The air reeked of blood and pollen.
The Fairy host didn't stop. Their fury shook the sky itself. The Bloodfiends shrieked and howled, but were torn apart by volley after volley of radiant arrows—this wasn't a battle. It was a massacre.
When the last scream faded, silence finally settled over the land.
Ethan stood amid the drifting blood mist, unease prickling at the edges of his mind. The stench of blood hadn't lifted. It writhed in the air, slithering into every Fairy's body. Their once-luminous auras, pure and clear, now shimmered with a faint crimson taint.
Their wings glinted with a dangerous sheen. Their smiles twisted into something feral.
Ethan understood at once.
The Bloodfiends' power was corrupting them.
He drew a deep breath and stepped onto the high platform.
In his hand, the Scepter of the Fey Sovereign glowed with a soft golden light.
This was the power of dominion he alone commanded. And now, he would relinquish it—
