'No! No! No! This can't be happening!!' she internally screamed.

Everything was her fault. She gave in to temptation and had to suffer for it.

– A few hours ago –

The sun shone bright in the sky, and spring had finally arrived. Last night's drizzling had caused all the dust – which had been brought with the spring breeze – to be washed away. Even the leaves that grew in the trees had an appearance of renewal. While the temperature was cooler than usual, nature was still full of vitality and vibrant colors.

Veronica had been meaning to sneak out for a while. After seeing her few brothers and sisters sneaking out on the weekend, of course a flame ignited within her, luring her to do the same.

Every Monday night, she would hear the stories of their adventures:

"Ver, you have no idea how bustling the square is at night! Street musicians play music and couples dance. It's so wonderful."

"Ver, I wish you could eat the street snacks they sell. It's cheap and delicious. You have to eat it when it's hot. I'll save some money and buy it for you next time."Each story she heard urged her to go outside. Each story she heard urged her to have an adventure. Each story she heard urged her to be free.

Since it was Veronica's eighteenth birthday, she thought that even if she snuck out and got caught, she would be forgiven; after all, it was her special day. Her heart's beating syncopated as she grew more eager to visit the town for the first time in her life.

Veronica wore a white full-sleeved cotton top with a brown corset, and a grey skirt. She covered her head with a white scarf. She felt her blood boiling with excitement, even though she was wearing second-hand worn-out clothes. Regardless of what she decided to wear, playing dress-up was more fun than she had imagined it to be.

As the birds welcomed the new day with their melodious chirps, Veronica stealthily sauntered along the corridor. Her footsteps were lighter than feathers – inaudible, as she was barefooted. Her shoes were gripped in her hand; it was the strategy she had come up with so that she wouldn't wake others when she walked. Yet her heart thumped – thumped unhinged. Thumping as she thought someone could catch her at any moment.

Without being noticed by others, Veronica crept to the storeroom beside the kitchen. She carefully closed the door after looking around for a while. When she was confident that no one was watching her, she let out a sigh of relief.

'It looks like Goddess Juvena is on my side today. Haha – thank you Goddess Juvena!' Veronica thanked the Goddess happily. After that, she opened the back door of the storeroom and fled using that door.

Soon, Veronica found herself in the back alley. Silence had consumed sound, and the only faint noise she could hear was her own breathing. It was a sign that no one had woken up yet.

'Did I come out too early…?' Veronica pondered with a thoughtful face. Fortunately, she wasn't hungry yet and was fueled with energy to move on. While the town was still asleep, only the mellow songs of the birds accompanied her. The whole town was swathed by serenity.

Veronica took out a small piece of paper which was folded into a square. On it was a map of the town and surrounding areas drawn by an amateur. Veronica brought the map close to her and squinted her eyes, trying to figure out what the drawings depicted. 'Hmm… it says "north"… then north is…' Thinking deeply, she looked up to the sun which was rising in the east. 'If that is east, then north is on my right. I'll go in the opposite direction… towards the south!'

Veronica folded the paper and hastily put it back inside her pocket. As she wandered through the street, she was curiously glancing at her surroundings. She had seen this scenery from inside her building many times, but never had the chance to actually be there. Her biggest dreams had manifested with every footstep she took.

As her venture continued, Veronica was soon standing in the town square, realizing that it was the town's biggest market. Even still, the early morning's emptiness amplified the market's size, and the usual crowd Veronica usually could see wasn't there. The isolation made her heart a bit blue.

Yet, keen Veronica tried to keep her spirits high. She hummed a song she heard a long time ago. As her hums traveled through the gentle breeze, Veronica felt like the queen of this dormant town. With no eyes nor ears spying on her, this humming queen believed that she could do anything without asking for permission.

Feeling captivated by this freedom, Veronica strolled the quiet town and found herself striding towards the direction of a lake. She had heard that this particular lake would look breathtaking in the early morning. With the morning still rathe, Veronica knew this may be her only opportunity to see this view with her own eyes.

