Chapter 3: The Angel’s Crypt

1

After August fell, all sorts of people raced around to investigate and seize control of the situation. In the gaps between his ceremonial speeches, the king issued direct orders to his subordinates, making sure they controlled whatever information was spreading and looked into the truth. The queen left to negotiate with Lucanlandt’s nobles in person and to procure a skilled, tight-lipped healer. Their guard dragons secretly lurked around the stadium, and through their eyes and ears, the royal couple searched for any suspicious individuals.

Duke Aurelia reclaimed the enchanted equipment from Blackcurrant and began analyzing the magic.

As the curtain fell on this magnificent joust, many were moving around in its shadows.

Erika led Tirnanog to the front of the tent where August had been brought for treatment. The tent was surrounded by royal guards, who made sure no one could approach. Naturally, Erika was no exception.

They were there to prevent any misinformation from getting out as a means to protect August. However, the stadium was already rife with irresponsible speculation and terrible slander.

The crown prince had stolen someone’s dragon to enter the tournament. He had equipped a sacred dragon with a suspicious magic item. He’d fallen from the dragon once his win was determined to be illegitimate—a fitting end for an illegitimate child.

In an attempt to keep the rumors in check, the king wouldn’t allow anyone near the tent. However, this only allowed ambiguous information to fester.

Animosity toward August was gradually spreading.

“Erika, what do you plan to do now?”

“Honestly I... don’t know what to do. I’m sorry, Tir.”

“Got it. Just tell me if you need my strength. I’ll wait for you.”

Feeling pressured by this unsavory air, Erika desperately tried to think of something she could do. She detested the thought of not doing anything at all. However, as she continued to deliberate without taking a single step, time cruelly continued marching on.

How long had it been? Erika heard a number of people quarreling inside.

“You can’t move yet, Your Highness! It’s too dangerous!”

“Let go of me! I need to be the one... to explain it to Father!”

“Stay still! It’s in your best interest to—”

August emerged from the tent flap. As a soldier and healer kept him at bay, he noticed Erika.

“Hello, Your Highness.”

“Is that you, Erika?”

August had removed his armor and was now clad only in normal riding clothes. His right hand clenched the blue ribbon Erika had conceded to him.

After staring at Erika awhile, the strength suddenly drained from his body, and he looked away with bitterness on his face.

“Let her in.”

“But, Your Highness, His Majesty said not to let anyone—”

“I’ll take responsibility for whatever happens. Please.”

Reluctantly, the soldier guided Erika into the tent. The inside was partitioned with a curtain. The area closest to the entrance was the healer’s room, which contained medicine boxes as well as mortars and other tools to mix drugs. There was a desk littered with quite a few sheets of parchment.

The healer headed for his desk and began writing something, though not before reemphasizing August’s need for rest.

As for the inner room, it only had a simple bed and a few chairs. August took a seat on the bed while Erika pulled up a chair.

With a troubled smile on his face, August was at a complete loss for what to say. Erika resolved to start the conversation.

“You promised me you wouldn’t fly.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t apologize. I didn’t come here to condemn you.”

“Yeah, but still. I’m sorry. You were worried that something like this would happen, weren’t you?”

August smiled softly, but Erika could tell there was suffering and regret twisting and turning beneath that thin layer of skin. This time, she was the one who didn’t know what to say. The silence that came as she attempted to choose her words was hard on her heart. Once she could no longer bear it, she decided to shift the topic.

“I saw you were protected from the fall, but did you get any injuries when you were being thrown around?”

“No, I’m perfectly fine. I’m not sure if I was lucky or if Blackcurrant was being gentle.”

“I’m glad you’re alright.”

“Hahaha. When I try to surprise people a bit, look where that gets me. Good grief. Serves me right.” August mocked himself and forced a cheerful laugh. “It was the first time, you know. The first time I ever met a dragon apart from Goldberry who wasn’t afraid of me. ‘I can fly if it’s with her,’ I thought, but it looks like I was wrong.”

August looked at the ceiling and sighed. His gaze was fixed far beyond the canopy; he was staring out at the blue skies above. The same skies that should have belonged to him only a few moments before.

“How did it feel?”

“Better than I’d ever dreamed. I just knew that it was where I belonged. It was like every drop of my blood had become part of the dragon. My skin still remembers the sensation of our wings striking the wind.”

“Must have been something.”

“Yes, it really was. But alas. When I think about how that dragon is now afraid of me, how we’ll never fly together again, it feels like half my body has been torn to shreds.”

He laughed powerlessly, and instead of shedding tears, he cast his eyes down and furrowed his brow. Erika found herself terrified at the realization that this was the greatest expression of sorrow he could muster. What would become of him if he found out the general public believed he was the one who made a mockery of the tournament?

The rails that would lead August to the Beast of Contracts—and Erika to her demise—were gradually being laid out.

All of a sudden, the fragmentary information clicked into place. Dragons feared August. Intoxicate magic. Hadn’t Blackcurrant been fine around August precisely because she had been intoxicated? Presumably, the state had been dispelled after the finals, and she had regained her fear.

Did it dissolve naturally, or did someone set this up?

She was so close to understanding, but there was still something missing; this was a terrible, tantalizing feeling.

The two silently stared at one another, each thinking things through in their own way, when a ruckus came from outside the tent.

“What could it be?” Erika asked.

“Oh no. The noisy one came,” August replied.

The one who forcefully threw back the curtain was Louie. He lorded over August, his smile brimming with a sense of superiority. He was still in the armor he’d worn during the match, and he was decorated with so many garlands that it took no more than a glance to recognize him as the victor.

“Oh, Your Highness! Such a shame it all had to come to this!”

He spoke the same rude, rash remarks even when August was present. After barging in uninvited, he dragged over a chair and took a seat right in front of the prince.

“Hello, Louie. I heard you won. That’s incredible.”

“It was nothing. Why should I have expected any less?”

He spread his arms in a grandiose display, triumph written all over his face.

“I’ve also heard some interesting rumors. They say your dragon was equipped with an illegal magic item. I figured you were up to some skulduggery. Otherwise, there’s no way you could have stood against me. Really, just when I thought I had found a worthy rival... What. A. Shame.”

“A magic item? Not to sound rude, but I don’t know anything about that.”

“Don’t play dumb, August. Even babies sucking on their mommies’ teats know you can’t ride a dragon through normal means. Hey, where did you get such a convenient tool? Was it from Aurelia? Karkinos?”

Louie was getting more and more into his tirade. His opinion of August was formed from labels and libels, and it was unbearable to listen to.

“Lord Louie, we still don’t know the specifics of the magic item used. My father and other specialists are investing all their time and effort into analyzing it. You are in a position with some responsibility, so please do not frivolously spread unsubstantiated information.”

Erika thrust herself into their conversation. It was then that Louie noticed her presence for the first time. For a moment, he stared at her, shocked. Immediately after, a vile smile graced his lips.

“What do we have here? If it isn’t that girl from Aurelia. I see... So that’s how it is.”

“I don’t know what you’re misunderstanding, but Erika and I are friends.”

“Hmm? The way you deny it just makes it more suspicious.” Surely finding something to be simply hilarious, Louie raised his voice and laughed. “Ahahaha. I can’t underestimate you. With that lustful blood running through your veins, you even laid hands on such a young—”

“You can’t keep your insults to me? You mean to besmirch her—and even my mother?!”

August lifted his clenched fist, but he didn’t go any further. At the very last moment, his rationality took hold. Louie took on an exaggerated cowering pose before continuing his diatribe.

“You turn to violence the moment you know you can’t win with words! This is what you get when you mix a lowlife and a harlot: the worst sort of mongrel!”

August’s eyes shimmered like violet fire.

“You’re right, Louie. I’m sorry. Violence is going too far.”

“Glad you understand. Good on you. I’m doing this for your sake, August. Just think of what would happen if you punched me now. They’d all think you were a shameless wretch who punched the victor in retaliation for your foul play being revealed.”

“I guess you’re right.”

August loosened his hand and calmly reached it to his belt, right to where his sword hilt would be. However, his sword had been removed, scabbard and all, to administer treatment.

Erika watched Louie, mouth agape. Louie had reached down to his own belt and grabbed his own sword.

“August! Louie! What are you—”

“Erika, please. Keep quiet. This is between him and me,” August said with a smile. A cruel tint had found its way into his eyes. “Now, Louie, is that all? We don’t see each other nearly often enough. I’ll hear anything you have to say.”

“Of course I have more. Aren’t you ashamed to be a member of the royal family when you can’t even fly at your age? Oh, that’s right, silly me. You don’t even have a single drop of Ignitia’s blood in you!”

“Hmm. Anything else?”

August slowly raised his right hand, pantomiming the act of drawing a sword. Louie was like a mirror, drawing his blade with exactly the same motions.

Erika felt a chill run down her spine. It was like August was controlling him. Louie was so focused on sneering at August, he had yet to even notice he had drawn his sword.

“You’re the bastard of a harlot, August! You’re not even royalty, yet they call you the crown prince! You plan to end Ignitia’s prestigious pedigree in your generation? Hey, I’ll be king for you, so you can be my retainer! I’ll send you out to some backwaters so you can bore yourself to death! Just like your father did to mine!”

August placed his unseen sword against his throat. Louie did the same with his real one. A drop of blood slid down its sleek surface.

“That’s right, that father of yours who tolerates his whore wife and his bastard son is a criminal himself, you know! You think such a crime should be overlooked just because he calls himself king?! The fact that he hasn’t disowned you yet is the highest form of treason!”

“Hmm. Is that the royal blood I hear so much about? It doesn’t look so different to me.”

“What? What are you... What’s this? Why is my sword...? Huh? It hurts!”

Louie’s face turned pale when he finally realized something was off. A cruel smile crossed August’s face as he drank in Louie’s dismay.

“You were always making such a big deal about it, so I was sure it would have quite a spectacular color. I got my hopes up for nothing.”

“I can’t move! My arm won’t listen to me! Wait, please... Someone, stop my hand! Anybody?! Save me! I’m about to be killed by myself!”

“Hey now, what are you talking about, Louie? It just goes to show that unlike you, your hand knows how to do the right thing. What are you so distraught about?”

The soldier and doctor in the tent had already collapsed to the ground. It was like they were being bound by invisible rope, their arms and legs firmly pressed together.

August put more power into his hand. Louie’s sword dug deeper into his throat.

“You can only blame yourself, Louie. You’re the one who made me this angry.”

“You can’t! August!” Erika desperately squeezed out her voice, causing August to turn. He stared at her in a daze, like something had left him.

The sword clattered to the floor.

Louie sobbed, crawling on the ground as he held his wound. From what Erika could see, he wasn’t bleeding too heavily, and his life was not in danger.

Great. She breathed a sigh of relief upon confirming he was still alive. If he’d ended up killing Louie, surely August would’ve been terribly wounded as well.

“Erika... what did I just do?”

“August—”

“Ah, I see. This... this thing isn’t human power. It’s not a power any human should have. This is an ability that tramples over human dignity.”

“You’re wrong, August!”

“No, I’m not wrong. I’m hopeless. Whether I’m my father’s child or not, I can’t be king. I can’t be... anyone...”

Covering his face with one hand, August staggered away from Erika.

I can’t leave him alone like this.

Erika tried to chase after him, only for Louie, the soldier, and the healer to rise from the floor and spread their arms into a wall. Their eyes were hollow.

“Lord Louie, please move!”

“No, no, no... I-I can’t... be any...”

“Can’t be king... Can’t be king... Can’t be king...”

“Not human, not human, not human...”

They muttered delirious, disjointed words. Their movements were stiff like those of marionettes. And in the time they held Erika up, August escaped from the tent.

“August! Wait for me!”

“I’m sorry, Erika. Thank you for being so kind to me. But you can’t get close to me anymore... Goodbye.”

Erika pushed the puppets aside and ran out after him. However, she was met by chaos incomparable to what she had seen inside the tent.

The crowds had turned into flocks of dolls with hollow eyes. Hundreds—no, thousands—of people swayed uncannily back and forth as they walked in rank and file. Their faces were all uniform masks devoid of any emotion, their mouths muttering senseless drivel.

Erika was reminded of zombie movies she had seen in a life gone by. But these were living people who were presumably being manipulated by some sort of mind control.

The area was dotted here and there by Aurelians resistant to this sort of magic and Hafan’s high-ranking magicians with strong magical defense who seemed to have maintained their sanity. However, owing to the army of puppets that filled the space, there was nowhere they could go.

Within the river of people, one group stood out: a flock of dragons surrounding August. The dragons continued to gather, some flying overhead, others walking beside him. Unsteady on their feet, they didn’t seem to be quite there; their faces were lax as though they were wading through a dream.

Among them, only Goldberry was normal, but she remained perched on August’s shoulder. It looked like she was trying to comfort and console him.

“August!”

He did not heed her call. Instead, he continued on his way with his dragons. The walls of controlled humans and beasts kept Erika at bay, and soon, August was gone.

2

August was gone, the dragons were gone, and the soulless husks moving like dolls lurched ever closer. At first, Erika cowered from their empty expressions and the way they tottered toward her like zombies. However, she was relieved to see that they didn’t attack or eat humans like their horror-movie counterparts.

