Hours have passed since Tamiel escaped from the Kingdom of Light.
In the priests' chamber, Ann and her children were gathered together with the kingdom's strongest warriors, the noble family leaders, and all the citizens nominated for the priesthood.
A two-hour-long discussion took place about the state of the kingdom and what should be done.
By the end of the discussion, Ann managed to convince the others present to abandon the previous policy of the priests and create a new path for themselves.
It was finally decided to establish a new political system that would grant special authority to everyone gathered in the room.
Additionally, they decided to create a structured ranking system where each person has the ability to make important decisions if those above them in rank are absent.
The last two decisions made were that Ann would stay in the kingdom to help manage the war against the Kingdom of Darkness and the rebuilding of the city center, and of course, she agreed to this as compensation for all the damage she had caused.
The very last decision was made just now by Evie, who was present in the room.
"If everything you say about my brother is true, I think I'm going to leave this place..."
"Are you sure?" one of the warriors asked her.
"Yes... I don't want to stay in a place that reminds me of him," she said, turning her face toward the floor.
"You can move forward with my children to the neighboring kingdoms," Ann suddenly suggested."I may leave them for the near future, but they will continue on their journey to send the message."
"What message exactly, Lady Ann?" asked one of the nobles in the room.
"Tamiel really didn't tell you? I already understand that he's a traitor, but I think this is information all the kingdoms in the world need to know."
"What could be so important?"
"The great witch Zaia has risen from the dead."
The room filled immediately with shock and worry at Ann's words.
Some of those present waited for her to continue speaking, expecting her to say she was joking or something, but she remained silent with a serious expression.
"That's not logical," one of them suddenly said, "She's just a myth, after all."
"It seems not... Two days ago I was at the center of the world and saw her there, she looked exactly like the stories describe - a twisted creature with a snake-like head and a cruel energy surrounding her."
"If this is true, it's an extreme emergency!"
"Yes, I will send my children to inform the other kingdoms. We need proper messengers."
Evie, still trying to process the new information that came from Ann's mouth, was silent and thought for a moment before deciding.
"I think it's a good idea. Traveling the world might really help me forget this place."
"Great, we'll prepare you to return to the border soon."
---
A few minutes before the children's trio set out on their journey, Alain and Aden went outside to walk a bit and talk to each other.
"Everything that happened in the last few days... I think it's too much," Alain shared,his hidden despair showing through his smile.
"I totally understand you. I myself still haven't gotten used to anything here, and everything just keeps changing and developing..."
"Yeah, it's tough."
"Say, Alain, did you think about the question Mom gave us?"
"Hmm? The one about the little person inside or something? Honestly, not really... everything was so chaotic around me."
"Yeah, I heard about everything you went through and that you survived at the last second."
"Yeah, if it weren't for that old man, I'd probably be held captive right now. But leave me for a moment, what about you? Who's that girl that was with you? Are you close?"
"'That girl' is called Evie," Evie suddenly said as she appeared behind them, "Get used to that name because I'm going to be spending time with you soon," she said with a smile that hid some sadness over what happened with her brother.
Alain looked at her and felt a bit embarrassed.
She had hair that was half blonde and half white, reaching down to her waist, with beautifully sculpted features and a tempting smile.
He didn't really know how to respond but quickly averted his gaze before she noticed he was staring.
"I think it's time to set off back to your kingdom," she broke the silence.
"Yeah, let's go."
Ann and the kingdom's guards accompanied them to the border, equipping them with food and new clothes for the journey ahead.
"It's hard to say goodbye, but don't worry, it won't be for long, and you have a new helper instead of me," Ann said to them with her gentle smile.
"I bet she's nowhere near your level of power," Alain teased Evie, trying to annoy her and get a reaction.
"Oh no, I'm not at the level of a witch, but I will surpass even that eventually. My potential is twice hers."
"Twice the potential?"
"Yes, I'm one of only two people in the world who control two different powers from the Hesmirion!" she said with a proud smile.
"So that explains the earth wall that appeared then," Aden burst out, remembering the earth wall that freed him from the grip of the infiltrator from the Kingdom of Darkness. He didn't really know what it was until now, but he hadn't asked too many questions either because he thought it might be a technique of the power of light or something like that.
The conversation stopped when they reached the border. "Farewell, good luck! Send me letters about how you're doing and come back here within the next month, don't forget!"Ann said with a gentle smile and gave them a strong hug.
---
In a mysterious room in the Kingdom of Darkness, Tamiel sat thereall anxious and confused.
Opposite him sat the country's leader, who was also the witch there.
He looked relatively young, about 5 or 10 years older than Tamiel himself.
"You have no reason to be anxious, my friend Tamiel," he said to him with a wicked smile. "Your sister will stay alive as per our agreement, everything that happened with the witch from Gaia's kingdom is not a problem. In fact, we are in an even better position than before, we planted a spy among her children."