Golden Bough [Western Fantasy]

This is an ancient custom.

People regard trees as incarnations of the gods, and each priest must spend their life protecting the sacred tree.

The priest wields power and prestige equal to that of a god, but can never leave the sacred tree.

That is, until someone breaks off a golden branch from the sacred tree, challenges and defeats the priest, and takes their place.

Carlos is the eternal watcher of this world. He will bear this duty until the end of his life.

Until Jack breaks off that golden branch.

Witchcraft is like this: imprecise, unstable, and impossible to verify. If you seek powers that are certain and demonstrably real, you should study science instead.

Remember, only one thing matters when it comes to witchcraft: if you don't believe it exists, you'll never be able to use it.

Things to know before reading:

1. Jack x Carlos. They both have their own motives, and the romance is slow-burn. There's also a prominent yuri side couple.

2. Warning: major character deaths. No happy ending is guaranteed for anyone but the protagonists.

3. Although the setting is another world with lots of original elements, please don't mind that some things, such as pianos, scones, and ballet, appear even though they theoretically shouldn't exist in another world.

4. If characters share the same name, it's probably a coincidence, since 90 percent of them were randomly generated by me.

5. Most of the witchcraft is made up, though some is real. References include, but aren't limited to, The Golden Bough, The Night Battles, and The Cheese and the Worms.

Lastly, I have a backlog! I really do have a backlog! I'll do my best to update daily at 6 p.m.!

Theme: If you feel that you can't control your own fate, the fault often lies not with fate, but with yourself.