The shaking of the carriage was slowly beginning to subside as they left the uneven frozen landscape behind. Much to Viana's delight it was also becoming warmed and warmer. She despised the cold. Her limbs turned stiff, her nose became runny and her cheeks got so cold that it almost felt like they burned. It was very difficult to maintain a proper image of a princess, and she found herself slipping up a few times which frustrated her to no end.

  And Lord Boreas along with his pushy father were by far the worst thing in the north. Viana had heard from Lucius that both of them were rather ambitious, trying to find a way to marry one of the princesses. But she never expected him to be so bold with his advances. Initially, Viana was worried that the young and naive Morrigan might actually fall for his charms. But thankfully her worries turned out to be unwarranted as her little sister seemed even more annoyed by the situation than her.

  Quite honestly, Viana didn't yet fully understand her little sister. At times, she appeared very childlike, which, of course, was normal for her age. But at other times, she seemed far more mature than she should be for her age. Perhaps it was a side effect of her ever-growing power.

  Viana glanced outside the carriage and saw how dark the outside was. It was getting darker as well and soon they would reach some of the darkest recesses of the Underworld where very few bioluminescent plants grew. It would be hard to navigate, however, it would be well worth the effort as their next destination was certainly one of the most beautiful places in the Underworld. She chuckled as she imagined Morrigan begging to paint the place.

  But her smile quickly disappeared as she remembered the black orb in the Garden of Frozen Memories. It was almost a certainty at this point that there would be one in the next sacred site as well. But who keeps planting them there? How'd they get past the guards unnoticed? And where are they siphoning the magic to? All these questions filled Viana with worry.

  ***

  "Why is it so dark?" Morrigan complained as she tried to discern something, anything in the darkness outside the carriage. But even with her enhanced night vision, she could not discern anything. She had no idea how the coachmen even knew where to go. Probably some navigation magic or something like that. "It's like the darkness has gotten thicker somehow. Is that even possible?"

  "It is. Taking your shadow form and doing shadow teleportation should be much easier in this area," Azrael said while flipping the page of a book. The demon had recovered from his cold and was back to his annoying, cocky self. And for some reason, he came to Morrigan's carriage more often these days which in turn made her sisters stick to their own carriages.

  "But what's the point of shadow form if I can't see where I am going?" Morrigan retorted and sat back down, giving up on trying to understand what was going on in the dark.

  "Oh, we're not even in the darkest part yet," Azrael chuckled.

  "We're not? Please, tell me that we're at least close to our destination," she looked at him with pleading eyes.

  "Nope. We still have to stop by one of the towns on our way to restock," he replied nonchalantly, and Morrigan groaned.

  "I'm going to paint searchlights and stick them to the top of the carriages so I can see something as we move forward," she grumbled, although she was well aware that she could not paint something so obviously foreign.

  "Searchlights? I'm not sure what those are, but you know that you can't."

  "I know. But I'm pretty sure those could illuminate even the darkest parts of the Underworld to make it look like daylight."

  "There are lights that bright?" Azrael put his book down, looking rather interested.

  "Yeah. Nothing in the Underworld has come even close to it. Except for Galandir's…" Morrigan trailed off as a realization. "I am so stupid! Galandir could have illuminated our path this whole time."

  Morrigan was about to call for her elven friend when Azrael pulled her back into her seat.

  "What?" She glared at him.

  "Do you really think it's a good idea for us to create a miniature sun in the Underworld and then travel around with it? Trust me if the option was viable we would have already used the boy," Azrael explained, and Morrigan slumped back down in her seat.

  "But what if we get lost in the dark?"

  "We won't. Trust me. Our coachmen are the best when it comes to navigating in the dark," Azrael said with a toothy smile and returned back to his book.

  "I really hope so. But if we get lost then we are losing Galandir's magic to illuminate the path," Morrigan grumbled.

  "Sure. But that won't be necessary because we won't get lost," he said confidently.

  Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

  I get a bad feeling about this. Our mysterious enemies are no doubt working hard to find us again. They must know that we are trying to reach the sacred sites. What if they set out a trap for us or some sort of magic? I wish we could just use Galandir's light magic. A lot of magic in the Underworld depends on the presence of darkness after all.

  ***

  "My sincerest apologies, Your Highness, but it appears we are lost," the head coachman said, bowing his head low to the ground while his subordinates were basically groveling before Morrigan.

  "How'd this happen?" she exclaimed, glaring at Azrael who had assured her that they would not get lost.

  "I'm sincerely sorry Your Highness, but our navigation magic isn't working as it should. It is very hard for us to tell apart which is the right path and the complete darkness is making it even more difficult," he bowed multiple times.

