The Castle in the middle of nowhere.

"...and after he gifted the Halo to Irene, Zephyr left," I concluded.

And I sighed heavily, rubbing my eyes... Zephyr better behave next time, or his ass would be beaten. I sat in silence to give the people a moment to digest this... problem, I guess. It was late afternoon now, and the sun was casting long shadows. Beyond the large window, the snow was falling lazily in the absence of the wind, giving an eerie feeling of peace. I looked at everyone gathered around the large round table. They all sat in thoughtful silence, pondering exactly why I ordered them here. The kids had run away as fast as they could, riding on Mr Fluffles as he made his way into the shadows, and I could only smile proudly at how quickly they evacuated.

"You may be wondering why you are here. Especially you, Lanka," I spoke slowly as I looked casually at the map, which showed everything within a two-day walking radius around Avalon. Everything that could be seen by my watch towers or eagles patrolling the sky refreshed in real-time, which was a very useful feature. "It's because I have an official request for the guild, Lanka. I will need my residents to attend adventuring lessons or whatever related theories you can teach them."

"Of course, my Lord." She stood up quickly. "But… why? Your residents are, most likely, the most powerful Heroes in the lands of Cridia."

"Maybe, Lanka. But they are not adventurers. Their fight against that Lich could have ended tragically if he had attacked sooner. It could have ended in tragedy as well if they had just touched a single cursed item." I sighed, still looking at the map. I noticed a large pack of monsters and sent orders to my eagles to observe them. "It's not their fault. But they have to learn everything there is to know."

This was an interesting thing I never paid much attention to; my multitasking was inhumane, which was fair since I was technically not a human, even if I did everything in my power to stay one. But still, I could think about six or seven very complicated things while talking with people about something else entirely. I glanced at them in silence and saw them sadly nod their heads. I know that traps awareness theory might be boring... Wait a second... I smirked. I knew exactly what I would do.

"I will create a special training complex where you all will be able to train your trap awareness. However, don't expect it earlier than at the end of the week," I said, smiling slightly. "Does anyone have any additional questions?"

I stood up and looked at the surrounding people who trusted me with their lives. They all warmly smiled at me. Within their gazes, I felt their unshaken faith in me. That should have been scary, but it wasn't, though I knew exactly why. I gave them something more than just safety and comfort. I gave them all dignity and restored their purposes in life. What's more, in their eyes, I was a king worthy of following, one who finally wanted to change the world. I looked at them and saw their eyes shining in anticipation of my orders. There was no fear or doubt, just the certainty of carrying out my will. They were all extraordinary and capable of great things. I suspected that Eriar somehow had purposely brought them here to me.

"I see no questions." I nodded. With my open palm, I pointed towards Dahlia, who was sitting near Lanka. "I want also introduce you officially to Dahlia. She and her younger brother... Who evacuated himself with Marie and her gang... It doesn't matter... Dahlia and Clovis are our new residents. I hope they will find a home here in Avalon."

Dahlia was surprised, but she quickly stood up, bowing to everyone nervously. Everyone stood up as well, welcoming her warmly. I nodded to Annika, who prepared a small welcoming party for them. After they left the room with the happily smiling Wolfkin, I stayed behind with my Queens. Lanka excused herself and headed towards the Everlight. It was a long day for her. When the doors closed behind her, I leaned heavily over the table and looked intensely at the map.

"Theon? What's going on?" Amber asked me in a serious voice.

"This never happened before. Look here." I pointed at the map and outstretched my arm.

The map zoomed out, showing everything mapped that was within a week’s walk from Avalon. Usually, in this world, people could travel about 20 kilometres daily if they heavily forced themselves, but the most common range was 15 kilometres daily. The Gorn Village was almost 17 and a half kilometres away. The fact they covered that distance between Gorn and Avalon with their children in just eleven and a half hours was insane. No wonder they had mostly rested for two days when I had given them such an opportunity.

