“I don’t know what to believe anymore.” The distressed Bailey finally gave up and slouched over in defeat.

Beneath the benevolent moon, their caravan clattered along the golden plains. The small cracker in her tiny paws had a few nibbles on it, compared to the large bites from the others.

Bailey was far too engrossed by the presence of Uru, who sat directly in front of her and the gender swapped Exrite, who nonchalantly munched on a piece of bread.

Exrite borrowed Frosty’s dark blue cloak for the time being. After her first ever sneeze, Frosty realised that her attire was completely soaked, and forced her to take it all off. As much as she hesitated, she couldn’t oppose Frosty’s worried eyes.

After all, she had never shown any signs of sickness in the four months they’ve travelled together.

Wearing only a grey top and shorts, Frosty sat with folded arms and quietly sighed.

“Even the smallest things can pile up. You’re not immortal anymore, Exrite.” Her voice was stern and piqued the interest of Bailey who wondered what she meant.

“I know, but I’m not used to looking out for myself.” Exrite replied as she stared down at the stale piece of bread with gentle eyes. “Old habits aren’t so easy to break out of, especially since it’s been like this for ten years.”

“That’s why we’re here, right?” Khaos calmly spoke from the front, causing her to smile and take another bite from the bread.

“Yeah. Thanks.”

His relieving words congested her throat. It was reassuring to know that they were there for her, no matter what. Even in her treacherous path for the Gods, they stood by her with unwavering commitment.

Frosty mellowed at the sight of her, knowing what was stirring in her heart. Even in their short time together, they had a tight grasp of Exrite’s personality and quirks. The only real oddball was the extent of her past, and her violent reactions as a result of her left eye.

Uru became nostalgic as she listened to the group with closed eyes. A delightful hum left her lips in memory of her time in Demora. Or more specifically, Derloss, her home country.

“Exrite… you were an immortal?”

Bailey’s curiosity got the better of her as she unknowingly blurted, instantly jolting as all eyes fell onto her.

“I-I mean- “

“I was, for a short time anyway.” Exrite answered calmer than she anticipated. She expected her to dismiss her, since she was an outsider.

But Exrite seemingly didn’t mind talking to her about it. In truth, she didn’t care enough to keep it a secret from Bailey, since she was already too deeply involved leave her out.

Also – a part of her instinctually trusted Bailey. After her decade of endless torture, she had a faint idea of who she could trust, and who would betray her.

And Bailey didn’t match any of her assailants in any shape or form.

“For a short time… Yeah, short.” She was partly bothered by the sudden resurgence of the past. “But I’m mortal now. At least I think I am.”

“Exrite, equating yourself to a mortal, as a Maiden, isn’t something we demons want to hear.” Uru spoke with a deep, powerful voice.

“M-m-maiden!?” Bailey suddenly cried as she nearly threw herself from the seat.

Her jaw nearly dropped, and her eyes were wide and filled with utter disbelief. As much as she wanted to shout; “Impossible!” or “But Exrite’s the Exrenity!”, she refrained with everything she had. She even threw both hands to cover her mouth just in case.

Uru was listening, and if she heard such heresy, she probably would’ve killed her on the spot. Bailey’s body screamed at her to sit back down and behave before the mighty demon.

“What else could she be? Be proud that you’re able to bathe in the sight of a Maiden. Savour every moment, every breath, every word- “

“Uru. There’s no need for any of that.” Exrite sternly spoke, a part of her despising those intoxicating words. “You’re scaring her.”

Uru sighed, her smile becoming much softer in response.

“I was only joking. It’s always fun to pick on the curious ones. Although… “ Her eyes shallowly revealed themselves to the frightened girl, who didn’t dare to avoid her gaze. “Try not to tell anyone about this, ok?”

It went without saying that Bailey ravenously complied.

Satisfied, she returned to her humming.

As menacing as Uru sounded, Exrite wasn’t as bothered by her as the others. It was just how she came across to them, especially with what she said to Bailey.

Her words were poisonous. Exrite condemned the idea of abusing her status or powers to elevate herself above others. But, as all humans were – she wasn’t spared from corruption.

A sigh of relieve fled from Bailey’s mouth as Frosty leaned onto her.

“Are all demons like that?” Frosty asked with obvious spite in her words.

“Worse. Far worse.”

Her words were strangely reassuring, but it granted insight to the rest of the bleak world they lived in. Somehow, Six Point felt darker than it already was.

