We were cutting through the Deadwoods, heading back to the others after dealing with the Wild Goblins. I was feeling satisfied thanks to devouring every heart and core to feed my ever-growing Mana Well. The trees thinned as we stepped into a clearing not far from the road where they were supposed to be waiting.
That was when the ground began to tremble. At first, I thought it was thunder, distant, rolling beneath my boots. Then it grew violent enough to rattle my teeth. I stopped. Something enormous moved beyond the treeline. A creature that looked like a mammoth rose from the trees not far from us.
It towered over the canopy, its bulk rivalling the Adventurer Guild's building. Legs thicker than a citadel's pillars, it was massive. Dark fur hung from its colossal frame, thick and matted, draped in sheets of green moss. Its tusks curved outward and up, impossibly long, vanishing into the sky above like pale scythes carved from moonlight.
The creature looked as though it had stepped straight out of the novels I used to read back on Earth. One moment, the clearing was empty; the next, it was simply there, as if the landscape itself had decided to grow a giant. Sahara stepped from the trees behind me, a soft laugh escaping when she saw my silence.
''Oh, you've never met the Deadwood Titan,'' she asked, folding her arms. ''Don't worry, he's harmless. Unless you happen to be another one of his kind.''
''Titan?'' I muttered, unable to tear my eyes away from the beast.
I'd heard of monsters from my studies a year back. Sea horrors large enough to swallow ships. Creatures that stalked the mountain passes. But Titans? Nothing like them. Nothing that walked like a living natural disaster. Sahara stared at me as though I'd sprouted horns, and her expression was cute.
''You must've hit your head,'' she said flatly. ''Everyone knows about Titans. They roam Lumira like storms. Some are calm. Some are hateful. It just depends on which one you cross.''
The Titan shifted, and the earth groaned beneath it. When it began trudging north, each step sent tremors through the ground. If I hadn't been staring directly at the creature, I would have sworn an earthquake had rolled through the woods. This world clearly had no shortage of surprises.
I turned toward Sahara, ready to say something, when another sound brushed against my ears. A slow, rhythmic flapping. Heavy. Deep. Powerful enough that the air itself seemed to shudder with each beat. I frowned. ''What's that sound?''
The orc woman glanced upward and immediately went rigid. Without warning, she seized my arm and pulled me beneath the thick canopy of a nearby tree. Her voice dropped into a tense whisper. ''The Empress of the Night has arrived on Aldoria.''
A shadow rolled across the forest. I looked up just in time to see it descend. The creature was a gigantic bat, but only in the same way a hurricane was a breeze. Its wings stretched across the sky like living storm clouds, vast sheets of black veined with faint blue lines that pulsed like slow-moving lightning.
Jagged talons tipped each wing joint, and its body was wrapped in coarse midnight fur that swallowed the light. Its head was monstrous, elongated and predatory, crowned with towering ears like jagged blades. When it opened its maw, rows of curved fangs gleamed within, large enough to crush a house.
I noticed the newcomer's gaze is fixed on the wandering Titan below. Moments later, it struck. The Empress of the Night plunged from the sky. Claws the size of mountain spires slammed into the Deadwood Titan's body, splintering bone as they dug in. The monstrous bat tightened its grip.
Then, with a single thunderous beat of its wings, the giant bat hauled its prey skyward. My eyes widened at the sight. Awe surged through me, quickly followed by a spark of excitement. Creatures like this should have been terrifying, yet a part of me couldn't help but be thrilled.
After a moment, I turned to Sahara. ''The Night Empress?'' I asked. ''How do you know who she is?''
''Rumours say she's the first Vampire, according to the many tales that become an Apex Threat Titan,'' my general replied. ''And everyone has heard of her; our parents used to tell us stories growing up.''
She shook her head after explaining and suggested. ''We should get back on the road. Tidewater isn't far away.''
I nodded in agreement. ''Let's go, but remind me to get some books on Titans. I'm interested in them.''
