The shadows had finally disappeared.
Not with an explosion, not with a final cry, but with silence.
The air cleared as after a storm. The earth still smoked in places, and where before there had been only darkness, now grass grew timidly, as if the Kingdom dared to breathe again.
Paul stood up slowly, tired to the core. He looked at Ana.
— "Is it over?"
Ana looked out over the field where the shadows had dispersed.
— "Yes… for now. But we still have wounds to bind."
She turned to the rest of the group:
— "Rest! Not one more step!"
Her voice was not an order, but a promise. This is how a war ends.
Paul approached Ana in a whisper.
— "The Queen and the King?"
— "I'm in a safe place. Come on!"
They walked together to a clearing. There, on a thick blanket, the Queen held her younger children close to her chest. The King stood beside her, one hand on his sword, but his eyes were filled with worry.
When she saw them, the Queen immediately raised her head.
— "You've defeated the shadows… Is the kingdom safe?"
Paul nodded, still breathing heavily.
— "Yes. The kingdom is protected now."
Those words were enough. The Queen closed her eyes and tears ran down her cheeks silently. She wasn't crying like a queen—she was crying like a mother.
— "My eldest child…" she whispered. "Do you know anything about him? His name is Ion."
Paul jumped. The piece he hadn't seen suddenly fit.
— "Ion…" he said softly, remembering the young man who had fought beside Oana.
The Queen continued, but her voice broke:
— "He left in the morning."
— "I think I know where he is," he said. And that's fine. If you want… we can go to him after we talk about Shadows and the Kingdom.
The King clenched his fist.
— "It all started because of me. I asked for the power of the shadows to protect my daughter. The Kingdom of Lun hurt us. But I was wrong. Great."
Paul looked him straight in the eye. Not as a subject. As an equal.
— A father yes. A king… less so. We were there to keep the Kingdom standing, but what if we hadn't been? Everything would have burned. Your choice may have saved one life… but it was to lose thousands.
The King closed his eyes for a moment, as if accepting a sentence.
— "How can I thank those who saved my Kingdom?"
— "You don't have to," Paul said simply. "Just don't let the shadows come back."
The queen stood up, trembling.
— "I want to go to Ion."
Paul smiled for the first time since the fight.
— "Then come."
And they set off together.
In another corner of the world, Oana held her hand to her chest, still dizzy. Ion was next to her, supporting her weight without hesitation.
— "You're moving too fast," he whispered.
Oana's eyes widened.
— "I'm fine."
— "I love you," he said with a sincerity that disarmed her. "And not because I know you. But because I see you."
She resisted weakly.
— "You don't know me enough to love me."
Ion smiled almost sadly.
— "Maybe not. But love doesn't ask for names and years. It just chooses."
Oana blushed involuntarily and bit her lip. She didn't want to give in. She didn't want to become vulnerable. She knew all too well how much that cost in a war.
The thought tightened in her heart:
"If I let him get close, I'm putting him in danger."
So she hid her face, but Ion lifted it slightly from the thinness.
— "Stand up," he told her. "You're stronger than you think."
Further on, Vlad, Alexandra, and Alex sat down in the grass, exhausted. Their wounds were bleeding, but no one was complaining.
Alex looked up at the sky.
— "That was the hardest fight of my life."
Alexandra laughed, although she could barely breathe.
— "I hope Oana is okay."
Vlad shook his head.
— "She's stronger than all of us put together. He's just asking if she admits it."
Alexandra shifted her gaze to Alex, with an overly curious smile.
— "By the way… Alex… when are you going to tell Ana that you like her?"
Alex almost swallowed his tongue.
— "What?! Me? Never! I'm not her type! I just… tried to be friendly with her, to… you know… keep her from hanging around the group!"
Vlad sighed.
— "Alexandra, leave him. He's admitting it anyway."
Alexandra shrugged:
— "I'm not leaving him. Because I can see it. Ana likes you. And if we're going to be fighting shadows all our lives, it's a shame not to do something good in the meantime."
Alex was stuck.
— "Ana… likes me?"
— "More than you think," Alexandra whispered.
Paul, Ana, the Queen, and the King reached the clearing. There, Ion and Oana were still helping the wounded. Their work was swift and calm, as if the whole war had been left far behind.
When they saw the four approaching, Oana looked up, surprised. She didn't know who these royally dressed people were.
— "Paul?" she asked softly. "Who are they?"
Paul replied simply:
— "The Queen and the King of the kingdom. And… it seems Ion is their son."
Oana instinctively turned to Ion, her cheeks warming as she remembered how he had told her he loved her and had kissed her. She forced herself to focus on something else so as not to betray her feelings.
Ion stood up. He looked at them. Then, as if an invisible thread had pulled at his voice, he said:
— "Mother… Father… I'm glad you're safe."
