Royal Princess of Blood

It was the beginning of a new dawn for the world. For a new god was born. Or perhaps a rebirth would be the more accurate phrase. As the Deity of Blood has returned to walk the world once more. An essential part of the world that allowed life to grow, the entity that existed at the genesis of the world.

And this return, this rebirth, caused a wave undetectable to most sentient beings, a wave that spread throughout the entire world. Among those who noticed this wave of change were beings of divinity. It was involuntary, but still it was a proclamation of Her return. The divine entities in the sea, the skies, the lands, even to the underworld, they felt it, and they realized.

The beings of nature, the animals, the fish, the worms and parasites beneath the earth, all were overjoyed. Even the ancient creatures that had roamed the world for centuries celebrated. For their creator and their nurturer had graced them once more after a long, long time of absence.

Even the world itself had a shock of change. The once forsaken archipelago, which nature and the gods had abandoned, had been given a new start, its hopes and wishes finally granted. It was an event beyond the comprehension of mortals, all summed up in one word — miracle.

The children of Shinoroa rushed outside with visible excitement, heading to where there was dirt. They were careful with their steps, making sure not to step on the tiny green grass sprouting from the ground. In any other place, like the continent to the north, they wouldn’t have cared much and just casually walked and stepped onto it. But here, it was the first time they had seen something like it. Nature.

For them, it was like treasure.

The children crouched down and took a close look at the bright green grass. Curiously touching, but careful not to damage them.

Even the most despicable were in awe and full of wonder. Bandits, criminals, murderers, thieves, traffickers, all came out of their safe confines and admired the beauty they had seen for the first time.

It was not only the surface of the archipelago that was restored, for even the depths of the water within and around the archipelago had regained their luster. Various weeds and sea plants had sprouted; pretty soon, more and more creatures of the sea would come and fill the gaps, restoring the ecosystem to how it was supposed to be.

Everything started small, but eventually, trees would grow, and dark forests would be no more. To be replaced with resplendent landscapes. The animals found on the continent that once roamed the archipelago might not return, for they have become extinct on Shinoroa a long time ago, but the once vicious monsters would gradually dwindle. As the corruption that had long overtaken this land would fade away in time. Monsters would be ever-present, but eventually, they shall not be as hideous.

Even the demon land was, of course, not spared from the miracle. Even this desolate land, inhabited by the most deplorable and cruel creatures, received the grace of the goddess. Although they were not most appreciative of nature’s return.

But with the kindness of the loving goddess, she still gave them her grace.

Still, Shinoroa had countless challenges ahead of it.

***

Somewhere on the continent, somewhere in the Wisteria Kingdom. A pair of beautiful naked women stood beneath the trees. They had flawless green skin, like the green of grass or leaves. Their eyes were gold, glowing softly. Their green hair was incredibly long, smooth, and silky. The shape of their bodies was sheer perfection, perfect curves, incredibly attractive. A normal man could be driven insane upon seeing their immense beauty.

Indeed, they were inhuman. The type of perfection that humans could only hope to achieve in their dreams.

These were a pair of dryads. And they were observing something in the middle of the forest with worried expressions. They carefully walked and stopped at the edge of what could be described as a blight in nature.

In this area, the soil had turned black. And the plants that were supposed to be growing in this dark soil had already withered, dead. The trees lost their leaves, and their trunks dried out. The grass and other small plants had turned gray and brittle; merely touching them would crumble them to pieces. This blight had already stretched around a hundred meters.

And ever so slowly the blight was spreading.

The two dryads held out their hands, and green light shone from their palms; the light touched the soil. At that, the blight’s gradual spread froze. The dryads maintained their power, and the soil gradually returned to its proper color. There was nothing to be done about the dead plants, but they must restore whatever they could.

One of the dryads sighed tiredly. “The blight’s infections are appearing faster than we can fix them.”

Typically, they would sense and discover this blight before it gets to spread this badly. However, more and more of these blight spots had been appearing all over the kingdom, and even the continent. And there were only so many dryads that could fix it and prevent the corruption from spreading.

“This is going to take a while,” the other dryad answered as she looked ahead. “At this rate, the world will eventually be plagued by this darkness.”

