After the incident with the avoral, I kept my guard up and my eyes on my surroundings as I traveled, and was even more careful when I was resting. I made sure to always ride with my back hunched and my hood high, so that I would appear much older and I never rested anywhere that wasn't completely covered by trees or high bushes.

My thoughts about the person I'd just killed were magnified by my being alone. I knew that we were both victims of a war organized by the Order, but the fact I was forced to take a side in this unfair battle pained me. I'd killed a man who hated my people for good reason. An honest man who was probably a respected warrior among his kin. I hated the Order for it, I wanted no part of it, and yet I was on my way to ask for their help.

One day before I reached Elysia, Seika finally managed to communicate with me through my earring. Our conversation was short, as I was still preoccupied with the recent events. However, I was happy to hear that she, Man, Krysha, and Kard had reached the coast of Elysia and were headed toward the capital.

Regardless of how short our communication was, talking to my sister provided me with enough comfort to get through the day, and I was able to replace my dark thoughts with planning what we would need to do once we met with the archons. Riding felt faster and I was able to push away thoughts of the man I had killed only three days ago.

Myriam, however, was still on my mind.

***

The sun was setting when I reached the city gates of Elysia. Unlike other towns or villages, the capital had no guards stationed at its gates. The only visible defense at each of its entrances were two gigantic pyramids levitating above the ground on either side of the road. The glowing artifacts rotated very slowly and generated a low buzzing sound while emitting a faint yellow glow.

I had never seen them fire on anyone but it was well known that if anyone absent of Elysian blood tried to enter the city uninvited, they would be incinerated immediately with a bolt of lightning. This worked to my advantage as a native Elysian, since it meant I could enter the city without being seen or checked by anyone, though I was troubled to think about how Man would enter the city with the others.

Once I'd passed the gates, I was met with a spectacle I hadn't laid my eyes on since I was but a child. I hadn't realized how much I missed this city, and I steadied myself against the wall of a building as I took in the majesty of the capital of mana.

The gate I'd entered through led to one of the less wealthy neighborhoods of the city, and so most of the houses around me were made of wood as opposed to the stone and onyx of the higher-end residences.

The stone-paved roads were brimming with life. Carts were pulled by invisible oxen, bright-glowing metals were being pummeled by giant pillars of stone operated by weaponsmiths, and the magical item stalls were as colorful as ever.

Towering over everything, the giant horns of The Divine Order threw their heavy shadow on the city. The horns were two adamantite towers standing atop the Ministry of Mana. The walls below them had no windows, but were polished and painted in the color of actual horns.

I remembered asking my parents about these towers as a child, and my mother had told me that they had never visited them, even though they were archpriests. As a matter of fact, little was known about what really went on in the towers, apart from the fact that not even paragons were allowed on their upper floors. I had always liked to think of them as the place where the archons lived, but my adult mind was sure it was a place of immense power.

Between the two horns, a thick column of white light shot up into the sky, acting as a one-way road toward the realm of The Divine. Growing up, I had always wondered why the beam of light was only able to take mortals to the upper realm and not the other way round, but given what had happened since then, I could not be happier about this limitation now.

Around the two horns and the complex of smaller towers and bridges that made up the majority of the Order's facilities and dormitories, a vast sea of houses rose and fell over each other. Everything from large colorful mansions to simplistic wooden cabins were clustered in the city's five major districts.

The charm of the city of Elysia lay in its ever-changing landscape. Despite appearances, few of the buildings were actually built with stone or wood. Most of them were simply magical manifestations, able to be recalled and transferred whenever their owner wished it so.

But the streets and the statues of long-dead archons never moved. I wasn't entirely sure of the exact location of my parents' mansion but I knew the district it used to be in and its relative position to the statue of Edra, a female archon who had lived more than seven hundred years ago. Thus, I walked the road leading to the district I was born in, keeping the huge horn towers as my guide.

I spent almost an hour pacing through the city's colorful and loud markets before I finally reached the entry to the district where my parents, as well as most other archpriests, had their mansions. Even though the sun had almost set, I had no problem locating Edra's crystal statue, which reflected the last orange light of the day.

The rest of the path toward my ancestral home came as easy as breathing. I had to force myself not to run in excitement. The sight of the stonework facade of the house I'd spent countless hours in, resurfaced a lot of mixed feelings.

On the one hand, I always felt happy and safe in the comfort of our magically reinforced walls. On the other, I never knew what I was missing out on when I was there, locked away from the chaotic, painful, and wonderful outside world.

I stepped onto the first of the three steps leading up to the tall, dark, wooden door when the eyes of the ram-shaped door knocker lit up with an intense orange light.

"Who stands before the ram?" asked a steady, but not too loud, voice.