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"I see. So it\'s that time already? Sister must be pissed off. And, what does it have to do with you?" the words rang clear inside Maria’s mind. And she felt her mouth move on her own.

“I am the current oracle. I have to make sure the next demonic war does not happen.” Fear was not an emotion Maria was used to. But the irregular beating of her heart could not be anything else.

The upper-realm goddess looked at Maria with a bored expression but Maria was sure her eyes were devouring her answer.

“The oracle? That makes sense. That is why you have mother’s scent on you.” the bored voice continued.

Maria was taken aback by the words and the attitude being displayed toward her. This was the second time the person from the upper realm had used the term ‘mother.’ Maria felt her curiosity peak at the word.

“Mother?” Maaria was not sure if she was asking her system or the female in front of her. But both refused to answer her.

“You don’t need to know about it. And you don’t need to return to the book world either. This is not your story to interfere in.” the female spoke. The crystal ball lying on the table flashed a blue shade and the goddess lost interest in Maria.

Maria also willed her eyes to move toward the crystal ball.

“H-Hey, isn’t that-?” Maria asked as shock penetrated her system. She could see Venus, Kuro, and Yuuki inside the crystal ball.

But those were not the only people Maria could see. She could also see the queen and Yura. Even some unfamiliar tribes.

The goddess did not answer this question either.

Instead, she opened the book lying at her side and started writing inside it. On the other side, Yura reacted in a puppet-like motion. Things started to make a lot of sense to Maria.

“Are you controlling Yura? Is she a part of you as well? What about the queen?” Maria asked. She had no hopes of getting an answer by force. Nor did she expect to get one.

But the goddess surprised her by actually replying to her question.

“Everyone in Jamaica is their one person. They are free to do what they want. I don’t control their actions.” The goddess contradicted her words by writing inside her book.

And the globe’s color changed from bright blue to a might night. All of a sudden, hours seemed to have passed in Jamaica.

“You say that but your actions don’t match your words. Is Yura even real?” Maria questioned. The more she thought about this topic, the worse her head hurt.

“Yura is her person, and so is the queen. They might be my creations but they have their own will to follow. I am just facilitating their development as a good parent should.” the goddess replied.

She spun the globe and Maria watched as the beast rose in the night. They avoided Yura’s hut and the queen’s protection. But it left a lot of unprotected areas.

“Protection? It looks more like coddling to me. And that at the expanse of other people. They won’t grow up if you keep solving their problems for them.” Maria’s accusations were true. But she was not sure if the goddess even understood the concept.

Her actions indicated that the goddess did not care about what happened to Jamaica. They would also hamper Yura’s growth.

The girl was already attached to her ‘sister’. There was no need to encourage it anymore.

“It doesn’t matter. Jamaica will not survive if I withdrew now. The middle realm cannot live without the node and the node needs sustenance. Jamaica doesn’t have enough of its own.” the goddess sounded certain of her words.

“You don’t know that. Other continents had dealt with losing their nodes before.” Maria argues.

But she had also felt the truth in the goddess’s words. Jamaica did feel like it was decaying right before Maria’s eyes.

“No. I do know that. The Queen has gotten older and she would not be able to have her position forever. It will be better for Yura to be ready for a shift." The goddess finalized.

Maria was not ready to entertain that idea. But she found herself not being able to speak in front of the goddess.

It was the goddess\'s magic that was keeping Jamaica afloat. If she decided that it was not worth it, she would take her support back.

"You are right. But why Yura? She doesn\'t even know the difference between caring for and abusing people. And you\'re not allowing her to learn either." Marina accused.

Yura might have been powerful but the power didn\'t make someone fit for a ruling.

As much as Maria did not like the queen\'s attitude, she had to admit that the Queen did care for her people. Yura seemed to have no such concept in her dictionary.

"I have not chosen her, my magic has. You are not required to interfere in this business. Now, tell me what you need and be on your way out of this continent." The goddess spoke.

The slow tilt of the goddess\'s head in dismissal caused Maria to feel rage. The indifference was painful but it was also jarring to feel.

"I want to go back. Take me back there and break my curse." Maria demanded.

The goddess nodded, clearly misunderstanding the situation. Maria did not clear the misunderstanding just yet. She waited for the goddess to bring the cure to her curse.

"Here. Take this medicine and you\'ll be cured of the curse you are bearing." The goddess suggested.

She did not look back to check if Maria was taking the offered pill or not. Instead, the goddess chose to ignore her.

"Alright. I still have a question. Does the curse-breaking pond exist?" Maria asked. It was a curious and harmless question so Maria was sure the goddess would not think much of it.

"Yes. It does. You were quite close to it as well. Now take the medicine and think of the place you want to go to next. I will open the portal for you." The goddess asked.

She moved her hand in a dismissal motion and Maria felt certain that the goddess had no interest in her. Despite Maria being the oracle and having a connection with their ‘mother’, the goddess seemed to be underestimating her.

It was good for Maia’s plan.

Maira pretended to gulp the medicine and waited for the goddess to open the path for her. The goddess did that without hesitation and Maria jumped through without a second thought.

She did not wait around for the goddess to notice that Maria had betrayed her trust.

The portal opened in a familiar cave and Maria could see Yuuki about to stand up and look around for her. Not much time seemed to have passed between Maria’s kidnapping and her return.

She could still feel the throb of the new node inside the pool. It seemed to be taking nourishment from the pool and the surroundings.

It felt alive and about to sprout in a new branch anytime.

“You are back on your own? Do you want to take the next watch?” Yuuki asked. He sounded dead tired and the sprouting of this new node must be taking a toll on his magic.

“Sure. I will take the next watch.” Maria debated whether to tell him what happened between her and the goddess. But she ultimately chose to keep it all to herself.

If the goddess came to seek revenge, having Yuuki and the others as non-accomplice to her plan might be a good idea. Maria had a feeling the goddess did not want to cause unnecessary bloodshed.

………

Inside her room, the goddess did not pay attention to the spot she opened the portal. The thought of being fooled had not even crossed her mind.

It was not till she had a look at the cave group and saw Maria’s familiar face there did she understand that she had been fooled.

And then her temper rose.

“You little! Now I remember your face. I understand why your sister was so pissed off at you. You always cause trouble. Both you and your father. I did not care for that man but you! You have humiliated me enough.” the goddess lost her control.

She had never been made a fool of. Everyone was too afraid of her to do such a thing to her.

But this human had dared to sully her name. She had tricked the goddess into being let back in the story.

“Fine. If this is how you want to play, then this is how we will play. As long as Jamaica doesn’t have a node, it is still mine to do with as I please.” the goddess cursed.

She placed her open palm on top of the crystal ball and mist began to cloud the clear glass.

Once the hand was lifted, one could not see anything but the silhouette of the people inside the cave. And soon, even they were covered by darkness.

The goddess grinned darkly and took a step back. The crystal ball developed one crack and then another.

Until it shattered into pieces.

"I don\'t want to play with Jamaica anymore. It can be destroyed now." the goddess whispered as she left the dark space.