Vestargo's slaves were banded together watching the massive abomination in fear. They were too afraid to run away but they looked at the Arcadians with suspicion.

"Take your positions!" Rhys bellowed a command.

Meanwhile, HMS Warrior and Queen Anne's Revenge gained altitude and left the safety provided by the barrier to join Dauntless. The remaining destroyers provided mana to the barrier. The soldiers spread across the city more to control the situation among the Squirrelkin than to fight the Vespids. The three biggest ships of the task force presented their sides and opened fire at the bug-titan. The enemy Titan roared in pain when the merciless armour-piercing fire reached it.

"That's it?" Rhys gave an incredulous gaze at the enemy he expected to be troublesome. "It doesn't have shields!"

"It does not..." Admiral Sparrow dully confirmed. "But it's tough even without a barrier. That bastard has impressive Self-Healing abilities."

The Titan roared in fury and stepped forward, its armour was cracked and a thick, black ichor trickled down its hideous shape. The many-legged creature wasn't defeated yet. It moved agilely toward the barrier despite its size, mass, and wounds. It engaged it with its bladed appendages and roared in fury when its attack was again deflected. The body of the Titan was shining with a green effect of healing spells as it was punched with the cannonade of Dauntless' main battery. However, one of the Destroyers powering the barrier trembled, as if it was rattled by the internal explosion.

"HMS Falcata, what's your status?" The Fleet Admiral asked with surprise in her voice.

"Our reactor automatically turned off due to overload, Ma'am. We can't support the barrier until we turn it on again..." The calm but tense voice of the destroyer's Captain hung in anticipation as he received the reports from his crew. "...in ten minutes, Admiral. We dumped the overheated steam, and it rattled us like rats in the barrel, but we are still afloat! Our backup power should last for one hour of combat."

"Move to the secondary position." The Fleet Admiral ordered.

"Aye, aye! Moving to the secondary position."

HMS Falcata moved towards the centre of the city where it hung motionless. The enemy Titan used the moment of pause to stand up and charge towards the shield again but, this time, it was stopped by Dauntless' main battery fire.

"Shatter its legs and burn it." The Emperor's calm voice sounded on the open channel.

"Yes, my Lord!" Three captains of the biggest ships of the task force replied in unison.

Two frigates charged forward flanking the behemoth while the dreadnought pushed forward. Their cannons blazed with light, basking the enemy carapace with flames and tearing out chunks of its flesh. Dauntless realigned his cannons and huge batteries opened fire at the Titan's legs. The monstrous beast roared in pain and shock as one of its supporting legs gave out and the next shot pulverised its armour. The next few shots cut it off completely in a fountain of foul gore. The frigates' cannons marked the night with flames and focused on the opposing legs still supporting the monstrosity. The Titan realised it was doomed and tried to crush the barrier under its mass but the destroyers were there. With enough mana to power the shields of Avalon, the five remaining airships were confidently protected behind the barrier that withstood a hit that made the ground shake and tremble.

But the ships of the Royal Navy weren't wasting time. The merciless and relentless barrage was accompanied by the painful roars of the Titan. There was no longer a menacing tone to its voice but a simple, primitive pain and fear. It knew it was dying and the fear of dying meant it wasn't a Dungeon Denizen. Its origin was mysterious but, without any doubt, it served Vestargo. Three more legs were blown off, spraying thick and stinking ichor around and the beast was brought low by three mighty ships of the Arcadian Royal Fleet. However, it was far from dying. Given time, the giant would have regenerated. It was unthinkable that Self-Healing was mending its wounds even now, slowly regenerating its limbs. However, the Arcadians weren't going to give it enough time. All four of Dauntless' main battery turrets adjusted their positions with a metallic clang and all twelve giant barrels aimed at the single spot on the body of the Titan. A blue, ominous light glowed from within the Dreadnought's barrels moments before the huge warship fired.

