Chapter 303: Agatha (1)


    Once upon a time, there existed arge continent in the middle of thergest ocean in the world. The continent was called Mu, a ce where human civilization also thrived. It was located in the vastest body of water on earth and there seemed to be an invisible barrier causing shipwrecks for the expeditions of the other continents so no outsiders had discovered it.


    Of course, while entry was impossible, exit was not. So those curious inhabitants who wanted to explore the world could do it, and they did.


    The only problem was that they would bear divine punishment once they decided to tell others about Mu''s existence. They would forever forget about their home continent, their families, and sometimes, even their names. They would also receive the same punishment if they didn''te back within a year.


    People were naturally scared and didn''t want to incur the wrath of the heavens. So although some still ventured out, none dared to divulge information about Mu, or stay outside for more than eleven months. It was in this way that the Mu continent remained isted from the rest of the world.


    The reason for the istion was not known to mortals so rumors and conspiracies emerged. But the one whichter became amon belief of those from the continent was that they were a superior race so they should not mingle with the primitives and pagans outside.


    The royals supported the im. After all, even though there would be punishments for vitors, people of Mu could still go out and sail the ocean to check on the other continents. Yet those not from Mu would never even know that a vast area ofnd containing a mature civilization, blessed by the great deity, existed inMaris Pacifici.


    Several kingdoms existed in thend, born from several tribes that used to follow one government and one religion.


    Due to nature''s blessings and the wisdom shared by the angels of the Great Deity, they ushered in the ssical Antiquity. Back then, the outside world was still on their Bronze or Early Iron Age.


    The tribes became prosperous and became kingdoms, all believing in the same doctrine.


    Unfortunately, the dark ages came. The Great Deity was said to have died or fallen into eternal sleep. For various reasons, chaos and wars then ensued.


    It was at this time that the angels who used to serve the Great Deity ascended and made their own thrones. They became gods that walked thends, giving their believers blessings, knowledge and power. As a result, the believersforted from their griefs willingly built statues and churches corresponding to them. The whole continent then regained peace and gradually recovered from the aftermath of the war and cmities.


    - Page 5 and 6 of the Mu Continent''s Creation Myth


    A thousand years after the fifth and sixth pages of the continental creation myth was first recorded.


    Alternate Earth, Medieval Ages  an era where the beliefs in the ascended angels had matured greatly and where humans seemingly entered another golden age.


    In a city within the Borley Kingdom where people were believed in Armaros, the god of mystery and enchantment; Penemue, goddess of wisdom; Gadreel, goddess of beauty and war; and Sariel, goddess of the moon


    "Argghh"


    A groan filled with pain echoed within a room that was only illuminated by the bluish light from the candle on a low marble table.


    There were two people inside the ce.


    One was ady dressed like a medium, wearing a hooded violet robe and with several silver essories on her wrist, fingers, and neck. Her hands were separated, swaying in the air as if directing the shape and flow of the candle me and the smokeing from it. ce an arm''s length away from her and the candle was a small bottle for essential oilsbeled in an unknownnguage.


    The second person inside the room was also ady. She was seated on the armchair in front of the mysterious hooded woman. She wore a green dress that had excellent materials and the essories on her body and her long straight brown hair were nothing like what peasants or even some people in the lower-middle-ss could afford. Her eyes just now were quite not right, as if she was in a daze or hypnotized.


    Yet she managed to let out a groan and briefly showed an expression of pain.


    "Focus, Miss I know you''re quite feeling some headache. But this is for the truth and for your peace of mind which you will only get once the truth is uncovered" The voice came from the hooded woman who briefly nced at the beautiful aristocraticdy before her.


    "Try to remember Remember that dream" With the darkness as her background, the atmosphere between them turned more mystifying.


    Thedy in a green dress closed her eyes and held her head in agony. The other woman did not stop speaking despite seeing the client in pain, thinking it was because she was finally opening the door to her subconscious.


    ''Ouch, my head!'' thedy in green groaned in her heart again.


    The hooded woman was not aware, but various memories were pouring inside the client''s brain and the feeling was just too painful. For thedy in green, it didn''t help that the voice of the spirit medium seemed to being from everywhere, echoing inyers. She felt like without her knowledge, a hammer had stuck her head or skull and now she was feeling the aftereffects. It was just hard to think straight. It was that painful.


