Alan, Hannah and the Kelpie travelled towards the western sea. The fairy queen had given them a map showing a hidden passage through the mountains, leading to a coastal settlement from which they could sail towards Avonland.
The journey took several weeks.
During that time, Alan trained with his new shield. He learned how to turn aside powerful blows, how to use its weight without exhausting himself, and how to protect another person while fighting. Hannah trained with her silver blade, practising against wooden targets and learning to recognise magical illusions.
They trained together every morning.
Alan was no longer the inexperienced prince who had fled his homeland. He had faced monsters, survived injuries and learned from people whose lives were entirely different from his own. Yet as Avonland drew closer, his confidence began to fade.
He remembered the palace corridors, his mother's chamber and the last time he had seen his father.
He wondered whether the kingdom still existed.
When they finally reached its borders, they found a land that had never recovered from the invasion. Villages lay abandoned, fields had become overgrown, and ruined watchtowers stood along the roads. The royal palace was visible in the distance, its towers broken and its walls covered in dark vines.
Alan dismounted.
"This is where I was born," he whispered.
Hannah stood beside him.
"Then this is where we begin putting things right."
They entered the nearest village and found a handful of survivors. At first, the villagers were frightened of them. But when Alan revealed the royal emblem he carried, an elderly woman began to cry.
"Prince Alan?"
He nodded.
The woman fell to her knees.
"We thought you were dead."
Alan helped her stand.
"Please, do not kneel. Tell me what happened."
The woman explained that the monsters had continued to occupy the kingdom after the royal family fell. The ogress had established her stronghold beneath the palace, where she searched for the Heartstone. Her creatures guarded the roads and punished anyone who resisted.
Some survivors had escaped into the forests. Others had hidden in the mountains.
"Is there anyone left who remembers the old kingdom?" Alan asked.
The woman pointed towards a ruined chapel.
"Behek. The royal priest. He has been hiding there for years."
Alan hurried towards it.
Inside, an elderly man sat beside a small fire. His hair had turned white, and his face was marked by age, but Alan recognised him immediately.
"Behek."
The priest looked up.
For several seconds, he said nothing. Then his eyes filled with tears.
"My prince."
Alan embraced him.
Behek explained that he had survived the invasion by hiding beneath the chapel. He had spent years watching the ogress's servants search the ruins for the Heartstone.
He also revealed the truth about the nine knights.
The ogress had not demanded their lives simply to cure Queen Elizabeth. She had wanted their blood because each knight belonged to one of the ancient families that had sworn to protect the Heartstone. Their sacrifice would have broken the protective enchantment surrounding it.
King Prometheus had refused to sacrifice them.
The ogress had therefore killed the queen through dark magic and unleashed her monsters upon Avonland. She believed the king would eventually surrender the Heartstone to save his people.
Instead, Prometheus had hidden it beneath the palace and died protecting its location.
Alan's hands trembled.
"My father knew?"
"He knew that the ogress wanted more than a kingdom. He knew that she intended to use the Heartstone to control the creatures of the world."
"Why did no one tell me?"
"You were a child. Your father asked me to save you. He believed that one day you would return, strong enough to finish what he could not."
Alan turned away.
For years, he had blamed himself for surviving. He had imagined that if he had been older, stronger or braver, he might have saved his parents.
Now he understood that his father had deliberately given him a chance to live.
Behek placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Your father did not send you away because he thought you were weak. He sent you away because he believed you could become the person Avonland would one day need."
Alan closed his eyes.
When he opened them, his expression had changed.
"Where is the ogress?"
"Beneath the palace. She has gathered an army. Tomorrow night, she intends to break the final seal."
Alan turned towards Hannah and the Kelpie.
"Then we have until tomorrow night."
Hannah drew her silver blade.
"We will not face her alone."
Behek gathered the surviving villagers and explained that their prince had returned. One by one, people emerged from their hiding places. Farmers, blacksmiths, former soldiers and ordinary villagers joined them.
Alan addressed the gathering.
"I cannot promise that everyone will survive. I cannot promise that our kingdom will be restored in a single day. But I can promise that no one will be forced to face this darkness alone again."
The people raised their weapons.
For the first time in many years, the ruined kingdom had a reason to hope.
That evening, Alan stood on a hill overlooking the palace.
Hannah approached and took his hand.
"Are you afraid?"
"Yes."
"Good. It means you understand what is at stake."
He looked at her.
"When this is over, I want to build something here. Something that does not depend on fear."
"Then make sure you survive long enough to build it."
Alan smiled faintly.
"I intend to."
They stood together beneath the stars, knowing that the following night would decide the fate of Avonland.