Blue lances of magic fire connected the Arcadian flagship with the Titan, completely cracking its carapace. Its roars were more desperate and painful but there was no one to help it. The Vespids that were supposed to arrive a few moments after the Titan destroyed the Arcadian warships were still far away. Once the Fire Lances faded, everyone could see the massive cracks and charred holes in the beast's armour. Without pause, the characteristic metallic sound came from the frigates and they were instantly covered in white smoke. Twelve missiles from each frigate climbed into the air on flat trajectories and sped towards the immobile Titan. The missiles sank into the flesh of the enormous beast among its surprised yelps. Just a heartbeat later, all of them simultaneously exploded, sending pieces of Vestargo's greatest minion everywhere. The silence that had befallen the forest wasn't going to last. The warships' CIWS roared to life and began the execution of the airborne Vespids who came in range, unaware of their monstrous cousin's demise.

"Prepare to jump. Ten minutes."

•••

"A fucking bug-Titan." I looked at the detailed hologram that rotated slowly so we could take a good look from all angles.

"I thought he was learning, but I wasn't even close to guessing what he was plotting!" Lavender trembled with disgust. "That thing was so hideous that I need a shower. I feel dirty just looking at it! Disgusting abomination..."

"Yes, Vestargo is learning..." Luna nodded but her ears were twitching in alarm. "If he learns how to carve shield or barrier runes on those things we will be in trouble."

"I... I wouldn't be so sure." I hummed thoughtfully. "It was slow. The additional weight of the runes to shield something like that would be tremendous. The harness to hold the runes isn't going to be light either. I'm fairly certain that Vestargo can't just carve runes on its carapace. After all, we need precious metals for rune work. So the bug-Titan would be even slower than now if Vestargo made it from the golden runes which are the best for that kind of job."

"Hmmm..." Freya froze for a moment. "But what if it learns a skill to project a barrier? Its mana reserves must be absurdly huge due to its sheer size alone."

"That's not necessarily true, but we can assume that it indeed possesses a huge mana pool." Amber slowly shook her head as she stared at the hologram. "However, a Barrier skill would be our least concern. With a huge mana pool, that thing would be capable of casting devastating spells. Not necessarily high rank spells, but certainly powered to their maximum input."

"Indeed..." I agreed and rubbed my eyelids. "I wonder how long it took Vestargo to breed that thing. I don't know how fast he can throw them into the battle but... He saw Avalon's Wrath for the first time four months ago. If he needs just four months to breed these creatures, we might be in trouble... Not big trouble but let's say moderate."

My wives looked towards the distant Ancient Forest with concerned expressions. The setting sun over Avalon made up a beautiful scenery, but their thoughts were grim and full of uncertainty, which I didn't share with them.

"You seem to forget a very important thing..." I smirked and gained their attention. "Dauntless is a nearly three hundred metres long warship. That discount forest Titan was only thirty-five metres tall and fifty metres long. It's shorter than our Titans but I admit it's longer."

"Theon is right." Luna smiled a little more confidently. "Thanks to him, we have an incredible magitech and technology advantage."

A dry chuckle made us all look at Freya who was grinning viciously.

"He doesn't have many of them..." The Dwarfess smiled as she looked into the distance with an unfocused gaze, and I recognised she was looking through the eyes of her denizens. "Vestargo wasn't prepared to defend that Dungeon."

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•••

Rango and Rukla were advancing as the spearhead of the Arcadian forces and were amused by the laughable resistance of the enemy Dungeon. The Deadly Marsh Dungeon, whose core introduced himself as Vanlin, once they entered his premises, gave them an extremely lengthy speech spoken by his Voice which was utterly ignored. However, being ignored wasn't something that would dishearten such a fierce Vestargo supporter so he was still talking when most of the Joint Dungeons Forces invaded his Dungeon. The Deadly Marsh Dungeon denizens were mostly alligators, lizardmen, and, for some reason, carnivorous, horned rabbits. The most interesting, however, were the lizardmen. They were feral and mindless unlike the many Lizardmen living among the citizens of Arcadia or other countries of Aderon. That begged the question of whether they originated from a Dungeon's enclave, or not. Or maybe the Dungeon lizardmen were some kind of monster that could evolve into a less civilised version of Lizardmen.