Looks like they’re not a direct threat to my life, but I need to be careful.

If she got dragged into the torrential flow, there was no telling where she would be swept off to. As a matter of fact, a number of people, presumably from Aurelia, who had maintained their sanity had already been carried out of sight by the brainwashed legion.

Thankfully, they seemed to have some direction, ensuring that there were no pileups and that no one was trampled.

“Huh? Come to think of it, where’s Tir?”

She finally noticed he was nowhere in sight. Tirnanog was stronger than the average human and quite a bit smaller. He could slip through the gaps in the crowd, so it was hard to imagine he’d been washed away. Not to mention, he had left Erika’s leather bag behind.

Wait, did he follow August with the other dragons? It would not be easy to reunite with him in this chaos.

As Erika watched from the safety of the shadows, she took note of a few figures shifting from rooftop to rooftop. Judging by their attire, she took them to be Hafan magicians.

Oh, I see. There’s only a risk of getting carried away if you’re on the ground.

Erika tried to emulate them. All she had to do was get up to where the masses couldn’t reach her. She rummaged through her bag, searching for a Levitate or Jump wand.

I’ll need to pick the right wands to find August and Tir too.

As Erika was busy choosing out her wands, she suddenly heard a voice from above.

“I finally found you, Erika. I’m glad you’re alright.”

She looked up to see her father and a squad of alchemists behind him.

☆

The moment August’s mental breakdown brought about the chaos, Duke Aurelia was busy with his team analyzing the enchanted artifact collected from Blackcurrant. They only noticed something was amiss when their magicians began collapsing one after the next.

Their symptoms resembled the effects of powerful, perpetual mind-altering magic.

Recognizing that the stirrup was the least of their worries, Duke Aurelia put the analysis on hold and moved to get a proper grasp on the situation. He delegated intel gathering to a majority of his staff, then led a detached squad to ensure the safety of the king, the queen, and Duchess Hafan.

Duchess Hafan, meanwhile, had put her efforts toward safeguarding an unconscious royal couple and their children, among other nobles. Once her energy had been sapped, she herself collapsed. After meeting up with her, Duke Aurelia took over this duty.

His investigation uncovered that the entirety of Ynys Negesydd had been placed under the effects of the mind-altering magic. Without dragons, the only way off the island was by boat or bridge, so evacuating all of the capital’s people to safety was not a realistic solution.

As it was on the outskirts, where the effects of this attack were weaker, House Aurelia’s villa was designated a refuge. Thus, the duke started out by securing a safe route to his quarters. After that, he formed a number of teams in charge of directing the manipulated mob, treating injuries, dealing with fires, and patrolling to find those who were unaccounted for.

It was on one of those patrols that Duke Aurelia coincidentally came across his daughter, Erika, and she was consequently evacuated to the villa.

The room she was ordered to wait in contained Duchess Hafan and Anne, who had used up all their mana resisting the magic. Alongside them were the royal family, along with Tricia, Marquia, and other noble ladies who had been taken under Duke Aurelia’s protection. They had all been lulled into a magical sleep for their own safety.

“There’s no guarantee some shameless ruffian won’t try to take advantage of the confusion. With this, they’re at least safe for the time being. Erika, please stay here until the ruckus dies down.”

“But, Father! I am the daughter of a duke! This is precisely the sort of situation where I must fulfill my duty.”

“Correct, and we need someone to protect the people here.”

Erika had concealed her true desire to search for August, only for her words to be used against her, tying her down. She took a glance at the unconscious Anne and the rest. How could she say no when presented with these women in such a defenseless state?

“Erika, were you with Prince August when it happened?” Duke Aurelia asked softly upon seeing his daughter with her head hung and her mouth sealed tight. As she struggled to find an answer, he peered into her face and gave a smile to pep her up. “Don’t worry. We’ll find August and protect him.”

“I can’t.”

“There’s a lot of chaos, but nothing life-threatening. Rest at ease.”

While gentle, Duke Aurelia’s tone was an imperative that wouldn’t take no for an answer. After that, he rose and exited the room.

What do I do? Erika panicked. She had prepared for various scenarios, yet reality had managed to exceed them. It would have been far easier if she just got into a full-on battle with the beast.

Using her leather bag as a chair, she stared absentmindedly at the ceiling in a bout of escapism. And there she stayed, frozen, until she was brought back to her senses by an unusual rattling at the window.

“What are you doing here, Erika? I was looking for you.”

Tirnanog waved his hands from beyond the glass. Erika raced up in a panic and threw the window open.

The black dragon was surprisingly nimble in his heavy armor. While small, he boasted such monstrous strength she had to wonder if it was any lower than when he was his original size.

“Tir, where did you go?”

“Naturally, I followed the blond, princey boy, just as we arranged. I pinned down the place with a beast’s presence.”

“Pardon?”

“Have you forgotten? This was your plan, you know. After the blond prince fell from his dragon, it was my job to secretly tail him and find out where this Beast of Contracts was hiding. Am I mistaken?”

Thanks to everything that had gone wrong, Erika had completely forgotten her promise with Tirnanog. That certainly had been the initial plan. She had neither told him to suspend nor continue, and in the midst of the confusion, Tirnanog had followed August on his own.

“That’s amazing! Nicely done!”

“Bwahaha. Praise me more. I am a very useful guardian. The most useful, you could say.”

“I knew you could do it, Tir! You’re so cool! Now that that’s settled, let’s go raid its den and bring this mess to an end!”

“Just what I was hoping for! Leave it to me. No matter what monster appears, it is powerless before my might and wisdom!”

Erika passed over her combat bag, wrapped a belt with a wand holster over the reserved dress she’d donned to watch the joust, and prepared herself for battle.

Her spirits had been lifted by this unexpected spout of good news. Thanks to that, she had completely forgotten where she was and who might be around her.

“Err, Erika, dearest. That golem—no, that monster—might it be the nameless monster we all know and love?”

Erika timidly turned to a voice from behind. Anne had woken up without her realizing and was looking at her rather dubiously.

“Wh-Why, Anne, I’m glad you’re in good health.”

“Since we left the epicenter of the magical attack, it looks like my magic resistance is enough to block its effects. For a while, I intentionally dropped the mana I put into resistance to zero and let myself fall unconscious. Thanks to that, I’ve preserved quite a bit of mana.”

“How wonderfully executed.” Erika smiled, making sure her fluster couldn’t be discerned, but Anne’s eyes remained as harsh as ever.

“More importantly, I see a golem whose shape, magical composition, and voice resemble that monster. Is there anything you want to tell me about it?”

“Heavens, no! This is just a normal golem, Anne. Right, Tir?”

“I-I am golem. Move. Fight. Go round and round.”

Tirnanog stuck out his hands, stiffly pacing back and forth like a toy robot.

“Are you sure about that? He’s still limping from the Scorching Ray I shot through his thigh.”

“You’re kidding me. I thought it was just hard to move in the armor! I’m so sorry; I didn’t notice!”

“Don’t worry, Erika. I completely regenerated it when I was hunting you down. There is nothing wrong with me.”

“Knew it,” Anne coldly declared.

Erika noticed how easily she had fallen for Anne’s trap. You’re a natural at this. Delightfully devilish. She silently praised the girl while giving up on trying to trick her. Evidently, she was getting more than she’d bargained for.

“If you could, please keep it a secret.”

“The woman I revere as if she were my older sister is working with a mysterious life-form who has no qualms about attacking people. The way she speaks and acts is terribly suspicious, and I just know she’s going to get up to something dangerous. Erika, would you keep silent if you were in my shoes?”

“Can’t we work something out?”

“Hold on, Erika. Leave this to me.” Tirnanog took a step toward Anne. “Daughter of Magicians... nay, Anne. If you mean to get in our way, you leave me with little choice in the matter.”

“Oh? And what are you going to do to me?”

“Nothing you need to be concerned about. I’ll just have you sleep for a while. Your life isn’t in danger.”

“You’re finally showing your true colors. Get away from Erika!”

Tirnanog flashed his sharp talons, and Anne raised her staff. Erika hurriedly stepped between them.

“Hey, how about you two settle down!”

“Fret not, Erika. It will be over in an instant. Of course, I won’t leave a scar.”

“Don’t think I’m the same as I was back then. This time, I’ll obliterate you in one shot.”

“Just settle down! Anne is my friend, Tir, you can’t attack her!”

“Hmph.”

Tirnanog obediently toned down his intimidation.

“Let me introduce you. He’s called Tirnanog now, and he’s my guardian beast. I will need his cooperation to resolve the matter of this mind-altering magic.”

“You’re going to... resolve this?”

Anne relaxed her staff, staring at Erika with a troubled, conflicted look on her face.

“A friend of mine is at the root of this case. I can’t tell you the specifics yet, but the point is, I have to get going. Or else.”

“I see you’ve stuck your head into something troublesome again.”

“I don’t think my life’s on the line this time. Don’t worry.”

Her reassurance only made Anne look more and more fretful. Erika was a year older than her, and she had seemed mature at first, but Anne knew just how reckless she could be.

“Are you talking about that prophecy again?”

“You don’t believe me?”

“No, that’s not it. It just feels like some part of you—your survival instinct, perhaps—is broken.”

Erika reflected on her actions thus far. She was definitely unlucky and shallow. Come to think of it, in her past life, she had often been told she had absolutely no sense for danger.

“Be at ease, Anne. I’ll protect Erika no matter what. Having fought me, you should know my strength better than anyone.”

Anne stared through the helmet, straight into Tirnanog’s eyes. He returned a somewhat confident look. Eventually, the girl lost the intense staring match and let out a sigh.

“Seriously, what am I supposed to do with you? Please run if it gets too dangerous.”

“I know, I know. I won’t do anything crazy this time around. You don’t have to worry.”

“You heard her, Mr. Tirnanog, but my dear sister will definitely do something absurd, so you have to protect her.”

“Leave it to me. I know how she works. That was already my intention.”

She gripped Tirnanog’s forearm in a handshake. Tirnanog gave her a firm nod.

“I wish I could join you, but with my feeble magic resistance, I’ll just get in the way. I’ll defend this place in your stead. Make sure you come back.”

“Of course I will,” Erika replied, her gaze sincere.

Tirnanog had already hopped onto the window ledge and was beckoning her out. Erika drew her Jump wand from the holster.

Its shaft was a bundle of reeds wrapped in a coiling spring. Its tip was a lodestone, and its wick contained one leg each from a grasshopper, a rabbit, and a frog. This was a wand that dramatically boosted its user’s ability to leap and bound.

If the Levitate wand was best suited for vertical movement, then the Jump wand was made for horizontal movement. It was unusable where there were no footholds but perfect if she wanted to jump from roof to roof.

“May fortune be your guide.”

“Thank you Anne. Good luck to you too.”

“Follow me, Erika!”

“On it, Tir!”

Leaving Anne behind, Erika and Tirnanog jumped out into a capital ruled by chaos. They made for August, the boy at the center of it all.

3

“Tir, you’re certain this is where August is?”

“Indeed. Though it looks like some more gathered while I was retrieving you.”

From her rooftop position a short distance away, Erika peered at the Grand Cathedral. It bore an exaggerated magnificence, as though it were poised to pierce the heavens.

At present, a great number of dragons had gathered around the cathedral. The ones with wings circled above and perched on its steeples; the ones without tightly packed the plaza in front.

Compared to the ones that had paraded with August when the mind control had only just begun, these dragons looked even hollower. On closer inspection, she could pick out a few that had fallen unconscious.

“If the blond prince caused this mess, perhaps he holds a power that surpasses the domain of man,” Tirnanog said, sounding equally shocked and enamored.

“Come to think of it, Tir, when we’re under such strong magic, aren’t you having a tough time?”

“A foolish question. I don’t have it as bad as you lot, but I’m also Aurelian. I won’t let anyone reign over my soul without a fight.”

“That’s a relief.”

They stepped down to the plaza, and made their way toward the cathedral. If things got dangerous, she intended to use the Jump wand again to escape to higher ground. However, the movements of the dragons who tried to impede her were sluggish and dull, and she got around them quite easily. They grew even slower the closer she got to the door, and others still simply collapsed on the spot.

She entered with barely any trouble.

“I was expecting more resistance.”

“Perhaps the prince himself wishes to be saved. Or perhaps even a dragon’s heart can’t stand this powerful pressure for so long.”

“Then that’s even more reason for us to pick up the pace.”

“Right, let’s hurry. The menacing presence is getting stronger. The stench of a beast fills the air.”

They raced through the winding corridors, Tirnanog in the lead. While the smaller dragons had managed to make it inside, they were all out cold. Erika wondered whether they would come out of this unharmed.

If the dragons didn’t follow him, does that mean he’s alone?

As she drew closer, the display items shifted to the uncanny. It was a dreadful portrait of hell, as if to signify what lay ahead of her. Normally, these doors would be locked, but they had all been thrown open by August, who had come before her.

Erika remembered this path. She unconsciously found her hand brushing against her alchemist’s silk glove and the wand holster just to make sure they were there. Just how well would her equipment serve to deal with this unanticipated situation?

“Even if you’re not enough, you have me.”

“Yes, that’s what I’m counting on.”

