A week was no different than a day for Alex as it all passed by too quickly for him to even care about. He had barely made any improvements at all either since it was too short of a time.
And somehow, he had the same person come visit him once again.
Xichen came to his prison once again, this time wearing a soft gray robe with a hood hiding her from the sun.
Her arrival caused a bit of a stir among the guards, who tried to block her from advancing, but the woman forced her way in anyway.
Alex stood up, walking toward her, stopping just 10 meters away from her. “You have returned. How was the ceremony?”
Alex’s words caused the woman to grimace almost immediately.
“I failed.”
“Seriously? How strong was the beast?” Alex asked.
“It was a desert panther. Not as tough as the crab, but faster than what I could handle. I ended up making a mistake and needed to be saved,” she said.
“That sucks. You’ll surely succeed next time though. Just train harder.”
“It won’t,” Xichen said, sounding a little distressed. “I can’t do it.”
Alex narrowed his eyes. “Hey, it’s alright. Everyone fails. Just eat a bunch of meat from the beasts and train with others. You’ll surely succeed next time.”
“There might not be a next time,” Xichen said. “At least, not anytime soon.”
Alex stared at the woman for a long while, trying to discern her current state of mind. She was clearly distressed about her failure, and perhaps even the ramifications of that failure.
He hadn’t seen such an emotion on her the last time she had failed, and yet this time things had clearly changed.
“Are there limits on how many times you can take part in this ceremony?”
The woman shook her head. “You can take it as many times as you want to, but I cannot take it too many times. Each attempt drains a large resource on our tribe. While victory could bring back some of it, having failed twice, it is difficult to justify using those resources for a third time.”
“After all, if we lose too much, we end up leaving ourselves defenseless against the other tribes.”
Alex didn’t understand the details, but he understood the essence of the issue. Understanding that, however, didn’t show him why there was any problem here at all.
“Then what is stopping you from just taking a break for a year or two, collecting resources and preparing yourself for another ceremony? You can get stronger in that time surely. All you have to do is eat the beasts.”
Xichen lowered her head, a soft sigh escaping her lips. “I don’t have the time,” she said. “I can’t wait half a year, let alone an entire year.”
“Why?” Alex asked.
“Because if Fangmi or Tailun become an Extolite before me, I’ll have to marry them. And that is the worst thing that can happen to me, to our tribe.”
Alex frowned. “What do you mean? I’m sorry, I truly do not understand any of the traditions or rules of your tribes. I do not understand what an Extolite is to begin with. Why should you have to marry them if they become one before you?”
Xichen did not speak for a while, simply staring at Alex with a discerning eye.
“You really don’t know anything, do you?”
“I do not.”
Xichen nodded. “Extolite is a title given to someone who stands at the peak of strength everyone else in the outer desert. To become one, you have to defeat a beast of similar strength as the ones found on the edge of the inner desert, and have witnesses to relay the truth for you.”
Alex narrowed his eyes. “So that is the ceremony. I see. What happens if this Tailun or Fangmi fellow were to become an Extolite before you? You said you will have to marry them.”
“To become an Extolite is not just to gain an empty title. Extolites gain great benefits, one of which is that they can choose who they want to marry, and the other person cannot refuse.”
“What?” Alex blurted out. “What do you mean they can’t refuse?”
The woman shrugged. “That is the rule of the desert. It’s not just our tribe that follows it but every other tribe in the outer regions.”
“That’s horrible,” Alex said. “And are these other two close to becoming an Extolite?”
“They should be. As far as I know, they are preparing to become one, which is why I had to hurry. If I don’t want to become their wife, my only option is to become an Extolite before them.”
Alex frowned. “Are you sure they will choose you though? Have they professed that they like you?”
“That’s not the reason why they’ll marry me. They’ll marry me because I am the only daughter of my father. And if they marry me, they are effectively marrying the next chief of the Sunwardens.”
Now that Xichen had said as much, Alex could see the sort of situation she was in. It was horrible.
“Is becoming an Extolite your only way out?” Alex asked.
The woman nodded. “If I don’t become an Extolite, even when I become the chief, I will just be a figurehead instead. Since having an Extolite husband would mean his authority would surpass mine and he would become the true chief.”
“If that were to happen, I cannot imagine the fate of our Sunwardens. They could easily disappear in a generation or two.”
Alex narrowed his eyes. “What about becoming an Extolite afterward?” he asked. “If you were to marry this person, but then become an Extolite, would you be able to ask for a divorce?”
“I can’t.”
“You won’t have the authority to ask for a divorce, even as an Extolite?” Alex asked.
“No, I won’t have the chance to even be an Extolite,” she said. “If I were to marry an Extolite, they would have authority over every part of my life. That includes giving me permission to take part in the Ceremony.”
“The moment I am married, I will forever lose my freedom.”