Voice of Vanlin was the scion of the alligators, and it was quite a spectacular specimen. It was nearly eight metres long but, since it was forced to stay on shore while giving its speech, it looked hilarious. A huge reptile that tried to look proud and noble while standing on its stubby and short legs, looking at everyone from below, no matter how high its platform was, was going to stick with them for a long time. Yet, compared to the bugs, the Deadly Marsh Dungeon's denizens were not prepared to fight at all. The alligators tried to ambush Legion's Nagas and Lamias in shallow and murky water, which was an exercise in futility. Nagas and subsequently Lamias were creatures with strong water affinity thanks to them being monsters who lived in close vicinity to water. Marsh was their natural habitat, and given their level and gear advantage, alligators were just fair game.

Lizardmen of the Dungeon tried to challenge the Legion's heavy infantry with their bone maces and knives while wielding extremely crude shields made of thick branches held together with thin lianas. It was such a sorry sight that the remaining Arcadian scions decided to end it as soon as possible. Surprisingly, the horned rabbits were the most deadly and troublesome enemies the Deadly Marsh Dungeon had to offer. Their small size and unbelievable mobility allowed them to actually harass the Arcadian forces and kill some Faé mages. However, that couldn't even slow down the Legion's and JDF's advance for a moment. The knee-high marsh with the overhanging trees and various vines and greenery wasn't a challenging environment for the Arcadians. The layout of the Dungeon wasn't complicated either. It was just an open marsh with a single structure in its middle resembling the ruins of a watchtower.

"No bugs." Rango sighed as they reached the ruined tower.

"It means they layed the trap in the slave city." Rukla shrugged and opened her arms powerlessly. "Vestargo doesn't want to let go of his slaves, after all..."

The Hobgoblin King looked at her and took a deeper breath. He sometimes couldn't understand Rukla and her master at all. It was true that each Dungeon of Arcadia had a slightly different reason for protecting Mortals, but Talla of the former Kobold Dungeon was a mystery. On one hand, she unquestionably cared about the people, but on the other, her interests in non-Arcadians were non-existent. He sighed once again and nodded his head towards the closed gates to the tower. She smiled as she placed her hand on the rusted iron surface and furrowed her brows.

"It's protected with a strange spell... I... I think it's a curse." She said and took a step back. "Frost Nova!"

She tapped the tip of her staff on the doors which immediately started being covered by intricate patterns of frost. The air was so freezing cold that it stung Rango who retreated behind the Dragonewt. As soon as frost covered the doors completely, Rukla just pushed her staff further, shattering them as if they were made of thin glass. She went inside without waiting for anyone and, while Rango hesitated, he followed her a heartbeat later. Fortunately, there was no lingering cold so he advanced more confidently. The ground floor of the ruins was dark and damp, filled with stale and mouldy air. Light reached inside through the gaps in the wall but it wouldn't be enough for Mortals to see. However, Rango and Rukla preferred darkness, as creatures who normally lived in dark caves, goblins and kobolds developed low-light vision and since the Scions were the most advanced species of their respective kind, their passive abilities were even sharper.

The ground level was similar to the many watchtowers built by the people of Berna or Cridia. It was a simple but large chamber with an equally large fireplace and a staircase on the opposite side of the entrance. There were some rotted-out barrels under the walls but, despite this place being perfect for an ambush, it was empty. The stairs led to areas above and below. While the upstairs direction was less probable to hold the inner sanctum, Rango sent a small detachment to investigate it. The rest of the team slowly descended underground unbothered by any Deadly Marsh denizen. The stairs were worn out, with grooves indicating they had been used for thousands of years. Some dais were crumbling and a few were missing. The only sources of light were sparse torches fastened to the central pillar with crude iron braces. The flames were flickering ominously, dancing alongside the howling wind somewhere below.

After nearly twenty minutes they reached the bottom of the tower. They were greeted by a few elite lizardmen who offered minimal resistance. The interior of the tower's basement was soaked in the unmistakable stench of death. Small prison cells were positioned along the main corridor while it ended at massive double doors. In the opposite direction from the stairs in the main corridor were another set of doors. These were smaller and looked unremarkable and yet, Rango almost knew he should go there. He waved his hand towards the cells and his elite Hobgoblin Champions went to check them. As Rango exchanged a glance with Rukla, both of them moved towards the smaller doors. Just one look at them was all he needed to realise they found the inner sanctum. As more and more JDF denizens joined them underground, he knew they had to devise a plan.

