The rejection hit him like a physical blow to the stomach.
It was a single word but it carried the catastrophic weight of a collapsing mountain.
It was cold… It was incredibly blunt… It was completely uncompromising.
That world lacked all the usual warmth, the flowery comforting language, and the loving reassurance that usually accompanied divine communication.
[The Goddess said "You must learn the true consequence of your actions,"]
The words seared themselves permanently into his retinas, hovering mercilessly in the air before him.
[The Goddess continues "Your hubris fractured the destined path… You rushed toward glory and nearly doomed a province to consumption… A simple apology does not repair the complex threads of fate you recklessly tore…"]
Jace stared at the text with his heart dropping completely into his stomach.