  "If there is something interfering with your navigation magic sense then you should have informed us right away," Viana growled, looking as angry as a fire-breathing dragon. The coachmen flinched at her voice.

  "W-We believed that if we worked together we would be able to find the right path, however, we overestimated our ability. I am sincerely sorry, Your Highnesses," the coachman nearly hit his forehead against the ground. Morrigan sighed, her shoulders sagging.

  "Enough. Groveling and apologizing isn't going to put us on the right path. We need to figure out where we are," she said, and the coachmen relaxed.

  "Do not think for a second that you are off the hook. As soon as we find the nearest city, you will receive your punishment," Viana growled, and they once again bowed their heads profusely.

  "So how do you navigate in the Underworld without navigation magic?" Morrigan asked, but the silence stretched on as nobody answered. Finally, Azrael spoke up.

  "The same way as anywhere else, I am afraid," he said somewhat nonchalantly. "Or perhaps we can just teleport to a familiar location and leave everyone who can't follow behind."

  "Out of the question! None of the servants here know such powerful magic. We cannot just leave them here," Morrigan glared and the mage, who lifted his hands up in defense.

  "I was merely joking. No need to get so angry, Princess."

  "Well, first things first. We need light. Galandir could you please create a bright light to illuminate the surrounding area. Not too strong at the start," she turned towards the elf who was quietly listening to the conversation up until now.

  "Of course," he nodded.

  "Princess, please reconsider. It would be a beacon that the whole Underworld would see," Azrael warned.

  "But we are lost. We can't see anything past our noses in darkness this thick. Even our night vision doesn't help. We need to see where we are!" Morrigan retorted, and Viana nodded reluctantly.

  "While it could attract some unsavory attention, I agree with Morrigan. We do not know where we are. We need light to find our path," she said, and Deziara also nodded along enthusiastically. Most of the servants and guards also nodded along.

  "I am making the light," Galandir announced and produced a small but bright ball of light that instantly illuminated a large portion of the surrounding area. All the demons had to shield their eyes from the brightness and it took them a while to adjust to the light. But soon they began looking at the surrounding area – a rather wide area with nothing in it.

  "Well, that's not really helpful…" Morrigan mumbled, staring at the few small stalactites which were the only discerning thing in the area.

  "We'll have to keep moving forward and hope to come upon some sort of a landmark or a town," Viana sighed.

  "How long can you keep the light?" Morrigan asked the elven boy.

  "Don't worry, it doesn't take a lot of magic to create light. I can keep this up all day if need be," he smiled at her, and she sighed in relief. They would certainly need that light for quite a while.

  Everyone returned to their carriages and mounts, except for Morrigan who decided to remain on Haku's back alongside Galandir. She just wanted to keep an eye out for any potential danger or hopefully a town where they could find their way forward.

  "It's going to be alright. We'll find our way," the elven boy calmed her, and Haku cooed along with him, attempting to calm Morrigan as well.

  "Getting lost is not really what worries me. We've got plenty of supplies and a few days lost is not a big deal. Worst case scenario Azrael could create a portal, even if that would take a few days," Morrigan said. Apparently, creating portals was a rather difficult and magically heavy process, that's why they didn't use it to move their retinue. It'd leave Azrael completely devoid of magic which would mean that their strongest mage would not be able to defend them if somebody attacked them.

  "What are you worried about then?" he asked.

  "I'm worried that somebody is leading us into a trap. Our coachmen suddenly being unable to navigate through the dark when they had no trouble leading Viana through her tour? That is odd. Somebody must be messing with their magic," she explained, her brows furrowed.

  "But this route is different from Viana's route is it not? Perhaps, that is what threw them off," Galandir wondered.

  "It could be that, but I have this strong suspicion that it is not the case," she clenched her hands on the saddle as she scanned the scenery ahead, expecting something to jump out at them at any moment.

  "If somebody attacks, then we'll defeat them. We have all the demon guards, elite knights from Count Etheles, and the strongest mage in the whole Underworld with us," he reassured her.

  "Azrael is not the strongest mage."

  "I was talking about you," he smiled mischievously.

  "Me? I'm not that strong yet. Father is definitely stronger than I am."

  "But can he create anything when he paints it?"

  "No. But why would he need to? His dark tendrils are enough to destroy anything."

  "Oh, yeah, destroy. But you know destroying is easy. Launch a fireball and it's gone. The real power comes from creation, not from destruction."

  Morrigan didn't reply, pondering over his words. He was right in a way, but if their enemy decides to attack then her paint magic would not save them. Unless she created something that could help them prepare for an attack.

  "Could you keep watch ahead? I think I need to go and paint something," she said, the cogs in her brain already whirling at the possibilities.

  "Of course. I'll be your eyes whenever you need me," he nodded and smiled.