A soft knock came from the door to the young prince's room. Immediately after that, Tilly stepped in and walked over to the window. She parted the curtains and greeted in high spirits, “Lovely morning, little prince.”

  However, the usual response never came, and she turned around with a slight frown. Sunlight permeated the elegant room, dispersing all gloom and bouncing off Esau’s horrid expression.

  The little boy's face was utterly pale, with visible red streaks stretching from the corner of his wide-open eyes. His posture was frozen, his hands outstretched in a strong clasp.

  Tilly’s expression shifted from puzzlement to shock as she immediately rushed to the bed.

  “Little prince!”

  When she jerked his shoulders violently, the boy blinked.

  Esau’s head turned as he spoke in a hoarse voice, “It's morning…”

  What in Hanuman’s name?

  At that moment, Tilly felt like she had been thrust into the numerous horror tales told to her by her grandmother.

  The boy in front of her looked nothing short of a corpse.

  “What happened? Are you hurt anywhere?” Tilly expressed her concern.

  Esau stared at the young lady in a puffy kirtle. He seemed to be in a daze as he said, “I- I just had a nightmare.”

  “A nightmare?” Tilly was doubtful. After all, what sort of nightmare would result in such a state? However, after thinking about how the young prince was a Dreamer, she realized that nightmares probably appeared as extremely lifelike events to them.

  After checking his body and finding no signs of physical harm, she calmed down and finally had time to think properly.

  “I'll get the queen.” She said and hurriedly pulled back. As Tilly rushed out of the room, Esau exhaled softly. He turned to look at the mirror and his current appearance came into view.

  Corpse.

  A single tear fell from his eye.

  Confused, he muttered, “Tears? Why am I crying? Ah, what happened in my nightmare? I can't seem to remember…”

  A shiver ran down his spine, for reasons he did not understand.

  Never had Esau experienced anything so baffling in his life. How could he dream of something so terrifying, yet have no recollection whatsoever upon waking? As a Dreamer, that was simply impossible.

  However, he knew that he must've experienced something so utterly horrifying, due to his body's exaggerated reaction to the mere thought of whatever it was that happened.

  Why was he dreaming of such things? First, it was the graveyard with the corpse named Sodom. Then, it was a strange dream with details that seemed to elude him. As a Dreamer, forgetting the events of a dream was close to impossible.

  None of these two instances made sense. If the dreams belonged to him, he would easily be able to tell. So, who exactly was dreaming of such horrible events, and why was he being pulled in unwillingly?

  Is it really someone in the castle? Who could it be?

  Esau’s mind filtered person after person and the only likely possibility was..

  “Heather.”

  Perhaps only this Ascendant who had lived through legendary events could dream of something so horribly wrong.

  As the thought crossed his mind, Esau couldn't help but frown. For some reason, he felt like this wasn't the first dream he would be forgetting. Yes, he had been getting pulled into unfamiliar dreams for a while now, but he couldn't remember any of the details.

  The only dream that remained crystal clear in his head was that of the unknown corpse named Sodom.

  “Strange…”

  At that moment, three figures walked into the room. They were Tilly, Imogen and Esau’s mother; Queen Aldine.

  Imogen immediately jumped into the bed and grabbed his face.

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  “Aw, did my baby brother have a nightmare? You weren't able to sleep? Don't worry, no monster can get to you as long as I'm here.”

  “I'm not a child.” Esau wanted to swat her hand, but he realized he had no strength in his arms. He remained paralyzed— a testament to the dread that lingered in his bones.

  Queen Aldine observed her son's face for a while, then said to Tilly, “Take him to the Healers. He looks painfully pale.”

  After Tilly nodded, she turned to look at Esau and asked, “What exactly did you see?”

  Esau fell silent for a moment. He replied with a slight shake of his head, “I don't remember… All I know is that it was very unpleasant.”

  Hm… Aldine nodded tersely and then left the room, leaving Imogen to bother her brother.

  When the queen left, Esau sank into the bed.

