Free Web NovelChapter 25: Burning the Memories (1)
After seeing the red moon, everything that happened felt almost like a feverish dream.
The people of the Azuryn Tribe cried for nearly an hour, but once their tears finally dried, they suddenly stood up and began gathering piles of firewood. Soon, they built a huge bonfire in the middle of the settlement.
"What... is happening?" Maeve asked softly, more to herself than anyone else.
She sat alone on top of the large boulder, quietly watching the tribe members continue throwing more wood into the fire until the flames rose high into the night sky. freёwebnovel.com
[Pinky’s Dictionary comes to rescue, Host!]
[Purification Fire Ceremony: Every time a new life comes into the Azuryn Tribe, the tribe lights a massive bonfire and throws one of their precious belongings into the flames as a symbol that they wish to let go of a part of themselves to welcome the new life that had arrived.]
[The brighter the flames burned, the greater the blessing from the Sky Mother was believed to be.]
Maeve blinked slowly while staring at the huge fire in front of her.
"A precious belonging?" she murmured.
Not far away, several tribe members stepped closer to the bonfire one by one. Some threw small handmade ornaments into the flames, while others tossed in old weapons, necklaces made from colorful stones, or pieces of animal fur they clearly treasured.
The moment each item disappeared into the fire, the owner would lower their head briefly, almost as if they were offering a silent prayer.
Maeve could not help feeling slightly stunned while watching them.
Even though this tribe looked primitive in many ways, moments like this made them feel strangely warm and human.
"They’re giving up things that matter to them..." Maeve whispered softly.
[Correct!] Pinky answered proudly. [According to Azuryn belief, the arrival of a child is considered more precious than material belongings.]
The flames continued dancing wildly under the dark sky, painting the entire settlement in warm orange light. Laughter slowly began mixing with the crackling sounds of the fire, replacing the earlier crying.
"Goddess, you should also throw something precious into the bonfire!" one of the tribe members shouted excitedly.
The others immediately agreed.
"Yeah! A mother is supposed to offer something very important to her!"
"But didn’t she arrive here without bringing anything?"
"I don’t think our Goddess even has anything she can throw into the fire."
"Aren’t our leaders the most precious things to her?" someone suddenly asked.
The others instantly stared at him in horror.
"You idiot!" another tribe member yelled. "Do you want our leaders to jump into the fire or something?!"
While the others were still arguing loudly among themselves, Ikarus finally walked over to Maeve with a piece of her modern clothing in his hand.
"This is the only thing you brought with you," he said softly.
Maeve lowered her gaze toward the police uniform in his hands. It had been such a long time since she last wore it, and she had never even gotten the chance to earn a badge.
She no longer had her phone or any of her belongings either. The cartel had taken everything from her before throwing her into the ocean.
"Do you want to throw it into the fire?" Ikarus asked carefully. "But if you don’t want to, that’s fine too. After all, this is the only thing you brought from heaven."
Maeve almost laughed bitterly at those words. What kind of heaven would ever accept a failed police officer like her?
"Well..." Maeve took a deep breath and stayed quiet for a moment, thinking carefully about it.
Getting that uniform had never been easy for her. The academy was harsh, the training was exhausting, and even working in the field had been difficult.
She had struggled through all of it with everything she had, so part of her felt that throwing it away would be a waste.
But then, another question suddenly appeared in her mind.
’Did you ever truly like it?’
The answer came almost immediately. No.
The only reason she chose to become a police officer was because her uncle was a high-ranking officer, and all of his children had followed the same path. Maeve had been afraid that if she chose something different, everyone would see her as a failure.
So in the end, she buried her real dream of becoming a nurse and forced herself into the police academy instead.
Because of that, the uniform did not carry happy memories for her. If anything, it only reminded her of pressure, exhaustion, and the life she never truly wanted.
"I want to burn it," Maeve said at last.
Ikarus was taken aback when he heard her words. "Really? Are you sure?"
Maeve nodded firmly. "I’m sure. Besides, aren’t we supposed to burn something precious to us so we can welcome our future child with sincerity?" Maeve finished softly.
Her fingers tightened slightly around the old uniform before she slowly stood up from the boulder.
The warm light from the bonfire reflected across her face as the people of the Azuryn Tribe quietly watched her. Even the noisy crowd from earlier had suddenly fallen silent.
For a brief moment, Maeve stared at the uniform in her hands.
It carried years of pressure, disappointment, and dreams she had forced herself to abandon. It reminded her of trying so hard to become someone others wanted, while slowly forgetting what she truly wanted for herself.
Then, without hesitating anymore, Maeve stepped closer to the fire and tossed the uniform into the flames.
Whoosh.
The fire instantly swallowed the dark fabric whole.
The tribe members gasped softly before loud cheers suddenly erupted all around the settlement.
"The Goddess has offered her precious belongings!"
"The child will definitely be blessed by the Sky Mother!"
Maeve stared in silence at the burning uniform while the flames danced wildly in front of her.
Strangely enough, instead of sadness, she felt lighter.
It almost felt like she had finally let go of a version of herself that had been hurting for a very long time.
"Brother!" Cerus suddenly shouted from not too far away. "I found something you should throw into the fire too!"
