《Strong Woman with the Pink Hair》


 Vol. 1 | Chapter 1: The Worlds of Dystrogelia

    The Council of Gods were the most powerful. Head of the council, Queen Hyrestia of the Holy realm was known to all as the bringer of peace. Her might and power reigned above them all. She was known to often lay in her temple in her great world named Dystrogelia. This was a world full of glorious lives, creatures, and beautiful nature. As long as she stood alive and well, this world would prosper. The second in command, King Drecious, a close trusted friend. He ruled over the third section of Dystrogelia as the God of aptitude. His powers gave others the ability to revise their decisions in a calm and collective manner, assisting many in his rule. Third and final, the most intelligent and clever, The Son God of a minor bloodline, Hiphur. As the one to manage the constructive and brain-working plight, he was able to take care of anything that dealt with the mind. These three in the high Council of Gods ruled peacefully in Dystrogelia.


    Throughout the generations of gods and goddesses these inter dimensional beings continued to create living creatures. Queen Hyrestia created every living creature and form of nature. King Drecious assisted in giving them the ability to think and do, each on their own level. Hiphur taught them how to use their minds to make their own inventions. There were structures and even small activities he assisted to keep their minds active. Decades would pass and they would all learn, growing in harmony. Though, there were still other gods and goddesses that existed from Queen Hyrestia¡¯s creations. Most were good and organized themselves based on their own powers. There were some that conflicted with each other rather than having simple communication. Hyrestia gave them another world to live within, which was also named Dystrogelia as a copied version of the original from the heavens. This became somewhat of an issue, as there were even more arguments than before.


    Hyrestia gave council positions to five high ascended/advanced gods and goddesses. First, Yushvi, the Goddess of Hate. She was not as unnerving as expected, which was why she¡¯d have been chosen. Unlike the others, she was a stronghold and became the leader of the high council. Second in command, Drofius, the God of Treasury, such is the feeling to hold things you care greatly for. He greatly cared for Yushvi and became heavily attached to her even though she was of a higher and darker God bloodline. She had no interest, but he would assist and follow alongside her in little worry. Third in line was Flotic, the goddess of reincarnation. She had been assigned a terrestrial world of her own, accepting many souls to start lives in new worlds. She had rarely ever taken part in the council and solely focused on accepting specific souls. Fourth was Cristen, the God of healing. His power could heal wounds of any kind imaginable, of the body of the soul and of the mind. Fifth and foremost was the least known, Hoshflein, they did not identify as any specific sex but simply existed as a God. Their power was unknown to the others. It was the power of infinity, one of the strongest and most dangerous. Queen Hyrestia had only known their existence at the selection for the council members. Hoshflein was a rare breed of a minor god and goddess, similar to the Son God Hiphur. To protect any harm brought to Hoshflein; the queen reassured that the others of the new council were the only few that were unaware of it. These members of the new council attempted to work together as they created their own world. They began making simple creatures and livable environments such as fauna and flora. The animals and nature thrived peacefully; it was a calm natural cycle each day. Everything was neatly organized.


    ¡°Drofius.¡± Yushvi sat in her seat at the council''s meeting. Every god and goddess sat around, waiting for orders.


    ¡°Yes, Yushvi?¡± Drofius sat in the chair beside her, smiling at the fact he was her top priority at the moment.


    ¡°I need you to reassure that nothing has happened to the outerwear of the multiverse.¡± Yushvi turned to face him, giving him a small white piece of cloth.


    Drofius happily did so, taking the piece of cloth and vanishing to go and do his task. Yushvi continued going down the line of seats in order each one receiving a white cloth for their immediate transportation. Flotic was given the task to go and check on the souls of all faunae living in each planet. Cristen had gone out to monitor the conditions of each planets core and environments. Hoshflein was a bit of a complex but vague character. Yushvi pondered for a long while, staring directly into their eyes.


    ¡°Hoshflein.¡± She was in deep thought, wondering what task to fit her with.


    ¡°Yes?¡± Hoshflein sat there, patiently waiting.


    ¡°I know the queen would not dare lend us the knowledge, but what is your power?¡± She asks, slowly rising and walking around the large round table. ¡°I need to give you a proper task.¡±


    ¡°You can simply place me in the same as before.¡± Hoshflein continued to keep eye contact with her, following her movement. ¡°I will keep guard on the rest of the gods and goddesses.¡±


    ¡°Hmm, are you sure you don¡¯t want a task properly fit for you?¡± Yushvi stopped walking and slightly leaned onto the table.


    Hoshflein looked away to face directly forward. ¡°You want to know my power, but you already figured it out. The fact that you are the goddess of hate does not help support your innocence on your true intentions.¡±


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    ¡°Geez.¡± Yushvi groaned and quickly walked over to them, immediately angered. ¡°Why are you so persistent on keeping this idiotic world at peace? What has the queen even done for you?¡±


    ¡°If this has something to do with the queen, you should approach her.¡± Hoshflein calmly stood, turning to Yushvi. ¡°I will never let you use my power for destruction, and neither would the others ever allow it.¡±


    Yushvi glared at them and tossed the white cloth onto the table. ¡°Just take it and go, but I will find a way to take your power for as long as it takes.¡±


    Hoshflein simply took the white cloth and vanished in a calm manner. Yushvi was furious and followed along with her own personal task; keeping their library full of information on everything that has happened throughout the millenniums. She broke the code to the library gave her access to all things, including the information of Hoshflein¡¯s power. Yushvi¡¯s primary objective was to take Hoshflein and use them as a source of power to destroy both Dystrogelia worlds and create her own to rule over. The first creation from Queen Hyrestia was far out of her reach because of the amount of power the first gods have over them combined. Yushvi needed to plant a seed, and so she slowly brought down the council herself. She called Drofius down to her private quarters, alone. This was her first step in her plan.


    Yushvi slowly strolled over to him, almost in an eerie way. ¡°Drofius, would you do anything for me?¡±


    ¡°Yes anything, whatever you need, I am at your aid.¡± Drofius smiled, nodding his head in full acceptance.


    ¡°Then¡­ you would be willing to pledge loyalty to me in a sacred ritual?¡± Yushvi lightly glanced at him.


    Drofius¡¯ smile quickly grew. ¡°Yes¡­ I will pledge loyalty to you and only to you.¡±


    ¡°Good.¡± Yushvi grinned, beginning the ritual.


    There were many rituals that included pledging loyalty. Yushvi had Drofius pledge his loyalty to her and in return, she gave him some dark powers of her own. The transfer was from her hand to his mind, placing it around his forehead. The process was engulfed in pain, flooding into his mind like daggers traveling from head to toe. Yushvi continued until his eyes turned black and his veins bulged in a dark color, making him pale. Drofius grunted, holding back the inexplainable rush of excitement barely shown on his face. His body finally gave in to the pain and dropped to the ground, curling up as he kneeled. Yushvi took a step back and kneeled as well.


    ¡°How do you feel, Drofius?¡± She whispered with great curiosity.


    It took him a moment to gather his thoughts and sense of self. ¡°¡­ This pain¡­¡±


    ¡°Yes¡­?¡± Yushvi leaned forward, eager to hear what he had experienced.


    ¡°Pain that I have never felt before.¡± Drofius looked up at her, smiling with pure joy. ¡°It rushed through my body and quickly left, giving me great strength!¡±


    ¡°Finally, someone understands!¡± Yushvi laughed and placed her hands on his arms. ¡°You will be a core asset, Drofius. My one and only to bring my plan of corruption to the darkest depths of these multiverses.¡±


    ¡°I will stay by your side, in loyalty and love.¡± Drofius proudly spoke, giving her a soft, but bold, expression.


    ¡°I might as well keep you around forever¡­¡± Yushvi stared deep into his eyes. ¡°You may have won my heart in a better arrangement.¡±


    This signaled a new age, the clock began ticking, leading Yushvi and Drofius to find their way in the rest of the god race that resided under the new council¡¯s rule. The same form of corruption had spread throughout a majority of the high and lower gods. They were each given the dark powers, at least for those that could have handled it. Some of the god''s lives were taken and created into dark knights. As for the goddesses, they were made into dark shadows, all these souls that were once higher beings had fallen at Yushvi¡¯s hand. This was still only the beginning.


    Millenniums pass and the world of Dystrogelia under the second council has thrived with new beings. With what felt like a world full of fantasy, there were beings other than gods living in this great world. Humans were one of the most advanced, building structures and communities. Elves gathered soon after, protecting their own as they reside in great forests. There were also many others; fairies, who lived in another realm, their world was only made available through very few portals. Even some who were trolls, goblins, and ogres, not as advanced in terms of technology and architecture. Later on, mystical creatures such as dragons mermaids and much more were created to mainly live through caves and lagoons, further from the surface world.


    Many lands of which were highly populated were; World of Soltica, World of Artirias, and the Great Capitol. There were many more, but these were the top known to all. Even throughout the main journeys of many, these were the places where adventurers, idols, and heroes rose in fame. Not too many things were surrounding the positives, although that could be said for the earlier stages of Dystrolegia¡¯s creations.


    There were still those fallen gods and goddesses who ruled in a realm of darkness alongside Yushvi as their queen. This became what most would know as ¡°hell.¡± Even they feared Yushvi as much as their souls had been given in to corruption. Some of their kind even created a new land in Dystrogelia. This was to be called the Dark Lands; where all who are impure of heart can be welcomed in pain and misery. Shadows and knights of darkness were the first and then others of many races came to join.


    ¡°Dystrogelia in the ascended authority realm is quite peaceful,¡± Queen Hyrestia commented at the council table. ¡°Is it not, Drecious?¡±


    ¡°I agree Hyrestia.¡± Drecious calmly turned to her, almost smiling. ¡°Hiphur, what would you say?¡±


    Hiphur was focused on his journal writing, he hadn¡¯t even noticed that the other two were speaking.


    ¡°Hiphur¡­¡± Hyrestia stood and walked over to him. ¡°Dear child, please, rest yourself.¡±


    Hiphur continued writing, even as Hyrestia peeked over his shoulder. What she¡¯d seen was odd, Hiphur was writing paragraphs of many different things.


    ¡°Hiphur, please tell me, what is all this?¡± Hyrestia slightly gestured to the journal, hoping not to interrupt him too much.


    Hiphur finally stopped writing for a moment, putting his quill pen down and resting his hand. ¡°These are visions that I have been seeing.¡±


    ¡°What visions?¡± Drecious quickly walked over as well, in a panic. ¡°Blessings, disasters, what?¡±


    ¡°All in one.¡± Hiphur sighed. ¡°There will be a wave of silent destruction.¡±


    Once the two heard this; they begged for more information, and so they were given. Hiphur had told them about the secret corruption of the second council. Hyrestia wanted to stop this and create a new council, feeling at fault for the slow downfall. Drecious was on her side, as a fellow close friend, he held deep concern for the rest of her work, but they could do nothing. Hiphur explained that everything was already set in stone to happen throughout time. He even explained that there will be nothing any of them can do, nothing but to watch in silence. If the flow of fate was to be disrupted, then each world would need to be recreated and many souls could be lost in the process.

 Vol. 1 | Chapter 2: Fate of the Shiarama Household

    In a time of the second Dystrogelia, there had become of a human household. This was known as the Shiarama household. One of few who were seen as liable allies in politics, marriage, and even magic education. The leaders of each generation would always have provided their children the best routes through growth in life. This began back when the humans were in their stages of war among other races. After multiple peace treaties; there was some balance with them. This was the start of the man whose name was Gremin Shiarama; leading towards creating the household, in hopes that throughout the generations there would be better futures of their children. He even held the ability to conjure magic at his own will, seeping this secret into the bloodline¡¯s private history. At some point, stopping the bloodline, Karia Shiarama, a beautiful young woman, became a leader, beginning a new age in their family. Although there were many other female leaders before her (such as her late mother), Karia¡¯s leading was far different than all.


    ¡°As I give you this home, this land, and all my offerings.¡± Geji Shiarama (Karia¡¯s father) spoke proudly, gesturing around the room. ¡°I give you my blessing to faithfully lead in our family¡¯s rights and future visions.¡±


    Karia nodded in acceptance, taking a scroll that Geji held out to her. This scroll contained information on everyone in the household, even all her earnings. This would be the beginning of something great, but also the tragedy of the Shiarama household. Later that night Karia was given the household name, her father had been seen in a brutal condition. Maids who took care of the late lord witnessed Geji¡¯s cruel death. A man dressed in dark purple, wearing a long-hooded cloak to cover his face, came in through a window. After multiple slashes to the chest; Geji fell to the floor in a pool of crimson rose blood. Maids stood in a fright, others ran away, and only three were brave enough to alert the others. Many things had gone through each of their minds, one was questioning why the late lord would be so brutally murdered. With this, there was no more Geji Shiarama, Karia was officially placed as the new Lady in lead of the Shiarama household. She was still only 19, but her young age gave plentily time to learn about the world¡¯s conflicts and how to keep her family far from it. The grief was short for Geji¡¯s death ceremony, even more the weeks of pondering that each other siblings took with their time.


    ¡°Sister Karia.¡± Hosh gently knocked on her opened door, she even spoke in a soft tone. ¡°May I join you¡­?¡±


    ¡°Of course, Hosh.¡± Karia nodded, allowing her to come inside her office. ¡°Please, sit. Is there something bothering you, Sister?¡±


    ¡°Well¡­¡± Hosh thought back to years when Geji proposed marriage options for Karia. ¡°The marriage options¡­¡±


    ¡°¡­ Hosh.¡± Karia calmly placed her things to the side. ¡°You and I both know that I am still not ready for marriage.¡±


    ¡°¡­¡± Hosh hesitated to speak. ¡°¡­ They are visiting by the morrow¡­.¡±


    ¡°Pardon?¡± Karia quickly stood, barely keeping her composure. ¡°What could you possibly mean by that?¡±


    ¡°I am sorry-¡± Hosh immediately dropped her head, feeling ashamed. ¡°¡­ I do my job looking through any letters sent to you, Sister¡­ I just thought you would need this, for your safety¡­¡±


    ¡°Hosh¡­¡± Karia noticed tears falling onto Hosh¡¯s pale blue dress.


    ¡°I want you to be safe¡­ the other¡¯s doubt your abilities as the household¡¯s leading lady¡­¡± Hosh¡¯s hands trembled, slowly wiping away at her dreary eyes. ¡°I just-¡±


    Karia calmly sat back down, reaching for her handkerchief in a drawer. She handed it to Hosh and watched her sobbing even harder. Hosh was the youngest of the four sisters¡¯ within their current generation of the Shiarama household. As the second to youngest, Karia felt the need to comfort her troubled sister. The other two who were Venhi (second to eldest) and Gina (the eldest), thought highly of themselves rather than the laid-back nature of both Karia and Hosh. Karia ended up going along with Hosh¡¯s idea. They had all scheduled each four different hours to meet throughout the day. Though, Karia felt hopeless, she did not sense any sort of emotional connection with any of them. Without the true feeling of love to be cooperative with another person, she could not proceed with the marriage proposals. The household was struggling later on, even a sudden sickness arose around, affecting many of the family and servants. Venhi and Gina fell with this sickness, visited by Karia and Hosh. Though, in due time; Karia was also down with this sudden sickness, falling ill in bed. As she laid there, Hosh came as soon as the first morning she fell ill.


