A sudden jolt of pain shot through Leo's body, dropping him to his knees. Around him, Arthur and the others rushed forward—but their voices were lost to him, drowned out by the overwhelming pull inward. His mind was already being drawn into his domain.
There, at the very heart of it—beneath the pale skies and floating magic circle—he writhed on the white marble floor in agony. His body twisted, every nerve burning. Through the haze of pain, his eyes locked onto the great arcane circle above, now glowing with an intense pulse. From every corner of his domain, mana and raw energy surged toward a smaller, empty circle floating below it. The gathering power built and built, until finally, a new magic circle—smaller, yet complex—ignited in the center of the second ring, blazing with unfamiliar sigils.
Panting, Leo forced himself to his feet. He conjured a mirror from the air, clutching it with trembling fingers. His skin remained pale as ever, but his eyes had shifted—now a light, green veined with silver. A single strand of his hair, falling over his brow, shimmered like moonlight—pure silver.
But the most startling change was inside. His mana had changed—he could feel it. His entire being was infused with a purer, more refined energy. His domain pulsed with that same heightened essence, as if it had awakened with him.
Just as he turned to leave the domain and return to the real world, the ground trembled.
Far in the distance, beyond the edges of his throne hall, two massive white towers began rising from the ground—one to the left, one to the right. They gleamed like crystals, made of the same strange white stone as the rest of his domain. Between the towers and the hall, vibrant flowers began to bloom—roses, chrysanthemums, lilies—all in every color imaginable. Red, yellow, violet, blue. They filled the once-empty space with bursts of wild, untamed beauty.
Leo stared in awe. The scene was breathtaking. After ensuring that nothing had entered his domain and the change had been triggered solely by his spell, he closed his eyes and shifted his consciousness back.
When he opened them again, he was surrounded. Arthur knelt beside him, and a small group of elves stood in a semicircle. He was lying in the grass.
"What… happened?" Leo asked, voice still groggy.
"You collapsed," Arthur said, his voice low. "You were gone for a while."
"For how long?"
"A minute or two…" Arthur replied.
Leo looked from one face to another. They were all staring—not with fear, but with something between awe and uncertainty.
"What is it?" he asked.
"You're… different," Arthur said.
Briva stepped forward and handed him a small mirror.
Leo looked into it, pretending surprise. His reflection showed what he'd seen in his domain—those pale, silver-green eyes, the streak of silver in his hair. He lowered the mirror slowly.
He started to rise, but then froze.
Flowers. The same flowers from his domain were growing around him. Dozens of them, bursting from the soil as if called to life by his very presence.
"What is this?" he asked quietly.
"When you collapsed," Carian said, stepping aside to let Leo see more clearly, "the orb pulsed. And then the flowers came."
Leo looked past him—and his breath caught.
The city had changed. The already-beautiful forest had transformed into something otherworldly. Flowers bloomed along the roots of trees, across platforms, even climbing gently up the sides of the great tree-houses. Petals danced in the breeze like scattered light.
It looked almost identical to his domain. The same colors. The same warmth. The same silent breath of magic that moved through the flowers and trees like a wind made of light.
"What happened here?" Leo asked, his voice soft with awe.
"We hoped you could tell us," Carian replied, stepping beside him. "Didn't your god say anything to you?"
Leo shook his head. "Not yet."
"Whatever it was, it was the right thing," Elder Medawa said, her voice quiet but filled with certainty. She stepped forward, her aged eyes fixed on the transformed forest. "I can feel the goddess's power flowing through this place. It's alive in a way it hasn't been for centuries."
Then she turned her gaze to Leo. "Thank your god from me."
Leo gave a polite nod and a faint smile.
Arthur stepped up and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Shall we go, then?"
Leo looked to him and nodded. "Let's go."
Once more, they were guided to the edge of the elven city. As they passed beneath flowering branches and golden light filtering through the canopy, more elves gathered to bid them farewell. Hushed thanks, blessings, and well-wishes were spoken as they walked. When they finally reached the entrance, Elder Medawa approached Leo one last time.
She leaned close, her voice a whisper meant only for him.
"When the time comes, the elves of the forest will stand by your side."
Leo didn't say a word. He simply met her eyes and gave a firm, serious nod.
The three of them—Leo, Arthur, and Briva—left the jungle trail behind and followed the winding path back to the beach, where their ship waited at anchor. As they approached, the crew caught sight of them and rushed forward, encircling their captain with questions and excited chatter.
"Captain, who's the girl?" one of the sailors asked, squinting at Briva.
Arthur gestured toward her. "This is Briva. She's our newest member."
The crew blinked and stared. Their wide eyes and confused expressions said more than their silence.
Briva glanced nervously at the crew and leaned in toward Leo. "Why are they looking at me like that?"
"You're the first girl in our crew," Leo replied casually.
A single bead of sweat slid down Briva's temple. "Is that so?"
Arthur raised his voice. "Get everything ready—we're setting sail!"
The crew snapped to attention, scattering in all directions. Sails were checked, ropes coiled, supplies stowed. Within an hour, the ship was ready and pulling away from shore.
Briva moved across the deck like a child exploring a festival for the first time—touching, inspecting, asking questions. She dashed from bow to stern and back again, her enthusiasm contagious.
Leo watched her for a moment, quietly amused, before turning to Arthur. "I feel a bit drained after all that. I'm going to lie down for a while."
Arthur simply nodded, understanding.
