We walked after Norris through a castle that had still been a symbol of peace just yesterday.

  Now — corridors clogged with demon corpses.

  Shattered columns.

  Stone knights collapsed like statues, their magic spent.

  Traces of fire, blood, shattered windows, molten metal…

  Staircase after staircase — the marks of the assault.

  On every flight lay black-winged creatures, armored goblins, charred demon mages.

  Sometimes — humans.

  Rarely… but it still hurt to see.

  Norris stopped by the open gates of the command headquarters and took a deep breath — like someone about to speak a bitter truth.

  We entered.

  The headquarters was alive with motion.

  Soldiers embraced each other.

  Medics wiped blood from their hands.

  Mages collapsed onto benches from exhaustion.

  Everyone understood: the capital had been saved.

  At least for today.

  When Norris returned from the command tent, his face was calm… but heavy.

  He stood before us.

  — The capital has been reclaimed.

  His voice was dry, almost official.

  The author's content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  Conversations in the tent died down — everyone listened.

  — But it’s too early to celebrate.

  The war… has only begun.

  We remained silent.

  Norris continued:

  — The northern frontier has fallen.

  The demons broke through the city of Norswood, destroyed the fortifications, and are moving on.

  Eight legions are heading there now. Five more are following behind.

  He looked at us — at my classmates standing in torn cloaks, with scratched hands, dirt and blood on their faces.

  — And you… — he paused for a second. — …you are going north as well.

  Elinia flinched.

  Finn wanted to say something, but closed his mouth.

  I only clenched my fists.

  Norris went on:

  — I didn’t have time to assign you proper roles.

  — No time to test your combat compatibility.

  — No training, no briefing… but…

  He stopped in front of each of us, holding his gaze for a moment.

  — You performed better than most mages.

  — You are a team.

  — And if you’re trained…

  — If each of you is given a role…

  — You can become a strike unit no worse than veterans.

  He sat down opposite us, like a commander and an equal at the same time.

  — For now — rest.

  — Then… training.

  — A lot of training.

  — When I understand what each of you can do — we’ll form team techniques.

  — You’ll have to become stronger.

  — All of us will.

  We stayed silent.

  Everyone was thinking about their own things.

  Finn stared at the ground — his clenched fists were trembling.

  Tara hugged her knees, staring at a single point.

  Miella quietly wiped blood from her cloak.

  Kairen traced swirling symbols in the dirt with his finger.

  Edgar quietly prayed for the fallen.

  Elinia kept her hand on her chest — where her heart was beating — and looked toward the ruined castle.

  And I… I looked at the capital.

  The city had been saved — but smoke still rose from the distant districts.

  Workers were moving toward the towers.

  Mages were extinguishing fires.

  Soldiers were gathering bodies.

  Children were searching for their parents.

  Women were crying over the ruins of their homes.

  I understood:

  Restoring the capital would take months.

  Maybe — years.

  And worst of all:

  This had only been the first battle.