Ethelbald invites Will to a celebration of the new year in Whitesails. He attends with Bee, who says she wants to visit the Academy afterward. Will agrees to take her, but the Academy is not so easy to get to...

Will and Menel investigate why the seasons are not changing as they should in the surrounding forest. Two wise Lords of the Forest may have the answers they seek... as well as a warning of what's yet to come.

Will talks to some of the dwarfs who have made their new home in Torch Port and learns about the history of the Rust Mountains.

Ru begins his training under Will and Menel. He tells Will that he's eager to learn from him what courage is and what it means to be a warrior, but Will himself is struggling with the meaning of courage as he recalls the Lord of Holly's prophecy.

Following reports of undead sightings in Beast Woods, Will and Ru find an old burial site where they encounter a Herald of Stagnate, god of the undead. It turns out the Herald was using the undead to lure Will there and convey a message to him...

Will and his companions set out for the Rust Mountains to fight the dragon Valacirca. On the way, they pass by the City of the Dead, so Will decides to stop and visit his old home.

As the party rests in the City of the Dead, Gus warns Will about how dangerous Valacirca is and tells him it's okay to turn back. But Will's mind is made up. All Gus can do is send him on his way with a word of advice...

Will's crew saves Dine, an elf, from a hydra's attack. Dine tells them that the dragon's miasma has tainted her homeland of Lothdor and sickened its people, so Will decides to go there and heal them.

When Will's party finally faces the overwhelming power of Valacirca, they prepare for a fight to the death... but then the dragon suddenly offers to become Will's servant. What is Valacirca thinking, and what choice is Will going to make?

The battle between Will and Valacirca rages on. Will has exhausted his strength and depleted his mana, his companions have fallen, and his beloved weapon, Pale Moon, is broken. Then, just when the situation is looking dire...

Just when it seems Will's fate is sealed, Stagnate appears and resurrects the former residents of the Iron Country. Gracefeel transfers their souls into Will, giving him the courage to face Valacirca again. Will's epic battle reaches its climax...