Stradena, capital of the Erebium Empire—

An emergency meeting was held in the magnificent palace halls. Emperor Benedict, Empress Marcella, and several royal advisors looked at the pitiful, barefooted druid, shaking like a leaf as he reported his findings.

"Jurgan's Hero has been chosen. Her name is Audfrey von Hrisateigr, daughter of Audbjorn, the late Grand Jarl of Steorus. The great father has approved her union with Rilden Greyblade, Hero of Qhiion, and is already divinely acknowledged as his alongside Elarose Greyblade, Atrivia's Hero Candidate." The druid timidly said, wanting to disappear from the room.

Emperor Benedict remained silent, while Empress Marcella's lips twitched.

"Should I say it was expected that Jurgan's Herro would be chosen to be near Atrivia's future hero? But isn't Jurgan's Hero... male?" Emperor Benedict curiously asked.

Some gods played favorites in gender selection, while others did not. Justicia, for instance, was gender-neutral, hence choosing Benedict, a male, as her Hero from birth. Druelia was the same, and she chose men and women alike. Qhiion was also gender-neutral, and would choose a man or woman as long as they fit his bloody standards.

However, Atrivia, a fertility goddess, only ever chose a woman as her Hero, while Jurgan always chose a suitable male so that the pair would be a Hero Couple. That was how it went for Hero Urianah, whose husband was Jurgan's Hero preselected from birth. For an untold number of generations, this was the norm. That was also why Empress Marcella originally wanted to match Elarose with one of her descendants, since that would almost guarantee that Jurgan would favor that son and somehow find a way to make him his Hero!

Unfortunately, she was already taken by Qhiion's Hero, so they assumed Jurgan would give up this time, and his Hero might not form until Elarose died. Unexpectedly, Jurgan chose a female, and one that would wed the same man marrying Atrivia's Hero Candidate!

"My emperor, all gods can select both male and female Heroes. It is merely how much they favor a certain gender. The great father favors males because he wishes them to be with his wife's Hero... so doing the next-best thing is not unexpected. If he can't let a male Hero be the husband, then letting a female be a sister-wife is also acceptable if the man is capable enough. However, Hero Rilden likely faced a life-threatening trial for the great father to make such an exception, perhaps even facing the newly-promoted Hero head-on." The druid explained with admiration.

The hall went silent, trying to imagine the tough battle that occurred. Jurgan was known for being one of the top three most powerful human gods in single combat, so the difficulty of beating his Hero in a duel was insanely high. They also couldn't help but admire Rilden for surviving it!

"Hero Rilden would marry his three new wives in six days, correct?" Marcella broke the silence.

"Yes, my Empress. True Prince Spence Erebium will go there three days from now with a retinue of Griffin Knights." One of the royal advisors spoke.

True Prince Spence Erebium was one of Marcella's most talented descendants. While she only looked in her late twenties, Marcella was already a great-grandmother in her 90s! Due to long natural lifespans, their descendants were classified as Princes and separated into Regular Princes, Noble Princes, and True Princes.

A Regular Prince lacked the necessary talent, hence lost all inheritance rights and remained an honorary noble, usually becoming a courtier or even a regular person. A Noble Prince had good qualifications, but lacked essential qualities to have a chance at the throne. They usually had the noble rank of Count and would either marry other nobles in political marriages or forge a noble career.

On the other hand, True Princes were the real heirs to the throne, requiring Mythical Bloodline. Among over a hundred descendants, only a handful were called True Prince.

Emperor Benedict and Empress Marcella had three sons, each a Noble prince and a legendary powerhouse born when Marcella was in her late teens. However, each of the three sons had dozens of children with several talented wives, and out of a game of chance, five True Princes with Mythical Bloodlines were born, three male, three female. Spence was among them.

That Spence Erebium was sent over showed how much the Emperor and Empress were concerned about the emerging Human Hero of Qhiion and his future Hero Wife. At the very least, they planned on showing the minimal respect two Heroes deserve.

But now, it seemed like they still underestimated them. Hence, Marcella made a slight change in plans.

"Hm." Marcella hummed and played with her two golden, hundred-sided dice.

And Benedict, knowing his wife, noticed that.

"Are you planning on taking a gamble?" Benedict curiously asked.

"Hm. 2, we send a Regular Princess over. 3-100, we send a Noble Princess over. 101-199, we send a True Princess over. 200, we continue as is. The gamble would be, which move would be the most advantageous to us." Marcella casually said.

Everyone in the room was somewhat surprised, but not shocked. As the Hero of Druelia, Marcella was blessed with luck and gambling skills, especially with her pair of divine artifact dice, <The Lucky Lady's Hundred-Sided Dice>.

