That pain... that suffering... the endless torture... the agony Aether's iteration endured at the hands of just one man... It was unbearable. That man had left a scar on his soul so deep that even after countless searches, countless attempts to hunt him down... Aether never found him again.
Not even after he killed Jack in one of his iterations... No matter what he tried, Aether could never, ever lay eyes on that man again... the one who had caused him so much pain.
He was never seen again after that day... despite all the tilines Aether walked through, all the tireless searching... he never laid a single eye on that man—until now.
"How are you even alive?" the Archpriestess asked coldly, her voice laced with indifference as she stood firmly, High Priest Aether quietly stationed behind her.
The hooded figure stood calmly before them, unmoving. 'Could this be the man who killed the Sovereign?' she wondered silently, her eyes narrowing.
The hooded man spoke softly, his voice almost gentle. "I was given another chance by the Mother—"
"Lies!" the Archpriestess roared, her fury igniting. "I don't care what kind of twisted sorcery or blasphemous trickery you're playing at... I can sll the stench of blood on your hands. Your sins are far too great to ever be granted rcy by the Mother Goddess!"
The hooded figure simply humd in response, "Regardless, I only ca here for one reason. I want to see 'Her'. May I?"
The Archpriestess's lips twitched in irritation. "No one is allowed to see her unless she wishes it. And I swear on my title, I will not open the sacred doors just so scum like you can stain her holy ground!" Her voice cracked with anger, her killing intent barely restrained.
"Hm..." The hooded man's brows creased slightly in thought. He turned his gaze to High Priest Aether and held it there for several seconds before returning his attention to the Archpriestess. "Are you absolutely certain about that?"
"Leave. Now," she ordered coldly, eyes sharp as blades.
"Oh well..." The hooded figure let out a lazy shrug and turned as if to go. But just as he stepped away, he muttered under his breath, "You've made a terrible mistake... Stella."
"My na is Seraphina Ashwood," the Archpriestess corrected, her tone flat and emotionless.
The hooded man snorted in amusent, then disappeared into the shadows.
"Oh well..." The hooded person shrugged before turning to leave; however, just then, "You made a great mistake... Stella"
The Archpriestess let out a long, weary sigh, her expression shadowed with doubt. "I can't believe he's been alive all this ti... I really thought he was gone. Sigh... Anyway, I must inform the other rulers before sothing disastrous happens."
High Priest Aether, who had been quiet all this ti, finally spoke with a curious look, "Who is he?"
"Ignore him..." the Archpriestess replied with a dismissive wave. She turned to Aether with a subtle shift in her expression, and her voice took on a more serious tone. "Anyway... you ca quicker than I expected..."
Then her lips curled into a mischievous smirk, her eyes gleaming, "Are you perhaps missing already?" she teased as she leaned in closer to him.
High Priest Aether's cheeks flushed with a hint of pink, "A-Archpriestess... Yo-You... you're..."
"Too close?" she asked slyly, her face just an inch from his.
He imdiately turned his head away, flustered beyond words. The Archpriestess let out a soft giggle at his reaction.
Ever since that heartfelt hug they shared... sothing had shifted inside her. It was as if a dormant womanly side had awakened—one that now delighted in teasing him every chance she got.
"Co to my room," she said softly, her voice low and inviting.
High Priest Aether sighed... looking completely exhausted.
The vision suddenly darkened before flickering... and changed again—
"~mm~Gentle...~ahh~"
"~m... so rough...~mm~"
High Priest Aether's entire face turned crimson. He quickly shut his eyes and muttered, "Please Archpriestess... could you stop making those strange sounds again?"
The Archpriestess, who was lying down and enjoying a shoulder massage with a blissful expression, glanced at him with amusent. "Why? Do those sounds stir sothing inside you?" she asked playfully, flashing a sly smile.
"...I still can't believe the Archpriestess of such a grand temple is behaving like this," Aether murmured, shaking his head in disbelief.
"What?" she frowned, pouting slightly. "It's not like I'm made of stone, you know? I have feelings too... especially," she turned and tilted her head back toward him, her cleavage now prominently visible, "when soone this handso and intelligent stands so close to ... how could I possibly resist?"
