(Dorcha's POV)
Aileen looks paler by the second...
Will she recov—
Aileen!
I rush to her side, my breath catching somewhere in my throat.
She screams.
Her entire body jerks violently, twisted by agony in a way I've never seen before.
Panic slams into me.
I bolt out of the room.
"Fayrin! Fayrin! Hurry! Please! Something's wrong with Aileen!"
The fairy rushes in, with Gaithy and Grogher right behind her.
Fayrin takes one look.
Then another.
"Seizures," she says.
And for the first time, I hear fear in her voice.
"This isn't good. Not good at all."
"Do something! Please, save her!"
She barely seems to hear me.
In an instant she's beside Aileen, pulling her tongue forward so she won't bite through it.
"Gaithy! The sleeping vial! Quickly!"
The little fairy is just as terrified as I am, but somehow she keeps herself together and hands it over.
"Dorcha, hold her still!"
I grab Aileen immediately, pinning her the same way Fayrin had done moments before.
Fayrin fills a syringe with the liquid.
Drives the needle into Aileen's arm.
A few seconds pass.
Then the convulsions stop.
Silence.
But...
She's even paler now.
No color left in her face.
Her lips are turning purple.
She looks—
"What did you do to her...?"
My voice breaks.
"Aileen! Aileen! Don't die! Please... don't die..."
I shake her.
I know I shouldn't.
I know it.
But I can't stop.
I can't.
"Dorcha!"
Fayrin's voice cuts through me like a blade.
"Stop it! Calm down! She's only sleeping!"
Sleep...
I stare at her.
Lost.
Confused.
"Sleeping?" I ask, struggling to breathe.
"Yes. Sleeping. I forced her into a deep sleep. It'll slow her recovery, but she won't feel any more pain."
The strength leaves my legs.
I sink onto the edge of the bed.
Exhausted.
Empty.
Fayrin and Gaithy leave the room.
Grogher follows them out.
When we're finally alone, I curl up beside Aileen.
I rest her head against my shoulder and pull her close.
Tonight...
I'm not leaving her alone.
Not even for a second.
(Grogher's POV)
I slip into the room as quietly as I can.
Dorrrcha is holding Aileen in his arms...
Poorrr children. So much pain.
Will it ever end?
"Dorrrcha..." I whisper, gently shaking his shoulderrr.
His sleep is so light he wakes at once.
He looks at Aileen.
Then at me.
I know that look.
He's made his decision.
"Grogher, I've thought about it. There's no time left. I can't wait any longer. I have to finish this mission... and destroy the Red Knight."
"I'm coming with you."
"No."
The answerrr comes instantly.
"I want you to stay here with Fayrin and Gaithy. Whatever happens, you contact me immediately. I'll deal with that disgusting creature myself."
"Going alone is rrrisky. Look what happened to Aileen..." I trrry to reason.
He shoots me a cold look.
"Exactly. Being together helped so much, didn't it?"
His voice is harrrd.
Final.
There's no arguing with him.
He leaves the room and walks towarrrd his armor.
Puts it on.
Takes up his sworrrd.
He's about to leave when Fayrin stops him.
She places a silver chain in his hand.
An aquamarrrine arrow-shaped pendant hangs from it.
"This will shield you from the dark energies outside and amplify your powers. Aileen wanted to give it to you herself, but she never got the chance."
She hesitates.
Then offerrrs him a bracelet.
"Take this too. You'll need it when you obtain the Orchid."
For a moment, Dorcha's eyes glisten.
He puts on the necklace.
The brrracelet.
Then turns and walks away.
At the doorway, he stops.
Looks back.
"I'll be back soon."
His gaze drrrifts to Aileen.
"Take care of her."
He whistles.
A moment later, Herrrcules bursts from the stable at a gallop.
The black stallion races acrrross the clearing and reaches him.
Dorrrcha swings into the saddle.
Urrrges him forward.
And rides into the darrrkness.
(Richard's POV — Blood Knight)
Ah-ah...
There he is.
Riding that black stallion of his.
I'll give him a small advantage.
The Olc Fairies have already been dealt with.
They won't get in his way.
Wait for me, my Empress.
I'm coming.
(Dorcha's POV)
Almost there.
That lavish stone structure ahead—cracked, ruined, half-collapsed—has to be the Fairy Castle.
I don't like those dark flashes crawling through its walls.
The whole place feels soaked in dark magic.
Fine.
Here's the plan.
Get the Orchid.
Turn the bastard who did this to Aileen into ashes.
Red Knight, or whatever your name is...
By the lightning of my kingdom, I swear it—
You're not walking away alive.
A strange feeling twists in my stomach.
Someone's here.
"Drag and Reveal!!!" I shout.
(Teallach's POV — Empress of the Great Parallel Universal Kingdom)
What is this feeling...?
Who dares move me against my will?
"Wh—?"
(Richard's POV — Blood Knight)
What is this absurd force?
It's pulling me in—
I can't resist it!
(Dorcha's POV)
A fairy appears before me.
Beautiful.
Ageless.
Pale skin.
Black hair.
Dark eyes.
Tall.
Athletic.
Black dress.
Black wings.
And yet...
She doesn't look like an Olc Fairy.
Her presence is infinitely greater.
The power pouring off her is overwhelming.
"And who might you be?" I ask.
She studies me in silence.
Then I notice him.
