Chapter 7

Well Setia knew some stories, as her dad used to tell her about strange creatures and some fantasy tales.

-"But you know the legends and old stories about the Labyrinth?"

Setia nodded in agreement, this legend was told to her by her father when she was little.

"In the old books of the Fenifrid I found some information about a temple called Korfid. - Nagor's face froze for a moment in a strange grimace, the light of the flames from the fire illuminated Nagor's profile, making it look unreal like stone faces carved in the Tanrod temple on the edge of Gemor Kingdom, where she was as a small child. To this day, she remembered the impression and the nightmares that haunted her later. Nagor's voice broke her out of her thoughts.

"You know that Hadgard used to be one great and mighty kingdom." Setia nodded again, waiting for Nagor to continue.

"Haleon, the lord of life and death, created three magical items: the Dragon Amulet, the Golden Sword and the Fireball. This was supposed to be a reward for his faithful servants. Hadgard is the oldest of all the countries around us, older than the Orchad, Sulwir or Modgod. Powerful Masters who knew magic used to ruled this land. Each of them had a great fortress with a Black Tower in the middle. What rituals were performed inside it is hard to find out now, but the people began to rebel. In order to rule the world ruthlessly, one of the Masters decided to get hold of the three valuable artifacts. He convinced others and they have created a terrifying army of darkness. The creatures he had brought ravaged the country and the great Masters of Magic lost their power over them. Haleon, seeing all this, punished the power-hungry daredevils. Legends say that with one movement of his hand he destroyed all the fortresses, leaving only the deserted black towers in the Arpins, near the delta of the Istar river, on the Dead Lake, in the Perian Forest and in the steppes of Nemor. He had thrown the entire army of dark creatures into the underground labyrinth called Hosard, stretching almost all underneath Hadgard. Inside the maze, he hid three valuable items. After that he cast a spell on the entrance, located at the intersection of the old power so that nothing from the maze could get to the surface. And so it was for hundreds of years, until there was a daredevil, Azachid son of Ifor , the ruler of Fenigrid, who found the entrance to the underground labyrinth and, after many battles, stole the Dragon Amulet from there." - Nagor's face became agitated and his features became sharp.

"But when he realized its power, he hid him here in the swamps in the temple called Korfid after the name of the greatest dragon who once inhabited these lands. Legend has it, that the Amulet can only be used once, and whoever obtains all three artifacts is destined to have power and eternal life. Unfortunately, Azachid disappeared and did not reveal to anyone where the entrance to the labyrinth was, the only mentions in the books were about the swamps and the temple of Korfid, hiding the amulet and probably further clues."

The last piece of information was accompanied by a quiet, resigned sigh.

There was a short silence, Setia watched the old man carefully, he really believed in these old stores. Did she have the right to laugh at the beliefs of others?

"I understand that you are looking for this temple?"

"Yes. … No. Nagor sighed again and stirred the herbal infusion. "Actually, not anymore." I've got loads of swamp maps and maps piled up here, but I'm old now and don't have that verve every 10 years ago. Now I live here with Morid, he was kicked out as a small child from the village where he was born and I took care of him. We've been living here together for about 16 years, not 18 years - he stopped mixing the brew and started talking to himself, counting out how much time he already is here.

Setia stopped listening to Nagor, the old man apparently not only caught rheumatism in these swamps, but also a large dose of lunacy, he often talked with himself, once he even shouted furiously at someone in his room. She looked again at Morid sitting further in the corner of the room. There was something disturbing about the way he looked at her. Nagor handed her a brewed cup of herbs.

"Drink, you will sleep better and the pain will lessen."

Setia obediently drank the tart liquid with a distinct flavor of lemon balm. A moment later she felt a pleasant heaviness and she laid down on the bed. Nagor was bustling around the room for some time, telling Morid the story he had heard in the village, and then he went to the next room and Setia fell asleep.

It was a strange dream, she thought she was lying in a cramped room and felt hands on her. The dream was very real and she wanted to wake up from it, but everything was shrouded in a fog. After a while, she heard heavy breathing above her and, yes, she felt someone's hands touching her neck and then traveling down her chest, stopping at her nipples. Setia stiffened, slowly opened her eye and saw Morid's long dark hair. She was lying uncovered on the bed and the shirt she was wearing was raised. Morid, kneeling down, stared at her naked body and his fingers moved lower to her womb, she heard his rapid breathing. She took advantage of his moment of distraction and carefully pulled out a dagger from the gap between the bed frame and the mattress and placed it against his ribs.

"Take your dirty hands off." She hissed softly, "Or I'll kill you."

To support her words, she lightly stabbed him with a dagger. Morid made no sound, but his hands left her body and he froze for a moment. Then he stood up without a word. Setia sat down on the bed and straightened her shirt.

"Don't ever touch me again. If you come near me I will call Nagor."

She heard a soft "No" and Morid sat down in the corner again, but he was watching Setia all the time. She knew that she wouldn't be able to close her eyes until the morning. Lying on the bed, she decided that she has been fooling around for too long. Starting tomorrow she will walk more and enough of Nagor's sleeping tea, she didn't want to be an easy victim for Morid's dreams.