The rays of light from the twin stars come through the window of a small room in the middle of Slavic territory, but it doesn't warm it up. It's simple, with just a wooden table with two chairs, one on each side, and a traditional rug underneath it covering the plank floor. This cute little place has the affection of the most eccentric duchess of all and she often uses it for meetings like the one he's just had with Ifritte.

— Oh, I forgot to ask — he, who was walking towards the door next to Yaga, stopped — will Sigmund be meeting me in a week or two? I don't remember the exact date — he smiles.

— The first day of next month, exactly one week from now.

— Thank you — the duchess opens the door for him.

The two say a polite goodbye and greet Viy, who is sitting in the main room of the wooden hut in the middle of nowhere. Yaga also greets the absconditus who was waiting for Ifritte, even though he's just a slave who looks more like a statue because he's so quiet, and he returns his greeting with a slightly shy smile. It's rare for Sephiroth not to be ignored by the nobles, despite his remarkable appearance where his short silver hair curls in perfect waves and contrasts with the darkness of his black tunic as large as the single white wing that sticks out of his scarred back, one of which, where the other wing used to be, is the one that stands out the most.

Ifritte comes out of the hut and skips along the forest path, contrasting with the opposite end of the spectrum, Sephiroth, who appears to have emerged from the grave, looking more like a dead man than a Ghoul or a Chinese ghost. Yaga and Viy are alone in the hut, they enter the little room and sit down at the wooden table, a simple but safe place to talk.

— Do you trust him? — Viy asks.

— In Ifritte? Not at all.

— Do you have any evidence against him?

— Nothing concrete, but I imagine you've realised that his "personality" doesn't match his actions.

— Of course I realised.

— Anyway, that's not the point. I invited you to fill you in on everything — Viy remains quiet and his eyes ask her to continue — I think you already know that the revolution is false. We're just using this idea to unite the people and prevent them from losing hope while the police carry out their duty to execute Damon with our help, as ordered by the supreme judge.

— I wondered when you were going to reveal this to me.

— It wasn't just my decision, the Duke of Long was worried.

— I understand, who else knows?

— Apart from the three of us, only Ulloriak, Osiris and Anubis — the Nanook and Long houses are the kingdom's police force, it was essential and expected that their leaders fulfil their duties.

— I'll keep our secret. Do you have a mission for me?

— Nothing for now, then Ulloriak will inform you of other necessary matters.

— Are the Curupira and the Duke of Menece also taking part?

— No, perhaps they'll join later. And as unbelievable as it sounds, the Duke of Lupus is helping us.

— I'm glad a werewolf isn't isolating himself.

— Me too — her tender, concerned gaze drops a little and she smiles — It's a shame that those who need the help of the other absconditus the most always run off to their corners and try to cope on their own.

— I agree — he looks at the watch on his wrist — Sorry I'm in such a hurry, I have to go.

— It's okay, I've got an appointment in a few minutes too.

The duchess, being courteous to her esteemed friend, accompanies him to the door and, because they are following the same path, they don't say goodbye and chat about trivial matters as they walk along a resident trail from the depths of the forest, where there is only a wooden hut propped up on crow's feet.

The path they follow is a narrow orange ground with a multitude of trees around it forming a flora so dense that not even a small bird could fly between the leafless branches and it blocks out almost all the light from the twin stars that could illuminate the dreadful trail. The place they're both in looks like something from a horror film that would defeat even the bravest of warriors, and yet they're both still laughing as they talk.

Buildings gradually begin to dominate the landscape, occupying the space that once belonged to autumnal flora. The streets are made up of greyish stones and no longer earth. Absconditus are the most common form of life, not insects as before. The sky is a brilliant blue and no longer hidden. Finally they both arrive in Kharanitel' Tayn¹⁰ City.

Viy uses a carriage to return to Syniy Lis while Yaga teleports to the City of Atlantis. She enters a splendid museum that displays classic Greek architecture, supported by white pillars that exude grandeur and is the guardian of countless historical relics. The floor is like a window onto the sea, made of a stone that mixes different shades of blue and green in a dance, giving it the appearance of glass. The walls are snow-white, but could easily be mistaken for beige due to the comforting orange lighting.

Yaga continues to use her original appearance, but this doesn't harm her; after all, no one is bold enough to approach her because of her reputation as eccentric and dangerous. Her beautiful diamond-blue eyes are serene and she leisurely observes the pieces and the people around her.

She gets a little distracted, there are interesting artefacts such as the motorbike that Hermes used to deliver messages after his sandals were lost, which despite being an ancient technology, no one has been able to reproduce this fire-orange vehicle; a beautiful marble statue of the three legendary dukes, where Zeus, the main one, stands in the middle, and his brothers next to him; a cursed box, which if opened could once again bring unimaginable evil; a helmet formerly belonging to Hades, which granted its wearer the ability to become invisible, however, it is broken and its technology has also been lost like countless others, Yaga deduces that the reason for the technological loss is the war that ended two hundred years ago, however, not without first devastating the Greeks and murdering the three dukes.

When she passes the replica of Poseidon's trident — the original is with his son — she finally finds who she was looking for and approaches him.

— Good afternoon, Damon — she greets him with a sweet smile and he nods in return.

— Interested in history? — his green eyes sparkle like a sunlit lake, eager to talk about this subject.

— Yes, I ended up getting quite carried away — and he gazes at the piece in front of him.

— Did you know that the original trident — he looks at the replica — is broken?

— No, as far as I remember, it was used by your father in his last fight and remained intact, after which I think you used it too. However, I don't remember it breaking during a battle.

— I did use it and it really didn't break in battle. That old trinket decided to fall apart shortly after the end of the war, it's not even good enough to last a millennium — Yaga tries to remain impassive and not laugh, she almost fails.

— If you like, I can give you some tips on how to make your scimitar last more than a millennium like my broom.

— That would be great.

— Clean it every day, always store it properly…— she interrupted.

— A lot of work, it's not worth it — he says this because he always leaves his items, even the most valuable ones, lying around without any importance and this carelessness isn't even on purpose. Once again, the duchess has to try hard not to react and almost fails.

— Your people have impressive achievements — her gaze wanders to a spear that was carried by Achilles.

— Do you know the story of the owner of this weapon? My wife talks about him a lot, after all, he's her son.

They talk for an indeterminate amount of time because they both lose track of reality, immersing themselves in the stories that the plays tell of great, almost mythological beings. However, they are both interrupted by Damon's servant, who reminds him of a royal appointment he has, and the two say goodbye. Yaga's intention was to test the king's character in order to improve it, however, no attempt by the cunning duchess was successful in having even the slightest effect on him, this conversation that was only supposed to appear to be about history was really nothing more than that.

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Footnotes:
¹⁰ Keeper of secrets in Russian