The Cursed ran a hand over his eyes, unable to believe what was happening.
"How did you get here?"
"Actually, it is not me, but my projection. The Dark Lords handed me over to the Black Sorcerers, but I killed six of the seven Black Sorcerers. It was they who created the Dark Lords so that they would uncover the secret of the fortress of the Ancients and obtain high-tech weapons. Only one Sorcerer remains to be killed. Come here, to the Black Towers. In the old part of the castle, there are double doors with the image of stars in the night sky. Beyond them lies the Road of Shadows, which leads to the Black Towers. Only Dark Lords can travel that road and remain alive. But you killed three Dark Lords, which means you have the strength to travel that road."
The Cursed found the doors with the image of stars in the night sky, opened them, and went inside.
He was walking along a corridor whose walls consisted of large shadows of various shapes. The shadows were constantly moving. Behind them lay black impenetrable darkness, resembling a magical night that kept its secrets.
At first, nothing happened. He walked along the road, feeling the atmosphere of darkness and danger. Then the shadows attacked him from all sides. But they could do nothing to him. They flew around him and were not even capable of touching him.
At the end of the road, the Cursed saw another set of doors. He opened them and found himself in a gloomy hall where dead bodies in dark clothing lay everywhere on the floor. In places there were severed arms, legs, and heads. Pools of blood covered the floor and walls. A true massacre had taken place here.
From a window in the hall, he saw a winter landscape and black towers standing in the distance. They were located in different places. He himself was inside one of those towers.
"Pass through the portals until you reach the seventh tower," he heard the All-Seeing's voice in his ears. "The seventh mage is there."
He passed through the doorway glowing with light and went farther. He moved through several more halls and towers in which dead and mutilated bodies lay. Disemboweled entrails were scattered across the furniture and furnishings. The traces of a terrible massacre stretched throughout all the towers. He recognized the destructive power of the magic the All-Seeing had used back when the two of them had stormed the castles of the Demoness entity.
Then he found himself in the dark, vast seventh hall. Upon an ancient altar at the far end of the hall, where a dim light burned and steps led upward, lay a large white sword.
The floor was covered with dead bodies. Killed and mutilated. In one place lay a corpse dressed in a suit with the symbol of the moon. The Cursed had never seen anything like it before.
"This is a representative of the Cult of the Moon-Devouring One," he heard the All-Seeing's voice. "They believe in a creature that lived on this planet and devoured part of the moon to gain its energy and become a god. They call it the Moon-Devouring One. The fact that they have appeared is a bad sign. You need to find them and figure out what they are doing here in our Kingdom."
Among the body parts, he found the All-Seeing lying there, covered in blood.
"Yes. I was badly wounded," she said. "The seventh Black Sorcerer defeated me and gave me the opportunity to lure you here. But I already felt that you possessed the power to destroy him. Use it, because he is already attacking you."
The Cursed turned around sharply. He saw the dead bodies were merging into one large, terrible figure. It rose above him. A powerful magical strike flew toward him. He covered himself with the Laughing Sorceress's magic shield and remained standing. Unharmed. He fired the ray gun. Several rays pierced the dead bodies. And it had no effect.
"Use another weapon that you have," the All-Seeing said. "You must deprive the sorcerer of his vessels in this world so that he will not be able to manifest his magic."
The Cursed took out the second weapon that the White-Haired had told him to take back in the storage room of the fortress of the Ancients. He fired. The charge flew out, plunged into the mass of gathered bodies, and exploded in a huge burst of fire. Most of the bodies were thrown aside, torn apart. New bodies reached toward the figure. The Cursed fired several more shots. Several more explosions occurred, and nothing remained of the giant figure.
The Cursed listened carefully. The mage was still somewhere here. But he could no longer do anything without bodies to serve as vessels.
"Take the Frost Sword," the All-Seeing said. "It is an artifact created by the Black Sorcerers in these Ancient Lands. The only weapon capable of destroying the Ice Queen. She is a representative of the Outer Demons who came from beyond the darkness surrounding the Kingdom when the demon sat upon the throne. Only by killing her will you be able to reach him. The sword opens a portal to her lands."
The Cursed took the Frost Sword. It ignited in his hands. A portal opened in the great hall.
The Cursed helped the All-Seeing rise.
Together they passed through the portal.