  What in Hanuman’s name was wrong with him?

  …

  Marie had walked for a baffling amount of time. She relied on dry leaves, tree bark and water from streams to keep herself from collapsing. Unbeknownst to her, a certain bird had tagged along the entire ‘journey’.

  The frail little girl passed by a small cottage in the middle of nowhere. Her eyes followed the grassy path, all the way to a wooden chair by the door. Seated on the chair was a girl of no more than her brother's age.

  There was a bowl in her hand, and she seriously scooped the contents into her mouth.

  Food… Marie's stomach grumbled instantly. She froze in her steps, and her eyes remained glued to the other girl.

  Similarly, the girl seated next to the door paused and looked up.

  Their eyes met.

  Marie's appearance, even from that distance, was extremely pitiful. All she had on was a tattered robe that only went slightly past her knees. Her feet were exposed, blistered. And her cheeks, hollow.

  A warm breeze wafted by, shaking branches from nearby trees.

  “Hmph!” The girl seated close to the door of the cottage harrumphed and hugged the bowl to her chest.

  “Begone!” She swatted her hand and even stuck out her tongue as the frail little girl walked away dejectedly.

  “Why must I part with mine own fare? ‘Tis not my doing that thou art in plight.”

  Upon seeing the little girl disappear into the distance, she happily consumed the rest of her breakfast. Once she was done, she stepped into the house and seriously began cleaning the piled up plates.

  “Maria,” At that moment, a weak voice called out.

  The girl, Maria, grumbled and wiped her hands on her dress. She walked into a bedchamber and asked, “What is it, ma?”

  There was an old lady seated on a wooden stool, cradling what seemed to be a number of sealed tubes. Inside these tubes were liquids of varying colors. The old lady, her face wrinkled and spotted, spoke in a very weak tone.

  “Hie thee to the capital with haste. Seek out the Priestess and place these draughts in her care. The red shall staunch the blood, the yellow bring swift mending, and the green lend strength for a brief spell.”

  She looked up. “Maria, dost thou heed me?”

  “Aye, ma.” The girl rolled her eyes. “I hear thee.”

  “Be sure to remind them of the measure. A single drop sufficeth. Best to mix it with broth or some other simple fare.”

  Maria grabbed a satchel, placed the tubes inside and spun around. She rummaged through a few clothing, eventually pulling out a brown cloak. As she stepped out of the house, the old lady's voice reminded hastily, “Be swift now. Thou must return ere nightfall.”

  She surely delights in vexing me, that old dame… Maria clicked her tongue as she disappeared into the forest.

  Heading to the Kingdom's capital was no easy task. If she was lucky, she'd be able to hitch a ride for a few Moppets. Otherwise, she'd have to walk to and fro. Furthermore, her destination was the Church of Origin.

  Maria despised that place with all her heart. Every single day, for years, she had been ‘forced’ to memorize the Book of Testament; spread the benevolence of the Goddess; take care of vagabonds; as well as attend unending sermons.

  The list was endless.

  Then, one day, she was tasked with the role of caretaker and apprentice to old Jeroma, who was one of the Church’s Alchemists. That was the best news Maria had received in her fifteen years of living.

  She moved to this lonesome cottage, and finally had a break from the strict priestesses of the church.

  As the girl walked through the sparse forest, a bright flame danced on her palm. From time to time, she tossed the flame into the air and watched squirrels and birds scurry away fearfully.

  They were probably thinking: was this lunatic trying to burn down the entire area?

  This continued till she emerged from the other side of the forest and came before a main road. Maria squinted and spotted a wagon not far away. She heaved a sigh of relief and quickly pulled the cloak’s hood over her head.

  This was done to conceal the tree-like tattoos that went from her forehead to her ears, as well as her green eyes that bore a strange symbol.

  There wasn't any discrimination of sorts in the human kingdom, but as a Druid with ‘flashy’ attributes, Maria preferred not to stand out more than she already did.