“The gods tried to fix it, but it’s impossible for them to do it completely.”

When the blight first started appearing, the gods could still fix it just fine, even prevent it. However, as centuries passed, more and more of these blights kept appearing. The gods couldn’t fully prevent them anymore. That was because none of the gods’ domains were directly connected to nature. What they were doing was bandages at most. Eventually, more wounds will appear and the bleeding will continue. Unless they fix the problem at the source.

And the source of that problem was that the god of nature was no more. The Ruling Deity of Blood. The other gods making themselves ‌substitutes could never provide a permanent fix to this problem. Which was the cause of anger and frustration from the Mythics — the entities usually hidden from humans, those that lurked in nature and its keepers. They were considered myths to humans; and among them were the dryads.

Creatures that people would see in the haze, or at night, or beings seen when one is lost in the wilderness. Beings that would be passed down as folktales or rumors. Beings of myths.

But then, suddenly, the two dryads froze in place as they sensed a ripple in the air. The lights from their palms vanished, and they looked around — up and down, the sides, then to each other.

“Did you feel that?” one dryad asked.

“Yes… This feeling…”

They were quite familiar with it.

“C-Could it be…?”

“I think it is.”

And thus the two of them beamed with wide and bright smiles. Not only that, they were in tears. They were both overjoyed and relieved. For they knew very well what that ripple was. They sensed it as creatures intertwined with nature, and therefore, they could discern what that ripple was, for it involved the origin of nature itself.

“The Wanderer did it… He brought Her to the fountain!”

“She is finally a goddess, a true goddess!”

The both of them clasped their hands, as if in prayer.

“We rejoice in your rebirth, O Deity of Blood.”

They both said in unison.

***

In the Holy Kingdom of Valaies, the oracle was in her usual chamber, kneeling in her garden. But then she felt the ripple, and her eyes, full shimmering stars, opened. Her mouth was agape. She abruptly stood up in shock and despair.

“No… NO! T-This… this can’t be… How could this be?!” Her hands slid through her hair in frustration and fear.

Her guards of two paladins rushed through the door when they heard her outrage.

“Oracle! What happened?!”

The two of them slowly approached the oracle, surprised and confused by her behavior. There was fear and frustration on her face, it was the first time they saw her this way.

“O-Oracle, was there a revelation from the gods?” one paladin asked nervously.

But the oracle ignored them, they were insignificant to her. Her breathing trembled as she processed what she had just felt.

This kind of ripple, this much presence and power, it could only be caused by a true deity. This was a return. Her hands trembled as she had an idea of what caused this. For there was only one among the true deities that perished that could return at present.

The Deity of Blood! How? Wisteria is currently under siege. How could someone… Then what’s the point of trying to destroy Wisteria now?!

Wisteria was supposed to be destroyed, killing all the royals along with it. It was supposed to be done by the Mystic Race and the Empire. To be rid of the goddess’s lineage for good and stop her Decree, to prevent another Deity of Blood from rising.

During the first siege of the empire on Wisteria’s capital city, it was meant to wipe the royal family. From what the Oracle learned, the queen died, and the princess was missing.

That princess, she was alive all this time? How the hell did she survive?! The Mystic Race, the Empire, even the demons should be after her, and she survived all of them? How is that even possible?!

That princess. For the Holy Kingdom, it was difficult to learn about the princess that Wisteria kept hidden. It took a long time before the Holy Kingdom could get a precise description of the princess, when the Oracle asked for it. The Oracle found it interesting that this princess had the same features as the goddess of blood that she had heard about, but even the queen was reminiscent of the goddess.

At any rate, using the empire to eventually destroy Wisteria was in motion. Plus, with the involvement of the Mystic Race, it should all be guaranteed that Wisteria would be destroyed — as what was desired by the gods. However, the most important one slipped through the net.

This doesn’t make sense. How can that feeble princess survive all the powerful forces after her? How could she even survive those misbegotten islands?!

She should have even died during the Empire’s siege of the capital. It didn’t make sense.

It should be impossible for her to be strong enough to repel all her enemies. Impossible! She should still be human in the end. Dammit! The gods are in a predicament. One Ruler has already fallen, and now the Goddess of Blood has returned?