Erika pushed at the last door. In front of her towered the Grand Cathedral’s sole depiction of God. A chill raced down her spine. It felt as if all the eyes of the grotesque sun were glaring angrily at her.

Directly in front of the mural of the One True God was Goldberry, lying motionless on the floor. Erika dashed up to her and confirmed she was still breathing. It seemed she had fallen into a deep sleep.

But August was nowhere to be seen. Considering Goldberry had fallen here, there was no doubt he’d been here not long ago. Where had he gone? Where could he have gone from this dead-end room?

“Erika, the prince’s smell cuts off here. The beast’s stench is so strong, I can’t tell exactly where it’s coming from.”

“Let’s see what we can find.”

Erika opened her leather bag and first pulled out her Glámr-Sight wand. One swing deployed a faint, emerald-green circle around her eyes.

Unfortunately, while her eyes could now pick up mana, she did not see any suspicious traces of magic.

“It’s not a magical mechanism?”

“This would have been so much easier with Urðr-Sight.”

But, convincing herself there was little she could do about that, she concentrated on what she had on hand. She next produced a Magic Map wand. This wand could penetrate obstacles and elucidate the structure of a building to a certain degree. It came as a set with a parchment scroll pre-marked with grid lines.

The wand tip was magnetite etched with a relief of a compass. Its shaft was carved from the keel of a ship that had remained afloat for over ten years, and its wick was star crystal, faceted into the shape of a sextant. The end of its handle extended further in the form of a miniature anchor, cast from a real anchor that had been melted down.

A relatively new piece of technology, it was based on the Siren’s Echo wand that old Aurelian sailors would use to detect hidden reefs. That wand had eventually been incorporated with the auto-scribing technique designed to mass-produce books.

“Shine of stars, light the way forth.”

The wand’s tip expelled a faint, yellow light as Erika gave it a swing. A circle of the same color spread out in front of her, and once it had reached a radius of about five meters, the magic sigils that formed the circle burst. Their fragments took the form of anchors and scattered in every direction.

Erika dipped the glowing wand tip in ink, then pressed it against the scroll, imprinting the compass’ shape like a stamp. Much like the wand it came from, the compass began to give off a light of its own.

The anchors that had spread all across the room condensed on the compass mark and exploded in a flash of lightning. Ink raced across the parchment of its own accord, and in no time at all, the structure of her immediate surroundings had been drawn out.

“Found it. There’s a hollow space between us.”

“So it’s not magic. Is it hidden mechanically?”

The hidden space was right underneath the mural of the One True God. Erika recalled the old song she’d heard from August: “The beast must sleep beneath the sun.” Ignitia’s God was indeed a sun god.

“The Beast of Contracts is below... but how did August get there?”

If I just had Urðr-Sight, Erika lamented once more. As she was clutching her head in her hands, Tirnanog walked out in front of the mural.

“Isn’t this what you brought me for?”

“I guess you’re right. We’ll be in trouble if you break the mural, so please keep it to the floor.”

“Leave it to me. If you would, Erika.”

Erika nodded before chanting the command words that governed the armor of starsteel.

“Heed me, my cage! My shackles! My chains! Rest your bindings, and revive the memories sealed in black steel. Armor that hides the arms of a friend, let him show his gallant form!”

In accordance with her words, the armor surrounding Tirnanog’s arms began to glow. By absorbing mana, starsteel could be shaped and formed endlessly, and through Tirnanog’s mana—or rather, the philosopher’s stone’s—it promptly took on a preset shape.

By the time the light dissipated, Tirnanog’s arms were a size larger, their claws sharper and longer.

“Alright, have at it!”

“Grah!”

His hands swept like a black gale. With each swing, the sturdy stone floor was torn asunder and turned up. In ten seconds, he had opened a hole large enough for a human to pass through and revealed the stairs hidden beyond.

“This has to be the place. It’s not just the beast’s stench; I can sense a sinister magic.”

“Yes, I’m finally seeing it too.”

With her Glámr-Sight, she could see a black miasma of mana wafting through the air. She couldn’t pick up any details, likely because it hadn’t been given any direction. The air was simply filled with pure, high-density mana.

Fastening a star crystal lamp to her belt, she stuck a Feather Fall and Levitate wand into her holster just to be safe. With one step, and then another, she and Tirnanog descended the steep, narrow stairwell.

On either side of the spiraling steps were a number of open caskets. As the contents of one of them came into view, Erika was prepared for a shock. However, the coffin contained no body. It was stuffed to the brim with white flowers.

Every single one of them was engraved with a name. Founding King Guillaume, Savage King Jean... These two were revered monarchs whose names were carved deep into the nation’s history.

“Is this a graveyard of kings?”

“No. Ignitia’s dragon kings do not sleep below the earth. Once they die, they are returned to the sky.”

Historically, Ignitia’s kings had no graves. These proud leaders would be consecrated through dragon burial. The king’s body would be devoured by the dragon they had ridden in life, and it was said that their souls would be as one forever.

The dragons that ate kings would become the eternal flying tombs of their beloved riders. They would henceforth be called Thrones. For as long as they lived on, their kings’ souls would soar through the heavens on their Thrones in the sky.

The Founding King’s Throne, and the Throne of the Savage King who came after him, continued to fly. Therefore, Ignitia had no need for a mausoleum of kings.

At the bottom of the stairs, Erika reached the nethermost level of the cathedral. There was a single coffin left in front of the door, beyond which the Beast of Contracts lurked. It looked newer than the other ones, and it hadn’t been filled with flowers yet.

Erika felt her blood run cold as she saw the name carved into it: August Ignitia. The very boy she was looking for. She hugged the wall beside the door, readying her wand as Tirnanog quietly swung it open.

The room inside was just a little narrower than the one that contained the mural, and it was roughly square. Its walls and floors were engraved with stylized eyes and eyelids. Apart from these carvings, there weren’t any decorations of note; no paintings, statues, or furnishings.

A soft, orange light reminiscent of sunset poured down from overhead, and it was impossible to make out whatever ceiling may or may not have lain beyond it.

In the center of the room stood August, his back to the door.

4

“Please, tell me. Am I really my father’s—King Henri’s son?”

August’s words filled the hidden room. Erika had been about to call out to him, but found herself frozen in place. For a moment, she thought that question had been meant for her, but August’s eyes were focused elsewhere.

It was like he was talking to an invisible entity.

“Am I human? What is this power?” August continued his cross-examination with sincerity in his voice.

Erika couldn’t see his face, and she couldn’t hear whomever he was talking to.

“You always say only what I want to hear. You always say whatever’s convenient for you. But I know you’re a liar. The truth is twisted however you see fit. Yeah, I know. The truth is, my heart is weak. So weak that I could never believe a word you said. Maybe I’m just running away... from the truth, from myself. And from you.”

August paused and turned.

“You followed me all the way here, Erika.”

Only a moment ago, he had been pleading to someone with such miserable, desolate sorrow, but August’s face was now plastered with a calm smile. Erika felt a strong disconnect between the two of them, but she forced herself to take a step closer.

“Let’s go back, August. You can still make it in time.”

“I’ll ‘make it in time’? Then where am I going, and what will I arrive in time for?”

August’s violet eyes wavered, and Erika couldn’t find the right words to say.

“It’s all over, all of it. It’s not easy to dispel what’s found its way into the human heart. I’ll need great power to overturn the judgments I forced upon them, to throw out the doubts I stuffed down their throats... power strong enough to cause a miracle.” His voice cracked as he went on. “My mother, she always believed in me. My father, too; no matter what doubts they tried to breathe into him, he tried his best to believe. I wanted to achieve the results my parents hoped for. I wanted to be the August they wanted.”

Erika tried to imagine the pain August had endured from a very young age. Just what was going through his head when he decided to turn to the forbidden arts? A stranger who didn’t know a thing could neither sympathize nor empathize.

However, that was irrelevant to her desire to prevent August’s ruin. The way she saw it, precisely because she was an oblivious stranger, she could stick her nose where it didn’t belong and stop him before it was too late.

“There’s no reason for you to be a sacrifice for that wish.”

“A sacrifice? Well, look at you, Erika. I guess you’ve seen through everything.” August gave a shallow, self-deriding laugh.

“So you already knew how to find the beast?”

“I’m sorry. I guess I did lie to you.”

“That’s not what I want to talk about. I didn’t come for an apology—”

“I’ve already made my decision, Erika.” He spoke without hesitation. His smile changed to an ephemeral one that could be blown away in an instant. “Thank you for being my friend.”

“Why do you have to say that? You make it sound as if we won’t be friends anymore.” Erika stopped herself before she could say, “You make it sound like you’re about to die. I don’t have many friends to begin with, so it would be a real bother if you have to throw in the towel because of something like that.”

She wanted to ramble on, to distract him at least. Would she be better off instead marching up to him emotionally and forcing him to stop?

“Once my wish is granted, I won’t be who I was before. So I’m glad I got to meet you one last time.”

Something silver flashed in August’s hand: a bizarre knife, curved like the claw of a carnivorous beast. He had inflicted a small cut on his own hand far faster than Erika or Tirnanog could reach him.

“If I can be granted just one tiny miracle, I want to be the me I should have been. Not the one standing here. A me brimming with confidence who never has to doubt himself. Who can ride a dragon freely through the skies. A me my father and mother can be proud of.” A single drop of blood fell from his palm. “If I could have only that, then I don’t need my heart—”

Before the drop could hit the ground, it disappeared, as if lapped up by an invisible tongue. August calmly closed his purple eyes.

“In accordance with our ancient pact, I offer the following to the guardian of my forefathers: my blood, my flesh, my soul, my everything, in exchange for one wish.”

The power drained from August’s body, and he collapsed with his face turned to the sky. At the same time, a flame erupted behind him. It blazed a brilliant red and rose until it was twice the height of a grown man.

A humanlike shadow flickered and swayed in the blaze. Two arms emerged from the tongues of the enraged inferno, catching August and holding him close.

“Foolish child... to torture yourself until your heart was in such a ragged state. Oh, but how ironic as well. To us beasts, the wounds etched into thine heart are what make thy soul beautiful beyond compare.”

The flames gradually shrank and condensed, revealing the figure hidden within them.

Heaps of glossy hair, golden with a touch of red, blooming outward like a lion’s mane. Lightly tanned skin reminiscent of desert sand. The heat of the flames became threads that stitched their way into a red, southern dress, while the light took shape as her golden ornaments.

There stood a beautiful, terrifying woman who gave off an untamed, ferocious air. She seemed young; she seemed old. She was mature and infantile all at once.

What most distinguished this woman from humankind was her eyes. They were completely different from when Erika had first met her; she now boasted golden eyes with vertical slits for pupils like some predatory feline.

Just the sight of her filled Erika with such tension and dread that she struggled to breathe. Yet this sight also elicited a fascination and a sense of security that comforted her heart.

The strange, contradictory impression this woman gave off cemented Erika’s belief that she was beyond human understanding.

“It really is you, Palug. So you’re the Beast of Contracts?”

The woman narrowed her eyes and smiled, which Erika took to be confirmation. There was definitely no mistaking her face, and the woman herself was admitting to it, yet Erika still couldn’t believe she was the same person as that self-proclaimed demon.

Her whole aura was completely different from when they had met in front of the mural and on the palace terrace. Her true and monstrous nature had finally come to light. The longer Erika looked at her, the more she felt this woman might actually be a demon.

Her touch as gentle as if she were handling a fragile artifact, she lay August to rest on the floor. These gestures were filled with a sort of motherly love.

“Who’d have thought you would come all the way down here? Poor little Erika.”

“If you’re the Beast of Contracts, I’m begging you. Please don’t make a contract with August.”

Why was she the Beast of Contracts? If she really was, why had it taken so long to grant August’s wish? Putting all these questions aside, Erika tried to persuade her. All that remained was for this ruinous contract to be fulfilled, and the only one who could do that—or choose not to—was the Beast of Contracts herself.

“If you fuse with August to make a contract, you’ll go out of control in six years.”

“I know.”

“I don’t know how exactly it works, but the beast—I mean, you—were unable to withstand the fusion with August.”

“I know.”

“Once you lose control, you might end up killing someone. Once he’s separated from you, August will lose his ability to ride dragons. For good this time.”

“I said I know.”

Palug slowly turned toward Erika. Her demeanor had changed once again. Erika’s face was reflected back in dead, listless eyes.

“Wait! Erika! Not another step!”

“What?”

“Be careful. Even if she’s human in form, don’t think her heart beats the same as yours.”

“But Palug is—”

A flash of light suddenly crossed Erika’s vision. As Tirnanog landed, there was a scorch mark on his left gauntlet.

Palug’s pose was slightly different from a few seconds before; her right arm was now extended. That was all Erika could see, but she understood that in that brief instant, some sort of exchange had happened between the two of them.

“Oh dear, what a perceptive snake. And I was ready to end it painlessly, before she knew what was going on.”

“You finally revealed yourself, accursed vixen! I knew you were shady from the start!”

Tirnanog stood in front of Erika to defend her. Negotiations had broken down from the first sentence, and battle seemed unavoidable. But why was Palug trying to kill her? That part she couldn’t understand.

“Tir, you knew from the start?”

