The lamia's song swirled around the ruined chamber like a haunting breeze, part sorrow, part rage. The air was heavy with magic, humming against Kael's skin. He could feel it — ancient, mournful, and drenched in the memory of betrayal.
"Back away slowly," Vex whispered. "Preferably without dying dramatically."
"I make no promises!" Sequoia hissed, clutching Kael's cape as though it were a lifeline. "I can already see my tragic ending!"
Brown rolled his eyes. "You've been saying that for three chapters."
Kael took a calm step forward, eyes fixed on the lamia queen. Her scales shimmered like molten bronze, but her face — her face was still that of a woman who had once known love and trust. "Your Majesty," Kael began, his tone firm yet gentle, "we understand your pain. You were wronged. But taking lives won't bring back your peace."
The lamia's eyes flashed with bitterness. "Peace?" she hissed. "Peace was stolen from me when those who served me turned to lust and cruelty. They called it devotion. They called it loyalty. I called it death."
Her tail lashed across the marble, cracking the ground.
Sequoia yelped. "I call it terrifying! Kael, I think she's beyond help!"
But Kael didn't flinch. "I know what it means to lose everything," he said softly. "But if vengeance defines you, it will destroy what remains of your soul."
"Spare me your hero's pity!" she spat, coiling to strike.
Brown shifted instantly, his human form radiating dark mana. "Everyone—prepare!"
The lamia lunged with blinding speed, her claws slashing through the air. Kael's sword caught the strike in a shower of sparks, his body sliding backward several feet.
"Now!" Brown shouted.
Vex threw a vial that burst into golden mist — a sleep potion mixed with holy extract. The air filled with shimmering particles that made the lamia recoil with a shriek.
"It burns!" she screamed.
Pallas transformed midair into her full dragon form, wings unfurling wide, silver fire crackling along her scales. "Don't make me burn this place down!" she roared.
"Pallas, no fire!" Kael shouted over the wind. "We're underground!"
Pallas blinked mid-roar. "Oh. Right. My bad."
Sequoia, however, collapsed dramatically behind a fallen column. "I can't breathe! My lungs are gone! My beauty will fade before my final breath!"
Vex groaned. "You're literally fine."
"I'm emotionally wounded!" she cried.
Kael parried another strike from the lamia, their weapons sparking. Her strength was monstrous, each movement fueled by both magic and anguish.
"You fight well for one so young," she hissed, circling him. "Tell me, Kael of the Eldrath line — what do you truly fight for?"
Kael's blade lowered slightly, his expression calm but intense. "For those who cannot protect themselves. For those who were forgotten — like you."
The lamia hesitated. For a moment, her gaze softened, the hatred flickering in her eyes dimming like a dying flame.
Then Sequoia sneezed. Loudly.
The lamia screeched, fury reigniting. "Intruders! Mockers of my pain!"
"Oh come on!" Vex shouted. "You sneezed at the worst possible time!"
"I'm allergic to tension!" Sequoia defended.
Pallas sighed heavily. "We need to end this before she kills us and our patience."
Kael raised his sword, mana flaring around him in waves of golden light. "Then let's end this the right way."
He lunged forward, his blade glowing bright as he slashed through the air, not to kill — but to break the spell that bound her soul. The light exploded through the chamber like dawn through storm clouds.
The lamia screamed, collapsing to the ground as her song shattered into silence. Her tail trembled, magic unraveling around her. Slowly, her form began to fade, scales turning translucent.
"What's happening?" Lyra asked softly.
Brown approached carefully, his tone gentler now. "Her curse is breaking. Kael freed her from the magic binding her pain."
The lamia looked up, tears streaming down her face. "You… pity me?"
Kael knelt beside her, lowering his sword. "No. I respect your strength. You endured what no one should have. Let go. Rest."
Her trembling hand reached toward his face — then fell limp. Her body shimmered once more before dissolving into faint, silver dust that drifted upward like mist.
The chamber fell silent.
For a long moment, no one spoke. Even Sequoia stood quiet, eyes wide, her dramatics forgotten.
Finally, Pallas exhaled. "She's… free."
Kael nodded. "And the men she took?"
Lyra's staff glowed softly, her magic tracing the lingering energy in the room. "Alive. Sleeping… trapped in illusion. I can bring them back."
Kael smiled faintly. "Then let's bring them home."
As Lyra's light spread, faint silhouettes appeared across the cracked marble — the missing men of Eldreim, unconscious but breathing. Relief filled the air.
Sequoia clutched Kael's sleeve again, tearing up. "That was beautiful. So tragic. So heroic! Kael, promise me that if I ever become a vengeful snake woman, you'll save me too!"
Kael blinked. "...You plan on becoming a snake?"
"Metaphorically!"
Brown sighed. "You're already dramatic enough without scales."
Pallas burst out laughing, clutching her sides. Even Vex smirked. "I'm bottling this moment," he said. "It'll cure boredom."
As they led the rescued villagers back toward the wagon, the morning light pierced through the forest canopy again, this time brighter, warmer. The cursed air had lifted.
Kael paused once at the edge of the forest, looking back at the ruins. "She didn't deserve her fate," he murmured. "But at least she found peace in the end."
Brown placed a hand on his shoulder. "You gave her that. Sometimes, that's all we can do."
Pallas, in her human form again, smiled warmly. "And you did it with enough drama to fill a theatre."
Sequoia clasped her hands, eyes sparkling. "A hero drenched in light and sorrow — how romantic!"
Kael groaned softly. "You're impossible."
"And proud of it!" she said, tossing her hair.
The group laughed as they left the forest behind, the weight of the curse replaced by laughter and relief.
Behind them, faint silver petals drifted down from unseen branches — the lamia's final gift to those who had freed her.