    ¡°It is merely a cough, Hosh¡­¡± Karia spoke in a quiet dry voice, barely coughing as she breathed. ¡°Even if I do not come out of this bed¡­ I hope you carry on the family lead¡­¡±


    ¡°Sister, please¡­¡± Hosh cried at her bedside. ¡°Without you, this household will fall¡­¡±


    Karia slightly smiled at her and watched as Hosh¡¯s tears only increased. It was only for a moment, but Karia felt that she would not survive this. Hosh would continuously visit Karia and the other sisters, reassuring that they were given anything to get well. Unfortunately, Venhi and Gina, along with a few servants, were unable to wake up for their morning medicine. Gina, passed at age 38, Venhi had passed at 29. Hearing this news from Hosh, Karia was ready to accept her fate. Though, fate had something better in store for Karia, and she managed to get better sooner than expected. With more unfortunate news, Hosh had underwent a massive amount of stress from more family gone and sadly passed away days after Karia¡¯s recovery. She was only 16 years old, another tragedy to be piled up into the damaged records of the Shiarama household.


    ¡°Lady Karia, I advise you should accept one of the proposals-¡± Karia¡¯s assistant followed her around the halls.


    ¡°I cannot have you pestering me repeatedly about the proposals, Lillian.¡± Karia¡¯s mood was certainly unwell in those later months. ¡°This proposal, that proposal. Nothing but absolute nonsense.¡±


    Lillian was silent after hearing this, hurt by the once gentle Karia. A rough year had passed as Karia became cold throughout her grief. Attempting to cope with what suddenly resulted in slight isolation. Many of the remaining servants would notice the cold treatment towards anyone who spoke with Karia. Lillian suggested something to her, hoping it would help her troubled soul. Karia was told to seek out runes inside a place called the ¡°Glimmering Forest.¡± She was a virgin with no certain heir to the household who continuously refused marriage proposals. Although, this was true, Karia was curious of what Lillian had mentioned about the ruins. It was said that once you found the ruins; this meant that you were chosen to receive a wish from the gods, and so she went. Karia took a few horses and a couple of male servants to keep guard with her. The glimmering forest was far from the main home, about a two days¡¯ worth of travel on horse-back. Making it around with multiple resting points, it was with success that they managed to find the forest. Having been far from any city, town, or village, this was a forest full of bustling nature. It was near sundown, but they made it just before. There were lights seen within the forest, not made up of any creature, but of the air itself, making this look like a magical place. The trees were tall and wide, connecting into each other, but the branches were lower than normal. Karia decided to walk on foot as their horses followed into the forest. It was not too long before Karia spotted grey stones in the distance, these were the runes Lillian mentioned. As soon as she noticed more, she told the other two to stick closely. Calmly continuing toward the runes, Karia stopped to admire the large space made for them. The runes were six stones placed in a circle, one being larger than the others that had markings and a drawing carved into it. She let her horse stay with the two men and walked to the larger stone alone. It dimly lit as Karia walked closer, then sprouting out different colors from the top. They fell like sparkling rain, sticking onto Karia¡¯s hair and clothes. Though they soon disappeared and a large white figure of what looked like a woman appeared in the stones place. Karia looked up at this large figure, staring in complete shock, but it soon spoke to her in a gentle voice.


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    ¡°Karia Shiarama, you have finally come¡­¡± She slightly leaned forward to Karia, almost smiling.


    ¡°You know me by my name?¡± Karia could barely manage to process this, even the guards behind were incapable of handling their shock. ¡°¡­ Who are you?¡±


    ¡°I am called by many names, but I am formerly known as Queen Hyrestia, the queen of all current gods.¡± She moved back to the stone area, letting Karia have some space. ¡°You came for the wish, did you not?¡±


    ¡°I did¡­¡± Karia recalled everything that has happened throughout the past, slowly quieting her voice in the process. ¡°I am to marry and increase my bloodline, but I am a virgin¡­ I fear that I cannot carry on with my family as the last who¡­ has not fallen to death¡­¡±


    ¡°I already know.¡± Hyrestia softly chuckled and held her hand out. ¡°Speak your wish and I shall grant.¡±


    Karia gathered up her thoughts, finally calming down to speak properly about her wish. As the fact still stood, she continuously rejected any marriage proposals, having almost no guarantee that she could give birth to continue the bloodline. The wish was unlike any other, even though Hyrestia had known, it seemed as surprising that Karia would go to such thoughts so quickly.


    ¡°I wish to have children to raise.¡± Karia looked up to Hyrestia, nervous. ¡°Even if they are of different race, I must have children to continue the family bloodline.¡±


    Hyrestia held her arm out as soft, dim orbs, were slowly made in the air between her and Karia. Four floating orbs were created and sat onto the green grass, taking shape as they sat like young children. They were faded out, but their colors had shown small living beings, though not physically.


    ¡°These are¡­¡± Karia slowly stood and walked closer, getting a better view.


    ¡°Children who are destined for great futures.¡± Hyrestia gestured to each. ¡°You can either choose one¡­ or all.¡±


    Karia thought for a moment, looking at each. ¡°There must be something to work for, right? Simply giving me children would be far too easy.¡±


    ¡°Indeed, but I assure you, this will be a great act for the fate of the world.¡± Hyrestia smiled, lightly tapping Karia¡¯s forehead. ¡°I give you my blessing and trust.¡±


    Information had flood through Karia¡¯s head. Knowing the whereabouts of these four children. There was more information given to Karia in Hyrestia¡¯s touch, that would decide the rest of the fate in her hands to give unto these children. Night had fallen in which had already darkened the rest of the forest. The area she and the servants were had been lit up by the Goddess¡¯ presence. As soon as she vanished, the forest became dark, but the specks lighting the forest from before reduced the dangers of the darkness. Karia¡¯s hope had been rejuvenated and brought along this information to the servants with her. There were rumors spread around with other servants in the main house after their return. Karia did not mind this and proceeded to track down these children. Three were of color, from light to dark brown skinned. Only one area in which they lived had people with such a color in skin; The City of Harcovko. The poverty was very high and each who were of colored skin had been forced into slavery. Karia traveled far, still inside The Great Capitol. She hoped that this city unknown to her could be better than told of, but it was not.


    ¡°Lady Karia Shiarama¡­?¡± The lord in charge of the first pack of slaves checked papers that Karia signed. He looked down, reading the part where she asked to pay 100 precs each slave child. ¡°Why children?¡±


    ¡°I would like fresh servants,¡± Karia tried to keep up an act, covering the true reason for this. ¡°As the current standing leader of my household, I must take care of these matters myself.¡±


    ¡°Hmm¡­¡± He took a moment of thought, unsure of this deal. ¡°250 precs each.¡±


    ¡°Alright.¡± Karia looked him straight in the eyes. ¡°Where can I start looking?¡±


    He glanced toward the window where there was a full view of working slaves. Then looked to his assistant. ¡°Show them where they are. I will be with you shortly.¡±


    Karia noticed the assistant nod and followed as they gestured. With the same servants of the forest, they kept guard as Karia went through the open grounds. The assistant lead them through the many slaves working, catching a few glances from some. Karia and the guards immediately caught the strong stench of urine and body odor mixed in one. Trying not to make it obvious, Karia slightly held in her breath for a moment. She even managed to notice the looks some slave had been giving off. The assistant in front quickly darted his eyes; making them turn away, back to their work. Karia realized how different these people were treated, wondering what the children would think of her. It did not take too long as the assistant slowly came to a stop in front of a small hut. Karia and her guards stopped to look at the man, waiting for him to speak.


    ¡°This is where you may find our slaves¡¯ children.¡± He gestured to the wide doorway, children already peeking their heads out. ¡°If you would like to personally choose, you may enter at your own will.¡±


    Karia gestured to one of the guards to keep following as she went to the doorway. The children quickly scattered away to the corner of the small hut. There seemed to be only about 12 children and they could barely fit if evenly spread out. One stood in front of them huddled in the corner, a boy who had a fierce look in his eyes. He spread his short arms out like making a shield for them, looking older than his true years.


    ¡°¡­ and you are?¡± Karia recognized him as one of the children the goddess shown.


    ¡°No one you should mess with, lady!¡± He almost squealed and shrieked in his voice.


    The assistant quickly yelled from the doorway. ¡°Raise that voice again and see what happens with your sister!¡±


    The little boy simply closed his mouth and gave Karia a death stare. Karia slightly smiled and sighed for a short moment. She looked around the small hut, clearly seeing the many piles of human ¡°waste.¡± In the heat of the moment Karia held back the vomit traveling up her throat, trying to keep her attention on the little boy. She slightly squatted to meet around his eye level, feeling disturbed that her clothes were surely getting dirtied by the ¡°waste.¡±


    ¡°I want to take you out of here.¡± Karia calmly spoke to him, hoping to get a decent response back.


    He spat on the floor where her dress touched, perfectly aiming at the end. ¡°If you want to take someone out of here, take my sister.¡±


    ¡°I heard about your sister, but why not take you both?¡± Karia smiled softly, speaking in such a sweet tone. ¡°Please, tell me, what are your names?¡±


    The little boy realized she did not seem to show ill intent. ¡°¡­ we have no names only numbers, I am 458.¡±


    ¡°As for your sister¡­?¡± Karia patiently waited for the boy to speak again.


    ¡°I have two,¡± He slightly put his arms down, looking off to the side. ¡°The younger is 457¡­ older is 459.¡±


    Karia turned to the doorway, speaking to the assistant. ¡°Please, would you be so kind as to guide me to each?¡±


    The assistant was hesitant to, but he finally accepted and walked a few steps away, waiting for the others to follow. Karia slowly held her hand out to the little boy, making sure she was seen as no harm. He also slowly took out his hand and shakily placed it onto Karia¡¯s palm. She immediately felt the roughness of what should be soft baby-like skin. In this moment, she realized the worst had been brought over these children. Though, she tried not to mind it and stood, gently holding his hand. The boy looked back to the other children and then to Karia.


    ¡°I am sorry, I cannot take them all.¡± Karia kneeled to him. ¡°Please understand¡­¡±


    ¡°¡­ I know.¡± The little boy accepted this with a pensive expression, holding her hand tightly in response.

 Vol. 1 | Chapter 3: The Children of Shiarama

    Karia rose again, beginning to slowly walk out with the boy. His friends whom he clearly wanted to protect, had been left there in the small hut, scared. The assistant led them to the younger, in similar hut that instead had two older slaves watching fewer children. The female of the older slaves gasped when they noticed the little boy holding Karia¡¯s hand. Karia looked at the boy, seeing his hand barely reach out to them. She let go and lightly pushed him to walk over.


    ¡°Sister¡­?¡± The boy looked through the small portion of children, more like toddlers.


    Karia looked over, clearly seeing the contrast. His sister was the only one with many scars all around her body. You would think they were a birthmark. Although that may have been, this was another child she needed to take home. Knowing this, Karia guessed that the older sister was the last to look for there. She slowly approached her, stopping just far enough. The little boy went in closer, shaking as he glanced all over her.


    ¡°Come.¡± Karia kneeled and spoke softly once more. ¡°We will go to your older sister now.¡±


    ¡°But¡­¡± The boy took his sister''s hand.


    ¡°Bring her.¡± Karia smiled and reached out to him. ¡°I want you three to come together.¡±


    The little boy¡¯s eyebrows quickly shot up, looking back to his sister. ¡°¡­ can you stand?¡±


    The little girl looked up at him, not moving an inch. He slowly kneeled down and tried to pick her up, which looked easier than expected. Karia was surprised, but looked at the older slaves who stared, worried for them. They looked at her and realized she was looking at them. Karia did not mind this and gave a simply genuine smile as they turned to leave. This gave the older slaves little relief that the children were not about to be brought to their demise.


    ¡°¡­ Your choice in children servants are quite¡­ odd¡­¡± The assistant watched as they walked out of the hut.


    ¡°They are my choice after all.¡± Karia smiled, keeping a hand behind the little boy. ¡°If you wouldn''t mind, the older sister, please.¡±


    ¡°Of course,¡± The assistant gestured as they began to walk again. ¡°Right this way, Lady Shiarama.¡±


    As they continued to walk along the path between the working slaves, Karia noticed the looks even more. They all stared and averted their eyes once the assistant looked at them. Although, as they finally got to where the older sister had been, it looked like more of a place fit for the dead. The slaves were either barely working or laid lifeless onto the ground.


    ¡°All halt!¡± The assistant rose his voice and made each of the remaining slaves stop as they stood in their places. ¡°Each considered young women, come to the front!¡±


    As he said these words, a short line of young women was made standing before Karia and the two children. She immediately recognized the one she''d been looking for. Although, this would have been suspicious to the assistant, so she asked the little boy before making any moves. He gestured to her, the one wearing rags even worse than the others, the one she noticed first.


    ¡°Her,¡± Karia looked directly at the young woman. ¡°Please, let me have all three.¡±


    ¡°You remember, the children are 250 precs each.¡± The assistant walked to stand in front of the young slave. ¡°This is a blossoming adult.¡±


    ¡°Then double, please, I want to buy all three together.¡± Karia looked at the assistant, watching him turn to look behind her, then she turned to see the lord.


    ¡°Hello again, Lady Shiarama.¡± The lord smiled, but it was unsettling even for the assistant. ¡°Are you sure about paying so much for just a young woman? Alphed, bring her along, let the others go back to work.¡±


    ¡°¡­ Of course, Lord Grecius.¡± The assistant grabbed the slave by the arm, ignoring the quiet whimpering heard from her.


    ¡°Please, let her walk free.¡± Karia asked, worried for her.


    ¡°These are only precautions, Lady Shiarama.¡± The assistant continued, dragging her along. ¡°She is known to have run away countless times.¡±


    ¡°¡­¡± Karia looked at the scared young woman. ¡°Alright then, please be a little gentler, I wouldn''t want my potential servant too harmed.¡±


    The assistant barely lightened his grip as the lord led the way. Karia followed while the guards stayed behind them, making sure nothing happened. The lord guided them back to the main building where they met. Taking the slaves into the office. At this point, Karia had gotten so use to the stench that came off them from the huts, the children, even on her dress. She simply accepted the smell and proceeded with the payment.


    ¡°250 precs for the children, 270 for the young woman.¡± The lord wrote his signature down on the paper with Lady Shiarama¡¯s deal.


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    ¡°Of course,¡± Karia sat in the seat in front of the desk, looking towards the shaking young woman.


    ¡°May I offer you a day''s wait?¡± The lord placed down his quill pen, smiling in an eerie way. ¡°To clean and prep them up before you take them? Absolutely free of charge, I do insist!¡±


    Karia glanced at the slaves again, concerned as to what they could possibly do just before they have the chance of freedom. ¡°I appreciate the offer, Lord Grecius.¡±


    ¡°Ah, well then, Alphed, will you-¡± The lord noticed Karia was going to speak again.


    ¡°But, I will be taking them as they are.¡± Karia smiled, gesturing to a guard for the payment. ¡°Hopefully this will be enough for the full 520 precs payment, and extra for tax.¡±


    The lord immediately perked up his attitude once he noticed a bag full of shining gold coins placed onto the desk. They settled the payment and happily let the slaves go along with Karia. The guards oversaw guiding them back to the carriage they came. Karia walked in, getting help as she took the steps up, but then she looked back at the children.


