While Ceilia drives the sleigh, I observe the scenery passing by. The snow-covered trees become greener and leafier as we progress.

The trees look so lovely. Some of them are still covered in snow, but I can see the buds on the branches already. It's not yet spring here, but I know it will be soon. It's only a few weeks to wait, I think. Spring will come soon.

The snow on the ground is pretty, but it would be nice to walk in the grass again.

The roadsides are covered with snow, which is also pretty.

I turn my attention to the fields beside the road. They're full of green pastures, and white bleating sheep. They look so peaceful, there.

 There's also a little cabin in the middle of one of them. Surely, the farmer lives in it during the cold winter months.

I watch as the fields and pastures become more scarce, until all that can be seen are forest beyond the windows. I hear Ceilia say something, but I don't answer. Too entranced by the scenery outside, despite the cold.

 I feel as if I could stay like that forever, just watching the trees pass by.

The only sound in the sleigh is the crunching of the snow and the clopping of the horses' hooves on the ice. The more the sleigh is advancing, the more desolate the scenery transforms.

The woods thin out, and the fields cease to be in any reasonable distance. The forests are replaced by a barren, frozen wasteland.

 I see a fence of sharp, white poles, holding up a perfect row. There's a little shack at the end of it. It looks like it might be a farmhouse.

I turn my attention to the track in front of me. It's starting to get dark, and I can barely make out the rails. It looks cold, too - Ceilia must feel the same way, for she wraps a blanket more tightly around herself.

 The track is starting to curve, and I see a light up ahead.

Ceilia steers the sleigh off the track and I notice a a small forest in distance. There are lights visible within.

"We're here," she says. 

It seems like a place devoid of human civilization and I can't make out any buildings from this distance. It is a marvel that the tracks lead this far, but they must go on through.

Ceilia leaps off the sleigh and I follow her lead.

After getting off the sleigh, Ceilia started walking with a gesture to follow her. I don't know where this mysterious lady is taking me, but since she has freed me from prison in some way that I'm clueless of, I am obliged to follow her. There's something mystic about her.

Steps on the cold snow feels like they are piercing my feet, but if I have any complaints it's in regards to the cold. I'd much prefer the heat of the gym where I sweated profusely. I started to catch up to Ceilia who was now stopping.

She turned to look at me. "We're here." She points to a slightly opening in the trees and I see how far we have come.

 It's a view. You could definitely call it a view of the valley, which is pretty amazing. I could also see the river winding across the land. 

I don't know if this is some sort of dream, but it sure feels like a memory for a moment.

The tree looks almost as if it is swaying in the light wind. I see a small house, but that isn't the most surprising part. 

There is a wide stone staircase that leads up to a much larger castle-like home. The roof is high with towers on the corners. If I had to guess, I would say that this was most likely the home of some royalty.

"It's a beautiful valley." I remark while looking at the sights.

"Indeed. "She says with a small nod. "And I'm sure you must have wondered why I brought you here."

"I was wondering, but I don't think you were answering."

"Yes. I promised to tell you about the quest that I have for you when we reach a certain place."

"I do have a lot of other questions."

"Hold your horses, boy. One at a time. First, let's talk business. You will have to bring back a girl name Vena from the Duke of dark forces."

"Why should I? That wasn’t the deal."

"Yes, that's true. But your soul is ours now. So you will do as we want."

"Tsk!" 

"Well, don't worry. Even if we didn’t have your soul, you'd still want to go there."

"What? Nonsense! Can't you at least talk normal for once. I am so confused. 

Ceilia laughs as if it’s the most evilest laugh ever. "Hahahahhahahahah"

" Well, you are enjoying it, aren't you? Heh!" 

" Alright. Alright." Celia holds her hands up. "Listen. Duke of darkness also kidnapped your sister." 

"What! What the hell!" It’s like I fell from the sky. "You are scamming!"

Ceilia pulls out a newspaper and a poster. 

"Here. Look closely. A girl name Yura Leonheart is missing. Soldiers specific to finding lost people are looking into it."

"You got to be kidding! No way." 

A cold shiver runs down my spine. How come I didn't hear about this before? It's been all over the papers. Of course, I was in prison.

"So, you want to save your sister or not?"

"Yeah... I guess I do. But why it has to be Duke of Darkness? Is this fairy tale such as Duke of Darkness real? Am I being scammed? There could be many other reasons for to be missing!"

Ceilia simply shakes her head. "You are a funny one, aren't you? All right. Listen. We have your soul. You will obey whether you like it or not. YOU must bring back a girl with the name Yura from the Duke of Darkness."

"It's Vena." I remark.

"Shut up and listen! You must bring the girl back with you, unharmed. After that, you shall have your other questions answered. But you must do this first."

"Terrific! It's almost like a normal quest!" I laugh.

Ceilia furrows her eyebrows. 

"Okay. Another thing, though... You keep saying "we" and "us". What do you mean by that?"

Ceilia takes a deep breath before beginning. "The land of Mortos is filled with many mysteries. One of them, is the Secret Organisation 'Myth-Castle'. Yes, it exists. Backed up by the Noble of Merrifile City where you live."

"Right..." I say in doubt.

"The girl named Vena who got kidnapped is the Noble's daughter."

"Why?"

"For royal blood. It’s probably for Duke of Darkness' ritual."

