"Isla, the Goddess of the West. She is still worshipped in Eldoran today. The Eldorans are skilled sailors, and as you know, their country is made up mostly of islands. Because of that, she is regarded there not as the Goddess of the West, but as the Goddess of the Sea. She is believed to protect sailors and is also associated with prosperity, since many people make their living from fishing."
"Then there is Seyra, the Goddess of the Distant Seas, sometimes called the Goddess of the Unknown Seas. The western shores of Eldoran open onto the Great Ocean, and for centuries the storms and currents arriving from those waters have brought hardship and destruction. As a result, Seyra came to be associated with wildness and calamity. So she is the opposite everything that Isla represents. In other words, if Isla is white, Seyra is black. Because of that Eldoran people still don't like her. But, of course, there is also this ancient legend—one of the reasons behind the hatred for Seyra."
"According to the legend, Isla was once travelling between the Eldoran Islands—or, as they are called in this text, the Shattered Fate Islands—when she was caught in a sudden storm. She ended up on an island in the middle of the ocean. Exhausted, she planned to leave after resting for a while, but this was Seyra's island. In fact, it was Seyra who had summoned the storm to draw her there. She had become curious about the goddess renowned for her beauty and kindness and wanted to see her with her own eyes."
As she explained this, she pulled a book from the bookshelf behind her. After flipping through the pages for a moment, she stopped at a certain page and placed the book on the table so Mes and Arsh could see it. There was an illustration of two women. More accurately, though both looked human, one had wings and the other had a fish-like tail. In the illustration, one from the sea and the other from the sky looked as though they were trying to reach each other, but were unable to do so.
"Even though Seyra had done this out of pure curiosity, she fell in love with Isla the moment she saw her. At first, Isla merely welcomed the adoration of this goddess, but soon, she too began to fall in love. They began to meet frequently... However, even though she didn't intend to, Seyra was a very powerful. Whenever she became carried away by her emotions and lost control of her power, the creatures of the distant seas, along with storms and currents, would follow in her wake whenever she came to see Isla. Similarly, Isla, intoxicated by love, acted just as irresponsibly."
"Blaming Seyra for the sudden storms, the people cursed her and prayed to the other gods to drive her away from the islands. The gods never answered their pleas. Instead, something known only as the Darkness answered them. However, when it confronted Seyra, Isla intervened, leaving the goddess gravely wounded and lost her body."
"Driven by grief, Seyra wanted to destroy the Western lands, but she couldn't bring herself to harm the place Isla had protected. Instead, she retreated to the distant seas to find a way to restore Isla's body."
"As for what is mentioned here, it is also a part of the legend. It is said that Seyra left a gift for her on one of the islands where the goddesses used to meet frequently. She even left behind creatures called worms as the guardians of this gift. But here it says the gift was something that could lift the curse. 'It was a miracle she sought, one capable of breaking the curse of the Darkness.'"
"This Darkness..." Arsh said. "What is known about it?"
"Unfortunately, there are only one or two legend where its name is mentioned. But other than that, there is no information at all," Mrs. Burton said.
"Well, does it say here where the gift is?" Arsh asked eagerly.
Neither Mes nor Mrs. Burton could make sense of why Arsh was so curious about this. Still, Mrs. Burton reviewed the notebook once more to answer his question.
"Interesting… Normally, the three islands most commonly mentioned in the legend are Syr, Sando, and Apan. In fact, these places are often visited by treasure hunters. They are frequented by those who believe the so-called 'gift' is some kind of treasure... But the name written here is Phyrin… know it is known is Pirene Island."
"Pyrene," Arsh repeated. "Thank you, Mrs. Burton," he said sincerely.
Still unable to understand the reason behind his sudden interest, Mrs. Burton replied, "You're welcome," her tone laced with curiosity as she wondered what he is curious about, but Arsh was already lost in his own thoughts.
...
The journey back home was unusually quiet. Mes kept glancing at Arsh from time to time, but he couldn't understand what had him so deep in thought. He tried starting a conversation a few times, but Arsh was too lost in his thoughts to even hear what he was saying.
When they were got close to the mansion, he suddenly raised his head and looked straight into Mes's eyes, causing him to flinch.
"Is something wrong?" Mes asked, worried. Arsh had been acting strange all day.
"I'm going to Pirene," Arsh declared suddenly.
"Pirene? Why? Where did that come from?" Mes had no idea why he was so fixated on it.
"I'll explain soon," Arsh said.
When they arrived, he ran straight to Professor Reiner's study in the library. Mes followed close behind, and Juan—who saw them coming—joined as well.
"Professor Reiner, I think I've found something that can save Ezra," Arsh said confidently.
"How?" Professor Reiner replied, removing his glasses and rising from his desk.
Mes looked at Arsh with curiosity, while Juan stood a little further back, trying to make sense of what was going on.
Arsh told them about the legend Mrs. Burton had explained, and the Pirene Island mentioned in the notebook. Before this, he had tried using his siunis countless times to find a way to save Ezra, but he had never achieved anything.
"But today, after Pirene was mentioned, I felt it," he said excitedly.
"Even though the golden threads aren't showing me a path right now, I know that whatever I need to save Ezra, I will find it there," he added. He was trying his best to sound confident.
A silence followed for a moment as no one spoke.
"I trust your judgment. Your siuni helps you find things, so this could be an instinct tied to it. I won't stop you from going. But whatever you intend to find there, set out immediately—I don't think we have much time," Professor Reiner said.
"...How much time he has?"
"A week... at most," Reiner said sadly.
"Don't worry. I'll be back before then," Arsh said.
In truth, he wasn't sure. It wasn't an instinct, and his siunis wasn't helpful at all. He was merely relying on blind faith, believing what the girl had told him.
"The Fang of Darkness... the thing that put your friend in that state," the girl had said while listening to Mrs. Burton at her house. "You will find what you are looking for there."