Nephis looked in the window and remained silent for a while. Her face was distant and still. After a while, she lightly shook her head.
"No… not yet."
Cassie seemed to be surprised by that answer.
"No? But… why?"
Changing Star sighed.
"The… Fire Keepers. That is what people call the Awakened who follow you, right? They all look up to me, do they not?"
The blind girl silently nodded.
"Of course! We… they have been waiting for your return ever since escaping the Forgotten Shore. Even though the Dreamer Army was an alliance of convenience, the bonds that were forged between its members are real. Their bond to you is real, too."
Sunny sipped his coffee with a strange expression. Neph, meanwhile, lingered for a moment, and then said:
"But they want more than just to welcome me back. They expect me to lead them, like I did on the Forgotten Shore. Am I correct?"
Cassie nodded once again.
Neph looked away.
"How can I lead them when I don't know where I am going? I… I need more time to figure things out before I face them."
The blind girl remained silent for a while, then sighed.
"I… I understand. I think."
did
not offer the remnants of the Dreamer
allow her hesitation to slow her down. More than that, she had spent two whole years alone in the Dream Realm… if he knew anything
that became available to Neph after she came back. That had to
was she
wanted to know… yet. In any case, he was going to
else that
at Nephis and Cassie and then said, his
you two forgetting something? This is still my home! We only agreed that Nephis would stay here for a week.
let Changing Star pull off
unreadable expression. After a
do you mind if I stay for
then glanced
you, and all that. See, was that so
***
remained for a bit longer to get Nephis up to speed about the state of the Fire Keepers and the renovations they were making to the Immortal Flame manor, and then left.
Neph were left alone
a few moments,
mean… I never really had one, more or less, before
glanced at him, then slowly shook her
not really my home. We were moving a lot while I was growing up. Sometimes because our financial
for a
guess it were the people who surrounded me that created the feeling of home. But they are all
the conversation
honest. And who those people were. You once said that you were raised
Changing Star nodded.
even, although that distinction was not established yet back then. Apart from the immediate family, the clan also
grew silent,
T1I1m3OT1tcAYRKvseGjBMKHFdtqb4dxnKFWpO6UPeiDus3Er26g0E8BDrlRembafTN+toZLH83ofNUsyb8RrE+RRXs90h6xWLqN7C4PzzxrdDKWUvXWYVDMZpSme/61/cDOZVppE2ndEdfJWU/z6ZxSQKJxxcArbSx6ksJoOgsiCOQpCH/HG+JNhbGtxNyBp3cdlNSAA31tzVaKxKIxDZlN8xjMsWCok2t6Ts98Yk28aUc/iy1zHvKuxamirdiSXxMISt6wFtqs5HEvIwZ9FB0cdApn6igxq6R5rQvugRwW0CL8x95aMNBKWYNdggSNZsj30ty57bHWnnZ3VWmh56+HLx/JDiwLQsgeCpz29KBFnMKD0ct0nB5NLqxnz7ncjqWHNzabS2qkjy39BHH+0nSaaXw1D/Xbo6r4gYQzMcGreC/4xD/rQ9OjfKK2TcNn2V5ItV0TPisIjZVW21WEXXyNCXsVHlIJk3l1lsYJ9P+LLssZHDj3PVnRn8+YtfM2YF5S7fepRFz2Q4Y+JyCFmCSlNSateRoXm7nrOzjm67J1RdLrKBy+QMgPjIBItQexO5GqHfssOg/kVGbZPqSlOmdgTQiP7nBbkUZKNQPckEKQkM5iNbj2A9wfT7X7gOPg3/xOR+90n95eqAcQ3G0NFYZi0nFdZpy1+1c17lfQMB6ZtQlb6FqZ6s7xL9jIE9synMajPP9pxW5kj7R8s/TlLR9fsPGJLpgkAiRkW2KFYg83QebyqUsQnRfXbwBlU7FdhfbrF3axZvk5l2v2LzD5n5hnDebrSpfZGSqK1J6ty8lepcsknGmGEf25rhm/h5Ac3I0gI21qANDppEeSbkCXh/sTZjM3okdyp5RRAGyWDkAWwGwZ1T+dEL7FXA5af4eja3Mj8Cqp7c7DbMYBdDfJlQIj8gYTaj9UlPtGoFazIouHia+6RJfJ8qN8p6WxX6S7a9/m/uuOjAMhBkT6yMcBYW7vlBEPJAfYsrRUfU1B9EM1sTHAf4105Ier/g1fzmbiUmwgHxdZRwK04gtwSbYAGKAk1ivMnfnj8Ups2R4IKxE3zsMM4wUz+503nO1QfDk04D8quizCDNvFSzgjlg8lwxBKuynKxpLYJNDiV4YjcCl+HCfXTINjxkW90UWPpE0ai1Lv16PuMGWj+6+TOpe5lyp8nZ+RjwtPYFqhrKnNZ/u2tE/AwovQnrMPJVFI2q/3jP6RQH3SbneTpS2iX27jOCaLTgxQlQUVJ3Nxsv7K+o2xo4Lh9behiquJK8JOx1Z70U6/iLO4xuMQdjhSNd1b7rVanJLKGzWw4j+MPqSguFo6bUndugkOnwCiRLb9OLHQnw1YZqQLw+FBNzmCXdYAIm3JuHoPElBXjo9pJRPx/JT20DI4hv7evLIK8xtmA82EApeE2hK/dUjVSq2ZwE4ym1+U23iQkpsPsI01EiE9vuTfd+FQn5U3iPa71lB5rQnETz9XcwRPsJJJvge9GcpFtzpNFjffwPrDcWWHVilkRgmvLNqKc8aW39/bfNVjo5Kjg/G5VTznvYaWs7184HnNuBWMXT6ugehE1sOMKMg7XcCx6y2Ia8AQ0e4VolCZCQJjUp5WAsqJEz+Te+dMWc1P7wrcfq4i5KmW7yPbpLlyjEok3ZbPaJ6NfQDNaf3qS0cj6obMQ3b6tokci51/oHDgB5thA7P3XZFvvv3Z22nqk8mAHRcCzJ4vsFt4CVUe/6ern1KBXFND2f8fhlQ1U+iP71ug1x/TeRV4qXe6iEmEeNszZ08McNdxaSBUWzEgf3XmWWec7cP7p1IHSPsI+0agGQXcQJH/ggxVqbgS8QGmt4DUz/DP4aqRbeV5rdB4ifftN0UZFzXEuUQa7AXuiwF8p4UGWJmYMOk6ivCGRmfwVEDQdPhZ8gfycPdp/bqjbDcg/MQ0CCqY5PMRTM8wCQSFpYF8N0luqGOTxwxz1G14weM67gH33XhbPLNqYvHI2aewm3PmiNa7ShPDZe0kkyWbjuE+0DhmUQgF183VuyFhr8JLnyE6KUXODcUg3s/o7V+K+UcLM913npuckInklI0CmtEItJ30zEAigUJcZB5ZlTtitGUEk2olccRs751oJowyTv7AAXwepPxZdSLvTumrBXpMp6gMvsGmDKDiK6tQC8tlDgG8U8nm9wandSLtz84qVwXCM5zPVbfpIFvbfgN7m5Lm5zuN3jh3BB5zVLUjM1K2fghQV1Q1V5zkcPDEBTvR7ZGIR3xXNaZCXo84KJcsSJ85P6hrSyhHJ3kBJepyFxN8EWifVXiA2tCZ6lo52QWfNIBwRXrlfWkVV8UcD1Fx8oCGfuNT+BD05zvk4e6Ag2hdDVDXvkCYDQJLAVn5TbaU/inQhxx9TykeoXV61JqRxnmGDBLnXnGz5t2rvCJJFc8EqtYVCtvCDSdC8VYJeb1RGIxubJ3hwq79Ah1j0LTnt88VkD5mmxi3iqthYUXcvhe6CEoKzZJimKt3IUbwAyb0OFDBr9FdifGv92DPyZwb2H5H3hIi6sRt9REMCpOyQ6K3Xu6O9QfyC7LITsNOqGZNg65Cfy0uduTT1cW8RbJhbQzAZxEwYgiRUvuOCvrDicXGSohio1FKJQ6FsXBYoXBJmzl/twxeK1+1I1+QkfGZ8zc4nEqVW0aJnQ//6wi1xsBWthMrAWWvzvaFhgUeLvkDuvZhuloHiFc1v8BchqJ38CQToqYPae/72ENu3mWhMqwO2PMAg5EVDCLUn+UjC+yu1/5s/zCmNPoNRwnoZEVzdQTP/UYSfJdmEy4dg3FhGKazoNeXlo9XsNPMbIlsqWo5XCYMeXZH6KwpcY2LmdIQpAPzbOkrJc6wk49pChiPWKz9z1GQvmqOyuX3cowQvOIOu8gZl5A1nGX2Evgm05777uLicmT5s+DwANFFVwza3ArOjzgFJM3ESL7dlMsSvLNeZlDb+FWQ/n//nQFpqxmkgFFgIB75Uih+YvVHrZxzskcUlkzS38utljWlO9nEijp3kC7uULzWdEdhaHJoHnva4Xz+6n51T/T5G4A3+cuNQoWmzzQA2HOsdqZA7WxP1L6OxjbPoIE423YRpyA3zvM7+aLPFdwvqrGIuQU4u9VZSITuCuijjekO12Pe/f0yvKAlmJuRCtJ6rPoad1TlbxgzOGSK4jXf3aVmUcgcD6kG2s88tTejnGGsmGxALWCOPWuZaud0axHkHniTEl1Lpo8Lt7QlNhMCIBM1XLFmas3rE1vNOyHBH2+tsmg22c//irXYHOxsVxMLYcYti7jSR9mLROxCoIKnTIpNB4OkzKt87qV1CGAezqc8+hKEkOaQmvSrYpz3gCTNeDXML8IFH2RzJcP6jHTJccbiw2eRPs4xkYKcfYeFRdPoYgpG73dT8RnRDALW5by3L6BsC1K2X2f2UBEdHW9x5JB/eaLcd+d26PMrXx2ZQw0vxTVItSBsbbGwwVaqfg+IiriA4AFyquN+sdB6/OCyq63y8DPogda4DJIsMtPsOnh0rESF9V5+TAWXIXoi8KnUeFTzPPRAZcbwnyCVsxEA2XVp3ZW4XO5nyBDSA+zbHj5nS4VHxNf9bWO1PPCyFvi2xAgX
The Novel will be updated daily. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!