The Regressed Heir of Ravencrest

From high above the clouds, the crimson-eyed woman watched everything unfold. Although she couldn’t hear everything from such a distance, having to conceal her presence from the Ice Dragon, her divine perception allowed her to observe the entire sequence: the dragon’s shock upon noticing something about Ethan, the spatial fluctuations that began the moment she uttered those words, and everything she did before finally vanishing.

Her gaze then dropped toward the jagged peaks of the Winterveil Mountain Range, where Riennal lay bound in frost and chains. A cruel, predatory glint flickered in her eyes.

———

The spatial cracks closed, and the sky above Northwatch fell silent.

Yet the world remained motionless.

Snowflakes hung frozen in the air, and the soldiers along the battlements remained exactly as they had been, their weapons raised, their mouths half-open, their eyes fixed on the now-empty sky. Even after Mythralis had vanished, her Authority lingered over the fortress, slowly fading like the last echo of a bell.

Marcus knew the Authority would lift in a minute or two… He knew she had done it deliberately so they could handle things.

His attention then snapped to Ethan. His heart ached as he looked at his nephew, who had fought until the very end despite the pain he must have endured. Ethan’s battered body, now encased in frost, was proof enough of the price he had paid. Had Ethan not intervened, either Marcus or the Ice Dragon might have died, with consequences that could have devastated the entire Northern Frontier. He didn’t even want to imagine what would have happened if the battle had ended differently.

Moments earlier, alongside her memories, Mythralis had shared what she knew about the purple mist, the demon truly behind the Beast Tide, and her suspicions about their intentions. Marcus’s fingers tightened around his spear as he considered what their plans might have entailed.

“Evelyn, take him to the guest house,” Marcus said quickly. “Take him before it lifts.”

Evelyn understood immediately. She had countless questions, but now was not the time to ask them. They had more pressing matters to deal with.

Both understood what needed to be done next. The truth behind the Beast Tide had to remain concealed; they couldn’t allow the Abyssal Pact’s or the demons’ involvement to become public knowledge. If word spread that one of the Four Great Evils could control legendary dragons through forbidden means, the revelation would cause an uproar throughout the Empire. Worse, if word reached the dragons about what had been done to one of their own, it would wound their pride, and some of them might retaliate against the Empire.

Although dragons rarely involved themselves in human affairs, most members of the Four Great Evils were human. Not every dragon would see it that way, but even if a few Ancient Dragons viewed humanity itself as a threat and descended upon the Empire, they might not distinguish between the guilty and the rest of humanity. They also had to keep Ethan’s involvement secret, since revealing his role could attract unwanted attention from both the nobles and the Empire’s darker factions.

Evelyn knelt and carefully lifted Ethan into her arms. The frost encasing him felt surprisingly warm against her skin, almost soothing. She picked up the Eternal Sovereign Blade with her free hand, and as she rose, Rune leapt onto her and clung tightly to her. Evelyn’s eyes widened briefly at the unexpected movement, but she already knew of the cub’s special nature, so she didn’t say anything.

Evelyn nodded once. Flames flickered at her heels, and she vanished from the parapet.

She crossed the frozen fortress at the full speed of a Heaven Knight, using the movement technique of the Flame Empress Art. By the time she reached the walls of the Outer District, she could already feel Mythralis’s Authority beginning to lift. Those with greater strength and will were the first to regain control of their bodies.

In the Outer District, Aisha gasped as she finally regained control of her body, her desperation pulling her free before most of those around her. After Marcus had unleashed his Domain, she had pushed through her exhaustion and run toward the Inner Fortress, sensing the enormous battle unfolding above and fearing for Ethan’s safety. Then Mythralis’s Authority had descended, freezing her in the middle of the street and leaving her unable to move a single finger.

Now the presence was gone.

She didn’t wait for a single second. Gathering her remaining mana, she ran toward the Inner Fortress again, her robes whipping behind her. A few soldiers were still frozen as she rushed past them without a thought.

Ethan… please be safe…

She had barely made it through two streets when a figure wreathed in flames strode through the sky. In the air, Evelyn quickly sensed Aisha’s presence down the street, took a step, and descended.

“Lady Aisha.”

Aisha stopped short, breathing heavily as she looked up. “Lady Evelyn…! Please take me to the—”

Her words died when she noticed Rune and Ethan, still encased in frost, in Evelyn’s arms.

“Ethan…!”

Aisha rushed to Evelyn. Her hands hovered over the ice, trembling.

“What happened to him? What is this?!” she demanded, looking at Evelyn.

“The Commander will explain later,” Evelyn said quietly. “For now, let’s take him to the guest house.”

Aisha looked at her for a moment. Then she looked back at Ethan, and her jaw tightened. She didn’t know what was happening, but for now none of that mattered; saving Ethan was more important to her than anything.

Aisha quickly nodded. As soon as she did, Evelyn took her hand, and within a few seconds they arrived at the guest estate.

Aisha led her to a quiet room at the far end of the building, and Evelyn laid Ethan down gently on the bed, placing the black blade beside him. Rune leapt onto the bed at once and curled beside him, his blue eyes watchful and tense.

Aisha sat down beside him immediately, her hand resting on the ice. Her eyes turning moist.

“He… he will be fine, right?” Aisha asked, her voice heavy.

Seeing the emotion in Aisha’s eyes, Evelyn quickly reassured her. “He will be fine…”

After a brief pause, she handed Aisha a linen kerchief. “I need to return to the wall. Please look after him.”

“I’ll stay with him,” Aisha said, taking it into her hands.

