Episode 63: Ghost Estate, A New Beginning for Three People (3)
It had already become a daily routine to wake up to the sound of the monsters’ piercing cry at the start of a new day. Muriel added more firewood to the dwindling campfire and diligently stretched her body after waking up from her sleep.
After living a life that was almost like being in prison for a long time, if she didn’t exercise in the morning to loosen her muscles, she would suffer from stiffness and discomfort all day long. What was even more unfair was that Muriel was the only one suffering from the damages caused by camping.
August showed a lively physical condition that seemed to be made of steel rather than muscles, to the point where one might suspect he did not know fatigue. Ondal was the same. Considering that he had spent his entire life in an environment not much different from prison, it wasn’t that surprising.
Muriel, on the other hand, had received the treatment of a delicate greenhouse plant, growing up without experiencing any hardships. It hurt her pride, so she put a lot of effort into loosening her stiff body.
Squeak.
However, Muriel’s leisurely stretching alone amongst the raging monsters was both eerie and funny. It was even more so because her hair hadn’t been washed in days, was disheveled, and her clothes were practically in tatters. She looked like a witch performing a ritual in the midst of hell.
But the increasing number of monsters was a good sign.
It was all thanks to August’s diligent efforts. He said, ‘We can’t continue camping indefinitely, so I’m going to create a path of monsters leading up to the Castle’s bedroom.’ Instead of gravel, they would pave the path with monsters, and instead of a mat, they would have a “Black Road” adorned with the blood of demons.
The Black Road had already extended from a small entrance outside the castle to the inner fortifications surrounding it, showing just how hard August had been working.
Muriel thought it was August returning when she heard a rustle. The thought of how hard he would work today made her smile and laugh. So, she turned around with a bright smile, only to find the face she’d been waiting for instead of August.
“Kaiton….”
As Muriel looked at him, her playful smile quickly faded, replaced by a sharp tension. Kaiton silently observed her for a moment before slowly approaching.
He was still clad in black, as if he had emerged directly from the darkness. However, there was one thing that stood out—the talisman that Muriel had given him, shining a vivid color. The blue earring emitted a shimmering light near his cheek every time he walked, captivating Muriel’s gaze.
“…Have you decided to call me that now?”
“Ah…”
There were so many things she wanted to talk about. Muriel almost asked, “You still have those earrings?” like a fool. But protecting pacio was the most important thing, so he only had it because it was a talisman. What did it matter?
“Ah… Well, first of all, thank you for coming. I’m glad you’re safe.”
“I should come. My things are here.”
At his heart, Muriel unconsciously placed her hand on her heart, where the fragment was embedded.
“Muriel… Who came?”
At that moment, Ondal, who had been sleeping near the bonfire, was getting up and reaching out to her as if he was about to come closer.
“Kai… Mr. Crawford came.”
Ondal’s face, knowing that it was Kaiton Ur she was talking about, turned sharply pale.
“Will you wait here for a moment until August comes? I’ll talk to Mr. Crawford. And Ondal… No matter what happens… you have to be by August’s side. Got it?”
“Yes… Muriel… You’re coming back, right?”
“Of course.”
As Kaiton stared at Ondal as if he would see through his true identity, Muriel blocked his gaze with his body. The moment he realized that Ondal had Sharan’s eyes… Kaiton would kill him immediately. There was no reason not to. …For now.
“Shall we go? We have something to discuss in a secluded place.”
⚜ ⚜ ⚜
“Does it not matter if there are no demons nearby? Because as long as you have a fragment of Ur, you don’t lose pacio to demons.”
She asked tentatively, but Kaiton didn’t say anything in particular. Does that mean he agrees…?
It was particularly difficult to read his mind, so she could only gauge his reaction by looking at him, but Kaiton said, “Is this what you meant when you said you know a lot more about me than I thought?”
“I know that Kaiton is not a bad person.”
“I hope those who have demons because of me agree with you.”
“…That’s what you had to do….”
“Because you know why? Is that what you want to say?”
Kaiton raised an eyebrow, his eyes filled with simmering rage. Was he angry because she touched upon nightmares he wanted to hide and forget? But Muriel had nowhere to run now. She had to confront him head-on.
“…It was to survive. Sharan killed your… parents and tried to kill you too….”
“To survive… I didn’t have any reason left to live. Everyone I loved, as you said, disappeared that day.”
“Kaiton…”
“There is only one reason why I abandoned God. To avenge. To willingly become the scourge they fear, to bring Sharan to ruin.”
“There is another way. I have a way to expose Sharan’s misdeeds and bring him down even if you don’t do anything bad.”
“Have you seen such a future?”
“…No, but… I will make it happen with my own hands. So, will you take my hand?”
“…”
“Back there. When you were about to take Jaron’s pacio, I told you. Take my pacio instead.. I meant it. I’ll give you all of my pacio to Kaiton.”
“What can you do with your worthless pacio? Wasn’t that why you coveted my fragment? You couldn’t control the Saint’s prophetic ability, and your pacio was pathetically weak, so it was only a matter of time before you turned into a demon. Wasn’t it you who wanted to survive even if it meant using the sculpture?”
“I collected the fragments because… I was scared. I was scared of Kaiton… So instead of honestly speaking and trying to turn your heart, I set traps to lure you in and put you on a leash. When you couldn’t hurt me, the person who would help you… When I’d be the only person you could choose… I’d give you my pacio.”
“…But since you couldn’t take away the last piece, there’s no longer a way to capture the raging beast, right?”
“…I’m sorry for not being honest from the beginning.”
“You have too much courage compared to your abilities. If you failed to set the trap, you should have run away with your tail between your legs.”
