Chapter 35

Carl's team executes a desperate raid to loot the fallen King Rust while Rosetta uses a mysterious data pad device to extract something valuable from his corpse. When enemy mages dispel the smoke covering their escape, the ground collapses and everyone falls into a vast dwarven tunnel system below, where they're saved by Semuru dwarves. An explosion kills Warlord Hortense of the Operatic Collective, causing their defeat and assets to transfer to the Bone Clan, leaving Rosetta emotionally devastated and the situation increasingly chaotic.

As enemy troops advance through Carl's smoke mantle, Rosetta emerges from underground and begins a mysterious extraction process using a handheld data pad device. She forces Carl to retrieve King Rust's severed head for a retina scan, then scans one of his rings while the corpse is held in place. Despite Donut's protests about leaving Simoom behind and uncertainty about passwords, Rosetta inserts a credit chit into the device. A group of mages riding clockwork creatures approaches, and one casts a powerful Dispel that eliminates both the smoke and the reinforced ceiling above them. All five—Carl, Donut, Rosetta, Simoom the rhino, and Gonk the yak—plummet into a massive dwarven tunnel below, where they're met by approximately two dozen Semuru dwarves already positioned in the fortified passage. The dwarves repel enemy soldiers who fell into the tunnel while reinforcing the ceiling with magic. A massive explosion suddenly detonates, killing Warlord Hortense of the Operatic Collective in what the system declares a fragging incident, causing the Operatic Collective's defeat and all their assets to transfer to the Bone Clan. Rosetta completes her data pad transaction with an emotional breakthrough, receiving confirmation from a holographic Colloid Bank interface. Carl receives messages from Imani and Florin confirming the enemy is retreating and asking about the explosion, but before he can fully explain the situation or address questions about Princess Formidable, a transfer notification pulls him toward the Desperado Club.