Evelyn looked at the boy in the frost for a moment longer. Then she turned and left. She had to return to the wall before anyone noticed she was gone.

———

The world moved again.

Snowflakes resumed their descent, and the freezing wind swept across the battlements once more. Archers jolted as they lowered their half-raised bows, mages gasped as their held breaths escaped, and knights watched the aura shields above their heads flicker back to life.

Along the miles of battlements, thousands of soldiers looked around in confusion, as though awakening from a dream they couldn’t remember.

Moments before the soldiers around him, Van regained control of his body, and his outstretched hand met empty air.

He stumbled forward, his eyes widening. Only a moment ago, the Young Master had been standing right in front of him. Now there was nothing but bare stone and a few drops of blood.

“Young Master…?!”

He spun around, searching the battlements in a panic.

A heavy hand settled on his shoulder.

“He’s safe,” Marcus said quietly, keeping his voice low enough that only Van could hear.

Van turned to look at him. For a long moment, he simply stared at the Commander. Then, slowly, the tension drained from his shoulders. He didn’t ask anything else as he nodded.

“Commander!”

A shout rang out from the outer wall.

“The beasts…! Look at the beasts!”

Every head along the battlements turned toward the plain.

The horde was moving.

But not toward the fortress.

Tens of thousands of beasts scrambled to their feet and fled toward the Winterveil Mountain Range in blind panic, while the aerial beasts took to the sky. Glacier Trolls trampled Frost Hounds, and Orc Generals shoved Beast Lords aside in their desperate retreat. Apex Beasts that had hurled themselves against the walls without fear for three days now ran as though death itself were pursuing them. Their shrieks echoed across the plain as they poured into the mountain passes, not one daring to look back, as though the abyss would claim them the moment they did.

The soldiers watched in stunned silence as the dark tide that had pressed against their walls for three days drained away across the plain and disappeared into the mountains.

Then, slowly, their eyes turned upward.

The sky was empty.

“The d-dragon…”

“The dragon is gone…” one whispered after another.

Their gazes shifted toward the central parapet, where Marcus and Evelyn stood. Evelyn had returned as fast as she could, before anyone even realised she had left. Their armor was cracked and blackened, blood stained their faces, and their weapons were still in hand.

The soldiers remembered the final moments before the world had stopped: the two Heaven Knights attacking the dragon with everything they had, the explosion that shattered its magic, and the beast reeling through the sky with a roar, and the enormous magic circle streaking away toward the Winterveil Mountain Range.

Now the dragon was gone.

“Is it… over?” a young archer whispered, his bow trembling in his hands.

For a moment, no one answered. Then a veteran mercenary beside him let out a hoarse laugh. “The Commander… the Commander drove it off…”

The words spread rapidly along the walls.

“The Commander and the Guild Master drove off the dragon!”

“They did it!”

“We’re alive!”

“Hooray for the Commander and Lady Evelyn!”

A ragged cheer rose from one section of the wall, then another, until it rolled across the battlements and echoed over the empty plain.

WOOOAAAHHH!

On the central parapet, Marcus said nothing.

Beside him, Evelyn glanced at him once, then looked back out over the plain, her expression unreadable.

On the lower battlements, Vera sank down against the stone with her eyes closed, a faint smile on her lips as she realised they were going to live. Stone let out a laugh and slapped Corvus on the back so hard that he nearly fell over. Finch simply stared at the empty plain, as though he couldn’t believe he was still alive.

Iron Wolf stood a little apart from them, his eyes fixed on the distant central battlements.

Ethan had gone to the central battlements earlier, but Iron Wolf couldn’t find him anywhere.

Where are you, My Lord…?

On the central parapet, Marcus took a step into the air and turned to face everyone. He looked over the destroyed walls and the injured soldiers.

“Everyone!”

His booming voice carried across the miles of battlements, and the fortress fell quiet.

“The Beast Tide is over!”

A tired cheer rose once more, weaker this time but no less heartfelt.

“For three days, you held this wall against a horde greater than any we have faced before,” Marcus continued. “You fought to protect your comrades, your families, and everyone sheltered beneath the Ravencrest banner. The North will not forget what you have done here, and every one of you will be rewarded for your efforts.”

As soon as he said that, the dying cheer rose once more.

Then his tone changed, and he became the Commander once more.

“Healers, tend to the wounded first. Then the exhausted. Black Raven captains, rotate the sentries and secure the battlements.”

“Yes, Commander!”

The cheers along the battlements didn’t last long. Exhaustion came first. After three days deprived of rest, without proper food or a moment to catch their breath, the soldiers’ bodies finally gave out. Some simply sat down where they stood, their legs refusing to hold them any longer. Some slumped against the merlons and fell asleep in the middle of the celebration. Others stood staring out at the empty plain, as though they still couldn’t believe it was over.

Healers moved along the walls without rest, kneeling beside the wounded and pressing glowing hands against open injuries. Stretcher bearers carried the injured down the narrow stairways one after another, and there seemed to be no end to them. Further down the wall, soldiers covered the faces of the comrades who hadn’t survived, quietly, without a word.

As the officers scattered, Marcus called the Black Raven captains closer and lowered his voice.

“Give instructions to the soldiers, the mercenaries, and the hunter guild masters that no word about this Tide shall leak. If anyone dares to say anything, tell them they will be dealt with.”

The captains exchanged glances.

“Yes, Commander.”

Marcus glanced at Evelyn without turning his head.

“Done?” he asked.

“Lady Aisha has him,” Evelyn replied.

Marcus let out a slow breath. Then he turned to Van, who had been standing silently behind them.

“Van, you look after everything… Evelyn, come with me.”