Leo made his way to his quarters. As he lay back on his bed, the tension in his muscles eased. He closed his eyes, intending to enter his domain and assess what had changed—but before he could focus, something else pulled at him.
A force—not violent, but unrelenting—dragged him away from his physical body. Leo tried to resist, instinctively wary, but the power was overwhelming. Within seconds, his vision blurred and darkness washed over him.
When his senses returned, he found himself in a vast, radiant garden.
Every flower bloomed in perfect harmony. Birds sang unfamiliar songs. The air shimmered with life itself. At the far end stood a throne woven from living branches and blooming vines, crowned with blossoms and glowing softly with magic.
Seated upon it was a woman unlike any Leo had ever seen. She wore a flowing white dress, elegant but revealing—split low at the chest and high along her legs, showing smooth, glowing skin that seemed made of moonlight. Despite the intense radiance surrounding her, Leo could see her clearly.
Her silver hair fell like silk over her shoulders, cascading around her like a waterfall. Her silver eyes were deep, ancient, and unreadable. Long, elegant ears marked her as something beyond mortal—longer than the elves'. Her features were delicate, perfect in a way that seemed both real and impossible: a small, graceful nose, high cheekbones, and full lips that seemed poised to smile at any moment.
This wasn't a projection or a vague presence—Leo was standing in front of a true goddess. And she was looking directly at him.
"At last, we meet, Leo Mantine," she said. Her voice echoed in all directions, musical yet commanding, like the sound of wind moving through a sacred grove.
"Goddess of Nature, I presume?" Leo responded, his tone neutral but cautious.
"Please, call me Ilandra," she said with a warm, almost playful smile.
Leo narrowed his eyes. "What can I do for you, Ilandra?"
"I want you to gather my power. Pieces of it are still out there in the world—scattered, hidden, sleeping. I want them returned."
Leo folded his arms. "And why should I do that?"
"Because you owe me."
"Owe you?"
"I gave you a part of my essence," she said softly. "The flowers, the surge of life, your domain shifting—none of it would've been possible without my gift. You've already accepted it."
That made Leo pause. It all made sense now. The unnatural beauty of the jungle, the burst of mana, the new magic circle forming in his domain. 'So that's the price,' he thought. 'I should've known.'
He let out a slow breath. "Fine. How do I gather your power?"
"You already touched one of the orbs. That's how. Find the others. They hold what's left of me."
"And where exactly can I find them?"
The goddess's expression turned distant. "I don't know."
Leo raised his eyebrows in disbelief. "You don't know?"
"When I was betrayed, my form fractured. My power was shattered and cast into the world. The orb you found was the only one left uncorrupted. My memory—my awareness—it only goes back four hundred years. Before that... there's a void."
Leo's thoughts turned dark. 'She's a fallen goddess, clinging to what's left.'
"The creature that created the werewolves," he asked, "was it the same one that defeated you?"
"I don't know," she said again, her tone tinged with frustration. "Whatever it was, it doesn't just corrupt creatures. It corrupts gods."
Leo gave a slow nod. "Alright. I'll collect what I can on my journey. But I make no promises."
The goddess smiled again, the light around her growing warmer. "That's all I ask."
His vision started to blur again—he felt the same force pulling him back to the real world.
"Oh, and one more thing," she added just before the light swallowed her words. "Remember, aside from the elves, you're the only one who still bears my mark. You can reach me when you wish. And if you find more orbs, our connection will deepen. Maybe... even more than that."
She winked at him, and then the vision shattered like glass.
Leo's eyes opened. He was back in his room, lying on his bed, the soft sound of the ocean outside his window.
'These gods and their quests… they're getting out of hand.'
He now had three divine patrons, all tied together by threads of betrayal and broken power. The good news was, they weren't pulling him in opposite directions—yet. But still, this new goddess didn't feel as divine as the others. Her power was clearly diminished. Among them, the Moon Goddess still had the strongest presence—the kind that pressed down on you and made you feel like you were kneeling whether you wanted to or not.
Leo sat up and closed his eyes again. This time, he slipped into his domain. There, he stood and walked down from his throne, toward the sea of flowers between the central platform and the right-hand tower. Their colors were vibrant, shifting with the light—crimson roses, golden lilies, indigo orchids, pale blue moonblossoms that shimmered when he neared.
"What are these towers?" he whispered.
They had risen from the ground after the goddess's power awakened within him. He hadn't shaped them. They were not a product of his will. They had formed on their own.
As soon as he formed the intention to approach, the flowers parted gently, clearing a path through themselves. He followed the trail, walking slowly, watching how the flora moved and responded like living guardians of something sacred.
When he reached the tower, he saw it up close—white stone laced with living vines, shrouded in a thin veil of silver mist. There were no doors, no windows, just a towering structure that pulsed with mana. It wasn't finished. Not yet.
Leo walked its perimeter, looking for an entrance, but there was none. After a while, he gave up and made his way back to the central platform.
He sat on the throne, deep in thought.
'My domain only grows when I grow. That means I've crossed another threshold… I can continue the Book of Domains now.'
As he was turning this over in his mind, something caught his eye.
The energy around Thorn, his sword, had changed. The mana around it was no longer diffused. It was sharp. Focused.
With a flick of his hand, Thorn flew to him. As soon as his fingers touched the hilt, a powerful pulse ran through him.
The blade had changed. New power had awakened inside it. A slow smile spread across Leo's face.
'Things are getting interesting.'