Sahara smiled as we made our way back to the others. By the time we reached the road, I could see the Legionnaires standing watch, their eyes scanning the treeline around them. When Evangeline, Selene, Asmara, and Garrick spotted us emerging from the trees, the tension in their faces eased, giving way to relief.
I walked over to my horse and swung myself into the saddle before turning to the older man. ''Garrick,'' I asked. ''Are you able to train people to use swords and shields?''
''Yes, my prince,'' he replied, voice steady but curious. ''May I ask why you wish to know?''
''I'm raising a cohort or two of sword-and-shield infantry,'' I said. ''Would you be willing to train them?''
My mentor's brows lifted in surprise. Beside him, Selene and Evangeline exchanged quick, interested glances. Before anyone else could speak, Sahara added. ''The prince actually has some decent ideas,'' she said. ''You should add spearmen to the roster, though. Swords and shields alone won't hold a disciplined line against cavalry.''
I glanced at Garrick, who nodded with a small smile. ''I'll do it, but after I want to join you in the Bleakmarch, no telling what trouble you'd find.''
''Thank you, old man,'' I said, clapping my mentor lightly on the shoulder as we pressed onward toward Tidewater City.
The road crested a low ridge, and there it was, sprawling before us like a jewelled beast half-drowned in the bay. Tidewater City rose from the water's edge in tiers of white stone and salt-bleached timber, its towers catching the late-afternoon sun so the whole place seemed to shimmer.
Galleys and merchant ships crowded the harbour like patient hounds; banners snapped above the seawalls in greens and golds, the colours of the Ashwood family flying proud even from this distance alongside the royal one. Smoke rose thin and blue from a hundred chimneys, carrying the mingled scents of pitch, fish, and bread across the salt marshes.
Selene reined her mount closer, eyes narrowing as she took in the view. ''Looks busier than last spring. More ships. More trouble waiting for you, Your Highness.''
Evangeline only smiled faintly, as though the city were an old friend she half-suspected of mischief. Sahara snorted softly behind us. ''Try not to look so pleased with yourself, princeling. Cities like that eat ambitious young men for breakfast.''
I grinned back at her over my shoulder. ''Then it's a good thing I brought my own teeth.''
Following that, we kept to the main road as it descended toward the city, the gravel crunching steadily beneath hooves while the Legionnaires marched behind. Travellers began appearing in greater numbers: merchants, guards. I could feel their eyes, some curious, some wary, a few openly awed.
The old prince's name still carried across Verona like a bell note, even out here on the kingdom's western fringe, where salt winds drowned out most royal gossip. I shook my head, half-amused, half-irritated, and forced my gaze forward. Let them gawk. I wasn't riding in to be admired; I was riding in to build something.
I turned toward Evangeline. Her lavender hair caught the late sun in soft violet glints, framing a face that looked both serene and faintly amused at the world's predictable foolishness. ''Are there battle mages here as well?'' I asked. ''You mentioned the veterans before.''
The lavender-haired beauty inclined her head. ''Some, a few still linger in the city, mostly in the upper wards or by the harbour. They've gone quiet since the treaties.''
She gave a small, knowing smile. ''If you're thinking of recruiting mages for your legion, my prince. If so, tread lightly, they don't bow easily, and they remember slights longer than steel remembers blood.''
Sahara, riding just behind us, gave a dry chuckle that carried like a blade being whetted. ''Oh, wonderful. An ambitious prince, sharp steel, and mages who'd rather turn you into ash than salute. This is going to be a delightful homecoming.''
Selene shot her a sidelong glance. ''You're enjoying this far too much.''
''I enjoy competence,'' Sahara replied sweetly. ''Even when it's wrapped in arrogance and bad ideas.''
I grinned despite myself and nudged my mount forward. The gates of Tidewater City loomed ahead, massive oak timbers banded with iron and flanked by white-stone towers that gleamed like salt-bleached bone in the fading light. The sigil of House Ashwood was carved deep into the lintel above, a white tree on a black background.
