Chapter 21

The goddess was the supreme entity that was worshiped in the empire of Ardos and a union between a man and woman must be blessed by the eternal, all encompassing mother under all circumstances meaning that even if there was a war at doorsteps a marriage cannot occur if it was not done in the shrine.

Empress mother of Zeyphyr clan- Queen Ciana and noble aristocrats of the empire were summoned by the imperial decree to the holy temple which was situated in the valley of beasts. It was said that the ancient temple was covered with thick lush forests infested by wild creatures and only when Ardos was formed did the temple also emerged.

The monarch and his bride kneeled to the statue of the goddess as the holy priest asked them to take the solemn oath of life and death by slashing their palms and dropping their blood together in a vial that was at the end thrown into the fire that burned with its flames rising so high that it almost touched the ceilings of the arena.

"With the blessings of