Before continuing along that broken path, Leaf gently grabbed my arm. Her tiny face, always full of sparkle and mischief, was now marked by a small worry that she tried to hide behind a smile.
—Hey… I'm sorry, but I have a few small things to take care of —she said, lowering her gaze—. If you need me, you know you can summon me… I really am sorry for leaving like this, but I have to take care of the other fairies. In the end, I'm the one who has to watch over their safety. I can't leave them alone for too long…
She sighed, as if guilt stung her more than any enemy arrow. I crouched down a little and stroked her head, gently messing up her green hair.
—Don't worry, I understand perfectly. Go to the Sacred Forest. I'll catch up with you later —I told her with a smile.
Leaf looked up; the guilt turned into relief and tenderness. She hugged me briefly and then, with the characteristic glow of her magic, rose into the air. Her luminous silhouette danced for a moment before disappearing toward the Sacred Forest.
When her light faded, I was alone once again.
But it wasn't the first time I had walked in solitude… nor would it be the last. The path continued and I had to move forward, no matter how many shadows or echoes tried to stop me.
I took a deep breath, gripped the hilt of my sword, and pressed on.
I kept walking along that grayish path until, finally, the ground rose and the trail turned into a huge stone staircase. From my experience in these lands, I knew perfectly well that climbing it was the only option. If I went down, I would inevitably return to the place where I first awoke in this world.
So I began to climb.
The steps were ancient, cracked, some covered in moss and dried blood. At every stretch enemies appeared—knights, others with shields and spears, creatures that had once been human and now barely remembered their name—but I didn't stop. I advanced, slashing, dodging, breathing deeply between each attack.
Fatigue tried to bite my legs, but the desire to keep going pushed me like a torch burning in the darkness.
After defeating the last enemies, I reached a point where the staircase vanished and only a long straight path remained. The ground, however, was destroyed in several sections, as if a giant had stomped through without care.
I walked cautiously. Sometimes the rubble blocked the way, but by going around it I could continue without major trouble.
Until I saw her.
There, standing a few meters in front of me, was a woman whose beauty seemed designed to deceive even the most wary traveler.
She had a curvaceous body covered by a white robe that reflected the light like a mirage. Her hair was a mane of blonde waves falling in perfect cascades, fiercely matching her face, sweet and wicked at the same time, as if every gesture were a blend of temptation and threat.
Her blue eyes glowed with a cold light, and part of her forehead was hidden beneath bangs that gave her an even more enigmatic air. She didn't seem human… nor entirely demonic either.
She turned when she sensed my presence. Her eyes scanned me with contempt so intense it was almost tangible.
—¿A filthy undead…? —she spat, as if her voice were poison—. Your kind is not welcome at Lady Cinderella's ball. The undead are not alive… You cannot dance with the demon-beasts.
She didn't give me time to reply. The moment she turned to leave, the magic around her exploded like an echo. With a simple gesture she summoned an enormous armored knight and, along with him, six archers appeared around us, positioned on the narrow paths of the Tower.
The battle had begun.
The archers, obeying the knight's signal, instantly drew their bows and unleashed a rain of arrows. I reacted on instinct: I dodged to the side, sliced two arrows in mid-air, and kept my guard high.
The knight, huge and heavy, advanced toward me with steps that made the stones tremble. The arrows didn't stop for a second. I had to move and attack at the same time. Without Leaf to support me, I was completely alone in this battle.
I gritted my teeth. Fine. Just one more challenge.
I ran straight at the knight, but when I tried to strike with the sword that Leaf had given me… it shattered instantly against the armor.
The impact shook me. I felt the air rush out of my lungs and my body lose balance, falling backward. The world tilted. The metallic sound of the knight preparing to finish me thundered like lightning.
But before I hit the ground, my hand found the sword I had taken from the dragon. I drew it, rolled as I fell, and managed to stop my descent on my knees just as the knight swung a brutal blow toward my head.
I raised the sword and blocked the attack, but the force of the impact nearly buried me in the stone. The knight roared behind his helmet, pushing with enough strength to split me in two.
The dragon sword answered.
A glow ran along its edge, as if waking from a long slumber. The metal vibrated in my hands with an almost living pulse.
—Come on… if you have power, now is the time… —I whispered.
A warm, fierce energy crawled up my arms. It was magic, pure and burning, gathering in the blade.
The edge lit up with a red-golden glow, as though it were absorbing my magic and feeding on it at the same time.
A roar… not mine, not the knight's… but the sword itself, echoed within the metal.
Then I shouted:
—¡Draconic Quake!
The earth shook. The air cracked. And the sword unleashed a roar that did not belong to this world.
A dragon's roar.
The sound was so powerful that the archers fell to the ground, clutching their heads. An unbearable pain shattered them from the inside. Their ears bled, then their eyes… and finally their skulls burst like crushed bubbles.
The knight held out a few seconds longer. Still standing, his body trembled. Then, like a tree without roots, he collapsed heavily and sank into the earth.
The armor cracked. It split open. And from inside emerged five small white cats, silent, that immediately ran in different directions, as if their freedom had been locked away for years.
In the place where the armor disintegrated lay a book. I approached and picked it up, storing it without opening it yet.
I took a deep breath. The echo of the roar still vibrated in my bones.
When I recovered, I continued up the stairs. With every step the tension grew, as if something enormous awaited me at the end.
I climbed until I reached a wide platform where a great castle entrance stood. Its doors were gigantic.
In front of the entrance was an extinguished bonfire. I lit it at once. Its light returned a bit of warmth to my body.
—Right… now let's go in —I muttered.
But the instant I touched the door, something invisible hurled me backward as if I were a cannonball. My body flew several meters until it crashed against a nearby gravestone, breaking off a corner.
The impact left me dizzy. A sharp ringing filled my ears. I didn't know what had happened.
I struggled to my feet… and then I saw it.
For a couple of seconds, an almost transparent barrier shimmered in front of the door, like a membrane of pure energy that covered the entire entrance and blocked any intruder.
Its light flickered, silent, imposing… and then became invisible again.
And there ended my attempt to enter the castle.
An unknown barrier… impossible to cross.
And I, alone once more, facing the challenge that awaited me.