While the sun was hiding on the horizon, painting the sky with a beautiful orange color.
Carlos looked at the sky and opened his silver pocket watch to check the time. He saw that it was already half past five in the afternoon. Clic. He closed the lid of the watch, let out a tired sigh, and wiped the sweat from his forehead.
Today was quite productive for him because this work typically takes him much longer.
They fed the animals, cleaned the pig stall, changed the horseshoes, and brushed the hair of the two horses and two mares he had. In addition, they fixed some bad parts of the barn, such as some boards that were rotten or damaged by the animals themselves.
This day was very productive for Carlos, who usually does all this alone and takes much more time.
If we keep going at this pace, we'll likely be done with the wrong parts of the barn before the parties start...
The corners of his mouth curved slightly as he watched his assistant, Grey, go to put away some of the tools used in the shed.
Tomorrow, we finish fixing some of the barn's back, and for the rest of the week, we change the wood on the fences so that the sheep and goats don't run away.
With a satisfied smile, Carlo grabs a bucket and walks to the shed to put them away.
After they put away the tools used and changed clothes, Luke looks up at the darkening sky with a tired expression.
He's never done this kind of work before, so he's pleased to be able to do something he's not used to. Although he didn't expect this type of work to be so exhausting.
He imagined it much easier and lighter, but the reality was otherwise. He realized that no job is easy.
Exhaling, Luke looks at his shaking hands, which are due to all the effort he made during the whole day, while a thought goes through his mind.
Now, I have to buy the ingredients for the destiny-changing ritual, but the problem is that I have no money...
Should I ask Carlos to lend me some money... No! He and his wife have already helped me by paying for the inn where I'm staying...
Luke doesn't know whether to borrow money from Carlos to buy the few ingredients for the ritual.
It also crossed his mind to borrow from Jonathan, but they are not close enough to borrow money. Besides, he doesn't want to get into debt with someone he only met yesterday.
The only options he has for borrowing money are Carlos, who will most likely lend it to him without a problem, and Jonathan, who knows next to nothing about him.
Being broke when you need something sucks... Luke is not satisfied with his current financial situation. It's been a long time since he's been in an economic crisis like this.
"There, all done."
Hearing Carlo's voice behind him, he was pulled out of his thoughts.
After putting away the tools, the two began straining back towards town.
…
While walking down the dark road, Luke fixed his gaze on the large two-story house that belonged to Van Salem, and in doing so, a strong shiver ran down his spine when he felt someone's gaze on his body and saw a small light in one of the rooms moving.
He looked away quickly in horror as his heart was pounding; he looked out of pure coincidence; he no longer fully believed the story Carlos told him.
But he didn't expect to feel someone's gaze and see one of the rooms with light!
Maybe it was my imagination playing tricks on me... Luke tried to deny what he had just seen, but he didn't dare to take a second look at the house.
To calm his nerves, he decides to talk to Carlos.
"So, Mr. Carlos, can I ask you a favor?"
Carlos, who is illuminating the road with the lamp that gives off a yellowish light, says without taking his eyes off the road:
"Sure, what kind of favor do you need?"
With his nerves a little calmer, Luke said. "If you can lend me some money to buy some candles and incense."
"Will you pray to any Deity?" asked Carlos curiously.
"Yes," Luke lied matter-of-factly, without giving much detail.
"I don't think there's any need to borrow money to buy candles and incense," Carlos said calmly. "What kind of candle and incense do you need?"
Luke was silent momentarily as if he remembered what kind of candle and incense he needed; after eight seconds, he answered. "Two white candles and one gray and amber incense."
"Two white candles and one gray?" repeated Carlos in confusion.
"Yes, and amber incense," Luke confirmed.
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Carlos did not probe further, despite his doubts, he said. "I think there are white and gray candles at home and the amber incense, though I'm not entirely sure.
"Before you leave for the Dark Oak Inn, accompany me to my home to deliver the candles and incense to you."
Luke flashed a smile in response. He was much more recovered from his shock when he saw the light in one of the rooms of the large two-story house.
After walking for about twenty minutes, they arrived at the entrance to Avebury Town. The streets are illuminated by gas lamps that give off a yellowish light, eliminating much of the darkness.
Luke looked up at the sky, where he saw the crimson moon covered by some clouds, and followed Carlos to receive the materials to perform the destiny change ritual finally.
At the town's entrance, they turned right and walked about a block, then turned left and walked another block.
They passed by the white marble church, with the main doors wide open. In addition, a beautifully crafted sculpture of a blindfolded Angel holding up a scale could be seen.
Sharpening his gaze, Luke could see an emblem that seemed to capture the attention of any observer.
The central symbol was an upright sword, while its guards extended in opposite directions, forming wings and a scale's base.
Two small pikes descended from the tips of the wings, one on each side, as emblems of judgment and redemption.
This was the Sacred White Emblem representing the Goddess of Justice and Order.
Ding-Don! Ding-Don! Ding-Don!
The church bell began to ring, and some residents who believed in the Goddess of Justice started to arrive.
They were greeted by a brown-haired man in a white robe with lines on the edges of pale gold, and next to him was a black-haired woman dressed in the same way.