“I don’t want to. If you had asked me to trust you, I should have trusted Kaiton too. But I couldn’t. Now… I believe in Kaiton. You have a choice now. You can hold my hand, or…”
“I can kill you and reclaim what’s mine.”
“Yes.”
“…What audacity…”
Kaiton looked at Muriel with confused eyes, then rubbed his forehead and furrowed his brow.
Muriel was grateful that Kaiton didn’t listen to her words and take away the piece of Ur by tearing apart her heart. She was thankful. That’s why she kept getting greedy and hopeful.
“Trust me. You want to, don’t you?”
“…Ha…!”
“Above all, while Kaiton takes my pacio, Sharon won’t be able to see you. You won’t have to run away or hide by his side anymore.”
You want to live that kind of life, don’t you? Kaiton coldly sneered as if he’d read Muriel’s mind as she thought so.
“If becoming a demon is your wish, then I will make that wish come true.”
What Muriel proposed was a kind of master-servant contract. A contract in which, when Muriel dedicates her pacio to the fragment of Ur, Kaiton will have the right to use her pacio whenever he wants. It was a completely unfair and unequal contract that connected the two’s pacio through the fragment, but only flowed in one direction.
“Please summon Fen again.”
Muriel said that to him after agreeing to the magic ceremony that Kaiton had conjured up in an instant. It was about what would happen after her pacio flowed into the magic he would use in the future.
“You sent Fen away temporarily to save your pacio, right? Now that I’m here, you don’t have to worry about pacio anymore.”
Kaiton grabbed Muriel’s hand like snatching something. Seeing that she felt like ice shards were poking at her blood vessels, It seemed like he was gauging her pacio.
“….”
As if the confirmation was over, Kaiton threw his hand out and stared at Muriel. He seemed amazed. He took a deep breath as if about to unleash a torrent of insults, then sighed and swept his face, settling on a menacing expression as he continued to glare at Muriel. Eventually, his expression turned into one of resentment.
“When you become a demon, can I bring August Eklum and deal with him?”
Kaiton seemed to think just one spell would cost Muriel all of her pacio.
“That won’t happen. Trust me.”
“…Do you think I can’t do it? Muriel, I can’t be a good person like in your fairy tales. In the end, you’ll be holding onto a cold heart and regretting it.”
As Kaiton spoke, as if chewing on his words, Fenrir appeared before him. The white beast, with its cool gaze resembling its master’s, approached Muriel while wagging its tail. Feeling the cool body temperature even through her clothes, Muriel smiled warmly, filled with joy.
Observing this, Kaiton pulled out her pacio evenmore ferociously. As the faint fur of the disappearing Fenrir gradually regained its color, it soon regained its lively and majestic appearance.
The process of pacio forcibly leaving and then being replenished repeated. It was a completely different process from the pacio regeneration that happened with Muriel’s clumsy use of magic.
Something like a chilling shudder ran through her entire body, and it felt like her heart was sinking down constantly, as if she were falling down from a cliff. It felt like a constant rush, as if she had been holding her breath for so long that she could barely breathe. She hadn’t even lifted a finger, but it felt like she was going to be gasping for breath. Muriel took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down and tried to synchronize her breathing with Kaiton’s.
“I couldn’t believe it until I saw it for myself either… haah. There’s something I couldn’t tell you… Haah… my useless pacio… once it’s all used up… haah… it starts filling up again… that’s how it seems. Haah…”
However, her breathing became more and more erratic, and her body was drooping. As her energy drained away, a lethargic sense of weakness pulled her down. Muriel was already mentally exhausted just trying to stay steady so as to not falter, but she didn’t forget to grin at Kaiton, who frowned a lot as if he couldn’t believe her words. She wanted to convince him that she was telling the truth, even if she had to pretend to be calm.
“That’s impossible.”
A shudder.
He thought she would become a demon, so was it because she laughed meanly? Kaiton’s tone was incredibly sharp.
“Surprised? Hehe… I can avoid Sharan’s gaze too… sigh. Pacio can also regenerate… haah… Ah, I really… match Kaiton perfectly. Sigh… Is it our destiny?”
At Muriel’s joke, Kaiton’s expression became even more vicious. Muriel didn’t care, knowing he would have to admit it eventually. Now, all that filled her mind was the fact that she had finally overcome a difficult period. And as her senses blurred, she uttered her final words before fainting. It was because she had completely exhausted herself chasing the output required for advanced magic, when all she could manage was a feeble imitation of a first-level spell.
“Now that I’m here… haah… don’t touch … haah… anyone else, okay? Got it? That’s… sigh… my first plan, to restore your honor, Kaiton. Got it? …Hah… we… sigh… have to make a promise…”
Kaiton grabbed Muriel, who had fallen, by the wrist and checked her pacio. Just as she had confidently boasted, the sea of her pacio, which had completely receded like during low tide, surged back like waves.
“Sigh…!”
He could almost mistake that pacio for being something that had never existed in the world.
At that moment, a pale-faced man brought August Eklum and took the fallen Muriel away. He had been talking with Muriel like they were friends. He appeared suddenly, as if he had known in advance that Muriel would collapse, and disappeared in a hurry, as if he had to quickly get her away from Kaiton.
-Crrr.
Kaiton made up his mind and stroked Fen, as if soothing it, when it’d been holding onto Muriel’s clothes as if he wanted to go with her. He decided to keep an eye on Muriel a bit longer.
No pacio could be infinite. It was clear Muriel was under some magic that was interfering with her pacio. If by any chance that magic truly protected and maintained pacio indefinitely, it would be most necessary for Kaiton. So, that was enough reason to stay by her side and watch over her.
“Let’s go, Fen.”
Thanks! KYAA KAITON HI KAITON! now the actors are all here, a d we are ready to start the show!