09.22 cycle eighteen, Ca’thir, of calendar Moonrachia

  In the royal palace

  The palace was currently undergoing a ceremony to honor the families that had a member fall on the battlefield, despite how most of them stood gracefully, anyone could easily see that they were trying their best to look strong

  “The House of Orlier,” the herald announced

  I held Alias’s hand, walked to the front of the throne, and dropped to one knee. Alias followed shortly after, mimicking my gesture with clumsy posture

  And then the King spoke, his voice echoing against the stone walls, “In honor of the fallen hero of our kingdom, Noah Rel Orlier…”

  “By the final wish of the late Lord Orlier, we hereby decree that Maya, right hand of the fallen lord, shall serve as Protector to the current Head of House Orlier. This sacred duty shall remain hers until the young heir reaches the age of adulthood.”

  “Furthermore, we grant the House of Orlier leave to depart from our kingdom’s territories. May this journey serve to broaden the horizons of the new Head of House.”

  “May your path be clear and your journey favored by grace…”

  Slowly, I stood up and bowed my head once again. Alias copied my exact gesture before we stepped away and left the room

  When we reached the courtyard, there were a lot of guards standing by

  “Are we done here?” Alias asked

  “Yes, we are.” Slowly, we passed the busy courtyard and headed toward the front gate. I could see a lot of people preparing something out of the corner of my eye

  After a few minutes, we finally reached the outside of the king's castle and entered the horse carriage

  On the way to our house, I could see a lot of workers working on the city square, they were placing chairs and... a guillotine...

  After that, I pat Alias's head, and she looks at me while tilting her head

  These past few days, I could see Alias becoming more and more like her old self. She didn't talk as much as before and hadn't demanded as much since Kaleth was there

  As planned, we will go to Vaelthoria after this

  Then the horse carriage was slowing down before an old man opened our door

  I stepped out from the carriage and slowly helped Alias down

  Alias then headed straight inside the house, and I followed her shortly after paying our fee

  Her small steps didn't take her far; it only took me a few breaths to reach her side. “We’re going to meet Kaleth now, so—“

  “Really?!” She jumped slightly and grabbed my clothes

  “Yes, really, but it might take a few days for us to meet him.” I could feel how the tune of her voice became bubblier

  “So, change your clothes first, and could you wait for me there so we can pack up your things?” While I pat her head, she nods once before running away slowly

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  I just stood there and watched her figure disappear once she entered her room, and then someone knocked on the front door

  When I open the door, a few guards and a few mages are standing there

  They are really following us here, huh?

  “We’re here for a Kaleth.” A heavy and muscular voice could be heard

  I just nodded and said, “Follow me.”

  It seems even the king himself doesn’t dare to touch the Orlier family. I thought they would do something the moment Master Noah was gone

  The fact that they need to wait for us to arrive at the house first to get Kaleth explains everything I need to know

  I was afraid of how to protect Alias, since nobles often cut their own competition easily

  But now I think we will be fine, even though they’re trying to catch Kaleth, despite it being a hearing, not a judgment

  After seeing all of this, now I really can accept that Master Noah is really capable of seeing the future

  We finally arrived at Kaleth’s room, it was the complete opposite of Alias’s, and she’s well-behaved enough to listen to me, so she won’t notice all of this event

  When I opened the door, Kaleth was sitting on the single wooden chair with his hands tied back

  “It seems my time has come.”

  *****

  11:46 cycle eighteen, Ca’thir, of calendar Moonrachia

  After packing all of our things, such as documents, clothes, money, etc., we took a horse carriage and headed into the church

  When arriving, I noticed there were only a few people here, which was weird when often there are a lot of priestesses

  Then we head inside, while I hold Alias's hand

  A gentle voice greeted us, “Welcome, is there anything that I could help with?” As a nun slowly approaching us

  “We want to use the teleportation portal.”

  “Ah! You’re Maya and Alias from the Orlier family. I’ve heard it from my supervisor already. Please follow me.” Then she led us somewhere below the church

  It seems it was right that the teleportation portal is regulated heavily, so they need to do a background check first, huh?

