There it was — the Mausoleum of the Old Empire.

  Despite the name implying a museum, it was more accurate to say it was the remains of an entire capital city. The Agad Dynasty — known simply as the Empire during its time — had been the continent's greatest superpower. They conquered everything under their feet, united it all, and then vanished without explanation, leaving only their grand capital behind.

  The capital itself was something else now.

  Once magnificent. Now just — dangerous. The miasma that consumed it wasn't a natural phenomenon. It caused hallucinations. Drove people insane. Spawned entities from the fears of anyone who ventured too close — creatures called Spawns of Darkness, born from pure shadow, not demonic energy. Different from demons but sharing the same weakness: holy power.

  Where the miasma came from, nobody knew. Only that it originated somewhere in the heart of the city and spread outward from there.

  "My Lady, are you sure this is safe?" Jane asked, pouring tea.

  We were sitting at the top of the fortress wall that encircled the Old Capital. The wall was what kept the miasma from bleeding out into the rest of the world. Below us, the fog sat thick and heavy and alive-looking, like it was waiting for something.

  "We're at the edge of a cursed city and you're drinking tea?" Jane's voice wavered slightly.

  Peter was perched on one of the archways above us, arms crossed, staring out at the fog with an expression he was clearly trying to keep neutral. Not doing great.

  I took a sip of chamomile and cut into my scone.

  "I brought him to help," I said.

  "Help?!" Jane sent a sharp look toward Peter. "Lady, he's useless!"

  "Fufu. Isn't his father the so-called Reaper of the Battlefield?" I took another bite. "And yet here he is, making that face. Vane, don't bully him too much."

  "But, Lady—"

  I shrugged her off. "We have a contract. He's mine to direct, but there's no reason to torment him beyond that. As long as he holds up his end, I'm satisfied. Anything more is just unnecessary."

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  Jane went quiet, looking down at her cup.

  Truthfully — I didn't know what to do with Peter. The contract was already punishment enough. It bound him to me, kept him from Adele, gave him no exit. That was my revenge, and I hadn't intended to push it further than that.

  He was... complicated.

  He kept lingering. Staying close when he didn't need to, showing up where he wasn't required. I wasn't oblivious — I could feel the odd tension every time he looked at me, and I didn't particularly want to examine what it was. That wasn't my problem to solve. He was a temporary burden. Once this was done, he was going back to Adele.

  Until then — he was my responsibility.

  "Mr. Nobody," I called. "Come eat."

  He scowled. Came over anyway. Sat down much closer than necessary and helped himself to a scone, spreading jam with deliberate slowness while shooting Jane the smuggest look I'd ever seen from someone with no grounds to be smug.

  "This little—" Jane muttered.

  "Jane, sit here." I patted the seat beside me.

  She complied immediately, looping her arm through mine and settling in. Then she turned and gave Peter the single most satisfied grin I had ever witnessed on a human face.

  Peter bit his thumb. Glared. Jane smiled wider.

  Is this a war of attrition?

  They bickered through the entire tea time. I ate my scone and let them get on with it.

  Night came.

  The fog was too dense during the day — moving through it then would be pointless. Now, with darkness settling in, it was time.

  The miasma thickened as the night deepened. Spawns of Darkness moved through it below, grotesque shapes twisting in and out of visibility, drawn to anything living that came too close. The old capital stretched beneath us — once a gleaming center of empire, now just a kingdom of shadows with nothing left to show for it.

  "How do we get through this?" Jane asked quietly.

  I looked out over the ruins. Crossed my arms. Then flicked my fingers downward, summoning a magic circle at our feet.

  "[Lion's Heart]."

  The spell settled over us — fortification for the mind and body against the miasma's effects.

  "I'm fine regardless," I added. [God's Beloved] handled that for me automatically. "But you two will need this."

  Jane nodded. Peter said nothing, still staring out at the dark.

  "You don't have to come," I said, glancing at him. "This isn't in the contract."

  Peter's eyes cut to me at the word contract.

  Then he jumped off the wall.

  Headfirst. Into the horde.

  His blade was out before he landed, and he moved through the Spawns like he'd been doing it for years — clean, fluid, terrifyingly efficient, each strike going exactly where it needed to go.

  "Crazy bastard," Jane said.

  "Let's go." I grabbed her arm.

  "Wait, Lady—!!"

  We jumped.

  Jane had a death grip on me the entire way down. We landed smoothly — I made sure of that — and she immediately transferred said death grip to my sleeve instead.

  I could have done this alone. Honestly. But—

  "It's more fun this way."

  I let the power surge down into my legs and pushed off, leaving a small crater in the ground behind me.

  "Let's move!"