At the crack of dawn, a woman emerged from the river, having spent half a day and an entire night submerged. Her drenched form made its way onto the riverbank, leaving trails of water in its wake.
Closing her eyes, she uttered a magic spell. In an instant, her drenched clothes and hair transformed, becoming dry and immaculate, leaving no trace of water upon her. Her appearance now refined, befitting her role as the Queen of Witches, she traversed the dandelion field in silence until the sun had fully risen, then quietly vanished from sight.
Arriving at the palace, her presence did not escape the notice of Draven and Sierra, who sensed her immediately. Draven chose not to rush to her side, opting instead to wait for her to approach at her own pace.
Evanthe entered Sierra's chamber to find her standing motionless by the window. "Have you been like this all night?" Evanthe inquired, knowing Sierra's habits well.
Sierra turned to face her. "Are you alright?"
"I am. But please, take a seat. My knees ache at the sight of you standing like that."
Sierra, noticing her friend's return to her usual self, remarked, "Indeed. I mustn't forget that my body is no longer that of a deity, but of an old witch," as she walked over to Evanthe. "Apologies..."
"Let's not dwell on it," Evanthe interjected. "Let's indulge in something delightful to soothe both body and mind, and then we can return to the task at hand."
Sierra nodded in agreement, and the two exited the chamber, only to encounter Erlos approaching them. He greeted them and relayed, "Sire awaits you for a meal together."
Following Erlos to the dining room, Evanthe glanced at Draven. "I hope the food is delicious. If not, I might have to put you to work in the kitchen to cook for me again."
Draven simply nodded in response. "Understood."
"Has this stubborn dragon learned obedience?" Evanthe raised a brow, turning to Ember, "You seem to have tamed him quite well."
Ember replied with a smile, "I did my best."
Draven chose silence, allowing the women to chat.
After the meal, they retired to the study, where Evanthe and Sierra delved into scrying Ember's body to comprehend the state of her energy core.
"What are your thoughts?" Draven inquired of Evanthe, knowing her expertise lay in soul and core reading.
"Now that we have the answer, we can provide Ember with what she's missing," Draven suggested. "We may need to bring your daughter here."
"It's futile," Evanthe interjected. "Firstly, we don't know how to extract that hellfire from Seren now that it's ingrained in her core. Secondly, even if we manage to extract it, Ember's body won't be able to handle it. Her human form lacks any cultivation of divine energy. Infusing hellfire back into her core would only destroy her body, The mate bond with you can only offer limited protection.
If her core was of an ordinary supernatural from mortal world, the bond might have worked, but in her case, it's insufficient."
"With an incomplete core, she is also a danger," Draven commented, having witnessed Ember's struggles firsthand.
This time, Sierra spoke up. "Draven, you can assist her body in enhancing its divine power cultivation by sharing your essence with her. As her mate, your connection will facilitate this process. Do you understand what I mean?"
Draven hummed. "Until recently, I had never used it. I have only been aware of my dark attributes and using it."
"As I said before, I am not aware how you got the darkness attribute and became a Dragon. But it seems like this darkness has suppressed your divine energy entirely so that you can't use it easily. But recently you have used it, which means you can use it again. Ember's body doesn't need your darkness as she doesn't possess the attribute of darkness, but she needs your divine power essence.
For the time being, it can help her body stabilize until we find another permanent way."
"I will give it a try."
"We have to take everything step by step," Evanthe spoke, "For now, I will go visit Cornelia and then Morph. Need to wake up that annoying eagle soon."
Draven nodded, and both Evanthe and Sierra vanished from the room.
Ember, who had been quietly processing their conversation, finally turned to Draven for clarification. "You're going to share your divine power with me?"
Draven met her gaze. "Yes."
"How?"
"A pair of mates can assist each other in cultivating their power, with the stronger one passing it to the weaker one. This can be achieved through physical intimacy," he explained matter-of-factly.
Ember cleared her throat awkwardly, feeling a bit flustered. "Understood."