"A price?!" Maya echoed in surprise.

'I am the guardian of Primas' will. I cannot relinquish anything I guard here without a bargain. If your friend is so important to you, this price should be insignificant,' Kholasol spoke in her mind, borrowing her father's voice yet stripped of all warmth.

"What are you asking for?"

'A piece of your soul.'

"My soul?!"

Maya felt uneasy. She had never thought a soul was something that could be taken apart.

'Yes, but a piece. A piece that commands the dead. Give it to me, and I will not obstruct you from obtaining what you refer to as a cure.'

Maya hadn't anticipated that the creature would demand something in exchange. He asserted that he was under Primas' command, but it appeared that Anastasia's previous orders could supersede her own.

"Is this the only way I can leave with this?" Maya asked cautiously, suddenly aware of their precarious situation.

Though Kholasol couldn't enter the cavern, he was blocking her only exit. Maya couldn't afford to be foolish now—the dragon could destroy her with but a firmer breath.

The price he requested sounded vague enough.

'A piece that commands the dead?' Maya frowned. 'What does that even mean? I'm not some necromancer—I don't need to command them.'

"How do I hand it over?"

The beast had already made it clear he wasn't permitted to hurt a Prima in any consequential way, or he would be "punished." Therefore, surrendering a piece of her soul should not be harmful.

'It is simple,' the beast straightened out. 'Come closer.'

Maya listened. From her own experience, she knew souls were more of a liquid thing, a tiny fragment missing shouldn't cause much trouble. If it were for her friend, as he said, it was nothing.

The beast's enormous head lowered to Maya's level. She didn't know what it was going to do, but fear began to creep into her mind. For a moment, she felt a faint tingle across the skin of her right arm.

"NO!"

A hand grabbed Maya and tore her away from the dragon.

Startled, Maya almost stumbled to the ground, then saw Anastasia's profile as she fiercely stared the dragon down.

"By the power of Prima Maga, I compel you, Kholasol, great guardian of the underworld—relinquish your demands and yield what she seeks without price."

Maya blinked in surprise at her commanding tone. Anastasia was clearly furious about the bargain she had almost struck.

A wave of relief washed over Maya. 'Thank heavens she was there to overrule her old commands.'

'Your command has been heard, but why do you interfere in the deal between me and the current living Prima?' Kholasol's voice inside Maya's mind seemed to warp slightly, as if it were no longer entirely her father's.

"It's my duty to step in if your shrewd meddling could impair Prima's ability to save the people of this world. Her friend shall pay the price with her death or life. You hold no right to additional demands! And it is not up to you to test her in such a way."

'I shall step down from my demands, Prima. And I shall test her no further.' He bowed down.

"Anastasia?" Maya was shocked at her sudden and firm handling of the beast.

"What were you thinking, Maya?!" Anastasia turned toward her, her face flushed with anger. "Are you ready to surrender your Prima status for the sake of that knavish friend of yours?!"

"I… didn't know," Maya said in a small voice. "I didn't know it would mean giving up on being a Prima…"

"You didn't stop to ask!" Anastasia's voice cracked, her fists clenched at her sides.

Though Anastasia had a point, the dragon clearly regarded them differently. While he seemed to resist Maya's authority at every turn, he yielded to Anastasia immediately. Maya knew she couldn't have proceeded without making the bargain, even if she had tried to demand it boldly.

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"What does it matter? If it means Elena can have a normal life, I am willing to sacrifice even that."

"Even if it meant not being able to speak to Leo or me ever again?"

Maya froze, her chest tightening. The idea hadn't crossed her mind. "I… I'm sorry," Maya said, her gaze dropping.

Anastasia tutted and quickly disappeared. Maya stood alone, clutching the cure in her trembling hand. The dragon remained before her, massive and looming, his enormous form still bowed in submission.

'Prepare your farewells in advance,' he spoke. 'If this doesn't free her from the shackles of darkness, it will certainly claim her life.'

Maya swallowed. "How do I use it?"

'You're the witch. The trivial details are beyond my concern.'

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After the dragon dropped her off, Maya stared at the small crusted bottle in her hand. Anastasia had been furious, and with good reason. Maya had almost made a terrible mistake, yet she couldn't bring herself to regret it entirely. In her heart, she believed that saving the world would be meaningless if her best friend couldn't live freely in it.

