The three brothers felt as if an invisible, magical rock had knocked them back. They froze in place.
Genia broke free from their protective circle and strode across the snow-covered plain, directly toward Rexon, riding his terrifying bear-like mount, like death.
"Genia, what madness is this? Do you know that our elder brother is currently in a murderous rage? Why are you talking about going to the mouth of death?"
Watching Genia fearlessly advance, Kevin couldn't understand what had happened to her. Why was the girl who, until recently, was afraid of even his shadow, deliberately walking into the mouth of death?
"Genia, stop!" Alex roared, reaching out to grab Genia's hand.
"Stop right there, Alex!" Genia didn't even look back, but her voice had such a magical resonance and authority that Alex's feet were stuck in the snow. His heavy axe trembled in his hands.
James and Kevin also felt that supernatural pressure. They realised that the girl standing before them was no longer the innocent Rabbit Clan, but that some ancient and terrifying power had awakened within her.
Genia walked to the very centre of the field. Half of her face was still covered with cloth. Her grey cloak fluttered in the cold wind.
Rexon pulled the reins of his huge mount. The ferocious animal roared, and its massive claws sank into the snow just a few steps away from Genia. Hot steam from the animal's nostrils reached Genia's covered face, but Genia didn't even blink. She lifted her head and looked directly into Rexon's red, bloodthirsty eyes.
Rexon's heavy, iron-armoured chest heaved rapidly. He had never seen such fearlessness, such blazing fire in a female's eyes.
Even a cunning girl like Noya would lower her gaze when speaking to him, but this girl...she was directly challenging his soul.
"So this is the masked scourge that has blinded my brothers," Rexon said with a terrifying growl, resting his heavy sword on his saddle. "You deceived my men, infiltrated my clan, and now you think you can enslave me with those magical eyes of yours?"
A serene yet sarcastic gleam appeared in Genia's eyes.
"You've come to take me away from here, haven't you, Chief Rexon?" Genia's voice rang clear and resonant in the stillness of the night.
Rexon's eyebrows shot up. The girl wasn't begging for mercy, not explaining.
"I'm willing to come with you to your palace," Genia concluded, unabashed. "I'll go with you myself... but I have one condition."
As soon as those words rang through the air, a deathly silence descended on the field. The ground sank beneath the feet of James, Kevin, and Alex, who were standing behind.
"No! Genia, you can't do this!" James screamed like a madman. His heart was pounding against his ribs. "Rexon won't leave you alive! You can't go with him!"
"This is no joke, Genia!" Kevin clenched his fists, his mind unable to process the situation. Why was the girl walking to that butcher on her own?
Rexon gave a scornful look at his brothers who were screaming back and then glared back at Genia.
"A bet?" A terrifying, thunderous laugh erupted from Rexon's throat. It was so powerful that some snow slid off the snowdrifts. "A mere girl from the Rabbit Clan... surrounded by my army, whose death lies at the tip of my sword... is making a bet with Rexon, the leader of the Black Tiger Clan? I admire your courage, girl. But you're forgetting that I don't accept bets; I only give orders!"
"And you're forgetting this, Chief," Genia took a step forward. Now she was very close to the ferocious beast. She raised her hand and pulled down the cloth covering her face in one swift motion.
As her face appeared, Rexon's breath caught in his throat. After the effects of the water of forgetfulness wore off and Mother Mara's water power was awakened, Genia's appearance had completely changed. Her skin had a divine, moon-like glow. Her eyes held a depth and enchantment so profound that they could stun any human or beast. Her beauty wasn't born of physical allure, but of a spiritual power. The Guardian Andromeda's magical aura radiated clearly from her face.
James, Kevin, and Alex were also completely mesmerised by her true form. They felt as if they were looking not at a girl, but at the goddess of the Beast World herself.
Genia fixed those magical eyes of hers on Rexon's.
"If you try to take me away from here by force, Rexon," Genia said in a cold and authoritative tone, "I assure you that this entire army of yours, and you yourself... will be reduced to ashes. You have only heard about my true form, but have not experienced it. I am offering to accompany you because I want to see how powerful the leader of the Black Tiger Clan is, beyond his own scheming."
Rexon was completely stunned. The primitive, ferocious alpha beast within him was utterly captivated by this girl's boldness and fearlessness. Noya had lured him to her side by promising him a body and an heir. Noya was as cunning as a fox, but Genia?
Genia was roaring like a lioness, staring him straight in the eye. For a proud man like Rexon, who had always worshipped power, this challenge was like a sweet intoxication. He wanted to shatter this girl's pride within the walls of his palace. He wanted to see how the fire in her eyes would be extinguished in the darkness of his palace.
