Brianna remained kneeling only for an instant, before raising her face. Her eyes did not waver when facing Phoebe and Haron.
"What does this mean?" asked Haron, his voice carrying a paternal tone, more worried than severe.
"I will not have time for a complete explanation" answered Brianna calmly, almost in a whisper. "But I promise that, as soon as this approaching storm passes, I will tell you everything. Before leaving, however, I need to make you aware."
Phoebe slightly tilted her head, her serene expression hiding any immediate judgment.
"And do you think you can trust what he said?" she questioned, softly. "After all, he is a being recognized for his cunning... and few survived the mistake of believing in his words."
"I have a good reason to trust, but I will only inform you later" replied Brianna.
Haron, still not fully understanding the situation, stared at her with a worried look, ready to intervene. But Phoebe stopped him before he could speak:
"Your concern is the countess to the east, isn't it?"
Brianna let out a brief smile, almost of relief.
"Nothing passes unnoticed by you. In a way, that comforts me."
"I do not know exactly what leads you to act with such urgency" answered Phoebe, with the same serenity "but do not worry. Knowing Viscountess Ardentis, she must be now over her desk, measuring every step."
"Precisely why I need to know" retorted Brianna. "Do you think she would turn against us? Considering that she has already refused to submit to the county… and now we are on the verge of a war that may ruin us. Could it be that she would take the occasion to ally herself with the King's army?"
Phoebe took a deep breath before answering:
"Ardentis, just like me, possesses a sharp look for the future" she said. "But predictions are fragile before chaos. An unforeseen piece can change the whole board."
Brianna then stood up and walked slowly to the door. Before leaving, she turned to them:
"Then I can state that I will stop them."
"What do you mean?" Haron raised his voice, confused.
"Because I already have before me a chaotic and unpredictable individual" answered Brianna, enigmatic, before crossing the threshold.
Phoebe smiled discreetly, while Haron remained restless. When the room fell silent with the young woman's departure, Phoebe broke the silence:
"I thought you would stop her."
"Even if I wanted, I could not" murmured Haron, fearful. "We must not forget what she did for this marquisate. I trust her… and, besides, you would have said something if there was a chance of failure."
Phoebe extended her hand naturally and rested it on his shoulder, a gesture that mixed tenderness and firmness.
"The compass only points north if the hand that holds it is not trembling with fear" she said, in an almost proverbial tone.
Haron let out a brief laugh, muffled between the concern. "Another one of your enigmatic advices?"
"No" answered Phoebe, allowing herself a slight smile. "Only the reminder that she is not the only one willing to give everything of herself."
Meanwhile, Brianna was already preparing to leave. She adjusted the prince's horse's harness when Karna approached.
"Have you cooled your head already?" she asked, raising her eyes to him.
Karna took a deep breath before answering, with a resigned tone:"Well… I had no other choice. I see you are really leaving."
Brianna finished adjusting the harness, mounted the horse firmly and, only then, looked at him again. A light smile, but loaded with irony, appeared on her lips:
"I am sorry, but we both decided that we would only worry about each other when we were in bed. Outside of it, we would not meddle in each other's decisions."
The silence that followed weighed more than any word. Karna stood still, watching her leave. The trotting of the horse was moving away, but the sensation was that each step left a greater space between them. He found no answer — he only followed, in silence, the figure of Brianna disappearing on the horizon.
Some hours before Brianna's departure, Ereon came out of the fissure accompanied by Médea. Kaelir had returned to the marquisate and they had not yet entered the forest that surrounded the barony.
The sunset painted the sky orange and purple, and the shadows stretched among the dense trees. Among the trunks, they could hear muffled screams and the metallic clink of weapons.
"It has already been a while since we arrived" said Médea, her voice full of concern. "And the screams do not stop for a second. Are we really going to enter there?"
Ereon remained serene."The people I look for are right after this enormous forest. I sent some crows of the shadows to search, but it took longer than I imagined."
"And you could not find another entrance, without crossing the forest?" asked Médea, hesitant.
"No" answered Ereon, firm. "The whole barony is surrounded by this forest, forming a circle before it, as if it were a third wall."
"Are you talking about those enormous things, the same as the place we came from?" inquired Médea.
Ereon nodded, touching a nearby tree before speaking, in a low voice, almost a whisper:"There is no way. I need you to step back…"
He took a deep breath and murmured words in a low tone, as if defying the very air:"Inverted world."