That damned Observer, why did he act now? If only he hadn’t started conflict with the gods, they would have been more focused on taking care of the goddess’s suspected daughter. Wait… Perhaps that’s the point…? He has been intervening all this time?

The Neverending Observer was a god that could see everything — even the past, present, or future. So it wasn’t hard to imagine that he might have been planning this turn of events since the beginning.

That bastard wants this to happen…?

“Oracle?”

The Oracle hissed in annoyance. “LEAVE!”

The paladins froze for a moment before quickly leaving the room and closing the door.

The Oracle took ‌a deep breath, regaining her calm. “What do I do? I’m only an Oracle, merely listening to the words of the gods.” She looked up. She was never always involved in this matter — the goddess of blood, or the Mystic Race. The command was just suddenly given to her. It was how she had been acting ‌all her time in the Holy Kingdom, just a conveyor of the gods’ words. She was not a schemer. The Holy Kingdom which she presided on was supposed to do nothing, and refuse to help its ally. That was her and the holy kingdom’s role. “… Please respond to me, Father.”

***

In the ocean between the continent and the archipelago, there was a sailing ship. Or, to be precise, it was a galleon-class ship. The wooden hull was armored with hard and light metal, glimmering with a white-bluish tint of the sea. Clinging to the sides were all kinds of seaweed and small pieces of coral. One might think it was an abandoned or decrepit ship when seen from afar.

All the dirty and moss-covered sails were spread out, pushed by the wind, moving through the water at full speed. It bravely sailed through the rough waves. At the front of the ship was a statue of a man with long hair stretching up his hand. His upper body bare, showing his incredible shape that would win all the hearts of women.

The ship’s deck was completely in contrast to the outside appearance; it was clean and basically shining. It was decorated with gold and silver platings that showed elegance and wealth. Humans were working on the deck — if that was even correct to describe them as such anymore. They were sweeping the floor, adjusting the sails, and overlooking the horizon.

They wore the typical sailor’s clothes, a bit ragged and dirty. However, their actual bodies somewhat differed from normal humans. Some of the men, their skins had scales similar to fish. Some had gills on their necks. While others had parts of their bodies mutated, forming shells similar to shrimp or crabs. Lots of them had barnacles stuck to their skin. They looked more like monsters than humans. But in a way, they were rational.

On the quarterdeck stood a man who looked completely normal. He was a handsome man, smiling with all the charm and confidence. He had a perfectly shaped body, with pronounced muscles on the arms and torso. He wore a white shirt and a beautifully made maroon-colored coat. He wore dark brown trousers and similarly colored boots. On his head was a blue and white tricorn hat. Beneath it was his azure hair that reached his neck. His skin was slightly tanned, being often exposed to the sun while sailing at sea. His eyes were the beautiful color of azure, reminiscent of the sea on a clear, sunny day.

He was the captain of the ship. And he took ‌a deep breath as he savored the touch of the wind. It was then that he suddenly felt a wave in the air. For a moment, his eyes changed, showing countless stars swirling around his pupils, which had turned into galaxies. He closed his eyes, and they were back to normal.

He looked around curiously.

“Helmsman! Did you feel that?” He glanced back at the helmsman operating ‌the wheel.

“Nay, Captain!”

“Hmmmm.” He casually leaned on the railing, placing a hand on his chin. “It’s nearby… Only felt something like this when there’s a kin of mine making their presence known.”

“Here, at sea?”

“Nah, not the sea. Something a bit far. And it felt different, unique.” He then stared at the source of the sensation. “Huh, that desolate place. Well, don’t care whatever the hell is going on there. But what happened was interesting. Whoever that was, I hope we’ll get to meet.” He grinned with a hint of arrogance one would see from someone of superior standing.

“Is that a good idea, Captain? Meeting your own kin?”

“Eh, why not.” He shrugged. “Anyway, it’s time to get back. Prepare to submerge, maggots!” He gripped the railing as the ship shook for a moment. “Haha! Let’s go!”

Then the ship tilted forward, gradually diving into the ocean water, submerging the deck and the crew. Completely disappearing from the surface and into the depths.