When Kairu came down to the hall, Viggo and Remiz had already left, and only Yuf Lainter remained, sitting thoughtfully while polishing his crossbow with a cloth.

  "Well, what did Nubel say to you?" he asked sleepily.

  "Offered me a job. Said he's on the verge of a discovery. I think, Yuf, he’s a bit off his rocker, has that ever crossed your mind?"

  Yuf gave him a strange look, a mix of sympathy and fear.

  "Yeah… strange things are happening. Maybe he’s just excited? He finally got his hands on the thing he’s been chasing for so long… So, what, you’re heading back to the village tomorrow?"

  "No, I’ll stay a couple more days. Professor Petros wants to talk to me."

  "Ah, I see," Yuf sighed. "You know, I probably won’t be able to join you anyway. Nubel gave me leave, but I have urgent business in the capital, so I’ll have to leave as soon as possible. Probably even tomorrow morning." Yuf sighed again and got up from his chair, slinging the crossbow over his shoulder. "Well, my friend. I’m off to bed. Good night. My advice—get some rest while you still can."

  He smiled, waved sleepily, and went upstairs to the guest rooms. Kairu called after him:

  "You’d better not miss breakfast! Don’t you dare leave without saying goodbye!"

  "Me? Miss breakfast? You’re joking, right?" Yuf shook his head with mock indignation and disappeared behind the door.

  Kairu smirked. On the table lay paper, a quill, and an inkwell, someone had already been writing letters before him. He sank into a chair, feeling limp—he was also dead tired after spending almost two months on a horse back. He picked up the quill and paused in thought.

  Dear Father,

  I'm writing to you from Professor Nubel’s estate. The expedition is over, and I hope to be home soon. Sorry for the delay; I received a serious wound in the mountains and spent some time in the hospital, but the doctors patched me up well, and now I’m healthy and feeling strong. At most, I’ll be back in the village within a week. Meanwhile, I’m sending this letter along with half of my payment. It’s dangerous on the roads these days, so I’m not risking sending the entire sum. I’ll bring the rest myself. Don’t worry about me. We’ll see each other soon, I promise.

  Your son, Kairu Kenai.

  Kairu sent the letter along with a pouch full of gold coins. He found a messenger in the servants’ quarters and immediately sent him off. In the warm spring night, he watched the courier leaving, his horse trampling the remaining patches of dirty, flabby snow on the ground, stubbornly refusing to melt.

  He returned to the house, went up to his room, and lay down on the bed, undressing. In his thoughts, he was already back in that little house where he was born and once believed he would spend his entire life… Suddenly, he remembered his mother. Her face seemed blurry in memory, even though she had died only a few years ago. Then Rita came to mind, and their farewell at the gates of Petista. That, too, now felt like a long time ago.

  Soon, all the expedition members would part ways, Viggo heading back to Vaimar, Remiz to the Islands, and they might never meet again. But that was fine. This journey was over, and Kairu hoped many more were ahead. He felt anxious and restless, his imagination already painting new scenes, ones like what he had recently experienced, but in even brighter colors. Again and again, he asked himself: Did all that really happen to me? And could it all happen again? All it would take was to reach out to the old professor and, when asked, "Are you ready?" answer "Yes!"

  With those thoughts, he gradually fell asleep, his mind slowly calming after the day’s events.

  ***

  It felt like only moments had passed, but his dreams were restless, shifting rapidly, as though he wanted to break free of his body, to glimpse the future but couldn’t. Then it suddenly got hot, and he awoke to the clear smell of smoke coming from downstairs. There was a crackling sound, and the door burst open as one of Nubel’s servants rushed in, shouting:

  "Master! Master, wake up, I beg you! Oh Aktos, save us!... There’s a fire!"

  Kairu jumped up, still not fully understanding what was happening. The servant was still shouting, calling him, begging him to run, but Kairu moved as if blind, slowly slipping his feet into his boots and glancing at the clock. It was half-past two.

  "What’s going on?.. Just explain!"

  "An attack!" the servant howled and collapsed to his knees. "Aktos save us!"

  "What’s happening downstairs?"

  "The house is collapsing, sir. Fire! And people—raiders… They…"

  Kairu crossed the room, took his sword belt from the chair, and hastily strapped it on. His money was in a bag under the chair. He grabbed it and was about to run back when the door cracked and fire burst through from outside, devouring the doorframe and hinges, leaping to the rugs on the walls. Through the fiery archway stepped a tall man in a thick leather jacket, face covered by a mask, sword in hand. Nubel’s servant shrieked and darted aside, frantically searching for cover.