These two dice had a special power, usable thrice a day. The gambler's luck would tremendously increase for the next dice result. Coupled with Marcella's already high luck, she had three chances to determine with extreme probability the best course of action, which was near-prophetic. Of course, she was sometimes wrong, but that was too rare.

With no one objecting, Marcella tossed her dice, glowing with golden light.

Tack* Tack* Tack* Roll* Roll* Roll*

Tack* Tack* Tack* Roll* Roll* Roll*

Everyone watched with wide eyes, looking at the dice rolling before settling on a number, their golden color dimming. Marcella walked over, gently picked the two dice up, and saw the result.

"150! Ah, a True Princess it is." Marcella smiled. "There are True Princess Jane, True Princess Alexandra, and True Princess Charlotte. We can pick from them-"

"Marcella, you forgot our daughter." Benedict suddenly spoke, cutting Marcella's line of thought.

Marcella's smile dimmed before gritting her teeth. "But Benedict, she is... unstable."

"She is a True Princess nonetheless, even if her mind is no longer with us," Benedict said.

"Ugh... fine." Marcella relented. "3-70 for Jane, 71-130 for Alexandra, 131-199 for Charlotte. 200 will be for none, and 2 will be for... Viola."

She then threw her dice again.

Tack* Tack* Tack* Roll* Roll* Roll*

Tack* Tack* Tack* Roll* Roll* Roll*

When they stopped, the two golden dice dimmed, the result revealed.

Marcella shook, clenched her teeth, before sighing in resignation.

"Prepare Viola's luggage for the trip."

The royal advisors silently looked at each other in dismay, knowing the story about True Princess Viola, secretly nicknamed the Prophetess of Doom.

Viola was a pampered princess, the only daughter born to the Emperor and Empress after 50 years. She was the most beloved gem of the empire, doted on and showered with love and care. She was the most spoiled princess, having all she could ask for, and the best teachers and resources. She was beautiful, bright, hardworking, and, most of all, talented beyond measure.

Her only flaw is that her bloodline refused to awaken, no matter what they tried. But this only made others believe that her bloodline was merely too powerful and needed more time to awaken.

That is, until her 16th birthday.

She suddenly turned into a raving madwoman, spouting cryptic gibberish. It is said that she awakened her bloodline at that moment, and she saw how everyone died, including herself, which mentally broke her. She is only slightly lucid when she is given Tier 6 medication for mental concentration and relaxation. At other times, she is just a mindbroken mess. But such a prescription is incredibly precious, endlessly taxing their divine garden to keep her slightly sane.

Without a choice, the Emperor and Empress put her under lock and key for the last five years, having minimal contact with other humans, hoping to find something to improve their daughter's condition. Unfortunately, they never did until now.

Returning to her seat, her power left her body, and she covered her face with her hands.

"Hah..." She depressedly sighed.

"There is no need for you to overthink it." Benedict softly said.

"I know... but..." Marcella hesitantly spoke.

"Why not use your third roll to determine whether this trip would help her? You can then decide whether to send her or not." Benedict suggested.

"... You think so?" Marcella perked up.

"There is only one way to find out." Benedict smiled and replied.

"Fine. 2-100 no, 101-200 yes. The higher it is, the more it would benefit her." Marcella said, tossing her pair of dice for the third time.

Tack* Tack* Tack* Roll* Roll* Roll*

Tack* Tack* Tack* Roll* Roll* Roll*

Marcella looked at the result, not holding much hope. But her gloom finally dispersed when she saw the result.

"The Lucky Lady blessed us." Marcella smiled at the two dice that showed 100 each.

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Meanwhile-

Kaladin Barbarian Coalition, Kingdom of Oddsass-

Inside the High King's Palace in the City of Asgautsstaoir-

High Queen Herdis, Hero of Myxysus, Ancient Human Death God of the Dead, Dreams, Divination, and Mystique, looked at her adopted daughter and sole disciple, Princess Nyx, who knelt before her.

"Mother, I thank you for raising me all these years. I wish to join the retinue and serve under the fateless Hero of the bloody god." The girl solemnly said.

"What did you see?" High Queen Herdis softly asked.

"Hope," Nyx replied with one word.

Herdis silently looked at her daughter, knowing she couldn't change her mind. So she did what any good mother would do.

"Then go. Don't make me regret it." Herdis closed her eyes and said.

"Thank you, mother. I won't." Nyx bowed and left.

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And so, time quickly passed, and the day before the wedding arrived.