“But that shouldn’t come as a surprise. Anyone from the heart of their racelands would feel nothing but pure hatred to outsiders. You humans from Skathow hate us, and the demons of Demora hate you.”

Khaos grit his teeth in silence as he stared at the path ahead. The reins groaned in his mighty grip as he spoke under his breath:

“Why can’t anyone get along?”

He sincerely wondered from the bottom of his heart.

* * *

Soft snores emerged from the caravan’s body behind, causing the girl to faintly smile as she stared off into the distance.

Khaos’ eyes were too unsuitable for the darkness of the night, so he gave the reins to Exrite before throwing himself into the caravan. His sister reluctantly followed him to sleep, but not without warning Exrite about Uru before disappearing behind the thick curtains.

She remained seated at the front with Uru close beside, while Bailey laid on the bench behind with her hands gently folded above her stomach. She quietly listened to their conversation while she drowned her eyes into the night sky far above.

“You really had no idea you would become the Maiden of Time?” Uru asked.

“Not at all. Everyone kept it a secret from us – even the Gods didn't say anything about this.” Exrite quickly answered, her hair fluttering in the breeze.

The gentle strands invaded Bailey’s vision, causing her to blankly blink as she continued to overhear them.

“Yet you still wanted to push on as the Exrenity? As a human?”

“If it meant getting rid of my curse, then I don’t regret it.”

Uru's eyes slightly narrowed to Exrite’s answer.

“The regeneration from the Heart of Time? How can you call such a thing a curse?”

Exrite shut her eyes and leaned away from Uru, uttering:

“My own reasons.”

She didn’t want to tell her anything about that time. Everything about her decade of suffering was omitted, even to Khaos and Frosty. While they vaguely knew what happened, they didn’t know the true extent of it.

Exrite lazily stared out into the vast landscape with gentle eyes.

The demon thought about it. For Exrite to call the blessing a curse was abnormal. The thing that so many people would kill for, rendered Exrite with disgust. But why?

Why did Exrite despise the blessing, and seek for the Gods remove it in the first place?

Uru remained silent for some time, as Exrite drowned in a sea of thought. Suddenly, an epiphany caused her eyes to broaden as she turned to the girl with a curious face.

“You travelled to the Gods in hope that they would grant you death?” Uru managed to conclude, making Exrite slowly close her eyes.

She answered.

“Yeah. That was my goal, in the very beginning.” Her sombre words left Uru speechless, and the resting Bailey stupefied.

Exrite silently thanked that Khaos and Frosty were asleep. Never in her wildest dreams could she ever bring herself to tell them that respite, in the form of death, was her initial goal.

She smiled.

“You know, if it weren’t for Khaos and Frosty, I would’ve lost myself somewhere along the way. Their ridiculous goal was just as dumb as mine, but it saved me. And because of them, I have new dreams to chase – I want to know why I was made the Maiden of Time and finally find a place I can call home.”

Her motives were simple, yet they held an unrivalled weight.

She brought herself back and stared at Uru with blazing eyes.

“Really, your foolishness knows no bounds. Although, I don’t dislike that.” Uru resisted an urge to touch the girl, who’s passion burnt brighter than hers. “As the Exrenity, and now the Maiden of Time, your dream may never come true.”

“I know.” Her voice was stern.

“And even if you manage to find a place to call home, the world could come crumbling down around you at any moment.”

“I know.” Her voice was like iron.

“You rejected my early offer of death. I hope you won’t come to regret it in the future.”

Exrite bared her glistening teeth and warmly grinned.

The stunning figure before the demon suddenly captivated her for a split second. While she wanted to ridicule herself for becoming briefly charmed, despite being a succubus – she found that it might have been a magical phenomenon exerted by the Maiden.

Like how her heart and gears would calm others, perhaps she had something that could charm people.

It was either that, or she was genuinely captivated by her unwavering spirit.

Whichever one it was, she denied both with every ounce of her being.

While pondering such, Exrite spoke.

“You’re kind, Uru.”

From out of the blue, she said something ridiculous yet again. Even the silent Bailey couldn’t help but to question Exrite’s state of mind.

“Exrite, you realise what you’re saying, right?”

“I mean, you let Bailey and Allen live after they survived at least one attack from you.”

“Does that warrant me enough to be ‘kind’?”

“No. I just had the impression.”

Uru continued to stare at the bizarre Maiden, who spoke as if she knew her. Exrite didn’t know why she felt that way. It wasn’t because she was charmed, or in love for that matter.