  Kairu drew his sword just in time to block the blow—the attack was lightning-fast. Steel clashed, and the bandit, clearly not expecting resistance, stumbled back. Kairu struck across his jacket, slicing through the rough fabric. The man cried out, staggered, parried the next blow, but Kairu punched him in the stomach, shoving him toward the window. His arm, toughened by years in the forge, had strength behind it, and he managed to knock the man off his feet and throw him into the open window frame. The man cried out, hit the glass, shards flying everywhere, blood streaked his face, and he slumped to the floor, dropping his sword.

  Kairu stood in horror, wiping sweat from his brow. It was getting hotter.

  "Hurry!" the servant yelled, rushing to the door. "Master, the way is still clear!... No, no!"

  Kairu turned. Another man had struck the servant with a sword and was charging toward him.

  "This one’s mine!"

  A white lightning bolt flashed, hissing and twisting, striking the enemy, wrapping around him like a glowing lasso. Blood splattered across the floor in a huge black puddle. The man screamed, dropped his sword, convulsed, and collapsed. Behind him stood a tall old man, lowering a staff, his long silver hair and beard glowing in the firelight.

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  "Hurry!" the old man cried. "I warned him, I did… Hurry, or there’ll be nothing left of this house but ashes!"

  "Who are you?" Kairu still hesitated, the flames nearly touching his bed now.

  "What difference does it make?!" The old man threw up his hands. "Just come, you foolish boy! I mean you well—I want to help! Let’s go, blockhead, we need to run, and fast!"

  "I’m not leaving without Remiz, Viggo, and Yuf!" Kairu said firmly.

  "They’re already on the road to Nalvin, safe and sound, with my assistant! Don’t worry about them, think of yourself! I’m a friend, understand? I’ll explain everything later, but right now we have to run—there are too many of them! Leave the money, take only your sword—we don’t have time!"

  The fire touched him, Kairu cried out and rushed past the blazing walls after the old man. The house was engulfed in flames. But instead of running downward toward the main exit, they veered off to the side, to the far end of the house. They burst onto a balcony circling the library hall near the ceiling.

  Down below, among debris and overturned furniture, two enormous monsters lumbered slowly—creatures seemingly assembled from heaps of metal. Kairu had never seen anything like them before. If he’d tried to describe them, he wouldn’t have had the words. Lights flickered, wires sparked, iron limbs creaked as they moved, and thick tubes methodically sprayed a liquid that instantly ignited, consuming the dry books. Kairu froze for a moment, spellbound by the sight, but there was no time to watch. The old man kept pulling him along, and Kairu struggled to keep up.

  Never before had Kairu realized how vast Nubel’s house truly was. Everything around them was on fire, collapsing, and they fled through a maze of halls, rooms, and corridors, seemingly without direction, leaping over holes in the wooden floor, skirting blazing furniture.

  More bandits kept appearing, some in light leather jackets and with bows, others in heavy black armor with hand cannons, just like the ones Nubel had in his laboratory. The old man fought them off with astonishing agility, striking with his staff, knocking them down, or unleashing bursts of magic. It was spectacular—like fireworks tearing through the hallway, instantly incinerating or flinging the attackers away. Yet still, a stream of warriors pursued them, not falling behind.

  Someone shouted, "Don’t let them get away!" But they were already running, leaping down flights of stairs, dashing under collapsing arches and through walls of fire. The heat was unbearable. Kairu ran as if scalded; his boots were smoldering, yet he could barely keep up with the old man, who seemed to fly over flames and gaps in the floorboards, through which lower levels could be seen. If Kairu had stopped even for a second, he might’ve panicked—but he kept running, bursting after his mysterious ally into a long hall. Arrows whistled behind them, bullets buzzed, and shouts echoed in pursuit.

  The old man leaped onto a long table running the length of the hall and sprinted across the tablecloth. The ceiling was already collapsing. Kairu, desperate to escape this hell, ran after him. An arrow zipped past his shoulder, he ducked. His strength was nearly gone.

  "Jump!" the old man shouted and hurled himself feet-first through a huge window, shattering the glass with his body. There was no time to think. Kairu lunged forward, covered his face with his arms, and flew into the freezing night, through a hail of glass shards that stung like a swarm of furious bees, scratching his hands and forehead. Blood streamed into his eyes, and then came the breath-stealing jolt of a wild fall, and suddenly his feet hit snow. He crashed into a snowbank. His heels burned like fire. Struggling, he barely caught sight of the old man ahead. The old man was already running toward the blazing stables, where terrified horses were rearing.

