"If you come with me, Verhen, I’ll help you tap into your true potential, and Mogar will be a better place for it." The Guardian of Mana extended one of his hands to Lith, ready to Warp them both to his secret lab. "We must be quick, though."

"The longer we wait, the fewer traces of your transformation will remain."

Roghar had yet to finish talking when Lith’s third set of wings flickered out. The energy that comprised them shattered into fragments of light and merged with the feathered wings below.

"Over my dead body!" Much to everyone’s surprise, the voices belonged to Raagu and Gyrwin, the Human Representatives from Garlen and Jiera.

The two women put themselves between the Guardian and Lith.

"Everyone here knows of your experiments, and we’ve seen how they end. Verhen is the first perfect evolved human, your words. We’d rather wait for him to safely discover his powers than let you take so much as a closer look at him."

"Seconded!" Ryla wiped her tears and shielded Lith with her body, her eyes brimming with the power of the elements in preparation for a new fight. "Verhen is my savior and my son’s best shot at a normal life. I won’t let you touch him."

"Me neither!" Morok walked to her side, and soon the entire Fomor and Balor race stood in front of them.

The non-evolved humans, Awakened and not, in turn shielded the people of Zelex, conjuring their best spells and reassuming their battle formations.

"We may not have anything to gain from this, but we know first-hand what happens when you mess with a race’s evolutionary path." Traughen, trolls, orcs, ogres, goblins, Warg, and Hatis stepped forward as well.

"We won’t let you ruin the future of our comrades like you ruined ours."

Roghar had the appearance of a humanoid wolf covered in crystalline fur that reflected light and world energy alike into the prismatic light of the seven elements. His snout was that of a canid and lacked the facial muscles to express complex emotions.

Yet when he burst into laughter, his spite, hilarity, and condescension at the allied forces sounded as clear as day.

"First off, let me?" He asked while wiping fat tears of hilarity from his eyes. "I don’t need your permission to do anything. Whether you let me or not, if I wanted to take Verhen by force, killing you all would take me but a second.

"That said, it’s rich hearing the descendants of the Odi blaming me for their fate." He pointed his clawed finger at the trolls and Traughen. "I didn’t give your ancestor any advice.

"I told them that trolls were the perfect first evolutionary step for their race and that it was just a matter of time before the trolls overcame their limits. I told the Odi to keep up with the good work. As for everyone else, I did nothing.

"I suggested and advised possible alterations to your life forces, but also caution. It’s not my fault if your ancestors disregarded my warnings and paid attention only to the parts about increasing their powers."

"He’s right." A cold, silvery voice said, drawing everyone’s attention. "Roghar advised the Odi to stop their experiments and give trolls a chance. It was the Odi’s choice to keep pushing forward.

"What you can blame him for is not condemning the Odi for their inhumane experiments. For letting them go home with a pat on the back instead of a stern lesson. I want you all to know that the Odi were Roghar’s favorite race."

Baba Yaga was in her Mother form, yet her emerald eyes showed none of the warmth she usually exuded.

"You can’t blame me for that, girl." The Guardian shook his head. "The Odi were resourceful people who knew what they wanted and weren’t afraid to dirty their hands to get it. Their empire made more magical progress than all the rest of Mogar combined."

"Maybe they can’t blame you, but I sure can." Zagran appeared a second after Baba Yaga. "This is my turf, Rogar, and I’m the Guardian of Might. If Lith doesn’t want your help, take that no and go away."

The Fenrir’s eyes narrowed in annoyance, but he gave her a polite bow in reply.

’I don’t think I could beat Zagran in her turf at my prime, let alone now that I’m still recovering from the Breaker’s Eldritch ability.’

"Thanks for your offer, Lord Roghar." Lith gave a small bow, deeming it useless to anger a Guardian with pointless disrespect. "But I have to refuse. Evolution takes time, and I’d rather keep my foundations steady than build something tall that might crumble at the first bump in the road."

"You have your answer." Zagran said. "Leave now, or I’ll consider this an act of war."

Roghar nodded and didn’t make the Garuda repeat herself.

"Don’t misunderstand this, kid." Zagran patted Lith’s shoulder. "I respect you and your work, but I wouldn’t have intervened if the hungry cur hadn’t made the first move. I don’t like meddling in the lives of mortals. Still, good job."

She disappeared without saying another word, leaving the Red Mother behind.

"Thanks for your help, everyone." Vladion clapped his hands and drew the crowd’s attention to him. "I’ll compensate all of you for your help, but first things first. I’ll rebuild Detemer by using the stones, metals, and crystals Ruugat stole from me.

"Once my fortress and its array system are up and running, I’ll assess the damage Ruugat caused to the various mines in the region and let you know how much I can afford to give you."

"Wait a second!" The Representatives of both Councils suddenly felt their bond with the undead shaking. "Not all of Ruugat’s body comes from Detemer. The spoils of war don’t belong only to you but to us all."

"I disagree." Vladion replied while raising a large chunk of black stone. "This comes from my castle. Most of it comes from my castle."

He waved at the ruins of the once-mighty fortress that had been stripped for parts down to its foundations.

"On top of that, the entire Valak region belongs to me as the undead Council Elder of Jiera. Whatever Ruugat might have picked elsewhere is irrelevant compared to what he stole from me.

"I claim the remains of Ruugat’s body as mine by right of seniority and leadership. I organized this mission. I put together the alliance, provided you with the intel about Ruugat’s powers, and even recruited Verhen and Dawn for help.

"Without them, we would have never succeeded. Last, but not least, I made my terms clear long before the attack started.

"Your main reward is the Valak region becoming a buffer zone that will separate the Garlenian outposts from the Jieran cities and protect them both from the monster tides and lost cities.

"As for the elves and the people of Zelex, they fought to obtain fertile lands where to live, and that’s what they’ll receive along with the materials they need to build their cities. Everything else is just a gift at my discretion and generosity."

The forces from the three great countries and Jiera were left speechless, unable to refute any of the First Vampire’s words.