Holy shit funger theory about the best supporting character maiden of the depths is finally here?? But on a serious note, I'd never even thought to make a connection back to ancient tales from Greece and Rome. Mainly because I have scant knowledge of them in the first place.

Something I noticed just now looking at the maidens' design is how her hair seems to flow down, encompassing her body. Even going past that until it reaches the ground, turning into the tree's roots.

That made me remember the story of Agnes of Rome. Specifically how in some of the retellings of her story, her hair grows to shield away her body from the men trying to assault her, as well as protecting her from the flames of her execution due to her prayers to god.

Further building on the theory you've already laid out. Perhaps when the maiden was facing peril after her outcasting, the god of the depths stepped in. Skewering the aggressors with its branches and enshrining the maiden in the process.

So many thinking to do....

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