The Queen no longer needed anything else. She stepped forward three paces and embraced Ion, trembling. The King stayed beside them, his hand on Ion's shoulder, silent.
Oana turned to Paul:
— "The others? Are they okay?"
— "Yes," he replied. "They're safe."
Oana breathed a sigh of relief.
Then she dared to ask:
— "And now what do we do? Leave? The Shadows are gone… but I feel it's not quite the end."
Paul began to answer, but Ion spoke first:
— "Don't leave. Not yet. We need to go to the castle. At least for one evening. To rest. To… talk."
The King approved:
— "That's a good idea. You are the kingdom's heroes. Please… stay at the castle. At least tonight."
Paul looked at Ana, then at Oana, and then back at the Queen and King.
— "Alright. But we should let the others know."
Paul and the King spoke for a while. In the meantime, they helped the rest.
Vlad, Alexandra, and Alex rose when they saw them approaching.
Paul spoke briefly but clearly:
— "I've spoken with the King. We're going to the castle. Not for celebration. For protection. The kingdom must be defended until we're certain the Shadows won't return. And we need to recover."
Alex raised an eyebrow:
— "So we're staying here… long-term?"
Paul nodded:
— "Yes. And in the meantime… we also need to prepare. The Shadows don't disappear forever. They hide, gather, wait."
Alexandra gave a bitter smile:
— "So there's peace… but only for a while."
Ana placed a hand on her shoulder:
— "For as long as we have. Enough time to become stronger."
Thus, the group set off together toward the castle — not as prisoners, not as guests, but as those who had saved a kingdom.
The castle slowly came to life under the gentle morning light. The air was fresh, carrying the scent of grass and sun-warmed stone. In the large courtyard, the sounds of swords and shields clashed, mingling with the laughter and encouragement of the young trainees. It was an ordinary morning… but nothing was ordinary anymore for those who had lived through war.
Paul and Ana led tactical training for the younger fighters. Vlad and Alexandra supervised the movements of the beginner groups, correcting every mistake and urging them to be faster, more attentive, more united. Alex stood aside at first, observing every detail, trying to learn how to be a leader—but his heart raced whenever he saw Ana approaching with her sword in hand.
— "Alex… want to try this combination?" Ana asked, raising her sword in a playful, challenging gesture.
— "Sure… but what if you hit me?" he replied, trying to smile.
Ana smiled, but her eyes shone with an unexpected intensity. They began to practice together, and with every synchronized movement, the tension between them grew. It wasn't just training; it was a silent conversation, full of gestures, glances, and steps that slowly drew them closer to each other.
Vlad and Alexandra sat on a wooden bench, watching them:
— "Do you think they'll ever understand each other?" Alexandra asked with a sly smile.
— "Don't underestimate Alex's progress," Vlad said, raising an eyebrow. "It's just… we need to push him a little more."
Meanwhile, Oana and Ion continued their work, helping the wounded and teaching the young ones how to handle emergencies. Oana still bore the marks of her injury, but her gaze was determined and calm. Ion watched her closely, admiring how she found her strength after everything they had endured.
— "I'm fine. Don't worry about me anymore," he told her one day, lightly touching her hand.
Oana gave a faint smile and turned back to continue her work. Every gesture she made was a form of love and protection—subtle, yet tangible.
Alex and Ana continued to work together day after day. At first, Alex would stumble, and Ana would patiently correct him. Then, with each passing day, their steps became more fluid, their coordination more precise. One afternoon, while they were practicing by the castle fountain, Ana noticed Alex reaching out his arm to protect her from a wrong move.
— "Thank you," she murmured, her cheeks reddening.
— "You don't have to say it," he replied, trying to hide his emotion, but his eyes betrayed the sincerity.
It was their first moment of closeness, a glimmer of intimacy amidst training and responsibilities.
Vlad and Alexandra, on the other side of the courtyard, had worked together on training the larger groups. Alexandra would laugh, and Vlad would respond with irony, but behind their jokes lay a solid friendship and mutual respect.
— "Do you think Ana and Alex really…?" Alexandra asked, smiling complicitly.
— "I hope so too," Vlad replied, observing every subtle gesture between the two.
The days passed and the training became more intense. Paul supervised everything, and Ion and Oana together, but supported each other, teaming up in training and teaching the young people to react quickly in emergency situations. Alex and Ana learned to cooperate, to read each other's intentions, to protect each other.
One evening, after a difficult exercise, Alex was sitting next to Ana on the dew-damp grass.
— "I don't understand how you became so fast…", he said, trying to find something to say.
— "Training… and maybe a little talent," she replied, smiling.
— "Yes… but not talent. But the way you work with me. I feel that… we can do anything together."
Ana looked at him, speechless. Her heart was beating fast, and for the first time in a long time, she felt like she could be vulnerable without fear.