The grass was damp. The dew wet my boots, the cuffs of my tunic, the hair that fell over my eyes. Mira squeezed my hand tightly, as if afraid she might float away again.
"Are we really home?" she asked, her voice small.
"We are."
"The academy?"
"There." I pointed.
The towers rose against the night sky, dark, familiar. The windows glowed with candlelight. The wind carried the smell of pine and wet earth – smells of Endomyar, smells of life.
"Shall we go?" asked Helena.
"We shall."
We walked.
---
The gates were open. The guard, a grey‑bearded man I recognised from the siege days, looked at us with wide eyes.
"Lord Zirinos?" he stammered. "We thought you were dead."
"You were mistaken."
"The duke… the duke will be pleased."
"The duke distrusts me. But yes, he will be pleased."
The guard did not answer. He opened the gate wide.
The main courtyard was empty at this hour. The torches crackled. Shadows danced. And at the top of the stairs, standing, arms crossed, Irina Graylor waited.
"Zirinos," she said, her voice neutral. "You came back."
"I came back, Director."
"Where have you been?"
"In the elves' layer. I fell into a trap. Bishop Aldous was bribed."
"We know." Irina came down the steps. "The bishop has disappeared. The church is forbidden."
"And the real Trussum?"
"Not found yet. But we know he is alive."
The silence weighed.
"Where is the duke?" I asked.
"In his office. With Baron Ander."
"I need to speak with him."
"He needs to speak with you too."
---
Andy Decatry's office smelled of wax and parchment. The duke stood by the window, his hands behind his back, his silver‑blue hair shining in the moonlight.
Ander Féris sat in a wooden chair, his face tired, his eyes red. When he saw me, he stood up.
"Zirinos," he said, his voice hoarse. "Mira?"
"She is here. With Helena."
"Can you bring her in?"
"I can. But first…"
"First, you want to know if I trust you." Ander approached. "I trust you. You saved my daughter. You defeated a demon lord. You are not perfect. But you are loyal."
"Loyal to whom?" I asked.
"To yourself. That is enough."
I looked at Andy. The duke had not turned around.
"Duke," I called. "I need to travel. The real Trussum is in Lunos. I am going to find him."
"Alone?"
"With Helena."
Andy turned. His grey, tired eyes fixed on mine.
"Why are you going? You have no obligation."
"I do." I hesitated. "He killed people I knew. People I… people I cared about."
"Fenísia?" asked Ander.
"Fenísia. And many others."
Andy scratched his beard.
"Go. But take a horse. And stay alive."
"I intend to."
---
Mira was in the courtyard, sitting on a stone bench, beside Helena. When she saw me approach, she ran to me.
"Zirinos!" Her arms wrapped around my waist. "Are you travelling again?"
"I am."
"Will you take me?"
"No." I knelt to her height. "You will stay with Baron Ander. He will take care of you."
"But I want to go with you."
"I know." I touched her hair. "But you cannot. Trussum is dangerous. And I do not want him to hurt you."
"You protect me."
"I do. That is why you are staying."
Mira looked at me. Her clear, moist eyes shone.
"Do you promise to come back?"
"I promise."
"Do you swear?"
"I swear."
She hugged me again. I held her against my chest.
*One more lie*, I thought. *One more promise I do not know if I can keep.*
Helena waited on the steps, her golden armour shining.
"Shall we go?" she asked.
"Let's go."
---
The king's road stretched before us, dark, dusty, endless. The horses had been prepared – two dark animals, with gentle eyes, that the duke had lent us.
We mounted in silence.
The wind blew cold. The moon shone.
"Zirinos," Helena called.
"Yes?"
"Do you believe we will find Trussum?"
"I do."
"And that we will kill him?"
"We will try. That is different."
She almost smiled.
"You are strange."
"I have been told that before."
We tightened the reins. The horses moved forward.
The castle of Decatry fell behind, swallowed by the darkness.
---
Epilogue-
In the elves' layer, Thalior watched the portal close.
The eternal light shone on his back, on his leaf armour, on his silver‑white hair. Elara stood beside him, her hand in his.
"Do you think he will return?" she asked.
"Liars always return." Thalior did not take his eyes from the spot where the portal had been. "The question is whether we will let him in again."
"He did no harm here."
"He did harm out there. And he carries corruption in his heart."
"Everyone does."
"Elves do not."
Elara sighed.
"Elves do too. They just hide it better."
Thalior did not answer. He simply turned and walked back toward the city, the light closing around him like a cloak.
Elara remained in the clearing, alone.
"He will return," she murmured. "And he will bring night."
The wind blew. The leaves gleamed.
The eternal light did not waver.