Smoke-Bound Wishes

A forgotten shrine god, bound to decaying wood and stone, must grant ten wishes to a mortal named Rhys before she can ascend. She finds him half-dead from poverty and offers him ten sticks of incense; each broken stick is one wish. He wishes for wealth and power, then for her to stay with him forever, and for years they live as husband and wife in all but name.

When war brings Princess Elena to his estate, Rhys turns cold. He wishes to marry Elena, and when the old housekeeper Martha protests, he has her beaten and casts the shrine god out into the snow. To secure the marriage, she saves the dying Prince Kaelan, pouring a century of divine power into him and drawing a fatal backlash onto herself.

Rhys uses two more wishes to banish her forever, leaving four sticks unbroken. Cast out with Martha, she refuses to let go, insisting she still owes him four wishes. If she fails, she will be trapped in the mortal world forever.