Elowen returned to the castle with wounds on her cheek and the back of her hand. She walked slowly, every step heavy and laboured, for her strength was nearly spent. The iron armour she wore felt heavier than ever, weighing down her exhausted body. The blood that had flowed freely from her injuries had already dried into dark, stiff streaks against her skin and armour.
Ashveil caught sight of her approaching from a distance and immediately hurried towards her, his face etched with deep worry.
"Elowen!" he called out softly as he reached her side, eyes scanning her from head to toe in alarm.
"Ashveil… I told you I would come back," Elowen said, her voice low and weary, yet still steady.
"Let me take you straight to the healing chambers," Ashveil said gently, moving to support her.
Elowen shook her head weakly. "Ashveil… have you forgotten? We cannot travel into the neighbouring lands or seek help there. Those territories are closed to us now."
Ashveil pressed his lips together tightly. He knew she was right—they were isolated and could not easily reach outside help or proper medical care. But he was determined. He had studied basic healing arts and knew enough to tend to her wounds himself. Without a second thought, he gently lifted Elowen into his arms, catching her by surprise.
"Hey… Ashveil?" she murmured, eyes wide with shock.
"I will treat you right here. I know what I am doing," he assured her firmly.
He carried her quickly through the long, quiet corridors of the old castle, his footsteps echoing softly against the stone floors, until they reached a quiet room. He laid her carefully upon a soft velvet sofa, then carefully removed her helmet and began to take off each heavy piece of armour one by one, handling everything with great care so as not to cause her further pain. The helmet was set aside on a small table nearby, and the heavy plates of iron were stacked neatly out of the way.
Ashveil hurried out to his own room and returned moments later carrying a white wooden box filled with supplies, breathing quickly from rushing back and forth.
He opened the box, revealing five rolls of clean bandages, vials of medicine, dried healing herbs, and adhesive plasters. He poured some clear water from a glass bottle onto a clean cloth and began to gently wipe away the dried blood from Elowen's cheek and the cut on the back of her hand.
"Ouch…" Elowen winced as the cool water touched the raw skin.
"Please bear with me just a little longer. I will be as gentle as I can," Ashveil said softly, his hands moving carefully and precisely.
Elowen nodded slowly, letting him clean every trace of blood and dirt from her wounds. Once the areas were clean, Ashveil crushed some soft healing herbs into a fine paste and spread it lightly over the injuries. A fresh, earthy scent filled the room as he applied the medicine with steady hands, making sure not to press too hard or cause unnecessary pain.
He wrapped the deep cut on the back of her hand carefully with soft linen bandages, winding them neatly and securely, and placed a clean plaster over the shallower wound on her cheek to keep it protected.
"Thank goodness these are only light wounds," Ashveil sighed, though worry still lingered in his eyes. "If you had been stabbed or injured more deeply, we would have had no choice but to try and find a proper physician somehow."
"Thank you so much for looking after me, Ashveil," Elowen said quietly. "I was very careful during the battle, I promise you—I never struck to kill or maim, and I guarded myself well."
Ashveil sat down beside her, looking at her with great concern. "Tell me… how did the battle go? Were you able to defeat Alice?"
Elowen shook her head slowly, her expression turning serious and thoughtful. "No… I was not. Suddenly, countless tiny points of bright white light appeared all around us, floating like glowing fireflies. The dark smoke and magic vanished completely, and then Alice just… faded away into mist and disappeared before my eyes."
Ashveil fell silent for a while, staring at the neat bandages wrapped around her hand as he absorbed what she had said.
"And what of the knights who came with her? I know she did not come alone," he asked after a moment.
"The knights were not acting of their own free will—I am certain Alice was controlling their minds and bodies with dark magic," Elowen explained. "As soon as she left and her power broke, they simply walked away as if waking from a long, strange dream. And Ashveil… I truly believe Alice is a witch. I felt the dark power she commands—it is unlike anything I have ever encountered."