Ever since her embrace with Uru, she felt like she understood her better. There was no way to describe the feeling in her heart, but she was certain that it had something to do with her being the Maiden of Time.

“Kind, hm.”

Never in her life had she ever been called ‘kind’, even by her own brethren. And for her to be called such a thing, by a human no less, baffled her. She didn’t know whether to feel flattered or offended.

“No other human would think the same. You’ve seen how Bailey reacts to me.”

The girl in question gulped as Uru brought her name up.

“You can’t blame her after you tried to kill her.”

“I was trying to spare her from the horrible fate of the future. And with your existence, it’s all but certain.”

Exrite immediately turned to her as Bailey’s eyes broadened.

“What do you mean?”

“Exrite, do you think that no one else saw the beam?” Uru’s voice quickly dominated the night, the stars suddenly disappearing behind a veil of leaves as they entered a small grove. “In the legends, the Maiden of Time split the world in a gallant light. But only few ancient civilisations have ever beared witness to the light of her arrival. It became nothing but a legend as the eons passed – and throughout history; no one knew where, what or if the Maiden of Time even existed – until now.”

Indeed. Even the teachings in Enthile made efforts to omit the Maiden of Time, and to change the continent name to Five Point, since there was barely any evidence of her existing in the first place.

Exrite held her breath for a moment as she tried to wrap her head around the realisation. Her awakening as the Maiden of Time signalled the world of her existence, and because of that, she undoubtably knew that people would scour Colight in search of her.

As she became visibly panicked, a charcoaled hand firmly caressed her cheek.

“Why do you think I wanted to join you? Sure, I may have my own reasons, however – I have a duty as a demon to protect the Maidens who blessed us with their might and wisdom, no matter how long ago.”

Exrite stared at her with bright eyes as Uru became entranced by the soothing warmth of her flesh.

“So many lives will be lost, Exrite. Now what will you do? Will you flee and sacrifice them to save yourself, or – will you stay?”

Exrite didn’t even have to think for a second.

“Naturally, I have to stay by the kingdoms of the Children of Balance!” Her voice resounded in the vast plains, frightening Bailey who bumped her head against the wooden beam.

Satisifed by her response, Uru brushed a finger onto her soft lips and smiled as the canopy disappeared.

“I hope you’re making the right decision, Maiden of Time.” She slowly turned her head around and saw a pair of light brown eyes stare up at her.

Instantly, the girl quivered as she was found out. But to her surprise, the demon showed her a soft, gentle smile before turning back to Exrite.

Wondering why the demon had left her alone, she remained frozen in place for the time being.

Staring at the stars with blank eyes, she muttered:

“Maybe I should’ve gone to sleep with them.”

* * *

Allen held a hand up to the late morning sun, cringing to the bright rays as Bailey quietly yawned from beside him. His blissful, light blue eyes mirrored the clear sky above.

Surrounding them was nothing but thick greenery, and the occasional dear that trotted through. These woodlands were connected to the ones near Farshard, but were much safer due to the higher traffic, and lack of any dangerous monsters.

Colight had long since been rid of its dangerous beasts many hundreds of years ago. Only natural wildlife flourished in these parts, as well as gentle vegetation. It was a paradise of a region, in comparison to the other more harrowing places in Six Point.

But that said, he couldn’t forget about what was going on with the vassal state, Di-Lock, out in western Colight. Their trades were slowly coming to a halt, according to his feline-eared brother as a result of the skirmishes between them and Pathfist.

He honestly wouldn’t be surprised if they officially declared war within the next few days. The only reason why it hadn’t happened already, was because Pathfist didn’t want to involve Truebirth in their ravenous prowess against the puppet kingdom.

Should something happen to Truebirth however, then they’d without a doubt declare total war on Di-Lock.

Remembering the majesty of Pathfist’s armed airship, he shuddered and spoke:

“Dwarves are frightening, aren’t they?”

“Where did that come from?” Frosty wondered, yawning shortly after.

“The airships! Like the one that was just in-!”

Before he could finish his sentence, a black finger slid onto his lips. There, he saw the golden pupils of the demon, who stared at him with an annoyed face.

“Exrite’s asleep. Don’t wake her up” Her simple words were like the command of a Queen, and he abided by them with everything he had.

With a cramped smile, he shakily nodded as the demon pulled herself back to Frosty’s side.

“I must agree with you on the dwarves. They have some quite interesting inventions.”

Uru suddenly spoke, surprising Allen who didn’t expect her to be interested in them as well. Despite his initial fear of her, he quickly realised that Uru wasn’t as bad as Frosty or Bailey made her out to be.