    ¡°Actually, Rol, let me help them inside first.¡± Karia stepped down and let them go inside first. ¡°Please, go in, I mean no harm.¡±


    The little boy adjusted his hold on the youngest sister, looking up to the oldest. ¡°Sister, she''s not faking it, I can tell.¡±


    The oldest looked up to Karia, still shaking, even in her voice. ¡°Then why were you calling us potential servants?¡±


    Karia smiled and held her finger up to her lips, barely whispering. ¡°A cover story, now come along, I don¡¯t bite.¡±


    The slight struggle in trusting Karia made it a little difficult for the oldest to cooperate unlike the youngest and middle. Though they finally managed to get inside the carriage, leaving the guard servants to stay on the outside of the carriage for the way back. On the way, they barely spoke a word to each other, and the young woman had still been uncomfortable of the thought in having to work for someone again. The little boy made sure to keep his younger sister from falling on each turn. Karia noticed the bond between those two were stronger than the oldest, it was almost odd. Once they arrived back to the main house, the once slave children had been given a whole different view of the world. Karia requested high maids to take the children into the baths, and her following.


    ¡°Are you just going to sit there and watch them harass us?¡± The little boy had his arms held up, allowing a maid scrub him down. ¡°This hurts ya know.¡±


    ¡°You have quite the personality.¡± Karia almost laughed, but she smiled enough to cover it. ¡°I brought you three here to be raised as my own.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± The oldest peeked over the separating walls. ¡°So, the servant thing was a lie!¡±


    ¡°I told you; it was a cover up.¡± Karia responded calmly, smiling as she watched from a few feet away. ¡°I want to raise you three as my own children because I am not brave enough to go through the trials of childbirth.¡±


    ¡°¡­ Wouldn¡¯t people start talking bad about you?¡± The little boy spoke up, knowing better than its expected he would. ¡°We look nothing like you guys here.¡±


    ¡°Exactly.¡± The oldest added to his words, almost disturbed by the maid who was constantly scrubbing and washing out her lice filled hair. ¡°We were slaves, there should be nothing but more work and torture to deal with¡­ like this.¡±


    ¡°How about we have some food and water after this?¡± Karia stood up, continuing to smile. She walked over to the head maid. ¡°And please, have them in light garments, nothing too tight.¡±


    The head maid nodded and continued to stay watch, helping little by little with newer maids. The maid in charge of washing the youngest felt concerned. The many scars shown across her body were simply horrifying. Although the other two had many scars, they were not as fatal as the youngest. Throughout her entire body there would be even the slightest sign of a scar, but nowhere on her face. It seemed to be that as slaves had been horribly treated, they would only keep a good cover in case they were sold off for a higher price. Though these three were lucky, they had been taken in by a Lady who was more commonly known for her gentle and endearing personality. They had grown to adjust to living in this new environment and even learned proper lady and lord etiquette. Karia learned what their birthdays were, even though they hadn¡¯t properly remembered themselves, she went back to the slave owner with caution. This was a process in her goal to raising some of the best children to live in their newly adoptive bloodline. Karia named them by her own intuition, seeing that they were fit for the future the Goddess had shown. The youngest was named Kari, as she had seen much of her personality the same as her own. The middle who was once a little boy was named Jolen. In hopes of his strong spark of care he had for Kari before coming to the house, she had seen he would protect her at all costs. Finally, the oldest, Jilliace, yet she was not one with high spirits, she had not been seen as potential leader of the household. They had all gotten a few inches taller over the span of 6 years; Kari was now 10, Jolen was 15, and Jilliace being 17. Through all this, Lillian had stuck around in the sidelines, mainly watching the children rather than ever interacting with them. Although, this family was still not complete, one more child was missing.


    ¡°Children, are you awake?¡± Karia called out to them from their room doors, raising her voice toward each separately. ¡°I have an announcement to make!¡±


    One of the doors cracked open, the morning had dragged on in Kari¡¯s eyes. ¡°Mother¡­ Where are you headed¡­?¡±


    Karia perked up a soft smile and calmly walked over to Kari, leaning to pet her hair. ¡°Oh, I¡¯m sorry I woke you, Kari, I will simply be heading out to get someone. Be sure to keep the house under control for me, alright my sweet child?¡±


    ¡°Yes, mother.¡± Kari rubbed her eye and attempted to stay awake. ¡°Do you know if breakfast is already prepared?¡±


    ¡°Ah, yes, you go wash up before heading down to eat.¡± Karia pat her back, gesturing toward the washroom. ¡°I will have Jilliace join you if she has not awoken-¡± The door across suddenly opened to a fully dressed Jilliace, but not in a dress. Karia stared for a moment, processing the odd attire that she had been wearing not one fit for a lady. Jilliace¡¯s face had slight shock, unaware that her mother would be in the corridor. ¡°Might you explain¡­. This?¡± Karia looked up and down at the dark shirt and pants, even a light satchel over the shoulder.


    ¡°Uhh, I,¡± Jilliace stuttered for a moment, collecting her words. ¡°Exploring, I¡­ was going to go exploring out near the forest! Just to stroll out in the sunny weather!¡± She put on a smile and barely oddly moved her arms around, as if speaking with movement.


    ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Karia squinted her eyes, but then closed her eyes and let out a soft sigh. ¡°Be back before breakfast has finished.¡±


    ¡°But, Mother-¡± Jilliace attempted to arrange a longer period of time out.


    ¡°I want you to be here before I am to leave, if not then I will not bring you any souvenirs.¡± Karia walked away, gesturing to the maids. ¡°Oh, and be sure to help Kari in the washroom, I will be waiting to see you both!¡±


    ¡°Wha-¡± Jilliace had her situation caught up with Kari¡¯s morning wash, she was frustrated. Although this may have been, she felt a tug on her sleeve and looked down to see Kari. ¡°Fine¡­ but can you please convince mother for me?¡±


    ¡°You owe me peanut butter and strawberry jam.¡± Kari laughed as she innocently smiled, skipping away to the washroom alone.


    Jilliace went off to the opposite direction, disobeying Karia¡¯s words. Soon came the time to eat breakfast and Jilliace was not there, neither was Jolen. Karia sat there with a happy Kari, the only one who was able to show. Kari managed to convince her mother to not worry about them, seeing that they weren¡¯t there they may had already had something to eat. Karia simply accepted the fact that they were finally at that age, some who could rebel against parents. The other two were to have their punishments after she returned, but Jolen came near the end of breakfast. Karia quickly stood, realizing that he was covered in dirt. She tried to ask what happened, but he simply did not answer and looked to the floor, almost in shame. Kari, being his sister, seemed concerned as well. He was then told to go to the washroom and return after he was cleaned off. As the two finished their breakfast, Jolen returned with Jilliace following behind.


    ¡°Ah, everyone is here now.¡± Karia stood up from her seat, gesturing Karia to as well. ¡°I wanted to make sure the two of you knew beforehand, I will be leaving for a few days.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Jilliace spoke, confused but not rashly. ¡°To where, and why?¡±


    ¡°You will see, I am going to bring back someone wonderful to join us.¡± Karia smiled and walked off to the head maid waiting by. ¡°And I would expect to be given record of any who has ever left in my absence.¡±


    ¡°Safe travels, Mother!¡± Kari yelled out to her as she watched Karia walk out the front door.

 Vol. 1 | Chapter 4: The Newest Family Member

    Karia was now off to find the last child who she remembered who looked like her. Although this may have been, the only similarity was their pale skin, nothing more. For days, Karia traveled with the guards, Rol and Filphen. They had been officially assigned as Karia¡¯s personal guards, before this, they were part of the cleaning service. The children on the other hand, were left at home, free to do as they please within the house. With some concern for what could happen, Karia made sure there were notes sent to the maids in reassurance that the children were kept safe and sound. The days later felt long, much time was spent riding through warm weather, two days pass¡­


    ¡°Lady Shiarama.¡± Rol sat upon his horse, fanning himself from the immense heat. ¡°We have gone far enough, I beg of you, let these horse rest.¡±


    ¡°¡­ Alright,¡± Karia stopped her horse who seemed to be barely out of breath. ¡°We will go somewhere with shade.¡±


    The others followed to someplace nearby that looked like a cave entrance. Filphen went inside with a torch to check if anything was lingering inside, but there was nothing other than a small body of glittering water in the corner. He came back out to tell them and had the horses follow along inside. They went through the cave entrance; vines covering most of the area. Karia let them rest their horses inside and noticed the night creeping in. They had lit a small fire to keep them warm and each guard kept watch as the night would pass. Karia slept with a blanket and pillow for little support but dwelt with this as it was the best to travel with. As the morning finally rose with the guards awakening Karia from her slumber, they went out with the horses again. Karia looked back to the glittering water and placed an empty bottle inside, planning taking a small portion of this mysterious liquid back home. Continuing their search for this child, their tracks had been slightly stranded. Karia knew that they had come to the correct area, which had been right next to a beach. The transition from dirt to sand would have been posed as a slightly difficult path for their horses, and so they were left to wait on the dirt. Karia and her guards walked along the sand as the water barely reached them. There was still no sight of anything but sand, shells, and water at their feet. An idea had suddenly sprung into Karia¡¯s mind, and she quickly began to slightly ¡°undress.¡± The guards had been caught by surprise, immediately turning to the side as they questioned why their lady would suddenly do such a thing. Fortunately, she had taken off her dress to reveal another outfit underneath, one fit for water. She told them to be at ease and they soon realized, relieved that she was still wearing something, but confused. Karia then told them to hold her dress and shoes, preparing herself to jump inside the water. Before they could react, she quickly ran and dived to enter this large and seemingly endless body of water. The guards barely had a chance to go after her, worried they would be wet and get her clothes wet as well. Their concern for Karia¡¯s safety was wavering due to the sight of her swimming far into the distance. A wave was soon to come by, and Karia was far out by then, the guards attempted to yell as the wave was coming closer to her by the seconds. Although, this seemed to be nothing to Karia and she speedily dived into the water, avoiding this wave. The sound of the surface above the water had come to an abrupt stop, now becoming the aquatic music under. Kari had held her breath and fluttered her eyes open, seeing the beauty of this water and its creatures. Many would have wondered why there would be anything touching your body while swimming, she figured out what. Karia glanced at her legs, seeing small colored fish lightly pecking at them, barely doing any harm. They slightly tickled her legs, and she moved them, making the fish scatter away. Karia looked above her, noticing that the wave had finally passed and swam above to take in more air. She¡¯d been sure of what to do now. The guards waiting out at the sand stood there for quite some time. Minutes passed and their concern grew, unsure of what could have happened to Karia. They sat on the sand, continuing to wait for a longer period of time. Then, in their view, Karia was seen in the distance above the water, holding what looked like a small child, sleeping in her arms. They quickly stood, realizing this the closer she became. Karia had been tired due to the amount of swimming she¡¯d done to get through the water. She explained that this was no ordinary child, but the breed of a god and a human. The guards had been startled by this, even more that she included that this was a boy who had been raised to be a ¡°Grandchanger.¡± He was raised by a great octopus god after his biological god father had given him away, to live in safety. This octopus god¡¯s name was Halgreter, he accepted to raise the half-breed as he was not seen as either human or god among any. The boy gained the form and abilities of an octopus after raised in such an environment. Still, the guards were unsure of this information and yet they proceeded to trust Karia to go along with this; taking the two back home. The days continued to pass longer, taking another three days until finally arriving to the entry of the main house. The servants once more began to spread rumors around the house as Karia settled in with this child she¡¯d brought back. Throughout the time spent with him as they returned, Karia grew fond of this child and made sure to have him washed and ready to introduce to the others. Kari had peeked around the corner of the washroom door, seeing Karia sitting from across the little boy being washed. His hair looked completely orange and his eyes sparkling in the same color. He noticed her eyes watching from the doorway and looked at her as well. She paid no mind to this and simply smiled at him, making his face have a slightly flustered expression. Karia noticed this and looked back to the doorway, catching Kari¡¯s eyes peeking. Kari quickly scurried away before her mother was able to even speak out her name. It seemed odd but Karia placed her attention back to the little boy, waiting for his wash to finish.


    ¡°Did you see him?¡± Jolen sat on a couch, sipping some herbal tea.


    ¡°Mhm!¡± Kari quickly smiled in excitement. ¡°He has really white skin, his eyes and hair are orange, and he looked very adorable!¡±


    Jolen placed down his teacup and sighed, knowing his little sister would be fond of anyone new. ¡°Did he have anything else? A scar like us maybe?¡±


    ¡°Scar?¡± Kari thought back to when she caught the glimpse of him. All her mind could think of was the amount of sparkle he had in his eyes. ¡°Nope, no scar.¡±


    A few knocks came from the door and then a voice announcing that Karia had called the three to meet her at the guest room in the front of the house. Jolen and Kari were the only two in the room, as for Jilliace; she was out ¡°exploring¡± once more. Kari was the only one to stay in the room and watched Jolen quickly run out to the balcony attached. He jumped off, falling down to the ground from the second floor. He ran out to the nearby forest area and looked for Jilliace. She was seen not too far out, only sitting by a young man who looked around her age. Jolen did not question this because they had met before and simply gestured to the house. Jilliace managed to see him from a short distance and had to leave the young man. This seemed to also be a sort of routine from past situations needing to return to the house. Although, they¡¯d been able to get back just as fast, making it in time to change and follow Kari to the guest room.


    ¡°I see you¡¯ve finally made it,¡± Karia rose from a chair, smiling at the three. She walked over to someone who was standing behind a folding screen that acted as a wall. Karia slowly pushed a little boy out to their view, his orange hair shining and his eyes sparkling in the lighting. ¡°I want you to meet Mizutaka, our newest member of the family.¡±


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    Jolen and Jilliace were both in shock as to how young the boy looked, even younger than Kari. This was both a wonder and of concern. Karia had been gone for about a week as she expected, but this newcomer was not the same as they would have predicted. Other than them, Kari slightly leaned forward and walked to the little boy. Mizutaka, still in front of Karia, slightly stepped backwards, still a bit flustered of his last memory of her. Karia gently pushed him to move closer, hoping the best would come out of this new interaction.


    ¡°Mizutaka.¡± Kari happily held her hand out as she smiled in excitement. ¡°My name is Kari; it is nice to finally meet you!¡±


    The view of this pure gesture had Mizutaka in a tough position. He slowly moved his hand towards hers, not speaking a word. Kari quickly took it and gently shook his hand with both of hers. Karia watched in approval and then looked to the other two who were still standing far behind. They awkwardly looked away as they noticed Karia¡¯s gaze. They looked back to her and realized she¡¯d be signaling with her eyes to introduce themselves. Jolen slightly let out a sigh and Jilliace almost looked around before putting her attention to Mizutaka.


    ¡°It is nice to meet you, Mizutaka.¡± The two lazily spoke at the same time, making it seem quite literally effortless.


    Karia glared at them, making sure they¡¯d known this would be spoken of later. In the meantime, Karia let Mizutaka and Kari sit together in the guest room while maids kept watch over them. Kari was intrigued by his appearance and told everything about herself. Interest and hobbies she managed to look forward to, anything that came to mind. Mizutaka still did not speak a single word, but he simply stared in awe of the cheery and accepting nature that Kari had shown. While leaving the two, Karia walked off with the others to the dining hall. Jolen and Jilliace were slightly prepared as to what was about to happen, being talked to about the new family member. Karia set them to sit in a couch along the wall and she sat across from a smaller couch fit for only one person.


