Chapter 53
The torchlight flickered softly across Princess Flora's green eyes.
"…The Goddess of Earth and life..."
Silence followed.
Heavy.
Not uncomfortable—
but thoughtful.
Like the prison itself had gone still to listen.
Guinevere leaned against the cold stone wall quietly after speaking. Her expression remained calm, yet strangely distant now.
Princess Flora studied her carefully.
Not as a commander.
Not even as an ally.
But as someone standing closer to the gods than ordinary people ever could.
Princess: "…I never really asked before."
Guinevere glanced toward her.
Princess: "None of us did."
A pause.
Princess: "We accepted everything too easily."
Chris frowned slightly.
Marco lowered his gaze.
Because nobody disagreed.
Princess Flora slowly folded her arms.
Princess: "Chosen Angels."
A pause.
Princess: "The gods."
Another.
Princess: "Awakening."
Her voice lowered.
Princess: "…We treated all of it like unquestionable truth."
Silence settled across the prison once more.
Then Flora looked back at Guinevere.
Princess: "But after everything that's happened…"
Her eyes narrowed carefully.
Princess: "…I'm starting to think we barely understand what the gods really are."
That changed something.
Even Guinevere became quieter after hearing it.
Flora stepped closer to the bars.
Princess: "So tell me honestly."
A pause.
Princess: "Not what the royal temples teach."
Another.
Princess: "What do you actually know?"
Only distant dripping water answered for a moment.
Then Guinevere exhaled softly.
Guinevere: "…Alright."
Chris shifted slightly against the wall.
Marco looked up now as well.
Listening carefully.
Princess Flora spoke first.
Princess: "People say Chosen Angels unlock divine potential."
A pause.
Princess: "That gods grant them power directly."
Her gaze lowered briefly.
Princess (thinking): But after hearing John…
Another pause.
Princess (thinking): …I'm not even sure what 'divine power' means anymore.
Guinevere closed her eyes briefly before answering.
Guinevere: "That's because most people misunderstand what a Chosen Angel actually is."
Marco frowned.
Marco: "Then what are they?"
Guinevere remained silent for a moment.
Choosing her words carefully.
Guinevere: "A Chosen Angel is not someone who earns power."
A pause.
Guinevere: "It's someone acknowledged."
Silence.
Guinevere: "A god recognizes something within you."
Her voice remained calm.
Steady.
Guinevere: "Your devotion. Your nature. The way your existence aligns with theirs."
Princess Flora listened carefully.
Guinevere: "That acknowledgment forms a connection. And within every human lies a hidden potential, a power fueled by their will.
Guinevere : As their conviction strengthens, so too does the extraordinary force sleeping inside them.Yet the human body was never meant to contain such power.
Chris: huh?
Guinevere : Chosen Angels are granted Divine power, a sacred safeguard that protects them from being consumed by the very strength they wield."
Princess: "So the gods choose people themselves."
Guinevere nodded once.
Guinevere: "Yes."
Chris crossed his arms.
Chris: "Then why are some Chosen Angels stronger than others?"
Guinevere's expression darkened slightly.
Guinevere: "Because not all devotion reaches the same depth."
Silence.
Guinevere: "Some people worship through prayer."
A pause.
Guinevere: "Some through faith."
Her eyes lowered slightly.
Guinevere: "…And some offer everything."
Princess Flora's gaze sharpened immediately.
Princess: "…Everything?"
Guinevere nodded slowly.
Guinevere: "Mind."
A pause.
Guinevere: "Soul."
Another.
Guinevere: "Identity."
The corridor suddenly felt colder afterward.
Chris frowned faintly.
Chris: "That sounds less like devotion and more like surrender."
Guinevere didn't answer immediately.
That silence alone was enough.
Then—
very quietly—
Guinevere spoke again.
Guinevere: "There was someone like that once."
Princess Flora immediately noticed the shift in her voice.
Princess: "…Who?"
A pause.
Guinevere: "…Tomasi."
The name echoed softly through the prison.
Marco frowned.
Marco: "He was stronger than you?"
Guinevere: "Yes."
No hesitation.
Guinevere: "Among Chosen Angels… he was considered exceptional."
Princess Flora stayed silent.
Listening carefully.
Guinevere: "Tomasi devoted everything to Monessa."
Chris immediately looked toward her.
Chris: "…The Goddess Monessa?"
Guinevere nodded slowly.
Guinevere: "Not just prayers."
A pause.
Guinevere: "Everything."
Her expression darkened slightly.
Guinevere: "That devotion allowed him to perform rituals meant to reach the goddess directly."
Princess Flora narrowed her eyes.
