The Devil's Cursed Witch

Draven and Ember had arrived at Redcrest city. However, unlike what Draven expected, instead of sorrow of mourning and the bustle of cremation in the main square, there was an air of celebration.

'What's going on here?'

Draven's sharp senses got him the answer and his red eyes looked towards the entrance of the hall in shock.

Ember was too dispirited to take notice of her surroundings, immersed in her own pain while clutching onto that bird whistle tightly in her hand.

Draven took Ember inside the hall, where the people bowed wherever he passed, but spared them not a glance.

He caught the part of Cornelia saying she needed to bring Morpheus back with her.

"Is it true?"

"Yes, Your Majesty. We can save Morph. There is still hope."

Draven didn't know what to feel. His red eyes landed on his friend's body and chaotic emotions burst inside his chest. He covered his face with his hands, but one could see that his hands were trembling.

Ember's reaction was similar to Aureus. She was frozen in place, disbelief on her face, standing by her mate's side like a statue. Cornelia's crying and laughing face turned to her.

"Miss Ember, did you hear me? We can save the Commander."

Tears rolled down her green eyes, her trembling lips moved to form a sentence, "You …are not lying…?"

The red-haired witch shook her head. "I am not lying."

Ember had no words to say, and the next moment, everyone heard the loud sobs of King's mate bawling her heart out, wrapped in his arms, her face buried in his chest. It was happiness she was feeling but she could only cry as it was her only way to express it. Draven embraced her dearly, his own face betraying his own joy.

The entire hall was soon emptied of the crowd. Guests were asked to leave, and only a few others were allowed to stay back, like the clan elders, the witches from Spirit Circle as well asZelda.

Cornelia and others talked about what to do while Aureus and Ember stood next to Morpheus, staring at him and praying in their hearts for him to wake up soon.

As Chief Agraleus approved, his body was moved to Honeyharbor City.

Morpheus was taken to the sacred place of the witches where only high-ranking witches and their apprentices were allowed. It could be considered an inheritance passed among witches with souls as their main expertise, and before the war, this was where Cornelia's master, the former Head of Witches, and her fellow witches studied soul spells. Similar to the Spirit Circle, it was covered by a powerful concealing spell, but the difference was that Cornelia had sole control over who could enter.

Thisplace was aptly named Spirit Shrine.

Situated in a grassland to the east of the witch territory, the Spirit Shrine was a small stone structure with a dome-shaped roof and a one large hall with small side chambers. It was surrounded by the wooden compound wall and when the shapeshifters brought Morpheus' body, they were only allowed till the walls. The rest of the work was handled by warlocks.

The apprentice witches working under Cornelia, Silvia and Thalia, activated the hundreds of ancient runes marked on the floor, the walls and the ceiling. Morpheus' body was then placed on the stone platform in the center of the circular hall with large glass windows.

Those inside could see the outside world, but none from the outside could see nor sense what was happening inside. There was a mysterious energy circulating inside that hall, and those in the know would realize it was not elemental magic from nature, but spiritual power, the energy of the soul.

After Silvia and Thalia left, only Cornelia was left with Morpheus. She lightly brushed his cheek.

"Whatever it takes, I will make sure to bring you back. You have to come back to me, to us, to all who cherished your existence. Hold on there, it won't be long."

Placing her hand over his chest, she confirmed once more the faint presence of his soul within his body. She was hopeful that she would succeed, though she did not know how long it would take. Still, hope existed—and that was what mattered.

Right now, Morpheus was nothing more than a lifeless body, but she believed she could do it. She would stake her lifethe love she had for him in her heart for his revival to succeed.

'And even when you wake up, I will expect nothing in return. All I want is for you to come back to life.' Tears rolled down from her eyes but they were tears of happiness. 'Don't fail me. I know you won't. You are a strong, brave warrior and you will fight your way back.'

Draven had to take Ember back to the palace. No one but the witches were allowed where Morpheus was taken, thus they could only patiently wait for the outcome. He made her sit on the bed and she looked at him with her moist but hopeful eyes.

"He will come back, right?"

Draven caressed her cheek and wiped her tears away. "We need to trust Cornelia. Since she said he can be saved, then she will do anything to bring him back. She is a powerful witch. We can only believe and wait."

Ember nodded and fiddled with the bird whistle in her. "If his soul is still there, that means he can hear this. Then I will blow this whistle again and again and hurt his ears so he won't have any other option but to come to me."

She glanced up at Draven, her large watery eyes fragile with hope.

"...Can I?"

"Do as you feel right."

On the other hand, Aureus flew towards Morpheus' home. The interior of the thatched abode was covered in dust as its owner had never returned for days.

The young eagle started to clean the house.

'When you come back, you will be grateful to be welcomed by a tidy nest, right? I will take care of your home and my mother's cave till you return.' He looked around. 'There is only one bed. I need to add another for me so when he returns, the two of us can stay together. I will make sure this time, the first word you will hear from me is me calling you 'Uncle'.'

A person would only realize the importance of someone when they are gone—Aureus realized this saying too late. He had taken Morpheus' existence for granted, and now, he was given a second chance to rectify his wrong. His decision to return to Megaris began to waver. Maybe, just maybe, it would be better for him to stay in Agartha, to stay with family where he truly belonged.

His mind could not help but plan what he and his uncle would do together once the latter woke up.