Grave."
The fairy-soldier took off, skimming the treetops, careful to stay out of reach of a possible hidden sniper. She then delivered the new orders to the designated personnel.
However, so absorbed was Avelilinélia in her strategic analysis that she didn't notice the presence of eavesdropping ears behind her tent. It was an Azeralisian spy, cloaked in an omni-anti-detection cape. He had heard the entire conversation and was about to report to his camp the absence of that faerie demon Audisélia and the new strategy devised by Avelilinélia—though given the racket she made on battlefields, it's a wonder they hadn't noticed her absence sooner.
But as he ran off to warn his generals, a blade slashed across his throat. He only managed to take three steps before collapsing to the ground, clutching his neck in agony, trying to stop the blood from gushing out.
The man who had dealt him this fate was none other than Lelelitio, who was just "passing by"—in short, he hadn't been summoned for this operation. He had left the children in Cassandre's care, who had eventually acquired a maternal instinct from spending so much time with them. Perhaps he hadn't had the honor of being her champion, but he wouldn't pass up the chance to be her guardian angel, her bodyguard... Well, he hadn't quite found the right word to define himself! But what mattered was that he would have her back more than ever! His devotion to this princess he barely knew when he became her champion had rekindled his drive to protect the one he loved.
The next day, Avelilinélia's strategy proved more than effective: thanks to the region's topography, she had determined that the peninsula's mines were connected to both countries and deep enough that the traps placed just below wouldn't flood the underground galleries during their explosions. Thanks to this, the Patriarchs' army could seize the machines that had fallen into the traps laid by the Sylvanian mages and entered the Azeralisian kingdom as Trojan horses—as the holo-computer experts say—and through the underground tunnels. So, instead of taking six months for this war to end with the arrival of the Sylvanian warriors, it ended in six days.
It had been so easy it was almost suspicious, even to Avelilinélia.
"How is it we won the war so easily?" asked the wingless fairy, dumbfounded by the astonishing results.
"Well, because these two kingdoms are stupid," Caemgen explained. "Neither of them checked the layout of their mines, but more importantly, their egos blinded them to the futility of rushing headlong. This is one of those many wars that could have ended much sooner with just one turning point. That's why I lied to you about who had the war machines."
"You lied to me?" snapped the fairy strategist. "How could you do that? We have men fighting on this field!"
"We suffered no casualties, only a few injuries that were easily treated," he justified. "Simulation is fine, but the real thing is different. If you were still playing that video game, you would have sacrificed countless units, making them fight because we gave them our army's stats. But now that you feared the death of your soldiers, now that their lives—not fictional characters with no identity—were in your hands, you tried to find a way to overcome the difficulty. I'm prooooud of youuu."
Axcel had again ended far too quickly, even though she had increased the spell's power to make it last for days on end. Given what Sawyer had told her about her master, she was worried about his health—and she wasn't the only one—but no one dared bring it up.
"I understand. But don't do it again."
"Okaaaay! Comeee, weee muuust goooo seeee the Paaaatriaaarchs toooo claaaim ooour rewaaaard."
"Indeed."
Avelilinélia exited her tent, accompanied by her two mischievous children. The woman who now stood before her soldiers receiving praise for her stratagem was no longer the same who once fought in Sylvania's arena or defended the Slums. Though she had already shown a certain grace and dignity during her duel with the Hero—even amid the grime and squalor—she now possessed a whole new level of charisma. She wore her official Karyoten uniform, crafted by Sylvania's royal tailors: a green dress split at the side, an open belly revealing her toned abdomen adorned with a metallic ring, the neckline rising to her throat, her hair in a cascading half-ponytail and a flat golden headband, with two silver bracelets on her wrists. Thankfully, she had drawn a warming rune on her body—this was not the kind of outfit one should wear in such a cold corner of the world, especially on a wintery archipelago.
The soldiers' lavish praises did little to ease her doubts about her capabilities as a strategist. Avelilinélia still felt the need to lean on Caemgen when facing the many problems before her. She struggled to calculate enemy movements without being able to observe the battlefield firsthand, which plunged her into unbearable uncertainty.
She had no choice but to wait for her soldiers to return—or worse, for the enemy to appear at her camp's gates—to know whether her plans had borne fruit. This weighty situation was compounded by a truth she reluctantly acknowledged: though she was a formidable warrior, she wasn't the exemplary combatant many imagined her to be—she was the first to feel frustrated and sorry about it.
