Darkness had swallowed the land. The sun had long since set, and the half-moon above offered only a faint, fragile glow. Barely enough to guide one's steps.
Allesio and Arcane walked side by side through the dense forest.
Their footsteps were the only sound, leaves crunching softly beneath them. Neither spoke. The silence between them was heavy—filled with unspoken worries and lingering dread.
At last, Arcane broke it.
"There's a town up ahead," he said, pointing toward a faint cluster of lights in the distance.
"We can take a cart to Duskrend. From there, we'll have to walk to Zagan's place."
Arcane slowed and glanced at Allesio.
"Are you sure you want to go?" he asked quietly.
"There will be demons there," Arcane added.
Allesio didn't hesitate. He kept walking.
"I told you," Allesio replied, his voice firm, "I'll stay with you until we find Aeron."
He finally looked at Arcane. "There's a chance Dareth went there as well."
Then Allesio stopped. He reached into his cloak and pulled out an orb.
The orb glowed faintly—a pale, yellowish light, weak and unstable.
"There's no way we'll find Aeron without this," Allesio said.
The orb flickered… then went completely dull.
It wasn't working.
Earlier…
"We wish we could help you search for Aeron," Orion said. "He saved us. More than once."
"But the town needs us," Ysera added, looking around at the wounded and the ruins. "We can't leave it like this."
Durein stepped forward and placed a yellow orb into Allesio's hand.
"This is the best I can do," he said. "This orb will guide you to Aeron."
Allesio nodded and closed his fingers around it.
"We'll be leaving now," Arcane said.
As they turned away, Drelvan watched Arcane closely, his gaze sharp and uneasy. Something still felt wrong… especially after the fight with the purple dragon.
"Are you sure you don't want to say farewell to Zorayel?" Orion asked.
Arcane shook his head. "I don't think he wants company right now."
"We hope you find him soon," the others said.
Allesio and Arcane nodded in silence and walked away.
"If it weren't for those Grim Winds," Durein muttered regretfully, "we would've returned with Aeron."
A moment later…
Allesio and Arcane were leaving the town when Arcane suddenly stopped.
"Here," Arcane said, handing Allesio another orb.
This one was dark purple—its surface swirling faintly, almost alive.
Allesio took it, confused.
"When you find Aeron," Arcane said, "use that orb. It'll show me your location."
"Are you going after that demon?" Allesio asked.
Arcane's expression darkened.
"It's forbidden," he said. "Giving a human any part of a demon—especially a demon heart. It grants a human demonic ability."
His hand clenched into a fist.
"I have to stop him. Before he creates more monsters like this."
"I'll come with you," Allesio said, holding out the purple orb.
Arcane shook his head.
"You have to find Aeron. He might already be in danger."
"And if we don't stop that demon," Allesio replied, memories of burning homes and fallen bodies flooding his mind, "more people will die."
He paused… then frowned.
"And besides—"
Allesio raised the yellow orb.
"It isn't working."
The orb remained lifeless.
Arcane's eyes widened slightly.
"…Does that mean something happened to Aeron?"
The forest grew silent once more—heavier than before.
Somewhere…
"Ugh…"
Aeron tried to open his eyes.
Everything hurt. Not just his body… even his thoughts felt heavy, drowned in pain.
"It hurts…" he whispered.
His eyes finally focused on the ceiling above him.
It was filthy—thick with spiderwebs, wooden beams cracked and sagging. The room looked as if no one had stepped inside for decades.
"Where… am I?" he muttered.
He tried to move, but his body refused to obey. His fingers wouldn't twitch. His legs felt like they didn't exist at all.
"You're finally awake."
The voice was old. Dry. And unmistakably not human.
Aeron turned his eyes to the side.
An old woman was slowly approaching him. Her back was bent, her steps uneven. But something about her made Aeron's skin crawl.
As soon as he looked at her, a strange sensation washed over him, something unfamiliar, something deeply wrong.
"Who are you?" Aeron asked, panic creeping into his voice.
"Why am I here? Why can't I move?"
"So many questions for an old woman," she said, her lips curling into a thin smile.
"Say 'ah.'"
Aeron clenched his jaw and shook his head weakly.
The woman's hand shot forward, gripping his cheek with surprising strength.
Aeron tried to resist, but her grip was iron-like.
She poured a strange, dark-smelling liquid into his mouth and forced him to swallow.
As the medicine slid down his throat, his vision blurred.
His thoughts began to scatter.
"Who… are… you…" he whispered.
Before he could finish, darkness swallowed him whole.
Somewhere near Duskrend…
A wooden cart creaked along a narrow road.
Allesio and Arcane sat inside it. Arcane wore a mask, completely hiding his face.
The cart came to a sudden stop.
"This is as far as I go," the driver said. "You've reached your destination."
Both of them stepped down.
"This is Duskrend," they said quietly.
Duskrend was infamous.
The entire area was drowned in mist—thick, pale fog that swallowed everything in sight. One could barely see a few steps ahead. The deeper one went, the denser it became.
The place was abandoned. Uninhabitable.
Some said monsters roamed within the fog. Others claimed they had seen demons lurking between the shadows.
"It's hard to see anything," Arcane said.
"Wind—" Allesio began to cast a spell.
Arcane stopped him with a raised hand.
"It's pointless," he said. "You can't clear even a fraction of the fog here."
Allesio lowered his hand.
Arcane glanced at him.
"How amusing," he said mockingly. "A prince who doesn't know about Duskrend."
"I've never left Eryndor," Allesio replied quietly, his gaze falling to the ground.
Arcane blinked, surprised. He had expected anger not honesty.
"…Once we find Aeron," Arcane said after a moment, "we can roam the world."
He was trying awkwardly to cheer him up.
"Why are you wearing that mask?" Allesio asked.
"I don't want anyone here to see my face," Arcane replied.
"Why?" Allesio pressed.
"Curious about me?" Arcane said with a faint smirk.
Allesio didn't answer.
"The demon we're hunting… Zagan," Arcane continued, "was exiled from the Demon Lands."
"Demon Lands?" Allesio asked.
"There are many places where demons live," Arcane explained. "Societies hidden far from human eyes."
"Zagan committed crimes even demons couldn't ignore."
"I thought demons enjoyed evil," Allesio said.
"Demons enjoy chaos," Arcane replied. "But even chaos has limits."
He paused.
"And some demons like us prefer peace over destruction."
Arcane shook his head, pushing away his thoughts.
"There's an old rule," he said. "A demon who executes another demon must never show his face to the condemned."
He looked at Allesio.
"It's an old saying of ours," Arcane added with a hollow smile.
"It means the victim won't see their executioner… and won't curse them after death."
Allesio remained silent.
Together, they walked deeper into the mist.
And Duskrend swallowed them whole.