His inner ‘warrior’s intuition’ told him so.

“It’s not like they’re the masterminds behind everything though. It was mostly the Otherworlders who made the concept of the airships, and even plumbing and mana links.”

Bailey chipped in, somewhat critical of the praise Allen gave to the dwarves.

“But that’s their charm-! I mean, that’s what makes them amazing. You can give them the plans, and they’ll masterfully recreate it.” Allen managed to contain his excitement on the topic, not wanting to wake up Exrite in the back, else he’d incur the wrath of the demon.

On that note, he glanced back at the open curtains and stared at the cloaked girl who silently slept in an unkempt manner. She’d occasionally tumble around with the caravan, muttering something and, at one point, broke into a silent sob.

“Reminds me of the dwarves who built the prison. The way they carved the halls and imbued the giant doors was spectacular. Even with what little magic knowledge they have, they’re not a race to be trifled with.”

“Makes sense as to why Skathow hasn’t deemed them as heretics to their cause. They’re fartoo useful.” Frosty’s arms tightened around her chest.

Skathow was undoubtably the largest inhabited region in Eastern Six Point, as it was the racial homeland of the humans. Anything that wasn’t human, or humanoid, was an insult to mankind and their God.

It was disgusting, vile, and putrid. She could never understand the notion of devoting everything to a God that ordered for the destruction of others.

But then again – what did she know as a Frostbitten?

“They’re monsters.” Bailey uttered under her breath.

The many citizens of Truebirth and Pathfist shared the same sentiment and condemned Skathow. They were an empire that sought to destroy all those who weren’t approved by their God, or whoever reigned supreme over the humans.

“And what are we to them?” Uru asked. “Perspective isn’t something simple. I’ve seen how it’s like on my end already.”

“Are humans the bad guys in your eyes?” Allen asked.

“Precisely.”

Khaos hummed from the front and clicked his tongue.

“At least here people can be free. It’s like night and day compared to the other regions.”

Enthile in particular was what he had in mind, and Frosty seemed to agree with him. The demi-humans who were treated with barbarous cruelty, made him question whether there was a sub-race of humans that could feel no empathy – or sadness towards others.

And for those kinds of people, he wouldn’t mind crushing them with his bare firsts.

Allen looked back at Exrite again, still trying to figure out what was going on. He was sure that Exrite was anything but a woman. ‘His’ build was a more realistic dream for warriors to strive towards, compared to Khaos, and for it to become nothing but soft flesh made him mildly bitter.

“Don’t think too much about it, uncle. It’s an endless rabbit hole.” Bailey tugged on the hems of his green shirt, her eyes seemingly devoid of any life.

“Ah- sure…” He reluctantly turned away from the sleeping Exrite and stared back at the two in front of him. “I won’t ask what happened, but… yeah, is that really Exrite?”

“Undoubtably.” Khaos’ voice was stern, certain of the impossible fact.

Allen didn’t want to push any further and accepted it, no matter how hard it was to believe. After their encounter with Uru, and watching his niece get thrown meters across the air – he couldn’t bring himself to be surprised anymore.

This group was clearly abnormal – they boasted the Exrenity, two possible Frostbitten, and now, a demon. The young Heroes of Truebirth paled in comparison.

But at least they were approachable, or so he heard.

“Say, is adventuring really worth it?”

Allen asked from out of the blue.

Frosty curiously hummed as to why he would ask.

“I mean… for people like us who rarely leave the Minor Plains of Colight, what else is there in this world to look forward to?”

It was a good question, one that made Frosty silently wonder to herself.

They were on a suicide mission to somehow ‘free’ the Maidens, and it didn’t help that their personal goal was to find the Maiden of Wisdom. Their encounters were miniscule in comparison to their grand objective.

But that didn’t mean she didn’t enjoy them. The vast valley certainly lit her heart aflutter, and the beautiful glowing trees of Farshard made her realise that there might be a glimmer of beauty in this world after all.

She enjoyed bathing in the beauty of the world; where it was untainted by the horrors of death and destruction. Where life and fertility shone like a beacon of hope.

And because of that, her answer was simply:

“Do what you enjoy. Why are you an adventurer if you’re not thrilled by the idea of exploration, travel or battle?”

“But… look what happened when we decided to leave the comfort of the plains. We nearly died.”

Allen found himself smiling in self-ridicule, as Bailey gazed down at her small palms. He honestly loved adventuring, but it was mostly because of money. The prospects of an adventurer were high, and they were glamorously paid for their work.

