Chapter 352: The Bag of Treasures
Annalise and Esmeray walked for a short while before they walked out of the dead forest looking to a hill where Annalise found a very familiar scene. She remembered seeing the exact place when Esmeray made her enter the Seelie Realm during their initial encounters. The familiar place in front of her was none other than the Seelie Court which was in ruins.
Her gaze moved away from the hill and landed on an almost transparent ward standing right in front of her, the only thing that had been protecting the Seelie Palace from the dark energy for the past ten thousand years.
"Last time you failed to get past this ward. But I believe you can make it possible this time." Esmeray encouraged her as he too gazed at the ruined Seelie Palace with a look of pure longing and sadness filling his eyes.
Annalise wanted to question if she could really confront the ward and make her way past it but the thing she ended up asking was something completely different - "What if I accidentally destroyed the ward or something?"
Esmeray chuckled at her words before he responded in a teasing tone - "Don’t overestimate yourself. Alright?"
Annalise felt her cheeks warming up in embarrassment but she decided to just stay silent and focus on the important task at hand. Taking in a deep breath to calm her nerves, she stepped forward and placed her palm against the ward that immediately shimmered and became visible but didn’t push her away like the last time.
This helped her to relax slightly more. She concentrated on her powers, searching for their source - light, and found it coming to her summon immediately. A golden energy surrounded her palm and merged into the ward while she whispered the words in her mind - ’Grant me access to this sacred place so that I can create the perfect weapon to fight against our enemy. Grant the access to only me and no one else.’
Despite Esmeray’s belief that she could not take down such a powerful ward, Annalise couldn’t help but worry. That was why she made sure to tell whoever or whatever was keeping the ward intact - to allow only her entry inside the warded place.
The ward listened to her and she felt it giving way to her on her request. She turned to face Esmeray, knowing fully well that he wouldn’t be following her.