She decided that she would return to the town when it was to be wide awake. That way, Veronica could take in the hustle-bustle of the town as she pleased.

'It's good that I have the whole day free. I'll just return after I have breakfast in the town,' she decided gleefully.

Veronica had to pass through a narrow alley between four abandoned houses to reach the muddy road of the woods. Although the road was muddy because of the drizzling rain last night, the tall trees which were towered the woods kept the woodland path dry.

It was said that it would take a person fifteen minutes to reach the lake when using this route.

Veronica felt a wave of excitement rush through her. She walked briskly while inhaling the smell of wet mud. Before she realized, she reached her destination in only ten minutes.

Oh, my goodness!' she exclaimed in amazement. Veronica's eyes sparkled and were glued onto the lake which lay before her. The lake view was truly breathtaking, and it felt as though time had stopped her breathing's usual rhythms. No verbal narrative could equal the visible beauty of this ethereal lake.

The lake water was dyed a light blue, capturing the clear blue sky in the heavens above. Surrounding the lake were the clustered trees of the wood, whose reflection was as fine as a mirror.

Since it was early morning, a light fog hovered above the lake, and the temperature was certainly more chilly than the warmth of the town. Veronica felt a shiver run through her bones as the cold breeze blew across her. Trying to keep in her body heat, Veronica hugged herself and rubbed her arms with both hands.

The ground surrounding her was covered in green grass which was soft to her touch as she sat down on it. As she succumbed to the grass beneath her, Veronica was again enthralled by the waters in front of her. The smell of dirt, the green grass, the songs of birds, the spring breeze – they were a natural sedative. Indeed, Veronica was convinced that she was living in her own fairytale.

Veronica wondered if she should stay here for hours, without a care about when she had to return to her room. It was her one wish to stay here forever.

But reality had suddenly dragged her out of her trance. Her tranquil isolation had ceased. A man had come out of the lake. Completely naked.

______________________________

Veronica wasn't ready to see this. Her heart wasn't prepared to behold such a scene.

In the middle of the lake, the naked man with slightly tanned skin stood up as water splashed everywhere. A few locks of his black hair were stuck to his face. Water dripped from his wet hair that almost covered his eyes. His sharp golden pupils shimmered dangerously. Droplets of water rolled down on his toned chest. In the morning light, the water drops sparkled like gems.

Holding her breath, Veronica stared at the man in front of her. Her eyes trailed down without thinking anything in particular. It was her first time seeing a man's naked body. The lower her eyes went, the faster her heart thumped. Toward the end, her gaze trailed past his abdomen and before she could control herself, her innocent eyes fell on THAT.

Veronica's emerald orbs almost popped out of her sockets at the sight. She couldn't breathe. She opened her mouth, sucked in a long breath of oxygen, and then screamed.

"Aaahh!"

Just like that, the peace of the beautiful morning shattered and it woke up all the birds and animals in the woods.

Veronica couldn't remember how she came back after that unprecedented encounter. Forget about exploring the town, she couldn't even remember that her birthday passed by while she was busy praying in the temple.

She came back, changed her clothes, and went to the temple to pray. She needed to ask for forgiveness as she broke the rules and went out. She was disobedient and that's why she was punished. Goddess Juvena must be angry. Or else why would she have to see such a sinful scene? She would rather lose her eyes.

As she kept praying, the vision of that unknown naked man continued flashing in her head. And then, she recalled THAT.

'No! No! No! This can't be happening!!' she internally screamed. She couldn't understand how she could be shameless enough to think about it.

'I have to concentrate on atoning my sins. I shouldn't choose the devil's path.' After forcefully reconstructing her determination, she shut her eyes and clasped her hands close to her chest.

The moment she started reciting the mantra to cleanse her soul, she envisioned that stark naked man once again.

"Ahhh!!" she shouted.

Two young priests were walking outside the prayer room. Upon hearing a maiden's scream, they were startled.