He regretted it a bit, and there, he realised something.

“Yeah, I’m not thrilled by any of those. What do you think Bailey, is it time to call it quits and go back to the café?”

Bailey suddenly jolted and stared up at him with shocked eyes, but when she saw his face, she couldn’t help but to understand why.

“I can’t imagine going through something like that again. I really thought it was the end for us – for you, Bailey. Your father would never forgive me if I returned with nothing but a shred of your cloak.”

Her eyes dampened as she pulled herself away and stared back into her palms.

If it weren’t for Khaos, what would’ve happened to her? To her family? Her friends? Their faces suddenly flew by, but then, one particular face appeared before her.

She forced a small smile.

“Mm. It might be time to end it here.”

For a split second, she glanced at the back of Khao’s head and began to fidget in her seat.

With a small push from the depths of her chest, she cried:

“K-Khaos! Thank you for saving me back then!”

“Don’t mention it. I just did what my body told me – save the troubled girl and run as fast as I can!”

She chuckled to his loud voice and felt somewhat relieved while Frosty managed to restrain herself from flinging an insult. Even so, she smiled at her brother’s remark as Allen felt somewhat conflicted by the face Bailey made.

“You’re not going to tell him to keep his voice down?” He suddenly complained to Uru.

“He’s different. Your voice is too sharp to relax around.”

“What-!?”

“Shh.”

Her hush made him instinctively keep his mouth shut.

While Bailey continued to silently giggle to herself, and Frosty smiling at the girl’s warmth – Khaos noticed something in the distance.

It was a woman riding a white horse.

* * *

“Talia!?” He inadvertently cried.

The woman’s light blue hair and pale robes unmistakably belonged to the priestess. It was as if an angel approached them, her holy colours blessing the surrounding trees with purity.

Frosty immediately turned to the front, eyes broadened in awe to the sight of the familiar woman. She brightly smiled, ecstatic about her appearance, but also just as confused as to why she was in this place.

“She’s here!?” Frosty’s cry surprised the group, particularly Uru.

She too, joined her and set her eyes to the distance ahead. Upon seeing the pale woman, she wondered who exactly she was to them.

Talia noticed them, and suddenly dropped her frown in favour of a shocked smile.

“Khaos?” She managed to loudly whisper as she wondered what they were doing on the trail back to the Capital.

They certainly didn’t expect their reunion to be in a place like this. As Khaos brought the caravan to a halt, Talia slowly stopped beside him.

With a soft smile and gentle eyes, she spoke:

“My, I didn’t expect this. Your wounds – let me heal them.”

Her voice was soothing, yet they held an absolute power.

Khaos disembarked the caravan and met with her on the dirt path. She inspected his back for a moment before holding her hands above his charred, tender back.

“How are you still standing, Khaos?” She couldn’t hide her awe to Khaos’ sheer physical resistance.

A large hole remained on the back of his black shirt, where his bright-red skin peered through.

“Dunno, but at least now it doesn’t hurt as much.” He growled as a numbing pain shot through his back.

Her yellow magical circle shimmered beneath the sun, drowning all those who watched with amazement. Even Uru found herself intrigued by the healing magic.

Only the charred tissue was healed for the time being. The tender flesh would take some time to heal, even with her powerful magic as a priestess. She didn’t want to dabble too much on completely closing the wound, since the pain was her only concern.

She knew that Frostbitten couldn’t become ill, no matter what.

When she was done, she stepped around him and approached the caravan. And with a loud, commanding voice – she asked:

“Where is Exrite?”

Frosty leaped across the wooden railing and landed in front of her. With a soft smile, she pleasantly answered:

“Asleep at the back. Just don’t be surprised when you see… ‘him’.” She trailed off slightly towards the end.

But Talia already knew what she meant by that. She lightly tilted her head to the side and spoke:

“My, you can’t hide it from me, Frosty.” A finger tapped the side of her cheek. “In fact, why did you leave the Capital a day after you arrived?”

Frosty wanted to look away from her sky-blue eyes, but found it impossible to escape her silent, yet serious gaze.

“We had an errand to run.”

“For who?”

“The two commanders of Pathfist and their supplier.”

Talia, at the mention of the commanders, dropped her gaze and sighed. It was a sound reason for them to be out here, in search for the limeite they most likely were after.

After all, Black and White were the ones who made the request at the Guild. Their behemoth of an airship couldn’t run on the surrounding mana alone – they needed a more potent source of energy.

