Chapter 2

Elara could not remember much after that. Although the exorcism spell had failed to destroy her, that did not mean it had had no effect on her at all. It had still wounded her. Even so, Elara forced herself to run. She kept running for miles on end, faster than a horse, perhaps as fast as the wind, for everything she passed seemed like a swiftly rolling shadow.

Even though her body ached, even though her wounds throbbed with pain, she paid no heed to it. She had to run because that was the only way she could save the girl on her shoulders. Otherwise, all his efforts would be in vain.

Fortunately, he finally came across a cave. Elara stopped there. His feet dug deep into the ground to slow him down. Carefully, she laid Seraphina down in the dry inner part of the cave, and then, just as she had promised, the power left her. Leaving her a mere human once more.

And immediately, all the pain she’d previously been able to endure could no longer be ignored. She collapsed straight away on the other side of the cave, curling up like a dying rat. Perhaps at that moment she was even more pitiful than that rodent.

Elara’s hands clenched automatically to bear the pain; she bit her lip hard to stop her groans from turning into screams.

Suddenly, out of the corner of her eye, Elara could see that the tavern owner’s daughter was waking up; she was looking at her with concern. Elara wanted to smile and say, “Don’t worry about me, I’m fine,” but she was unable to utter the words.

“I’ll go and find you some medicine,” said the little girl before getting to her feet and leaving the cave.

Elara wanted to stop her. She wanted to tell her that it was far too dangerous out there; she might come across wild animals, and if that happened, Elara wasn’t sure she’d be able to save her this time. She still needed time to recover—that is, if she didn’t die from her injuries.

A short while later, Seraphina finally returned, unharmed. She was carrying a broad leaf that appeared to be holding dew.

“I found this nearby. I often see my father treating inn-goers who’ve been in a fight. Usually, Father uses crushed leaves to treat open wounds, but I saw you didn’t have any wounds like that. So I just looked for this instead,” said Seraphina, offering an explanation even though she hadn’t been asked.

Elara wanted to reply that her wound wasn’t a physical one. Her wound was caused by a spell; only a special potion could heal it. But she didn’t want to discourage Seraphina, so she accepted her kind gesture.

Elara lay still as Seraphina lifted her head until it was upright and then made her drink the dewdrops from the leaf.

“I hope you get better soon,” said Seraphina after laying Elara back down.

In truth, Elara didn’t feel any positive effects, but she forced herself to give a slight nod, then curled up again.

She didn’t know how much time had passed. Elara felt her consciousness ebbing and flowing. What was certain was that the sun was beginning to set when, suddenly, Seraphina shook Elara’s body, trying to wake her. In truth, she was already awake; it was just that she lacked the strength to get up.

“Oh no, the enforcer is coming. Storm Queen, please wake up—we must leave here at once. I don’t want that enforcer to hurt you again,” said Seraphina anxiously.

‘Thud.’

Elara’s heart seemed to leap out of her chest. So an Enforcer had managed to track her down here? Elara hadn’t expected that. After running for miles on end, it turned out she could still be caught. Perhaps she should start changing her nickname to the ‘Useless Queen’.

Suddenly, Seraphina woke up and stood at the mouth of the cave with both arms outstretched, blocking the way.

“Don’t bother her. She’s not a criminal. She was just trying to help me. My father …,” Seraphina stammered, struggling to form her words.

“I know, I saw it happen. I won’t hurt you,” said the man’s voice, as soft as a breeze.

“You really won’t hurt her? She’s already been through enough,” Seraphina’s voice was little more than a whisper.

“I promise. I’m Father Gabriel. Let me in.”

Elara wanted to shout a warning to Seraphina not to trust the man’s words. But it seemed too late, for she then caught a glimpse out of the corner of her eye of a white cloak fluttering—just like those worn by the other members of the order.

“Drink this; I promise it’s not poison. Give some to her too; it will ease her pain.”

Elara wanted to warn Seraphina not to trust the member of the order in the slightest, but it seemed too late, for what she heard next was Seraphina’s voice saying “Thank you”, followed by the girl moving towards her and, just as before, helping to pour the liquid onto her lips.

“Gulp,” the liquid slid unhindered down Elara’s throat. To her surprise, it tasted both sweet and warm, like spiced honey. The pain she’d been enduring all this time also gradually faded until her body was no longer trembling. In fact, she gradually felt as though her strength was returning. Slowly, Elara propped herself up until she was sitting, and at last she could see the enforcer.

The man sat cross-legged with his staff resting on his lap. His pristine white robe stood in stark contrast to the damp, moss-covered atmosphere of the cave.