"A witch?" Ashveil asked, his eyes widening in surprise. "But I thought all witches had long since vanished from this land and were gone forever?"
"I am not certain about that myself," Elowen replied honestly. "But one thing is sure—her magic is incredibly powerful. Without careful planning and preparation, she will be almost impossible to defeat."
"I know," Ashveil said gently, reaching out to place a hand over hers. "But we will keep searching for her weaknesses and understanding what she can do. I truly hope that one day we will find the answers we are looking for."
Elowen looked down at the clean white bandages covering her hand and let out a long, heavy sigh.
For now, they still had so many questions and no clear answers about who Alice really was, where she came from, or the true extent of her powers. But they both understood one undeniable truth:
The war was far from over.
At the same time, Alice returned to the abandoned mansion. She stepped into the old building with a dark, sour expression. Her footsteps echoed loudly through the vast, empty halls. Fine dust swirled in the air, and sunlight filtering through cracked windows cast long beams of light across the weathered wooden floors.
On the left side of her face, the skin was slightly scorched and blistered. The wound was not deep, yet the pain and humiliation burned within her, making her seethe with rage. She raised a hand and touched the injured spot gently.
Everything should have gone exactly according to her plan. Elowen should have been defeated and brought low; the great dragon should have been drawn onto the battlefield. But those mysterious points of glowing light had ruined everything, shattering her schemes in an instant.
"Damn it! Who was it that helped her?" she shouted, her voice ringing sharply through the hollow rooms.
Alice was absolutely certain that Elowen possessed no magic at all, just like Celestia. Ashveil was nothing more than an ordinary citizen with no strength or special abilities. Charles was merely a court jester who had never displayed any supernatural power whatsoever. She ground her teeth together as she recalled the strange, radiant lights that had appeared in the valley. The wound on her cheek still throbbed and stung painfully.
"Alice?" a soft voice called out.
She turned sharply toward the sound. A familiar creature approached her, but stopped short in shock when it saw her face. It could clearly see the scorched, damaged skin on the left side of her cheek.
"I never imagined there was anyone alive who wielded the power of light," Alice spat, her voice thick with fury. "Even though it was only a small amount, it was enough to disrupt my magic and overpower me!"
She clenched her fists so tightly her knuckles turned white.
"I always thought you were invincible," the creature remarked with a hint of mockery. "I never expected your natural weakness would be something as simple as light."
Alice shot it a sharp, icy glare. "Watch your tongue. I was certain no light magic existed anywhere in this kingdom. Have you managed to learn anything new from Celestia?"
"Nothing of real use yet. But she is gentle, soft‑hearted, and incredibly easy to manipulate. And lately, she has grown very close and affectionate with Ryan."
"Excellent," Alice smiled coldly. "I hope she remains completely unsuspecting and trusts everything I tell her."
"So what do you intend to do now?" the creature asked. "The knights are marching back to the palace even as we speak. Soon everyone will know that you were defeated by Elowen."
Alice fell silent for a moment, her eyes narrowing in deep thought. Then, slowly, a twisted, cruel smile spread across her face—a smile that made the entire cold, dusty mansion feel even darker and more terrifying. A wicked, malicious idea was forming clearly in her mind. She touched her damaged cheek again, and little by little, the burn marks faded and disappeared completely, healed and hidden by her powerful dark magic.
"Do not worry yourself," she whispered. "I will make sure they are all terrified… and I will turn everything to my advantage."
No sooner had she spoken those words than her entire body dissolved into shadows and vanished from the spot, leaving only empty space where she had stood.
Moments later, Alice reappeared silently at the rear of the column of knights as they made their long journey back toward Wonderveil. They rode steadily along the wide road, tired and confused. Alice watched them from behind, her dark eyes glowing with a strange, unnatural light as she slowly wove her magic.