She didn’t expect them to meet with Pathfist’s commanders so soon, but that was beside the point.

She only came here for one reason, and one reason only.

“Show me Exrite.”

Frosty didn’t waste any time and began to quickly make her way to the back. Talia’s strides were almost as fast as hers, trailing her shadow like a spectre before they paused by the back of the caravan.

With haste, Frosty climbed up and exposed the sleeping Exrite – who was undoubtably a girl.

Frosty went to see Talia’s reaction, expecting her to wield a face of confusion or bewilderment.

However, what she saw instead was a smile of utmost relief.

“So she’s safe…” Her huff lingered as she stared at the girl.

The girl who she knew was without question – the Maiden of Time.

She climbed up with Frosty and knelt beside her head. With two fingers, she felt for her neck. Immediately, a surge of everlasting warmth and soothing calmness overcame her as she became entranced by the figure beneath.

Under its spell, she uttered a question to Frosty.

“Are there gears moving through her veins?”

“That’s what it feels like, but your guess is as good as mine.”

The uncertainty surrounding the Maiden’s strange charm settled as she removed her hand and continued to study the figure.

From her socked feet to the black strands of her hair, she scrutinised every inch of her body. Inside her dark blue cloak was nothing but pristine flesh, and her body felt warm to touch.

She knew this was Exrite.

Within her chapel, she recalled the ancient notes and searched through past texts of the Maidens, finding nothing but gibberish. When she nearly gave up in a fit of annoyance, she found a diagram of the crystallised fragment.

And beside it, an ancient illustration of the arrival of the Maiden of Time.

She knew that it was going to be used to create another Maiden, but she didn’t expect in her wildest dreams that Exrite would become one.

After all, he was a man. A human, no less. All the other Maidens were far from human, despite their appearance being near identical.

Lost in her train of thought, Exrite suddenly groaned as she rubbed herself against the hard timber.

“I’m home.”

“Eh? Ah, she’s sleep talking again.” Frosty hummed, staring down at the girl with gentle eyes.

“Sleep talking? My, she must be having a good dream then.”

Déjà vu seemingly hit Frosty hard as she could have sworn she heard someone say that before.

“Can we wake her up?”

“Please let her rest.” A sharp, profound voice asked from the front of the caravan.

As they turned to the source of the voice, they were met with the pitch-black eyes of the strangely dressed woman, who’s pale hair tumbled down beside them.

Her golden pupils pierced through their souls as Talia stared back with rather warm eyes.

“She was awake all night. Let her sleep for a while more, then you can rouse her. She seems to be having fun in her dreams.”

Talia broke from her gaze and monitored Exrite for a moment longer. Her calm breaths were soothing to watch. She remembered the man who arrived with extreme scepticism and wariness – and to see him become something so frail, yet so powerful made her warmly smile.

To sleep so comfortably in the company of others, aside from her original two companions, was heart-warming. She had no intuition or knowledge as to why the Maiden of Time chose Exrite to fulfil her role, but she couldn’t help to believe that it was the right choice.

It was her own hunch – one that earnestly had faith in.

And when she broke away from her and turned back to Uru, she cleared her throat.

“My, you’re not human, are you?”

“No human could ever dream of having the same splendour as myself. Such a thing is only reserved for the race of the demons.” Uru’s voice was sharp as she grinned at Talia.

Expecting the holy priestess to retaliate in some way, she prepared to cast a barrier. Carefully watching her mouth part, she suddenly froze.

Not because of magic, or an attack of some sort – but by the words that left her mouth.

“Demon – I am Talia Balance, the previous Priestess of Balance. I hope we can get along, much like how you are with everyone here.” Her prestigious words were strikingly sincere.

After all, whether it be a demi-human, a Frostbitten, or even a demon – she didn’t discriminate, for she was a Priestess of the Children of Balance.

The demon’s face unnaturally lit up, already finding a glimmer of likeability in Talia. She was the first human to unwaveringly stare into her eyes, and not react to the utter of her race.

Uru believed that they would get along just fine.

“Please call me Uru, priestess Talia.” She naturally spoke with respect.

The warm breeze softly blew against the caravan as they travelled through the forest towards the Capital. As they savoured the fresh air, a soft mumble sounded from beneath.

But nobody heard it.

Exrite grit her teeth, her fingers prying into the cracks of the rough wood beneath as a pained voice left her lips.

“Who am I?”

Those words were all but a whisper.

A whisper that only Exrite could hear within the depths of her silent dreamland.