Seeing the once high-spirited Torrhen tortured into such a state, Danyla's violet eyes blazed with fury. She took his scrawny arm, and pale golden flames of magical energy rose from her palm, slowly seeping into his body.
"Don't worry. I'm here!"
Under the cleansing burn of Danyla's magical flames, the plague magic clinging to Torrhen like maggots to bone quickly melted away like filthy snow. His complexion immediately improved.
To prevent the plague from spreading further, the entire North had been placed under martial law. Aside from the towns near White Harbor, the other regions remained safe for the time being.
But the once bustling White Harbor was now a scene of desolation. The smell of burning mugwort filled the streets. People wearing linen masks soaked in vinegar hurried past like ghosts, their eyes full of uncertainty and fear.
Chanting and thick smoke rose from the Cremation Tower almost without pause, day and night. To prevent the plague from spreading, Danyla stationed the great dragon Dreamfyre beside the tower so she could burn the bodies whenever needed.
Danyla rode the great dragons Rafa and Myracis, treating those infected with the plague while searching for its source.
Near the Wolf's Den north of White Harbor, Danyla discovered a young mother kneeling beside the road with a swaddled infant in her arms, praying devoutly to a stone painted with a white baby.
The infant's little face had turned ashen blue, yet it eerily retained the peaceful expression of a sleeping child.
Danyla's Violet Flame Eyes flickered. She saw countless fine black threads seep from the stone and wrap around the infant like a spiderweb, greedily sucking away the flame of its life.
"Pale Holy Child."
The cold wind at the Wolf's Den carried the stench of decay. Danyla's boots crunched against the