When they realized that the scream came from the prayer room, they ran in that direction.

Bang!

With a loud noise, they opened the heavy doors and rushed in.

Seeing the very familiar maiden, they asked in anxiety, "Sister, are you all right?"

"Ah..." Only then did she realize that she actually shouted loud enough to let others hear her. She was embarrassed. It was awkward as they kept staring at her with worried and innocent faces.

"I-I'm fine. Don't worry," she tried to ease their worry. Their eyes felt like arrows, piercing her guilty, sinful heart. She couldn't bear to look at them. She tried to come up with excuses, "I tried to get up but I stood on my cloth that I nearly fell. That's why I shouted. I was scared. Sorry to bother you."

'And sorry for lying,' she apologized in her heart.

One of them inquired, "You are not hurt, are you?"

"Nope, I'm completely okay. If I fell, I would have cried." The more she lied, the more she mentally stabbed her heart.

"As long as sister is fine. We won't bother you anymore. Please pray," the other priest said in a gentle voice. Afterward, they turned around and left the prayer room. They didn't forget to close the door behind them.

As soon as they left, Veronica sighed in relief. 'That was a close call,' she told herself. She turned around and looked at the huge statue of Goddess Juvena. She knelt and asked for forgiveness. "Goddess Juvena, Mother of Kindness, please forgive this unfaithful child…"

The world is huge. In this huge world, there is a small country difficult to point out in the globe, named Utahill. Utahill is situated under the Alss. The Alss are the most extensive mountain range that lies in the north of Utahill. At the base of the mountain, there is a huge lake called Blue Moon. It is surrounded by deep woods.

There is a town close to the woods- Palmer. This town has been built in the largest area. There are three villages around Palmer town.

Utahill is known as the Holy Kingdom or the Kingdom of Goddess Juvena. People all over the globe prayed to the kind, loving Goddess Juvena.

People come here to find peace. People come here to pray to their loving goddess.

In the town, Palmer, there is situated the largest temple in the world. It is ancient. Some people believe that it was built by Goddess Juvena herself so that her children could find their way to her, their home.

Many people related to the temple live there. Not everyone is allowed to enter or live in the temple. Only the luckiest are chosen to live there, to serve the goddess and her people. Veronica is one of those 'fortunate' people.

After repenting for hours, she went back to her room. Since she fasted over her sins and repented for her crime, she was feeling weak. She remembered that she hadn't touched a single piece of bread since last night. While rubbing her stomach, she sat down on the bed.

"Ah, I'm so hungry…" she spoke to herself in a low tone, "but there is nothing that can be done."

It was past lunchtime. No one would save food for her. Moreover, everyone here was disciplined. If someone anyhow skipped or missed lunch, they couldn't eat lunch later. They had to wait to have dinner directly.

If she wanted to eat, she had to wait until dinner time. Waiting for it to approach, she cleaned her room. Only then did she see the dress that she wore in the morning. It was lying in the corner of the room. She hurriedly threw it in the corner after she came back.

Seeing the unlucky dress, she remembered that she had to give it back to its original owner. 'I should wash it before dinner,' thinking that she took it in her hand and heard something falling.

Thud!

"Huh?"

On the stone floor, something heavy fell and made a 'thud' sound.

'Huh? What's this?' Feeling curious, Veronica lowered her body and picked up the small thing.

She draped the dress over her left arm before bringing the heavy object closer to one of the candles to have a clear look. Only then did she see that it was a blue gem, attached to a simple yet intricately weaved chain.

'Hmm? Is that a locket?' She wondered while looking at it. It was a sparkling blue gem that flickered beautifully under the candlelight. The chain was made of gold.

Everyone in the temple had a locket but their lockets were made of brass. Moreover, all of their pendants followed a simple design. A wheel design. As far as she could remember, none of them had anything that was remotely related to something fancy, not to mention a locket chain that screamed richness.

"I've never seen my brothers and sisters wearing something like this," she murmured while feeling the texture of the gem in her right hand. "It was with the dress I wore in the morning. Then, could this be…" she steadily turned her eyes toward the dress in her other arm.