All this made her rather anxious and prone to panic attacks.
Caemgen patted her on the shoulder to reassure her, reminding her to take the soldiers' encouragement as a sign of their faith and a push to keep doing more and to help the generals fight—though today, there were none.
Once she thanked Caemgen and calmed down, she requested three lieutenants to accompany her to the republican palace to collect their due, and tasked a small troop of foot soldiers to seek out any Faeries still enslaved by the opposing people, while she would personally handle those to be handed over by the republicans.
The palace's reception hall was much larger than Sylvania's throne room, but far emptier. Its mother-of-pearl whiteness and the light reflecting off the stone tiles forced visitors to squint. The Patriarchs themselves welcomed them—a rare gesture. Usually, rulers who employed the services of the Faerie Protectorate of Sylvania did not bother to receive them. Most of the time, an ambassador would toss them a treaty for some peace or trade alliance… But Avelilinélia's feat—and no, it shouldn't be downplayed just because these two moronic nations had failed to block the tunnels between their realms—demanded respect and likely shocked the Republic of Valertaz's high council and the people of Aldebor.
A blue marble table stood at the center of the room where three elderly men sat, their white beards, bald pates, and crimson-spotted scalps on full display. Their eyes were hardly visible beneath the weight of their deeply wrinkled brows.
Avelilinélia had never seen humans this shriveled and old in her life—though, since the Grave family had human blood, the oldest human she had technically ever seen was her own mother.
The Three Patriarchs invited the Karyoten apprentice to sit with them to talk.
"So, you're the commander of this army today?" asked one of the old men in a shrill voice.
"That's correct."
"We were expecting the queen herself to resolve our jubilee conflict," said another Patriarch.
"Above all, we didn't think your high command included Faeries who weren't fairies," added the last old man.
"In answer to your question, I am indeed a fairy, though wingless. I believe my long auricular tubercles are enough to prove I am not of the human species," she replied coldly. "As for the second matter, the queen is not yet ready to engage in conflicts like yours. She has only just ascended to the throne, so don't expect to see her for quite some time. And if you mean that fairy, she is currently busy with matters concerning her son. So, you'll be dealing with me. Let's skip the pleasantries and idle chatter—Her Majesty awaits our return."
The Patriarchs were as irritated by Avelilinélia's demeanor as she was by their idiotic questions.
"To solidify our alliance, the queen must be present—or at least a real ambassador, not a half-fairy strategist from your kingdom's slums," the shrill-voiced old man said provocatively.
"I think you owe more respect to the one who ended your pitiful war, especially since my troops didn't even need to break a sweat, and we have the blueprints to storm your sorry island. I just have to send a telepathic message, and your nation will be nothing but ashes fertilizing our farmers' fields."
None of the three old men dared open their mouths again. In four months, Avelilinélia had changed drastically: she had become far fiercer and sharper in her replies. A certain other fairy should take a cue from her—but we'll talk about her later.
"Did you prepare what we requested before coming here?" Avelilinélia asked.
"Yes. They're at the republic's left entrance, as indicated upon your arrival," one of the elders replied.
"And the treasures…" began another.
"Keep them," the fairy strategist interrupted. "Our only concern is the Faeries you've imprisoned and used as slaves. If everything's in order, I believe our meeting is over."
The fairy stood and left, still accompanied by her two lieutenants.
"I have one question," said the tallest of the old men.
Avelilinélia stopped and turned her head slightly to listen.
"Why do you refuse your rightful reward when Queen Audisélia had explicitly demanded it over a year ago when we made this agreement?"
"Well, because our new queen is not as scornful of humans as Lady Audisélia used to be."
That disdain extended to Faeries as well.
"My sole and only goal," the apprentice Karyoten continued, "is to restore the honor of the Kingdom of Sylvania, long tarnished by your senseless wars."
With those words, Avelilinélia exited the chamber.
Avelilinélia headed to where her "loot" was located and brought them back to the army's camp. From there, they could all head to the rendezvous point indicated by Seb'is to return to the Faerie Kingdom. Once gathered on the summoning circle, they were all teleported to the new control center at Sylvania's border, where kingdom guards could perform a full search and rigorous interrogation of the new arrivals.
Avelilinélia got to know some of them and played with the youngest before returning home with her own "children"—to the place still called the Slums. No new name had yet been chosen to rename the Slums, though perhaps it would simply be merged with the High Town to form a single unified district called the City Center once renovations were complete—or at least underway. However, due to the split within the kingdom, only a part of High Town would be included with the Slums.
