Athan now had his eyes wide open as soon as he sprung upright on the spare bed that was for him. He looked around and noticed the magical torch beside him that cast the whole tent into an ambient glow.


    His scrunched forehead broke out a sweat, and he couldn''t help but also notice his collar drenched from his neck.


    He wore a loose tunic and pants, and rustled beneath the blanket, and clenched his chest as he continued to have more breaths.


    ''Ahh, fuck— that dream again—''


    When the sudden onset of vertigo came, he grabbed a handful of his hair when he shut his eyes deep, curbing from the pain.


    Unknowingly, Athan ended up grunting, and thuds resounded beyond the tent. After which, the entrance rustled, only to find out Veronica and Sylvester came in, rushing towards him.


    "Your Highness!" Both of them called in unison.


    "No, I''m alright." He gave a dismissive wave of his hand as he shifted to the edge of the bed, sitting in front of them. "Any news?"


    "Not that I ever have since a couple of hours ago..." Sylvester shook his head as he trailed his voice as he became too cautious with the grim countenance Athan had.


    However, Veronica mused as she lowered to his eye level. "Another round of nightmare again?"


    Athan leered at her, panting, then gave a curt nod.


    "It''s been going on, and you haven''t slept peacefully for who knows how long now..."


    He couldn''t agree more with what she mentioned, and it did get worse as time passed.


    "This might''ve been her curse…"


    "That witch," Sylvester muttered in clenched teeth. "We don''t even know where she is, let alone dragging her..."


    "We know where she is..."


    "But there''s no way to confirm it—"


    "My gut tells me so," Athan retorted as he couldn''t care less.


    However, Veronica pondered aloud with her thoughts trying to pick up the pieces. "But why would she be in ''''Desolate Ravine'' in the first place?"


    "If Mystique would be there, then I''d say I''m not too disappointed, knowing how she''s always been the problem—" Sylvester stopped with the rants when he caught Athan, staring daggers at him. "Alright, alright. I won''t jump to conclusions..."


    Athan clicked his tongue, cupping his chin from what awaited him in the future, a complicated one at that.


    So far, the only news he got was the sudden detour of Mystique and to think that the other Grand Duke, was with her.


    Many thought that he got bewitched by her beguiling beauty; until recently, he knew that the man was as enigmatic as her.


    ''Have they reached a consensus? What are they up to? How did they become so close?''


    With the uprising news of the plague and the once small group that grew so much, daring to oppose Sylvester''s regime, many thought that she was up for no good.


    The words and the promises she upheld, of not wanting any form of drama and mess, soon got thrown out of the window. Everyone had a notion that she went back to her old ways, and the worst possible she could''ve ever been at this point.


    More and more of them stuck with the idea, but Athan remained hopeful. Even when he got rejected without having the amount of time and chance to explain his side.


    For sure, Mystique changed and was beyond traumatized to such an extent, and he was more than willing to bet that she would rather die than go back to her old ways.


    He tracked the supposedly suspicious movements that lead to the bleak future, but a lot changed, and bore to fruition he ought the fate of the Dysnomia Empire would''ve been.


    "Whatever happens to her, she''s not in peril. I''m sure she''s more than safe, with the ''Frost Wyrm'' with her... " Athan sighed, getting up and out of the bed as he took a stretch. "We shall proceed with the plan, and strike them down."


    The two of them beamed, nodding in agreement with the words he claimed.


    "Your Highness, Athan, say a word and we shall carry it," Sylvester responded with a salutation gesture.


    "Let''s check the condition of your army first..."


    He then went out of the tent, and he was in one of the forest outposts that Sylvester had established for a long time, probably the closest and the outermost boundary of the forest before they moved towards the arid lands.


    There were several open fields in the forest he was in, with a nearby riverbank.


    From the river, he noticed that several men went there to freshen themselves by the river. They left their armors and clothing to the side as they went on and drenched themselves with the cooling water, and basked under the silver moonlight.


    He turned to the other side as a series of clanks were heard, but it was a few men taking a spar, and further away found a few of the werewolves, brawling one another.


    The rest happened to scout the area and even cooked dinner at the nearby headquarters.


    The training went non-stop as they prepared themselves for the enemy that got stronger in such a short time.


    Bitterness in his heart wallowed when he remembered that it was one of the few people whom he confided in his past life but now colluded with the foreign enemy.


    He pondered, at this point, it was already hard to tell if they were still on his side or not.


    While a part of him hoped that the more allies he got, the better— the same case as Mystique, then things would have fared better for him.


    But now that he knew what to do in the future, he didn''t mind doing it all alone. Especially when they aren''t worth the trust anymore.


    However, everyone stopped, including his train of thoughts got cut off when a sudden screech coursed amid the night.


    Athan squinted his eyes, upon seeing the figure of a wyvern beating its wings with a familiar figure perched atop of it.


    Even from far afield, he knew who it was, but it was rather unexpected for him to see, knowing his reputation.


    ''Why is he here?''