Thief Of Existence

SEPTEM

The walk to the next door was shorter this time. The hallway that separated the Court of Mercy and Forgiveness from the next court wasn't as long as the other hallways. It only took Arian and Ylis a few minutes to face a smooth glass door. It was transparent but foggy. However, Arian could make up figures walking around in the room. She rattled her head for any ideas on which deity she would have to face next. There were only two of them left, one of which is the God of Honesty. They had met before but she wasn't sure if he still remembered her. But if the other deities who hadn't met her prior that day knew her, then so would he.

Aside from him, there was another deity left. She didn't know who it would be and she couldn't guess as she stared at the glass door. Ylis pushed the door open and Arian was baffled by how the next courtroom looked.

It looked more like an office space than a courtroom. There were specific sections for each fae and their own respective desks and computers. Most of them focused on typing loudly on their keyboards but there were some faes walking around and having coffee with each other. It was really quiet because from time to time, someone would yell about a coffee spill, some undone documents about the stock market, the paperwork unsubmitted on time... it was everything that Arian had watched in business-themed movies as a child. All the faes wore heels and black suits and ties, making the atmosphere more formal than it should be. At the very end of the room was a glass door and windows that separated what appears to be a chief executive officer's office from the rest. Arian could see a woman sporting a brown slicked-back pixie haircut. Her face was skillfully applied with makeup that made her look more like a boss. She wore a white suit paired with white high heels that clicked loudly on the floor as she paced back and forth in a hurry. She looked exactly how a powerful woman Arian had envisioned as a child. She looked intimidating but knowledgeable, which added more to her charm.

The woman sat down in her black office chair and her eyes met Arian's from across the room. The woman squinted her eyes at her then called for a fae wearing a gray suit, talked to her, and pointed at Arian. The fae looked at Arian then nodded at the woman. At this point, the woman opened her mouth in speechlessness then whisked the fae away with her hand. The fae nodded and stepped out of her office, walking towards Arian and Ylis.

Ylis bowed her head, refusing to meet the fae's eyes. The fae stopped in front of them and looked at Ylis for a long time.

"You're still a Fae of Mortal Guidance?" she asked Ylis, a sharp edge to her tone. Ylis bowed her head even more and Arian couldn't help but feel clueless. She didn't know that the fae in front of her was Fuma, the Fae of the Divine Right Hand of Universal Affinity. Fuma and Ylis have been part of the earlier generations of faes and they both started out as Faes of Mortal Guidance. But unlike Ylis, Fuma had climbed up to the fae hierarchy fast and secured a Divine Right Hand position.

This, of course, was a huge source of humiliation to Ylis' part; that she is the last of their generation stuck with the lowest position.

"I'm doing well in this job anyway, Fuma," Ylis mumbled.

"So you're doing well with the lowest rank?"

"This topic is better off unsaid."

"No, it should be said now," Fuma scorned with disgust. "Many new faes are coming and you're still stuck in their level. I heard you didn't do well with your performance in the Sea of Dignus today. Such a shame, Ylis. If only you'd slain the King Arthur Shark as I did, the Goddess of Kindness and Love would have given you an automatic promotion."

Hearing Ylis being insulted left and right was too much for Arian. She stepped in front of Ylis and directly met with Fuma's slanted eyes. "You're here for me, not for Ylis. That's your job," Arian said. Fuma raised a brow at her then stepped back, her fierce expression never faltering.