Anyway. I now had under constant surveillance a 50 kilometre diameter circle around Avalon. And within that circle, a large group of at least fifty snow monsters had banded together. They were closing on desolated Gorn and I wondered what are they were up to.

"Those are... Snow monsters?" Amber tilted her head, watching the miniature figurines on the map move slowly. Her loose hair flowed like a river of fire, covering her right side, which was hypnotizing. I looked at her, my breath taken away by her wonderful figure lit by the evening sun.

But a few mundane problems needed my attention, and with a heavy heart, I turned my gaze away from Amber, pointing at a few small silhouettes on my war map. The map itself was a yellowish parchment colour, which I considered extremely fitting for a map. But the cities, villages, forests, and any other points of interest were represented by a figurine or model similar to the tabletop miniatures I used to play with my friends so long ago and so far away. These miniatures were detailed according to the information I had gathered about that place. It also applied to monsters as well as people; the more information I had, the more their miniatures had details. Around Avalon, there was about a two-kilometre-wide strip of plateau on which only grass grew, though now it was covered with a thick snow blanket on which snowdrifts moved lazily with the wind. Further away, forests started marking their presence akin to big green lakes. And speaking of lakes, there were a few small ponds to the east, about ten kilometres away, along with one large lake to the northwest, which fed all the streams and rivers in the area. From it, a large, deep river headed further to the west, presumably towards the sea or the ocean.

However, right then, a large band of snow monsters caught our attention, forcing us to wonder what they were up to. Irene picked up one monster miniature from the table and looked closely at it, fascinated by the magic of my war room. Luna shivered when she saw the detailed features of the monster so similar to the one that almost killed her. It was a massive beast, muscular and with fur similar to the polar bear, but there was something off about it. And no, I'm not talking about its moose-like antlers. The winter beast had a strange face that looked as if it was mutilated in some fight, but the fact that every single one of them looked so similar meant they were born or spawned that way. It was a very unnerving sight that possibly amplified their intimidation effects. The monsters moved slowly, traversing the snowy landscape in groups of five, with a bit of distance between each group.

"They are moving in something I can describe only as the marching formation." I pointed at all the smaller groups that had created a three-team forward vanguard in either a spearhead or reversed v formation. "The vanguards are spread out ten meters from each group while the core of monster formation, as stupid as that sounds, consists of thirty monsters and is within contact by sight distance, while the rearguard consists of five beasts in a line formation. That's absurd..."

"I never suspected they were sentient..." Irene put down a figure that immediately moved to where it should be.

"I can't say for sure, Theon, but when I was attacked..." Luna hesitated slightly and took a deep breath to calm herself. "When they attacked me, I felt their malicious intent. It was almost like being chased by slavers. The wound they inflicted upon me was lethal, but... I was sure they wanted to capture me."

I nodded, deep in thought, and rubbed my chin. Two wolves that patrolled the nearby area were swiftly closing on the winter monsters’ position. I noticed that sending complicated orders to my denizens was draining my mana by the hundreds. However, now I was willing to spend it. The wolves stopped on a distant flank and observed the monsters, who seemed to be unwary of their presence, as well as the two eagles who watched them from above. One of the eagles lowered its altitude to take a better look and...

"What?" It shocked me when one of the monsters in the center used a spell to kill my low-level eagle. "Is that normal?"

"Don't ask us, Theon. We are most probably the first people alive to observe the behaviour of the winter beasts." Amber shrugged but gazed at the map in intrigued tension. "They seem to be aware of being observed. Huh... Look here!"

The second smaller group quickly approached the band we were observing. They moved in a chaotic order, without any special formation or regard for their surroundings. This pack was moving swiftly at about thirty kilometres per hour through the deep snow, traversing through a sparse forest. That also was alarming. My wolves moved half that fast, and my horses had problems with the deep snow to begin with. Rose even had to summon a rock golem to plough the snow out of their path when they were looking for buffalos.

"They are a bigger threat than I initially thought..." I considered my options. In the meantime, I saw the World System pop up.

