The same day Eris and Karan went on a quest to defeat a Scythe Mantis, Lili and Pell had agreed to visit the local bathhouse.
"We're here!" Lili pointed to an establishment with pristine marble walls and colorful plumes of steam rising gently from its vents, filling the air with a fragrant aroma. "Tagatha's Sanctuary."
"I'm so excited, Lili!" Pell declared, unable to hide her excitement.
"Please come with me, girls," a receptionist guided them to a changing room where they could undress and leave their clothes. Before going into the main communal pool, they were asked to wash in a separate room with buckets of water, soap and magical stones.
The main pool was situated in the middle of the bathhouse, its walls were a thin veil of cascading water, warm and inviting. The two approached the large communal pool, steam curled and clung to their skins, nourishing every pore with enchanted vapor.
Slowly, they lowered themselves deeper into the water, gentle heat wrapping around their bodies. Trickling streams fed into the bath, carrying a mix of herbs and minerals intended to relax and revitalize the muscles.
"This feels nice," Lili said, her voice bubbling slightly as her mouth slipped beneath the water's surface. "If I can, I'd go here everyday."
"You'd be a prune, Lili," Pell let out a playful giggle, her tone mildly teasing.
Leaning against the smooth stone edge, they allowed themselves to unwind as soft laughter and chatter filled the misty chamber.
…
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[Good morrow, Most Esteemed Reader!
It is I, your humble Chronicler, once again.
This day's tale shall turn upon the two magical maidens and how their forebears were brought to strife by a common enemy - the Holy Empire.
So sit back and relax as I tell of days long past, yet its echoes still ring clear unto this very day.]
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…
The Holy Empire was established roughly eight hundred years ago, two hundred years after the advent of the First Party and the founding of Adalan.
Its creation was born of the people's hatred and fear of monsters. Centuries ago, when powerful beasts ravaged villages and towns outside Adalan's domain, a group of men rose and declared themselves bringers of salvation. They called themselves priests and knights. Their words stirred the hearts of nobles and peasants alike, uniting them beneath one banner: the Holy Empire.
The Holy Empire was a vast and rigid realm in the northeastern region of Sha'aya. Its foundations were steeped in faith and its order sustained by unyielding tradition.
It was an extremely patriarchal society, where men ruled nearly every station of power. It was their belief that the Empire was founded under the guidance and blessing of the Sky Father, whom they proclaimed as the one true god above all. The one who held the Sun and Moon and had the Stars in his wings, the bringer of order and judgement.
The priests taught that monsters were abominations born from the Sin of the Earth Mother, when she defied the Sky Father by whoring herself to the Demon King, trading harmony for chaos and purity for wickedness. They saw dungeons as the festering wombs of the Earth Mother, giving birth to evil creatures of Hell.
Fueled by this creed, the Empire forged itself into a theocracy where priests spoke as the SkyFather's Mouth and the Holy Knights act as His Hand. Their conquests and atrocities reached beyond monsters, claiming lands as if it were theirs as granted by divine law, and marching to wars under the guise of acts of purification.
The First Witch, Selene, was one of the many enemies the Empire had made throughout the years. Having heard of a woman able to cast magic through thought alone, the Empire branded her as an avatar of the Earth Mother, unworthy of mercy, and thus proclaimed that the vile woman must be slain.
With banners of the Sky Father, the Empire marshaled its knights, sending an army to 'purify' Selene's village. The order was to spare no one, since the village folk also practiced witchcraft under Selene's tutelage, an unforgivable act of heresy.
Selene fought back with all her might. Fire and lightning raged across the battlefield, burning men where they stood. The very earth shuddered beneath them, swallowing soldiers into sudden pits. Yet, for every one she struck down, another pressed forward.
Seeing the incoming tide of white and gold, one thing raced through Selene's mind: they were far too many. As her strength waned, her flames dimmed and her lightning became no more than blinding flashes. With bitter resolve, she led the villagers to retreat into a nearby mountain. Her final spell tore through the rocks, weaving a labyrinth of tunnels and creating sentinels from the stones. Inside the mountain's belly, they hid, protected from the outside by the Selene's Golems. This mountain would later become known as the Witch's Maw, the impenetrable fortress of witches, Lili's home.
Pell's ancestors were also seen as enemies by the Empire. However, unlike the witches, they were defeated and conquered. They came from the Isles of Spice, old name - Malaia, a group of islands to the east of Sha'aya.
These islands were rich in spices and other resources that the Empire highly coveted. But perhaps, the greatest prize for their conquest of the Isles was the discovery of a Mana-rich lake, old name - Bulan. This lake was held sacred by the islanders, believed to be a place where mortal and spirit worlds touched.
Hidden in the depths of the lake, the Empire found veins of magical ore. With its superior healing effect, this ore became the foundation of Holy Magic and the Empire's greatest weapon against its enemies. The Empire reduced the sacred lake to a mere resource, a mine to be harvested and pillaged. They named this ore 'Lacrima' and 'Bulan' became 'Tearstone Lake' - a name born as a reminder of the Sky Father's merciful tears.
Aside from desecrating their land, the Empire also brought suffering and committed atrocities against the Malaian islanders. Under its oppressive rule, Malaian men were shipped to the mainland becoming slaves, forced into hard labor building the Empire's main cities. The women were made into nuns, female priests. A degrading title for a life of forced servitude and an excuse to be exploited by priests and knights for their pleasure. They were nuns - nothing, none.
Even in Pell's time, the Empire's power still held, becoming even equal in power to the First Kingdom, Adalan. Their influence on the Sha'ayan continent remained strong.
Their sacred mission: to cleanse the world of monsters and claim dominion over the continent by divine right. A pure and righteous empire built upon the backs of slaves and the cries of the oppressed. They are the children of the Sky Father: the Holy Empire.
Glory Eternal to the Holy Empire!