The harbinger of a Hurricane.

Far to the East, in a luxurious residence, a very strange picture could be observed in one of the rooms.

Nyx, a beautiful woman with long purple hair sat at the table and drank tea leisurely while another woman, looking no worse than her, paced the room in outrage, venting her emotions.

"Two years! Two whole years he hasn't contacted me in any way, as if I didn't exist at all!"

With her large breasts heaving furiously from her intermittent breathing, she continued.

"So finally, when he deigned to call me, do you know what his first words were?" 

Earlene stopped in the middle of the room and stared at the woman drinking tea with her piercing red eyes. Without waiting for any reaction from her, she continued.

"He said 'Greetings, Elder'! Can you imagine that?" 

With obvious indignation in her voice, Earlene shouted.

"Did he really mean that at my age one should only address me that way?"

Saying this she unconsciously ran her hand over her perfectly smooth facial skin as if looking for flaws there.

"Or maybe it wasn't even me he intended to call?" 

Not knowing which was worse, she continued to pace around the room furiously, restlessly twisting her blonde curls around her finger.

Breaking away from her mug of tea for the first time, Nyx glanced at her.

Even she, who knew her friend very well, found it hard to believe how her image of a cold and cruel matriarch who ruthlessly killed anyone who stood in her way was quickly shattered when it came to her son.

As she watched her still walking back and forth across the room, mumbling to herself, she laughed out loud.

"Whatever it is, I just have to congratulate you." 

"Y-you..."

Hearing her words, Earlene propped her arms at her sides and cast a disapproving glance at the figure still seated and serenely drinking tea. 

"Why do you think I'm telling you this? I'm looking for your support, not your sarcastic comments! However, I didn't expect much from such a callous old woman." 

At that statement, Nyx only smiled slightly. 

An agitated Earlene had to take a few seconds to stabilize her breathing and calm down before she sat back down at the table. 

Even though she was expressing her anger at Nyx in words, she actually felt better at heart. 

In all the time she had spent with her best friend, practically the only one she could show a more emotional side of herself to, she had grown accustomed to her peculiar behavior and was no longer angry at her for her antics. She knew better than anyone that in her heart her friend always cared about her relationship with her son, even though she showed it differently than others. 

Even on the worst day of Earlene's life, when she learned that her son had failed to awaken his talent and might never be able to use it, Nyx didn't utter a word, unlike the other nobles and relatives who didn't stop spewing hypocritical words of support and compassion.

It wasn't until two months later that her perpetually silent friend, with her ever-present smile, brought her a small book. 

Vaguely guessing what it might be, she picked up the book and flipped through it with fingers trembling with a mixture of emotions. 

Within the pages of the book, her beautiful handwriting described everything, including the possible reasons for the failure of the awakening, their sources, and even suggesting a few revolutionary ways to fix it.

A simple book of no value in the eyes of others was to Earlene like a heavenly treasure, for which she would not mind giving all her wealth; after all, her son's happiness was at stake. 

Although she herself had not been idle these two months, mercilessly spending fabulous sums, the amount of information she had found was not even a tenth of what was described in the book. 

Unable to bear it, Earlene hugged her best friend tightly, thanking her sincerely.

Unfortunately, as would be revealed later, even the combined efforts of two women at the height of power were not enough to solve the problem. The solution that seemed so close kept eluding them, driving them to despair. It was painful to see hope without being able to grasp it.

Snapping out of her sad memories, Earlene turned to the woman across from her.

"Although I don't really want to believe it, I sense that it wasn't just a desire to chat with me that brought you here today. Has something happened that requires your presence?" 

She remembered that Nyx had gone into seclusion a couple years ago, with the goal of making a breakthrough. Since then, her friend had spent her days away from people, only occasionally contacting her and having brief conversations. 

If there was a reason that could get this freak out of her hideout, it had to be something on the level of a cataclysmic event. 

Five minutes later, Earlene sat tapping her finger rhythmically on the table, frowning her eyebrows.

"Are you… sure that's correct information? I mean, it wasn't supposed to happen until half a year from now."

"Even I don't know what could have changed it, but the fact remains, 'it' is about to happen."

Earlene kept tapping her finger nervously on the table. She instinctively wanted to deny her words, but she knew that Nyx was rarely wrong in her predictions.

"If that's really the case, Eden is heading straight there right now and he could be in danger. Should I call him and ask him to come back?"

"No, you know he might flare up again and yell at you if you do. Especially you should realize better than I that he's not the type to get into anything dangerous. At worst, his stay in the capital will end with him visiting every brothel and inn in town."

Still calmly replied Nyx.

"But I'm... still worried..."

Noticing that the worry from Earlene's eyes was still not gone, Nyx could only sigh.

"But if you're still worried, I'll be near the capital soon and can visit him. Will that reassure you?"

As much as Nyx disliked socializing with people, she couldn't leave her best friend like this.

Instead of answering, Earlene quickly bent over the table and hugged her tightly, pulling her to her breast.

"I'd do it myself if it weren't for my duties."

She said, pulling her even tighter against her.

Sinking into her best friend's breast, Nyx had only one thing on her mind.

'Damn, what did she eat to grow an udder like that? I spent my entire childhood with her and ate the same thing, then why did my...'

Along with this touching picture, the room fell into silence, leaving each woman with her own thoughts.

°°°°

"Upchoo."

Sneezing loudly, I rubbed my nose.

Am I sick? 

Not likely, given the strength of my body.

I thought, and looked out of the carriage again.

The high walls of the capital and the majestic peaks of the towers that pierced the sky were already visible ahead.

"I'm finally here."

I said with solemnity in my voice, tapping my finger on the table in anticipation.

***

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