She couldn't have been more direct if she tried. It was practically a confession—a proposal in disguise.
Aether gave a weak, helpless smile.
"And I've seen so many won around you," she continued with a hint of jealousy in her voice. "Everywhere you go, there they are... clinging, staring, fawning... and I honestly don't like it." Her expression darkened, eyes filled with quiet fury. "It's irritating to watch those pests try to devour my flower."
High Priest Aether almost choked, "Y-Your flower?"
She nodded without hesitation, "Of course. You're mine... my precious flower..." she whispered as she reached up, grabbed his collar, and pulled his face closer to hers. "My lovely flower~" she cooed before pressing a gentle kiss to his forehead.
High Priest Aether's face turned a deep shade of red. The Archpriestess chuckled softly, her voice teasing and laced with delight. She loved watching him squirm under her playful tornt.
"You're blushing again... My lovely flo—"
The vision snapped into darkness—flickering like a faulty television screen—before the scene violently changed.
Suddenly, the surroundings transford into a tense council chamber, filled with a heated debate. Other High Priests encircled Aether, their voices rising in frustration and outrage, just as before.
"We cannot allow this!!"
"He's nothing but a stranger to this sacred order!"
"Him, an Archpriest? He doesn't even possess divine powers!"
"He's rely a Blank Card holder!"
"He is not worthy!!"
Their accusations were loud, biting, and rciless. High Priest Aether flinched at their words. 'Well... they're not wrong,' he admitted silently. After all, he truly couldn't wield the holy powers others possessed.
He hadn't been blessed by the Mother.
His eyes drifted to the Archpriestess, the very woman who had initiated this bold proposal and now sat calmly in the storm she had summoned, 'I don't even know what she's planning anymore...' Panic started to gnaw at his chest.
And it wasn't without reason. With their combined voices rising against him, there was a very real chance the other High Priests would unify and obliterate everything he had worked so tirelessly to build—his entire provisional network, his reforms, all of it.
Worst of all, it would be the common people who suffered first.
"Finished speaking?" the Archpriestess muttered with a cool, indifferent tone.
The room fell into sudden silence as all eyes turned toward her. Several High Priests gritted their teeth, waiting for her to back them.
"Yes, he doesn't have powers..."
"Yes, he lacks the holy light that we are blessed with..."
"Yes, he is a stranger—an outsider to our traditions..."
"Yes... he is just a Blank Card holder..."
"And yes... he is not worthy of the Archpriest title..."
The others finally relaxed, their faces easing into satisfied smiles. At least their Archpriestess had the sense to recognize the truth—they assud she would never allow an outsider like Aether to ascend.
However...
"What exactly have you all proven so far?" she asked, her tone shifting to amusent as she glanced around the room.
"Huh?" They frowned, confused by the sudden change in mood.
"You all have power, correct?"
"...Yes," so replied slowly, wary.
"Then tell —what have you done with it? For the Empire? For the people?"
She leaned back in her chair,
"Do you think you've done sothing extraordinary? Sothing worth the titles you wear? Because compared to all of you—every last one of you—High Priest Aether, with no divine light, with no sacred blessing, has more than half the people in this entire Empire.... only his territory!"
She let her words sink in before continuing with deliberate calm.
"He created an independent trade system that lowered the cost of essentials and ensured that even the poorest families could survive without tearing down our economy. He reshaped his province into sothing thriving, self-sufficient... compassionate."
She tilted her head mockingly.
"Now tell —what have you done?"
Silence.
There wasn't a single rebuttal. No one dared to speak. The chamber echoed with quiet sha... until finally, a single voice rose—soft, uncertain—a female High Priestess.
"...Still... that doesn't change the fact that he lacks holy power. He can't even heal a wound... How can we accept soone like him as our Archpriest?"
The Archpriestess nodded, her expression calm.
"That's a valid concern. A fair point indeed..."
She paused, letting the suspense build before speaking again.
"That's precisely why... the Mother herself has decided to teach him."
"...H-Huh?"
Their faces twisted in disbelief, their eyes wide in shock.
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