People living along the route stepped out of their homes to watch the army pass. They gasped in horror and alarm at what they saw. Every knight appeared to be grievously wounded. Their armour was charred and blackened, their skin looked as though it had been seared and burned by intense fire, and many seemed to be covered in fresh blood. But none of this was real—it was all nothing more than a powerful illusion created entirely by Alice's magic. In truth, the knights were mostly unharmed and only suffering from exhaustion and minor bruises.
Alice moved to the very front of the procession, her face painted with a perfect expression of sorrow, defeat, and deep disappointment. Throughout the whole journey, the knights remained silent and withdrawn, riding without speaking a single word to one another.
At last, they arrived at the main gates of the royal palace. Celestia had been waiting anxiously for their return, and she immediately hurried forward to meet them. The moment she saw the terrible state of her soldiers, her face turned pale with worry and distress.
"Alice! What has happened? Why are you all in such a condition?" Celestia asked, her voice trembling.
Alice lowered her head slightly, and fake tears began to roll down her cheeks.
"Your Highness… Princess Elowen is incredibly strong and dangerous," she sobbed, putting on a convincing show of grief. "We tried our very best, truly we did… but we simply could not defeat her."
Celestia looked around at the knights, seeing their apparent injuries and suffering, and was immediately overwhelmed with deep guilt and sorrow.
"Did you fight her all alone against just one woman?"
"No… no, she was not alone," Alice lied smoothly. "She was fighting alongside her mighty dragon. Just look at what they have done to our brave men."
Celestia looked again at the knights, seeing them still appearing scorched and burnt as if they had survived being roasted alive by dragon fire—all still part of Alice's powerful illusion.
"Alice… I never imagined you would have to face such terrible danger and such overwhelming power," Celestia said softly, full of sympathy.
"Do not be sad, Princess Celestia," Alice replied gently, masking her true intentions perfectly. "I know every single knight fought with all their heart and strength against your sister… but she and her dragon were simply too powerful for us to overcome."
Celestia gave a small, weary but grateful smile. "I believe you all did absolutely everything you possibly could. Now you must all rest and seek treatment for your wounds as soon as possible. And Alice… please think carefully of a new plan, a better strategy to defeat my sister next time."
Alice nodded her head slowly and obediently. "As you command, Princess Celestia. I shall do exactly that."
But behind her mask of sadness and humility, she was secretly smiling with great satisfaction and triumph. The illusion she had created had worked perfectly, winning her Celestia's full sympathy and trust. She knew very well that Celestia's gentle, trusting nature made it incredibly easy to deceive her and feed her whatever lies she wanted her to believe.
Several days after the battle, news of the army's defeat under Alice's command began to spread everywhere throughout the kingdom of Wonderveil. Newspapers were sold at every corner—in busy markets, in city squares, outside shops, and in every crowded street. On the front page of every paper was a dramatic illustration showing Elowen standing tall alongside a massive, terrifying dragon.
People read the stories eagerly and began whispering and talking to one another everywhere they went.
"Of course she won! She has a dragon on her side—how could we ever hope to win?"
"I never imagined she would actually use that monster to burn our brave soldiers alive!"
"Are we really safe and protected under Princess Celestia's rule? We seem so weak compared to her sister!"
"Oh no… Elowen is the one who has started all this violence and bloodshed!"
Rumours and accusations spread quickly, passing from person to person, from family to family, from towns into villages, growing from small whispers into widespread public belief and fear. The people had absolutely no idea what had truly taken place out in the Valley of Death. They only knew exactly what was written in the newspapers and told by storytellers.
In reality, Elowen had never brought her dragon anywhere near the battlefield at all. Not a single knight had ever been touched or burned by dragon fire. But this was exactly the outcome Alice had planned for from the very beginning.
She wanted fear and panic to spread through every corner of the land. She wanted Elowen's name to be tarnished and hated. She wanted the people to see Elowen only as a dangerous, cruel threat to their safety. But most importantly of all… she wished to break and destroy every bond of trust between them all, bit by bit, until no one believed anyone else, and the whole kingdom was filled with nothing but doubt, suspicion, and hatred.