Air warped beside the woman in the dark dress, strands of violet and black spiraling until the portal opened between the trees.

She did not react. Not when Akrion stepped out, not even when the gate collapsed behind him with a sigh of displaced air. The Velmoryn faltered, surprise plain on his face, but she remained still, as though she had expected this exact result.

"Eralon is still inside," Akrion warned, eyes wide.

"Who?" Her voice was cold, detached. "Ah. The one too feeble to fulfill even a single purpose."

She dismissed the subject with a graceful tilt of her hand. Then her nose twitched as she sniffed sharply. She pinched the bridge with two fingers, expression tightening as if she had touched filth.

"You reek." The words came muffled.

Akrion froze, the insult rooting him in place. His jaw clenched, teeth grinding.

"Stench is a small price to pay in war," he hissed, before forcing his voice steady. "What should I call you?"

He tried to shift the tone of the conversation, but it was of no use.

"You shall not speak my name," she said with a snort, turning her head aside. "I came to correct failures, not to trade words with beasts that reek."

Akrion's face flushed, swollen veins bulging across his temple. He opened his mouth, but shock strangled the sound before it could rise. His skin drained pale as if struck.

Mana broke loose from the woman in violent waves. The air thickened, bending toward her as the same purple rift began to coil open, though much grander this time. The red stitches across her eyes seeped smoke, threads burning as if with their own breath. Her hair swayed upward, following the black currents of her force.

"I will open the path to your tribe," she declared, voice low but absolute. "Your entire force will march here, at once."

It was amusing to watch Akrion's face tremble between rage and horror. But amusement could not outweigh necessity.

If I allow her to bring such numbers, a direct war will become unavoidable. I cannot let that happen.

I was determined to save every Velmoryn life I could. And besides, even without the Blue Tribe's forces, I was unsure whether the remnants of the extermination team would be able to handle just that one mage.

A hiss came next to me as I made up my mind. Crimson light burst outward as the basilisk, waiting in my realm, disappeared into the mortal world.

Her head snapped toward the giant serpent the instant my divine power placed it there. She raised her hand, touching thumb to little finger. A dark rune flared and the forming portal imploded, collapsing into nothing.

There was no mana backlash. She stood completely unscathed, already facing the basilisk slithering closer.

"You are not its match. Go back," she ordered Akrion coldly. He had taken a step forward, though he carried no weapon. "You still serve a purpose alive, and I have no intention of letting you die before it is fulfilled."

The basilisk's scales scraped across the snow, its tongue flicking out to taste the air heavy with her mana. I held its hunger on a leash, my will pressed into the beast so it did not rush and attack.

She flicked her wrist once. A dark bubble snapped into being around Akrion and yanked him back, the barrier slamming against his chest as he battered at it with bare fists, cursing and yelling.

"Ungrateful filth," she muttered, the words thin and cold. Her mouth contorted in disgust for an instant, then smoothed into something like a smile. Though perhaps even more disturbing. "I was ordered to deliver the message before…" She stopped, coughed, then bowed with a full reverence, the kind nobles performed in the movies about medieval times I loved to watch in my previous life. "My Lord does not seek war with Your Excellency. Yet They cannot permit the death of little Elly..." She paused, pressed her lower lip between her teeth until a bead of dark red formed at the corner, and swallowed it.

"I beg forgiveness for uttering a mortal name before Your Lordship. Our lives exist for the Gods' amusement, after all," she said, bowing deeply.

I forced the basilisk to stop and listened to her. I watched every tilt of her head, every idle gesture. The serpent coiled at my command, ready; the moment I felt the faintest pulse of mana I would let it tear her apart.

But she did not cast, her mana was steady, she was simply speaking. However, her words were anything but simple. Her attitude toward divinity was more fanatical than what I had seen in Velmoryn and Elves. The ease with which she dismissed mortal life, the contempt threading her tone, surprised me. Yet, it also made me think that I couldn't afford a war with a god who had such believers.

"My Lord promises an oath," she continued, "to forsake the forest and never return, nor permit Their servants to set foot within it. All Father asks in return is the life of the one who dared slaughter one of Their Daughters."

Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

So they expect me to hand over Avenor, or at least stand aside and let them witness his death.

I would be lying if I claimed the thought never crossed my mind. Avenor's life traded for so many others and also the dominion over the forest... Had there been no other factors, I might have considered it.

But that god was not the only hand reaching for my forest. There were others, and the God of Night and Moons had already fallen to the bottom of that hierarchy. Weakened, barred from using Their divine power in the mortal world. They posed no greater danger than the ones I would have to face in the future.

With Avenor at Gold Rank now, he should be able to defeat most Golds and even some Platinums. Karla will also wake soon. And besides, Avenor is not a mortal I can discard.

The deciding factor was not sentiment. I did not value Avenor's life above Velmoryn, nor was it merely that the Moon God's weakness made a war against them less costly. The truth was simpler. Only Avenor had immunity to divine power. When his Rank climbed high enough, he would become a menace to any god bold enough to descend or send their apostles who could wield their divine energy. And besides, he knew everything about me. And that knowledge could never be surrendered to anyone.

