Esteria's breath quickened as the figure's words sank in. The flame chose her. The weight of those words felt suffocating, wrapping around her like chains she couldn't break free from. She clenched her fists, resisting the urge to shout.
"Why should I trust the flame's judgment?" she snapped, her voice echoing in the chamber. "What gives it the right to decide my fate?"
The figure tilted their head slightly, the flicker of embers in their eyes dimming as if in contemplation. "The flame does not ask for trust. It does not demand loyalty. It simply is. To question it is to question existence itself."
Esteria's jaw tightened. Cryptic answers weren't what she needed right now. She needed clarity, something solid to grasp onto. But the figure offered no further explanation, and the oppressive silence that followed only amplified her frustration.