Chapter 49: Goodbye, Grandpa
Maeve only looked for a second, but it was enough for her to notice the obvious bulge beneath the cloth wrapped around Cerus’s lower body. The same seemed to be true for Axan, who had been standing behind him the whole time.
Axan quickly covered part of his face, likely trying to hide the redness creeping across his cheeks. He turned slightly to the side, yet his eyes still drifted toward Maeve every now and then.
"It was necessary," Maeve said, her face burning with embarrassment. Without thinking much, she grabbed her clothes and hurriedly wrapped them around herself.
Axan cleared his throat before speaking. Even then, he made sure to keep his gaze respectful. "How do you feel now?" he asked.
Maeve took a moment to calm herself. Once the guilt and embarrassment settled down, she finally focused on her body and the changes she could feel.
The pain that had been tearing through her earlier was completely gone.
Not only that, but her body felt strangely light, as if a heavy weight had been lifted from her shoulders.
There was still a faint feeling of nausea lingering in her stomach, but it was nowhere near as bad as before. Somehow, Maeve was certain it would disappear with time.
She was about to say something, but her stomach spoke first. A loud growl echoed through the stone chamber, filling the silence.
Takra was the first to laugh. "Oh, my," he said with amusement. "The living really do have the better life. You can still eat whenever you want."
"Grandpa, we can’t eat whenever we want," Cerus replied. He let out a long sigh and looked at Takra with a dry smile. "Our world is dying."
Takra clicked his tongue and shook his head. "Poor children." His expression softened. "Back in my golden age, I could catch fifty wild boars in a single day and hold a feast every night."
Cerus simply stared at him. It felt like Takra was telling them stories about heaven while they were stuck living in hell.
After a brief pause, Takra spoke again. "But you must leave now."
The smile on his face faded. "We have used a great deal of Aether Energy to ease your pain, my child. Not only our own energy, but the energy stored within this place as well. Because of that, this tomb will soon seal itself and return to hibernation."
CRACK! CRACK!
The sound of stone splitting suddenly echoed around them.
Takra blinked. "Oh. I think it’s happening now."
Cerus’s eyes widened instantly. "You should’ve told us sooner!" He spun around and looked at Maeve. "Wife, we need to go. Right now!"
If they were even a minute too late, they could end up trapped inside the secret tomb for hundreds—or even thousands—of years.
And honestly? Maeve would probably become a permanent resident of this tomb if that happened.
Not far away, Ikarus suddenly lowered himself into a deep bow. He bent so far forward that it looked as though he wanted to place his forehead against the floor.
"Leader Takra," he said softly, "I want to offer my deepest gratitude for saving my mate. Without you, we may not have been able to continue our lives."
Takra let out a tired sigh. "Why are you still calling me—"
"Just let me call you that one last time," Ikarus interrupted gently. "You may no longer hold that title officially, but in our hearts, you will always be remembered as our greatest leader."
His voice grew softer. "And I will do my best to become more like you."
Around them, the cracking sounds became louder and louder. Far in the distance, the stone door slowly began to slide open.
Cerus looked ready to run, but he refused to leave first. He stayed where he was, waiting for Ikarus to move as well.
"Don’t be like me, son." His gentle voice echoed through the chamber.
His eyes remained fixed on Ikarus. "You and your brothers must become the best versions of yourselves. Every leader has their own path to walk."
A small smile appeared on his face. "You don’t need to follow mine. Create your own story instead."
"Brother! We have to go now!" Cerus shouted, panic clear in his voice. "Or we’ll end up buried here too!"
His words snapped Ikarus back to his senses. Without wasting another second, he quickly lifted Maeve into his arms.
Before leaving, however, he and his brothers turned back one last time. Their eyes met Takra’s and the other ancestors’, filled with gratitude that words could barely express.
"May the Sky Mother help us," they said together.
Takra smiled warmly. "She will," he said. "You only need to keep believing in her."
A moment later, they finally rushed out of the chamber. But none of them slowed down. They kept running through the sacred tomb until they were completely outside.
Looking over Ikarus’s shoulder, Maeve glanced back and noticed that the statue of Sakar seemed to be smiling.
It was creepy, but for the God of Protection to smile, perhaps it was a good sign.
CRACK!
The moment they jumped out of the tomb, a mass of stones collapsed from the ceiling of the stone corridor, replacing the doorway that Cerus had broken earlier.
"Aaaa! We made it!" Cerus shouted. He threw himself onto the ground and gasped for breath. It was such a rare sight that Maeve almost stared.
Cerus was usually overflowing with energy, yet even he looked exhausted now.
"I seriously thought we weren’t going to get out," he said.
Axan looked at the blocked entrance. "Our ancestors were probably trying to slow the collapse," he said. "Otherwise, all their efforts would have been for nothing."
The tomb was not only buried beneath rubble, but it was also sealed by ancient magic. It would remain closed until the Aether Energy inside slowly recovered, which also meant that the souls of their ancestors would remain trapped there, waiting for future generations to restore the world.
"Yeah," Ikarus murmured softly. "They really did save us."
He carefully set Maeve back on her feet before helping her put her clothes on properly.
"What a pity..." Maeve said softly. Her eyes stayed fixed on the sealed entrance. "We probably won’t be able to meet Grandpa Takra again."
Restoring the world—especially a forest that had already withered and dried up—would take an incredibly long time.
It might take centuries before it became green and full of life again.
Unfortunately, Maeve didn’t have that kind of time. Honestly, she would be lucky if she even lived for a hundred years.
"Don’t worry, we will," Ikarus reassured her. He knelt in front of her and gently rubbed her arms a few times.
"But even if we can’t see them again, a part of them is still with you now," he said softly. "Their blood, their strength, and their blessings are flowing through your body."
Maeve nodded. "You actually have a point." A small smile appeared on her face. "Besides that—"
GROWWL!!!
Her stomach finally gave up on being patient. The loud growl echoed through the area, sounding even louder than before.
For a moment, everything went into silence. Maeve froze in her place, and then her face turned bright red in a second.
Honestly, she wanted nothing more than to dig a hole and bury herself inside it.
"..."
"..."
"..."
Cerus was the first to break. He burst out laughing so hard that he nearly rolled across the ground. "Wife!" he wheezed between laughs. "I think your stomach is trying to eat us!"
"Cerus," Ikarus said with a sigh, "why don’t you go catch something for our wife instead?"
The moment Cerus noticed how embarrassed Maeve looked, his laughter died instantly. Maeve had both hands over her face now, clearly wishing she could disappear on the spot, and the sight made him feel guilty.
"Ahem." Cerus cleared his throat and pretended to cough a few times. "Sorry about that."
He quickly jumped to his feet. "I’ll catch lots of prey for you."
"Good," Ikarus replied with a soft snort. "We’ll be spending the night here, so I’ll look for some firewood. Axan, stay with our mate."
Axan nodded without hesitation. A few moments later, he guided Maeve to a place farther away from the tomb. After everything that had happened today, none of them wanted to be anywhere near it.
Only after they sat down did Maeve finally lower her hands from her face. As she looked around, she realized the sky had already grown dark.
Night had fallen while they were inside the tomb and the dried-up riverbed stretched endlessly around them, silent and empty.
For some reason, it felt far more unsettling at night.
There were no sounds of flowing water, no insects, and no animals.
There was only a deep, uncomfortable silence.
Without realizing it, Maeve moved a little closer and wrapped both hands around Axan’s arm.
"It’s alright," Axan reassured her. "There’s nothing—"
KWAKK!
Axan looked upright and said, "I guess we have our dinner here."
