’What is this? Why am I feeling that something is pressing my body hard?’ I thought.

My body succumb to the gravity and I slumped down nearly falling to the ground. But before my knees met the floor, my aunt held my arms and instantly the heavy feeling went away.

I looked at my aunt confused but she just smiled to me not saying anything.

"Come my niece. I will show you my own treasure, the other half of the pendant." My aunt led me by hand towards the table where the jewelry box was placed.

I was able to walk towards the table at the center of the room with my aunt still holding my hand. I saw the jewelry box. Contrary to its contents, the jewelry box is simply made out of dark brown wood with carvings of leaves and flowers.

My aunt slowly let go of my hand and my instincts kicked in. My body reacted as if anticipating the shock I felt when I entered the room. But after a few seconds, I didn’t feel anything. I looked around the room confused. The force that was pressing my body just a while ago only went away when my aunt had physical contact with me, but now that she has let go of my hand I wasn’t feeling anything.

"Do not worry Alicia, it is safe here." Aunt Patricia assured me.

Looking at her dumbfounded, I just nodded my head.

My aunt looked at the jewelry box and carefully opened the lid. The interior of the box has a red velvet lining and inside was the exact replica of my mother’s necklace and pendant, with this one having an inverted angle as to the other. If I remember my mother’s necklace and compare it to this one in front of me, if you put them beside each other at the center they will complete a whole circle.

"This is my other half of the pendant and it contains the other half of the map." Aunt Patricia took the necklace out and carefully placed in on my palms.

I can feel the warmth the pendant was emitting. This pendant was made of magic stones but much more powerful than the ones I have found in the library. The power it has inside was immense.

’Come to think of it, my mother’s pendant has the similar warmth like this.’ I thought. I might not have noticed it earlier because I don’t have any knowledge in magic stones back then but my mother’s necklace that I gave to Regaleon must also store immense magic powers.

"I think I have seen a similar necklace that my mother wore before." I looked at the necklace intently. "If I am not mistaken, it looked like this one but inverted." I turned the pendant one-eighty degrees clock wise.

"That’s it!" My aunt gasped. "That is the other half of the pendant. If you joined the two halves then the map will show itself." Aunt Patricia looked ecstatic.

"So you can’t use only half of this to see the half of the map it contained?" I asked in curiosity.

Aunt Patricia shook her head. "I am afraid not. I have tried everything I could for even half of the map to appear but all ended in failures."

That was at least good news to us. My aunt wasn’t able to pinpoint the locations of the parts of the key yet.

"Tell me Alicia, where did you last saw the necklace?" Aunt Patricia asked earnestly. She took my hands that was holding the pendant and clasped it in between hers. "Please Alicia, remember carefully. This weapon will bring us ultimate success in this war."

I was taken aback by my aunt’s pleading gaze. ’I have to think of something to say.’ I thought to myself.

"W-Well, I was still young back then so I am not so sure." I said while forming a story inside of my head along the way. "I only remembered that mama was always wearing this necklace around her neck. This confused me when I was still little because we were poor and having jewelry is a luxury for us. When she died and I was taken by my father, I thought that the necklace must be given to her by my father the king before she was banished from the palace."

"But your mother wasn’t wearing the necklace when we arrived to save her." Aunt Patricia said. "Alicia, remember carefully. Maybe she put it somewhere else, a place to keep it safe."

I was deep in thought and I acted that I remembered something. "Um I am not sure about this but I remember when I got sick with a high fever one day when I was young. Mama tried to take her salary in advance in the tavern she was working but the owner refused her. But when night came mama arrived with medicine for me. I wondered where the money she bought the medicine came from. That was when I realized days after that she wasn’t wearing the necklace anymore."

I looked at my aunt hoping she would buy this story of mine.

"Do you mean she pawned the necklace to buy some medicine?!" Aunt Patricia looked enraged.

"I-I am not so sure." I replied. I can feel her grip on my hand tightening. "Aunt Patricia. It... it hurts." I was trying to pull my hand away. The pendant was grazing my palms.

"Are you telling me that Leticia pawned such a valuable artifact of Atlantia to buy a mere medicine?" Aunt Patricia was furious.

"But she bought it for me because I was sick." I reasoned out. I looked at her in shock. Was she that angry because of the story I created?

"That is inexcusable! How could she?!" Aunt Patricia pushed me hard and I fell on the ground. "That necklace is the treasure of our country. She should have kept it safe at all costs!"

Being pushed a few feet from the center of the room, I felt the pressing force once more.

’BADUMP...BADUMP’

My heart was beating heavily in my chest, my body was aching just trying to sit up on the ground. The invisible force was pushing me to the ground that I can’t lift up my body without using much strength.

’This force is so strong.’ My consciousness was starting to fade with the immense pressure I was feeling. I do not know what to do. This is the first time I felt this kind of magic and I don’t have any knowledge of it.

My eyes were starting to close and my consciousness was fading. The last thing I saw was my aunt walking towards me. I looked at her with the last ounce of my strength and saw her face with worry in her eyes.

"Alicia...Alicia..." My aunt’s voice was fading away and felt my consciousness fade away.

***

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