“I told you not to be fooled. This woman is no demon; she’s a breed of phantasmic beast. A divine beast, to be precise.”

Palug shook her head. Her mane of golden hair swayed wildly like the artificial tresses of a kabuki actor. A pair of lion-like ears popped up atop her head, her arms were covered in a thin layer of gold fur, and her nails grew longer and sharper. A lion’s tail slowly stretched out from the gap in her dress, which was open from her back to her hips. Her gold eyes glared at the two of them from the gaps in her disheveled hair.

“Vixen? Divine beast? What baseless accusations. Lowly snake, do you have knotholes for eyes?”

“Grrrrr! You vile woman, calling me a snake yet again!”

Tirnanog kicked off the floor, sending his body barreling at Palug. The moment his black claws were about to reach her, the flash of light deflected him again. Redirecting himself, he did a turn in the air, landing back at Erika’s side.

“I’m at a disadvantage. Erika, undo my restraints.”

“Right, on it!”

Erika issued an order to Tirnanog’s armor. When mana was poured into it, starsteel could be as malleable as gold or as hard as steel. This specific armor of starsteel had been given another function, made possible only by the abundant mana of a phantasmic beast.

“The cage is open, the shackles unwound, the chain falls to pieces. All bindings crumble to stardust. My art is an unseen hearth. My skill, an unseen mold. My law, an unseen anvil. My spell, an unseen hammer. Revive the memories sealed in black steel. Regain your true form, and shroud my friend. Armor of stardust!”

In concert with her commands, the armor glowed faintly with ancient words of Aurelian alchemists. Vast swathes of mana flooded into it from the philosopher’s stone embedded within Tirnanog’s soul. The starsteel armor crumbled into the shape of letters, swirling around the black dragon like flower petals swept up in a breeze.

As his true, liquid form was revealed, Tirnanog grew larger and larger. He expanded to the size of an elephant, his form gradually shaping into a dragon.

The starsteel dismantled into letters stuck fast onto the outer tissue of the same liquid body he had unveiled at the altar of the Seafarer’s Ruins. As they covered his body like fish scales, they let off a conspicuously stronger light.

Once the light had died down, the scale-like letters had merged with him completely, and what emerged was a suit of armor mimicking his form as the giant, black dragon.

“How pitiful. Do you think growing a couple of sizes is enough to defeat me?”

“You’ll experience firsthand that my size isn’t all I have going for me!”

The moment his gigantification was complete, Tirnanog sprinted at Palug full force. He lowered his claws at the divine beast with one mighty swing, as if he intended to settle it with a single blow.

A thunderous rumble of air shook the entirety of the hidden room.

5

The starsteel-clad talon slammed down on Palug, its impact so great that Erika found herself closing her eyes. When she timidly opened them back up, she could hardly believe the scene before her.

Despite Tirnanog being quite a few times larger than her, Palug had stopped his strike with one hand.

“Dear me, it looks like you’re no kin to the King of Serpents. A manufactured sham of a dragon. No wonder you can stand against me.”

“A sham? What insolence! Choose your next foolish words carefully; they might be your last!” Tirnanog roared and swiped again.

Palug narrowly avoided, lightly placing a hand on his claws to redirect the attack. Everything she did was done with minimal effort.

While Tirnanog was beginning to grow impatient, his foe was overcome with calm composure. When his guard was down, Palug shifted to her counterattack. Her claw slipped past his crossed arms and sliced a gash through his shoulder.

Where she had marked it, his armor was a scorching red like it had been exposed to intense heat. The tracts Palug left were in the shape of her nails, so rather than cutting, it looked as though she had melted straight through. However, the spell carved into Tirnanog’s armor quickly activated, using his mana to close the wound. Any minor damage would immediately be repaired.

“You speak of insolence, but what about you, false dragon? You should know who’s stronger now, so why haven’t you turned your belly up and submitted like a good little beast?”

“If that’s your way, then get on the floor where you belong, filthy feline!”

Tirnanog took a large swipe with his long, armored tail, a swipe which Palug avoided with a light leap. That was precisely what he’d been aiming for. While the swing of his tail had thrown his stance off and his back was turned, he unleashed an attack with his claws. All the joints on his right arm bent backward—this was an attack only possible with a body made of free-flowing liquid, a blow living up to his monstrous reputation.

Even Palug couldn’t evade a surprise attack while in the air. Tirnanog’s talons stabbed at her stomach—or so it seemed, when at the last moment, she grabbed his arm and surmounted it with a pullover. She dug her nails deep into his starsteel armor, performing another spin around it at a breakneck speed. His arm was twisted out of shape; it let off the detestable creak of warping metal.

Tirnanog’s feet left the ground. It was like their positions had been completely reversed, with Palug having found firm footing, lifting the black dragon’s massive body into the air.

It was impossible to damage Tirnanog by manipulating his joints. His body could freely shift between liquid and solid states. However, the speed at which his starsteel armor transformed to match lagged just a little behind. It was this slight delay she had used to lock not his body, but his armor, and seal his movements.

With that very same motion, she slammed him into the ground.

“Now beg for forgiveness. I’ll give you one chance, deformed snakespawn.”

“I don’t need it from the likes of you!”

Tirnanog liquefied his forearm, practically ripping it out of the armor, as he used his remaining three legs to kick the floor and leap back. In a few seconds, the gauntlet that remained in Palug’s arms dissolved into grains of light before condensing back on its former host.

This was an extraordinary battle between monsters. Erika, who had been watching in awe, finally regained her senses when Tirnanog landed beside her.

“It irks me to say, but I can’t beat that woman with my current strength.”

“Is it time for a strategic retreat?”

“No. If we can’t win with brute force, we can simply win with something else. You brought a few trump cards, didn’t you?”

“Got it,” Erika replied, tossing him the Disintegrate wand she had kept in her holster.

The Disintegrate wand had the ability to dismantle any form of matter; it was one of the most dangerous offensive wands around.

Tirnanog unhinged his mouth guard, caught the wand in his teeth, and chewed it to bits. A black torrent of mana overflowed from his innermost depths. Once swallowed, the magic began to circulate through the amplification organs within him. Black, electric sparks fizzled around his mouth as he fired off a dark beam.

His shot was wide, fast, and sweeping. Even Palug couldn’t avoid it, and as she took a clean hit, she blurred, separated into seven transparent, prismatic mirages. It was a peculiar phenomenon, like she was being projected on a busted CRT.

But it lasted only an instant, and Palug was quickly back to normal.

No matter what manner of monster it went up against, Disintegrate destroyed any and all matter, reducing it to its elementary particles. At least, that was how it was supposed to be. Yet there Palug stood, perfectly unharmed.

“My, that’s quite a dangerous spell you have there. I’m glad you didn’t accidentally hit our beloved prince.”

“How did you—?!”

“I was properly taken apart, mind you. I just put myself back together in a flash.”

Palug rolled her shoulders, confirming her body’s condition as she grinned. She hummed a random, nonsensical tune as she leisurely strolled toward Tirnanog.

“It was a fine attack. I would have been annihilated if I didn’t know what I was doing. Unfortunately for you, your biggest mistake was assuming I was made of matter.”

“If you’re not matter, then what are you?!”

“Why, as you can see...”

After taking a half step, Palug disappeared, leaving an afterimage burned into Erika’s retinas. Only five streaks of red indicated the path she had taken.

“I am made of heat and light.”

For a moment, the powerful light she gave off forced Erika to avert her eyes. By the time she turned back around, all that remained was the armor, melted and torn into six pieces, and a liquid Tirnanog who could just barely maintain his original shape.

She had torn through the sturdy starsteel, leaving each severed cross section an oozing mess from having been melted straight through. Tirnanog’s main body seemed to be somewhat alive, its black liquid wriggling in an attempt to distance itself from the scorching metal portions. The parts of him that had taken the heat directly gave off a black smoke along with the scent of burnt flesh.

“Graaaaah! To have suffered such damage...!”

“Are you alright? Please, don’t die!”

“Worry not... I will not die. But I cannot fight any longer... For now, I must... rest.”

Completely losing his dragonic shape, Tirnanog liquefied and slipped into Erika’s leather bag. A large portion of him had been burned to cinders, and only a very small segment could still move.

“Erika... run...”

He went quiet after that.

Erika lifted up her bag and turned toward the exit. However, the next instant, a convoluted magic circle the likes of which she had never seen before flickered into existence around her.

“You won’t get away. The hindrance is gone, and we’re finally alone.”

Palug’s eyes laughed. They were the color of glowing, molten gold in a furnace.

What now? Erika was rather perplexed. If even Tirnanog had lost, how was she supposed to get away? Scanning the magic circle, she noticed a string of characters she just barely recognized. These were the letters of the old empire, and while she could not read them, she could make out a familiar shape here and there. Isn’t that part of the inscription that was scraped from the obelisk?

A number of threads joined in her head. The Beast of Contracts held the right to reign over snakes, and the Founding King’s guardian angel granted him the power to control dragons.

She thought back to the lion-headed angel on the mural of the One True God. An angel with a medicinal vial in one hand. The Beast of Contracts had saved people by eating an epidemic. Even now, sick-eating lynxes were used as charms.

The divine beast that stood before her boasted claws of intense heat. The angel had brandished a sword of flames.

Could it be that the exact opposite had happened from the alchemists’ legend of the Seafarer’s Ruins? Presumably, there had once been a single monster called Palug. But as her story had been passed down, and she had earned herself many names, she was ultimately remembered as many separate beasts.

“Palug, you’re the angel who gave the Founding King the ability to ride dragons. Am I right?”

Palug crossed her two fur-covered forearms over her chest, an ecstatic smile on her face as she looked up to the heavens. Her shoulders trembled, a motion which gradually grew into a broken laugh.

“Mmheehee... Hahaha... Ahahahahaha! How wonderful, little miss Erika. I was found out twice in a span of only a few years. What’s more, one of them isn’t even royalty—she’s just a foreign girl! I’ve lived several thousand years, and this is a first for me.” All of a sudden, Palug stopped laughing. She offered an elegant bow. “That’s right, Alchemist Erika Aurelia. I am the first attendant to the supreme Lord of the heavens, the One True God. She who was born from the left eye of the mighty sun, who shines far and wide across the world with his thousand arms. The name God granted me was Pestilence. The name King Guillaume bestowed upon me was Cath Palug.

“I am his messenger. I am she who swings the sword of flames.

“I am she who rids ailments, and she who rules snakes.

“I am the guardian of children, and one who hears the wishes of men—or I was. But that was a long time ago.”

Erika’s vision blurred, as though a heat haze had risen around her. The light raining down from on high was hit by a faint, red hue, after which it gradually darkened.

Blood flowed from Palug’s left eye, passing down her face like a teardrop. Mimicking this, a mysterious red liquid flowered out from the eye-shaped grooves in the walls.

By the time she realized it, the room’s temperature had risen so high that she was sweating all over. Yet the unbearable chill seizing Erika’s spine never left her.

“By now, I bear not a semblance of the power I once had. It’s all gone; only the dregs remain. It’s been used up to slaughter giants, to slaughter vampyres, to grant the wishes of the kind and the wise. It’s all been used up to devour the King of Serpents, to devour all manner of ailments, to save the people of my beloved king. I used my power for God. I used my power for mankind.”

Erika’s instincts screamed that she had to get away from this ruined angel this very instant, but her feet would not move a single step.

“And yet, I was forgotten. No one remembers me anymore. No one prays to me anymore. The source of angels’ power is human faith. Without it, I could not even replenish my waning strength. At this rate, I would face a slow and peaceful demise; I was sure of that. After granting just one more wish, or if another ten years passed, I would no longer be able to maintain my existence and I would simply fade away. I intended to accept that demise.”

Palug stopped abruptly and looked at August. Her eyes were warm, but her expression was filled with sorrow.

“But one day, an odd boy found this forgotten angel. At last, someone needed me: this child alone. Yes, August was the one who gave me a reason to keep existing. I was as good as dead, and he wanted me to live. Because of that, I have no hesitation, no reservations, in offering this body and soul to his ambition.”

Palug’s words closely resembled what August himself had said. Insatiable devotion. Wishing for someone’s happiness even if it meant sacrificing oneself. Even if ruin was all that awaited the two of them.

“But in that case, you aren’t going to be able to completely grant August’s wish. Could it be that you don’t have enough power left to do it?”

“Yes, that’s right. Even if, in addition to the powers I would gain from fusing with August, I burned through my entire existence, I would only be able to maintain it for six years... no, four and a half years at most.”

The time period was even less than it had been in Liber Monstrorum. Perhaps that battle with Tirnanog had further reduced what little power the beast had remaining.

“Palug, why don’t you just give it a rest already? If you keep at it, you’ll both end up miserable. How about giving up on the contract and spending what little time you have left by August’s side?”

“I know. That’s what I’ve always wanted to do. But you see, Erika, I’ve already made my decision. I’ll use all my power for this child. My precious prince has made his wish, and I intend to grant it.”

“But, Palug...”

Erika understood just how precious August must have been to her. She racked her brain, searching for a better resolution to all this, but couldn’t come up with anything.

“I mean, the sacrifice I need to obtain power already came here obliviously on her own two feet. I don’t even need to resign myself to oblivion anymore.”