  During her time in the church, she would be approached by believers nonstop and asked questions like: Is it true Druids can transform into animals? Being one with nature, does your kind really not eat meat? Why are your eyes glowing? These tattoos, what do they symbolize?

  Most of the questions asked, Maria hadn't the slightest idea of the answers. After all, she had lived in Oralio all her life. Although, she could at least confirm Druids being able to shapeshift into their innate spirit animal. The only problem was that that racial attribute only surfaced when one reached or surpassed the Luminary grade.

  When she asked old woman Jeroma the reason for this, her answer was that it consumed a lot of Essence.

  Therefore, the Luminary grade was the bare minimum for such a tasking transformation.

  Maria raised her hand to halt the wagon. The driver, a middle aged man with a lean body, lowered his felt hat and flashed a grin. “Where yer off to, little girl?”

  She stepped forward and said, “Wouldst thou give me a ride to the capital, then? How much?”

  The man was taken aback for a moment, before suddenly raising his arms. He said with an air of excitement, “The church's dialect? I'll give yer a ride for free! Yer have no idea how much yous have helped my family over the years. Hop in!”

  Maria's lips curled into a slight smirk. She put the coins away and climbed into the wagon.

  This was the exact reason she stuck to using the church’s tongue. It came with a surprising amount of benefits. Yes, she hated the church; yes, she could speak the more common english; but if she was going to get free rides, food, and help because of it? Why the hell not!

  Despite the fact that the Deities had long returned to Their heavenly domain, people still fervently worshipped Them in hopes of Their return. Thus, most people—commoners especially—believed the church was the path to salvation.

  It would save them from this “Inevitable Destruction” as written in the Book of Testament. They saw the various Priestesses and Bishops as Messiahs.

  Maria settled next to the man and held tightly to her bag. The horse trotted forward and soon left the periphery of the forest.

  The journey to the capital was nothing short of ‘eventful’. The man spoke ceaselessly, filling Maria with the urge to burn his lips to a crisp. Ultimately, she curbed her frustration and smiled from time to time.

  A little after noon, Maria arrived at the capital of Oralio; Theradon. The bustling city was a beauty of towering structures that formed a number of districts. Maria thanked the man half-heartedly, stepped onto the cobbled streets and made her way to the cathedral.

  The Church of Origin was a staggering edifice located in the very heart of the capital, unlike the Cathedral of Repose that stood closer to the city walls. The church’s structure was weathered and solemn—holy, yet humbling—with stained-glass windows displayed along its expanse. These windows were lined with vines and blooming flowers, symbolizing the Mother Goddess’ authority over life.

  It was the same for the arched entrance and spires that towered into the air. There were carvings etched in the ashen alcoves that told the tale of divinity.

  Maria's eyes fell on the huge bell tower for a moment.

  She withdrew her gaze and proceeded forward, passing by the heart-fluttering plaza adorned with flowers of all kinds.

  When she stepped through the open doorway, she was instantly hit with a melancholy that was present in every religious abode.

  The memories came pouring in, and she tensed up, trying to fight the urge to scowl. Maria took a deep breath, stepped into the nave, and walked along the neatly arranged pews. The prayer hall was extremely solemn, and those present had their hands clasped as they piously prayed.

  Maria arrived before the sacred statue of the Goddess in the front of the hall— a motherly figure with the most compassionate expression and arms that cradled the world. She was garbed in a flowing gown that sprouted all sorts of flowers at its hem.

  The girl’s vision blurred instantly.

  At that moment, a middle-aged woman in a white clergy robe approached her.

  “Maria.”

  Maria snapped out of her daze and turned her head slightly.

  “Priestess Hannah, I have brought the elixirs.” She said, dreading the inevitable.

  The middle-aged woman nodded and took the satchel from her. She briefly checked the contents and listened as Maria hurriedly explained the effects and usage.

  Then, she said, “Whilst thou art here, pay a visit to Father and lend thine ear to his teachings.”

  Oh no… Maria's heart tightened.