Divine Journey

Siegfried regained his composure and bared his teeth.
- The Nixes don't bury bodies in the ground. They throw them into the abyss or feed them to carnivorous worms and other useful animals. Some use them to fertilize the soil. Others incorporate them into the foundation or hang them on the palisade. Almost all use the skin to decorate the interior and even the exterior of their homes. And some moats are filled with decaying corpses.
Nix fell silent.
- And what are you digging here, Arnz?

- It's been several years since you returned with the Grail, and your jokes haven't changed at all since our first meeting, - the girl smiled and looked at the child, - I hope Hostor the Younger will have a better sense of humor than his father.
Reynold leads the guest inside the house and finds Kenneth and Frida Trust at the table. - Son, I'm glad you're home. And this is your friend? - Reynold's father asks.
- Oblivion for your people, - unexpectedly for himself, Siegfried realizes that all the passersby are people from the surface; when one of the slaves finished digging the pit, one of the imperial soldiers approached him and kicked the excavated pit. He picked up the worker's shovel and hit the slave's spine with the sharp edge with all his might. Then the soldier handed the shovel to the next worker and ordered him to bury the pit.

"They can't be alive! They can't! Because of their death, I was estranged from my family, got caught, and ended up behind bars! This is all a dream... what the hell is going on?!"
Reinhold, with his mouth agape, stared at his parents, who had risen from their graves. However, they didn't look rotten at all and were suspiciously energetic for the deceased. Slowly, Trust turned towards his new acquaintance:
- I have no idea who he is.
"I'm dreaming, I'm definitely dreaming."

When the man who entered with him draws his daggers and strikes him on the back of the head with the blunt side of one of them, Reynold begins to doubt his latest conclusion. He falls to the floor and cannot move, but he sees the assassin kill his father first, and then his mother, leaving gaping wounds in the woman's abdomen and the man's chest.

That can't be.
- That can't be! The Empire will never infiltrate our Dungeons, never be able to destroy them or drive us out, even with magic. This is not your territory, not your environment. You physically won't be able to exist there! Traps, confusing passages, monstrous creatures you can't even imagine, far superior to those on the surface, cave-ins, chasms, underground waters, rifts in the earth's crust through which magma flows, tunnels no wider than a bottle's neck, complete darkness, and fanatical cults of demon worshipers, ruins of civilizations that existed long before us, filled with unspeakable horrors and madness, degenerate cannibals and mutants who have never seen daylight. And that's just a small fraction of what awaits you there and what is even known about the Dungeons... Moreover, genocide is not part of the Empire's policy. Excellent illusion, Thaimon.

"The killer of General Catherine? Is that him? Why am I only seeing this now? It's already clear that this is a dream. But even so, to witness the death of my parents..."
Reynolds gathers all his willpower and tries to get up. After that, he intends to finish off the killer, even if he considers him to be just a product of his dreams.

the tunnels are no wider than a bottle neck

But how do Nixies get through such tunnels?

cannibals and mutants who don't know daylight

Excellent description of your own people!

When Heimyr awoke and realized where he was, he was overcome with mixed feelings. On the one hand, it was nice that the danger had passed and he was back home; on the other hand, was all the journey for nothing? “Maybe this is just another illusion? But no, it’s all too real… In any case, I need to return to the Empire; I won’t abandon what I started! Besides, my friends are still there…” Heimyr had grown attached to almost all the members of his small group. The unusual snake-man, Nokou; the responsive elf, Kerlian; the stern-looking but seemingly kind cook, Reynold; and everyone else had once again become clear in his mind. “If I don’t see them again, it will be a great loss… Oh, what happened to them? And I need to find out!”
Heimyr looked at himself. He was wearing some rags and holding a metal rod, which he angrily threw on the ground. The Dwarf stood in the middle of a residential street, wide but not very busy, because his people were a busy folk and rarely allowed themselves to wander around aimlessly. It was a huge underground hall, created by the tireless labor of the local inhabitants; the eye could barely discern where it ended and the vaults of solid rock began again. A constant twilight reigned here; the lighting was created by huge stone monuments located in different parts of the city, with roaring flames on them, which were maintained either by coal or by magic, rune magic… The few passersby looked at Heimyr with surprise. “Here is the advantage of being an uncommunicative people – no one knows anyone, and no one points fingers. Well, I’ll go home first; I need to rest and… “delight” my parents. I’ll stay for a while and then set off again. I won’t do anything today, but tomorrow I’ll go to the forge; I need to get some kind of weapon.” He was already approaching his house, which was no different from other similar houses carved directly into the rock. Light from a small, dim window seeped out. “Father should be in the forge, but mother is always at home.” Heimyr felt a pleasant shiver run through him at the thought of seeing his family soon, and the warmth of his home already spread through his body. Gathering his courage, he knocked on the door several times…

A piercing voice rang out from the DESERT FREELANCER.

- Like a boy who refuses to accept the truth. But know this: if you close your eyes and then open them again, the world won't change. Ask that warrior in shining armor, who is watching you, HOW we managed to enslave all of you, and thanks to WHOM.
He can't get up; his body is paralyzed. Trust helplessly watches as the killer leaves the house, after which a fiery brand flies through the window. The farm burns down along with Reynold inside. He dies.

Surprised by her son's appearance, Isgerd quickly runs up to him and asks, "Heymir! You're back already? What about your journey?" With these words, she sits him at the table and presents his favorite dish.

Alco realizes that he has plenty of time and starts trying to melt the Castle using a torch and break it down with a rod.

Isgerd quickly runs up to him and asks, "Heimir! You're back? How was your journey?" With these words, she seats him at the table and presents his favorite dish.

And here is his mother. She was a third of a head shorter than Heimir, with a round, small, lively face and equally lively green eyes, and thick chestnut hair reaching to her waist. She was very active, busy, impressionable, and receptive; endlessly friendly and kind.
Heimir was very glad for this meeting, but the artificiality was obvious: it was as if he had been expected – why was everything so fast? And Isgerd didn't seem particularly surprised. However, Heimir didn't pay attention to this, as he was so glad to meet her.
"Oh-oh-oh, you wouldn't believe it," he began, launching into a story about hunting the hydra. "And so, we got bored of guarding these scoundrels under the windows, so I started pretending to be a bard with a guitar to make things more fun, and suddenly, BAM! And here I am. I'm sorry, but I'll continue my journey, even if I have to start all over again.

- Yes, they're taking too long, - Kerlian said aloud. - Something must have happened to them...
After these words, he grabbed the bars with both hands and started shaking them.

"My space was already quite limited. And now it has suddenly become even smaller, and I did it voluntarily. But I don't want my own spell to kill me. And I don't want to sit in the corner forever... My friends are late. Maybe something happened... No, this can't go on."
Nokou began to call out loudly and rather insistently for his superiors.

- It's been several years since you returned with the Grail, and your jokes haven't changed at all since our first meeting, - the girl smiled and looked at the child, - I hope Hostor the Younger will have a better sense of humor than his father.

- Then you should know why I needed the Grail! - Redram stepped back. - I couldn't return with it...to you! I wouldn't! I couldn't betray myself again, I had to repay my debt! - The mage fell to his knees, helplessly looking at the boy. His eyes filled with tears. - I realized too late that I don't need anything except...you... And I must pay for it...