Then I noticed the portcullis stood raised, admitting a steady stream of carts, riders, and foot traffic. Guards in green cloaks nodded us through with salutes, their eyes lingering on the royal colours we still flew, thanks to the Ninth being my legion. I'm glad Verona has this tradition. My new grandfather is wise, it seems.
We passed beneath the arch; the clamour of the city enveloped us: stalls selling fresh oysters and spiced crab, the clang of hammers from the forges, gulls wheeling overhead with screeches. The main road stretched wide before us, lined with whitewashed warehouses and merchant houses.
Seconds later, I saw a man waiting at the head of a small mounted retinue at the main square, Count Theo Ashwood. Evangeline's father cut an imposing yet warm figure: tall, broad-shouldered, his silver-streaked dark hair tied back, a deep blue cloak embroidered with the family crest draped over mail and velvet.
His beard was neatly trimmed, and when he spotted us, his face split into a genuine, broad smile that crinkled the corners of his eyes and softened the stern lines time had etched there. ''My prince!'' he called, voice carrying easily over the noise. ''Welcome to Tidewater City!''
He prompted his mount to move and strode the last few paces, clasping my forearm in a firm, soldier's grip before pulling me into a hearty embrace. No stiff courtly bow, no calculated deference, just the open warmth of a friend of the crown who'd known the old me since I was a baby.
''You've grown taller since I last saw you,'' he said, moving back to look me over with frank approval. ''And leaner. The road agrees with you, or perhaps the company.''
His gaze flicked past me to Evangeline, softening further. ''Daughter. You've brought him back in one piece. I owe you a cask of the good vintage or maybe a new scroll.''
Evangeline tilted her head with a fond smile. ''He's harder to lose than you'd think, Father.''
Theo laughed, a deep, rolling sound that drew smiles from nearby guards and passersby alike. ''So I've heard. Come, all of you. The keep is ready, stables for the horses, baths drawn, and a table groaning under roast venison and fresh oysters. We'll talk strategy over wine instead of dust and horse sweat.''
He turned to my mentor and the others with the same easy courtesy, clapping the old man on the shoulder and nodding to Selene and Sahara with quick, appraising glances that missed nothing. ''You've brought quite the retinue, my prince. I like it. Makes an old count feel young again.''
Sahara arched a brow, lips quirking. ''Careful, my lord. Flattery like that might make him think he's actually welcome.''
Theo's grin widened. ''He is. And so are you daughter of Duke Veyra, sharp tongue and all. Now let's get inside before the evening tide brings the fog, and we're all complaining about damp cloaks.''
With that, he gestured for us to fall in beside him, leading the way up the broad street toward the keep that crowned the highest tier of the city. The stares from the crowds continued, but now they felt less like scrutiny and more like anticipation. Tidewater was waking up to the fact that its prince had returned, and he hadn't come alone.
Count Ashwood led us through the city, and people parted ways to let us pass as they bowed in my direction. While riding through the city, Evangeline leaned in. ''My mother is intense, don't mind her.''
''Huh?'' I replied, turning to the smiling mage.
Before I could continue, Garrick appeared beside me, his horse saying hello to mine. ''Your Highness, can I go start recruiting the sword and spear warriors?'' he asked.
I turned toward the older man. ''Yes, what else do you need?''
''Maybe Lady Dunthera's help? She's got good eyes for soldiers, or so I've heard,'' he revealed.
I laughed and nodded. ''Yes, Sahara told me. Take her and make sure to bring the recruits back to the fort. We're leaving for Bleakmarch tomorrow, while you stay back to train them.''
Garrick bowed his head before heading back toward the main square after speaking to Asmara, who looked at me. I agreed with a nod, and she followed behind him as Sahara requested. ''Can I join them?''
''Why? Don't you want to drink wine and eat good food?''
The Orc beauty shook her head. ''We can go out after you're done with the count. I don't like noble meetings, they're boring and make me want to fall asleep.''
''Okay,'' I said, laughing. ''Now make sure we get five hundred in each cohort.''
Sahara grinned before saluting. ''Yes, my prince!''