Erika froze. “What do you mean by ‘sacrifice’?”

“Now, what could I mean? Perhaps I’m referring to a clever, cute, and dreadfully kind little alchemist?”

Palug’s lips, still half open, lifted up at the corners. This was the smile of a beast with its fangs bared. Erika was overcome with such dread, she felt her fingers grow numb. She could feel her fear draining her heat away. It was far too late, but now her dull sixth sense was setting off its loudest alarm.

Why didn’t I notice? Erika trembled. What had she been doing? Why had she wasted her time unmasking Palug’s identity and her feelings? Before being a courageous martyr hoping to empower the prince with her last breath, before being an angel who wished to protect a nation, this woman before her eyes was a beast starved for power.

“How pitiful. See how you shake? But don’t worry. Your existence won’t be erased. Your blood and soul will be converted into the power needed to fulfill the wish, but your physical form will remain. I’ll use your body to live your life. Oh, how wonderful. If I have Erika Aurelia’s body, why, I might even marry August someday.”

With only a few words, this being had completely destroyed Erika’s very conception of angels. The bombshells had dropped so suddenly that her brain struggled to process it all. The one thing she did understand was that she wanted absolutely nothing to do with whatever future Palug had envisioned for herself.

Slowly, ever so slowly, Palug approached. Erika drew her Paralyze wand from her holster and swung it at her. An unseen curse of petrification burst out, leaving only a faint glow on the wand’s tip.

But Palug didn’t stop. Her form blurred for only a moment.

She dodged it.

Presumably, Erika wouldn’t be able to hit her with any straightforward attacks. Even if Erika’s attack was invisible, or if it traveled at light speed, Palug would read the wand’s direction and her eye line, dodging it before Erika could even activate the spell.

“Erika Aurelia. You came here to save August, didn’t you? Then what’s the matter? You’ll just be saving me as well,” Palug said with an enchanting smile, flashing her nails. Each time she grew closer, the surrounding temperature shot up.

Erika’s eyes flitted to the exit. If she could just get to the doorway, she could put up physical barriers with Wall of Stone or Barbed Wire. Of course, when it came to Palug, she would quite likely easily destroy whatever walls Erika had put up. But what if it wasn’t just one or two? What if the obstructions came in endless supply?

Each time she wielded her power of destruction, Palug had to shave away at her own lifespan. Considering the uses remaining in her wands, Erika put her chances at fifty-fifty, but if she could just place enough obstacles to make Palug give up on chasing her, she might be able to get away.

However...

Erika noticed two problems with this plan. Firstly, her bag was heavier now that Tirnanog was in it. Secondly, August was in the opposite direction of the door.

The mere thought of hauling this heavy bag made the ten meters to the exit seem like a boundless expanse, and if she used the shortest distance to get away, that would mean giving up on August. That being said, no matter how she looked at it, it would be impossible to shoulder August—who was beyond Palug—and carry the bag with Tirnanog. In the first place, she couldn’t guarantee her own escape even if she abandoned both of them.

“The least I could do is end it painlessly. Good night, sweet Erika.”

Palug slowly lowered her right hand. Dense, powerful flames were running up and down her claws.

This is the true form of the light that took out Tirnanog—the sword of flames from the mural!

The flames were nearly lapping at Erika when suddenly, something silver flew out from behind her. This projectile performed seemingly random maneuvers before it collided with Palug’s arm, letting off a heavy, metallic thud.

Palug’s right arm was thrown back, and the flow of the mana that formed her flames dispersed. She immediately lifted her left arm, enveloped it in flame, and swatted the flying object out of the air.

Bisected, the paper scraps burned up in an instant, leaving nothing but ash. As Palug leapt back in August’s direction, several thousand more papers flooded in, surrounding Erika.

Are these spell cards?

She remembered seeing this same formation before. A protective circle used by Hafan magicians had been erected around her. There was only one person she knew who not only specialized in this magic, but had managed to apply what was purely a defensive spell as a form of offense.

“If you want to kill her, you’ll have to go through me first!” Claus roared as he stepped inside the hidden chamber.

6

“Looks like I came just in time.”

“Glad you could make it, Claus.”

“And I’m glad you look unharmed... Wait.” Claus frowned and glared at her, apparently only now noticing something was off. “Come to think of it, why are you in a place like this?”

“That story’s too long and too complicated. I’d rather know how you knew I was here. Weren’t you on a top-secret investigation with Eduard?”

Even if she had left the secret passage wide open, they were still in the innermost room of the Grand Cathedral.

“All I did was follow Anne’s Alarm.” Claus glanced at Erika’s leather bag.

“Her what?” Erika tilted her head. Was this some sort of mistake?

Did she cast an Alarm spell on me? But Anne never got the chance to tamper with my bag. The only thing that came to mind was when the girl had shaken hands with Tirnanog. Erika realized that Anne might’ve embedded magic into his hand.

Presumably, she had anticipated that Erika and Tirnanog would find themselves in a situation they couldn’t resolve on their own and had therefore called in reinforcements. Claus was a powerful asset; Erika couldn’t have asked for better backup.

“I thought Anne got wrapped up in something dangerous. No wonder the marker was moving so fast even though she was never any good at movement magic.”

“My humblest apologies.”

“When I told him Anne was in danger, Eduard took me off the investigation lickety-split. The other investigators all looked at me like I was one of his ilk! I’ll never live it down!”

Claus’ face turned bitter at the memory. He detested the idea of being treated as an obsessive brother on the same level as Eduard.

“Still, I really am happy you came for me.”

“Hmph. Save those thanks for Eduard.” Claus bluntly turned away to hide his embarrassment. When his gaze fell on the other human in the room, he pointed. “Incidentally, is that girl on the ground over there a friend of yours?”

“Who are you—”

The one on the floor was August. Claus had mistaken the long-haired, delicate-looking boy for a girl, and rather than resolving this misunderstanding, Erika decided to just carry on nonchalantly.

“Yes, a very precious friend.”

“Then we can’t leave her here.”

“Let’s do our best to help ’em out!”

“Erika, your sense of danger is as nonexistent as ever.”

“I believe Anne said something similar.”

“If you don’t have any crisis management skills, why do you keep sticking your nose into dangerous predicaments? I’d love to grill you on that, but I’ll save it for later. I doubt that monster’s going to wait for much longer.”

Claus held his staff aloft, deploying two additional sets of cards. Beyond the protective circle, Palug gave a bemused laugh.

“How cute. You’ve got yourself a little knight. Oh, what I wouldn’t give for a dashing man to show up to protect me too. However...”

Palug took two swipes with her claws, tearing a cross into the barrier erected around them. In an instant, the spell cards that crossed their path were burned to a crisp.

“It’s all rather toxic to a spinster’s eyes, so won’t you kindly disappear?”

Claus frantically threw in extra spell cards, enforcing his spell with a chant.

“What is this thing?”

“A phantasmic beast, an angel, a lion, and the royal family’s guardian—a man-eating beast that will grant any wish.”

“That didn’t make it any clearer! Fine! That’ll have to wait too. Instead, why don’t you explain the wreckage over there that resembles a monster we all know and love,” Claus said, his voice laced with restrained anger. Perceptive as he was, he had noticed the armor and liquid remnants that closely resembled the monster he had fought two months ago.

Erika knew that lying here would get her nowhere, so she gave up and answered honestly. “Well, you said I could do whatever I wanted with him.”

“I thought you were going to give him a proper burial. Who the hell would agree to undoing the seal?!”

“I mean, I at least wanted to do something about the contract! Wouldn’t you?!”

Even as he argued with Erika, Claus’ protective circle grew thicker and thicker. It had achieved eight layers at the heftiest portion. It was even stronger against psychological attacks than it had been in the Seafarer’s Ruins. In exchange, it now fell short when it came to physical defense, heat resistance, and speed.

“Come to think of it, Claus. Shouldn’t you be using a few more of your spell cards for offense?”

“Can’t. This protective circle is weak, so I need to keep reinforcing it.”

“Is it different from the spell you used back then?”

“Yeah, this one’s more than eight hundred years old. I don’t know why, but when it comes to mind-altering magic, the spells from the olden days are much stronger. If you haven’t noticed, this is the center of the wave that’s covering the entire capital.”

Erika suddenly recalled that people with low magic resistance were unable to move under the influence of August’s magic, and those with high resistance still couldn’t get close to the cathedral.

“You get the picture. I won’t be able to attack anytime soon. It’s up to you while I’m solidifying my defenses. You have the wands for it, don’t you?”

“Yes, I’m fine in that regard.”

Erika picked a wand from her bag.

“Are you done talking yet? Can I intrude on this eyesore of a couple yet?” Palug said over a stifled yawn, having faithfully waited for them to prepare themselves. At a glance, she seemed lax and listless, but no matter how Erika scanned her, she couldn’t see any weakness to exploit.

Claus took a few steps forward.

“Sorry to keep you waiting, monster. I’ll take you on. Have at thee!”

“My, oh my. Then I’ll go right ahead. Who am I to turn down an invitation from such a lovely boy?” Palug lackadaisically took half a step forward, lowering into a stance that put her strength into her legs.

The amplification effect embedded in Claus’ staff gradually attuned itself to his ancient, defensive spell. In the next instant, his amplified mana dispersed all at once.

“What?!”

The staff split halfway up its shaft.

It had been crushed in the grip of a fur-covered hand. Palug had been over ten meters away, and there was a protective circle blocking her path, yet she had inserted herself between Erika and Claus in no time at all.

The lioness gave an innocent laugh.

“That’s a big no-no. You can’t point something so dangerous at a woman.”

“How in the—?!”

While shock crossed Claus’ face, he immediately cast aside his broken staff and pulled out an extra bundle of spell cards. Sparks of mana scattered between Palug’s hand and his own.

Palug’s red-hot claws were received by the protective spell he erected at a moment’s notice. Quite a few of these cards turned to ash in his hand while the others scattered across the floor. She enveloped her other hand in flames as well and continued her relentless assault. The air between them flickered a number of times, and with each time, several of Claus’ spell cards would be destroyed.

If they keep that up, the protective circle is going to be destroyed.

Erika had leapt out before that realization had even struck her. She circled around to Palug’s flank and swung an offensive wand. The magic circle that wrapped around the grooves of the Magic Missile wand discharged a bolt of pure magical energy. She scattered her shots, making them difficult to dodge. It seemed that five was the limit for rapid fire.

Palug lightly dodged without even looking in Erika’s direction.

“Well done!”

Erika hadn’t managed to hit Palug, but she’d loosened her pressure on Claus ever so slightly. He swung a spell-card-encased fist, which she blocked.

On contact, the cards let off a powerful burst of white light. Once the glow died down, Palug’s left hand was covered in a thick frost. Her flaming nails had been suppressed with ice magic.

Determining that ice was effective, Claus tried the same thing again. Palug avoided with a backstep this time, but Erika fired another volley of Magic Missile. Matching Erika’s attack, Claus shifted some of his protective circle’s spell cards to the offense and chased after her.

Erika had aimed for the defenseless moment when she landed, but this proved ineffective as Palug never hit the ground. Claus’ spell cards arrived a split second before the Magic Missile, and Palug used those as footholds to jump again. Of course, both Erika and Claus followed up with another shot, but these attacks were intercepted and erased by her right claw.

Palug touched down with an elegant twirl of her bright red dress. “Dear me, I really don’t want to use up any more of my power.” Flames erupted from her left hand, immediately evaporating the frost that covered it.

How much longer will we have to chip away?

Erika was feeling impatient. She was worried about Claus, who was caught up in such bewildering close combat. He was being forced to maintain a thick protective circle while also firing off ceaseless magical attacks. How long would his mana hold out?

“Claus, are you holding up okay?”

“Yeah, I’ve got plenty more where that came from. You’ve got an ace or two up your sleeve, don’t you?”

“Of course.”

“Fight like you’re gonna settle things. I need you to use one of them. Please, just buy me a little time,” Claus said, flashing a spell card imbued with magic Erika recognized immediately.

7

The glimmering, silver mana surrounding this spell card belonged to the almighty magic that would produce a time-delay barrier. Erika understood his intent and nodded. If conventional attacks couldn’t hit Palug, then all he had to do was stop her time.

Keeping her Magic Missile wand in her right hand, she drew her Hail of Stone wand with her left. Like Magic Missile, it was a relatively cheap wand, but it contained offensive magic suitable for fighting against a medium-sized group.

When Erika swung Hail of Stone, Palug immediately jumped back a few meters. The spot where she had been standing was pelted by countless small but sharp shards of jade. This wide-area attack would be difficult for a human to avoid, but evidently, it wasn’t too effective on a divine beast.

I expected as much.

Erika adjusted the Hail of Stone’s area of effect, intermittently peppering down its sharp fragments. This spell generated a cloud of debris before sending it down, meaning the time lag between the activation and attack was too long.

That gap was where she used her Magic Missile wand. One of her high-speed, consecutive magic bullets finally managed to graze Palug’s arm.

“Oh dear, you’re really grasping at straws here.”

“I don’t really have time to care about appearances when I’m up against you.”