"What is your condition?" Rexon asked in a heavy voice. There was no longer the violent anger in his voice, but instead a strange curiosity.
Hearing this, the three brothers standing behind were stunned. Rexon, who never listened to anyone, agreed to the girl's condition!
"My condition is that not a single drop of blood will be shed on this field tonight," Genia said without blinking. "You will order your army to retreat right now. There will be no attack on James's palace. And you will not attack any of James, Kevin, or Alex. If you do not accept this condition, I will not even walk with you, and you can test your sword if you wish."
Even the wind in the field had stopped blowing. Genia had made a big move. She had deliberately decided to surrender herself to Rexon, because she knew that if these four brothers fought today, the Orange Tiger Clan's plot would win.
This was the only way to save James, Kevin, and Alex. Furthermore, she was going to find the last and most essential part of her powers—the element of air—in Rexon's main palace, where her mother had died.
And most importantly, she had to face the traitor who had betrayed the Black Tiger Clan and joined the Orange Tiger Clan.
Rexon stared at Genia's face for a few moments. The girl was risking her own life to save the lives of his enemies.
"You are truly crazy, girl," Rexon said with a cruel and terrifying smile crossing his lips. "I agree. Anyway, I don't want to dirty my sword by shedding the blood of a traitor like Shantanu. You are my real prize."
Rexon turned his horse and, in his heavy voice, roared to the entire army, "The army will turn back! There will be no battle tonight!"
The Black Tiger Clan's vast army sheathed their swords at the command of their leader.
Genia took a deep breath. She turned and looked one last time at James, Kevin, and Alex. There was helplessness, anger, and a terrible yearning in the eyes of all three.
Tears welled up in James's eyes. Alex's entire body was trembling.
Genia sent them a silent message with her eyes—"Trust me. Hold your swords, because the real battle is yet to come."
Rexon signalled to one of his soldiers, who brought a magnificent black horse to stand in front of Genia.
Genia mounted it without hesitation.
"Let's go, Chief Rexon?" Genia said, grabbing the horse's reins. Rexon, with a ferocious smile, led his rider forward. "Welcome to my palace, masked disaster. But remember, whoever enters my palace gates never comes out willingly."
Genia thought to herself, "And you don't know, Rexon, that the one who is going to your palace today is not a prisoner, but as Guardian Andromeda, who will decide the fate of all of you. Anyway, for me, right now, it is more important to find your mother's message and the last part of my powers."
However, Genia still hadn't understood why, if she was truly Guardian Andromeda, she had no memory of Guardian Andromeda. Furthermore, she still had to unravel the mystery of the four brothers' father.
As she tried to solve one problem, another would emerge. In the dense fog of the night, Rexon's army returned to their palace, taking Genia with them. James, Kevin, and Alex stood like statues in the snowy field behind them.
A terrifying and chilling silence now pervaded that vast snow-covered field, one that seemed heavier than death itself. The echo of the horses' hooves from Rexon's vast army was now lost in the distant darkness. Strong, icy gusts of wind lashed the faces of James, Kevin, and Alex, but they felt no trace of the cold.
James was kneeling on the snow. His heavy sword, which had slain countless enemies, lay abandoned in the snow today. His eyes were fixed on the mist where Genia had disappeared moments ago.
"She walked herself to that butcher..." James's voice rattled like broken glass. A heavy puddle of tears choked his throat. "I did everything I could to save her, and she... she risked her life for us."
Kevin rubbed his forehead with both hands. His sharp mind was now entangled in a terrifying web of puzzles. He walked closer to James, walking on the snow, and held his shoulder tightly.
"James, control yourself!" There was a shocking determination in Kevin's voice. "This is not the time for tears. You were just saying something... traitor? Black Valley? What did Genia go there to do? And why did she put a condition to Rexon that was clearly protecting us? Tell us the whole story, or we'll keep shooting arrows in the dark, and Genia will die in that palace."
Alex, too, buried his heavy axe in the snow and stood beside them. His eyes still held that violent fire, but now it was directed not at James, but at the unknown truth that made his blood boil.
"Tell me, James! What have you been hiding from us?" Alex growled, his breathing heavy. "That girl was our trust. If anything happens to her, I will tear down every brick of Rexon's palace with my own hands!"
James took a deep breath. His trembling fingers reached into his cloak and pulled out the old, yellowed, blood-stained birch bark. It was the same letter that Nina had hidden in a secret drawer in that desolate room before disappearing.