  From somewhere in the distance came a shout:

  "To the horses, you idiots! No one gets out alive!"

  Kairu struggled to stand. Everything spun around him. He crawled through the snow toward the stables. Suddenly, right before him, there was a loud neigh, and a massive horse, black as night with glowing red eyes, appeared. A hand grabbed him by the collar, lifted him like a doll, and threw him onto the damp back of another, smaller horse.

  "Ride! Full speed!" the old man barked. "Follow me!"

  He surged ahead, snow flying in swirls under the hooves of the giant horse. Kairu barely had time to grab his mount's neck and kick, the horse neighed and raced after the old man. Several riders rounded the corner, trying to cut them off, but Kairu and his companion were faster, racing through bushes and trees, past the lit avenue, into the depths of the park. Darkness shrouded the trees. Kairu could see only the faint glow of the old man’s staff lighting the way.

  Behind them, about a dozen riders in black armor gave chase, shouting. Firearms cracked, and flashes split the endless night. Kairu clung silently to the horse’s back. The horse, sensing his fear, galloped with all its might. Wind howled around them, threatening to knock them down.

  They were gaining on him. The old man sped ahead, while behind, one rider had already nearly caught up. Turning, Kairu saw the black visor of a plumed helmet. The rider raised a sword. The old man turned his head, as if sensing something.

  "You have a sword, don’t you? Use it! You’ll need it!"

  Kairu drew the weapon, gripped the hilt tightly, turned. The black-armored rider was nearly on him. Their horses were only feet apart. The rider spurred his mount, raised his blade…

  What happened next, Kairu would remember for the rest of his life. There was a flash of the sword, the cold, hollow ring of clashing steel, an awkward thrust from the rider, who leaned forward slightly. Kairu deflected the blow with a swift movement, turned his blade sharply, and at that moment the black horse lunged forward. A scream burst from beneath the helmet, and blood sprayed in all directions from the severed neck. The head tumbled into the darkness. The body slumped on the still-charging horse, got tangled in the branches, and fell to the ground.

  Sticky, suffocating horror filled Kairu’s head.

  He kept whipping the horse on instinct, pressing his knees to its sides, leaning into its wet mane. In his hand, the sword dripped with the blood of a man he’d just killed. He couldn’t take his eyes off the blurred lights of the pursuit behind him. He kept expecting that knight to emerge from the shadows again. The thought that he had only acted in self-defense had completely left his mind.

  "Can you use a magic crossbow?" the old man shouted from ahead. "Kairu! Damn it, are you asleep?!"

  "I’ll try," Kairu croaked, trying to shout over the wind and musket fire. The nausea and dizziness were beginning to fade. He quickly sheathed his sword, forgetting Yuf’s advice to always wipe the blood off first.

  "Catch!"

  The old man tossed him a crossbow. Kairu caught it mid-air, turned, switched the energy feed mode, and cocked the trigger. Back at Nubel’s estate, while waiting for the expedition, he and Viggo had spent hours testing the professor’s experimental weapons…

  The riders behind them had formed a wedge. Kairu, dreading having to kill again, aimed at the nearest horse. He squeezed the trigger. Ten bursts of light tore through the darkness. Screams followed. Several horses spun in the fiery chaos, disappearing around the bend. The rest continued the chase, now fanning out and shooting at them. Branches and the dim blue night sky rushed at them at breakneck speed. Kairu leaned into his horse’s neck again, pulled the reload lever, turned, and fired blindly without really aiming.

  "I’m out of ammo!" he shouted to the old man, who was already far ahead.

  "Throw it away then! How many more are there?"

  Kairu turned and realized that reinforcements for their pursuers had emerged from the bushes on both sides.

  "A lot! At least two dozen!" He suddenly noticed that his horse was wheezing and gradually slowing down. The old man’s horse was already just a blur around the many bends in the road. "Hey, you! My nag is worn out!"

  The old man turned back and gently reined in his horse. Pulling up alongside Kairu, he grabbed the reins of Kairu’s horse with one hand and, with the other, effortlessly lifted Kairu like a feather and transplanted him behind his own back. Kairu barely had time to register what was happening before he suddenly found himself in a new saddle. The old man then rose in the stirrups, pushed off sharply, and leaped onto Kairu’s horse. He lightly touched the horse’s neck with his palm, whispered something, and the horse lifted its head, wild fire blazing in its eyes, and surged forward with massive strides, overtaking the stallion Kairu had just been riding.

  The pursuers were breathing down their necks.