We had reached the eastern part of Finnian. Good thing there weren't any obstacles in our way, because Finnians were busy with the celebration of their kingdom's founding day.

  Ahead of us was the deep sea stretching endlessly, colored sky-blue from here and mint green onward, like Skymint's eyes. It is the shortest route toward the Fresha Kingdom.

  "I'm not sure though if that's the forest where it resides."

  "I believe in you, Arie."

  "Alright, let's do our best."

  "Hey, my boat is floating over here!" Skymint walked toward the rock's edge. "Must've been the wind."

  I can't help but remember the time I summoned it in the Mystical Forest. And accidentally, or intentionally, led us to the uninhabited island where we were captured by Sunstarians.

  "You're blanking out again," he said, voice laced with worry. "Are you really sure we have to go there soon?"

  "Yes, that's the only way we can stop the prophecy now. We're already against Dreamer's Magic."

  "Right. We can't use magic against magic." He walked onto the water and quickly pulled the boat toward us. It was like paper to him because of his sturdy body.

  We boarded it, and I summoned my signature ice engine to speed up his boat.

  "And don't worry, I can handle myself." I smiled at him.

  This time, I'm the one who drove the boat. We passed through small islands and sea rocks, the land filled with trees growing closer.

  "There's a bottle floating here. This may be important," Skymint pointed at the small thing floating nearby.

  I turned the boat toward the astray bottle, and Skymint picked it up from the moving current.

  He pulled the lid, and it skyrocketed out of nowhere.

  "That was tight." A scroll was inside the bottle, and he opened it.

  "Wait, don't read it!" I pulled the papyrus from him, and the paper tore.

  "Sorry," I stated. "I'm just being careful. It may be the work of a Binder's Magic user."

  I looked at the papyrus, and illustrated there wasn't text, but a map I'd never seen before. The tendrils of ink gave me goosebumps.

  I've been to this place already. Not as Arie, but as Ellie.

  "This must be the map to the Gloom Forest. I remember now!" I yelped.

  "How do we get there?" Skymint asked.

  "We basically have to turn the boat upside down." I stated, and Skymint looked confused. "You'll have to jump on the boat's edge, Skymint."

  A memory flashed before me: myself jumping on a fisherman's boat, which lost its balance and submerged into the sea.

  As soon as we surfaced, I killed him. He was an ordinary human anyway.

  But Skymint, he's built differently. There is no way I'll kill him too. No more killer thoughts, damn it!

  "Hump!" Skymint leaped off his feet and hit the edge of the boat hard.

  Suddenly, we were embraced by the water, and a different sky opened up above us. A night sky void of stars.

  We were still in the same boat, but the water had become dark and shallow, and dead trees surrounded us.

  "Holy Glacia! This is creepy."

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  "If it weren't for me there'd be no need for this, or it could have been at least a pleasant atmosphere." I spoke as I steered the boat on the gloomy path.

  "Why? Were you some boss here?"

  "It's not like that," I chuckled. "Laura rules here. She made this specifically for me so I wouldn't switch back to Arie and avoid ridicule from other witches."

  "The Mysterious Bear," Skymint said.

  "That's correct. And the what?"

  A voice came out of nowhere. A sinister one.

  "Am I not hallucinating, that you brought Skymint here, Ellie? Or should I say Arie? You won't be able to fool me."

  "I didn't intend to in the first place. I don't have to pretend to be someone I am not."

  "You're fooling yourself, Arie. I see that you have gotten rid of the gift I gave you. I thought you'd be at least... grateful."

  I gave out a dry chuckle and shouted: "You ruined my life! You cursed me!"

  "No, I only let out what you already have. There's no denying that the unconscious is truly wonderful."

  My cheeks flushed red. I felt... guilty. I hate to admit it, but I did enjoy being Ellie. Why am I even resisting her? I'm a living paradox. I wanted to tear apart my whole being.

  "Ignore her," Skymint held my shoulder. "You're better than this."

  "I do not allow you to intervene with us, Skymint. We're having an intimate talk as her... aunt."

  "I never considered you as my aunt," I cut back.

  She went quiet.

  I continued my focus on my destination. In the map lay a cross-shaped flow of water. And residing in the middle was a stone well fabricated with red flowers.