"What are you going to do about them?" Luna took my hand, and I could feel how nervous she was, even in the safety of my Kingdom.

Her eyes- a deep sky blue that was encased in a golden, glittering ring on the fringes of her irises, were full of fear and anxiety. I felt her tremble, realizing the depth of her trauma. I glanced at the map once again while I released my hand from her grip, gently pulling her to me as I hugged her. Luna snuggled into me, looking for the safety I would provide for her.

"Sebastian..." I asked the air, speaking slowly, almost like I was trying to convince myself to execute my forthcoming order.

"My King!" My Scion soundlessly showed up a few heartbeats later.

"You will lead a strike group. We must kill this group of monsters, but try to take some prisoners. Interrogate them with Thor. He is already preparing a second team consisting of his biggest wolves, who are able to carry archers," I slowly ordered, feeling Luna's mood change. I looked at her with a warm smile and almost chuckled when I noticed she had started wagging her tail. "Sebastian, you and Thor must assess the size of their threat and find out if they are working for anyone or anything."

"As you wish, your Highness." Sebastian put his arm over his chest and bowed slightly. "With the amount of troops you are allowing us to take, it would be embarrassing should we fail."

Luna smiled at his statement, but I heard Amber's thoughtful voice near me.

"Sebastian, be careful. Consider them a threat a few magnitudes higher than what you think of them now." She pointed at the map where the snow monsters slowly divided into four groups and split, each one heading toward the desolate Gorn Village.

"Yes, my Lady!" Sebastian observed the map for a moment as well, and I could see his movements change slightly, suggesting he was rapidly reassessing the monsters he had been ordered to wipe out.

"We are not in a hurry to intercept them too quickly. Observe them, gather as much data about them, and then you may strike. Gorn is empty, and each one of its inhabitants swore their oaths of loyalty to me as their new King. I have allowed them to stay in the Everlight, and now they have no desire to return to Gorn ever again. They left nothing worthy of saving from that place." I advised slowly.

Luna tried to calm herself in my arms and, with embarrassment painted on her face, she tried to step aside, but I did not let her go. She didn't struggle to break free, instead, she hugged me tighter, breaking down in tears. Luna had almost died back then, and that fear was still fresh in her mind. She needed a strong arm to cry on now and an even stronger one to help her forget. Such a twisted fate wanted me to be the only person she could trust and always find protection in. She was given a purpose by her god to help her assigned Hero to find himself in this world. She was tasked with aiding me, supporting me, being my friend, and perhaps being someone more to me. She didn't know me at all when she was given a tough choice, yet she decided to trust me.

I would not fail them. I would not fail Amber and her fiery passion. I would not fail Irene and her scared hands looking for me in the darkness when the nightmares came, too faint to remember in order to wake her up, but too strong to let her go. And now I had Luna, a mess of a person- still jumpy and scared by any shadow bigger than her, even deep inside Avalon’s protective walls.

"It's okay, my little Fox. You all are safe." I looked at my two other Queens.

Amber and Irene looked compassionately at Luna. They had all put their faith in me, and that faith gave me the strength to do what had to be done. Since the day they trusted me with their lives, I vowed to protect their smiles. None of us were truly immortal. We could live forever, but we could also be killed. Luna sobbed softly, still looking for refuge in my arms. I patted her head slowly as I held her in silence, delicately combing her long hair with my hand.

By the time Luna calmed down significantly, Sebastian was already gone. Objectively speaking, he was my strongest scion, much more powerful than Galahad, Arani, and Thor. While Stella was in a class of her own, her abilities were focused on the defence and protection of Avalon. I could trust him and him alone with this mission.

•••

Knys was sitting in dimly lit Sigismund's office in silence, listening to what the Last Dwarven Lord had to say. The Town Hall, fortunately, was not an integral part of the guild hall and was quickly moved to the eastern side of the main square next to Warren's Tavern. It was mostly his wife who ran the Tavern, but he at least helped there occasionally. The room was richly furnished and warm, thanks to the wooden carvings decorating the walls and the thick, soft carpets covering the floor. Knys drank a big sip of tea.