It was a mix of magical and physical attacks—a combination of relatively slow-moving bullets from above and high-speed shots from head-on. She didn’t have much control over where the jade fragments hit, but she made up for it with precise sniping.

Erika had launched a simultaneous attack with two very different magics. The shards from Hail of Stone had no gap large enough to slip through. Once cornered, Palug could no longer dodge; she was forced to defend. Swiping away the sharp gemstones with her furry forearms, she barely avoided the next Magic Missile shot. She was still smiling, but she didn’t seem to have the same composure as before.

“Hey, I’m just a dying beast. You could hold back a bit.”

“I hear that wounded beasts are the most terrifying ones.”

“I see you have quite a high opinion of me. You’re a wonderful judge of character.”

This consecutive stream of attacks had driven Palug into a corner, but the same could be said of Erika herself. Palug dodged faster than she’d anticipated, and in her attempts to compensate for it, she was using her area-of-effect attacks more and more. In no time at all, the uses in her Hail of Stone wand had gone down from around fifty to ten.

What now? I have a spare, but she’s not going to give me time to pull it out.

If she stopped the downpour for even an instant, Palug would launch an attack. That being said, it would be unwise to drop the Magic Missile wand while it still had plenty of uses to draw another Hail of Stone. It was better than having her Hail of Stone run out, but that would allow Palug to close the distance between them. Even if she managed to shift the Magic Missile to her other hand immediately after, it required precise alignment, which would be impossible with her left hand.

The Hail of Stone wand ran out before she could decide on her next move. She raised the density of attacks from her Magic Missile wand as much as she could while her free hand rummaged and pulled out her second Hail of Stone.

She could see the divine beast weaving her way through her haphazard barrage of magic bolts. In her feeble attempt to dodge the charge, Erika tripped herself up and fell onto her back.

I can’t avoid it!

A nail as sharp as a knife came to a halt mere centimeters away from her. It wasn’t just the nail; the stone fragments had also stopped mid-descent. The only thing moving in her field of vision was a glimmering, silver spell card.

A rapidly deployed circle had cut them off from the regular flow of time. This delay magic created a space where everything seemed to move in slow motion. This one was so powerful that it was almost as if time had stopped entirely, and even the divine beast’s movements were bound.

Only Claus would be able to move normally within the barrier. He held up a single spell card, imbuing it with a complicated spell. Once it began to fire off the same silver light as his circle of time magic, he slapped it onto Erika.

The sensation that she had been stitched to the air suddenly disappeared, and just before she could fall over, Claus held her up.

“Thanks, Claus.”

“That was cutting it close. Looks like the neutralization spell is working properly.”

“Neutralization? Oh, I can move?”

She firmly planted her feet on the ground and stood up, leaving Claus’ arms. The surrounding time was still slow, and she could tell the barrier hadn’t been dispelled yet. Evidently, whatever he’d stuck to her prevented her from being sucked into the time delay.

“I’ve been doing a lot of trial and error ever since our battle in the ruins. But we don’t have time to chat. I’ve learned to use it in some new ways, but I didn’t manage to extend its duration by much.”

“So this is our chance to attack.”

Erika immediately swung her Hail of Stone and Magic Missile wands at Palug. A cloud of countless stone fragments took shape in the air while a bullet of mana materialized right in front of Palug’s face. However, the spells were caught up in the delay and didn’t move any farther than that.

“Looks like it didn’t neutralize it for your magic. I’ll have to work on that. It’s going to be a tough nut to crack.”

“What should we do now?”

“Don’t worry. I just have to be the one attacking.”

Claus gave acceleration to the spell cards he had deployed for his protective circle and smacked them toward Palug. But the cards ignited and burned up before they even came into contact with her.

“I have a terrible affinity with this monster. If paper doesn’t work, I’ll have to use something else. Erika, I’m borrowing your magic.”

Claus cast another layer of ice magic onto the Hail of Stone Erika had deployed. The cloud of sharp fragments was enveloped in a pale-blue circle. First, water vapor condensed on the shards’ surface, forming a layer of frost, then a coating of solid ice set in over that.

“Hail of Stone and Cold Snap should fuse into the combo magic Hailstorm.”

“I don’t really think I did enough to call it a combo.”

“Whatever the case, that changes the practitioner to me.”

On top of that, Claus added the acceleration magic he usually used on his spell cards. A wide area-of-effect attack in a time-delay barrier with additional acceleration would be impossible to avoid.

As he finished his chant, Claus swung down his arm. A myriad of accelerated ice shards drew silver trails in the air as they flew at Palug.

A violent torrent of light gave way to overwhelming destructive force. The hail that smashed into the floor crumbled, scattering into a razor-sharp mist. The particles of ice and stone once again left Claus’ control, fastened firmly to the stationary air. A glistening fog dappled with sparkling jade thinly covered the battlefield.

It wasn’t enough to completely cut off their field of vision. Even so, Palug was nowhere to be seen.

“She disappeared?” Claus gasped. “Where did she go?”

“Does that mean we completely annihilated her?”

“Hell no. She’s the sort of monster who can burn up spell cards imbued with freezing spells.”

“But how could she run in slowed-down time?”

The next instant, Claus lurched forward. The spell cards forming the time-delay barrier and his protective circle had been destroyed simultaneously. Erika rushed over to check on him; thankfully, she didn’t see any external injuries.

“I see, so she moves at the speed of light...” Claus muttered. As she followed his eyes, a red light crossed Erika’s field of vision.

Palug manifested in the air and lightly descended to the floor below.

“Correct. It really, really tires me out, so if possible, I didn’t want to use it. You slowed me down quite a bit, but I am light. Your falling pebbles are practically stationary in my eyes. But hey, if time had been stopped completely, even I would have been done in.”

The strength left Claus’ body. Erika wasn’t strong enough to hold him up, and he fell to his knees.

“Ngh, curse this blasted mind magic!”

“Claus, are you okay?!”

With his protective circle gone, Claus was directly exposed to the powerful waves of mind control. Large beads of sweat formed on his brow. Expending vast amounts of mana, he endured with his natural magic resistance.

“Oh dear, you’re struggling more than I expected. You’ll have it a lot easier if you give up and submit to my prince.”

“Like hell... I’m gonna listen to you! I’m not losing... I swore I would be Erika’s shield!”

In great pain, looking as if he would fall unconscious at any moment, Claus stood in front of Erika. Palug looked down at him with a thin smile on her lips.

“Who are you? Are you the same as me?”

At that moment, August’s shoulders twitched. Claus took his eyes off of Palug and looked around. His eyes finally fixed on blank space, and he spoke to someone unseen.

“Fine, I don’t care who or what you are. If you want to control me, go ahead.”

“Claus, what are you...?”

“I’ll be your little doll. In exchange, you have to—”

Palug quickly caught onto who he was talking to.

“No can do.” She delivered a punch to his jaw, so light it was like she was stroking it. Unable to raise a sound, Claus had his consciousness stripped away. “I’m so sorry. I can’t let you put so much of a burden on August. But you were on fire back there. I’m seeing you in a whole new light, boy. So you have my forgiveness. Be thankful. You’ll leave this place alive.”

She smiled kindly at the fallen magician.

“Unfortunately, Erika Aurelia, you are another story. You aren’t getting away.”

The golden beast called out to Erika and narrowed her eyes. Erika blankly gazed back.

For an instant, Palug seemed much younger. Her smile was that of a cruel little girl obliviously crushing a bug underfoot, not knowing what it meant.

“I have only a few moments left to exist. That is, unless I devour your blood, your flesh, and your soul. I have no other option. No matter what happens, I must fulfill my contract with August.”

Palug approached her one step at a time. Erika lurched back in kind; her instincts screamed out louder than ever before.

She briefly wondered why Palug hadn’t burned her to death yet and came to the conclusion that the beast needed an unharmed offering.

How can I escape this predicament? What are my means of escape?

Erika considered her situation. August wasn’t waking up. Tirnanog was regenerating, but he didn’t seem like he could move yet. Claus had been defeated. Her father and brother were both working hard to perform their own duties, and they didn’t know she was here to begin with.

No one’s coming to save me.

Faced with Palug’s overwhelming combat prowess, Erika was on the verge of losing her will to fight. She hadn’t given up on life, but she couldn’t see even the slightest prospects of victory. A mere human couldn’t possibly defeat such an unreasonable monster.

“Otherwise, humans have no way to triumph over such a creature.”

August’s words abruptly crossed her mind. Teetering on the brink of despair, Erika reached out toward this small thread of light.

“The beast was placed under a curse from God, so it couldn’t decline any riddle challenges,” he had said.

If all the fragmentary legends were true, there was some worth in testing it out. Erika decided she would stake her life on this grain of hope.

“Palug, please listen to me!”

“Begging for your life? It is a pity, but it’s far too late for that to work.”

The gears in Erika’s head were locked up from fear and confusion, but she forcibly kicked them into action, blurting out a question worthy of a legendary beast.

“What walks on four legs in the morning, two legs in the afternoon, and three legs in the evening?”

8

For some time, neither one of them said a word. Eventually, Erika couldn’t stand it any longer.

“...Well?”

The exceedingly awkward silence stretching out between them was made all the more apparent by the fact that the smile had vanished from Palug’s face.

At least react, I’m begging you, Erika pleaded in her heart. Why had she said that? She was filled with regret. A battle of wits was her last ray of hope, but it was equally possible that her information was wrong.

“Pfft...”

Palug let out a strange voice. Her expression grew more and more strained, until she was finally unable to keep it in, and she burst into a laugh.

“Ahaha... Hahahaha. How do you know that one? Oh, you sly little devil, hahaha. That was supposed to be a secret between my king and I. It’s been hundreds of years; how did you look into it? Haha, my, how embarrassing.”

The Beast of Contracts stared at Erika through the gaps in her fingers covering her face, her tail swishing this way and that.

Err, did I really do it?

Was it really alright to challenge her to a game of riddles? The beast was cornered and on the verge of death. Would she really accept? Letting out a sigh, Erika did her best to erase these doubts from her mind.

“I didn’t expect a human to challenge me to riddles in this day and age! Are you sure you’re ready for it, alchemist girl? This is where your fate is decided. You’ve opened a door to unspeakable hardships. Once the game begins, even God can’t bring it to a close. This is your last chance to take it back.”

“I’m the one who brought it up! I’m not going to turn back now! You’re on, messenger of God!”

Why would she possibly rescind it? She was practically floundering around, flopping on the chopping block, and this was her last chance. Even if it would be a harsh battle, it was better than sitting and waiting to be eaten.

“Ah! The detestable curse! An unbreakable yoke of a human-loving God. I really don’t want to. Yes, I really, really, don’t! But I accept your challenge.”

Palug offered an exaggerated show of theatrical lament, embracing herself in overplayed agony. No matter how Erika looked at it, she was clearly enjoying herself.

“But a normal match will be my one-sided victory. That’s no fun at all, and it would go against my contract with God. Therefore, I shall grant a mere human the chance to defeat me. We will each take turns presenting a question, and if I get one wrong, it is my loss. You lose if you miss three.”

Palug stuck out three fingers and thrust them at Erika.

“Fine by me. That means I have two freebies, right?”

“Correct. In exchange, with every mistake you make, I will claim one-third ownership over your body.”

“Err, Palug, humans generally die when a third is lopped off.”

“Oh, you. Don’t be so morbid. I’ll just put a little mark on my claim.”

“What do you mean by a mark?”

“Don’t worry about it. I’ll take it off if you win.”

Erika calmly nodded. She couldn’t imagine what sort of mark it would be, but it didn’t really matter if she would be returned to normal.

“The game is set. Now, here’s my response. What creature walks on four legs in the morning, two legs in the afternoon, and three legs at night? The infant crawls on four limbs, he learns to walk on two as he grows, and once his age catches up to him, the old man walks with a cane—the answer is a human.”

“Correct.”

She easily got it right, but to be able to get such advantageous conditions out of an idea she’d thought up on the spot, Erika couldn’t ask for more.

Palug hopped up and down. “Hooray! I did it!” she proclaimed. “As expected of me! How wise I am! Now it’s my turn to give a question, right?” She took on a mysterious martial arts pose, seeming rather excited. Her appearance aside, she responded as simplemindedly as a young child.

“He dies every night and revives every morning. He walks a thousand miles a day and keeps his pace no matter how tiring it is. Who is he?”

Erika had never heard that one before.

Dies every night and revives? He’s not a zombie, right? Then perhaps a magic or phantasmic beast from one of the other continents? Palug said it was a breach of her contract with God if she didn’t give humans a fighting chance. In other words, this riddle was made so humans could solve it—it is a question even someone who knows nothing could answer.

It disappeared at night and revived as the sun rose. A shadow fit the bill, but a shadow did not often walk a thousand miles. Then was there anything else that came and went with the rise and fall of the sun?

Ah, I see. She quickly reached her answer.

“It sinks at night, and shows its face in the morning—the answer is the sun.”

“Mmheehee, correct. Was it too easy?”

“Not at all. You could make them a little easier.”

“My, that sounds promising. Next, I’ll give you a problem so hard you won’t be able to stay humble,” Palug replied, beaming. “But before that, Erika Aurelia, it’s your turn to ask.” She beckoned her with a hand, barely able to contain her excitement.

