19 - Suen 30th

On the last day of the month, everyone in the Martelli household seemed busier than usual. Fina and Sergius kept passing through the kitchen, hauling various items from the house to the backyard, including dresses, bundles of dried herbs, and even pairs of boots. Valrion’s mother repeatedly reminded them to retrieve other things, like a stack of letters she had set aside days earlier or gifts she hadn’t opened.

“Aren’t these dried berries? Are you sure you want to throw them away? I can eat them, you know,” Sergius said, holding two thin boxes wrapped in dried leaves and tied with twigs.

“They’re apology gifts from that elderly man,” Valrion’s mother replied.

“Oh.” Sergius didn’t say more before moving on.

At one point, Valrion caught his mother holding a book—the very first time he had ever seen one under this roof—and it pained him not to be able to scream, “Wait, let me read that!”

Whether it was a work of fiction or not, its contents would provide him with more information about the current Eru. It might even contain illustrations he could look at to alleviate his boredom. Then again, it would never occur to his family that he could read when he couldn’t even speak. His ability to wield elemental power was strange enough as it was.

As more and more things were placed outside, Valrion became certain that his family was doing a monthly clean-up, discarding items that no longer served a purpose. He couldn’t understand the letters, as everyone, even gods, usually kept them as mementos, especially if they contained important records. Perhaps most of them were from Fina’s second husband and sister.

The hustle and bustle didn’t cross his mind again until after dinner when his mother picked him up and carried him to the backyard. It was dark outside, except for the firepit that had been ignited, as the moon offered little light. From a distance, the town below appeared like a dreamland with lantern posts lining the roads and guiding the way.

His mother waited near the cupboards and shelves in the outdoor kitchen, gently rocking him as she watched the goods being arranged much farther away. A brazier, at least a third the size of the one used for his Aptitude Test, stood among them, though it remained unlit.

The scar on his palm still left a mark. An idea crossed his mind that they were conducting another test on him, but his attention was diverted to Sergius and Fina, who were circling the brazier. The former was laughing while the latter squeaked in annoyance.

“Fina has been hiding a letter from her ex-husband!” Sergius exclaimed, holding a letter behind his back, preventing Fina from taking it.

“I told you that I forgot about it! I’m going to burn them all today!” Fina shouted louder, running toward Sergius with a frown.

“Oh, really? A love letter from when he first tried to court you? I thought someone said she has moved on,” Sergius teased, dodging Fina as she chased him around the area. When he finally halted, he lifted the letter out of her reach, then sprinted to another spot, continuing the game.

How bored must Sergius have been to torment a woman at least a decade older than him? If Valrion could, he would have scolded him.

“Give it back to her, Sergius. You’re not five,” Valrion’s father groaned, stepping out of the kitchen. “Let’s get it over with. I’m exhausted.”

Laughing, Sergius followed the order and returned the letter. Fina smacked him on the back before stepping away, moving closer to the pile of clothes and boots. Sergius then set the brazier ablaze by transferring a stick of firewood from the nearby firepit. What was inside the brazier didn’t turn blue—they were just regular firewood, not manashards.

Perhaps Valrion was still shaken from the previous encounter, as his heart dropped when his mother approached the brazier. Thankfully, it soon settled when she stopped at a safe distance. His concern eased further as Fina and Sergius began tossing the items into the brazier, watching the fire quickly consume each one. Some, like the herbs, vanished within seconds, while the fabrics took longer to burn.

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“Divine source, we come before you with open hearts, free from attachment to the material world,” Fina suddenly initiated out loud, closing her eyes and pressing her hands together at her chin. “We acknowledge that all things are temporary, and our true wealth lies in you. We trust that you will give us what we desire and take from us what is harmful, knowing that your will is always for our highest good.”

Silence descended upon the air. Valrion noticed everyone else followed suit except his mother, who could only lower her gaze as she was holding him. They were all communicating with the divine source, and even his father was silently moving his lips. It didn’t take him long to realize what was happening: this was a religious ritual.

In all honesty, Valrion had thought his family didn’t believe in any religion.