"Then, why my sister?"

" Virgin blood."

My eyes widen like huge berries of realisation. "Oh....now it makes a bit sense! But why did you choose me? Is it because of my sister? How did you know about the necklace?" 

"No more questions! You go up there in the tree castle. I have some preparations to make. Good luck."

"Yes, ma'am!"

-----------------------------

 The stone advances pave the way to a solitary red oak entryway, shrouded in spider webs and flanked on each side by a stone column. 

The chamber is faintly lit by a few lights that swing from the roof. A few things hold the lights set up: bones, heads on pikes, stays of covering and different features from a past time. 

A human skull sits on a table in the focal point of the room, encircled by a circle of candles. Close by is a dark book. 

In the room is a pentagram of chalk. 

A dim red fluid leaking from the pentagram and pooling around the skull. A low murmur of a man issues from the shadows.

"You may pass," the ghostly voice says.

I move past the puddles of blood and dripstones to stand before the table. I look down at the skull. Near it lays a short piece of bone. 

The man steps forth from the shadows. "You've passed the first test," he says.

He is a withered old man. His face holds a skull-like expression, his eyes missing the white, instead being red. His head hangs low as he hobbles around the table towards me.

His body moves stiffly, as if all his joints had been torn apart and sewn back together wrong.

"Give me your hand," he says in a scratchy voice.

I look at him in confusion for a moment. He stares at me, and then it dawns on me. 

"Give me your hand."

I extend my hand and he grabs it, shaking excessively. "Congratulations," he says."You've passed the first test."

The old man suddenly seems to brighten. His face looks almost relieved. "There are three tests," he says, "To see if you're fit to open the stone."

"Open the stone," he says, "and you shall find your destiny."

The old man looks down at the skull and addresses it. "Open up," he says.

The skull turns to me.

"You can't just open it," I say, "It feels like it has power."

"It does," he says, "It has power over you."

The old man looks at me, his little eyes burning into me.

"That power is yours to manipulate," he says, "If you pass these tests, you will become the master of your destiny."

I feel a chill run down my spine.

 The old man looks at me coldly, his eyes burning into my soul.

"Open the stone."

I look at the stone, a perfect gray circle, and for the first time, I notice that there is writing on it. It is in an odd language, one that I do not know. The writing seems to form sentences of its own, some of which make sense, while others appear to be simply random symbols.

I grip the stone, turning it over and over and over. It is light enough for me to handle, but something holds it shut, sealing it from me.

"The book is what holds the stone shut." I move to the table, and notice a book laying there. It is the same writing as the stone, though in a different language, and makes no sense to me.

"What does it mean?" I ask.

"It means what it says: nothing," he says, "Open the book and you will understand everything."

I pick up the book, and move to a table, sitting down at a chair, opening the book. The book has hundreds of pages, filled with strange symbols and markings.

 I flip through a few pages, reading the words and not understanding their meaning.

"The book is powerful. It contains the wisdom of the ages."

The words in the book seem to infect my very soul. I feel my mind grow, my thoughts changing and branching. A power floods into me, a knowledge of life and death and the world around me. My mind explodes with information, and I feel as if I would explode with power.

"The book is powerful," the old man says, "If you read it, you will be powerful."

I look at the book in my hands, and then down at the old man. My mind races with knowledge, understanding more than a human could ever hope to understand. "The book really is powerful."

"Yes! Now you can open the stone." The old man gleefully hops up and down, looking like a child on Christmas morning.

I turn the stone over, and grip it with both hands, trying to turn it open. Using my newly found strength from the book, I manage to open it the tiniest bit, a mere crack, but wide enough for the stone to fall out if I dropped it.

"Now," he says, "Break the stone!"

I grip the stone tightly, and bring it down in an arc as hard as I can. It smacks into the stone floor with a small, though satisfyingly loud, crash. 

"Good work, young one! You chose the right path! I knew the chosen one who could open it would arrive someday. Ceilia! You did an amazing job!"

The old man seems overjoyed, but I'm worried about what's beyond the door that has materialised on the floor.

A magical light from the stone brightens the room, and I can now see that the door has opened up, and a large ladder disappearing down into the darkness of the basement.

"What's down there?" I ask.

"That, young one, is your future."

The ladder leads down into complete darkness, and the magical light disappears as the stone door shuts behind me. 

The old man cackles, a horrible noise that sends a shiver down my spine. "Good luck, hero!"

"Hey!" I shout, "I'm not a hero! I'm a normal lad!"

I feel a wave of nausea hit me, and I almost puke from the pain. Nothing happens for a moment. 

"Now, now. Remember your promise. You must fulfill the quest. As long as we have your soul, you cannot deny this. After-all, this is your destiny, hero! Take it!"

"Tsk! How annoying!" I furrowed my eyebrows.

I stand up, walking over to the door. "Looks like I got no other choice, gramps. Heh." 

"Oooo!" The old man's eyebrows goes up as his eyes becomes big like owls.

I jump when I hear the window shatter, and look around. Nothing but cold, empty darkness surrounds me. 

Then, a bright light appears, growing larger and larger, blinding me. 

I try to cover my eyes, but it's useless. The light continues to grow, and I fall to the ground, rolling around in pain. 

I hear a buzzing in my ears. The world begins to blur, and I feel light-headed. Then, everything goes black.