Princess: "…Reach her?"
Guinevere: "The sealed bodies of gods are not places humans can simply discover."
A pause.
Guinevere: "Only a god can reveal where they rest."
Silence settled heavily afterward.
Princess Flora's fingers tightened slightly against her arm.
Princess: "…Then did Tomasi use sealing magic too?"
Guinevere hesitated.
Then slowly shook her head.
Guinevere: "Probably not."
A pause.
Guinevere: "Sealing magic is different."
Her expression darkened further.
Guinevere: "Those arts were sealed away from humanity itself."
Chris frowned.
Chris: "Because they're dangerous?"
Guinevere looked toward him quietly.
Guinevere: "Entire kingdoms disappeared because of those arts."
That line silenced the prison completely.
Even Marco looked unsettled now.
Marco: "…Then how are these people using it so casually?"
Nobody answered immediately.
Because that question frightened all of them.
Even Guinevere.
Guinevere: "…I don't know."
A pause.
Guinevere: "…And that's exactly what terrifies me."
Princess Flora watched her carefully.
Princess: "…Can't you perform those rituals too?"
Guinevere gave a faint shake of her head.
Guinevere: "No."
A pause.
Guinevere: "I may be a Chosen Angel… but I never devoted myself completely."
Her voice lowered slightly.
Guinevere: "I still chose to live as a human."
Another pause.
Guinevere: "Tomasi abandoned almost everything else."
Marco frowned slightly.
Marco: "…So deeper devotion means greater power?"
Guinevere shook her head faintly.
Guinevere: "Not necessarily."
A pause.
Guinevere: "It means a deeper connection."
Chris narrowed his eyes.
Chris: "And that connection allows the gods to grant more power."
Guinevere stayed quiet briefly.
Then—
Guinevere: "…Maybe."
That uncertainty unsettled Flora more than certainty would have.
Princess Flora lowered her gaze slightly.
Princess: "…Then the followers here…"
A pause.
Princess: "…The worshippers of Monessa…"
Guinevere slowly looked toward the floor.
Guinevere: "…If they truly serve her…"
Another pause.
Guinevere: "…then it's possible Monessa herself granted them access to those powers."
A colder silence followed.
Guinevere continued quietly.
Guinevere: "The gods are not truly gone."
A pause.
Guinevere: "Think of them as sleeping."
Her eyes narrowed slightly.
Guinevere: "…And sleeping beings still dream."
Something about that line changed the atmosphere instantly.
Because suddenly—
the gods no longer felt absent.
Only distant.
Guinevere spoke softly.
Guinevere: "A god can appear through dreams."
A pause.
Guinevere: "Thoughts."
Another.
Guinevere: "Visions."
Chris frowned deeply.
Chris: "So they can still communicate with people?"
Guinevere: "If they choose to."
Marco let out a quiet breath.
Marco: "…That's unsettling."
Again—
nobody disagreed.
Princess Flora lowered her gaze slowly.
Princess (thinking): So this forbidden power…
A pause.
Princess (thinking): …is this truly what Monessa wants?
Another pause.
Princess (thinking): And if it is…
Her fingers tightened slightly.
Princess (thinking): …then what exactly are we trying to awaken?
The torchlight flickered harder for a moment.
Guinevere spoke again.
Guinevere: "There are ancient rituals."
A pause.
Guinevere: "The highest forms of devotion."
Princess Flora listened carefully.
Guinevere: "Through them… followers attempt to reach closer to a god's consciousness."
Marco frowned slightly.
Marco: "…Attempt?"
Guinevere nodded.
Guinevere: "Sometimes they receive answers."
A pause.
Guinevere: "Sometimes signs."
Her expression darkened slightly.
Guinevere: "…And sometimes things that should never answer back."
Silence settled heavily across the prison.
Princess Flora slowly lowered her gaze.
Thinking carefully.
Then—
Princess: "…So the gods want to awaken too."
Guinevere looked toward her quietly.
A long pause followed.
Then—
slowly—
she nodded.
Guinevere: "I think so."
Not certainty.
That mattered.
Princess Flora noticed immediately.
Princess: "…You're not sure."
Guinevere stayed silent briefly.
Then—
Guinevere: "No."
A pause.
Guinevere: "I'm beginning to realize none of us truly are."
That line settled across the prison harder than anything else she had said.
Because for the first time—
the gods no longer felt holy.
They felt unknown.
And somehow—
that was far more frightening.
Far above the prison—
beyond kingdoms, temples, and forgotten ruins—
something ancient waited patiently beneath the silence.
Listening.
Watching.
Perhaps—
already awake enough to answer back.
...CHAPTER 53 ENDS...