- You know, I used to dream so much about this little detail on your head. - Lillian ran her finger over the dark metal of the crown. - But it seemed to me that it used to look much nicer. I wanted your power, the power of the elves, but I suffered a shameful defeat. I’ve been looking for this crown for hundreds of years, and it’s still on your stupid head.

Lillian sniffed the air noisily.

- I even ordered you to be burned to remove this crown, but you know, I was wrong. I should have just cut off your head. - She burst out laughing like crazy. - But now there’s no need for this trinket, now it’s just a piece of metal for me.

She was silent for a couple of seconds before continuing her manic speeches.

- You’re right, my children are not as important to me as my immortality. I would never trade that for the opportunity to be a diligent mother. I’ll kill Terrence with my own hands if he turns against me. - She whispered in Tami’s ear, bending over her.

- You are a true monster.

- What did you expect? Only the strongest in this world survive. - She shrugged and stood up, straightening her dress. – We have achieved a lot by coming here. Even the magic of the vampire king could not keep you safe within the walls of this castle, and now I will burn this whole place to the ground. His nightmare will repeat itself and I want to personally see the agony on his face.

- He’s not coming. He’s in Riliya now. - Temi tried to distract Lillian by raising herself slightly on her elbows to sit more comfortably.

There was no point in trying to fight Lillian in a fight she was sure to lose. But she continued to concentrate her powers, passing them through the thickness of the earth and spreading them to her people. If she didn’t survive, it was important to her that they had enough strength to last a little longer than she did. And she was undoubtedly spending her strength on them, sending out power impulses, bypassing Lillian’s gaze.

- Oh, he must be with that nasty girl right now. - She spat out in disgust and immediately giggled. – I’m wondering, do you know that your hubby is cheating on you with my stepdaughter?

She laughed like crazy, finding it funny.

- I hate her even more than I hate you. You should be proud of that. - Lillian advised. – I should have killed her when she was a baby and then there would have been no problem. Don’t you think so? Oh, I’m sure you’d like her. She’s as sweetly kind as you are.

As if she had eaten something unpleasant, Lillian twisted her face.

- For a moment... If you think about it... You look so much like her that it’s even annoying. It would be a shame if Raphael didn’t react to your death properly. But then I’ll just do the same with Thea. I have to find some leverage on this vampire.

- He won’t let you get close to her to hurt her.

- Oh, are you saying that because you know each other? Are you having a group marriage? Then I should come up with something more sophisticated, don’t you think? For example, I can cut off your limb and send him an invitation with proof of a virgin in distress. I’m sure he’ll come running to help you quickly, and at the same time he’ll bring this blond girl with him.

Temi was silent, she felt everything inside her bubbling and bubbling from how much Thea was asking to go outside. She literally screamed at her from the inside, but Artemis ignored her requests, she made a promise not only to herself, but also to Raphael that she would not allow Thea to be harmed.

It played into her hands that Lillian was unaware of the little secret that Thea and Artemis shared. And yet, She could not allow irreparable injuries to remain on the body of the Riliya princess.

Temi suddenly began to convulsively recall everything she had ever heard about the prophecy, all the words that Raphael or Eugene had said, but her mind concentrated on the last conversation with Ivrim.

It was a difficult conversation for her, the essence of which she did not want to grasp, she did not want to put up with her destiny. She was angry at Ivrim for the fate he had prepared for her, as if she were a lamb to be slaughtered. But if it made any sense? What if Eugene’s prophecy and Ivrima’s didn’t agree? Or, on the contrary, whether they had something in common.

She was ready to break her whole head to get to the solution, but Lillian snatched her out of her thoughts, abruptly grabbing her by the hair and dragging her along like a sack of potatoes, which was floundering her.

Temi screamed and her hands flew to her head, trying to ease the pressure on her scalp. It felt like her hair was about to come off by the roots and it was too painful. Although it probably doesn’t hurt as much as the gaping wound on her stomach.

She suddenly realized that there were only witches around and only somewhere in the distance she could hear the voices of her people and allies. She thought she heard a wolf growl, but it was just a guess that she couldn’t confirm, but still hoped that Marcus and his werewolves were already here.

Actually, she hoped the same for Thea’s father and for Raphael, but they seemed to have disappeared. Raphael would have rushed over in the blink of an eye if he had only known that she was in danger. Which only meant that he still wasn’t here. And maybe Giselle couldn’t get the message to him.

It made her eyes moisten and hide behind a wall of tears. She was sobbing silently with her own impotence. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

No matter how brave she was, no matter how much strength she had, no matter how long she had been preparing for this meeting–all this no longer mattered when she learned about Lillian’s immortality. All her plans collapsed at once like a house of cards and she was left struggling with an inner fear for the future of the whole world.

She was not worried about her own death once again, but she could not accept the fact that Lillian’s dark deeds would remain unpunished, that no one would ever be able to stop this woman from outrages and cruelty.

The golden scales of the armor perfectly protected Tami’s body from bumps and bruises while Lillian dragged her somewhere in an unknown direction. It seemed to her that time dragged on forever, she tried to grab the ground, called on her magic, but it was all useless, she was like a broken doll.

And at some point everything stopped, her head hit the hard ground with a heavy blow, black flies played in front of her eyes and her head began to spin. She tried to get up to rub her eyes, but realized that her arms and legs were tied with bonds, pinning her to the ground, as if she had been stretched on a rack.

Turning her head from side to side, she tried to find Lillian, but she was nowhere to be found, and only a cluttering wall of witches was crowding a couple of meters away from her, crowding in a ring.