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“Mímir will give you the rest of the information,” Fenris said.

The white-blond Royal Guard raised his hand. “I have a question, Captain.”

“What is it, Torsten?”

“You say that nobody has been able to get into these fae ruins, right?” He licked his lips and glanced at the others. “What if … what if it’s because Ragnarök is there? What if that’s their stronghold?”

Silence entrenched the room before everyone started talking all at once in hushed tones.

“Ragnarök? Those fae-loving freaks?”

“But they’re not that strong, are they?”

“I haven’t heard about them in years, not sincethatincident.”

Kolfinna didn’t understand what they were talking about. Ragnarök? It was her first time hearing the word. Kolfinna drew closer to Eyfura and dropped her voice so only she could hear her. “What’s, um, Ragnarök?”

Eyfura smoothed the creases on her pants, her gaze darting from the guards to Kolfinna. “Ragnarök is, uh, a small group of people who want to change the world to, um, how it used to be back when the fae ruled.”

Kolfinna must’ve looked confused because Eyfura continued, “I told you, it’s a small group, so it’s no wonder you haven’t heard about them. They’ve been around ever since the fall of the last fae queen, Queen Aesileif. They’re nothing you really have to worry about. The last big thing they did was six years ago—”

“Everyone, please quiet down.” Fenris raised a hand to lull the voices to silence. Soon, everyone quieted until only the chirrups of birds outside the window sounded in the room. “We don’t believe Ragnarök is a part of this. But if they are, they’re simply humans and fae—nothing we can’t face ourselves. You all have nothing to fear. Anyhow, let’s stay on track.” He nodded toward Mímir.

Mímir cleared his throat and scanned his papers. “I’ll be taking the lead for this mission. As most of you know, and some of you who don’t know”—he glanced up at Kolfinna, as if addressing her—“I love history and I’m very grateful to Captain Asulf for allowing me to take charge of this mission. I’m excited to see what the ruins have to offer. All the history that’s in those walls … It’s likely been untouched for centuries.” He licked his finger and flicked to another page. “Anyway, let’s talk about the ruins themselves. They’re located within a mountain. The mountain is cored out, and within it is a very large, expansive building with many sub buildings attached to it. We discovered it two years ago when military personnel stumbled upon it. We’ve sent air elemental soldiers to fly above it and see if they could enter, but there’s a barrier covering the top of it like a dome. And what’s more. There’s a thick white fog that covers it. The soldiers were unable to draw near it due to those reasons. However, they were able to see some spiked domes and towers. From what they saw, the ruin grounds are extremely large.

“We’ve sent teams and teams of people out there, but once they enter through the doors of the castle ruins, they never return. We had historians scour all sorts of ancient books, writings, and notes … And we uncovered that this castle was in fact discovered two hundred years ago, but the same thing happened: anyone who enters never returns. There are likely a great number of riches inside, according to historians.”

“Wait, wait.” Magni raised his white-gloved hand. Rich brown locks fell over his brooding eyes, which he pushed back distractedly. “This was discovered two hundred years ago and we’re just now finding out about it?”

“Correct.” Mímir bobbed his head. “Two hundred years ago, the military did everything it could to try to excavate it but to no avail. They eventually gave up and it was lost since then. It was rediscovered two years ago. You have to keep in mind that two hundred years ago, this was all confidential information, so it’s not like the public knew about it … Which is why you’ve never heard of it.”

“How long until they gave up?” This time it was Eyfura who asked the question. “I find it hard to believe the military would give up that easily.”

“You’re correct.” Mímir hesitated. “They tried for twenty years before they quit.”

A shiver ran down Kolfinna’s spine. The military couldn’t excavate it fortwentyyears? They must’ve sent out their best men, and they still couldn’t do it?

“Excuse me?” All the color drained from the brunette with the mole below her eye. “This is a suicide mission then! What makes you think we’ll be any more successful than everyone else who tried and failed?”

“Things are different than they were two hundred years ago,” Mímir said. “Plus, the military didn’t have a fae on their side.”

“That’s still pretty risky.”

Cicadas buzzed from the window, mingling with the distant hum of city life. Kolfinna stared down at her hands, where flecks of dirt filled the space beneath her nails, and where thin scabs lined her fingers and palms from last week’s fight. The descriptions of the ruins sounded ominous, but what she didn’t understand was the Royal Guards’ reaction—they had achoiceon whether or not to participate.

Mímir brought his notes closer to his face. “We also—” He squinted. “We also have a black rank assisting us, so we’re hopeful we’ll be successful.”

Kolfinna stiffened. A black rank?

The Royal Guards only had one black rank, and that was Fenris. The other two black ranks belonged to the military. Was Fenris joining them on this mission?

Magni must’ve been thinking the same thing because he tilted his head to the side. “Captain, are you coming with us?”

“No,” Mímir said quickly. “Captain Asulf can’t leave his post here in the capital for an extended period.”

All was quiet as everyone turned to Fenris.

Kolfinna’s heart raced. If Fenris wasn’t coming—