What riddle would do the trick? Erika hesitated for a moment. Palug quite clearly enjoyed the game, and long-lived as she was, she likely knew all the world’s fundamental riddles. In that case, I should use knowledge from my past life, Erika determined. Her questions would most likely be invalid if they did not make sense in the context of this world, but perhaps that world’s simple riddles would turn out to be riddles no one here could solve.

To test the waters, she picked out a simple one even a child in her previous world could have answered.

“A vast sea above, an inferno below. What am I?” she timidly asked.

A smile spread across Palug’s face. “Hmm, a vast sea would be a bit of an exaggeration for a boiling stove pot. An undersea volcano? No, you humans don’t know about those yet. Oh yes, I remember—the answer is a wood-fired bath.”

“Erm, that’s correct.”

“Hehe, you know about some peculiar things, alchemist girl. Unfortunately for you, my knowledge exceeds yours.”

Palug had reached the correct answer in no time. As well-informed as she was, perhaps that one had been too easy. With cheerful, grandiose gestures, she pointed at Erika.

“It’s my turn again! At times, it is a serious ailment that drives one to their death. Neither the most powerful magic nor the most skilled healer in the world can cure it. However, it is a disease that brings happiness to man and beast alike. Hmm, maybe that one’s too easy for a girl.”

She’d called it easy, but Erika had no idea what the answer was. If it was an ailment that could lead to death, despair was all that came to mind. Despair didn’t really make men or beasts happy, so she knew it was wrong, but what else could it be?

Plus, it’s supposed to be easy for girls. That’s even more confusing.

However, after rethinking it, she found herself right back at despair. Her past-life knowledge was undeniably getting in the way of solving this riddle.

Even so, Erika decided it was better to give an incorrect answer than none at all, so she opened her mouth.

“Is it despair?”

“Wow, you already got one wrong! What a shame! The answer is love. And I thought it was so easy.” Palug expressed her delight as dramatically as ever. Then she paused, and her expression clouded over. “No, hold on. Wait a second, despair? Huh? Why was that your answer?”

“Well, if you’ll let me have my say, is something like love really going to make people happy? Seriously?” Erika replied, completely incredulous.

“Huh?!”

Seeing that Palug was staring at her, mouth agape like a nutcracker, Erika took a startled step back.

“Sure, in a play or book—made-up love is fun to think about, so that might make you happy. I’ll give you that. But does real love genuinely make you happy? Isn’t it painful when the other person doesn’t love you back?”

Erika recalled what had happened in her previous life. The faces of the men who had arbitrarily developed feelings for her, found themselves disappointed, and ultimately grown violent. If that was supposed to be love, she couldn’t think of anything further from happiness.

“I won’t deny it has a darker side. That’s why love can lead to death. Still, doesn’t being in love make you happy? See, how should I put this... this part of your chest grows tight, and you start daydreaming and your heart skips a beat whenever you think about that special someone. Since I was born, the number of times I’ve fallen in love is in the quadruple digits, and they’ve all made me pretty happy, you know.”

This time, Erika was shocked into silence.

“Maybe you’re a little too young to talk about love. You’re not even ten, are you? But what could this mean? Just what sort of life led you to that gloomy thought process?” Palug looked at her with pitying eyes. “It looks like I’ve made a grave mistake. Right, how about this: I’ll give you a different question. I can’t do anything, but I can be anything. While I am of no use, I am more precious than all else. My very existence is a blessing, bringing salvation and happiness to many in my presence. However, not all wish for me. What am I?”

Erika carefully scrutinized this second question. This time, a little thought was enough to reach the answer. The scriptures called him an omnipotent, supreme being, but it wasn’t as if he actually did anything for anyone. It was said that his very existence was a blessing that brought people to happiness and salvation, but it was up to the individual whether they believed or not.

“The answer is God, isn’t it?”

Palug returned a mischievous smirk. “How unfortunate. You were on the right track, but you’re wrong. God does help people out, if only just a little. The answer to the riddle is a baby.”

Erika’s eyes widened.

I’ve done it now. If the messenger of God is right here, doesn’t that mean God has to exist?

If even one of the miracles passed down in the scriptures really happened, then that contradicted the conditions of “I can’t do anything” and “I am of no use.”

“Mmheehee. You still got it wrong. As we promised, I’m taking a third of your body.”

“Wait, no, please!”

“No can do. You’ve already kept me waiting for too long.”

Palug’s arm let off an amaranth glow. It was a softer light than that of her flaming claws, and she raised it, ready to strike. Slowly, the light grew, until it was so dazzling that Erika had to close her eyes.

“Yep, that turned out better than I thought.”

Erika opened her eyes upon hearing Palug’s satisfied voice. She was supposed to have done something, but Erika didn’t feel any pain.

Great, she didn’t eat me yet!

Relieved as she was, she pat all over her body to make sure it was still in one piece. Her fingers and legs were untouched, and everything seemed to move properly. She wasn’t bleeding anywhere. She still had her eyes, her nose, her mouth, her ears—

Fluff?

She finally noticed what was amiss. Something had been affixed to her head above where her ears normally sat. Hurriedly taking a small hand mirror from her leather bag, she spotted the two little offenders.

They were a shade of gold similar to Palug’s. However, while Palug’s seemed to resemble those of a large carnivorous feline, Erika’s were clearly from a house cat. They twitched back and forth atop her head.

Erika’s ears had been replaced with cat ears.

9

Those things were too fluffy to be her ears. Too fluffy, too soft, and too pointy. They twitched around too much to boot. They were cat ears, plain and simple. An elaborately constructed pair of cat ears. No, rather than constructed, these were all natural.

They were warm to the touch, and she could tell blood was flowing through their veins. Upon realizing they pulsed with her own heartbeat, Erika was again reminded of the severity of her situation. What was she supposed to do if she wasn’t returned to normal?

I might not die physically, but this is definitely social suicide. My heart won’t be able to take it!

Erika often had the glassy eyes of a dead fish, but now they were the sunken eyes of a fish that had been left out to dry.

“They’re adorable! Oh, they suit you so well. I promise I’ll take them back if you win, but if you’ve taken a liking to them, I don’t mind leaving them on.”

Palug riled her up with a Cheshire-cat smile. While Erika very much wanted to politely decline, she had yet to recover from the shock and couldn’t collect herself enough to return the right words. She had kept herself as levelheaded as possible, but even she was reaching her limit.

This is too much! You’ve gotta be kidding me!

Why did she have to receive such humiliation when she was already in the midst of a life-or-death challenge?

“C’mon now, this is no time to wonder at how cute you’ve become. If you don’t plan on giving your next question anytime soon, it will be your loss.”

As shame and fear threw Erika’s mind into disarray, Palug mercilessly demanded to continue their match. She had to come up with another question, no matter how panicked she was.

This is no time to be confused! What do I go with now? What’s brown and sticky is a stick. The beginning of the end and of everything is E.

It was no good. A majority of the riddles she remembered from her past life were linguistics-based, and the meaning would not get across in the language she was speaking now.

Ah, fine, here we go. This time, she would have to think up a question on her own. She ran her brain at full throttle and managed to piece something together.

“It is a cradle. It is a grave. It is both soft and hard. A sun that sleeps in a miniature sea.”

Palug giggled once Erika had finished her homemade riddle. “Oh, are you sure you’re going with such an easy one? It is a gentle cradle that envelops and nurtures life. But it is a grave to those who cannot pierce its hard walls and therefore cease to be. A transparent sea of white surrounds a yolk—the yellow of the sun. It is an egg, am I right?”

“That’s... correct.”

She’d easily arrived at the correct answer. The right to ask shifted to Palug again.

If Erika got it wrong just two more times, she really would be devoured. If she were to look at that optimistically, it meant she still had one free mistake, but considering how something just as bad as the cat ears would be imposed upon her, she didn’t want to get anything wrong ever again.

“Now then, alchemist girl. Another question from me. It is more ravenous than any beast. It cannot help but devour all who touch it. However, it disappears the very instant its plate is empty. It has been tamed by man, but at times, it bites back and devours its master. What is its name?”

Erika first thought of a dog, then a cat, then a number of magic beasts. The fact that it ate people meant it would have to be one of the bigger ones.

But is it really that simple?

The part about how it disappeared was especially incomprehensible. It didn’t die; it disappeared. Did that mean it did not leave behind a body of its own?

Then, just maybe...

“The answer is disease. Plant and animal alike, everything that lives is at risk of some sort of pathogen. It works mindlessly. What’s more, if it actually kills its victim, the ailment itself no longer exists.”

“Mmheehee, I see. You’ve thought this through.”

Erika patted her chest, a relieved sigh escaping her lips. However, Palug’s expression soon changed to a mischievous grin.

“But that’s wrong. Disease does not eat things that are not alive, and man has not tamed it. The answer is fire. Fire burns anything it touches. It if runs out of things to burn, it can no longer exist. Mankind has made fire their own and has learned the skills to tame it. However, should the fire go so far, the human who attempts to contain it will be burnt to cinders.”

Once she had finished explaining, Palug lifted her right hand in a fluid gesture.

“Now then, that means two-thirds of your body belongs to me. Are you ready for it, Erika Aurelia?”

Her claws glowed with the same light as before. Erika reflexively shrunk back, covering her face with both her hands. These efforts proved meaningless, as Palug’s claws made contact regardless.

O-Oh no! This is—!

Erika could feel something moving inside her clothes. A lengthy mass covered in velvety fur brushed up against her skin. It stuffed the inside of her clothes, making her dress suddenly feel too tight. Going off the shape and length she pictured as it pressed against her leg, it was evidently a tail.

She tried moving it, getting it well out of the way and well out of mind.

The fact she had grown such a thing—and the fact she could move it as well—filled Erika with terror. She could feel her bodily integrity slipping away.

“To think you were so incompetent at this. You’d better come up with something at least halfway challenging, or you’ll really be in for it.”

Palug backed these words with a delightful flash of her sharp fangs. This was the face of an apex predator.

It irks me, Erika thought as she glared at the smile of the victor. She couldn’t lose anymore. Then what was she supposed to do? Presumably, she couldn’t win through legitimate means. She had discovered a loophole by challenging the beast in a game of riddles, yet she still found herself cornered. Erika simply fell too far short both in strength and in wisdom.

Is there really nothing I can do? she asked herself. Was there no other way for a normal human to oppose a monster who exceeded human understanding?

How did the weak humans defeat monsters in old fairy tales?

In some stories, the humans gave them wine until they fell asleep. In others, the humans riled and tricked them until they transformed into a weaker life-form. In others still, the humans disguised themselves and earned their trust until they learned their true name or weakness.

Not a single one of these encounters had been upright; they had all included some rule-breaking or other underhanded method. Was there any way she could cheat Palug in this game of riddles? If the beast detected any obvious attempt at foul play, it could cost Erika her life. She needed the sort of dishonest question that would draw Palug’s interest and distract her from the real matter at hand.

What was Palug strongly interested in that she might think long and hard about? Erika could think of only one thing.

“Prince August,” Erika said abruptly.

She saw Palug’s ears jerk at the mere mention of the name. Palug’s composed smile remained, but the absence of any cheeky response was proof that she was deeply invested in the subject.

“Yes, Prince August. I am the one dearest to Prince August. What is my name?”

While she had proposed the question, Erika did not know the answer. It was an answer only August himself could know, and knowing August, he would likely just dodge the question if asked.

In this case, the very fact that no one knew made it most convenient. As long as the boy himself wasn’t around to deny it, she could just say whatever sounded appropriate.

If Palug answers “his mother,” I’ll make it so “his father” is the correct answer, and if she says “his father,” I’ll flip it around. Hmm, if she answers “his parents,” the answer will be his little dragon sisters.

So long as Erika prepared multiple correct answers, she could just deem the one Palug didn’t choose as the right one. This was the cowardly, underhanded plot Erika had devised.

“Now, answer me. You’ve been by August’s side for so long. It should be easy for you.” She gave one last push to make sure her foe fell for the trap.

Palug hung her head at this question but only for a moment. When she raised her face once more, she was baring her sharp fangs in a ferocious grin.

Erika’s heart skipped a beat. Sure, Palug was smiling, but she seemed to be far, far angrier than when they had been fighting.

“My, how irritating... To think you would have the audacity to ask me such a thing.”

“Erm, I...”

“Yes, of course I know the answer. I know it very well. I’ve been by the child’s side all this time. How couldn’t I have noticed?”

While Palug’s smile remained, her eyes were filled with hatred. Erika couldn’t understand why it had come to this. However, if nothing else, she understood she had stepped on a landmine.

“I hate to admit it! How dare you brag like that in front of me! The answer, of course, is Erika Aurelia, the alchemist girl from the west. In such a short time, you filled the lonely void left by the prince’s isolation and stole his heart away.”

“What?”

For a moment, she couldn’t comprehend why Palug had called her name. The realization dawned on her gradually, and along with it, shock and terror bloomed in her chest.

No, how is that even possible?

They’d barely met two days ago; how could she possibly have become the person he treasured most? Even if Palug was being presumptuous, the very idea was way too rude to August. But, in the million-to-one chance that August did have romantic feelings toward her, Erika’s foul play wouldn’t work anymore.