    ¡°Now, tell me.¡± Karia sat down in a dissatisfied manner; her face had shown some conflict. ¡°What has you both so far from Mizutaka?¡±


    ¡°His looks?¡± Jolen spoke out of curiosity of specifics. ¡°His¡­ background?¡±


    ¡°Mother, why would you suddenly bring home another child?¡± Jilliace blurted out the question, concerned for the future that Karia might see instead. ¡°I know you did the same for us, but what¡¯s so special about him? It¡¯s all just out of nowhere¡­¡±


    ¡°Jolen, Jilliace.¡± Karia looked at them both, making sure that her expression had shown a more serious tone. ¡°There is much for you both to know from here on out.¡±


    Jolen and Jilliace both turned to each other and then faced Karia, willing to hear whatever she has to say. Karia explained the opportunity that she¡¯d been given by the goddess in the glimmering forest. The two were confused by this sudden rush of information from her, but they were still intent on listening. Karia even knew their background as slaves but even further back into their own bloodline. Queen Hyrestia gave her all the information about how their ancestors were magic users themselves, such as the Shiarama bloodline was. Their families were barely connected by this single thread of magic. Back when magic had been taken in by humans, there were only a select few who had been accepted to bring it into their bloodline. The one who had been accepted was Hofsen Juvuen, a woman of great pride and sole conscience. Similarly to Gremin Shiarama, they both began their bloodlines, unexpectedly together. Due to the separation of their color in skin, they had not been able to bring the surnames together. This would mean that even though they had technically been adopted by Karia, they were very distant relatives. Knowing this, Jolen and Jilliace were shocked at this new information once more.


    ¡°Mizutaka is not of our bloodline, but you must still accept him into this family.¡± Karia looked at the two, concerned for their understanding. ¡°Kari has already done such as that.¡±


    ¡°Mother¡­¡± Jilliace quietly spoke, still barely grasping this.


    Jolen stood from his seat, face it head on. ¡°Mother, with all due respect, this is just too much to handle.¡±


    ¡°I understand.¡± Karia also stood and turned to walk away. ¡°We will have further conversations such as these in the future. I suggest you both make an effort to bond with Mizutaka.¡±


    Jilliace and Jolen had been left in the room to ponder this new information they finally figured out. Karia went to peek in the room Kari and Mizutaka had still been talking in and let them be together. Mizutaka was heard, finally speaking ever since he was brought home. This began their new bond of the 6-year-old Mizutaka with the happily welcoming Kari. Later on, they had been the closest other than the bond with Kari and Jolen. As a few years pass, the once children were then grown up, learning more about their family history. Jilliace went into studies in Karia¡¯s library full of scrolls and letters. Jolen would often join as well, even allowing her male partner from the forest to visit. Karia would continue to be unaware of this mystery individual. All the knowledge that had been bestowed to Karia was highly confidential, some notes of them would be found in her personal office. Jolen occasionally sneaked inside anytime she was out the house, having learned forbidden abilities dealing with their bloodline magic. He¡¯d read about the ability called ¡°bloodline sights.¡± Jolen was 20 years old by then, intrigued with this magical ability. It was set to give you silent access to see through the eyes of any within your bloodline. The one who¡¯s eyes are used as another pair would have almost no way of knowing this had been used on them unless told. Karia soon realized some of her scrolls went missing from her desk. This led to lining everyone up in front of their bedroom doors. Karia called each of the children she raised to the corridor.


    ¡°Mizutaka, Kari, Jolen, and Jilliace.¡± Karia walked in front of each, showing an example of what her scrolls look like. ¡°Scrolls from my office have gone missing. Do any of you know what could have possibly happened with them?¡±


    As Karia stopped walking to look at all four, Jilliace slowly stepped up from the silence. ¡°¡­ It was me.¡±


    Karia looked at her and shook her head. She was both impressed and disappointed by this act. ¡°Have I not taught you each to be honest?¡±


    ¡°¡­ Of course, she and I both are at fault.¡± Jolen stepped up and firmly stood his ground next to Jilliace. ¡°I conducted these, Jilliace only helped keep watch as I¡¯d done them.¡±


    Kari and Mizutaka watched in confusion, simply sitting back in their obvious innocence. Karia accepted their confession and told the other two to return to their rooms or do as they please. Kari lightly pulled Mizutaka away and walked into the opposite direction and went to the stairs that led down. Karia took both Jolen and Jilliace to her office that was only a hall around the corner. Walking inside, she told them to step in front of the desk and wait as took out what were the missing scrolls from her desk drawers. Jilliace made a shameful reaction, turning away her head as Jolen simply stared at the scrolls with serious attention.


    ¡°I am genuinely impressed that you had done this even at your current age, Jolen.¡± Karia lightly leaned onto the desk, somewhat in a faint sort of physical pain. Jolen noticed but would not dare to mention it in such a situation. ¡°You are only 20 years old, but Jilliace, you are 22¡­ I understand that you both would be curious¡­ Get straight to the point.¡± Karia looked directly into Jolen¡¯s eyes, slightly angered.


    ¡°I wanted to know what bloodline sights was.¡± Jolen slightly tiled his head to the side, keeping a calm and collected expression as he spoke. ¡°It was labeled as forbidden, of course you would not mention it to us.¡±


    ¡°That is because it should never be used.¡± Karia sighed, undergoing much stress from this. She lifted her arm to her head, lightly rubbing her left temple. ¡°It can be used good or bad, depending on a person¡¯s intentions. I forbid it because it could be used as an intrusive way to spy on family members. Please, do not tell me you have learned this ability, should you ever use it; may it be after my death so I cannot sense concern for it.¡± Karia¡¯s voice slowly shrank as her breathing patterns depleted the same.


    ¡°M-Mother¡­ You should rest¡­¡± Jilliace finally pointed this out, walking around the desk to her. ¡°I will help you to your bedroom.¡±


    ¡°¡­¡± Karia¡¯s senses seemed to be faint in the process, barely noticing Jilliace guiding her out the desk. They left the office as Jolen stood there, staring at the scrolls.


    Jolen took this opportunity and organized the scrolls onto the desk. This was not only of the bloodline sights but of plentily other information on the goddess Hyrestia. He¡¯d known that this was the goddess who gave Karia her wish on finding them, but he wanted to test this out for himself. So, the plan had begun with the perfect moment, Karia had then fallen ill of her stress from that very day.

 Vol. 1 | Chapter 5: Fate of Karia Shiarama

    Jolen had gone away with himself and scavenged through the forest next to the house. He was looking for any sign of Jilliace¡¯s partner. The sun was still out and not many animals were seen wandering as well, this gave a sign. It was very quiet compared to any other day they had not met up together. You could not even hear birds singing, each step he¡¯d taken further in. Then, finally the glimpse of a dark cloak was caught in the distance. Behind a tree was the mysterious partner, a man whose hair was dark purple, and skin was pale, near snow. His eyes almost seemed like looking into a sparkling endless dark void, and he held fangs that could seep into flesh. This man¡¯s his name was Louis Hur Kloray, the rouge vampire who had already been of-age, making his first interaction with Jilliace somewhat reasonable.


    ¡°Louis, finally.¡± Jolen grunted his way around tree roots and vines. ¡°Let¡¯s start heading out, Jilliace has to keep constant watch over Mother since she is currently in her care. I have the scroll to act as a map.¡±


    ¡°Perfect.¡± Louis grinned and waited for Jolen to take the lead. ¡°Guide the way dear brother.¡±


    Jolen first took some horses from their stables, using them for their travels. It took around the rest of the day and they camped throughout the night. Lillian took note of the fact that Jolen had gone out in search for the great wish of the glimmering forest. She knew the secret in order to gain the opportunity to be in present of the Goddess Queen Hyrestia. Lillian would not dare let anyone other than the leader of the household to find it, and there was only one who was already chosen to. Throughout their continued travel, they reached the forest, but found nothing as they entered. It was disappointing, up to where they both separated all over to meet again without finding the stones. Jolen had given up, and simply suggested to return home, but Louis was persistent. He often stayed under his hooded cloak to avoid the sun, he was a vampire but not too sensitive to light and his drive for blood was not as strong. As much as Louis would continue searching day and night, he could not see anything in the result. With stretched days in their return home, they¡¯d been gone about four days. They¡¯d had an argument just outside the front gate of the main house. In an abrupt separation, Jolen went inside, and Louis left to the forest. As Jolen walked through the front doors, he¡¯d immediately seen his mother with Lillian by her side, helping her stand.


    ¡°Jolen?¡± Karia walked down the stairs, leading to the front door. With Lillian holding her arm, they slowly walked down to meet his level. ¡°Jolen, where have you been?¡±


    Jolen turned away and walked off, leaving them standing at the end of the stairs. He¡¯d been infuriated with his plan failing. The strong feeling of hatred seeped off of him and others avoided speaking to Jolen at all the rest of the day. Lillian¡¯s perspective to spectate on this matter seemed comforting at best. Karia continued to worry about Jolen and why he¡¯d been sneaking around. Though, she knew she had more important things to focus on. Lillian helped walk Karia all the way to her office and assisted with any paperwork which had to be done. Karia spoke with her, ranting on about how conflicted she was with giving the responsibility of household leader to Jolen or Jilliace. Kari and Mizutaka were other options, better to think of in that matter, at least that was what Lillian had suggested. The paperwork for Karia had begun to pile up over the past days she was absent in the house. There was more stress, giving her a hard time to focus and placing things down for a moment. Lillian asked if she would need to send a maid for water and Karia accepted, feeling lightheaded.


    Kari lightly knocked on the door to her office. ¡°Mother¡­?¡± She waited for a response and heard Lillian speak instead of Karia, allowing her inside. She¡¯d seen her mother drooped over the desk, showing the fatigue was strong. Kari quickly walked over to her around the desk, helping pull her up from the chair. ¡°Mother, you must lay down. You have only just now recovered¡­¡±


    Karia slightly looked at her and then around, barely seeing much of anything. ¡°I thank you, Kari¡­ but what is it¡­ that you need from me¡­ at this time¡­?¡± She felt a slow pause in walking and then having told to sit down, cushioned onto a couch, still inside her office.


    ¡°I can ask you at a later time, right now, you need to rest.¡± Kari managed to safely let go and pat down her mother¡¯s clothes, lightly adjusting how it should look. The deep care she held in her heart for Karia was greatly shown, even at her age, 15.


    Although it was still unexpected, Karia¡¯s health had been slowly deteriorating due to the heavy amounts of stress falling beneath her. It was unclear of what had truly been the root cause of this ordeal, but surely it may have been all the work and trifling matters with Jolen. Karia certainly did not want to end up in the same predicament as her late young sister Hosh found herself in long ago. So, Karia had chosen to numb out her smaller emotions using her magic as soon as she¡¯d gotten better. It was only a matter of time at that point, dealing with everything at once. Karia managed to keep her sanity in due time, lasting another year of silent mental torment. Karia had laid in bed for days on end in her last moments, mainly allowing Kari and Mizutaka to speak with her rather than the others.


    ¡°Kari, you are turning 17 soon, correct?¡± Karia sat up in her bed, weary eyed but still able to move her upper body just fine. ¡°What would you like for your birthday?¡±


    ¡°My birthday?¡± Kari slightly laughed at the thought, placing down a tea cup. Her past birthday was filled with exploring the nearby forest alongside Karia. Although, due to the current state of her mother, she knew that would not exactly be doable. Kari smiled, almost painfully covering her thoughts. ¡°I would love to simply be here, spending my time having cake and tea with my amazing mother.¡±


    ¡°Oh, my dear, Kari.¡± Karia smiled at such a response, simply touched by how much Kari has grown already. ¡°You need not worry so much about me. I will be alright, even with my legs sleeping more often, you know how they complain.¡± Karia spoke her last sentence with such a joking tone, even Kari had a giggle at it. It was a success to take their minds off of the truth.


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    ¡°Alright, but I still want a cake, let it be huge!¡± Kari gestured with her arms, continuing this joking atmosphere. They both had a laugh, knowing that could not be eaten with the amount of people.


    Though, they soon came to a slightly sudden change in conversation as Karia had brought something unusual up. ¡°Kari, for this birthday, I would like to give you something very special.¡±


    Kari looked at her mother, slightly concerned as to what this could possibly be. ¡°Something very special¡­?¡±


    ¡°Here,¡± Karia turned to look behind her pillow, taking out a scroll. ¡°With this, you can find your gift, years from today.¡±


    ¡°What is it for?¡± Kari had been handed the scroll, not opening it yet.


    ¡°It tells you as you look through, but for now, refrain from taking a peek just until your next few birthdays.¡± Karia smiled, slightly laughing at herself.


    ¡°I understand, thank you, Mother.¡± Kari smiled as well, putting this new scroll into her bag. ¡°Would you like me to ask for more tea?¡±


    ¡°Ah, yes dear, thank you so much.¡± Karia nodded as she took out a book from pillow, it was titled ¡®Strong woman with the Pink Hair¡¯ by Unknown.


    There were plenty of times that book had been read to Kari as a child and still as a young adult. The story was of a woman with long flowing pink hair, this was her own unique quality. The key to the story was that she had a mission, this was to save the world from destruction. No one knew her name nor why she had this mission. She¡¯d simply lived in a small cottage before her life was turned over by rouges robbing her of her family and belongings. She was then told to travel into the glimmering forest to find a goddess. This was the one goddess who ruled above all others, Queen Hyrestia. This girl who had been in such grief was given a blessing to also become a goddess and save the world from great destruction; that was her mission.


    Kari went to the maid, requesting more tea and walked back to her seat by the bed. She¡¯d noticed the book title and lightly giggled. ¡°That book again? Mother, you have read this to me several times.¡±


    ¡°And every single time there is a lesson that you should know.¡± Karia giggled as well, so sure that the book held great importance. ¡°A woman should never-¡±


    ¡°- Back down on her world.¡± Kari continued the saying for her, the one saying the main character repeated throughout the story. ¡°I have heard that many times as well.¡±


    ¡°It is such a wonderful book.¡± Karia smiled and took out many more with the same name. ¡°I have the whole series.¡±


    Kari stared at the odd number of books for just one story, she was slightly surprised it had more than just one. ¡°I never thought it would have more.¡± She sighed and lightly fiddled with her dress.


    ¡°Well now, you never thought to read them yourself.¡± Karia laughed as she placed them down beside her on the bed. She then began to the story again from the first book, just as she¡¯d done multiple times before.


    Kari sat there accepting her fate to listen as she read the book to her for the hundredth time. She smiled, happily enjoying the moment she''d been given to spend with her mother. It would not have been and easy feat to ignore the obvious signs, but it was to fake the pain. Karia¡¯s health would only decline, making it hard to move her upper body let alone her lower. This slowly ate away at her, not exactly knowing what she''d been inflicted with. In a time without trained doctors who had the proper technology, there were very slim chances of knowing. Although Kari would still often visit her mother every day. A couple years later, she would take a rolling chair and have Karia sit on it, guiding her around the forest. The spent their little time together within 10 months, just before Karia was unable to do much of anything in the end. This was just before their last few moments together, in Karia¡¯s bedroom.


    ¡°Kari, in order to keep this bloodline from having been dispersed; I heed you to keep Jilliace from that man.¡± Karia tried her very best to keep her voice at a normal pace and tone. ¡°It is imperative that you keep him away, at all means¡­¡±


    ¡°A man, what man?¡± Kari listened very carefully, unsure about this man as to never hearing about anything Jilliace had truly done. ¡°I never heard of a man with Jilliace¡­¡±


    ¡°They have become far too close-¡± Karia began coughing abruptly, barely able to breathe in the process.


    ¡°Mother!¡± Kari quickly grabbed a cup of water on her side, holding it up for her mother to drink. ¡°Please do not speak any longer, you are not well¡­¡±


    ¡°I must.¡± Karia pushed away the cup, leaving Kari dumbfounded in her place as she sat there. ¡°I will give you another gift, just like the scroll.¡± Karia slowly lifted her arm, placing it on Kari¡¯s empty hands. She mumbled something under her breath as Kari tried to listen, but she couldn¡¯t understand a word she was saying.


