Krussgard was a city with massive walls, surrounded by vast prairies and, through recent acquisition, flanked by a large monument. It was a circular, sprawling structure designed to host the Oyindar games. The entrance featured a marble staircase leading up to a wide archway, which allowed the crowds to enter and then disperse among the tiered seating. To ensure that the guests of the Oyindar could stay in Krussgard in utmost comfort and luxury, the city's castle had been prepared for the arrival of foreign rulers, and the armed forces had been reinforced to protect the territory. A long cobblestone road led from the castle to the monumental structure, allowing the common folk to witness the procession of princes and rulers. For this very reason, the city would soon be thrown into a state of frenzy.
Empress Zeyana Voklanden and the witch Alex of Clevwood had already been staying at Krussgard Castle for a few days, keeping themselves busy overseeing the preparations to ensure nothing was out of place. Zeyana had been looking forward to this day for a long time; she wanted to see with her own eyes the two women who led a country like Arran, mysterious and entangled in something dangerous and unknown.
"What are you thinking about?" Alex wrapped her arms around the Empress's waist and trailed her lips along her neck, nibbling the skin and kissing it lazily.
"Nothing important... at least, not as important as you." Zeyana turned around and cupped her lover's face, capturing her lips in a sensual kiss, heavy with desire.
Alex panted against her lips and sucked the Empress's bottom lip, clinging to her clothes to stay upright. "Zey..."
"Not now. There is no time, but I promise you, tonight I will be all yours."
With one last kiss, they separated, just as a servant arrived to announce the arrival of the first guests.
From afar, Krussgard had looked like a dark gray smudge nestled in the deep green of the surrounding nature. Gradually, emerging from the brush to continue along a wide dirt road, the fortress drew closer, revealing massive walls and small figures posted along the ledges at the city's entrance. Krussgard was not too far from a river mouth: a small river flowed around the western flank of the city, which is why a solid wooden bridge, wide enough to allow multiple carriages to pass, had been built to reach the entrance. It was from that meeting point that the arrival of the first important guests was announced.
A soldier unhooked an instrument from his belt—a sort of horn—and blew hard into it, producing a deep, long note. Soon, similar sounds echoed from the city, and the citizens of Krussgard began to spill into the streets, eager and curious, ready to watch a procession unlike anything they had seen before. The Empress's arrival had already caused much excitement in the previous days, but it was always a unique, unrepeatable event to see such important figures arriving in a small town like Krussgard. Sure, it was large and strong enough to repel the enemies who had approached in previous years, but it was still Krussgard, an urban settlement like any other.
Soon, carriages were spotted crossing the bridge. They were numerous and, above all, they gleamed in the sunlight with their lavish decorations and vibrant colors. The banners of royal and noble families fluttered in the wind, carried by the soldiers escorting the highly anticipated guests.
The first group to arrive and cross the city's threshold hailed from the Kingdom of Hermania: Enrico Von Deusk and his sister Wandalin arrived atop their magnificent horses, taking advantage of the crowd to bask in adoration and display their strength and wealth. They were dressed to the nines, wearing red cloaks decorated with their noble house's crests and tiaras adorning their heads. Enrico had brown hair and a well-groomed beard that gave him a mature charm, while Wandalin was a fiery redhead, a woman known for never letting anyone or anything stop her. Although their appearance was pleasing to the eyes of many, the rumors circulating about them were anything but pleasant: the Von Deusk siblings were prone to partaking in hunting games and other violent practices, and they would lose their temper over the simplest things, revealing their true colors. Few dared to define them for what they truly were: two lunatics.
Right after them entered a group that was fascinating and much more balanced in demonstrating their influence: Albert Blueblood and Adelina Floris leaned out of their carriages to greet the crowd kindly and warmly, accepting the flowers the citizens tossed their way and offering sincere smiles. Albert was the classic fairy-tale prince: hair like spun gold and clear blue eyes, with delicate facial features that made him appealing not only to women but to some men as well. Adelina Floris, on the other hand, possessed a quiet beauty, with forest-green eyes and long, wavy brown hair. Her clothes reflected the colors of her noble house, but more importantly, they evoked the sea, and consequently, the major mercantile and naval company she was heir to.
After Blueblood and Floris arrived a carriage with black banners and an unfamiliar, cold presence: the soldiers wore coal-black armor, and their gazes were icy; no one showed their face to the crowd, and the group passed under the wary stares of the citizens. It was Seorlin Mijavlik, prince of one of the Northernlands kingdoms, a mysterious man whom no one in Umgard knew. His presence was an enigma to many of the onlookers who had heard his name announced by the Krussgard guards.
Meanwhile, Askmon Huskarl and Fromm Kersink, two important törzsfőnök (tribal chiefs) of Umgard, welcomed the newly arrived guests at the Krussgard fortress, under the watchful eye of the Empress, who had stepped out onto a palace balcony. Her eyes followed the movements and gestures of the high-profile figures stepping out of the carriages, but she didn't see the two women she was so curious about. Alex, at her side, didn't comment on her behavior, as she was just as restless as the Empress.
Soon, however, the crowd began to cheer again, and Zeyana spotted a white carriage and red-and-yellow banners approaching from afar. The people knew it was the group from the Kingdom of Arran, as the guards had just announced it, and they were extremely curious to find out if the rumors about the Queen and the princess were true. Grimilde of Arran was described as a glacial beauty, an almost ethereal woman, the classic fairy-tale queen from children's stories; Snow White, the princess, was described as the most pleasing vision the human eye had ever beheld...