"I think you are right, my friend. We can ignore King Theon's protection, but we have to focus on protecting the Queens." Knys rubbed the side of a cup with a sigh. "But no matter what we do, we have to check everyone. I won't hesitate to employ oaths or gaesa if necessary. No one living in the Everlight can stay without swearing to protect Avalon at all costs."

"That's obvious. We have to think of some oath that will bind people. I will not risk any turncoat around." Sigismund angrily tapped the table.

"Hehehe... Like us?" Chuckled Knys. "We turned on the Cridia Kingdom."

"Well... You could say so." Dwarf shrugged. "I never felt like a Cridian citizen, and Cridia is opposite to everything King Theon stands for. Besides, I never once felt good there. But here? Everlight is my home, and I will protect it."

"I know. But you must remember that as soon as Josla confirms our presence among King Theon's forces, we will be branded traitors." The big Orc smiled. "So, how do you plan to do that?"

"Oh, that's actually easy." The Dwarf smiled coldly. "Every single adventurer will have to join the Guild. You already have the oath to protect Avalon."

"That's true. What about the others?"

"I'm going to use Lanka's authority," the Dwarf said very slowly.

"That... That might actually work. She is an Avalonian noble, and she can create the oath... but... I don't think the King will be pleased."

Both of them looked out of the window towards the Palace lit by dozens of soft lights. They sat in silence, thinking about the challenges they would have to face very soon. Knys sighed first. His adventurers were levelling incredibly fast, but they were nowhere near the residents. He had to push them even harder if his guild wanted to stay relevant as a fighting force in the lines of defence protecting Avalon. They suspected that King Theon was not telling them everything about his full potential or perhaps not even showing them the true defensive forces of his Kingdom. Or they at least hoped so...

•••

"It was a good call to stay here for the winter," a large human said while drinking his light beer.

"Ha! You bet," replied a Lizardman, closing his jaws on a piece of rabbit meat they had managed to hunt earlier today. " The Dungeon somehow obtained ice rabbits! They’re so good!"

"Kumak? Gil?" The Barmaid approached them with a worried face. "Where are your friends?"

"Oh, noble Lady!" the human started theatrically. "I'm afraid I have grave news. They fought bravely, but they couldn't hope to win against the dungeon’s perils. After a long and exhausting battle, which should be sung in tales of bards in years to come, they perished!"

The woman rolled her eyes and looked at the shaman, who was eating his rabbit stew. He raised one finger to the ceiling, giving her a sign to wait for him to swallow. He looked ridiculous as he tried to chew what was in his maw quickly. He swallowed and bowed politely to the woman.

"Please, don't mind Gil. As always, he merely jests! They are right here, Miss Owner!" Kumak pointed under the table where the four others lay sleeping, completely drunk. "This beer is excellent! But they were tired and had underestimated this most formidable opponent!"

She sighed and took a few steps back. As Kumak said, she saw them sleeping peacefully under the table, covered by their cloaks. Kumak and Gil had even tucked them into their bedrolls. She smiled slightly at the tight-knit party of friends, deciding she approved of them. It was a shame they had arrived so late and there was no room free for them, but they didn't seem to mind, sleeping in the tavern common room.

"Right..." She cleared her throat. "The dungeon gave a special quest for you folks. When your friends wake up tomorrow, come to me, and I'll give you the details." She smiled at them with a charming smile and quickly added, seeing their surprised faces. "It's not an open quest, folks, like the others you find on the request board."

"Hmmm... I mean... It won't hurt to check it, right?" Gil lost his flirting smile that had never once worked on the Barmaid, but he tried nonetheless.

"Sure." Kumak nodded. "We will find you, Miss, right after our friends down there return to the world of the living."

