Helios made his way baerlin’s cottage, the ret frontation with Lea and Isa still gnawing at him. The weight of what he had said to push them away hung heavily on him, but he k was necessary. The momeepped ihe dim glow of the nterns cast long, flickering shadows across the room. He sat down, trying to push aside the guilt that tugged at him, only to feel Kurai’s preseir once more.

  “So, will you be leaving this world soon?” Kurai’s voice echoed in his mind, smooth aached.

  Helios shook his head, staring bnkly at the floor. “Not yet. If I disappear now, others will e looking for me, and that could ge things in ways I ’t trol. But if I wait until Radiant Garden is overtaken by the Heartless and Malefit’s influence spreads, they’ll think I perished along with the city.”

  Kurai hummed in approval. “Prudent. More time to study the equipment as hidden within that castle, I presume?”

  “Exactly,” Helios muttered. “Once Malefit takes over, the castle will be less guarded. She has no i in sce or teology, which will give me the ce to study and take what I need without interference.” He paused, a question f in his mind. “But I don’t know when she’s going to arrive. Kurai, is there another presence here, shrouded in darkness like mine?”

  There was a brief silence before Kurai responded, its voice cool and steady. “Yes. There is one such presen the town already, moving in this dire.”

  Helios’s eyes widened. He hadn’t expected her to be so close. The thought that she might be seeking Merlin crossed his mind, sending a jolt ency through him. “Why didn’t you tell me this sooner?” he demanded, his voice edged with frustration.

  Kurai’s response was cold. “You didn’t ask. But now that you have, I will alert you to suformation iure. This presence will likely seek out the stro souragical energy in this world—a potential threat to themselves.”

  Helios nodded, stepping outside into the cool night air. The streets were quieter now, the soft glow of the nterns casting long shadows that swayed gently with the breeze. He waited, his gaze fixed on the dire Kurai had indicated.

  Then he saw her. Just beyond the halo of the ntern, a striking figure appeared. She walked with a anding grace, her dark dress shimmering subtly, as if it absorbed and reflected the dim light like starlight. Her long, dark hair flowed behind her in smooth waves, and her sharp, elegaures were both beautiful and severe, suggesting a powerful iy. She bore a striking resembo her normal form with the exception that she didn’t have green skin. She stood out, even iillness of the night.

  Kurai’s voice was a low whisper in Helios’s mind. “That is her. The darkness embedded in her being is undeniable. She wields it as a on.”

  The woman stopped just outside the glow of the ntern light, her eyes log onto Helios. She spoke, her voice smooth and trolled, with an undercurrent of menace. “Young man,” she said, tilting her head slightly, “do you live in this quaint little house?”

  Helios shook his head, his expressioral. “No, I’m just looking after it until the owner returns.”

  A flicker of amusement crossed her eyes before she masked it with a serene, almost predatory smile. She exuded a presehat was both enthralling and dangerous. Helios studied her face, reizing the telltale resembo the evil fairy Malefit. The disguise was impressive, but not perfect.

  Helios wasted no time. “You drop the act, Malefit.”

  For a moment, the woman’s eyes fshed with surprise, but her smile didn’t waver. It transformed into something sharper, more wicked, as she took a step closer. “I believe you have mistaken me for someone else,” she said, her voice yered with mock sweetness. “My name is Malina, and I do not know of anyone who goes by the name of Malefit.”

  Helios shrugged, a smirk pying on his lips. “Is that so? Because I have a proposition for the evil fairy herself. A deal, you might say, to hand over this nd to her.”

  He felt the darkness within him stir, a it seep out slowly, a shadowy aura surrounding him as he spoke. Malefit’s smile turned predatory, her eyes gleaming with i as she took in the dispy of darkness.

  “Go on,” she said, her voiow stripped of any pretehe regal, anding air she projected was unmistakably hers. “Let’s hear this proposition of yours.”

  Helios took a step forward, meeting her gaze without fling. “Radiant Garden will soon be yours for the taking, but you need more than the powers you wield to take trol over it. Should you give me some time I promise you an army of darko trol and use as you please.”

  Malefit’s expression shifted subtly, intrigue softening the sharp edges of her smile. “And what would you have iurn fo this so-called army? I assume this deal requires something from myself.”

  “Yes,” Helios said, his voice steady, fident. “I would like for you to teach me dark magic. Teach me everything you know and this world will be yours.”

  Malefit’s eyes narrowed, evaluating him with an iy that seemed to probe for any sign of deception. For a long moment, the sileretched betweehe quiet night air crag with a tension that felt almost tangible. Helios stood his ground, refusing to show any sign of hesitation. The dark aura around him pulsed gently, a reminder of the strength he possessed and the stakes of this gamble.

  Finally, Malefit tilted her head, a smile curling at the ers of her lips. “You offer darko a master of it, seeking a boon iurn. Ambitious, aren’t you young man?” She moved closer, the hem of her dark dress whispering against the cobblestones. “But ambition without proof is a fool’s errand. Why should I believe that you, a boy barely known, could fulfill such a grand promise?”

  Helios anticipated this challenge. He raised his hand, allowing a flicker of dark energy to daween his fingers, casting long, shifting shadows. Soon the Heartless emerged and they tried to attack but the darkness from both Helios and Malefit pushed them bad they stood still and waited. The air grew colder, heavier, as if the night itself held its breath.

  “As you see I already wield darkness,” Helios said, his voice low and unwavering. “And I uand these creatures the Heartless better than you. They crave hearts and wish to devour them. We trol them with darkness when there are a few of them but when the darkness is overwhelming they will attad try to e our hearts. However, I have tricked the wisest people in the world int oing a new breed of these dark creatures ohat hold hearts and are tamer than these. Ohey create them you’ll be able to trol thousands of them without the need of w they’ll e as much.”

  Malefit watched him closely, the glow of her eyes refleg the flicker of Helios’ power. She seemed to weigh his words, her expression turning thoughtful. Finally, she extended one gloved hand, slender firag an invisible pattern in the air. A subtle spark of green magic lit up the night, a green fme bzed to life and surrounded Helios. “Why?” she said, her voice carrying a mix of intrigue and and. “Why would you offer me such power when you could easily take it for yourself? I see no be in this deal for yourself. A world and an army in exge for spells.”

  Helios met her gaze, allowing a faint smile to form. “We all value different things. You want an army and a world. I do not so I’m it to you in exge for what I need.”