The red-clad knight standing beside her.
Could it be...?
"Are you Her Majesty Titania, Queen of the Fairies?"
Her face twists instantly.
A mask of fury.
"Do not compare me to that pathetic little fairy of Light."
Her voice drops.
Low.
Steady.
Dangerously calm.
"I am Teallach. Empress of the Great Parallel Universal Kingdom."
The name is almost whispered.
Yet it carries the weight of a command.
"I see."
I give her a mocking bow.
"A pleasure to meet you, Your Majesty Teallach."
The moment I straighten—
The earth beneath their feet erupts.
Both of them are thrown into the air.
Surprised.
Hurting.
Stunned.
"It's him?!"
Teallach turns toward the knight, breathing hard.
He nods.
His expression is shaken.
As if even he can't believe what he's seeing.
He raises a protective barrier around himself and the Empress.
The pendant around my neck absorbs it completely.
Every last trace.
I smirk.
"I remember you being more skilled than that."
Now that I've recovered...
You're nothing but an insect waiting to be crushed.
(Richard's POV)
He wasn't this strong.
How is this possible?
Why can't I overpower him anymore?
(Teallach's POV — Empress of the Great Parallel Universal Kingdom)
This knight is no ordinary being.
It's as though something inside him has gathered the powers of the entire Great Kingdom: Orcs, clouders, elves, gnomes.
Even mermaids and tritons.
How?
No matter.
Simple magic won't work against him. I'll have to call upon my oldest power.
It will exhaust me...
But I have no other choice.
Unless...
An idea forms.
A better one.
"Knight."
I meet his gaze.
"Become my ally."
If he accepts...
I will never have another rival again.
(Dorcha's POV)
Your ally?
I'd rather die.
I raise my sword high. The blade unleashes a monstrous tornado.
It catches them instantly.
Spins them through the air like insects.
Then hurls them straight into the castle walls.
Stone explodes.
Part of the structure collapses and crashes down on top of them.
Good.
I've already wasted too much time on those two.
I need the Fairy Secret.
I leap from Hercules' back and sprint toward the castle.
(Teallach's POV — Empress of the Great Parallel Universal Kingdom)
No one...
Has ever dared...
This much.
So that's how it is, hm?
Very well.
I rise to my feet.
Richard stands beside me.
Lost.
Confused.
Completely useless.
I am not.
I borrow his pathetic body and fuse it with my own.
"Unite... and create a Crossed Hissing One!"
...
Our bodies twist together.
Stretch.
Merge.
Transform.
A colossal two-headed cobra erupts into existence. Dozens of meters long.
Towering far above the castle spires.
Now then...
Arrogant knight.
Let's see what you're truly capable of.
Both heads release a deafening hiss.
A battle cry.
And I strike.
(Dorcha's POV)
A sound.
I turn.
Not far away, a gigantic two-headed cobra rears above the ruins.
So you still haven't given up.
Predictable.
Pathetic.
If you want to play...
Let's play.
Urchoicha always told me something.
In a duel, a mongoose beats a snake.
Every time.
I snap my fingers.
My body shifts.
Shrinks.
Changes.
A mongoose.
Then I launch myself at the serpent.
Funny.
The moment I took this form...
I developed an overwhelming urge to tear it apart and eat it.
(Teallach's POV — Empress of the Great Parallel Universal Kingdom)
What?
I never imagined—
Who is this knight?
This is impossible.
"Return. Return!"
I separate from Richard immediately, and our bodies revert to normal.
Richard drops to one knee.
Blood spills from his mouth.
Humans.
So weak.
What a disappointing acquisition.
"Your little tricks don't work on me!" the Black Knight declares.
Then he vanishes.
Gone.
And in the next instant—
They appear.
Everywhere.
Hundreds of thousands of them.
Orcs. Gnomes. Elves. Mermaids. Tritons. Clouders.
All bearing either his face... or ours.
Lin's power. Enhanced by illusion magic.
They swarm us. Reaching. Touching.
Trying to drain away every ounce of our strength.
Richard swings his sword wildly.
Hitting nothing.
Growing weaker by the second.
I manage to avoid them for a while...
Avoid their hands.
Avoid their touch.
But... little by little... it becomes harder. More exhausting… More difficult.
A thud echoes nearby.
Richard has collapsed. He's out of strength. He needs time to recover.
I can't help him.
Where is the real knight...?
Among all these faces... I can't... I can't understant… anything… anymore...
(Dorcha's POV)
It worked.
The knight has already fallen.
The fairy isn't far behind.
I can't wait any longer.
I rush into the Throne Hall.
(Titania's POV — Queen of the Fairies)
Edouard and I are still bound by the chains.
Barely breathing.
Barely conscious.
Through blurred vision, I see a knight approaching.
The boy Fayrin spoke of.
The moment he notices us, he changes direction.
He intends to free us.
No.
Not yet.
The Orchid comes first.
Summoning the last of my strength, I turn toward the crystal case and point at it.
"Hurry..."
My voice is barely a whisper.
"Knight..."
(Titania's POV — Queen of the Fairies)
Edouard and I are still bound by the chains...
We can barely breathe...
A knight is approaching.
He must be the boy Fayrin spoke of...
He notices us and heads straight over.
Looks like he's going to free us.
But the Orchid comes first.
With the last of my strength, I turn toward the display case and point to it.
"Hurry... knight..."