The next night I lay in my bed gazing at the ceiling of my bedroom, thinking of my brother's black eye and the company of dispatched troops. He deserved more than that black eye for his foolish step — the consequence of which would be far more solemn than just losing his life.

It'd be a lie to say that I was concerned about his life. It was the last thing I cared about on this earth. My greatest concern was Somirea. It was decided who would win and lose in this, and unfortunately, my brother wasn't taking this seriously. It was going to make his defeat trouncing.

Vittoria had the opportunity to turn him into a frog and put his clownery to an end...

...but if only things were so uncomplicated.

My brother would lose Somirea if he continued with his plans. With him, I'd be losing my opportunity to take the throne back. It'd be formidable to win it back from the werewolf king— should he succeed and annex the entirety of Somirea.

It'd be such a disesteem for me to put through everything to have someone else take it all away only because of my stupid brother.

I wouldn't allow this at any cost!!!

The more I pondered about it, the more things seemed to be out of my hands. It was still early into the night, and even though I was exhausted from our voyage back to the Shrine, I couldn't fall asleep with my mind racing a hundred miles per hour.

What was Vittoria going to do?

I was sure she wouldn't sit down and tolerate my brother continuing with his stupidity. Even though my brother was the least favoured contender of the throne, having a puppet on the throne was far more manipulatable than having that despot werewolf king should he annex Somirea.

She had been planning... scheming. On our way back, she'd been shuffling her cards, again and again, trying to see something. In her eyes, I had seen that deviant perseverance, that nefarious cunningness that made my shadow tremble... she was thinking something, and I needed to know what it was! I was on the cusp of losing my mind if I went longer without talking to Vittoria.

I leapt out of my bed and listened for a moment to make sure Nuncia was asleep. It was pretty dark, and seeing me leave my room would make her suspicious. I knew that she had something cooking in her head. I didn't want to supply her with more spices.

As quiet as a mouse, I skulked out of my room and tiptoed across Nuncia's door. Once I had crossed a safe threshold, I broke into a run, racing down the stony aisles towards the part of the Shrine that all the priestesses dreaded— the High Priestess' Office.

I was certain Vittoria was still there at this hour. She went to bed last and woke up first. I was hoping to startle her with my presence, but I was the one being startled.

I was about to turn towards her office when suddenly, I noticed a figure way ahead in the aisle. It was Vittoria but what surprised me was seeing her heading out of the Shrine building, but at this hour?

My prying nature instantly had me following her. The night air greeted me warmly when I stepped out of the back door of the Shrine. It was hard for me to find Vittoria in the dark. But as a massive curtain of clouds parted to unveil the moon briefly, my eyes caught the white of her satin cloth flickering in the woods behind the Shrine.

Where was she going?

To answer this question, I tailed her. She strolled through the woods before descending to the west edge of the Shrine's mountain via an uneven dirt trail. It took me a lot of effort to follow her in the darkness. I almost tripped twice over some logs and had a few thorns in my heel halfway down.

But the thought of having another of Vittoria's dirty laundry in my arsenal motivated me to keep going. The water was much calmer here than on the east coast, harbouring rugged boulders and angry waves.

I had never been to this part of the island before. Here, the beach from the Shrine's facade extended in a narrow strip where the water gently wiped the shores.

Vittoria walked over the sand gently, relishing the ocean air as it ruffled her curls. She stopped for a moment, threw her hair back, and took in a deep sigh. Meanwhile, I stilled like a statue and held back my breath, but she seemed to be completely oblivious of my presence.

After a few deep breaths, she headed north until the shore got slightly broader. I pursued her from the shadows of the woods that ran parallel to the beach until she stopped. That's when I noticed a small lagoon. The water reflection hopped on the nearby surfaces, mystifying to the lagoon.

Though what surprised me further was a small boat in the lagoon, no, scratch that. It wasn't exactly the boat that surprised me. The Matriarch sitting in the boat surprised me.

I watched Vittoria carefully get onto the boat. It seemed like the two of them weren't going to go anywhere anytime soon, so I decided to sit down among the cover of the trees and wait.

What could be the two of them doing here at THIS hour?

"You look more tired than you should," I heard the Matriarch comment. Under the glaring moonlight, I could see the Matriarch holding something narrow, long and cylindrical between her fingers that she put between her lips and took a long drag.

Her body visibly relaxed before she inclined back and eyed Vittoria. Beside her, a candle faintly flickered.

"I haven't had a good night's sleep in a while," Vittoria yawned before I saw her pull out something from a small cloth and put it between her lips. She lit it with the flickering candle before leaning back. Her body looked relatively relaxed as well.

I watched with wide eyes as soon as I realized they were getting high.

"I advised you not to get involved with the merchants," The Matriarch said sardonically. "You're going against the Codices,"

Vittoria laughed with the roll of weed between her lips and pointed, "So are you! Leave the Codices, for now, Arrieta... we're not here for those,"

"Regardless... I don't like those merchants laying their profane hands on the holy treasure," The Matriarch spoke, taking a long drag.

"What could be so holy about those treasures looted in invasions and obtained in war booties?"

"They're still the Shrine's treasures. The end justifies the means," The Matriarch shrugged, tapping the dust off her roll. In response, Vittoria chuckled before taking a long drag. "I find it hard to accept that you trust those merchants— they're the last one you should trust, especially with the shrine's treasures," Matriarch warned darkly.

"If I could dare to trust you, then I could trust anyone, Arrieta," Vittoria returned with a darker inflexion. The Matriarch stared at Vittoria with a deathly stillness. I could feel the tension on that boat from my hiding spot. Imagining the Matriarch's pitch-black eyes staring at me in that manner pricked my skin with goosebumps.

"One's words have consequences, Vittoria,"

"A lesson I know well,"

"The manner in which you speak don't say so,"

"Let it go, Arrieta. I was joking with you," Vittoria waved her hand, but I knew from the tone of her voice that she was anything but joking. The Matriarch's stare prolonged for another uncomfortable minute before she leaned back. Her eyes never abandoned Vittoria.

"I didn't know you brought a guest tonight," she mused suddenly. It took a moment for her words to register in my brain. My eyes widened as soon as I realised they had detected my presence. As I got up to run back into the woods, crippling pain stabbed my stomach.

I bit my palm to remain quiet, but the pain grew until my legs felt numb, knocking me down.

"Did I?" Vittoria mused. I tried to get up and leave, but the pain kept building on until I sensed someone stepping beside me. Vittoria sighed as she looked down at me.

"I've never seen someone trying so hard to die," Vittoria commented. Suddenly, the pain disappeared. I let out a gasp of relief, but the aftermath of pain lingered in the form of a numbing tingling sensation. I was gasping for breath when a pair of hands gripped me in a steely hold and dragged me down to the lagoon.

A/n> The wouldn't be any updates for May and the first half of June because I have exams. Also, I have to take up an important project on the side, so it will keep me A LOT busy. I might not be to stay as consistent with the updates after June. I'm not sure yet. I will let you know according to the situation. Keep in mind that there wouldn't be any updates in May on any platforms-- Inkitt, Wattpad, Patreon.

Though you can read the next 3 chapters on Patreon (one-time payment only because I have also disabled the payment system of my Patreon page until I'm able to give a proper updating schedule again).

I apologise for this, but I have to give more priority to other stuff for the upcoming months. This will leave me with a lot less time for writing, and hence my updates could be very unpredictable. Nonetheless, I will try my best to update because this book is my favourite.

Thank you so much for reading and supporting me so far ❤️