Sea of Glass ✔️

Chapter 13 - A Godly Problem

The map of the five Southern islands was curling up at the corners. It was a permanent fixture in my room, decorating the wall for as long as I can remember. Ever since Leopold Kekoa and James Mahoe called for war, I couldn't stop staring at it.

For as long as I've known, the five sister islands were meant to be allies. Aside from the occasional skirmish in history, we've mostly left each other alone while occasionally sharing valuable natural resources. This is largely due to there being a Chosen One on every island, each of them equally powerful enough to silence any conversation about war.

But that changed when Queen Cordelia incorporated Mages into the army. With other magic users fighting with the Chosen One, the godly abilities of that individual could be amplified tenfold. She had seen this happen plenty of times with the Mages on Naixe, secretly recording methods of power fusion under the guise of diplomacy. It was why she was currently embarking on a mission to covertly recruit Mages into the military.

Those plans are in the beginning stages at best. While I admired her ingenuity, it simply wasn't feasible with the people we already had. Power fusion only worked among Mages who had a contract with the same God and there were only a handful signed to Anhel. Chaos Gods were only sought out by the desperate, those who had no choice but to follow the whims of an eternal madman in exchange for power. I never thought of myself as one of them, but these days I wouldn't be so sure. The growing pile of dead rodents in my closet said otherwise.

Myrania was far from ready for war, nowhere near the powerhouse the two men at the dinner thought they were. I glanced at Cinervel, my eyes traveling to Sanviar and Gueroi before finally resting on Orpau. King Cadmus would stamp out our navy before our boats crossed the Glass Sea. Orpau was going to be the most difficult island to conquer if we sent our troops.

I shook my head, banishing the thought. There wasn't going to be a war, not if I could help it. If my new power continued to work, I would control the court's minds.

Words alone weren't enough to influence people to do my bidding. While some people were more open to suggestions, making their minds easy to bend, others were more stubborn and difficult to convince. In those instances, I relied on the chaos potential of the situation. If changing someone's mind was likely to cause mayhem, then the magic could crack the skulls of even the most rigid people.

I discovered that when I was out hunting one day.

A few of the court aristocrats joined me, sons and daughters of the family heads who wanted to ingratiate themselves in my favor. Otherwise, the rest of the band consisted of servants and maids that have waited on me since I was old enough to walk.

Diana and Artem, a couple that had hunted together since they were babies rolling around in the mud, led the way. It's thanks to them that my hunting skills are decent. If I were to get lost in the forest, I like to think that I could survive for a few years off the land because of how thorough they had been in their instruction.

Vera and Dahlia trailed behind, not as enthusiastic as the others. The last time they joined, Dahlia tore a gown and lost a gem from her necklace while Vera closed her eyes, unable to handle the sight of "innocent creatures" being slaughtered. But I insisted they join me this time, both because I left my room for little else and because I wanted to see if my powers could affect them. To my surprise, they both said yes.

"We're giving you one last chance," Dahlia warned. Vera nodded along with her statement, eyes glassy and unfocused. As expected, my power held greater sway over the softer sister.

My nails dug into the back of my neck, scratching at the itch that wouldn't go away. If we didn't find something to kill soon ... No, I couldn't think like that. I was in control.