    Kari then felt a sudden rush of energy flow throughout her body. It took her a moment to fully feel this, having another more subtle energy flow towards her heart. Then, Karia had slumped her body over Kari, making her worry. She attempted to awaken her by shaking Karia¡¯s shoulders, but nothing worked. Kari was unsure of weather she was still alive but then felt her wrist for a pulse. She felt a weak pulse, she knew Karia was barely alive. It was days on end that Karia hadn¡¯t woken up, worrying Kari, Jilliace, and many of the servants. Jolen was not entirely sure that he¡¯d been a part of Karia¡¯s life to care enough, seeing how distant they¡¯d gotten over the years. This became even more of a concern to the others, watching Jolen wander off alone, often leaving the main house. Mizutaka was still too young to fully understand what was happening with Karia, but he had known she soon was not going to be there any longer. Around this time Mizutaka was 16 years old by then, still learning the ropes and even getting closer to Jilliace and Jolen. Although, he was very close to many of the servants, making conversation and humoring them in their spare time. Lillian, who would often be around Mizutaka or Kari; was able to know how outgoing Mizutaka truly was with others. The two often spoke when Kari was stuck in their mother¡¯s room, keeping company. Lillian had stood outside the doors if not inside, but that was how they¡¯d spoken. One more year passed as Karia¡¯s condition has worsened even more. The whole house was struck with deep worry, even for other houses that had been under the Shiarama¡¯s name, order, and care. Then, Jolen suddenly went missing, even Louis was not found when Jilliace ventured out into the woods, looking for both of them. Her search was cut short as she had given up waiting for anyone to appear, from weeks to months. Kari continued to stay with her mother, even reading a few books from her library as she kept company. She would read Karia stories she requested, slowly becoming more distant from the living. Kari had grown into a fine woman, now 21 years of age. Through enduring the moments that she sat aside her mother¡¯s bed; Kari was almost unable to continue covering up her own pain after another day of noticing Karia''s health decline. Karia was barely able to speak, even moving her body was then out of the question. Throughout this remaining time that Karia had to speak with the others before she departed, she had told Kari to look through her desk. She¡¯d known Kari was already chosen to be next in line to become a leader of the household, and so she had her read a note she left for Kari that sat in the center drawer. Kari read aloud the note, word by word as it was longer than expected. Karia weakly smiled in relief that the note was read by the right person in time. Kari slowly stopped speaking as she finished reading to the end, realizing something was wrong. Just then, in the still quiet bedroom, Karia Shiarama had taken her last breath.

 Vol. 1 | Chapter 6: The Truth, The Future (Part 1)

    As Queen Hyrestia¡¯s finger left Karia¡¯s head, she sighed softly. Karia had known the truth of who her future children were; distant relatives. In Karia¡¯s eyes, they were to simply become the future of the Shiarama household. Although, she held such great care and attention in her heart, realizing they were not to be used simply for family matters. Karia had grown to learn that these children who were forced into a brutal environment deserved much more than to carry her own burden. So, she wrote a note that would be for the one she had already expected to carry on the role if they wished. This note was written for Kari, the second to youngest of who she had raised, similar to her own position amongst the siblings who passed on before her.


    Dear Kari,


    I have had many high hopes for you in this family, I¡¯d seen myself in you all this time. In such a selfish wish, I wanted to pass on this responsibility of the household leader to you. Although, I see now that this wish was for the better of the world. I heed you to keep your siblings safe no matter what may come across them. There will be quite the multitude of trials ahead for you, but keep in mind that you should never give into the darkness that can creep up into our lives. In my private library behind my office, you will find many books and scrolls I have written or been given. These will give you such a different view on how you can perceive the world and your existence, but that is if you chose to follow this path. My life will end soon and the hopes that you may be reading this in time before any other is strong. As I have said to you before, I love you Kari, we may not be related by pure blood, but I truly see you and the others as my children. Within this note I will tell you everything you need to know apart from the books or scrolls. I had given you a personal scroll that I pray you have not opened yet. I had also given you another gift years before you are reading this note, that was the gift of magic. With this gift, you are able to use any book or scroll to cast spells and whatnot. Within this time you learn, you must know why I have you do this. The world¡¯s fate is to be destroyed and you have been chosen to take this opportunity and save it from destruction. You must also use the scroll I had given you to find the glimmering forest, there you will be told the rest. I trust you may use this information in your own time, and only with yourself. This must not be normal to hear, but I do not trust you to show this to anyone else. Unless you see it fit from those your truly deem worth the responsibility as well, it is all in your hands now, Kari. Again, I trust you to keep this information in secret and work toward the goal to save this dying world if and when you have chosen your fate.


    From your mother,


    Karia Shiarama


    Kari had not taken any look to this note after a long month of grieving with her sister. For a moment, there was no sure leader fit for the Shiarama household and so servants from other houses had been lost in what they should do. Few had thought to leave, but many had known there was still one person who was supposed to be the new leader, so they waited. Kari was visited by each servant who was in charge of the other houses and Lillian had shown to bring them, seeing she was also in charge of the main house that which Kari stayed. With this they had told her that if she was to stay in the main house then she would officially become the new leader to the Shiarama household. From that day, Kari had been lost in thought, although she did think very clearly with Jilliace by her side. After the month of grieving and the visit by the servants, Kari had finally come to a decision. She had decided to officially become the leader of the household and read back to the last note Karia had left her. Kari had read through the note for a very long time with days of attempting to understand. She had even looked through the books and scrolls before looking through the scroll Karia had given to her. Although Kari had finally gotten the idea after months of leading the household. Alongside her was Jilliace, helping in any way she could and even learning from Lillian. Jolen had still not come back and even Louis was missing throughout this whole time. With what felt like a rough year, Kari managed and ended up leaving to find the glimmering forest. Just as Karia did, Kari traveled with Rol and Filphen to the glimmering forest. They had known the way and yet Kari still lead through the path as they had found the six stones the same as that day. Queen Hyrestia appeared and introduced herself, yet she did not need to explain too much as Kari had understood the situation from Karia. She had gathered new information that was to save a Prince in the future. Kari was unsure what she meant by ¡°the future¡± because that would mean she would need to travel through time.


    ¡°Kari, I give you this question,¡± Queen Hyrestia suggested an option to Kari that would change her life. ¡°Would you like to become a goddess?¡±


    Kari was unsure of what to answer as of this meant everything would change. Rol and Filphen watched and listen carefully, knowing that they would accept her answer either way. Though, it was unexpected that they would hear something else. Rather than a simple yes or no, Kari asked a question to Queen Hyrestia instead.


    ¡°Is it possible to make not only I,¡± Kari continue to ponder as she spoke, carefully reading her own words in her mind. ¡°But¡­ could my siblings also become a God or goddess?¡±


    Hyrestia looked at her with an unexpected feeling, knowing she would surprise her just as Karia did in her place. ¡°This can be done, although it can only be done with Jilliace and Jolen brought here. Mizutaka is already of god blood, as you may not have known yet.¡±


    Kari was sure that she¡¯d seen him as a human just like her, but there were always more things she¡¯d known to keep learning over time. This fact alone was simply accepted in her heart, as she already felt a deep connection as family with Mizutaka. Though the question to have Jilliace and Jolen to become a god and goddess as well would mean finding Jolen. Kari always had a caring soul, thinking of others in everything she did, even if those others did not think of her the same. Jolen was an example of this, he did not have much care and attention on anyone else unlike the rest of the family, but Kari accepted him as is. They had grown up together and created a stronger bond than Jilliace had at the time. Kari decided to make a deal with Queen Hyrestia; to find Jolen within a week¡¯s time and then to bring him to the glimmering forest with Jilliace. Then, only after this, Hyrestia would fulfill this gift offering to all three. Kari left the glimmering forest with another quest in mind, to find Jolen.


    ¡°Filphen, do you have anything on his last sighting?¡± Kari walked throughout the office, writing inside a notebook. ¡°The last thing we need is another slip.¡±


    Rol spoke in his place, holding a stack of books and scrolls Kari placed in his arms. ¡°Lady Kari¡­ Filphen has gone out to retrieve your other stack-¡± He adjusted the grip in his arms, barely holding everything up correctly.


    ¡°Oh, of course, I forgot.¡± Kari sighed and looked worryingly towards Rol. She took a few things from him, relieving the weight.


    ¡°Ah-¡± Rol almost tried to take back the scrolls as respect for her kindness, but there was still too much he held in his arms to reach. ¡°Lady Kari-¡±


    ¡°I would rather take this from you then to see your struggle.¡± Kari slightly laughed as she held books and scrolls in her hands without trouble. ¡°As much as I am busy, I still care.¡±


    Rol softly smiled as his heart was touched by Kari''s words. Filphen rushed inside, panting and gasping for air as he also held books and scrolls in his arms. Rol and Kari slightly stared as he barely walked toward her desk, gently placing down each book and scroll. It took a moment for him to catch his breath until finally speaking. Although just before he opened his mouth, a horn was heard from outside. Kari quickly walked over to her window curtains, pushing them aside to see what looked like a small feat of men riding on white horses. There were about six horses on the side and 2 in the middle that wore gold plating. On top of the horses with gold plating were men with gold armor, showing their high status compared to the rest of the men on the sides. Kari looked closer to notice that one of them had pale skin and dark hair. Recalling back to a few books she had read, even seeing drawings with very detailed descriptions on specific people, he looked very familiar. This individual looked very identical to who was named Osamu, 1<sup>st</sup> prince of Flarice Kingdom. Of course, these books and scrolls that Karia left behind had every important person in time. Though, Kari did not know why they were there until Lillian calmly walked inside to let her know. She had told them that this was an unplanned visit by the 1<sup>st</sup> Prince himself. Kari was slightly surprised and quickly asked Rol and Filphen to stop with the books and scrolls. She rushed out of the room with Lillian, meeting Jilliace out in the hallway. The three helped adjust themselves to look presentable as they walked together. From the top to down the stairs, Kari made sure she looked tidy in the mirrors they passed on the way.


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    ¡°Apologies for not looking very presentable for you, your highness¡­¡± Kari did a proper curtsy and bowed as they slowly walked inside, entering through the large front entrance. Her long dark hair was let down to hang near her waist, showing great length and beauty.


    The prince slightly looked around the room but then fully noticed Kari as she lifted her head to him. His heart almost skipped a beat, and his steps became hesitant as the gap between them slowly thinned away. He stopped just far enough to see everyone else at her side, feeling something was a bit odd. Due to the slightly dark atmosphere, the prince realized that something happened while they were away. They had introduced themselves has the prince and explained that there was a long war that went on for years. Kari had never personally met this prince, but she knew many things that were to happen to him throughout his future ruling, at least what would be possible. Kari introduced herself in a formal and respectful way as to say that she was the new household leader.


    ¡°New?¡± The prince''s eyes slightly widened, and his voice held a hint of trembling. ¡°Karia has passed on¡­?¡±


    ¡°¡­ Yes.¡± Kari responds in a pensive way, almost conflicted at the thought. ¡°There has been many things going on throughout the household these rough years.¡±


    ¡°¡­¡± The prince was still in shock of this newfound information. His relationship with Karia Shiarama was as strong as a bond among family. This was heartbreaking to hear let alone see clearly that it may as well be true.


    Through the years Karia had let the prince visit on his own accord due to the allied relations with his crowned parents at the time. Karia was seen as a sunflower to all, especially since it was her favorite flower to use in decorating and plating at the family garden. Her impact on others was strong, including the four whom she¡¯d raised as her own children. Kari was a perfect example of this great impact. The fact that she and the others were not blood related to Karia was already known, especially with how their visible genetics are not very common around those parts. The prince continued to stand there, attempting to process this as the time passed. The guards who followed behind felt the sorrow that which he felt in this moment. Kari looked to Lillian and gestured to lead the rest of the explanation behind Karia¡¯s death. With the knowledge that Kari was given the last of her magical ability, that was what lead to her early death. Karia had known she did not have much time left to live in that world and so she had helped unlock the greater ability with magic in Kari¡¯s body, leading to her becoming the rightful stronghold of the house. The prince was still slightly struck by Kari¡¯s beauty as his attention lingered over her. Lillian decided to lead the guards who stood further behind to a guest room. The prince and the other who stood next to him with golden armor were left with Kari in the entry room. Kari guided them to a different room to continue their conversation, leading the head maid to follow along.


    ¡°I know we were never able to formerly meet throughout the years behind.¡± The prince lightly lowered his head and bowed to Kari. ¡°Though, I must admit you caught me by complete surprise.¡±


    Kari watched his head lift up to her, seeing the prince have a slightly unexpected look across his face. In the silence of the room, only the clanging of his armor was heard and the sound of the elder clock in the background. ¡°Your highness-¡±


    ¡°Please, Miss Kari.¡± The prince quickly interrupted her, eager to suggest something else. ¡°I would rather you call me by my name; Osamu.¡±


    ¡°¡­ Osamu, I do not understand what you mean by surprise.¡± Kari quietly sighed in this little change of atmosphere, feeling something odd with the prince¡¯s presence. ¡°Is it due to the fact that I have now been presented to you as the new leader of the household?¡±


    ¡°Well, now, that is surely one reason. Although, you surprised me by your beauty, Miss Kari.¡± The prince gave off a subtle smile that showed no mal intent behind it. ¡°How would you like to become a lady-in-waiting?¡±


    Kari almost blankly stared at the prince and thought to herself that the prince was cleverly intuitive. Any lady would dream of having the chance to become the queen if it meant lounging around, married to an attentive husband. Kari was not the same, she was taught by the best that not all things in life may lead to your truest needs. ¡°I am honored you think that way, but I must regretfully decline this offer.¡±


    The prince sighed and accepted this with another smile. ¡°You do exceed my expectations, Lady Kari. I do understand you would not think much of this today because the proposal was so sudden, but I assure you that this offer stands for many years from now. This may even come from another prince or even one who has been already crowned by then, your mere presence is unmatched by the highest of highs.¡±


    ¡°What exactly are you implying, pri- Osamu¡­?¡± Kari thought of this for a moment, trying to figure out what the prince could be talking about. She had been fully aware that this would be a one in a lifetime opportunity, but she is then hearing that this would come far more often than expected. She did not have any interest in developing such relationships with royalty, only those that which keep a common allied interest.


    ¡°What I am implying is...¡± The Prince took two steps towards Kari and slowly stopped to look into her eyes. ¡°You have stolen my heart, lady Kari. I am simply giving you this proposal as a way of saying ¡®I was the first to recognize such beauty¡¯.¡±


    Kari slightly leaned her head toward him as she noticed his humble but proud expression as he spoke. ¡°Osamu, I take it this would mean I am a sort of prize in a game, is it not?¡± She gestured to the head maid, waving her hand to bring refreshments for them.


    The other who was in gold armor simply spectated on this conversation just until Kari had last spoken. They stared at her with a hinted glance for a moment just before looking toward the paintings as the prince noticed their stare. The prince turned to them and decided to finally introduce this mystery person to Kari as they stood. This was Osamu¡¯s dearest friend, in safety of their identity he referred to him as his nickname, ¡°Blondie.¡± Kari recognized why the nickname matched due to the barely visible blonde strands of hair peeking out the back of his helmet.


    ¡°Welcome, you may sit as the refreshments are brought by the maids.¡± Kari went and sat in a couch.


