"Ya, old scum! Someone's here to see ya!" Gurr, the head of jail guards came in with two other men dressed in faded grey vests and old combat boots which resembled a lower position than him each man carried a torch to light the dark tunnel through the jail.         Gurr was referring to the newly admitted prisoner who was now curled in an unsettling sleep inside the cell on a bare, dirty and hard ground.         It was Mon.           But Mon didn't hear anything as he was drowning himself in a deep sleep. He had a rough day yesterday that even the freezing temperature of the jail didn't bother him.         And what prize would it bring him to stay awake? All he could see were dark boring walls of the cave between the small gaps of the cold iron bars that had taken away his right of freedom. And the groans of pain and hunger from his fe

       The sun had risen at its highest peak as the giant ball of fire itself in the floating middle of the vast, clear blue sky.  Everyone had taken shelter under the roofs of their homes to avoid being fried without oil under the sizzling temperature outside. However, the hardworking farmers who bathed on their own sweats only had the guts to battle the intense heat. Some were plowing their fields. Some were mourning about their crops' curling leaves as their usual green color slowly turned into hopeless brown.       But no matter how strikingly bright and hellishly burning outside, the jail remained eternally dark and incomparably freezing. It was like the jail was made of snow.      Mon couldn't take his eyes off the gloomy face of the other prisoners behind him, clinging their pitiful hands unto the cold iron bars of the jail. Their faces were painted with hopelessness and

      As Prince Zaeius wept, something fell in front of him. It was a tiny key chain carved in a black jade stone in the form of an owl of which interestingly resembled like Gowl. There was a pair of glowing blue eyes and a tiny bell on its neck.       He gently picked it up and traced his trembling fingers on its finely carved details. Even though Mon left without saying anything, Prince Zaeius assumed that maybe Mon gave this to him so he would always remember him. But with or without this, Prince Zaeius won't ever forget him.      "Ah! My rebellious son has returned!" The king furiously said. His ears were red, brows furrowed of anger and disappointment.      Prince Zaeius brought his gaze up upon hearing this. Those words were no more surprising to him. He had been used to it ever since. But, however, what surprised was the hideous creature s

       "Your highness, where are we going?" asked the story teller, almost in a whisper as he leaned closer to the prince.        The rest of the soldiers were getting ready to ride on their horses back to the palace.        Prince Zaeius just hissed at him, giving a meaningful look or else he might accidentally gave out his identity without him realizing. "Do you think you'll live if someone might find out?"      'Isn't it obvious that I'm bringing him to the castle? This guy must really have a death wish.'        It's better that he took the story teller with him. Who knows someone from his troops might betray him? At least if that happens, no one would have the guts to threaten the story teller's life.            "But I'm not used to riding hor

     It's been a week since Bek and Meah stayed at the abandoned barn in the middle of Fallen County's boundless forest. And it's been a week since Bek last saw the three of them–Ferlah, Keir, and the prince.      One long week.      One long week since he and Méah struggled from feeding themselves with wild berries and drinking from the collected dews on the leaves of wild taro plants growing from the back of the abandoned barn. So long that they couldn't even remember the taste of meats tenderness and the savoury flavor and the aromatic smell of the freshly cooked rib soup.      No one came back for them. Though Bek didn't feel abandoned neither held a grudge on them. Because he understood.       But now, he decided to get out of this unfortunate place. He wanted to escape from this place to an