Victor and the Seven Circles of Darkness

Chapter 35 - Free at Last

They breathed fresh air while sunrise embraced their body warm. The cracking sound of insects and the twitting of birds combined a good change from the previous whining and shouting of people in the mountain.

Master Tyrus, Victor, and Trobit stood still to gain strength from the ray of the morning sun—recharging, composing, gaining power, decreasing the feeling of sleepiness and tiredness.

"We're free!" Victor cheered. Not only the liberty from Mount Saligia that he's happy about, but foremost the safety of his companions. Although he still have to present Rower to the Boss, at least, they're out from the troubles of the mountain and that's what matters most for him.

"You're a genius!" said Trobit, tapping Rower's shoulder. "You figured it out after all!"

"Yeah, I did!" said Rower with a big smile on his face. "And that's because of you, Trobit. If you didn't ask me the seven holy virtues, I wouldn't have enumerated them one by one. The timing was just perfect that you mentioned out loud the name of the exit gate, otherwise, I wouldn't have thought about the seven deadly sins and the seven holy virtues."

"I wonder why none of us ever mentioned Galatian Gate throughout the quest," said Victor. "It could have been easier for Rower to figure it out."

"Because none of us have ever thought that the name of the exit gate is the answer to the riddle itself," said Master Tyrus. "It's so simple yet we made it so complicated."

"That's true. Rower is the key himself. Did you see how the key came out from his heart? That was awesome!"

"Amazing, isn't it? I didn't feel any pain at all!" Rower rubbed his chest. "There's this kind of warmth in my heart though, some kind of inner joy I can't explain."

Victor himself was amazed seeing Rower radiated like the silver moonlight. This extraordinary moment proved once more that he made the right choice of tagging Trobit in the quest. He's a gem. Through his unusual ways of expressing himself, he was able to provide hints in solving the riddle. He hit the target point right in the middle of the chaos.

"There's still one unfinished business waiting for you both," said Master Tyrus to Victor and Rower. "We don't know how much time left, but we need to hurry home." He brought out a piece of alabaster stone from his coat pocket and pressed his thumb on it. An aura of white began to surround the stone as if accepting and acknowledging his thumb mark, then jets of light burst out from the stone and formed a translucent appearance of the Northern Alabaster Gate.

"We're going home!" said Victor excitedly and jumped into the translucent door. The rest followed.

Queen Magenta welcomed him with a tight hug the moment he came out from the gate. "My son, I'm glad you're safe," she whispered. She burst into tears seeing how Victor lost so much weight. His eyes deep with dark circles around them and his former round face showed prominent cheekbones.

King Godfred hugged him without saying a word. In his heart was a prayer of gratitude to the goddess Sol, who throughout the journey was a protector to them.

"We made it, Father! We're home!"

"I know, son. I'm glad you're back!"

The rest of the companions arrived one by one. Their families were there waiting patiently for them. Tears of joy and laughter, and lots of hugs and kisses welcomed them.

King Godfred approached Master Tyrus and put his hands on his shoulders. "Thank you for keeping everyone safe."

Master Tyrus in his humble way acknowledged King Godfred's gesture and bowed to him. "Our safety didn't rely solely on me, Your Majesty. It's the collective effort and determination of everyone that made us survive the quest."