Allowing him to be taken was unthinkable, even if the price was open war with another deity.

"But…" the woman continued, voice sharpening. "If the God of Velmoryn is unwilling to part with such a capable warrior, Father remains prepared to show Their goodwill. They shall accept instead the one Your Lordship retrieved from the Dungeon. The Drukyr will suffice as recompense for a Daughter's life. For Father is gracious. And peace-inclined."

It did not take much thought to see it was all a lie. All my calculations about Avenor had been meaningless. That god must have known I would never yield him. They must have already known he was my vessel.

So their goal was Gundir from the very beginning.

But why? His craft as a smith was extraordinary, yes, yet not enough to warrant a god's bargaining. Either his knowledge of the past… or something else I didn't know.

Now that I understood their intent, I could sort through it later. For the moment, there was no point in stalling. I would not drag this woman into my domain - she radiated too much power. Nor would I risk teleporting Tekla and throwing her into the fire. That left no means of contact. The outcome of this exchange had already been set, and wasting time served no purpose. Especially now, with the shadow overhead tightening its circles.

The basilisk lifted its head, scarlet eyes locking upward, unblinking.

"Oh, you noticed my Yen?" the woman grinned, mana bursting around her in violent ripples. "I'm glad you chose not to accept Father's offer - it grants me the chance to show My Lord just how capable a Daughter I am."

Her scream tore into the air as darkness welled around her, ballooning outward until it collapsed, folding into a sphere of black no larger than a man's head.

The basilisk also moved. Its massive body bunched, then whipped forward in a lunge aimed at her, jaws gaping wide. But its charge was cut short.

"Yen. Immobilize this worm," she ordered, her grin shrinking into a cold smirk.

The beast dived, a blur against the white sky. Its descent was hawklike, wings folded tight until the last instant when talons stretched, claws glinting as they raked downward. Impact shook the ground - the creature slammed into the serpent's flank, beak stabbing against plated scales, claws scraping, tail whipping forward with a scorpion's sting.

The strikes landed, but none pierced. The basilisk thrashed violently until it was the one strangling its prey. Each roll smashed its attacker against the snow-packed earth. The serpent's coils tightened, looping around fur and bone. Its fangs sank deep, tearing through black hide.

The creature's scream was broken - half agony, half rage. But the basilisk fed on that despair, pressing harder, twisting until the air itself seemed to rattle with strain.

"Good girl," the woman hissed, voice sharp with menace. The sphere of darkness in front of her was ready. Then it vanished.

By the time the basilisk registered it, the spell had already struck. A detonation slammed into the serpent's abdomen, shadow imploding into light. The forest went white, snow erupting as the blast reflected off every surface, erasing form and depth in one blinding flash.

[Manarend reduced magical damage to 1%!]

The woman's face twisted as the clarity returned to her eyes.

"Interesting…" she whispered. It carried no surprise, only the shift that happens when a player changes pieces on the board.

Her teeth closed on her index finger and she bit down until the taste of iron filled her mouth. Blood tainted her lips. She tore the flesh free and flung it onto the snow, a crimson smear blossoming across white.

The ground answered. Snow steamed where the flesh hit, then a yawning darkness split the air above it. A portal ripped open in an instant.

"COME FORTH AND SLAUGHTER THIS…" she howled, saliva and blood following the words.

The basilisk had already finished Yen, the one that had once bested the dragon. Its corpse lay crushed beneath the serpent's coils, broken and poisoned to death. The great reptile recoiled like a spring and turned its gaze back toward the woman.

"Attack," I ordered, though my words barely formed before the basilisk was airborne, body a taut wire.

The woman did not bother with a protective spell. She did not flinch.

The first thing through the portal was almost a mirror of Yen - same dark silhouette, the same hawk-like head. It slammed into the basilisk and broke its charge. For a moment, the two beasts locked, rolling on the snow and crashing into tree trunks.

The basilisk quickly recovered its balance and wrapped around dark fur and muscle, working its way for the throat. Its head slid along ribs, venomous fangs piercing the hide as it moved. Then another shape lunged from the portal's mouth and hit the serpent's flank, teeth and claws scraping on its scales. The basilisk rolled, armor grinding, and the snow around them exploded into churned, bloody powder.

Three more poured out in quick succession, each landing hard. They moved with the awkward coordination of predators summoned and bound, not free-willed allies. The basilisk answered with the same brutality.

The woman, in the meantime, had begun to move toward Akrion, her steps short and hasty. Her voice carried, stripped of the earlier calm arrogance.

"You shall bring your forces here at once!" she barked, already shaping another portal into being. Her fingers drew runes that hummed in the space between her hands. This one took time.

The basilisk was my ace. Tekla might beat her with my divine power, but I will not gamble with her life. She is too valuable.

There was no other way.

I would have to take this on myself.

Next chapter will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.