A sudden, strong gust of a wind swept past Vivia and Zerath. The melody of the lilybells faded away with every passing second - so did the shrouded figure's silhouette. Their eyes closed on their own, unable to resist the sudden force. The last thing either of them saw was the vision of Heaven blurring before them.
"Clairette!"
Dazed, Vivia turned her head to find Judith kneeling beside her, her expression caught between relief and puzzlement.
"Ow!"
Contrary to Judith's concern, Zerath's welcome back was considerably far more violent as the edge of Silas's spear poked against the back of his head.
"Oh, so you're alive. You two were so still we thought you had actually kicked the bucket."
"My loooord!!!" Arzan threw himself at Zerath with tears flowing freely. "You were unresponsive for so long! W-what happened?"
So much happened that I don't know where to begin…
Finnian's curious voice drifted. "What is it that you're both holding?"
They looked down - only to be taken aback.
A vibrant, green leaf sat atop Vivia's palm, while Zerath held what appeared to be a small pile of ash.
A leaf and ash?
But when did it come here? And why…?
—
Amidst the echoing wail of an infant, Drak now stood facing the robed figures - the ritual which he had just interrupted. Rapid footsteps thundered down from above. Horror didn't even begin to express their complicated emotions.
"You…! You're not supposed to be here!"
Drak felt it in his very bones. The man standing at the center, the one who led the ritual was furious to say the least. His face was veiled in a white cloth that formed part of his cloak, but his eyes were visible, and they held an eerie, cold poise. But Drak the mad rage bubbling beneath them was palpable.
The guards dropped to their knees before him.
"Please forgive our failure, my lord! W-we were occupied with containing that wretched mother of this child, who wouldn't stop resisting, a-and we didn't notice when he…" sweat dripped past their brows.
"He interrupted the ritual. No amount of excuses could salvage the ruin that was brought forth today."
The quiet in his voice was far more terrifying than a maniacal scream. Without another word, two of the robed men stepped forward and in a single motion drew blades across the guards' throats. Blood spilled from their necks. Their bodies convulsed and flailed, and soon, they collapsed backward, lifeless.
Drak watched the horror unfold before him, nausea gripping the pit of his stomach. He had been speaking to those men moments ago, and now they had already breathed their last.
"Why would you interfere? Do you understand how long we have to wait to be able to prepare for this day?" He asked softly, yet the lethal chill was unmistakable.
Drak was now certain he was about to meet the same fate as the guards.
Think, Drak. Think what Father always told you.
A hard man who built houses for a living. A stubborn man who lifted heavy stones after stones under the scorching heat of the sun to build a home brick by brick. The kind of drudgery and grunt work Drak always gave excuses to escape from.
'Excuses don't work! Usefulness does! That's how you survive!'
Drak dropped to his knees and pressed his forehead to the ground.
"I've crossed a line, and I deserve to be killed for this blasphemy, my lord! But I-I put my life on the line to save your life, my lord!"
"...My life? I have performed this ritual several times. Why do you think my life would be in danger now?"
"To save you from God's wrath!"
"God's wrath? Huh…you do have a sense of humor."
Drak's heart hammered hard in his chest, left, right and center, but there was no pulling back.
"Th-This woman is…" he breathed tremblingly, gambling every last bit of his luck on his next words, "a God's spirit, isn't she?"
A thick silence ensued that stretched for a long moment.
"How did you know?"
I was right!
He couldn't thank his stars enough. Ever since his gaze had landed on the woman, he was certain something was different about her. An otherworldly existence. When he watched her mana being used to power the two runes, he guessed she couldn't be a normal demoness - neither a human. That much amount of mana was impossible for a mortal human or demon to possess.
The only existence who could come close to doing that was God itself.
But it was impossible for a God to fall into such a miserable state at the hands of some vile mortal demons. Which meant there was only one logical rationale behind it. An existence Drak had only heard of in myths and legends.
A God's spirit.
"I had seen one a long time ago! I was just a child back then, but I clearly remember it."
"Was it her?"
He played it safe. He had no idea when she was brought here.
"I-It was someone else…She was just as beautiful and mesmerizing as her. I-I cannot use magic, but even I could feel the air was so very different around her."
With his head still being pressed against the ground, the whispers reached him.
"Another God's spirit?"
"Is that true?"
Listening to their shock-laced gasps, Drak made an educated guess that even finding this current spirit had been an extraordinary stroke of luck.
"I-It's true!"
"And why tell me this?"
Ugh…
He breathed in once, then said, "Because I had witnessed that spirit battle with a demon once. Th-That demon was a hunter, and he probably wanted to have her for himself or s-sell her. He couldn't subdue her, so enraged, he wanted to kill her. But he…he met a horrified end…" he made it a point to choke, expressing his extreme nausea.
"That spirit was furious. I had heard her say - 'God's spirit must never be harmed or hell shall rain upon this world, and you will suffer the most wretched death imaginable!'"
He sniffled. "I got terrified when I saw this woman - spirit's mana being drained away. She already looked too weak, and I-I thought she was going to die. A-and if she had, her spirit's wrath would've consumed you! When I remembered that day, I-I just ran without thinking. I only thought of protecting you, my lord…"
Another long silence followed.
He didn't know what happened next - but a moment later, a hand tilted his chin upward. He found the robed leader crouch before him, his heart sinking with his lifeless and cold gaze.
"So you didn't mean to save this child?"
"The ch-child? No...I mean, I thought we all would die, a-and since I'm your slave, I only thought about being useful to you…and hopefully be allowed to live too…"
The mysterious robed man studied him. Drak held very still. A faint glint of what he assumed was a smile appeared across his eyes.
"I see. Good call. She could have indeed died today. Who knows? She is reaching her end, which is why…" he closed the distance between them by another inch.
Drak stared into his cruel eyes and prayed with the bottom of his heart the leader would ask the right question. His father's words echoed through his ears like the gong of a war drum.
'Excuses don't work! Usefulness does! That's how you survive!'
"Will you help me find that spirit you saw?"