  After a while, we arrived at the weird room

  The room was incredibly wide and bright; the walls were painted gold, while the floor is made only of natural stone

  Around the edge of the corner, there are 7 statues that are big enough that their heads are almost hitting the ceiling, and also water flows from each of the statues' hands

  In the center stood a structure resembling a door

  “We’ve arrived, please wait, shortly I will activate it.” Then she walks toward the door that should be the portal and chants something incomprehensible

  Slowly, the light in the room dimmed, and the water that flowed from the statue stopped before the portal turned glowing with tons of different colors

  The scene was so breathtaking that Alias stood beside me, her mouth agape in wonder

  “Thank you for using our service.” As the nun waited beside the portal

  The moment we entered the portal, we… arrived instantly at the Vaelthoria church… This is my first time using it, and I thought there might be a side effect

  Then an old nun walked in front of us. “Welcome to Vaelthoria.”

  *****

  12.34 cycle eighteen, Ca’thir, of calendar Moonrachia

  My hands were tied with an iron chain

  People were throwing rocks and other things toward me

  They’re screaming at the top of their lungs

  The walk feels too long. The hearing, they said? Never once did they ask a single question, it’s more like judgment

  Humans are truly interesting creatures

  Then we arrived at the city square, they’re pushing me above the wooden podium and shoving my head into the guillotine

  “Kill that monster!” “You deserve hell!” “My kid died because of you! You killed her!” “Kill him already!”

  People were screaming louder and louder this time

  As I lifted my head, someone threw a rock that struck me directly in my right eye, and then slowly I heard, “Kaleth, citizen of the Arnentia kingdom, will now be executed.”

  “Any last words?”

  The rain of rock kept happening. I couldn’t see properly with my right eye. I glanced around at the surrounding area and said, “None.”

  “Got it.” Then the executioner unsheathed his sword

  And cut the rope…

  *****

  13.02 cycle eighteen, Ca’thir, of calendar Moonrachia

  A chill lingered around my neck, causing me to bolt upright in bed, while gasping for air. Glancing around, I realized it was just a dream

  Raising my hand and tracing a line around my neck, “It feels so real…” Then I feel a sharp pain in my right shoulder

  When I glanced there, I could see that half of my entire right shoulder was wrapped in bandages

  The door of the room slowly opens up, and I saw Kiara’s figure enter my field of vision. “It seems you have woken up.”

  Then, she walked toward me, “Please don’t force yourself to sit first.”

  “You lost too much blood.” While she sits on the edge of the bed, “And sadly there’s no one who can use healing magic, they’re all dead already.”

  “Ah… now I remember.”

  “It was very difficult bringing you back onto the ship, so please don’t try something like that again.” Then she pours me some water. “Drink first, I will get you some food.” And then she was gone

  “That’s probably my first time hearing her talk that much.” After drinking the water, I gently put the glass on the table beside me

  As I hover my palm over the wound, “Healing magic, huh?” But the moment I tried to chant it, I felt a sting all over my body

  “Mana overload…”

  Kiara comes back with a tray of food, and she puts it at the corner of the bed before sitting down at the edge of the bed once again

  “A steak… eggs and milk?”

  “It’s good to treat anemia.”

  I didn't think I could finish it all, but I wasn't brave enough to complain…

  Kiara takes the steak plate on her lap and cuts the meat into pieces

  “How long did I lose consciousness?” Shortly, she answered, “3 days.”

  “I see…”

  That’s really a long time. Did I overdo it? Then I glance around the room, and I can’t see anything broken after all of that incident

  It seems either they’ve fixed it, or it hasn’t reached here

  And slowly my gaze fell onto the calendar

  3 days passed, then… It should be today? Right?

  “…What time is it currently?” As I looked at Kiara's face

  “When I went to the cafeteria a few moments ago, it was already 13.06.” While tilting her head, “Why?”

  She just said why… I remember it correctly that she was there when I talked about the hearing, or rather the execution, days before…

  “Doesn’t that mean Noah… an hour ago…?”

  “You’re right, it is.”

  I feel my heart tightening as I raise my finger and trace the line of my neck once again

  Was that really just a dream?

  ---END---