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Early Evening - Mid Summer : Voldukirk | The Holy Kingdom

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- Astren Ravenna ~

*fwoooosh* A strong, steady breeze blew over us as we walked through a large courtyard filled with trimmed green grass beneath the shade of the colossal, looming spire of the church. -The closer I get.. the less I understand...-

It was so tall it looked like it could carve into the clouds and was so extravagant that the carvings on the city's outer wall seemed like child's play, but my mind could only barely wrap around it. -So this is a church of a true god...-

But little did I know, the grandeur of the outside was just the beginning.

Stepping through the massive archway large enough to comfortably fit a dragon, we found ourselves in a cathedral hall somehow even larger than it looked from the outside, with a mural of Valhalla on the veiling seamlessly connecting to the sky like a window into the realm of the gods.

Had I seen it earlier in life, I may have simply seen an array of stunning paintings, but at that moment, there was something about it that made my mind spin. It felt as though the gazes of those in the painting were truly looking down on me.. judging me...

The longer I stared at it, the more entranced I became until it eventually felt as though the painting itself began to breathe and move, but at that moment, the soft hum of prayer around me drew my mind back to reality. -Huh?-

Lowering my gaze, I immediately found myself looking over countless rows of peasants and citizens groveling, engrossed in their own prayers, filling the air with murmurs of solemnity while beautiful priests and priestesses walked around and handed out bread and occasionally silver coins with them.

It was like a beautiful ceremony, lit by the warm light of artifacts on the ceiling as if it were blessed light from Valhalla.

But while the atmosphere was warm, it was also heavy.

The Apostle spoke softly as we walked. "Many who come here do so after suffering immense loss.

They come to pray to the Goddess in order to look beyond their misfortunes and receive guidance to move on, even knowing that without mana, she cannot hear them.

" He looked over those praying with a soft gaze and a warm smile.

"But even without hearing their voice, the Goddess understands why they are here, and that alone is enough to bring them solace. "

Looking down at a young woman as we walked past, I saw her tightly clutching the doll of a child, still damp from the tears dripping off her face, but she somehow still smiled, staring up at the mural of Valhalla on the ceiling as if she could see her child in it.

But no matter how sorry I felt, I was still hesitant. -If the gods truly are omnipotent, why would they let people suffer such pain...-

Continuing deeper into the cathedral, we quickly approached a colossal statue near the wall opposite the entrance. It depicted a beautiful woman, her stunning figure draped in a single cloth, holding a hanging golden balance in her hands.

When I first saw it, the balance was perfectly poised, not tilting even the slightest in either direction, but as we finally walked beneath it, it suddenly started moving, ever-so-slowly oscillating back and forth.

It caught me by surprise. The balance was so large that even if a human was dropped on it, it wouldn't budge, yet there it was, shifting as if nudged by a gentle breeze.

"It seems the Goddess is quite eager to speak with you all," The Apostle murmured with a hint of awe. "I planned to speak with you all normally, but it seems the goddess wishes to do things differently."

Quickly turning away from the ordinary, human-sized door we were walking to, we made our way up to the massive wall behind the statue. -What? What are we doing here?-

Intricate carvings decorated its surface, telling tales of gods, men, and the eternal balance between fortune and misfortune, war and love, but as the Apostle walked up to it and set his hands on it, there was nothing but confusion in my mind.

At least until he pushed on it and effortlessly split open the wall like a door without making a sound, revealing the impenetrable darkness beyond it.

It felt as though I was looking at an illusion, as if I was simply caught in a hallucination, and if I tried to walk it, I would just hit the wall.

But the Apostle simply motioned us forth. "The Goddess will speak to each of you on your own. Be not afraid."

His calm voice did nothing to ease the tangled web of anxiety forming in my stomach, but after watching Katherine and Elizabeth walk in without worry, I let out a deep breath and followed after them. "Hooh..."

But the moment I stepped into the blackness, the world behind me disappeared, the murmurs of prayer and the noises of air flowing through the hall were silenced, and the feeling of the ground beneath my feet vanished. -W..what?-

"~Hoh? What do we have here?~" A majestic, soothing voice echoed through my head instantly, bringing my thoughts and confusion to a halt. "~I never would have expected to find a neglected gem amongst those only lacking polish...~"

I wanted to respond the moment the beautiful voice finished, even if it was to simply ask who she was, but the moment I tried, an energy enveloped me, warm and comforting like a heavy blanket woven by the love of a mother.

"~It appears fate has tasked me with taking care of a lost lamb.~" The voice carried a pure, inhuman joy within it.

But while deep down, it felt manipulative, and mixed confusion and worry into my mind... There was nothing that could make it surface.