    The head maid came back with another, holding a tray full of tea and sugar. Then Kari gestured them to take the tea cups after they were placed down onto the coffee table in front of the three. They sat and watched as the maids helped pour the tea, giving them their cups. Blondie refused to drink this tea, seeing how they¡¯d rather kept their helmet on than to reveal their face. Kari held this as a mystery but accepted it even if it was as it had been. Osamu sipped on his tea and proceeded to continue the conversation. Later on Kari had finally become more familiar with the prince, having happily said goodbye as they left the household grounds. Jilliace followed Kari around as she was looking through files that Rol brought from Filphen. He was resting from the continuous searching for Kari, as Rol followed alongside Jilliace, the searching had finally come to an end. Kari looked at the files and immediately stopped walking, making the other two bump into each other.


    ¡°Kari¡­?¡± Jilliace picked her own papers up from the floor that were dropped in the process. ¡°Is everything alright¡­?¡±


    Kari stared deep into the paper and looked as if she were darting her eyes into it. Rol noticed as he helped Jilliace with her papers. ¡°Finally¡­.¡± Kari turned to them both, looking down. ¡°He finally found Jolen.¡±


    ¡°Filphen found him?¡± Rol quickly stood, rising with Jilliace. ¡°Where is he now???¡±


    Kari grinned, looking straight towards him, ¡°Hiding out near the glimmering forest.¡± She¡¯d almost immediately shown a full smile, looking proud at this new information.


    As the day went forward, Filphen and Rol guided the way once more towards the glimmering forest. It had already been about more than half a week¡¯s time to fulfil this offer, but it was perfect, nonetheless. Kari had Jilliace follow along to complete this offer in full. The search continued as they were guided towards the grounds around the glimmering forest. Rol separated with Jilliace, and Filphen was with Kari. The four wandered in this stretched search for Jolen. The day felt longer than most but Kari and Filphen had finally found a small, structured hut in the distance. This was about a long 300 steps into the side of the forest grounds. Jolen was also seen in the distance, standing as he placed laundry out on a large branch.

 Vol. 1 | Chapter 7: The Truth, The Future (Part 2)

    In the eyes of whom accepted many, Kari simply stared as a wash of relief flushed over her body. She then slowly walked closer, letting this feeling subside. The mere sight of her brother had brought her near tears. It was obvious that she hadn¡¯t seen him in such a long time. Filphen followed behind, continuing to walk along with Kari. Though, it came to his attention that not only Jolen had been there, but there were also clothes that he recognized to be from Louis. Of course, Kari had never met Louis, but Jilliace had told everything about him later on after Karia¡¯s passing. With the strong warning from their mother, Kari attempted to reason with Jilliace that Louis was a bad man. Although Kari felt a sudden grab from Filphen, looking back in great confusion. Filphen simply stared at the clothes in fear, tightly gripping onto Kari¡¯s wrist. She recognized this and immediately stopped walking, slowly turning her head back to face Jolen, who had vanished. Her eyes widened as she felt a cold chill rush down her spine. Her body shivered, realizing this feeling was not that of a normal state, but of a vampire. Filphen quickly ducked and pulled Kari down with him, falling onto the ground. A sharp swing was heard in the air above them and a shadow peered down. Kari looked up to see Louis, a man who was still only heard of from Jilliace and a great warning from Karia. The hooded figure that was to be him, crouched to stare her down, along with Filphen.


    ¡°What are you pests doing in my territory?¡± He snarled at the two, with a very intimidating stare. ¡°The only ''human'' I should be smelling is Jolen, but I smell one of the witch¡¯s dogs and his pathetic little sister!¡±


    Kari quickly turned her body toward Filphen, rolling as she barely dogged his second swing. Louis was too much for the both of them to handle, yet Kari had something in mind that would help. She thought back to the times she had dedicated to reading about spells and their incantations. With this knowledge she had attempted to use magic back then, but now was her true test in defense. Kari plucked out two flowers from the ground and almost immediately blew them into Louis¡¯ face, creating a burning sensation to flow in the wind. Filphen watched as the air became a sudden patch of flames, burning the flowers, along with Louis. Kari had proceeded to sit there, processing what she¡¯d just done, but Filphen yanked her arm to quit this frozen state of hers. The two rose from the ground, watching Louis fall as his screams echoed throughout the forest. As the evening continued, Jilliace heard the screams from far away. In the heat of panic, she recognized it as Louis, knowing this; she ran.


    ¡°Lady Jilliace!¡± Rol ran after her, confused as to why she was going after the sounds of danger. ¡°Lady Jilliace, Wait!¡±


    ¡°Louis!¡± Jilliace yelped out as her legs acted on their own, speedily running into the horrifying view. ¡°¡­ Louis¡­?¡±


    ¡°AAAHHHGGG!¡± Louis was seen rolling around into the dirt, putting out this sudden fire that continued to burn his regenerating flesh. Louis¡¯ breaths were short, panting each time before another scream exited his painful lungs.


    As Jilliace wanted to run once more, a quick grab from behind stopped her entirely. Rol pulled her back, running the opposite direction where Kari and Filphen had been hidden. Jilliace looked back as she was involuntarily running away from the one who she felt a deep connection to, desperate to see him after so long. Although that feeling of her¡¯s changed in such a short period, she felt a sudden dread flush over as Louis was seen again in the distance. His face of course was back to normal, but the expression was of a murderous rage. Jilliace, instead of leaning forward, she attempted to back away, pulling the others as well. She had grabbed their attention, unaware that Louis was then running over to the four. Kari quickly turned and held her arms up, creating a tall and wide pink tinted wall to separate them from Louis. They were still able to see each other due to the little transparency. Their voices were also very clear to be heard from each side, all four hearing Louis cursing them out. His face and actions still shown the great contrast between them as his eyes darted each of them, especially Jilliace.


    ¡°You are probably just like your sister, a witch¡­ but how is she the one with more power over you?¡± Louis slowly grinned as his hand pounded onto the wall once more. ¡°You have no power, do you? The mere fact that you cower behind the others is proof enough, like another pest.¡±


    Jilliace turned away, in great shame of herself. Rol and Filphen looked at her, watching tears fall down her cheeks and felt the shaking against their shoulders. Kari continued to look at Louis, keeping her arms high up, to not diminish the sort of sheild. ¡°Where is Jolen?!¡± Kari yelled out, barely catching Louis¡¯ attention. She repeated her words and finally was finally faced as she stood to his level.


    ¡°Jolen is on his way to join my clan, while I stall you all from bringing him to the imaginary goddess, he doesn¡¯t need to know she exists.¡± Louis grinned even more, creating a villainous smile to grow on his face. ¡°I heard all about your plan to make him a god, it¡¯s futile, he would never meet up to your expectations. I will make sure of that.¡±


    ¡°You are wrong about my brother!!¡± Kari yelled, furious that her own blood was spat on by a vampire. ¡°You know nothing but hatred and despair! If you had ought to love my sister, you should preach your love instead of ridicule her like you see us all as swine.¡±


    ¡°Of course I do, which is why all is set in stone¡­¡± Louis backed away with a large grin flowing throughout his smile.


    ¡°¡­. No!¡± Kari then realized that behind Louis was a figure that had the shape of her brother but the fangs of a vampire.


    As Louis backed off, Jolen walked to the four still behind the wall. Kari trembled in the sight of this, had her brother not been the one she would see this differently, unfortunately it was so. Still within the grounds of the glimmering forest; the air thickened with magical lights while the sky grew dim. The moon-lit the trees and the howls of the wind swept by just as Kari¡¯s magic began to fail her. She trembled and even Jolen noticed the wall slowly vanishing. Although, before anyone had been able to continue, they had all been frozen as a light descended from the sky. A calming and familiar voice was heard, feeling a soft touch behind Kari¡¯s back. She was then able to move again but the touch calmed her body, feeling at peace rather than with fear. Jolen had been touched the same and the confusion in his body was taken away. He could see clearly once more as the vampire blood had been cured out by the goddess herself. Hyrestia was seen above, by the turned heads of Kari and Jolen, she spoke to them with grace and care. Kari knew what she¡¯d been speaking of, but Jolen was still confused and questioned her existence. The offer still stood of course, and Kari explained this as plainly as she could.


    ¡°Opinions, Brother?¡± Kari finished off her fill, letting Jolen decide their fate.


    It took him a moment to fully sink in this situation, though he eventually came to a sure conclusion. ¡°I do not see why we should¡­ but there must be a meaning behind this happening, so I will go along with this. If it means doing the work of gods, then let this blessing be fulfilled.¡±


    Kari¡¯s face beamed with a smile of pure joy, as Jilliace¡¯ had done the same after the goddess unfroze her. With Jolen back, Hyrestia proceeded to fulfil the offer she gave upon the three together. Jolen was first, as the goddess tapped his forehead, his body levitated off the ground and shined in a golden light. Then Jilliace right after, tapped and levitated with a deep blue light. Kari stared in awe, awaiting her turn, but Hyrestia told her to wait, for she was the last and most special for this event. Jolen¡¯s clothes were then changed like magical liquid forming into his skin, he was let down to the ground. He was then wearing a long black button coat with golden lining. It was very out of their usual medieval style but then Jilliace was let down as well. Her clothes had been transformed into a long dark blue dress imbedded with multiple light roses from the ground up. It was beautiful, but then Kari and Jolen noticed that her hair was also the same color. Their hair was normally too frizzy to handle as well, but her hair had been placed into straightened curls, along with Jolen. His hair was shorter, yet it looked straight, like the women with long blonde hair at the churches. Hyrestia then went over to Kari, shrinking herself to fit the height of a human. She slowly walked over to Kari as her long flowing dress passed the other two. Still, there were Rol and Filphen watching in their frozen states, even Louis from a safe distance. As soon as Hyrestia¡¯s finger tapped Kari¡¯s forehead, her mind went blank and was slowly filled with multiple of visions and memories that were not her own. Her eyes immediately shut as others had seen her body floating in the air in a strong pink light. This was oddly overwhelming at first until her eyes opened once more. She felt at peace, her body seemed unchanged. She glanced to Jolen and Jilliace who were staring with shocked expressions. Hyrestia stood between them, smiling proud in her new look. She¡¯d then gestured her hands to create a mirror out of thin air, waving her hands toward Kari.


    This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    ¡°My¡­¡± Kari was too shocked to speak, as were the others. ¡°¡­ my¡­¡± She stared into the mirror, lightly touching her hair and skin.


    Kari trembled, still in awe of how different this made her. Her long black hair was no more, but a light pink color, even the same for her eyes. The dress the once wore was also gone, replaced by a beautiful white and pink gown, embedded with flowers as well. Then, Hyrestia had looked up to the sky, where the tree branches had covered. Pointing, she gestured as she spoke to the three.


    ¡°Your home is now up within the new council, yet I will not be able to guide you unless you are to contact me through the Glimmering Forest.¡± Hyrestia slowly lowered her arm and faced Kari, walking to her. The mirror vanished in front, and she gently held her hands. ¡°My mission for you is to follow the note your mother gave you, then you follow your heart after you begin.¡± Looking to the other two once more, to Jolen. ¡°Jolen, you are now the God of Destruction, your power is destruction itself, to tear away and manipulate objects you encounter. Jilliace, you are now the Goddess of Judgment, your power is to use your judgement to guide others into the right direction in life.¡± Then turning again to Kari, properly facing her. ¡°Kari, you are now the Goddess of Love, your power is within your heart. You control the fate of this universe and the people within it. The amount of power you wield is greater than the one who seeks to destroy us.¡± She continued to hold tightly onto Kari¡¯s hands.


    ¡°Destroy?¡± Kari quickly came back to her own senses. ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°The Goddess of Hate, Yushvi.¡± Hyrestia let out a long-disappointed sigh. ¡°With these powers I have given the three of you, you must keep guard and find a way to stop her from spreading her impurities. In truth, she had been the leader of the new council once, but then she was banished into her shadow realm, and still her plans are not foiled with.¡± Hyrestia¡¯s presence had almost looked shattering, slowly disappearing in their view. ¡°P-Plea- fulfil this- importan-¡±


    As quick as she came, she was gone, and the strong light from the sky had vanished as well. Leaving the others unfrozen, Rol and Filphen quickly stood to meet their eye level. They all turned to each other, still vaguely processing what had just happened. Kari sensed something was wrong as soon as she turned to them, then glanced everywhere else. Louis was then nowhere to be seen. She attempted to look behind her again, and had seen him in a flash, jumping onto her back. She felt a strong sense of pain in her neck as Louis dug his fingers into her shoulders. Kari yelped in pain while Jolen almost instantly pulled him away, tossing his body into a tree trunk. Kari shuddered, kneeling to the ground as her hand made contact with the blood dripping down her neck. Her skin suddenly felt cold, trembling as she felt others helping her stay standing. Louis was known to be very contentious during his time throughout the years spent together with Jolen and Jilliace, though this was far from it. Jolen was very angered with seeing his youngest sister in such a painful state, remembering Louis doing the exact same to him. He attempted to make Kari a vampire if not Jolen, seeing that she was much more important now that the Goddess had chosen her to change the fate of the world. Though this simply did not affect Kari as much as expected. She was healing a lot quicker than anyone had anticipated, easily rising along with the arms that held her up. The blood that was drizzling alongside her neck had quickly run dry, and her pierced skin seeped up the blood, closing the wound on its own. The others simply stared as her eyes widened and her body felt even lighter than before.


    ¡°Jolen, brother, let him go.¡± Kari stared at the two as they were still at the tree, Jolen keeping Louis pinned down. ¡°I can take him.¡±


    ¡°No, he hurt you.¡± Jolen¡¯s voice groveled at the topic and began to choke Louis as he was barely able to breath in his grasp.


    Kari proceeded to quickly walk towards the two and placed her hand over Jolen¡¯s shoulder. Her grip was slightly firm as Jolen realized that she was very serious about this. He then released his hands from Louis, allowing Kari to get closer. Louis could finally breathe once more, panting as his body was slowly falling to the ground, but stopped by Kari¡¯s hands holding his head. Louis was too exhausted from the impact of Jolen, then having to deal with Kari as well was even more excruciating, even while she was slightly squeezing his cranium. Louis placed his hands where hers were, trying to pull them away. Kari began to mumble another incantation as his head felt like it was heating up. Louis realized this quickly, even trying more to move around, bringing her arms up. Kari held a firm grasp as she continued the incantation, proceeding to slowly burn him, digging into his skull. Louis yelped and screamed out in indescribable pain. Kari simply stared into his bulging eyes as he continued to express his immensely painful experience. With this suspicion of Louis¡¯ weakness, it was confirmed that fire had been correct. Kari¡¯s eyes herself had gone fully pink, glowing because of the amount of magic being used with the intent to kill. Filphen quickly noticed this and called out to Kari, attempting to stop this. Although he did not know what Kari had recently learned about Louis. Due to the darkness of his attire, it was easy to guess that he was not that of a normal person, more of a dark and entitled being, a vampire at best guess. Vampires were not known to be out in the bright light of course, Louis had royal blood, meaning he was capable of being exposed to the sun and to make any other race into a vampire. What Louis did to have angered Kari so much was far more troubling to herself than the others had expected. Filphen continued to speak to Kari, knowing she was not even listening. Kari¡¯s attention was glued to murdering Louis, to finally take revenge.


    ¡°Kari!¡± Jolen yelled out her name, grabbing her arms and pulling her away from Louis¡¯ almost burnt head. The screams continued to escape Louis even after all the pain he was enduring.