•••

Fania woke up, instantly regretting it as a bad idea. Her head was hurting so much. Moving on its own, her hand searched for the metal water flask she had looted from a monster in this dungeon, which she considered one of her greatest treasures. She found it finally and quickly quenched her thirst with fresh, cold water.

"Argh..." she softly said with conviction.

"Argh..." agreed the second female voice next to her.

"Ohhhh..." The discussion reached an even higher level of quality with this shared opinion.

"I can hear you are awake, girls!" A merry voice from above boomed in Fania's ears painfully.

"Shut up, Glenn!" After a second attempt, she managed to crawl out from her bedroll.

With a heavy, still spinning head, she leaned heavily on the table where Glenn poured her something steaming hot, though it smelled incredibly good. Her two friends also crawled out from under the table slowly and received their respective cups of the same drink. She grabbed it, and after a few blows to cool it down a bit, she drank it. But when she tasted it, she finished the entire cup without paying too much attention to how hot it was.

"Ahhhh! One more! I beg you." She put the tin cup on the table and stared miserably at the cleric. "What is it?!"

"It's called milk, my dear!" he exclaimed proudly, pouring her seconds. "It cost me two hundred copper coins for this jug."

She froze, scared by that economic revelation, but drank the milk nonetheless. It was too good and too expensive to waste it. She felt, however, her hangover disappearing, which was incredible.

"Glenn... I don't have money to pay you off." She cleaned her mouth nervously with the back of her hand.

"Are you joking? Yesterday, you saved my life! It's on me, Fania!" He smiled at her.

"Then... May I ask for the third cup?" She smiled, knowing full well that was not entirely true, but not exactly a lie, either. "Where are Gil and Kumak?"

"Gil went to hold a spot in line for the public bath for you, and Kumak is looking for Miss Owner. She has a special quest for us."

Fania looked around more clearly, but the tavern had long ago woken up, and everyone was respectfully walking around, making it apparent that they were the last three sleeping. She quickly climbed on the chair and finally spotted Gil, who waved at her. It looked like they woke up just in time.

"Girls! Quickly. Gil is waving at us, so it is our turn to take a bath!" She kissed Glenn. "Thank you, sweetheart."

The girls, despite their only partially cured hangovers, quickly grabbed their equipment and some fresh clothes. Glenn giggled as he saw them running to Gil. The two Dwarves and the Half-Dwarf were determined to reach the public baths before they lost their chance. He sighed with a soft smile that turned somewhat uncertain.

With the spring, this dungeon would most probably be attacked by the Cridian army. Some adventurers from the Respite Tavern had already declared they wanted to help defend the dungeon, but Glenn knew how foolish that would be. The army would come in the thousands, too strong for them to oppose it... Yet... He was one of those fools who had cried loudest to defend the Righteous Dungeon...

•••

Although five parties left to complete their daily quests, most of the others remained behind. It soon became clear that most of the other parties were waiting for the Barmaid. She was moving gracefully between the tables, giving each group their own quests. It was mesmerising to watch her fluent and beautiful rhythm as she moved like a dancer, her cheerful laughter erupting as she spoke briefly with each group, never slowing down even a little. After she gave them all their quests, she returned to her husband, who was standing on the stairs so everyone could see him.

Well... Even without that, he was easily spottable. He must have once been a tank or barbarian; his shoulders were broad, and he looked as if he could casually crush skulls barehanded. His wife looked like a beautiful doll next to him, but thanks to his hulking appearance, there was no one stupid enough to try anything funny with the Barmaid. Besides, everyone liked her. Anyone who would try to hurt her would end up being beaten by the entire tavern, like that one stupid brat a few weeks back...

"Adventurers!" He started with his deep voice. "Up until now, you had been tested by the dungeon. It has deemed you all worthy of an even harder test. This quest is called the Trials of Avalon. It's up to you if you decide to accept it, but if you pass it, the rewards will surpass your wildest dreams. That is all we can tell you now. Decide if you dare to accept this challenge!"

The six friends read the quest in silence and looked at each other. This was it. The true quest they all craved for.