    "What... do I have to remember?" She was almost shouting as she asked this to the other.


    The medium answered. "Remember your grieving, Miss."


    ''Come again?''


    Thedy in greenboriously opened her eyes, finally realizing she was in a weird ce. She barely knew anything about her situation and the images in her head so she was very confused.


    What the hell was happening? Was she in a fortune-teller''s tent? What was she doing here?


    While feeling like the world was running out of air, she inspected the ce. The medium seemed to be not bothered that her client opened her red-rimmed eyes and started acting crazy.


    "You cried so much that morning," said the hooded woman. "The day before that was the day of the year blessed with the most sunlight. Yet before you and your brother can join the people outside celebrating the blessing of Shamsiel the Sun Angel, a tragedy befell you two."


    ''... Tragedy... tragedy your face! Someone''s dying here!''


    "Docto---!"


    "He died. You survived. Yet this should not be the case since the two of you are at the same ce when the incident happened." The medium interrupted the young girl''s plea since she thought it would only be some nonsense. She continued, "... You mentioned earlier that you feel like your heart will forever be restless without knowing the truth."


    "Actually, the reason for this is simple. In your heart lies a great desire to know the answer to this mystery. But sometimes the answer is near us. Sometimes it has physical forms. Other times, it can be pieced out from the clues and bits of evidence that could be found in our subconscious, or memories."


    "Miss Obson, since you came to me, it''s my duty to help you open the door to your consciousness so we can explore the realm beyond it. Through this, we should be able to find your lost memories"


    More hypnotic nonsense was spouted by the medium who even exined to her the vastness of the universe and the starry skies. Yet by then, thedy in aplicated green court dress was no longer listening.


    She was repeatedly shaking her head for an unknown reason, her expressions showed both shock and disbelief.


    In actuality, her reason had returned a couple of moments ago. And the first thing she did after was to pinch her thighs secretly. She did it to confirm whether she was dreaming or not... as if the terrible headache earlier was not enough of a proof.


    ''My name is Aliyah Monte...''


    A whileter, her eyes went to the candle me dancing before her.


    ''I am a modern woman who was supposed to be in a museum, eyes feasting on the newly found artifacts from the age of antiquity.''


    ''Yet for some unknown reason, I appeared here.''


    With these thoughts in mind, of course, she was finding her current situation not only baffling, but scary. Her eyes regained a bit of rity, but if not for ''knowing'' beforehand that the woman in front of her was a rare spirit medium, she would have shouted ''Witch!'' already.


    "Am I dreaming?" In her reluctance to ept her few guesses about her current situation, she muttered.


    "Yes, you are, my dear"


    The medium looked at the aristocratic girl as her voice tried to hypnotize her. She slowly asked, "Let the dream takes you back to the past You came to a week ago,st Midsummer''s Eve. That night when your brother died What did you see?"


    The headache of the woman persisted for more than a minute so even though the chatty hooded medium said a lot of things to her after the question, she remembered nothing.


    Actually, before she knew it, she had already fainted due to the pain and the violent influx of memories.


    At the end of it, what did she see?


    Before her consciousness truly flew away, she seemed to have seen a vague picture of several half-naked men withrge wings on their backs that immediately got reced by another image. Oddly, it was one with the digital cover of the book that she had just read online.


    After that, she totally cked out, temporarily freed from the killer headache. She was not even able to tell the other woman about the first image she saw.


    Upon seeing her copse, the other was stunned and immediately stopped talking. A momentter, she killed the candlelight that was suffused with hypnotic aroma oil to stop the ritual. She then ran outside to get help from the knights of thedy in green.


    After that, the medium watched as the female servants of the aristocratic girl bring their unconscious master outside. The guards red at her for some time.


    In both worry and annoyance, the spirit medium grumbled, ''Why did that youngdy from the Obson Castle faint? What if I get used of heartlessly harming a grieving aristocrat by conducting false rituals on her?''


    ''My dearest Armamos, God of Mystery and Enchantment, I hope I don''t get med for this. I didn''t even get to do anything! She fainted before I can attempt to summon her poor brother''s soul!''


    As the carriage disappeared, the medium felt torn between fleeing from the city and seeing refuge from the church of the god she believed in.<ol><li>Pacific Ocean''s first name on the map. The ocean was first mapped by Abraham Ortelius; he called it Maris Pacifici - Wiki</li></ol>