Few were aware of the future plans the new queen of Sylvania had in store. The Slum dwellers only knew that job offers were circulating for work expanding the kingdom with agricultural fields and other crops to increase self-sufficiency.
All of this had been initiated thanks to the precious advice of Avelilinélia, who had long studied how she could improve the kingdom if she ever became queen. Unfortunately, that didn't happen—but even if the accolades went to someone else, she was still fulfilling the promise she made to her biological and adoptive parents—and to herself. It had been difficult to impose her ideas on the council of Ministers—given her status as part of a dethroned bloodline. Nevertheless, her battle against the Hero proved her resolve and dedication to the well-being of her impoverished fellow citizens—they simply asked her to extend it to the whole kingdom. And she succeeded, perhaps thanks to that exceptional duel that earned her fame beyond her title as a fallen Grave princess—a fall from grace that nobody really cared about anymore. Still, she wasn't arrogant enough—perhaps not arrogant at all—to refuse that helping hand from fate.
But all of this was exhausting for the fairy princess of the Slums. Used to fighting monsters and criminals in her former environment, she had to adopt new habits that didn't align with her previous lifestyle. She wasn't foolish enough to regret it, but the life of a true princess of Sylvania was entirely new to her—especially one with so many responsibilities.
It wasn't easy juggling the role of strategist, like Karyoten, and that of the young queen's new chief advisor—Igniasté, after a long and illustrious career, had retired, honored for his many contributions both within the army and during his service as royal advisor to successive queens. It would've been simpler to say he was shown the door.
Still, Avelilinélia continued to visit him for advice.
The princess of the Slums finally arrived home, and as soon as she announced her return, a horde of children jumped on her, knocking her to the ground, unbothered about soiling her official attire.
"Back home already?" asked Cassandre.
"As you can see, yes. Where's Lelelitio?"
"Apparently, he was summoned."
"That's right, he's now a full-fledged court spy..."
She got up and led everyone back inside. The orphanage had been the first thing she decided to renovate—even before the Slums themselves. There wasn't much space left in their home, and she wasn't about to let children sleep on the floor for months. Before returning, she had asked goblins, dwarf masons, and fairy architects how long it would take to complete everything. They told her that in two months, the interior would be done, and in four months, the roof would be perfect.
So she would wait—because it was the only thing she could do.
For the children, Avelilinélia's return was a holiday, so they stuffed themselves with the treats she had brought back from her missions. Sadly for them, that was all they would get for now, as the fairy wanted to rest. She promised they could play later.
She went to her room and collapsed into her flower-shaped bed. As soon as she lay down, her eyelids became as heavy as mountains, and before being overtaken by deep sleep, she muttered:
"Where could you be, you little brat? I hope the queen managed to stop you from doing something unforgivable... I wish I could've to—"
She didn't get to finish her sentence—she had fallen asleep like a baby. And she didn't even get to dream before her rest was interrupted.
Avelilinélia woke with a start, gathered her senses, and angrily asked what could be so urgent to disturb her right after a battle. The child told her a man from the castle wanted to see her.
She came downstairs and saw a royal emissary from the Coursier race—probably one of her friends—sweating profusely. She asked what was so urgent. Out of breath, he could only hand her a newspaper in response. She took it and noticed it was written in Franca—which was more than strange. Unsure what it was about, she decided to skim it, but the more she read, the more her eyes widened until her fingers began to tremble and she dropped the paper. Her gaze went blank, her mouth agape, and she staggered and fell to the floor.
"Avelilinélia!" cried the children.
They rushed to surround her to see what was wrong. Lelelitio, "just arrived," picked up the paper and, despite his limited grasp of Franca, managed to decipher part of it. Still in disbelief, he turned to his princess and asked:
"Lili, I think I misunderstood what it says, so I'll ask you calmly to explain what the headline means."
The wingless Karyoten fairy swallowed hard, looked at her servant with fear, and revealed:
"It says... that the bounty on the one known as the Faceless Demon has been multiplied by a hundred and fifty—it now reaches sixty billion esoteric credits! His bounty is sixty billion universal credits..." she repeated in utter shock.
"That's not my question! What is the crime he's accused of, Avelilinélia?" Lelelitio shouted in panic.
"He's accused of committing the mass slaughter of the city of October."
It had been one week since the destruction of October.