It was a trap.

He had no idea where it was or how to spring it, but he was certain that opening doors to the inner sanctum right now would be a mistake.

"The three of us will enter the sanctum accompanied by your personal entourages, Rukla, Rango." Galahad's voice interrupted the Hobgoblin King's thoughts. "The remaining forces will investigate the second chamber."

"Yes, Scion Galahad!" Rukla snapped to attention, visibly shaken by his unexpected appearance.

"Let's go," Galahad ordered calmly and put his hands behind him.

Rukla tried to shatter the doors using the same spell as before, however, the Frost Nova was unable to even form on the wooden doors. From the opposite direction, Vanii and Hrulf had already opened the door and moved inside. Rukla looked at Rango with a sorrowful expression but before he could even think how to shatter the doors to the sanctum, a black sword pierced the planks as if they weren't even there. Black tar covered the wood and they felt goosebumps as they realised they looked at one of the more impressive undead spells. The Decaying Touch was a ninth-tier spell, capable of destroying pretty much everything and there was very little anyone could do to stop it. Only successful Dispel or outright killing the caster could stop the spell. The doors crumbled into dust as Galahad pulled out his sword and entered the inner sanctum.

"I bid you a good day, Sir Vanlin." The commander of all legions of Arcadia slightly inclined his head towards the pedestal with a dim opal. "I'm Galahad of Avalon..."

Suddenly, Galahad moved blindingly fast and blocked a hit. The attacker was a large Mantis, the same one Galahad faced before when he delivered a message from Lord Theon to Vestargo. Without much effort, the Undead Lord pushed it away.

"It's very impolite to interrupt someone's introduction." Galahad shook his head in disapproval.

Rango was shocked by the speed and power displayed moments ago. The bugs were waiting in ambush after all and they entered their trap. However, watching how the Galahad's Praetorians mowed down the enemies made him question who was trapped. His Hobgoblins were trampling the bugs in a far less elegant and organised manner but they were nearly as efficient as Praetorians. The Dragonewts quickly turned the chamber into a furnace, sending fire spells towards the enemies. The roaring flames illuminated the inner sanctum and Rango smiled.

"We will take care of those pests, Lord Galahad."

"Very well, Rango." Galahad nodded and activated his Aegis shield with a clenching of his fist. "I will teach the pest scion not to butt into a discussion he's not invited to."

"I wish you to try..." The Mantis cackled and stretched his wings. As mana danced around him and formed magic circles, Galahad sighed.

"What's your name, pest?" Galahad asked as he activated all combat runes within his armour and weapon.

"Hunter. The Scion and Voice of the Great Emperor of the Endless Forest, Vestargo the Conqueror!"

"So, Hunter..." Galahad laughed and it confused the Mantis. "...it's time to die."

His laughter still echoed in the chamber when he dashed forward. The surprised Mantis barely had enough time to react. Galahad bashed the enemy scion with his shield and immediately followed with a blinding fast thrust of his sword. Hunter was thrown back with a deep cut below his armpit. He miraculously avoided being impaled by Galahad's sword and was still in shock when the Death Lord was again upon him. The ensuing exchange of blows was very one-sided and it was obvious that Galahad was toying with his opponent. But the Death Lord wasn't displaying any significant skill or technique. It was a rough, brute power and a difference between fighting unarmed and fighting with the greatest armament Arcadia could provide.

"How can you be so powerful?! The last time we fought I was stronger than you!" Hunter shouted with hatred as he jumped back, barely defending himself against another powerful blow.

"I haven't shown you anything yet, bug." Galahad's voice was serious and echoed ominously. "You still haven't paid for the deaths of Iris and Lilly... I will teach you fear and once I'm satisfied..." The Death Lord's voice spread like frost in the chamber, similarly cold and unrelenting. "I will make you watch as I destroy your spawner. Bit by bit..."

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