Five minutes before the horn sounded, three knights stood on the wall above Armond City's main gate, talking among themselves. They were still discussing the execution, debating whether it had been right to kill those men.
One knight glanced at the others. "What do you think? Was executing those three really fair?"
The second knight rubbed his hands together against the cold and shot him a look. "You're out here in the middle of the night, and this is what you want to talk about?"
The third knight — Limberg — had been keeping watch, silent and serious. He finally turned toward them, annoyed. "Whatever happened to them was exactly what they deserved. If you two keep slacking off and chatting like this, the same thing's going to happen to you."
The two knights just laughed.
"Limberg, since when did you start giving lectures? We know exactly how you are. Maybe watching them die actually changed you."
They laughed even harder. Limberg ignored them and went back to his watch. But then his eyes caught something in the forest — movement. Shadows slipping from one place to another.
He called out to the others. "Hey. Look over there. What is that?"
The two stopped laughing and stepped forward. "What happened? Did you see something?" one of them teased. "Don't tell me you're seeing the ghosts of those three."
They laughed again, but Limberg's face was dead serious. "I'm not joking. Over there. By the trees."
Hearing the tone in his voice, they both turned to look. The movement in the shadows made them go quiet.
Then — from deep within the forest — dozens of figures began pouring out, heading straight toward them.
All three of them went pale. Limberg staggered back, then spun around and ran toward the edge of the wall, shouting down at the top of his lungs.
"BLOW THE HORN! THE UNDEAD ARE HERE!"
The horn's blast echoed through the city. Everyone outside fled into their homes. The streets emptied in seconds — no one wanted to be caught outside. People huddled in their houses, praying for the worst not to happen.
Shakky and Ameria heard the horn and stepped out of their room. Seeing the knights rushing through the corridors, they understood immediately. An attack.
Shakky looked at Ameria, then at the chaos around them.
"Looks like we're under attack. We need to go out and see what's happening."
Ameria grabbed Shakky's shoulder, stopping her. "No. You shouldn't be going out there at a time like this."
Shakky turned to her. "So what? We should just hide in here? Come on — I need to see them. I need to know what kind of undead these are."
Shakky started walking, and Ameria had no choice but to follow.
---
Downstairs, Lord Manice stood with his armor in one hand, the other resting on his sword. He was staring at the blade, lost in thought.
Shakky approached him. "Lord Manice, what happened? What was the horn for?"
Manice didn't answer right away. He stayed silent for a moment, then finally spoke. "Undead. It seems they've returned."
Shakky's expression shifted — curiosity flickering in her eyes. Manice noticed it immediately and already knew she'd want to come with him.
A small smirk crossed her face. "Oh? The undead? So they're back."
Before she could say another word, Manice cut in. "Princess, please stay inside. Rest in your room. You're our guest here."
Shakky interrupted him. "I know, Lord Manice. But I need to see those undead with my own eyes. That's why I have to come."
Manice shook his head. "No, Princess. You're our responsibility. If something happened to you out there, we couldn't take that risk. Please, listen to me and stay here."
Shakky was about to argue back, but Ameria beat her to it.
"Lord Manice is absolutely right, Princess. Lord Manice, you should go. I'll make sure the princess stays here."
Manice nodded and left with his knights. Shakky turned on Ameria, furious.
"And how exactly are you going to stop me? I wanted to go out there too. Ahh… now I'll have to think of something else."
Ameria stayed calm. "Staying here is the right thing for you."
Just then, Derland arrived. From the atmosphere alone he could tell something was wrong. "What are you two doing here? Do you know who's behind the attack?"
Shakky glanced at him. "Uncle, you're late. Lord Manice just went to the gate with his knights. The undead attacked."
Derland's expression shifted in surprise. "Undead? Then I should get out there and see for myself."
Shakky was thinking hard about something. Suddenly, she started walking upstairs. Ameria and Derland followed.
"What is it, Princess? Where are you going?" Ameria asked.
Shakky headed for the balcony — somewhere she could get a clear view outside. "I need to see. From here, I can see clearly."
The three of them stood on the balcony, looking toward the gate. But from this distance, it was almost impossible to see anything with normal eyes.
Derland raised a hand to his brow, squinting. "Looks like I'll have to go out there. It doesn't look good from here."
Shakky stopped him. "No. You shouldn't go."
Derland frowned. "Why not? They'll need my help."
Shakky thought for a moment. "Lord Manice told me that last time, the undead dropped from the sky to attack. But this time, why are they attacking from the forest?"
Both of them fell into thought. Ameria spoke up. "She's right. Something must be going on. Something they want — something that's meant to distract us."
Derland looked at her. "So you're saying someone might have slipped inside while we're all focused out there? But what could they want here?"
Shakky listened, thinking quietly.
(Looks like I'll have to use my power. Without it, I won't be able to figure anything out.)
She closed her eyes and slowly opened them again. Her eyes began to glow faintly. Now she could see all the way to the gate.
She watched as knights fired arrows outward from the walls.
"It looks like the attack is still one-sided," she said. "I don't see any movement from the enemy's side."
Ameria looked at her, noticing the golden glow in her eyes. She immediately understood — the princess was using her Saint Power.
She spoke anxiously. "Princess… you're using your Saint Power."
Shakky didn't look away. "Yes. Without it, I can't see anything from here."
Ameria grew more worried. "But it's bad for your health—"
Shakky turned her glowing eyes toward Ameria, her voice serious. "Then do you have another way to get information from here?"
Ameria fell silent. Shakky turned back to the battlefield.
Through her Divine Eyes, she could see the magical energy flowing from the people — golden light drifting upward. She studied it, noting that not much magic had been used in the area yet.
She shifted her gaze toward the east. Everything there looked normal.
Then she looked west. There, she saw a strange mixture of red and golden energy. A red strand, like silk — she couldn't quite understand it.
(What is that? Right in the middle of the magical energy…)
She focused harder, sharpening her vision. As her focus deepened, she saw something strange above the houses — a dark shadow, floating.
(What is that?)
Shakky pushed more magical energy into her eyes to see it clearly. What she saw made her stomach drop.
A creature with spider legs. A body like a human. And a face — completely human.
It was reaching toward the golden magical energy, drawing it in. As if it was feeding.
Shakky coughed violently.
Ameria caught her immediately, scolding her. "I told you! You shouldn't use that power!"
Shakky wiped her mouth and looked out again. "I know. But what I just saw — can you see it too?"
She pointed west. "There. What is that?"
Both Ameria and Derland looked in that direction, then back at her, confused. "Princess… there's nothing there."
Shakky didn't like that answer. She looked again — but this time, even she couldn't see it.
"But it was right there a second ago…"
Confused, she activated her Divine Eyes again and focused, pushing her power harder. The creature reappeared. She pointed at it, her voice urgent.
"There! Look — it's still there!"
But Ameria and Derland just exchanged confused glances.
Shakky couldn't understand it. Frustration crept into her voice. "Are you two blind? It's a giant, strange creature right in front of you — and you can't see it?"
Ameria and Derland looked at each other, then back at her.
"Princess… we don't see anything."
Shakky stared, baffled. Then she noticed something else.
The creature drifted from one house to another — passing straight through the walls as if they weren't there. As if it had no physical form at all.
Shock rippled through her. She didn't understand any of it.
Then she coughed again — harder this time.
Ameria's voice turned sharp. "Princess, stop! You're putting your life at risk. Stop using your power!"