Haldir shuddered inside. What did she mean by that? He knelt beside her and said softly, "Adrianna, we must go back."

A cool gush of wind blew. Adrianna looked detached from the universe, she was nowhere. She looked so unconnected. There was magic around her, in the air around her that Haldir could sense it. He knew it would take a long time to settle. This was victory but at the cost of so many lives. He goaded her again, "Shall we go back?"

​​

"No, I want to visit my Grandfather," she said in a firm voice. Ed must be expecting Mun anytime. After all he was missing since the previous night.

Haldir didn't say a word. He created the portal and Adrianna stepped into it. Before entering he looked behind and saw parts of Ziu body scattered everywhere ruining the place with its almost black blood. He snapped his fingers and all of them combusted leaving no trace whatsoever. The place looked as beautiful and clean as it was earlier. He stepped into the portal after Adrianna.

They walked out of it right in front of Ed's inn. The inn looked deserted. Adrianna ambled to the door and opened it. She noticed that Ed was sitting there with his face resting on his palm. He was stirring his soup with a spoon very slowly. He didn't seem to notice the soup or had interest in eating it. He looked up at the door with excitement in his eyes and said, "Mun!" But he stopped mid-sentence when he saw the visitors. His eyes became wide with surprise.

"Adri, how come you are here?" he asked, getting up from his chair not able to control his delight in seeing his granddaughter. He stopped right in front of her as she gazed in his eyes. She looked disheveled. There was blood everywhere on her dress, her cheeks and hair. "What happened to you?" he asked in shock and looked at Haldir.

Adrianna's lips quivered. She held her wand and showed it to him. "M- Mun," was all she managed to say. There was no exchange of words. Ed's eyes glazed with tears and he became sappy and languid. His shoulders slumped as he stared at her.

"I am sorry," Adrianna lowered her eyes and said in a whisper.

He read her mentally. "It was his choice," Ed's voice cracked. "He was the most loyal pet I had ever had. He took such good care of me." Ed went to sit on his table again. He appeared to be in shock. "He would get food in these wild mountains whenever there was shortage. In fact he never let me go out and hunt for food. He always used to say that I am too old for all this and that I should keep the inn going." He looked at Adrianna. "Did you know that he had a beautiful female who used to come here every other day and visit him? The two of them would go around with each other and come back after days. I was thinking that he had gone to meet her."

Adrianna's tears were not stopping. How would her Grandfather now survive? "Come with me Grandfather," she said in a cracked voice.

Ed shook his head. It was simply too much to see him mourn like that. "I don't think I can come back Adri." He waved his hand and said, "This is my life. All this wilderness is my life now."

Adrianna gulped. "I understand," she replied. She had to think how to help him out.

Then he turned and went to his room.

Haldir was watching them from the door. "I don't think he is in a mood to talk, Adrianna. You must come here some other time. We should go back to the Kingdom."

Adrianna nodded and handed over the head to Haldir. "I want you to hold it up in the air so that everybody sees it when we enter the Wizard Kingdom." Haldir didn't understand why she wanted that, but he nodded. "I will."

When Adrianna walked out, Dmitri was the first one to see her. She appeared dazed. He rushed to her and hugged her as though clinging to his life. He kissed her head and suppressed the tears that choked his throat. But Adrianna didn't react.

Haldir walked out with Ziu's head. Everyone present out there including the three rulers of the Wizard Kingdoms, the Mozias, Isidorus and other members of the ministry were stunned. They all watched him with silence. They couldn't believe their eyes. It was Ziu's head he was holding high up in the air.

Adrianna removed herself from Dmitri's hug. "We will march through the two Levels and you will keep holding this head high up in the air for everyone to see," she said in a low, menacing voice.

"Yes, my Queen," Haldir replied.

And Adrianna started to walk. It was broad daylight. The sun had risen up on the horizon. She embarked on her journey to display.

The ministry members got sucked in the vortex to enter the Levels in order to remove all the spells before their Queen arrived. All the spells were quickly removed.

As Adrianna set foot in the first Level, the habitants of the Wizard Kingdom came out of their houses to watch her victory march. They watched their Queen whose cheeks were stained with blood.

Haldir was close on heels holding Ziu's head with his golden hair, with blood still dripping out. Yes, it was a show of triumph, of mission accomplished, of the power that coiled beneath her skin, of terror that she wanted to instill in her enemies. She wanted to convey the message to each and every witch and wizard that she was their Queen and that no one would mess with her. The way Adrianna gazed in front without looking at anyone of her subjects was so evil that her subjects cringed. In fact they cowered. Her message was loud and clear. The traitor would suffer. She wanted them to know to their core that she would not allow it. They would meet the same fate or perhaps worse.

Dmitri was beside Haldir and the rest were behind them.

The march did what Adrianna wanted. The residents were filled with fear, honor and loyalty to the Crown, to her.

When she had visited the last lag of her march on Level two, the royal carriage came. Along with Dmitri, she climbed in it. She turned to address Haldir, "Get the head to the palace."

"Yes, my Queen."

Haldir flew with them to the palace.

When they reached there, Adrianna took the head from his hand and using her wand, she hung on the left wall at the gates of her palace. "This head will always remain here," she announced.

Dmitri flinched. This was hideous. But he didn't interfere in her decision.

Adrianna looked at Inyanga who had just stepped out of her carriage and asked, "Can you enter his cell?"

"No, I can't," she replied. "If I do, I may get trapped there forever."

"I need the information locked in there."

Inyanga pursed her lips. "I can try to extract some of it."

"Hmm," replied Adrianna.

They all went inside.