Leylin crept past the guards watching the dining hall entrance and made his way to the corner of the room. Six other people, the heads of the other noble houses, sat around the table. An opulent feast steamed in front of them, but they were not in the mood to eat it. They had grave expressions as they began their discussion. "So, it has once more come to this time. We need to decide what to do with the Incarnation." A woman with blonde hair and green eyes took the initiative to begin the conversation. "The Incarnation is nearing its prime." "We should kill it now. This time the Incarnation has found its way into a very optimal host compared to the past. It would be dangerous only to restrain it. I wonder if Duke Varius will be able to do what must be done since it is related to him." Traditionally, the houses would imprison the Incarnation within Pandora's Box. "I will. After all, we exist for this very purpose. This time, it will be much easier because it happened to show up on my doorstep," replied Duke Varius. Leylin struggled to understand the conversation. He would need to do more research. "Since the threat level is higher this time, we will take a vote. Should we kill the Incarnation, or should we imprison it? After all, imprisoning it would give us more time to prepare before it reincarnates again. Yet, it would be too risky in case it escapes." They agreed to take a vote. Four of the house heads voted to follow tradition, while two others and his father voted to eliminate. "It is decided. The host will be imprisoned within Pandora's box. We leave it to you Duke Varius." "I will carry out my duty to protect Lavania as I have always done," he said. With the conclusion of the formalities, the nobles began eating. Leylin left the dining hall confused by their discussion. He decided to search through the library for any information on the Incarnation. He walked through the rows of shelves, examining the spines of each book as he passed. The library was stuffy and smelled of old books. It was usually empty, so the maids rarely came to clean. Despite this, Leylin grew fond of it over the years. He suddenly stopped, his interest piqued by a specific book. Its cover had been singed to the point that he couldn't read the title and some of the pages were burnt. He opened the book and began to look through it. "The Historical Observation of the Incarnation and Its Many Forms? That's a mouth-full," Leylin said as he read the title page. According to the book, the Incarnation was the soul of the Creator reborn into the body of a human. Many religions who continued to worship the Creator awaited his return. They hoped he would lead it into an eternal golden age, but the Incarnation had yet to appear. Leylin wondered why his father and the noble houses were trying to stop the Incarnation. After all, the official religion of Lavania worshipped the Creator. Still not grasping the situation, Leylin decided to ask his uncle about it. He walked past the bookshelves, taking in their scent one last time. Walking through the garden, he headed towards his uncle's chambers. The servants bustled about, trimming bushes and watering flowers. He came to the residential wing of the manor and entered his uncle's room. His uncle, reclined in a fancy chair, smoked a cigar while reading. "Do you know anything about something called the Incarnation, uncle?" asked Leylin, observing his face. His face changed briefly before he replied, "I know that Creationists believe that the Creator will come back to our world in the form of a human. They call it the Incarnation. I have never had much interest in that though, so I don't know much." "I see," said Leylin, "Thanks for your time." Leylin walked out of his uncle's room down the long corridor. "He's lying," he concluded. In the split second that his uncle's face changed, it displayed guilt. While Leylin walked through the corridor thinking, a servant approached him. "Your father has summoned you. Follow me." Confused by his father's sudden attention, Leylin followed excitedly. The servant led him to a part of the manor that he had never explored. It appeared to be much older than the other buildings. Paint peeled on the ceiling and cracked tiles littered the floor. Antique paintings were hung on the walls, but their frames were falling apart from rot. The servant opened a large oak door into what appeared to be an office. Dominating the center of the room was a desk where his father sat. The room was sparsely decorated and stacks of paper cluttered every available space. "Sit," commanded Duke Varius. Leylin quickly sat, feeling nervous due to the first word that his father had spoken to him in years. "Let me tell you a story. Long ago, an entity formed from mana in the universe. This entity, being mana, was able to command it in ways that we can not even imagine. With this power, the entity gained a sense of pride, a sense of self-entitlement. Realizing there was no one to marvel at its power, the entity decided to create the first humans. There were originally seven, and each was painstakingly crafted from mana. Their only purpose was to worship this being. In the beginning, they complied with the being's demand. They truly believed it to be omnipotent. One day, however, the seven humans found a box floating through the cosmos. They didn't know how it appeared there, so they concluded it was formed from mana. Out of curiosity, the seven opened the box. After opening it, they gained what the omnipotent being dreaded them having, ambition. Out of the box came seven 'sins' that distracted them from their commanded task. One of the humans gained pride, pride in his own ability. A pride that prevented him from kneeling to someone else. One of the humans gained greed, wanting to own everything. A greed that made him want the power that the entity controlled. One of the humans gained lust, becoming disinterested in everything other than sex. A distraction so powerful that he could not continue to focus on worshipping the entity. One of the humans gained anger. It was a righteous anger that burned because of the injustice of his purpose. One of the humans gained gluttony, no treasure or food sating his want for more. One of the humans gained envy, a jealousy so acute that he could not be near anyone who was more powerful than him. And finally, one of the humans gained sloth, wanting to pursue his own desires for eternity. These seven humans, realizing their own ambitions, plotted together to overthrow the Creator. Together, they were able to kill the Creator. They and the rest of the human race could continue to follow their own desires. They failed to realize one thing though. The Creator was capable of inhabiting the body of a newborn human. The original seven feared that the Creator would return and enslave them once again. To prevent this, they entrapped the 'hosts' into the bo, and they called the prison Pandora's Box. The seven original humans used the same method as the Creator to reincarnate. They passed their souls into the bodies of their descendants, so they could entrap the Incarnation for eternity. I am one of those seven humans." Leylin listened to this point wondering what this had to do with him. "And you are the host for the Incarnation that must be trapped within Pandora's Box." "Wait, wait. You want to imprison me in there until I die? You're my father! What kind of father does that to their own son?" exclaimed Leylin. "Weren't you listening at all? I'm not your father. I took over his body after my former host, your grandfather, grew old, and I will eventually take over Laura's body as this one grows old. Simply put, your father no longer exists." Leylin sat in silence, stunned by the words of this man. In a quiet voice, Leylin whispered, "But what about all of the training I did...was it all for nothing?" "Yes," Duke Varius replied emotionlessly. "Well, perhaps not entirely for nothing. Within Pandora's Box exists a world vastly different than ours. Your training might help you survive a little longer." Duke Varius pulled out an ivory box. It was adorned with gold leafing and carvings mythical monsters. "I haven't even done anything wrong," stuttered Leylin. "Hmm," Duke Varius contemplated, "I guess you could blame it simply on 'bad luck'. Let's hope your luck isn't as bad on the other side." He slowly opened the lid and a strong wind began to blow through the room, causing papers to fly into the air. Leylin could hear eerie moaning coming from within the box. The sound rose to a cacophony of screaming and howling. Leylin felt a sensation like his soul being ripped from his body as a large, dark arm reached out to grab him. Finally, it seized and dragged him into the depths of the box. Duke Varius relaxed, "It is done."