While the young lovers were hugging without a care in the hallway. Every servant and maids who had witnessed the scene were thoroughly delighted for this young yet strong couple. They had been famous ever since leading the safety and securing the lives of the common people during the disaster. There are already people calling the Crown Prince the Heroic Prince and believing that Lady Angela is the true Saintess chosen by the Gods.
While this couple is bustling in pink bubbles, the other pair both have ugly expressions on their faces. The third prince didn't expect that his father and the high nobles would witness the scene where he wasn't wearing his mask. During the earthquake, fear swallows his heart, and forgot to act like a kind and understanding prince which he always portrays.
Bela Laurel also didn't hide her selfishness during those times. Both of them never really saw commoners as someone of the same importance as their own lives. In truth they even look down on them, they only see themselves as someone important due to their standing and treat the common people as someone lower than they are. They wouldn't even see them as humans but just trash which could be eliminated with one hand.
In fear of losing their lives at that moment, they had forgotten to activate the masks they've always worn. Which made them discredit those commoners without caring for their reputation.
Their thoughts at that moment were simple. 'I don't want to die. There are lots of commoners anyway who would care whether some of them die for our sake.'
Which in the end, destroys the reputation they've build up in years. At this moment no knight is willing to serve them, even the servants and the maids avoid them.
That's how much their reputation was destroyed.
Then they had to witness the happy scene of the crown prince and lady Evans making them feel envious and angry at the same time. The punishment King Argus had bestowed to them is that no knights from his side would serve them. Not only that, they need to apologize to the common people and lower their heads to them.
For this egoistic and prideful pair, such a thing is impossible to achieve. There is no way they would apologize as they didn't think they were wrong. Seeing the scene of happiness his elder brother and Lady Evans had, Elliot could only watch in silence.
Bela Laurel on the other hand is in an extremely bad mood after being scolded harshly by King Argus and Archmage Alexis from inside the hall just now. She was truly humiliated and felt that her fate this time is not good. A lot of scenes from her memories are not the same in the present.
From her previous life, there is no such thing as the great earthquake hitting the mortal plane but in this lifetime she had experienced it. So what did this mean? Are her previous life memories useless after all?
Bela Laurel murmured, "None of this happened before. Why is it happening now? A butterfly effect?"
Elliot heard her murmurs and a glint of emotions flash within his eyes as he looks at her.
"Come with me. There are some things I need to check with you. Follow over." says Elliot as he walks away.
Bela Laurel, whose life is under the servant contract with the third prince, had no other choice but to follow after his trials like a subordinate. Even if he doesn't want to come, her body would move on its own due to the magic contract between them.
Bela Laurel's thoughts, 'I shouldn't have signed that magic contract from before! I'm supposed to be a Saintess candidate with a higher standing as him but now I look like a mere servant that follows every one of his commands like a maid.'
She didn't need to respond. Her move would move in accordance with the third prince's orders and follow after him taking their leave to the main castle to the Third Prince's place.
—
Preparation of the incoming arrival of the demons had been started by the kingdom of Hart and the Cloud Empire. They move in secret and at the same, they make sure secure things about the demons and the possibility of war are hidden to the common people.
The demons are cruel and brutal. They see all humanoid races as food and treat them as food stock. The fallen were heartless and loved fighting. They hate those who are weak and eliminate them for the better good.
Thousands of years ago, the humanoid races were almost forced to extinction by the demon and the fallen races after the other races had offended the God of Darkness, Lord Adrienne. According to history, the God of Darkness was offended by how the humans looked at the Demon races like some kind of plague. They even treated the fallen races which look a bit closer to the elven races as slaves in old history.
Because of this discrimination Lord, Adrienne had given away his blessings to the demon and fallen races which suddenly increases their strength and capabilities by a notch. But as time passes by the demon and fallen races had suddenly treated those races of light cruelly and at the worst is that they started seeing them as food.
On the brink of extinction for the races under the light, the God of Light, Lord Lucien finally could no longer watch such one-sided ruthlessness and gave his blessings to the races who live under the sun. He allowed them to wield the elements of holiness which could counter the blessing the God of Darkness had given to his believers. This allows humans to give birth to the mages who excel in light magic and fought back against the demons and the fallen.
The endless wars between the light and the dark faction continued until today. The abyss is a sanctuary that the God of Darkness had created for his believers with this the humans and the demons had no longer needed to fight for the territory which now brought the current peace in the world of Aerd.
