The Forsaken Hero

I tentatively nodded, butterflies fluttering in my stomach. A question? Were they finally going to bring up Haven?

Evla smiled, relaxing in her chair. "So, how exactly did you claim the title of Oracle of Eternity?"

"What?" I tilted my head, completely caught off guard by the unexpected topic.

"I’ll admit," she said, mistaking my relief for confusion, "the first time Luke mentioned it, I laughed. It sounded so pretentious. But then your visions actually came true."

I blushed, rubbing my horn in embarrassment. "It was an accident, actually. The Oracle of Eternity is the name of one of my abilities, and after I lost my title as a hero, it just sort of stuck. I’ve tried to get people to stop, but they just ignore me. I can’t even get them to stop calling me ’my Lady.’ I’m just not that special."

"That’s not true," Luke muttered.

"No, I get that," Constance said from across the table. His voice startled me, and I looked up, surprised he had been listening. He hadn’t seemed to care much about me after his introduction. "Titles can be so boring and overbearing. If the nobles didn’t get worshiped their whole lives, I bet they’d feel uncomfortable too."

"Oh, come on, what’s wrong with a cool title here and there?" Jessia asked, tossing her hair.

Edrin narrowed his eyes on her. "Not everyone likes to pretend they’re royalty, Jessia."

"I’m not pretending," she retorted with a sniff. "Royalty only has power because people think they’re better than them. If I can convince them the same is true for me, it’s no less authentic than any king’s."

"And the stealing faces?" the Wind Apostle returned.