    ¡°He must die for what he did to our family!¡± Kari¡¯s strength was barely able to keep her from detaching off of Louis. ¡°He is the reason why we were put as slaves.¡± With each sentence Kari increased the input in her magic, worsening the burns. ¡°He is the reason why Mother¡¯s father was killed and the reason why the rest of our deceased aunts were never to be known!¡± Although her magic was strong, Kari was getting overwhelmed with this, even lightheaded due to overexerting her powers. ¡°I must¡­ take¡­¡±


    Filphen immediately leaped and tackled Kari, rolling their bodies onto the side of the tree. She was finally at her peak of exhaustion, unable to resist their attempts to stop her. Jolen looked at the two on the ground and then back to Louis, who was still screaming, but finally healing as he squat down towards the ground. He panted and took deep breaths, grinning as he looked up to Jolen, rising from his temporary deduction of movement.


    ¡°You are probably thinking that I deserved that, only if you¡¯d been able to do it yourself.¡± He let out a chuckle and switched his attention toward Jilliace. ¡°Do you still think you are worthy of being here, or do you want to go and cry like you¡¯d done not too long ago?¡± He wiped away at his face, waiting for the top of his head to continue regenerating.


    ¡°Jilliace has already recognized the demon that derives from you and your wicked bloodline. I pray that we never meet again after this¡­¡± Jolen closed his eyes for a moment and held his hand up, facing his palm to Louis. ¡°But you have done enough damage to my plans.¡± Jolen opened his eyes to see a satisfying sight, Louis with a gaping hole in his stomach and the tree behind him.


    Jilliace stared in utter shock and disbelief, stepping backwards and turning her body. Kari was still pinned by Filphen, unable to move regardless of him stopping her. Filphen himself turned to see what the sudden crackling noise to see the same sight of Louis, then falling to his side. Rol, behind everyone reacted the same and kept quiet as they had seen Louis slowly look at Jolen and then barely walking away, just behind the trees. The day began as a search to find Jolen and ended in the witness of Louis be freed by him, even as the enemy. They had spent hours outside within the glimmering forest, letting themselves rest before heading anywhere so soon. Kari was able to rest against a tree and woke up with the same memory of Louis, as she had eventually passed out after Filphen tackled her. She gasped for air as her heart raced at the thoughts running around her mind. The others had seen her rise from the rough and cursed look she had on her face. Jilliace ran over, helping her up, worried why her skin looked so pale as well.


    ¡°Kari¡­¡± Jilliace touched her forehead after getting her to barely stand straight. She gasped and turned to the others, with no response from Kari. ¡°She has a high fever! Please, we must go back to the manor!¡±


    Jolen shot up from his sitting area and refrained himself from walking to the two. ¡°We¡­ are not humans anymore, Jilliace. Do you remember that the Goddess told us that our homes lie within the heavens now.¡± He turned to the other two who had stuck around with their loyalty. ¡°Rol, Filphen, you must return and let the others know about this.¡±


    ¡°But, Jolen.¡± Rol stepped forward, trying to make sense of everything. ¡°We cannot return without any of you. It would be defying the laws of our loyalty seal, especially to Kari. You understand that she is still the lead Lady within the Shiarama household. We can only agree to returning with Kari.¡±


    ¡°I can return¡­¡± Kari¡¯s voice was dry and quiet until she was able to raise her head, finally looking at the two. ¡°We will all return to the manor, and¡­ rest¡­¡± Just until her last words, Kari had yet again fallen unconscious.


    Jolen sighed and walked to her, letting Jilliace release her as Kari was picked up by him. They went back to their horses and carried each other back to the main manor, allowing Kari¡¯s body to properly rest. Yet again with these strange appearances, the household servants were given rumors to spread. They all gathered in wonder and concern for what could have happened to the three, questioning both Rol and Filphen. Rol would have spoken the most on the part, but Filphen suggested to keep quiet about it unless Kari allowed it to be known. Jolen felt odd to be back in the main house, looking at his oddly clean room. The servants were continuously dusting and organizing every nook and cranny of the manor, so it was not exactly surprising in the least. Although, the memories of his separated family did nag at his heart, wondering why he had the itching notion to leave in the first place. What Kari also mentioned about Louis having such impacts on the family bloodline also made him think thoroughly, because he¡¯d already known them to be true. Jolen spent his time in study, almost locked inside his own room to focus on his new powers as a god. Jilliace spent her personal time within Kari¡¯s room, helping keep watch along with Lillian taking care of her fever. The night seeped in cold, and they would all remember this day, the beginning of their new lives as part of the God race.

 Vol. 1 | Chapter 8: Heavenly Beginnings

    ¡°Jolen, Kari has not gotten any better and it has been several days.¡± Jilliace panicked and paced about the room. ¡°I do not know what it is that has her so sick either¡­¡±


    ¡°His fangs.¡± Jolen glanced up at her from his book he was studying, bothered by her. ¡°She is sick with an illness that comes from his fangs.¡±


    Jilliace stopped to listen to his words, even if she was greatly confused. ¡°What do you mean¡­?¡±


    Jolen fully placed down his book and brought his body facing Jilliace. ¡°Recall back to the moment Kari had Louis in a hell blazing lock, remember what she said he did to our family. He is the reason for all the deaths Karia had to have gone and witnessed long before we came.¡± He crossed his arms and stared at Jilliace, waiting for her to click with this information.


    ¡°Then, the servants in this household should know about the medicine!¡± Jilliace gasped and turned to leave the room, but then Lillian unexpectedly entered, stopping her. ¡°Lillian?¡±


    ¡°Pardon me for the interruption, Jilliace, Jolen.¡± Lillian bowed her head and then, gracefully lifted it as her hands brought out a small bag. ¡°I suppose this is what you may be referring to.¡± She then proceeded to open it, showing a small pile of thin golden flakes.


    ¡°As expected, Lillian.¡± Jolen walked over and opened the door of his room. ¡°Get as many as you have from the medical storage and have the nurse give Kari 3 flakes a day. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner, if she does not fulfil this requirement, I will have her killed myself.¡± He then left the room, off to his own activities outside near the gardens.


    Lillian went along with this and notified the nurse and the other medical seniors who worked inside the household, along with the rest of the servants. This reassured that each of them had a role to keep Kari from succumbing to this illness they so painfully recognized. Jolen was fully aware of how the servants in the past let the other family members die due to the lack of medicine to give around, thus his threat had meaning. Over days and weeks, Lillian continued to keep watch over the routine each servants contributed to taking care of Kari, watching her health greatly improve much quicker than any other. It would normally take months for one to recover from the illness, but Kari¡¯s healing factors were heavily increased after the blessing from Queen Hyrestia.


    ¡°Out.¡± Kari turned her head toward the slowly opening door. ¡°Now.¡± With a sudden angered glare, she sat on her bed in a sour mood. She had just woken up from what felt like a long month of internal suffering.


    The maid who stood at the door slowly backed away, following along with her orders and closing it. Kari sat there alone and sighed, wondering how long she had really been stuck in that room. Then more struck her mind, that she may have forgotten about finishing off Louis. Kari immediately sought out to finish what she¡¯d started, as she fell and tumbled onto the floor. The hard wooden floor, she groaned in pain as she was still unable to move her body. This obviously created such a loud thud that people began to worry. Jilliace quickly entered the room to see Kari lying on the floor, barely curled up but still in great pain. She tried picking her up, but Rol joined in time to help as they placed her back on the bed, concerned as to why she was trying to leave so abruptly. They insisted that she stayed in bed to rest longer. Kari was urging to leave to the glimmering forest where Hyrestia would be waiting. With this, Jilliace continued to beg of her, making sure that she rested enough.


    ¡°I will not stay in this decrepit bed!¡± Kari yelled and lashed out at her, knowing well that there was no other place for her to be. ¡°Queen Hyrestia turned us into ones of the God race, I must go and-¡± Kari¡¯s throat had been caught up in a dry cough. Her throat felt like it was burning, and she curled up once more, showing that she was still not completely cured from this fever.


    ¡°Rol, quickly! The medicine!¡± Jilliace attempted to hold Kari back, keeping her steady.


    Rol followed and took a flake, sprinkling it into a cup of cool water. The pieces dissolved and he carefully brought the cup to Kari¡¯s mouth, letting her drink it. Kari¡¯s cough calmed down and she was set back to resting peacefully in her bed. Although it only took a few hours after this medicine kicked in, Kari was finally able to get out of the bed. Lillian entered the bedroom and helped Kari into the washroom and dressed in time for dinner. Everyone was gathered at the dining room, sitting at the table. Jolen had unexpectedly shown even though he was normally out during the evenings. The three were finally together again, at the same time. Ever since Karia¡¯s passing there was almost never a chance of having even the slightest meal together, but that changed¡­ temporarily.This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.


    ¡°I will be leaving to the Glimmering Forest by the morning.¡± Kari spoke as she finished her plate. The others stared at her, confused but then not, knowing that she would either way. ¡°I do not care if you join me, but I recommend it.¡±


    As he left, his words echoed the room until the doors were shut. The dining room atmosphere felt icky, and Kari decided to return to her quarters. As the time passed, Lillian stayed by her side, as did Rol and Filphen within her office, organizing books and scrolls. Kari sat at her desk, looking at the files laid out for her to stamp. ¡°What shall I do?¡± Everyone slowly stopped and placed things down, Lillian approached her at the desk and put a book down.


    ¡°I recommend that you go to the Glimmering Forest and let the whispers guide you, Lady Kari.¡± Lillian¡¯s dark purple hair had sparkled in the subtle moonlight. The light from the window bounced off her eyes as well, making them look like dazzling indigo marbles. ¡°Whatever they or the goddess speak of; you must follow.¡± Her words were informant and slightly soothing to the ears.


    Kari sighed and nodded along with this as the night creeped in, allowing the others to head to rest. Though, she roamed inside the library, scanning through the books and scrolls that Karia had laid out for her. There were sections that had been the scrolls of time and the regular books that told information on important figures throughout time. Of course, Kari had already read through most of these in order to keep herself knowledgeable in such terms, there was only one that she had not found, that was hidden away even from herself. With scanning finished, Kari headed back to her own chambers to rest for the coming morning. The new day sprung each of them along with the sun still hidden. Jolen prepared the wagon to carry the group, seeing that there would be many more than just the three of the siblings. Lillian, Rol, and Filphen tagged along as emergency aid and to continue their loyal duties until the bitter end. Rol and Filphen were sitting in the front to steady the horses while the others sat inside the wagon, planning everything out. While Kari and the two would leave, the household would be left unattended. If the goddess allows, they should freely continue leading the household throughout the years in secret. Thus, she did, once they arrived, everything was set in place. Hyrestia spoke individually with Kari, then with Jolen and Jilliace.


    ¡°Now that you finally know the way to your heavenly realms, you may freely explore and continue the mission to protect the multiverse from Yushvi.¡± Hyrestia let her form take that of a human to fit their size again. ¡°I trust that you all can navigate through the council as well.¡± She took a moment and glanced at the other three, taking note of them. ¡°You are also allowed to decide what you may do in their absence. Please, come closer, Lillian.¡± Lillian gracefully strode over to the Hyrestia with her head lowered and did a curtsy in respect. ¡°Yes, your majesty.¡± She then looked up with bright eyes and a bold look on her face. Hyrestia gestured to her and waved her hands to reveal a mark on her face. ¡°Lillian is a descendant of Yushvi, the Goddess of Hate, the one who wishes to control and destroy the multiverse.¡± Everyone became slightly skeptical of this, especially Jolen who gave a bitter expression. ¡°Although, she may be in that bloodline, there had always been a parting. Those who were of the Kloray surname followed under her rule, yet those of the Holik surname, such as Lillian is, work to fight against Yushvi. The loyalty she brings to us is unbreakable, please do not think she is ever plotting your downfall.¡± Hyrestia then hovered her hand over her head, revealing Lillian¡¯s true form. She looked and worked as a nanny would to the siblings but seeing her then would change their perspective. She was more of a beautiful young lady, in a maid¡¯s dress no less. ¡°I am formally known as Lily Holik; the twin sister of Griffin Holik. The two of us have been separated into each household manor.¡± She lightly bowed her head and spoke once more as Hyrestia swirled her hands and created a combination of colors swarming into what looked like a person walking out. It was a young man who looked about the same age and the exact same facial features but more masculine. This was Griffin, Lily¡¯s twin brother she had mentioned. ¡°I am pleased to meet you, Jolen Juvuen, my new master.¡± He kneeled in front of Jolen and lowered his head. Lily had followed and kneeled to Kari, ¡°We are at your services as of now. In the name of the Shiarama and Juvuen household, let the eternity ahead of you be fulfilled.¡± Hyrestia watched proudly as the two did their part. Jilliace watched in slight distance, feeling a pang of sadness. Hyrestia calmly hovered over to her, resting a hand to her shoulder. ¡°You will have an assistant once you reach your heavenly realm.¡± A smile was softly spread across her face as she lightly went back to her original place. ¡°As my time slowly seeps into the universe¡¯, I must take my leave to the first world of Dystrogelia. I trust that you may be guided by your new assistants to the heavenly realms that were assigned to you.¡±


    A sparkling light had spread across her body, and she flew up into the sky, dispersing into a shimmering rain. The two newly elected assistants went towards the stones and rested their hands to create the portal to their heavenly realm. ¡°Please, enter.¡± The twins spoke in unison as they gestured towards the swirling colors that gathered. With the thought on their minds, the three siblings finally entered the portal. They will continue this mission to save the universe alongside their mother in spirit.

 Vol. 1 | Chapter 9: Helpless Corruption

    As they manage to find their way to the heavenly realms, they are formally introduced to the second council. The first to meet the three is God Master Drofius, who seems well on the outside, but few can tell his intentions mean harm. There were many new members of the high council that replaced the past who were not included to the corruption. Cristen, the God of Healing; had been replaced by Frednil, the God of Mystery. He was a coolheaded kind of God, for most of the time. Flotic was not entirely replaced, but she was given the choice to reside inside her own heavenly realm; to continue guiding souls into reincarnation, not intercepting in the other worldly conflicts. Mariane, the second goddess of reincarnation took her place in the council as a sort of representative until Flotic would decide to return. Finally, the unknown god of infinity, Hoshflein, they had been missing from the council for a long while. There was many able to replace them, as all they did was guard the heavenly realms. No one knew the whereabouts of Hoshflein, nor would they ever come to, this was a slightly better outcome for the second council.


    Meanwhile, within the heavenly realms of the three siblings'', each had gotten familiar with their role they''d been given. Kari was now the ascended goddess of love; her job was to find a way to stop Yushvi''s continuous corruption and play her role to keep love and affection flowing through dystrogelia. "Lillia-" Kari quickly turned to see her new assistant standing at the doorway, awaiting her orders. "Lily." It felt unnatural to speak a name she was not as familiar with, yet she adjusted her posture as their eyes met. Lily bowed her head and looked up once more. "Yes?" There was a short silence in between their words, having an awkward motion through Kari''s movements as she walked around. "¡­ I am to guess that with these powers I have much work ahead of me. Though, I remember that the second council was corrupted." Kari stopped and glanced at Lily, expecting a quick answer from her. "How are the council members so constructed if the corruption was already spread so far? It''s almost as if there was nothing here to begin with." Kari stopped behind her desk as the office grew silent once more. She awaited as Lily began to finally speak, easing her curiosity. "This is all a rouse. Corruption was long due, all the gods and goddesses in this era have already been affected. Although, you, Jolen, and Jilliace, are of the only few -apart from the first Dystrogelia- who have not been touched by this corruption." Lily bowed as she finished speaking. Kari thought for a moment that this was useless, even if she was brought there to stop it. "What sense does that make? The others are much more powerful, why was I placed here to stop the council, to stop Yushvi?" She slowly sat down in her chair, rethinking everything she''d been told. Lily was told to leave her to ponder out the rambling thoughts, so she did. Kari questioned why Hyrestia would give her this power if she was only doomed to fail, there was nothing to consider if that were the case. She finally came to a resolve and decided to enter the heavenly library. It didn''t take long to find it; there was always a portal inside a personal realm to enter it. Within the library, there was an endless view of knowledge. It felt just like when Karia had left the library to her in the mansion. While looking through the books and scrolls, she found Jolen strolling along the library within the same section. It was an infinite library, but the two happened to be looking for the same information, or kind of. "Kari." Jolen slowly closed a scroll and placed it back. "Looking for information on the council as well?" His hands grabbed another and he walked towards her, tilting his head. "I get that you have a lot to be doing, but shouldn''t you be out there on Dystrogelia? There are the dark lands you could be exploring and ''purifying''." Kari turned to face Jolen, standing her ground. "I hope to gain knowledge on the council before the sudden corruption that Yushvi spread. I will be learning much more than simply walking my way into an unknown land." She brought herself back to looking through the shelves. Jolen slightly scoffed and left her to her business, leaving with the scroll he held as Griffin followed behind. Kari let out a sigh and continued, shifting around the shelves, reading every book and scroll that could spark any ideas.


