Girl asked him many more questions after that each one having some connection to Gabriel or even to Hemri. She did not seem to care about where he came from or that he did not stay in the sanctuary for long and maybe she thought before losing his memory he was lost somewhere like most of the children who came here.

One example was herself.

"I asked everything I needed. Let us not see each other in the future. It will be better for your health and my own. Of course, it doesn’t count if you change your mind about being my consort."

Without hesitation, she then stood up from the wooden chair and stretched her agile and thin body while simultaneously making the saber on her lap disappear. There was no additional fat on her petite figure but the skin on her face looked unnaturally perfect as if it was softened with a knife.

Hildebrant could not help but observe her.

"How did you come into the sanctuary?"

It was a question that got into his mind every time he thought about the number of children he saw in the ceremony. If he heard right, there were three other halls filled with a similar amount of people. Young, old, man, woman, and even small children.

Startled with his question girl froze with her hands above her head and then she lowered her gaze.

"Through slaver ship thankfully. Still, it was not happy landing and gaining freedom like in fairytales it was more like jumping from one deep hole into another. This one was however much deeper than that I jumped from."

Shaking her head she then laughed.

"It's better that way, I rather fight against monsters than be used as a plaything by my slavers, they just don’t know how to take care of a person properly."

There was pain in her voice and her hands trembled a little. The history she had not been beautiful.

"So, you just ended up here. Just like that?"

"Ended up here? Ha! I wish."

She played with a saber on her that manifested in her hand while pondering about something. Even without looking Hildebrant knew she was hesitant to reveal all her secrets, for her it must be hard to believe other people much less someone unknown like him.

"When I landed, I was happy. I was finally free, my slavers were mostly dead, only some survived the storm but none of them survived what came after that and I thought everything would be alright. But then I entered the sanctuary and almost died to the first monster I met. No, it was not a monster just a normal beast. It was strong and bestial but still just a beast."

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

Memory must hurt her lot, broken her pride and last hope but she was there now standing before him so it must be not so bad as he imagined. Or it was worse.

"It was the first time I killed something, holding the bloodied sword and watching as all the other children that came with me were torn apart one by one before my eyes. I killed one of these creatures and then another came, it was then that I understood word is not fairytale and there would be no prince to save you."

Her lips then twitched, and her hand grasped the hilt of the saber tightly.

"But there was a prince. It was not lord, not army of ascenders of halls that in that time were in full power and could slaughter such beast anytime, nor was it Yorm we name hail each day it was just crimson flash, and then all monsters were dead."

Madness swirled in her eyes and her voice trembled more as she continued to talk. It was as if just remembering it made primary fear come back to her body from the time, she was just a defenseless child with no power to protect herself.

"Nothing remained from them just pieces of their bodies littered on the ground and blood vessels growing from out of them. I did not understand even what happened until I felt something standing behind me. I didn’t dare to look behind, but I could feel it standing there observing me without moving. If I turned around that day, I would die. I knew it so I just stayed still until that thing came closer to me and I could feel it warm touching my ear. Then…."

She trembled even more and the flesh under her skin tensed and began to move as if it came alive.

"What then?"

The girl laughed and then tension from her face disappeared, but her words were chilling.

"Then it's said to me I wasn’t the one and left. It just disappeared but I didn’t dare to look around until an army of Walldrifters came to escort me to the great halls under their rule. I was too scared. You must think this was just my fear of conquering something into reality, but it happened, and I will never forget it."

Hildebrant was sure it did happen. What however was chilling in that story was Icarus had been waiting for someone for a very long time. Maybe even longer that life of Walldrifters and exorcist together.

"That’s my story I hope you will remember it, also this is yours now."

She threw a golden case in his direction and he caught it without blinking. Turning his hand, he observed the golden case and from close, he could not help but marvel at the craftsmanship of the person who created it.

It was a perfect and beautiful piece of artwork worth at least one silvy.

"What is your name?"

Before he could realize she already stood before the door prepared to leave. She did not take the chair with her and even left a small coin on it. It looked similar to goldy of Golden Empire just a little smaller.

Stopping with her hands on doors she turned around with a smile.

"Just call me Venus. Bye Hill it was nice chat but you should think more about what you want from the future."

She then waved her hand and closed the doors leaving Hildebrant alone in a room with a lonely painting of a man.

Gazing at it again Hildebrant furrowed his brows.

"Do you also want to say something?"

Painting however did not answer and stayed unmoved as if the gaze that fell from it was just an illusion.