She concluded – since this locket fell from the dress and she didn't see it in the morning, then it could only mean one thing. And that was, the locket got stuck to her dress when she sat on the grass beside the lake. Since it wasn't hers or the owner of the dress, it could only belong to that man.

She let out a low chuckle. "You are really an unlucky dress," she cursed the dress in her arm.

She sat on her bed and pondered over the issue at hand. She never took someone else's belongings and she had no reason to keep this locket either. No matter how luxurious it was, it was of no use to her.

Besides, stealing wasn't a good thing to do. And as far as she could remember, she had never stolen something in her entire life. Now that she accidentally took someone else's locket, she felt even worse for leaving the temple in the morning.

'I need to find that man and give it back to him as soon as possible. I also have to say 'sorry' for peeping at him.' As she was thinking, she came to a sudden realization.

'It means, I have to leave again!' She choked. She had to find an opportunity to sneak out tomorrow. This plan made her uncomfortable.However, she knew she couldn't get any peace of mind if she kept this with her either. His locket could pull back all those images of her sinful encounter with the naked man.

Nevertheless, thinking of her schedule for the following day, she gasped in horror.

Because, from tomorrow, her cleaning duty will start. At dawn, she has to go to the prayer room to lit up all the candles. And then, she needs to go to the inner temple and inform the High Priest about taking over the aforementioned duty before she can start working. She has no time to leave tomorrow. And her duty will continue till next month.

'What to do? What to do?' She marched from one side to the other in her room. She couldn't keep this locket with her, neither could she go and give it back to its owner.Veronica looked outside the window. From there, she could see the busy town roads which were still brightly lit up. At that moment, she made a decision.

Even though it was time to sleep, the city was still bustling. People were walking, laughing, and even gossiping.

Veronica was now strolling in the market area. It's more crowded than other places. She felt like that man could be here. The truth was, she was afraid of dark places and that's why she avoided quiet places like dark alleys.

Her heart was thumping in nervousness and she was joyful at the same time. She wanted to see this city and her dream came true.

She was looking for a place where many men gathered to eat and drink. She had asked a shopkeeper about where she could gather information and the woman told her to look for a bar.

She once heard that people go to bars to drink booze. She had no idea what booze was. She asked around and found a bar. She went inside.

Inside the bar was a little dark, even darker than the night roads of a busy town. The lights were dim. There was an odd smell that she couldn't recognize. She heard laughter and loud voices that belonged to men.

Veronica stood there dumbfounded. She had no clue where to go next, whom to ask questions. She didn't move until someone from her back spoke aloud, "Hey lass, move."

She was startled. She jumped and moved to the side. And when she finally turned around, she saw a giant man. Nervously, she stepped back a little, giving the living mountain enough room to walk inside the bar.

The bulky man didn't care about her. He just strode past her and went to the bar counter. "Max, give me the usual," he ordered.

The bartender, Max, seemed to be in his early twenties. He had fair skin and dark brown hair. His brown eyes were peaceful. He was a fine, young gentleman. He was wearing an off-white shirt and paired it with dark green pants. Max gleefully replied, "Coming up."

"How is it going?" The bulky man questioned the bartender.

Max answered, "Everything is going well. The harvest was great. The crops will be delivered to the town tomorrow. I heard that the royal family has decided to distribute the best crops to the orphans."

But his recipient didn't seem that moved. He stated, "The royal family's contribution is praiseworthy. Anything unusual?"

Max lowered his voice and reported, "I heard a man had come to the town. He was looking for a job."

Meanwhile, Veronica, who had been eavesdropping, unintentionally or intentionally, stepped closer. She cleared her throat loud enough to get their attention. "Excuse me, sorry to interrupt your conversation. I have a favor to ask you."

Max gave her a friendly smile. "Hello, miss, what can I do for you?"

"I'm looking for a man. Can you help me find him?" She questioned.