The vampire clicked his tongue in amazement and frowned, considering his next words.

- Your witch said she came in peace. If so, then prove it – give up! - Although he tried to speak confidently, his voice still trembled slightly.

- How do you prove that you are not lying to us? You attacked us. -Adeline shouted at him.

- Let me go and I’ll get your man out of the maze while he’s still alive. – the vampire immediately gave out. – At this rate, he won’t have long left.

With a growl, Klaus made it clear to Adeline that this idea was completely absurd, but the girl seemed to have a different opinion and gave her consent to the vampire. She was afraid that their categorical attitude could cost Terrence and Artemis their lives. It was too much weight on the scales.

- You won’t get another chance. - she threatened him and in an instant, having no resistance, the vampire disappeared from his place and returned a few minutes later, carrying the bloody Crown Prince in his arms.

The wounds on his body were so terrible that Adeline gasped in horror and squeezed her eyes shut.

Pieces of meat were sticking out of torn fabrics, all the clothes were covered in blood and there was no living place where there would not be these red marks.

His chest was barely moving, and only a vampire who could hear the faint pounding of Terrence’s heart could confirm the presence of life in his body now.

- His life is hanging by a thread. So, what will be your decision? - He asked idly, pleased with himself.

- We give up. - Adeline said without hesitation, throwing her wand forward and raising her hands in the air.

Klaus and the rest of the werewolves could only follow her and shamefully lower their heads, still not resigned to their defeat.

***

Later in the dungeon.

- Why did you come here? - Dexter tried to keep his voice low, but Amanda’s stubbornness was taking his nervous system to a new level.

- Dex, let me talk to her. Your interrogations didn’t lead to anything, you’re going to kill her like that. - She almost begged him, but her hands were clenched into fists, threatening to hit him if he refused her again.

- Her lies are really impressive, no amount of torture could break her. - He spat out the words as if they were something unpleasant in his mouth. - But it’s too dangerous, I can’t let you go to her." You’ve seen for yourself how powerful witches have become. Can we know for sure that she is not the supreme witch in disguise?

- Then stay by my side, but let me talk to her. I’m just going to ask her a few questions. I won’t even go into the cell. Just let me talk. What if we make a mistake?

- The mistake is that I brought her here at all. I should have left her there in the maze. – He muttered. – Five minutes. I’ll give you five minutes. And I’ll be there.

Amanda wanted to clap her hands and jump for joy that she was able to convince her, but the presence of crutches brought her down hard to the ground, so she just limped after Dexter.

- What about the other prisoners? - she asked him as they walked about the cool and damp corridor of the dungeon for the most notorious criminals.

- They have also been placed under arrest and are undergoing an interrogation procedure. - He replied without giving her much detail. - There’s another one in the prison infirmary...

- Is something wrong? - Amanda noticed his subdued tone.

- This is the Crown Prince of Riliya. - Dexter replied with a hiss and a curse, before stopping abruptly at the camera, surrounded by a flickering protective barrier that limited magic and all its manifestations.

His answer faded in her ears as soon as she saw Artemis’s face. Exactly the same as she was three hundred years ago, except for the significant injuries and mutilations on her body received during the interrogation.

The girl was leaning against the cold stone wall, her head on her knees. Her clothes were soaked in blood and it was obvious that she needed a doctor, but the girl did not show any hint of pain. She froze in that position like a stone statue of a defeated warrior goddess.

Amanda wanted to call out to the witch to ask a question that concerned her childhood. This was information that only she, Artemis, and Raphael could know, but her gaze settled on the sparkling crown and she was silent for a moment.

- This crown is exactly the same as our Temi’s. - She said softly, but the sound of her voice resonated vividly in the dungeon and it attracted the prisoner’s attention. Artemis raised her head, drawing Amanda’s anxious gaze to her.

- We couldn’t take it off. - Dexter commented. - The crown seemed to dig into her head.

- This can’t be happening! - Amanda exclaimed, turning her gaze back to the girl behind the bars. – This can’t be happening.

- It’s some kind of sorcery. But even so, she doesn’t say anything but a hackneyed lie. - The duke stated, and then hardened and grabbed Amanda by the hand when the imprisoned girl crawled up on trembling legs and tried to get up by climbing the bars.

She stood silently, staring intently into Amanda’s face, as if it were a staring game.

Artemis was tormented by inner pain, resentment and worries for her people, but now she stood here in front of her dear sister and could not find words. She just didn’t know what to say to make Amanda believe her.

Artemis was so glad to see her, but all this was overshadowed by the fact that at the moment they saw her as an enemy and wanted her dead.

She didn’t say anything, and without taking her eyes off Princess of Abion, she slowly raised her hands, grabbing onto the cold precious metal. Her matted hair with dried blood stuck to the crown, and trying to remove it caused her additional pain, but she did not allow herself to show it to the people opposite.

With her own hands, she took off the precious gift of the elven king and silently handed it through the metal bars of the prison cell.