Chapter 2: Prophecy

The gods in this realm seem to have heard me.

When I asked what's the use of retrieving my memories from my previous life, they laid it flat and bare before me— just the very next day.

The sun was shining high that one particular morning, with the summer breeze passing by subtly from the windows of the library I was in but there was nothing out from the ordinary, and like most days, time is idle.

I took a book out but pushed it back to its seat from the shelves when I saw the word LEGENDS embedded on it with golden fonts and fancy fleur-de-lis curves around its edges.

I don't really enjoy reading such stuff.

I decided to walk back to where my brother is and saw him sitting in a big red divan in one corner of the room. I was about to call his attention out when Darion, our head butler, suddenly arrived.

He told us our parents are calling for us.

Aeron and I exchanged glances.

Now this is new.

We barely see our parents. Primarily, I thought to myself, because the Dukedom of Greenrun has been ungovernable for so long and since it was only given to my family when me and my twin brother were born, there was so much paper work and things to be done and fixed. I understand my parents though, they are good people. They want to help people as much as they're doing their best to make this Dukedom great for me and Aeron in the near future.

———

The moment we arrived, I found my parents regarding us with warm gazes.

I began to listen to them with undivided attention but in disbelief, I shook my head vigorously as my parents repeated themselves, "I said we will need to attend the ceremony at the capital city where the Centenial Priestess will be summoned. That's still years away but you need to be ready. You can't say no, Aerra. We all need to go. All of us, including your brother. Who knows, he might be chosen! So, in light of this discussion your father and I agreed to have you both trained early with your powers. Although, we haven't found the perfect teacher as of yet—"

I can't believe it, the legend is real. And in this world, it's a tradition!

From what they were explaining earlier to me, it seems to me that a ritual exist and done once every century— for choosing the next Priestess for the entire seven kingdoms. She will be summoned from another land or world to become the chosen Herald of Peace and the Envoy of the goddess.

Alongside, there will also be a ritual where her holy weapon will be chosen. Someone who is capable in turning into a weapon and he will serve as her lifetime companion, he is called a 'Familiar'.

At first I started to believe that the Priestess might end up to be ME, but I was wrong.

As I listened further to their legend I realized one thing... This is not a story where I'll become the heroine. Quite on the contrary, it might not even end up good for me. I need clarifications.

And so I researched about this legend.

I obssessed over it and gathered every detail I could find on the matter in our library. As a result, here is what I learned:

In this world, once every century they summon a would-be priestess. The ritual never fails and a young maiden is always brought to the pedestal. So and so. But what comes to my dismay is what happens there after.

She would need a Familiar, a lifetime companion and it just so happens that wielding a power in this world is are almost exclusive only to those who are born with a nobleblood. That means, her Familiar would need to born from nobility or at least, someone who has the power...

There is an academy that noble bloods attend to so that their magic will be trained. Some are wielders and some are transmuters. Wielders are those who are capable of using particular kind of magics or ability. While Transmuters on the otherhand can transform into a weapon and become a source of strength to themselves or to others. The latter is what the priestess would be looking for.

But according to the Prophecy, there is also a Fallen One.

The Fallen is an individual with the ability to wield the dark element; who will be consumed of depravity perhaps like hate, jealousy and or envy— that soon the malice will consume her and she will become the seed of chaos. In short, a villain.

"When light magic is summoned out in the form of the Priestess, dark magic will leak out as well. It is the natural balance of the realm.

Dark magic will eventually linger and possess a corrupted heart where strong magic resides. That would become the Fallen one."

It's the side effect of the ritual of summoning of the Centenial Priestess, they say. Perhaps as light magic comes to the land of man, darkness also follows as a concomitant. It's a balance like yin and yang. But once overcomed, peace is sustained and the realm will be blessed with good climates, fertile soil and abundant harvest all thru out the century. It's a small price to pay compared to the benefits that comes with it so they made the ritual a tradition.

The bad news here is most of the historical books written depicts the Fallen is a female.

I wonder why???

Maybe, just my theory —because young maiden's heart are so pure, tainting one is easy because girls are often more emotionally unstable than boys. And darkness lurks with instability especially if you can wield magic.

'The fallen is the one who has two memories of both the previous and the present, for the power one gains from darkness enables her at an advantage and even more so from the bloodline she possess.'

In the old records, most of the time, the Fallen is connected to the companion of the priestess.

There's this one poem that I also found. It says:

'She seeks to be noticed as she had been before. Oh she watches in envy. Stolen she claims and soon she wishes the priestess away. All might think it's just petty. But as men around the priestess grow in number, Hate consumes the Fallen more. For all those men that adorned the priestess were all hers once before.'

If my brother, by chance, becomes the Familiar of the priestess, then the girl consumed by hate and envy will likely be me. Someone who has two memories and a noble bloodline! Me— A villainess?!? I'm not even the jealous type! But who am I to say that if the darkness do consumes me. It's hard to make assumptions at this point. I barely know how magic and science works in this world.

If I became the destinied Fallen one from the legends then all I have to do is detach myself from all men that I may possibly be acquainted to. It's as easy as that, right?

One thing is certain, death is the only ending the Fallen has in all the books I've read. So if I want to keep my life long in this world I have no other choice.

But I need to know more—!

Right now I'm only 8 years old. And the books says the priestess will be 17 years of age, the same age as her Familiar. If Aeron is the chosen one, that means I have more or less 9 years to prepare. Okay! Now I understand why I needed to be precocious. If I never regained my past life's memory, an eight year old me might not be able to survive this!

I never thought I'd ever be in this kind of fate, where I'm the destined Villainess doomed to be killed and here I am preparing to prevent that. I don't want to die young again! And no I don't plan in killing anyone either! So I though, if jealousy is part of the palate— maybe it would help if I would not fall in love as well, and that I must become unlikable to men! In other words, if I want to live long I must become an unwed single old woman! So perk up, me! Better be single than to die young. *sighs*

Unless there's more to it than what that prophecy is saying...

For now, I should try to learn a little bit more...

—about this world and about everything, before I accept all these things! Because I know so little; I've yet seen the world outside our castle...

So I concluded to myself...

that all my research about this legend is not enough.

Because quite frankly, the books sound prejudiced.

Hm.

I wonder...

what will happen to me in this new world I am in now.

If legends hold truths, I need to learn how I can unravel them.

---End of Chapter 2---