"Maya," Anastasia's soft voice interrupted her thoughts. Worry for Maya was evident on her face.

It was blatantly apparent she'd begun neglecting her mission—tearing out book pages and exposing them to harmful temperatures to get limited information, and now this.

"Look, I know I nearly jeopardized the entire mission. I understand. I'm glad you intervened, but I don't know if I'd truly regret it if I had gone through with it."

If Maya were forced to give up her power this way, it would be regrettable, but she would be released from the enormous burden.

"Maya, are you not aware that if you gave it up, the world would truly have no hope."

"I get it. I get it. But… Why do I have to be the one? Isn't this too much for someone like me to handle?"

Anastasia looked at her in long silence, then sighed.

"From what I gather," she began, her voice gentle, "repeated failures from external circumstances have made you quick to accept defeat. But Maya," Anastasia lightly rested her hand on Maya's shoulder, "if you give up, what hope do others have?"

She gave a small, encouraging smile. Anastasia seemed to hold her words close to her heart.

"True, power comes with the loss of freedom, but once you choose to embrace it, you might be astonished at the feats you're capable of."

Maya squeezed her eyes shut. An imposed duty she had readily accepted often felt like an unbearable burden she was destined to fail at.

"I didn't ask for this!"

"Neither have I!" Anastasia exclaimed, causing Maya to blink in shock.

The patient and soft-spoken witch before her bubbled with emotion.

"The same impossible choice was forced upon me by the power I didn't choose. It's either shackles of responsibility, or doing nothing. There is no freedom in either choice."

Anastasia turned away, her voice becoming slightly distant.

"If I choose to do nothing, I'm bound to witness loved ones suffer and perish. If I run, it will haunt me forever. If I fight, who do I fight? When the enemy is so abstract, my attempts would be like throwing darts at the fog." Her gaze met Maya's again. "Tell me, Maya, what was I supposed to do?"

Maya grew silent and looked down.

"You created this world because you didn't want to see others suffer…"

Maya didn't know why this didn't strike her sooner. It was Anastasia's best attempt to prevent the most losses on either side.

"…But you also created suffering."

There was no denying that. Countless people have fallen victim to vampires, and they were brought here by none other than her.

"I have," she affirmed. "Because I failed…" Anastasia turned her gaze away, a haunted look in her eyes. "I'll forever be trapped in regret. And now you're the only one who can right my wrongs," she stated solemnly.

Maya wished to console her, realizing Maya was who she was putting all her hopes in.

"Is that the same thing you want for yourself?" Anastasia suddenly turned, her gaze piercing as she looked back at Maya. "If you don't want some noble reason, do it for yourself." Her tone softened. "Survive, Maya. Fight bitterly, until you can truthfully say you did your best. And then go beyond that."

Anastasia straightened and she reached out, placing a gentle hand on Maya's shoulder. "Maya, you're stronger than you know. You're stronger than I ever was. Just believe in yourself a little bit. You have support in more places than you think."

"Anastasia… If you could take my place, right now, would you be willing to do it?"

"No," her voice was firm. "I would never wish to take your chance away. Maya, do you understand the meaning behind your own words?"

"How can someone like me ever do this?" Maya had accepted this mission, but in reality, it often felt like Elena was the one pushing it forward. Left to her own devices, Maya wouldn't know where to begin.

To Maya's surprise, Anastasia suddenly hugged her. In a tight embrace, she spoke without looking at her. "Have you ever loved someone, Maya?"

"Of course I have. I loved many people… my parents…"

"Have you ever loved someone you regret not telling before it was too late?"

"What?"

While she longed to speak to her parents again, Maya couldn't claim that they had passed away without knowing her love for them.

"Regret is what corrodes you from within. The ones filled with it live the most sorrowful lives. I've always wanted to help them heal, but now I'm the one covered in regrets. You're my family. No matter what, I'll support you every step of the way. So don't live a life full of regrets."

Maya was stunned. Did Anastasia sincerely believe that? Was she considering filling the void left by Maya's parents? It seemed absurd, given she wasn't much older than Maya excluding the time she was dead.

Nevertheless, in Anastasia's embrace, Maya felt her mother's warmth, and in her words, her father's encouragement. She might have clung to the living, but nothing prevented Anastasia from being her family too. After all, she could sense how hard Anastasia was trying, despite her own sporadic presence and incompleteness.

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