Immediately, the shadows began to spread throughout the forest. At the same instant, inside the barony, Thalia felt something explode in her body. There was no preparation, there was no defense: the energy of the Inverted World reverberated through each root, each tree, connecting directly to her.
The pain was instant, sharp, as if a thousand knives ran through her skin and her spirit at the same time. She fell to her knees, screaming, unable to control what was happening. Every attempt to react failed — the forest did not obey, did not wait. It was as if Ereon had turned her world upside down in a matter of seconds.
"Stop!" shouted Thalia, her voice tearing the room, but no one could hear her stop that. "Make it stop!" she repeated, the terror reflected in every desperate movement.
Doros, who was outside, ran in, throwing himself over her and trying to embrace her. Thalia was fallen, screaming and trembling, her eyes mirroring the despair that ran through the whole forest.
Outside, the villagers, knights and mercenaries watched incredulous. In the blink of an eye, the darkness covered the sky of the sunset, the torches and stones imbued with light were consumed, and the cutting cold spread as if death itself had descended upon them. All realized, even without seeing, that that was not a common phenomenon — and that there was nowhere to flee.
As soon as they entered the forest, Ereon lowered his voice, almost a whisper that cut the dense air:
"Close your eyes and do not open them until I tell you. No matter what you hear, do not move away from me."
Médea trembled slightly, her voice full of apprehension:"Why?"
Ereon answered firmly, without raising his eyes:"The Inverted World is a part of the Abyss. It is where the worst creatures, gods and many other beings are imprisoned. Therefore, do exactly what I say."
The forest swallowed them. Among trunks and roots, echoes of pain and despair ran through the air. Long and cutting laments, muffled cries, screams of terror and pleas mixed:
"Help… someone!""No… do not leave me!""Ahhh…!""Please… no!"
They were not only screams — they were fragments of lives being devoured by the abyss. The clinking of fallen weapons and the creaking of broken branches created a music of suffering, echoing from all sides.
Médea pressed her arms against her body, swallowing dry. Each lament seemed to pierce the skin, penetrating the bones. Even the screams of the guards, normally firm, sounded distorted, prolonged, almost too human to be real.
And each step made them hear more voices, now mixed:"I cannot escape…""Why are you doing this?""Someone save me…"
It was impossible to know where they came from. It seemed that the entire forest twisted in pain, repeating and amplifying the suffering of those who were trapped. Ereon walked ahead, firm, but every muscle in his body felt the pulsating tension. The silence between the laments was almost more cruel than the screams themselves, because at any moment something could emerge from the shadows.
After some time walking, a man appeared ahead and looked directly at Ereon, despair stamped on his face.
"Help me!" he asked, his voice trembling.
Ereon frowned, surprised."You can see me?"
"Yes" answered the man. "You are also trapped here. I was with a hundred men… all went insane or killed themselves."
"Who are you?" asked Ereon.
"I am a noble vassal of the marquis, I serve directly the central king. I am here to punish the heretics."
Ereon gave a cold smile, before murmuring, in a low tone:"I understand…"
And then, with firm voice, he said:"Apokalýptō."
Suddenly, the creature appeared. Its body was made of a living mass of shadows, black and grotesque threads that twisted like tentacles, constantly changing shape. From its back to its snout, dozens of red-cerulean eyes shone like cold embers, watching everything at the same time. Its eyes did not blink, did not close; they said they were windows to the very void.
The jaw was wide, full of translucent fangs, spitting an acid bile capable of dissolving flesh and metal. Its paws resembled claws of beast and roots, attached to the ground as if sucking the very life of the earth.
The man stepped back, terrified. Ereon, keeping calm, spoke:"Then you can also see the Noxfang."
Even with her eyes closed, Médea could hear and feel everything happening around. She held Ereon's mantle, the tension running through her arms.
"We will speak in another moment" he said, in a low voice.
Ereon murmured another command, even more lethal:"Noxfang, Katapínō!"
The creature advanced and swallowed the man in seconds, disappearing into the shadow. Ereon and Médea remained in silence for a few moments, feeling the weight of death around.
After crossing the forest, leaving the laments and screams behind, a figure rose in the center, between the walls and the forest that surrounded them.
Ereon did not think twice. He drew the katana and advanced.
The figure only raised her hand, stopping the blade in the air, as if nothing could penetrate her defense.
"How long has it been, Gaia…" murmured Ereon, his eyes fixed on her.