  Which is in front of us right now.

  "We just have to climb down the well. Is that okay with you?"

  "Yes," he stated.

  We climbed down the well, and down there was an ornate banquet.

  Laura had been waiting for us, clad in her dark purple robe and long sleeves. Her wavy hair contrasted heavily with her porcelain skin tone. Near her seat was a sophisticated Seaman coiled around in vines, his mouth shut close. He made muffled sounds, forced to watch us while he struggled.

  "Come, take a seat." She gestured.

  "What's the Water King doing here?" Skymint asked.

  "I've gotten creative with my Puppeteer's Magic in the past few years. Without him, this place would never have existed," Laura stated.

  "We don't accept your offer," I stated. "You might have poisoned those foods."

  "And you might have... killed a lot of people already," she followed with a sly smile. "I rarely do that, Arie. I punish them."

  My stomach twisted. I started doubting my mind. How come I'm still playing hero when it was clear that I'm no good?

  "So you were that witch who's accountable for all of this." Skymint clenched his fists.

  She stood up from her seat and approached him. "Watch your words, pretty boy. Because I understand now why my niece has fallen for you, I'll spare you for a while."

  Then she turned to me. "I can see the torn worlds in your eyes, Arie."

  "Stop it. You killed my parents, and Dorsey's parents! Why, just why?" I yelled.

  "I simply had to complete Felipe's task." She stated, her tone gone cold. "Your mother Aria... she had to kill you because of a damn prophecy. She prioritized this world full of mayhem over you. Who would do that to their own daughter?"

  "I saved you, Arie. You would be dead by now if I had failed to stop her."

  "Don't even try to kill me. I have Skymint's bucket hat. And I cast numerous spells before I showed up here. Such as tracking his location."

  The memories of me fighting Felipe's servants while Skymint was away flashed in my mind.

  I shot a burst of ice, and it deflected off Laura.

  "Please think about your situation first, Arie." She said calmly. "It would not be great to play pretend as a martyr when you possess the world's most powerful magic. Most die before they are even born, either killed by execution or by nature. You're one of the rarest, Arie."

  "Stop lying! It wasn't my magic. I was born magicless."

  "She never told you, did she? Inner magic is stigmatized, and such, Aria would rather hide the truth from you."

  "You're wrong!" I yelled.

  "Do you think the Glacians would welcome you back with joy? They'd be eager to have you imprisoned as soon as possible."

  "That's a lie!" I blurted.

  "You're talking about my case, get lost you venomous snake!" Skymint roared.

  He bellowed as he was slammed to the wall by the unseen force of Laura's hand.

  "Both of you would like to be imprisoned by Glacians." She stated. "Arie, they wouldn't care if you were the Ice Princess when you possess such power. It's a harsh reality."

  "You gave me magic along with cursing me!"

  "The magic rule number one, Arie. I cannot possibly give nor pass you an inner magic. If I could, I would have given myself Dreamer's Magic long ago."

  "The rumors are really true that magic makes one selfish," I said with clarity.

  The Water King who had been making sounds nodded.

  "You've been raised oblivious about your own magic for so long that—"

  Suddenly, me and Skymint were floating in the ocean, along with the hostage Water King. He's not the king from Aquamarine but from the underwater kingdom here that I have no knowledge of yet.

  He continued with his muffled speeches. Before Skymint could remove the vines on him, he burned under the sunlight.

  "Mutated tunas!" Skymint gasped.

  "Another Seaman preyed on by vampires," I said, lacking enthusiasm in my voice.

  I've been desensitized to Ellie's murders that another stolen life is insignificant to the chaos going on.

  "This isn't good. This isn't good," I muttered as we swam across the sea.

  "Wha—why?" Skymint asked, panting for his breath.

  "At this point I'll never know the truth about my mother, unless I confront Felipe."

  Me and Skymint had gotten to the Mystical Forest's border and sat for a while.

  "Remember, it wasn't Laura's actual body there. She's operating somewhere else, and that place was only a temporary spell? And it's tied to a person's life unlike a permanent one."

  "Don't tell me..."

  "Laura had died." Disappointment tinged my tone.