"Eda was hunted by the Emperor's Coven for being a Wild Witch. Because she didn't want to join a coven, she practiced wild magic and according to the system, that was wrong. Any Witch that fell out of line was wrong. Eda was just.. well it depends who you ask. Louder about it than most? Brave. Reckless. Frustrating if you were trying to catch her."

Those were things that Raine wasn't a stranger to saying before, as much as it pained them to repeat the way that their best friend was spoken of.

"I.. don't know if I'd call it a cult. It wasn't just a group of people, it was everyone, almost. Belos was the Emperor for a reason. They started the idea that the covens were the pure way to practice magic."

Raine began to fidget with the hem of their shirt.

"You can.. you can escape a cult, right? You can't really escape an Empire when it's the only thing that's there."