Slowly sinking into the warm pressure of the energy around me, I slowly drifted to sleep, but at the last moment, a searing pain ripped through my head, my few remaining senses blurred, and the sensation of falling filled my body.

But somehow, I didn't feel fear.

At that moment, it was as if I had become simply incapable of it.

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Mid Morning (A couple days later) - Mid Winter : Atlas, Bahamut

- Vasilias Ragnarok ~

*hmmm* The gentle hum of the mana accumulation rune under my bed was the only thing that could be heard from my room that morning.

Over the last four days, I had been in a sleep so deep that I wouldn't have woken up even if someone had hit me with all their might, but that morning, there was a war going on between my mind and body to continue sleeping or wake up.

*Click* "Hooh..." Letting out a foggy breath as she walked into my room, Chloe quickly changed to her dragon form and made her way to the corner, where several large rags and cloths were laid. "Just how much aura does he have at this point..."

Gently draping them over her wing, she walked over to me and started gently washing my scales, starting at my claws and working her way up.

It had become her routine over the last few days as the mana accumulation rune caused lots of dust to settle on my body, but unfortunately, that day was a little different.

The winner of the battle being waged in my body had decided the winner.

*FWIP-CRRRACK* Jolting awake, I leapt up with enough force to shatter the stone platform beneath my bed, pinning Chloe to the ground in the process before suddenly regaining composure and lowing my head with labored breaths and saliva dripping from my mouth. "Hah... Hah... Hah...."

My mind was in a fog, clouded by a hunger that consumed my mind.

But as my mind struggled to keep control of my instincts, I looked up in the air and saw Ilios seemingly standing on nothing, looking down at me with a cold gaze and a still, unmoving tail.

It was as if I was looking at a completely different Fenrir, but the instant I blinked, he vanished, and I felt a wagging tail brushing across the back of my neck.

At the time, my aura was in such a mess that I couldn't even tell what I saw was real, but after a moment, it didn't matter.

"C..Chloe... I need something to eat... Fast..." Lifting my paw off her, I didn't even have the spare energy to apologize, but somehow, she didn't seem to care.

"Y-Yes, my lord! I'll bring you something right away." Her voice tingled with a mix of worry and concern, but somehow, it didn't seem to be about her own safety, even as she jumped up and small bits of cracked scales flaked off her side. She simply acted as if nothing had happened to her.

But as much as I wish I could have said something, at the time, I couldn't even acknowledge it.

As she hurried out of the room, I had to dedicate every ounce of my mind to suppressing my hunger and distracting myself from it, but the fog only thickened until she eventually returned.

*vwoom-Click* Undoing the mana lock on the large main door of my room, the doors swung open to reveal an enormous, steaming fish on a metal tray.

*Crackle* As she pushed it inside with the help of a butler, I continuously got weird looks from those in the hall, but the only thing my mind could think of was food.

*FWOOSH* Darting up to the tray, I instantly clamped my maw onto the fish, slicing through its scales, flesh, and bone with ease before tilting my head back and swallowing it whole.

In an instant, a quarter of the fish disappeared along with part of the tray it laid on, but the metal was simply treated like additional food when it finally fell into my stomach.

However, it still wasn't enough. "I need more... It doesn't matter if it's cooked or not, or even if it's good or trash meat..."

The butler was frozen in place, speechless for a moment, but Chloe instantly threw herself into a deep bow. "Yes, my lord!"

Darting back out of the room, she left me to scarf down the rest of the fish with an audience of butlers and maids gathering at the door before returning just a moment later with another fish, this time only barely cooked.

I lunged at it instantly, but while I noticed the difference instantly, it took a moment for me to recognize who had replaced the butler to help her bring the tray.

"Vasilias, are you alright?!" Mother's voice filled the room with a deep, heart-wrenching worry instantaneously.

Even to my hunger-ridden mind, it made me freeze. "I-I'm just.. hungry..." Looking up at her with a mouthful of bloody fish, I felt a bit ashamed, but after swallowing it, my instincts forced me to take another bite.

However, it only worsened the concern in her eyes. "Your reserve feels like it's full.. is it not? You're eating as if it’s empty..."

*CRUNCH* "Ish full..." I tensely mumbled as I took another massive chunk out of the fish. *Gulp* "I just feel like my body would consume itself if I don’t feed it…” *CRUNCH*

She tensely watched me remove another chunk from the fish as she fell silent, concern woven deep into her expression, but after a moment, her expression flipped and eyes suddenly widened as if from a realization. “Wait… Are you trying to suppress your dragon sleep?”

At that instant, it became so silent, and everyone became so still it felt as if time had simply stopped.

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