We are welcoming the followers of the Goddess of Justice to the church.
Luke looked away from the church, then fixed his gaze on Carlos and asked.
"Mr. Carlos, Won't you go to church to hear the word?"
Carlos turned his gaze and answered sincerely with devotion. "No, my wife and I are devoted followers of the Goddess of Eternal Darkness."
Luke attended without asking any more questions.
After they passed the Church of the Goddess of Justice, they turned once to the right and then to the left, walked a block, and finally arrived at their destination.
After picking up the destination change ritual materials and greeting Miss Elena and her daughter Isabella, Luke headed straight to the Dark Oak Inn.
…
After a few minutes, Luke arrives at the Dark Oak Inn and enters. The atmosphere is livelier than in the morning, but it is not as crowded as when people played folk music the day before.
He walks to one of the empty tables to eat first and then goes to perform the ritual of change of destiny.
One of the servers came over and took his order, which was rabbit stew with wild mushrooms.
As he waited for food, a person of medium height and athletic build approached his table. His short brown hair, neatly combed back, stood out against his clean-shaven complexion. It was Jonathan, who had just arrived at the inn. He took a chair and sat down at the same table as Luke.
"Hey buddy, where have you been? I looked for you in the morning, but you were gone."
Luke gave a small smile.
"Hello, Mr. Jonathan. You couldn't find me because I was out at work."
Jonathan nodded, understanding why he couldn't find him, and then said concernedly, "By the way, have you heard that some tourists have gone missing?"
Luke frowned. What would he listen to if he had just arrived in this town yesterday morning and had gone to work all day on the outskirts of town. At what time was he going to hear a rumor about missing tourists.
This... When it dawned on him what Jonathan had just said, Luke froze as his expression changed to one of pure shock.
Today, Carlos told him about the cursed house of the aristocrat Van Salem and its history. Then, he saw the light in one of the rooms of that house, and Jonathan told him about the missing tourists.
Isn't this too much of a coincidence? Luke felt a deep, indescribable fear run through his whole body.
After a few deep breaths, he calmed down and let out a long sigh, calming his mind and body in the process.
Jonathan, who watched all this silently, asked worriedly. "Are you okay?"
It took Luke a moment to respond with a lie. "Yeah, I'm fine; I just remembered something from the past that I didn't want to remember."
Jonathan looked at Luke, confused but still apologetic. "I'm sorry if I made you remember something you didn't want to."
"No worries." Luke flashed a smile and asked. "What do you mean about the missing tourists?"
Jonathan began to speak. "While visiting the church of the Goddess of Justice and Order, Sister Adara, who was there, told me that some tourists who had arrived a few days ago had disappeared without a trace.
"After hearing what the sister told me, out of curiosity, I asked about the missing people, but to my surprise, none of the residents remembered them! It is as if those people never existed in the first place. Isn't that very strange?"
Luke remained silent as he considered the light he had seen in the large two-story house until the waiter arrived and placed his food on the table.
The food was a juicy braised rabbit with wild mushrooms, onions, and carrots in red wine and herb sauce, served with a glass of lovely lemonade.
…
After eating, he went straight to his room. Before beginning the ritual of changing his destination, he closed the door and the curtains.
He closed his eyes with a frown, frowning at today's events, from the story surrounding the house of the aristocrat Van Salem and the light he saw on his way back to town.
Luke feels strange that something strange is going on with this town, and he begins to meticulously go over everything that has happened since he arrived in town. Realizing something had happened because of something.
There is something that does not quite fit me. When I arrived in town, Miss Elena told me that the festivities of this town were like the Easter of the land, but with what the bartender and Mr. Carlos said, this has nothing similar to the Easter of the land...
Luke let out a long sigh, leaving his thoughts aside, calmed his nerves, closed the door and the curtains, and began to perform the ritual of changing his destiny, following the instructions on the sheet the older hooded man had handed him before transmigrating.
He placed the white candles at one end and the gray candle at the other, forming an imaginary triangle, and then put the amber incense in the center.
He then lit the amber incense, and a few seconds later, the aroma filled the entire room.
First, I light the two white candles representing the past and the present. Then I light the gray candle, symbolizing change and transformation of destiny... Luke muttered silently as he lit the three candles.
Before reciting what he said in the last paragraph, he took a deep breath, exhaled sharply, and said it solemnly in English.
"The Primordial One of the Countless Aeons;
"The Guardian of Time and Fate;
"The Master of the Past and the Future"
Luke closed his eyes and waited for the outcome. He had some anticipation, trepidation, hope, and fear.
Will I be able to come back?
Could there be an unexpected situation?
Luke's thoughts flitted through his mind, and he found it challenging to quiet them.
Suddenly, he felt the circulating air stop, becoming thick, mysterious, and chaotic.
At that moment, Luke felt like his head was going to explode. His thoughts were chaotic and random. His body was becoming increasingly tense, and he felt like he could collapse at any moment.
Just as his mind was about to break, the severe headache disappeared, and his surroundings became quiet.
The environment was erratic.
It wasn't just the circulating environment; Luke felt his body also experiencing the same sensations.
After a few seconds, he slowly opened his eyes with some anticipation and fear to see if the fate-changing ritual had worked.