Chapter 37 37: Favor To Ask - Part 1

“It is an honor to have the oracle in the halls of our esteemed guild once again. Long have our ancestors waited for this opportunity and I am honoured to be the one to finally experience it. Suna, the ruins. Put them up” the elder man spoke those words while not breaking his bow.

Maria felt awkward to be forced to endure this treatment. She had long since gotten used to the respect her title demanded of her but she had never felt comfortable to be bowed to.

Especially when the bower was someone so much older than her. It almost made her feel guilty.

“Oh no. The pleasure is all mine. Ah, I mean, may the guidance of the almighty be with you and allow you to look up at him with benevolence” Maria bit back a curse as she almost butchered her vows.

Thankfully, she managed to recover in time and finish them. She did not want to be killed by Nao for almost causing a faux-pass because of her lack of attention. She ignored the surprised whisper of ‘I knew she was the oracle’ from Suna and faced the elder man.

“Kindly take a seat so that we can discuss further what you need us to do for you. Lady Mei worded it as an emergency” The elder man sat down on the sofa and gestured for Maria to sit as well.

It was a single-seater sofa arrangement with a table in between. It was perfect for one-on-one talk but made it awkward for the three females in front of them.

Nao passed Maria a look that said - ‘you take it. I will keep guard’ and Maria had no way to protest with that. Maria took the seat being offered to her in an almost-foul mood.

Maria quickly glanced toward Suna but the other female seemed to be watching her as well and quickly shook her head at Maria’s look.

“I’m alright. I would rather keep guard as well” Maria just nodded at Suna’s words and finally aimed her attention at the elder man in front of him.

“Lady Mei is not wrong to consider the current situation as an emergency. As you know, we are headed toward a demonic war which would be rather tragedic. As the oracle, I aim to prevent this way at all cost and that is why I am undertaking this journey” Maria explained in the simplest of words.

Her brain reminded her of the fact that she had been strong-armed into her role and Maria shushed it with a harsh me entail lid. The less she think about her decision, the more certain she would be about them.

Second-guessing herself at this point would not be ideal. It would just want to make her go home faster.

“I see. So, what do you need my help with?” the elder man asked as he picked up the teapot in front of him.

Maria extended her cup toward the elder to allow him to pour her tea but she was not foolish enough to drink it.

Accepting tea from the elderly was a custom Maria had to uphold as the oracle but that did not mean she should not still be cautious about her situation.

“Since we are short on time, I won’t beat around the bush and insult your intelligence. I need a way to be able to reach Grand Canyon at the earliest. The city is under lockdown so I cannot avail of that option. Do you have any other alternative to offer me? Of course, compensation would be offered by my side” Maria bargained and saw the interest in the old man’s eyes.

She already had guessed what the old man needed to hear from her because of her system’s profile.

[Character name: Su Meng. Leader of Simon’s court and also the adopted father of Su Suna. A minor first villain that forced Su Suna to spy on the protagonist’s party but was betrayed in the end.

He died at the hands of an unnamed demon pretty early in the novel. However, he did let Suna escape the same fate due to his mission for her.

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His last dying words - ‘Curse that man. Why did he have to come and not the oracle? She would have at least been useful to me’

Favorite food-]

Maria stopped reading at that and chose to observe the man in front of her. The guild leader looked old and worried but the deception he had been known for was not present in his gaze.

“As it happens, there is one team that is about to leave for Grand Canyon in a few hours. I will introduce you to them at one condition” Maria nodded her head to tell the other that he should continue his words.

The elder seemed to be gathering his courage before he opened his mouth to ask his request.

“I request for you to take Suna with you on this journey. She is not safe here, nor does she have friends to help her out. Maybe this journey is what she needs to get out of her shell” the elder requested even as he heard protests from his daughter.

At that moment, he did not look like a villain, much less dangerous. He just looked like a father out to secure a good future for his daughter. He also looked like someone who knew something everyone else did not.

Maria hesitated to answer him but a ‘beep’ in her head caused her to freeze and look up directly at him.

[Initiating future vision. The actual result of the visions may change depending on the actions taken in the past]

It was all breaking apart, the very structure seemed to be uprooted with magic and Maria watched as the ceiling collapsed.

There were bodies around her, many dead and even more injured and suffering. There was no end to the agony they felt except death itself but there was no end in sight.

Maria watched as the fragile but dead body of the elder in front of her was being picked up by Suna with a dead expression on her face. It was far too blank and filled with anger toward an unknown figure.

“It is his fault that he refused to tell me where the oracle is. Nothing good can come from opposing the throne” Maria watched as Suna’s face exploded into fury and she threw her body toward princess Neah.

Princess Neah just stood her ground with a smiling face but her eyes looked death warmed over. Maria had never seen the other like that before and the vision in front of her scared him.

“YOU! IT’S ALL YOUR FAULT” Suna’s voice echoed all around the space and it shook Maria with its intensity.

Suna’s sword stopped inches away from Princess Neah by another one and Maria watched a familiar figure step in front of Princess Neah.

“Oh, by the way. I was not the one who made all this mess but my friend here” It was Howl that stood in front of Maria with a blank expression on her face.

[Third chapter today. We're approaching DRAMA. Leave a comment if you can]