    After several hours of searching, Kari had sat down with multiple books and scrolls in the library. The information was absolutely mind boggling, she learned about the original council''s powers and abilities, but mainly the second council''s absent gods. There was Flotic, Cristen, and Hoshflein, who were gone. Aside from the others who had either gone missing or fallen to corruption, there was Flotic, a living goddess who was in peace, furthest from the corruption all together. "Goddess of Reincarnation¡­ Wait." Kari''s eyes lit up as a thought came to her head. She quickly brought the books and scrolls to her office in her realm and called Lily. "Lily, I need you to take me to the Goddess who is representing Flotic." Lily heard and bowed as she guided the way towards a portal that led to the heavenly realm''s "sacred gates" that had the entrance to Flotic''s second realm. Once the two arrived, Kari gazed at the starry environment of the realm, scanning around the multiple galaxies which surrounded them. Then a voice of what seemed like a child''s began to speak. "What brings you here, goddess of love?" Kari and Lily faced the voice, it was a young-looking person who stood against a desk filled with scrolls. Their voice and appearance were both child-like, very unexpected. Kari made sure to keep herself focused on the situation at hand. "Are you the goddess who is representing Flotic?" Kari seemed slightly hesitant to assume such a thing but continued. "I was hoping to speak about getting in contact with Flotic." The person stared, almost as if searching for any sign of malice in her words. There was an odd tension between the look and confirmed that there was none, so she sighed. "Very well then. I am who you think, wait here." She walked away around a corner and decided to grab an orb, bringing it back to the two. "Do what you must." She simply tapped the orb and a tall woman in a lavish modest dress appeared. This was similar to Hyrestia''s way of contact as a hologram. Kari looked at her beauty and noticed Flotic''s head lowered to face her, she immediately bowed, so did Lily. Her graceful movements showered them both as Flotic kneeled, lifting their heads. "What is it that you need from me?" Flotic spoke within a monotone level and a hint of expression. Flotic gazed into Kari''s eyes as she saw through her soul, the one she did not recognize well. "¡­ Who are your parents?" Kari''s eyes slightly widened at the sudden question, unsure of what to answer. "Pardon, but I do not know who my parents were¡­" Kari''s words felt empty, like there was something missing. "You poor child." Flotic minimized her size and sat down on the orb, it was small, but she was simply hovering over it. "I was wrong to ask something rather than listen to your issue. Tell me, what is it that you seek?" Flotic tilted her head as she watched Kari rise from her spot. "I need to know if you knew anything about Yushvi before the corruption spread." Flotic leaned into Kari''s words as she finished, then spoke herself. "She was a tyrant, in search of a greater power. All this is hidden as the corruption continues, soon you too will forget." Kari was confused but she carefully listened to her words. "As the goddess of hate, darkness empowers her. She was the leader of the second high council, but I suppose you already knew." Flotic stopped speaking and noticed Kari''s face, her expression eager for input. Allowing her to speak, Kari was quick with her words. "What about stopping her? Have you ever tried to contact any of the other gods to do it?" This was where Flotic felt a sense of defeat, she let out a short sigh. "This is what goes in the heavenly realms now. Yushvi''s corruption seeped into this god generation. The power of our queen weakens, Hyrestia will disappear along with the rest of the ancient god race. I am only here now because Yushvi swore an oath to keep out of my business as the goddess of reincarnation. I will not interfere if her work does not disrupt my own." Kari''s eyes widened and she lowered her face, feeling helpless at the thought. Then her original idea sparked once more, allowing a flow. "Then, I have a favor to ask you." Kari went down on both of her knees, looking up to Flotic with desperation. "May you bless me with your powers to use my soul in the process of reincarnation?" She raised her hands up to the goddess, with sheer hope. The gesture had Flotic place her hands under. "I can bless you, but what you do with it is in your own power. The oath I share with Yushvi may be broken once I do. When I look at you; I see her in your eyes, a piece of her blood lived in you once." Flotic recognized that Kari was definitely strange and made sure she knew ahead of time. She concluded the rest of their talk and began to form a light in her hands, moving them to Kari''s head. "I give you this blessing, Kari, Goddess of Love, to strengthen your light as you go forward in your mission." The light flourish within Kari''s eyes, glowing golden as she looked around. The moment was bright and then it subsided into thin air, releasing a calm tension. "Now go, continue on your own before Yushvi chases after me in a few millenniums." Flotic faded away back into the orb below. As the time passed, Kari and Lily left, thanking the goddess in place, returning to her own realm. Her work had a kickstart, with the plan to use her blessing as a chance to grant the rest of her reincarnations the same magical abilities.Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.


    "You can do that?" Jolen slowly placed down a teacup to the side. He, Jilliace and Kari were sitting within a sunflower field in Kari''s heavenly realm. "Yes, I plan to reassure that even if I fail in this life, most of what''s left can transfer to the next. You should do the same if you plan to continue alongside me." Jolen stared in silence with a suspicious furrow between his brows. Kari sighed and took another sip of her tea. "It is only a suggestion, nothing more." Jilliace was silent as well, concerned for the information she''d just taken in. She knew this would lead to many complications with Kari''s future reincarnations. Jolen had taken his leave to the library once more and Jilliace stuck around for a moment longer. "Kari." The two sat across the table from each other, with a slightly odd pause. Kari looked to Jilliace, granting all attention. "Are you sure you should have told Jolen?" Jilliace simply stated what she thought, it was clear that between the two he wasn''t exactly one to be trusted. "Mother was in such a trifle of that sickness and not even Jolen came back to assist her. Can you not see that he is a lost cause?" Kari''s eyes faltered for a second and she spoke softly, unsure of herself. "It will be alright, as long as he can assist now, everyone deserves second chances." Jilliace let out a subtle sigh and left after another finished cup of tea. Her exit left a note to Kari saying that she should be more careful even around those she trusts. With this, Kari began her journey to use the powers given by Hyrestia and go back in time to find the prince. Her main mission was to save him from his predicted death. Without letting her brother and sister know, Kari left the heavenly realms, starting off in a small village near Flarice Kingdom.

 Vol 1 | Chapter 10: Devastating Reality

    ¡°Such a sweetheart you are, Miss Kari¡­¡± A kind elderly woman watched as Kari helped her move into her new house in the village. The elderly woman¡¯s name was Linf, and she was simply planning to visit her family who lived inside the Kingdom¡¯s main city. ¡°That¡¯s alright now, I can organize the rest.¡± Linf carefully began opening the smaller boxes and brought things out. Kari nodded and left, returning to her home inside the village. Inside, she only uses it as a cover to live near the kingdom, as most without much importance do. This was just a cover to help minimize any attention drawn to Kari and her mission. Occasionally, she made her way to the city and visited the kingdom¡¯s yearly celebrations to make sure she was near the royal family to gain connections. Her long pink hair definitely set off murmurs, yet she was made into such a model for it. She almost strayed away from the mission, gaining fame and money, until she was invited to a ball at the royal palace. ¡°Miss, you were invited by the queen as an offer to become the prince¡¯s betrothed!¡± Kari¡¯s messenger alerted her of the note that just came in. To Kari this was an outrageous offer, and yet it would also bring her closer to the prince. With this in mind, she prepared herself to later join the ball.


    Many of Kari¡¯s maids helped make her gorgeous, adding to the natural pink in her hair and eyes. Her gown was all white with a hint of pink lacing all around. It sparkled in the light from the multiple chandeliers and eyes quickly glanced toward her stride. The grace she had while entering simply allured everyone, even the royal family who sat from afar. Kari subtly glanced to the prince who shared the same look to her, and she gently bowed, continuing her walk across the ballroom. ¡°Miss Kari, wonderful to see you hear!¡± The sweet elderly woman from before had come up to her, wearing a rather lavish but simple dress. ¡°My, you look gorgeous.¡± She smiled and gently grabbed her hand, guiding Kari over to the table she was sitting at. ¡°Let me introduce you¡­¡± Kari stood there as Linf gestured around the table full of soft-looking elderly women. As she named each off, Kari noticed Prince Osamu walking nearby and her eyes slowly glide to him. She could tell he was leaving to the garden. Her body moved without thought as she followed him outside the ballroom. Although before she could get to the exit, a man with fiery red hair and eyes seemed to block her path. ¡°Following the prince?¡± He leaned into Kari¡¯s face as she backed away and kept her eyes on Osamu who was walking out of her reach. She attempted to walk around him, but the man moved in sync. ¡°Ah-a-a.¡± He shook his finger, against her pursuit. He held a grin on his face. ¡°Miss Kari, you wouldn¡¯t happen to have a certain interest in the prince, would you?¡± Kari looked down and noticed that the man was wearing a quite interesting style of formal clothing, much like pirates. Kari raised a brow and gently shook her head, looking up at the unknown man. ¡°I just so happen to be invited by the queen herself, she insists I am to be betrothed with the prince. Now, if you will excuse me¡­¡± Kari walked around and continued toward the prince, leaving the man in slight shock. Although, before Kari could get to the prince, she was frozen in her tracks. There seemed to be a hooded man draped under a long dark cape, hovering over the bloodied body on the ground, the prince. It was too dark to see his features that well, but his shimmering purple eyes were lit by the moonlight. Kari stopped breathing, her eyes watching the man pull out a dagger from his back. He noticed Her standing there and simply gave off a satisfied stretched-out grin. The hooded man speedily ran off as he quickly heard the people gathering. Kari was trembling and others behind slowly walked near the exit in curiosity, especially the red-haired man from before. They wondered why she was simply standing there, and each who saw yelped, screaming in agony. ¡°The prince! Oh¡­!¡± A woman screeched out just before fainting into her husband¡¯s arms. Chaos reigned over those who bore witness at such a scene. There was no more of that hooded man, he vanished just before any guards could spot him. Assassinated, it was declared that the prince was a main target, and next would be the rest of the royal family.


    Later that evening, the rest of the ball was shut down due to the prince¡¯s death. Kari made her way back to the cottage she lived inside the village outside the city. It was obviously frightening, but she persisted and took the chance to use an artifact to travel back in time. The garden, the ballroom, even in the most unexpected areas of the kingdom, there was no end to the death of Prince Osamu. Kari was drained, but she did not simply give up, time and time again, she went back. ¡°Miss Kari, thank you again, such a sweetheart.¡± Linf spoke these words in multiple ways. She made Kari realize the loop she had stuck herself inside. ¡°¡­¡± Kari gently placed the boxes down and stared at the brazen ground. She stood outside as the sun sprinkled through the trees of the village. ¡°Lady Linf, what would you do if you¡¯d been told to solve an impossible situation?¡± Her weary eyes dragged themselves to meet Linf¡¯s, with a hint of desperation. Linf seemed confused by this, and she slightly tilted her head. ¡°My¡­ what an interesting question¡­¡± She closed her eyes for a moment until opening her mouth and letting off a soft smile. ¡°For an answer, there is nothing. If it is impossible, why shove an attempt?¡± Kari¡¯s eyes narrowly looked into hers as she continued. ¡°Change the way you plan to ¡®solve¡¯ such a situation, maybe a different mindset may come in handy.¡± She clicked her tongue and strode over to the light small boxes. ¡°I hope whatever is troubling you may pass, Miss Kari, thank you for the help.¡± She lightly nodded her head and went inside. Kari later on returned to the heavenly realms in search of her brother, one of the cleverest people she knew. ¡°Save the prince¡­? You mean the one mother was fond of before she took us in?¡± Jolen watched Kari nod in response, and he laughed. ¡°What do you expect me to say? That prince means nothing to me.¡± Kari turned to the side and sighed, walking away. ¡°Where are you going?¡± Jolen slightly let off an annoyed tone. Kari stopped and Lilly stood after following behind. Her body barely faced him as she returned words. ¡°I apologize for asking for something that means so little to you. I will be out to see Jilliace instead.¡± The fading footsteps left the realm as the portal guided Kari out.


    Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    ¡°Jilliace, Sister.¡± Kari turned to her, sitting across the table for tea once more. ¡°Kari, I do not have the abilities to assist you. I am sorry.¡± Jilliace gently shook her head, placing down the teacup in hand. Kari let out a soft sigh and stood from the table. Jilliace subtly shot her head up, looking at her. ¡°Have you already tried with Jolen¡­?¡± She calmly rose from her seat and swayed over to her. The two of them both know that Jolen is never the best option, but he might as well be better than nothing. ¡°He already declined, telling me that it was nothing of his problem.¡± Then a sudden sound of soft cracking could be heard in the distance. The sisters turned to see their brother walking in through a portal. Kari looked to him, confused but also slightly hopeful. ¡°I may be able to help you. Since you are technically breaking the laws of the second council¡¯s heavenly realm, you need a cover.¡± Jolen took spaced steps, slowly walking closer. ¡°I can hide you from their radar until you manage to finish this mission of yours. That is all.¡± Jolen gave Kari a soft glare, even with a hint of remorse behind it. He crossed his arms and then looked off to the side, staring at the field of sunflowers, confirming that they were inside Kari¡¯s realm. Although it was not clearly shown, Kari¡¯s eyes lit up and a smile slightly creased the corners of her mouth. ¡°Thank you, Brother.¡±


    Then she finally departed off, returning to her mission. The same cottage, the same village, the same kingdom, Kari went back to start again. Even after countless attempts, Kari was near frustration. She sat in her small cottage and rummaged through her books and scrolls. Each from Karia¡¯s old office with all the information needed. There was everything, but nothing helped to prevent the prince¡¯s death. Once she¡¯d seen each way his death is played out, she keeps a record in a journal. This was inside a rose embroidered journal; the cover having been made of leather. Kari¡¯s craftmanship was decent enough to match her mother¡¯s. Over such a long period of time, Kari hadn¡¯t been able to come in contact with Queen Hyrestia. There was something wrong going on, but she continued. Along with the passing failed attempts, Kari¡¯s patience felt tested. Such trifling matters ate away at her soul, weaking her will to follow the mission. Spending multiple nights alone in the cottage, she was practically cut off from the heavily realms just as Jolen made sure of. Weeks turned into months; months turned into years. There was the same resolve, one death after another, to give up. Kari sat at the edge of her bed, contemplating on what to do next. ¡°Mother, I am so sorry, but I cannot do this¡­¡± She held back tears, pain built up in her unfulfilled heart. ¡°¡­ I have failed you¡­¡± There was nothing more she felt there was needed to be done, wrenched and devastated. She was weak and finally broke out into tears, quietly crying in solace.