"Hello? Anyone here?" Without a shred of hesitation, Meyara shouted. Her steps were sure and she didn't stop yelling even though the wooden door in front of her closed. “Warren? Are you home? I want to talk with you!"

It took a while until she finally heard an answer from the other side of the house. She could have missed it if not for the wind carrying the Chief's voice to her.

"Over here," Warren called out when she saw Meyara sticking her head out from behind one of the pillars.

Meyara's face beamed when she saw the man she was looking for. She skipped happily, thinking that she finally had someone who could give her some real advice. Everyone she shared her concerns with only gave her vague answers, causing her frustration to mount. But now that Warren was in front of her, most of her worries would probably disappear in no time.

Or so she thought.

"What are you doing?" she asked. Her brow furrowed as she watched Warren busied himself with some kind of craft. Wooden twigs, large cloth, sewing thread spools and many other things were scattered on the ground. In an instant she knew what the Chief was doing. "Why don't you make one with your magic? You can really fly anything, a few giant kites won't be a problem."

"Everything is for the Remembrance Day, you know, the opportunity to remember the service and sacrifice of all those that have defended our freedoms and protected our way of life," he replied easily without taking his eyes off the cloth he was measuring. “By preparing it manually, we’ll always remember that there was a time when we knew nothing about magic and lived like ordinary humans. It can also be a tribute to those who until now have lived without magic.”

“Oh, right. But Remembrance Day won't happen for another three months."

"And we have so many things to prepare."

Meyara just nodded her head, completely disinterested. Ever since she was little, she always skipped any celebrations just so she could spend her precious time on something more important. It wouldn't be strange if she didn't know that the Chief would be extremely busy at a time like this.

"What’s that thing for?" she asked when she saw some kind of canisters lined up on a wooden shelf. The wind stopped blowing so hard that Meyara could also smell the pungent odor that filled the air. "Should we also set up fireworks?"

Warren shrugged. "Apparently, Queen Hera wants this year's celebration to be the most festive one."

"Oh. I never thought of her as a party-goer.”

Meyara just muttered her thoughts but Warren, who had been nearby, could hear them. The man raised one eyebrow, but she avoided eye contact. She suddenly felt nervous to say what she wanted to say.

"What did you come here for?" The Chief finally asked. His curiosity increased when he saw how Meyara's eyes widened at his question.

The black-haired girl scratched her own bottom lip clumsily. "Never mind. You're busy. I can ask another time."

“Like you said, we still have three months left. I can always continue next time.”

Meyara shook her head, ready to refute, but Warren had already made his way to one of the chairs nearby and sat down on it. There was a round table in between. He poured hot drink from the teapot into two glasses, indirectly inviting Meyara to attend a tea time that he suddenly held.

The girl sighed in defeat. Deep inside she was scolding herself for wanting to retreat like a coward. Even though she had never really been proud of herself recently, she never knew that she could act so disgracefully like that. So with renewed determination, she sat down beside the Chief, and took a sip of the tea that was offered to her to quell any lingering nervousness.

As a good man, Warren said nothing until Meyara spoke first.

"I want to meet Queen Hera."

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

Meyara deliberately paused after saying that. Wondering if the Chief would know what her purpose was for meeting the mother of the Midehelm Kingdom. Warren should have heard the rumors about Meyara, so the girl just wanted to see how he would respond.

The very wise Chief just nodded in understanding. "Okay, be careful on the road. You won’t know, maybe you could trip over a giant tree and cry yourself to sleep in the middle of nowhere."

That was one of the answers that Meyara never expected to hear.

"Excuse me? Are we talking about the same topic now?" she asked in disbelief. "I'm not a kid who would go on a silly adventure with her little friends!"

Warren chuckled at that. "I know, but what should I say? You're not here to ask permission, are you?"

“Yes. But … I don't know. Can you give me some really useful advice? I'm lost here!” Meyara groaned in frustration. She even downed all the tea that was left in her cup in one go. “Everyone said it’s too risky, even for me. No, cross it out. It's too risky for someone who doesn't have magic like me! They say I'm not in my clear head, but what should I do? I wouldn't want to leave if I never lost my power in the first place!”

"That's it, go on." Warren casually nodded. He acted as if he had waited long enough for Meyara to express her annoyance.

“Tell me something, anything …,” she cried out. “I'm really going to lose my mind. Even if you're going to say the same thing as what other people are saying, I'll accept it. I will use that as my fuel to go. To prove that everyone who belittles me is wrong.”

Meyara almost went berserk when she saw Warren standing up. Thinking that the Chief would just leave her with her frustration had out in the open. But the man only stepped away for a moment to take one of his perfect kites which turned out to be stored under one of the big trees. Previously, Meyara didn't see it because she was too focused on the tools and other materials that were still scattered in Warren's backyard.

Shivers ran down her spine when she saw the shape of the huge kite. A man with a bushy beard was dressed magnificently holding what she recognized as a bident, while right beside him was the image of a dog-like creature but with three heads. Warren had yet to color the drawing, but Meyara was already horrified to see it.

"Though my drawing skills aren't great, I'm sure you can recognize them," Warren said as he placed his kite right in front of them. "The lord of the underworld, with his faithful dog."

"Why are you showing this to me?"

"You're probably sick of hearing this, but let me tell you again." The Chief took a deep breath. Meyara might not have seen it, but the girl could feel the man's hesitation. “Before the Kingdom of Midehelm was formed, wars had been going on for a very long time. Not a single meeting has taken place without bloodshed.”

The afternoon air was getting colder, as if wanting to complete the atmosphere of the story Warren was telling. The man continued, “It was very difficult to find peace, because all areas consisting of several islands were inhabited by people with very different characters. At that time, a unified language had not yet been found. Many people died from fights that they may not even understand the origins of. The cause of the war died along with its predecessors. All of that went on for so long, that it was said that the Lord of the underworld had had enough of it. He no longer wanted to accept useless spirits in his world, so he had done something unimaginable.”

"He blessed some of us so we can use magic," Meyara interrupted.

Warren shook his head at that. His old eyes stared ahead sadly. “He never did that. He had just awakened our own abilities, buried deep within our souls, so we can end the war quickly. But it turned out that along with awakening that ability, we also improved our thinking ability which in the end made us find our own solutions.”

Meyara gaped, she blinked her eyes many times until she was dizzy. “That’s very different from what my mother told me. I think the ruler of the underworld had done everything so that we could have peace. But going by your story, we're the ones doing the big part. That's … what do we call him? Lord? Whatever. He just gave us a little push, just for his own good!"

“It may sound like that, but until now, many people believed that the Lord of the underworld still looked after us all. Because of that, the villagers, including your mother, worship him a lot. After all, we need some kind of god to depend on."

For a moment Meyara was silent, contemplating all of Warren's words. The wise man always knew what to say, but this time Meyara didn't immediately understand what Warren was trying to say. The girl was also too arrogant to ask him to get straight to the point.

Apparently, Meyara didn't have to force herself to ask, because Warren finally explained his own words. “Whatever we were like in the past, all the residents who are still alive today are strong humans who survived a long war. They gave birth to an extraordinary generation that cannot be compared to the previous generation.”

Warren said all that while smiling gently. Meyara's breath caught in her throat, remembering how often her late father showed the same smile. “I've always known that you were born for extraordinary adventures and are more than capable to do it. With or without magic.”

Warmth spread in the girl’s chest. Maybe those were the words she wanted to hear all along. She never thought that she would hear all that from the Chief's mouth. The girl looked away to hide her teary eyes.

"So you support me to go?"

Warren cleared his throat before answering. "On one condition."

***