After the great earthquake had struck the mortal plane, things were getting worse at the plane of divinity. Knowing that the gods they revered had lost against the current Sovereign Gods, the elemental races were given a choice of submission or death. The dragons fought back against the tyrannical ruler only to almost fall to extinction. The elemental spirit kings had sacrificed themselves to work together just so they could make their children descend in the mortal plane to escape the cruelty of this new Sovereign God who sees strength as means of authority.
Among the spirit races, the wind spirit races remain in the divine realm and serve Avel as their only true God, as they had always been doing. The fire and earth spirit race fought until the end and almost perished as a whole, the light and dark spirit races had worked with the survivors and decided to descend into the mortal realm to escape from this tyrant ruler. Only the water spirit races had disappeared collectively ever since the disappearance of the Water God Mayim.
Avel sat at the throne with the other races kneeling before him in a servile manner. There is only coldness in his eyes as he listens to the reports of his subordinates. The wind spirit king, Verte was the one doing all the talking after being put in the position as the king's aide after the merging of the divine plane had been completed.
Verte's ongoing reports:
"The former goddess of fire and earth had been locked up in the deepest area of the ruins after the fire and earth spirit races had tried to save them. Only half of the fire and earth spirit race had survived after this event and escaped to the mortal plane together with the light and dark spirit races."
"The dragons and phoenixes had finally calmed down after killing off more than half of their population. They said that they wouldn't go against the Sovereign any longer but… they weren't willing to serve the ruler as well."
"What should we do with them, Sovereign?"
Avel, who was staring at the far horizon before they blink before replying, "If I remember right, Neige seems to be close with the dragon race. Let them. It is better to ignore them."
"Understood. What about the phoenixes?" asked Verte politely.
There's a short pause in their conversation but in the end, Avel still replies, "Leave them be. Mayim is quite close to that race as well. How about the progress of looking for the Water God? Have you found any traces of Mayim?" said Avel.
At this question, Verte flinched and didn't delay his response.
"Sovereign, according to the reports that were gathered, the water spirit race had gone missing even before the Lord had ascended to the throne. Now the former God of Water no traces were left behind as to where they had gone to. Worst of all… the Underwater Palace had… collapsed out of nowhere." reported Verte.
At these words, Avel showed a face of incredulity. Everyone knows the meaning of the underwater palace suddenly collapsing. All Gods had temples, this is the core of their strength and the meaning of their existence. Once a Gods die their main temple would fall on its own and the meaning of it means literally. The underwater palace is the former God of Water, Mayim's main temple. It suddenly collapsing out of nowhere means only one thing.
It means that the God of Water is gone.
"I don't believe it! I do not! The last person who saw Mayim was this king! I didn't kill him. Impossible! This is not real! Find him! If he is dead, bring me his body! If he is alive, don't hurt him and report to me immediately!" ordered Avel.
All of his subordinates saluted and accepted this order.
"As you wish, Sovereign!"
Afterward, they've dispersed all around the divine land and even to the mortal place itself to look for the missing Water God. As soon as everyone was dismissed only Avel was left behind in the empty hall.
"Mayim is gone? This is not possible. I didn't harm him, much less take his life. I could never do such a thing. After all, he is… my only…"
Avel knew the meaning of temple collapsing, when the temple collapsed it meant that the Gods not only lost his divinity even his body had to perish. It means that he no longer exists. He didn't do anything. In the first place, he wasn't planning on taking Mayim's divinity as his. The last time they met he wanted to ask him to help him break open the barrier at the divine temple that's all.
But Mayim didn't let him speak and suddenly gave his divinity to him without question. That person had always been like that. If he needed help, he would help him. If he is in danger, he would save him as well. If he is angry, he would be there to coax him. If he is sad, Mayim would always be there to accompany him.
Mayim is not only his friend. He is his family as well and the only person who is always on his side.
But who would expect that when he opened his eyes that day, that Mayim would disappear. He didn't say something before leaving and didn't even tell him where he had gone. Now his most loyal subordinate told him that Mayim's main temple had fallen. He couldn't believe it. He doesn't want to believe in it as well.
It is because accepting this truth means… Mayim is really gone.
"Where are you, Mayim? You've told me before that you would always be by my side," whispered Avel in thin air.
What he didn't hear was the sounds of the sea and all of the waterscape ripplings, a soundless voice answered his question.
'I am here. I am always by your side. If you listen clearly you should be able to hear my voice. After all, I am with you.'
Unfortunately, Avel could not hear it at all.
"Liar~" murmurs Avel as he covered his eyes with his hands.