“Hmm? Don’t tell me you didn’t know. You asked me while completely oblivious? You asked me without knowing the answer to your own question? I see your scheme. You’ve violated the rules, alchemist girl!”

Palug’s scream was like a lion’s roar, shaking the very stone beneath them. The light in the room changed to a menacing dark red, gradually building up a singeing heat. As if they had grown with her rage, her flames enveloped not only her claws but the entire length of her arms.

“How dare you besmirch the sacred Ritual of Contracts with a fraudulent riddle! You are a disgrace; you don’t even deserve to be eaten. Now that it’s come to this, you leave me no choice. I must kill you and use what little time I have left to devour whatever powerful people I stumble across in the capital. I doubt I’ll find anyone as suited to be an offering as you are, but I should be able to scrape together enough strength to maintain my fusion with August for a few years. It’s all for his wish—for my final wish!”

Intense heat stroked Erika’s skin. It filled the air, scorching the inside of her throat. She looked at Claus, then at Tirnanog and August.

There was a chance Claus would be devoured as an offering. Perhaps Palug would honor her arbitrary promise and overlook him. But then there was a chance that Anne or Duchess Hafan would become casualties.

Palug was strongly opposed to Tirnanog. She definitely wouldn’t let the black dragon live. Perhaps—conscientious as he was—he would recklessly challenge her again to avenge a friend.

So long as August fused with Palug, the loss of his riding abilities was unavoidable. At the end of his route in the game, he gave the impression that he would leave the royal family so as not to get in the way of his younger brother’s claim to the throne. In other words, he was bound to lose his family.

If that wasn’t bad enough, once Palug had lost her sanity, it was up to August—who by then would have no memories of her—to deal the final blow. This was a tragedy composed of actors who would be none the wiser, and it was a fate Erika couldn’t endure.

I knew this would happen. I should have just surrendered the match. She was overcome with regret. I should have just let myself be eaten. Then, at the very least, Palug’s heart would be saved.

The red-hot nails grew closer and closer. As she was faced with a death she had no means to avoid, Erika steeled her resolve and closed her eyes.

“Ngh?!” Palug groaned.

Even through her eyelids, Erika could tell just how close the dazzling blaze of those flaming claws had come. However, the blow had never landed.

What could this mean? She was so angry; there’s no way she’s forgiven me.

When Erika opened her eyes, she was confronted with a flaming arm. However, Palug’s arm had been stopped the very instant before she could strike.

Is this Claus’ doing?

However, Claus was still on the floor. Erika looked around, but there didn’t seem to be any spell cards deployed. In other words, this was not a time-delay barrier.

Then what happened?

Erika took another look and finally locked eyes with the culprit.

“Hold it right there, Palug. You’ve got no right to kill Erika.”

“No... Impossible... H-How?”

August was standing up, and his palm was outstretched toward Palug. There was sweat on his brow, and his pallor made it clear he was on the verge of collapse, but he had managed to muster all of his strength and stop her in her tracks.

Palug’s face was like that of a toddler cowering as her misdeeds were brought to light. The flames vanished from both her hands. At the same time, her bloodlust was firmly tucked away.

August endured the pain, closing in on her one step at a time. He had a gentle smile on his face, one that seemed to say he understood everything.

“I mean, you don’t know the answer either, Palug. You don’t know who’s dearest to me.”

10

Confirming Palug had lost the will to fight, August undid his magic. Her paralysis loosened, but when it did, August was the one who began to fall. Palug gently caught him before he could collapse.

“August! Why did you push yourself so far?! You conceded the power of your soul to me, so you shouldn’t be able to move until the completion of the contract!”

“Yeah, I was out like a light. But then I was shaken awake by a zealous and supremely annoying voice.” August glanced at Claus, who was still on the floor. “‘I’ll lend you this unmoving body. You have to protect Erika. I don’t care if I lose my life in the process.’ After he said all that, I couldn’t just stand by and do nothing, right?”

“August, did you...?”

“Thanks to that, I heard everything from that point on. Glad I could make it in time.” Unstable as he was, he stood up on his own. “I’m sorry, Erika. I put you in danger. I honestly never thought you’d chase me all the way here.”

“No need to apologize. I did it of my own accord.”

“Even so, I have to thank you for stopping me. You’ve given me a chance to avoid making the worst mistake of all.” August smiled softly. While his expression was weary, he had a somewhat clearer, more cheerful aura than before.

He hobbled over and planted himself a little distance away from both Erika and Palug. If lines were drawn between the three of them now, they would form an equilateral triangle. It was as though he was emphasizing his standing as a neutral party.

“Surely that last question won’t be a violation if I say the right answer. I believe something similar has happened before.”

Palug quietly nodded. She was terribly meek now, as if her belligerent air from a moment ago had all been a lie. She carried herself almost like an inmate awaiting her conviction.

“The question was about who’s dearest to me, was it? State your answer again.”

Palug awkwardly stated her answer once more. “The person dearest to you... is a girl who came from faraway lands. A girl who saved you from isolation. In only a short span of time, she found her way into your heart. And in no time at all, she had become someone you could never live without.”

“Yes, you’ve got that right.”

“She is the descendant of alchemists who sailed from a distant sea. Beautiful and fragile, with golden hair and eyes like the ocean. The name of your beloved is Erika Aurelia.”

August looked troubled and slowly shook his head. “Not quite right, Palug.”

“You cannot pull the wool over my eyes, August. Who do you desire from the depths of your heart?”

“That feeling probably isn’t love. For instance, a child who walks the dark road, never knowing the light, one day decides to look up at the sky. In the midst of the darkness, he sees a single grain of radiance. The child will reach for that lone star, knowing his hand will never reach it—and that’s where the story ends.”

August looked at the ceiling, reaching out to unseen stars beyond.

“While Erika’s certainly precious, there’s someone far more dear to me, isn’t there?” He lowered his eyes to Palug, who stared back at him, still unsatisfied with his response. “She came from distant lands and saved me from my loneliness. It didn’t take long for her to find a way into my heart and become irreplaceable to me. That much is correct.”

“Then who could it possibly be? I’ve been by your side for so long, and I never saw anyone like that!”

“Oh? Do I really have to spell it out?” The same smile on his face as the day they’d first met, August pointed at Palug. “The one most dear to me is you.”

Palug took a few steps back, shock written all over her face. Gradually, her eyes brimmed with tears, and her cheeks turned red. Anger and all other sorts of emotions were coming back to her full force.

“Wh-What are you talking about? You’re just blabbering to trick me. I won’t be fooled! Even if it is to save Erika, I won’t allow such a transgression in this sacred ritual.”

August shook his head, gazing back at her. “Palug, you were always by my side. When there were doubts about the legitimacy of my blood, and I could no longer hold a proper conversation with my mother, you comforted me in her stead. You stayed beside me when I was cut off from the world by baseless slander and irresponsible hearsay.”

“It can’t be...”

“The reason I could walk was because I wasn’t alone. It was because I could feel the warmth of the hand gripping my own. Otherwise, I would have been cowering in the dark forever. Is that answer unsatisfactory?”

Palug fell to her knees. Her long, beastly nails were back to human proportions.

“If it was for you, I was fine with losing my life. No, I wanted to use the life I had left for you.”

“I don’t want to fly if that means you have to be a sacrifice. If I knew that was the price I would pay for a miracle, I wouldn’t have made a wish. If I had unknowingly lost you forever, I’m sure I would’ve never forgiven myself.”

Palug formed a lonesome smile. “My gentle prince. I could never tell you I was living on borrowed time. I couldn’t let you give up on your dream because of me.”

“No, you’re the gentle one.” August walked up to her, placing his hands over her furry arms. She lifted her face and stared into his eyes. August’s smile had turned apologetic. “I owe you an apology. You were always so kind to me, I thought you were filling my head with convenient lies. That was surely why I couldn’t even trust myself anymore. Yes, I convinced myself it was your fault that I couldn’t find confidence, and I kept running away. Otherwise, I would have been frozen, terrified. It would eat me alive. Maybe I really don’t carry the blood of my father. Maybe I really don’t have the talent to ride dragons.”

“August, you...”

“But things are going to be different. You’ve believed in me for so long; this time, I’ll try to believe in myself. Even if everything you’ve told me was a lie, I’ll make it into the truth. I won’t let you be a liar.”

Palug embraced August, placing her head on his shoulder. His own shoulders were shaking, and the air was filled with faint sobs.

He patted her head as he went on. “I promise you. I’ll defeat my weak self, and this time, I’ll reach the sky with my own power.”

A while passed before Palug lifted her face and stepped back from August. Her expression had cleared up, and in the end, it was unclear whether she had cried or not.

After letting out a deep sigh, she stared at the boy. “Good grief, you selfish prince. You’re the one who summoned me, and then you turn me down. You’re the worst.”

“Sorry.”

Contrary to her words, her voice was gentle. Erika, who was silently watching over them, let out a sigh of relief.

“Hey, August. I owe you an apology too.”

“Out with it. I’ll forgive anything you say.”

“There’s one more thing I never told you. If I gain a new master through a new contract, then I will disappear from the memories of everyone who ever encountered me.”

“What?!”

“W-Wait, Palug!” Erika tried to intrude and restrain her, but the beast was a step faster.

“I, the angel Pestilence, acknowledge my defeat by the wise. Henceforth, my master shall be Erika of House Aurelia. I stake the entirety of my existence toward granting her wish; this I swear to God.”

The light emanating from the walls immediately changed from a sinister blood-red to the golden glow of the sun. Grains of this warm light slowly danced down from the ceiling like flower petals.

“Farewell, August. May the rest of your life be overflowing with light.”

Palug kissed August’s forehead. All of a sudden, a great weight was placed on his eyelids, and he could feel his body keeling over.

“Wait, Palug, I still... have to tell you...”

August reached out for her, but his hand swiped through thin air. She caught him before he could hit the ground and gently laid him to rest.

The falling grains of light soaked into August’s and Claus’ bodies. They approached the leather bag Tirnanog was contained in, only to be shot back by some mysterious force.

“Oh, it didn’t work on the snake? I see, you Aurelians really have a knack for denying the grace of God.”

“Wait a second, what’s this light?”

“In accordance with my contract with God, all memories of me shall be erased from those who knew me.”

“There’s no need to do that. Please, don’t erase August’s memory.”

Palug lapsed into a resigned smile and shook her head. “This is something God decided; there is nothing I can do about it. Just as the sun rises in the east and sets in the west. Just as water flows from high to low. Apparently excluding those of Aurelia who are free of God’s ways, no one may escape the law of oblivion. All I can do is add a little bit of myself to the phenomenon so that a slight glimpse may remain and continue my legacy.”

“...You’ve been forgotten like that for a long time now, haven’t you?”

The legend of the angel Pestilence was fragmented, divided into the tales of many different beasts. The reason was none other than the law of oblivion. She was powered by faith, yet destined to be forgotten. Among her many contracts, there were surely many that hadn’t even made it to legend; they were simply lost to time.

Palug’s expression softened. Compared to how she had appeared when she was agonizing over her loneliness, she seemed to be someone else entirely. It was a little late, but Erika felt for the first time that this woman really was an angel.

“You don’t need to look so sad. Even if everyone forgets, I still remember everything. My beloved memories are my lifelong companions. There was never a dull moment. Also... your Seafaring Tribe denies the ways of God. When I fade away, and the final oblivion gets to work, perhaps you alone might remember me.”

“By any chance, did you lose to me on purpose?”

It was one of the few ways Palug would neither betray August’s feelings nor break the constraints imposed by God, as well as a way to make sure August was kept free of such a heavy burden. Defeat, or a new contract.

Palug could have killed Erika at any time, yet she would always bring up some new reason to put it off. Perhaps she wanted someone to stop her.

“Who knows?” She turned her back, playful as a jester, as if to refuse any further inquiries. “So, Erika Aurelia, what will you wish for? Unfortunately, while an angel I may be in name, I’m pretty much just an empty husk now. I can’t give you eternal life or a mountain of gold. I’m sure this will be the last wish I ever grant, so if you could, please make it one worth dying for.”

Erika thought for a moment over whether or not she had any wishes she wanted granted, then said the first words that came to mind. “What would you wish for?”

“Huh?”

Palug must not have expected that; she looked quite taken aback. Erika simply didn’t want to squeeze a miracle out of a dying angel.

Let’s pitch one in for a friend and a friend of a friend.

She knew what she had to say to this angel.

“You can have my miracle; I don’t need it. Now, wish for whatever you want. It can be for yourself or for August. That’s precisely what I want most right now. So that’s my wish.”

“Are you an idiot? We’re talking about a real miracle here. Even if I don’t have much left, the miracles I can give you are more than most people can even dream of obtaining. There must be at least something you want.”

“No, not really,” Erika haphazardly replied.

Sorry to say, I’ve already received plenty of miracles.

At the end of a miserable existence, she had been granted more than she deserved. She had been given a life surrounded by kind family members and an assortment of friends—though not all of them human. It would be ungrateful for her to ask for any more.

“What good would it be for me? Use your miracle however you want for your own sake.”

She tried smirking like the villainess she was. I’m seducing an angel here, so I should at least try to play the part.