“You’ve recovered—thank goodness,” Seraphina squealed cheerfully. Her eyes sparkled as if Elara’s recovery were the most wonderful gift she could have received. Elara couldn’t help but smile. If only she were stronger, she would have reached out to ruffle Seraphina’s hair. Unfortunately, at the moment she desperately needed her hands to support her own body.

“Where are the other Enforcers? Why are you here on your own?” Elara asked straight away. Just a moment ago, there had been four Enforcers searching for her in the tavern. Now that they’d found her, they should have brought more of them. But why had he—wasn’t his name Father Gabriel?—come alone instead?

“Because I didn’t come here to arrest you,” replied Father Gabriel calmly.

Elara looked utterly incredulous.

“After what happened at the tavern earlier, I fully understand that you can’t trust me straight away.”

“Members of your order killed her father.”

“Yes.”

“Father Andreas, he drained Seraphina’s father’s life force.”

Father Gabriel nodded, not denying it at all; instead, he offered a more detailed explanation: “That is how the Order’s magic works; we maintain the flame of life within all the faithful. Without us, you would fall ill immediately.”

“What you’re saying is very noble, but what the enforcers did to Seraphina, and to several other citizens, is nothing like that at all. Whatever ‘blessing’ you’re talking about, the Order is actually stripping it away from us!” Elara made no attempt to hide the scorn in her voice. Her body broke out in a sweat just from that surge of emotion.

“Yes, I don’t deny it. Over the last few years, the Order’s actions have strayed far from its noble duty. What they call a ‘blessing’ is nothing more than the Order’s covert scheme to drain the people’s life force. That’s why I’m here; I want to ask you to work with me.”

Elara raised her eyebrows, puzzled. How could a member of the Order and the figure known as The Storm Queen be working together? “What do you mean?”

Father Andreas did not answer straight away. He stood up, walked towards Elara, and then pointed his staff at her chest.

Elara gasped, for a moment thinking that Father Gabriel was also going to drain her vitality. But instead, the staff emitted a light that flowed into Elara’s body, and from there she felt a warmth more intense than that of the spiced drink she’d had earlier. Her body was improving—no, her body was restored to its former state.

“Why did you heal me?” asked Elara, bewildered. Wasn’t he afraid that, once he’d healed her, Elara would run away?

As if able to read Elara’s mind, Father Gabriel said, “Even if you do run away, I’ll be able to track you down again.”

Elara pressed her lips together, slightly annoyed. But Father Gabriel’s statement reminded Elara of the curiosity she’d felt earlier. “How do you track me? And why are you the only one tracking me, not them?” Elara was referring to Father Andreas and the other enforcers who’d been trying to capture her earlier. If tracking her was really that easy, they surely wouldn’t have let her go just now. She’d been quite badly injured earlier.

“Firstly, I can track you because every blessing we bestow can be traced. And as for why they aren’t tracking you—it’s because they’re currently too busy discussing the matter. The power you displayed earlier has left everyone in such a state of shock that they don’t know what to do. This is the first time in decades that a creature has survived an exorcism spell. Tell me how that could have happened?”

Elara didn’t want to tell him; she didn’t want to trust him too quickly. Yet there was something about this priest—perhaps the sincerity in his voice?—that made her want to believe him. And perhaps because she’d never told anyone about this before, the urge to speak was even stronger.

Elara took a deep breath before finally speaking: “It’s my own fault. I was far too overconfident. I cast a spell to bring the pile of bones before me to life; I’d done it many times before, and it had always worked, so it shouldn’t have been a problem that time either. Unfortunately, because I wasn’t careful, the spell backfired on me. I thought I was going to die, but as it turned out—perhaps we could call it ‘half-dead’?—I actually brought the skeleton to life inside my own body.”

Rather than looking angry at Elara’s carelessness, Father Gabriel looked amazed. “Do you realise you’ve just unlocked a forgotten ancient magic?”

Elara shook her head. “I don’t even know what I’ve done.”

Father Gabriel smiled, like a parent who understands a child’s mischief, even though Elara was, in fact, a grown woman. At the very least, she was older than Seraphina.

“To be honest, until just a moment ago, I didn’t believe in this magic either. I’d only ever read about it, but I always assumed it was magic that could never be realised—that it was merely the manifestation of a wizard’s greatest obsession. But after hearing what you just said, I was immediately convinced.” Father Gabriel’s face lit up; there was even a newfound resolve etched upon his features.

Suddenly, Father Gabriel bowed his head, crouching down in front of Elara, his wide white robe spilling out onto the ground.

“I think I’ve made the right decision. You’re exactly the person I need to work with. The Storm Queen, will you join me in thwarting the Holy Order’s conspiracy? We must put an end to all this pretence and restore the people’s freedom.”

Elara stammered. Take on the Order? Wasn’t that tantamount to courting death?