The most common time for prayer was before bedtime. He had slept alongside every person in the household other than Sergius, yet he had never seen any of them pray. He had never heard them use traditional terms like Heaven, Hell, afterlife, or even gods. The last time his mother spoke of her dream, she had used the word “paradise” instead.

It would also make more sense to punish him that way—to retain his divine name while being born to parents who would rather die than worship him. However, the situation before him suggested otherwise.

“May you listen to our deepest wishes. We believe, without doubt, that the divine source will always work in our favor, guiding us toward peace, love, and fulfillment,” Fina continued about two minutes later before opening her eyes. Everyone else did the same.

None of them moved afterward. Solemnly, they watched the brazier’s flame grow higher and fiercer, though it remained contained within the brazier. Even someone like Sergius seemed subdued, clasping his hands in front of his stomach.

Eru and Heaven are connected—two halves of a whole. He recalled one of his early lessons as a child in Heaven. Mortal worshippers are the backbone of Heaven, the source of energy that makes us strong. In return, we protect them and listen to their wishes. Without Heaven’s guidance, the air and water in Eru would become tainted. Without mortal prayers, the light in Heaven would grow dim.

These were but gentle imagery, of course, as a disconnection between the two realms had never occurred before. Dozens of major religious groups had thrived in Eru, each with its own beliefs and customs, and most viewed the Twelve Eidolons as evidence of their gods’ existence. Some had their followers pray several times a day, while others reserved their worship for the weekends. Some danced and sang aloud, while others insisted that silent prayers, spoken only in the heart, carried more power.

“Divine source” was worshipped by this family, which might as well have been gods and Heaven for all he knew. The reason they burned these objects was plain to see—they needed to rid themselves of worldly attachments to bring peace into their lives.

He understood the gifts from the elderly man—his mother must have wanted no connection with him. He also understood why Sergius teased Fina about keeping her ex-husband’s love letter since she was supposed to let it go the moment he betrayed her.

This belief certainly emerged after Valrion’s banishment since he hadn’t been aware of it before. It wasn’t a bad practice, as detachment allowed mortals to live fully in the present. It taught them to be grateful and free, even when life threw obstacles in their way.

Ultimately, it didn’t matter what they did or what they called their gods and religions. Everything pointed to one shared belief: there was an unimaginable power beyond their planet, something that watched over them from above. This had always fueled Heaven’s strength.

The whole thing prompted Valrion to call the Handbook.

His observation hadn’t changed. Among all the options spread before him, the one that left the most mystery had always been [Blessings]. Similarly, of all the quests he received, [The Fate of Heaven] stood out. Everything he had learned about his existence here had been recorded under [A New Era]. Even after discovering his family’s religion, it still wasn’t considered a lead toward the current state of Heaven.

It was understandable if [Capturing the Twelve Eidolons] was delayed indefinitely, given that he had been holed up in his house. It was unlikely that an eidolon would simply drop onto his roof and willingly accept their fate to be bound and sent back to the Vault, but the lack of progress regarding [The Fate of Heaven] was something else.

Just have to live my life, he told himself. In any case, just like [Blessings] and [Spells], if he tried to find a solution, he would probably be urged to proceed with the main quests. It had always been this way.

“Don’t forget to pray for Octavia’s recovery.”

Valrion’s contemplation was interrupted by Sergius’ sudden words, breaking the silence over them. His mother tightened her embrace around him—an instinctive reaction to the statement—while his father stood still, his expression unreadable and his gaze fixed on the distant flames.

“I did, of course, but poor girl,” Fina replied, sighing.

“It wasn’t her fault that their radiance wielder was taken down first,” Sergius said.

No further discussion followed as Sergius shook his head in disappointment before staring at the brazier like the rest of the people, but a tight knot formed in Valrion’s chest. His fingers curled involuntarily. His eyes darted between the others, searching for any hint of more information, but it didn’t yield any result.

In the days since Octavia’s departure, he had heard nothing about her—not even a whisper of a letter sent to the house—and now he was being told she was injured? The thought settled uneasily in his mind.