The Sleeping Devil

[This is a story from Hermes' perspective about what happened when Sheriel was not around.]

The baptism ceremony for Sheriel, my adorable, clever, and incredibly intriguing granddaughter, ended in failure. She had behaved stoically, but beneath her unconscious demeanor, one could see the color of despair. If the ritual failed once again and the blessings did not come, a proper conversation would be necessary to get her to express her thoughts and feelings.

My duty is to face her, guide her through this setback, and help her overcome it.

On the night of the ceremony, we discussed the cause of the failure and what to do next, with Marcel and Didier participating in the conversation. However, Marcel suddenly froze, and in the next moment, I felt it too.

A presence of magic, crawling up from the soles of our feet to reach the crown of our heads. By the time it reached the top of our heads, our entire bodies were tingling. Was it an attack? I turned to look out the window, and an immensely radiant and divine pillar of light, stronger than anything I'd ever seen, was descending toward the altar. Could it be...

"Sergio..."

"Yes, my lord."

Immediately, everyone rushed out of the room. When we stepped into the garden, everyone stopped in their tracks. The pillar of light was so powerful and majestic that it seemed entirely different from any baptism ceremony I had witnessed before. But there was no doubt that this was the baptism ceremony. And there was only one person in this castle trying to perform it.

"Sheriel!"

"What happened?! A pillar of light just appeared, right!?"

By the time we reached the altar, the pillar of light had already disappeared. Perhaps it was because everyone was shouting loudly, or maybe it was because adults had rushed here with such force, but Sheriel was sitting there, dumbfounded, as she fell flat on her behind.

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Even I, who had not received special training as a magician, could tell someone had performed a ritual at this altar. Even though the pillar of light had vanished, the residue of dense magic still clung to our skin, prickling.

On our way back to the castle, Sheriel fell asleep right away. However, her explanation the next morning was not coherent. She desperately tried to explain that a cat had come and helped with the ritual.

What was puzzling was that she wasn't lying. She didn't seem to feel guilty about lying or keeping secrets. Was it because she had inherited a curse, or perhaps she didn't fully understand it herself and thought it best not to speak out of goodwill? Regardless, judging from Sheriel's demeanor, it was clear that something had happened at night. Otherwise, Marcel wouldn't have set a deadline of one day without any plan. Sheriel was not so simple-minded as to just prolong the time with no strategy.

As expected, Sheriel had gone to bed early. After her personal maid returned, we, as a family, quietly headed to Sheriel's room. As a precaution, I squeezed my magic power to the limit and moved with utmost care, making no sound.

Upon opening the worn-out door, an unexpected scene unfolded before our eyes. There stood a young man, or perhaps he was more of a boy, with jet-black hair that blended into the night. If there could be a Sheriel in white, it wouldn't be strange for there to be something in black. But who was this individual?

I remained cautious and cloaked myself in magic power, but an even more intense magic enveloped me.

A superior being...

Even though I had somewhat weakened, it was still rare for me, the former head of the Beriard family, to be overpowered to such an extent. That is, if we are talking about humans. Without thinking, I called for Sheriel. However, Sheriel stood before the young man and raised her voice to protect him.

"Grandfather! Noah is not a bad child! He's a harmless little cat who's good at magic! He's not a wicked magical beast!"

This child had never stirred my heart so much. And what about this cat? It didn't seem so cute. The young man behind seemed equally puzzled. It appears there is a certain level of trust between Sheriel and him. The young man, called Noah, didn't seem to harbor any hostility or ill intentions towards Sheriel.

Choosing my words carefully to calm Sheriel, I listened to her explanation. It turns out that this young man had performed the baptism ceremony. Suddenly, I noticed Dior's complexion had worsened. This seemed to be a rather troublesome development.

As Sheriel continued her peculiar explanations, I couldn't help but feel sorry for Dior, who was progressively losing color. When I attempted to inquire about the situation from the calm young man, he expressed a desire to speak with us. He mentioned something about wanting to teach Sheriel magic. I wondered what his intentions were.

Leaving the children in the room, as no one attempted to speak, Dior led us to the drawing-room, the most prestigious room in the castle.

Upon entering the drawing-room, Dior kneeled down in the most formal manner. I thought, "I see," and Sergio and I also knelt. Sergio, as the head of the Beriard family, was the first to speak.

"I am Sergio Beriard, the head of the Beriard family. May we extend our greetings to you?"

"No need for such formalities. I don't intend to reveal my identity. Dior, please refrain from mentioning my name."

It seemed that Dior and this young man were acquainted... No, they weren't. However, they were aware of each other's existence and of being known. Dior stared at the young man intently and, with trembling lips, finally began to speak.

"Lord Julius, it is a pleasure to make your acquaintance. I am Dior Zorad Beriard."

The person we were kneeling before, if he were human, was either a duke or a member of the royal family. If it were a member of the royal family, it could only be the First Prince, but His Highness couldn't appear in public due to an incurable illness. I vaguely remembered a young boy of about this age in one of the duke's families. Similar to the First Prince, he had concealed his name without revealing himself.

Thinking back, there had been many inexplicable events since just over ten years ago when Queen Ophelia withdrew from the public eye. At that time, the influence of corruption was strong, and the kingdom was enveloped in a stifling atmosphere. Therefore, I didn't think deeply about each individual occurrence. However, with the First Prince's illness and the subsequent rumors of curses and demons, abnormal incidents seemed to have occurred one after another.

As I recalled events from just over ten years ago, I considered various possibilities and tried to read the young man's emotions at the same time. However, a cheerful voice, out of place beside me, echoed.

"Well then, let's just call him Noah without any hesitation. You haven't told Sheriel your name, Julius, have you? By the way, about teaching Sheriel, is it possible you want to study her?"

My son had given up on thinking. He probably thought he could just cut down anyone if necessary. However, Sergio's instincts were sharper and more reliable than any analysis. If Sergio approved, there was no choice but to follow him for now.

"Oh, is it okay? I don't think it's a bad idea for you either. If we leave that child as she is, she'll die in a few years."

"Can you do something about it?"

"Probably."

"I see. Then, please. That child is a precious family member, so please save her, Noah."

At Sergio's words, the young man widened his eyes for a moment. It didn't seem to be because Sergio had agreed without caution. So, what surprised him?

For the Beriard family to value their family members was a normal thing, even for a troubled noble. The fact that he was so surprised by such common sense might mean... could it be that he knew Sheriel's true origin?

Sergio, who had no intention of probing into these matters, was happily shaking Noah's hand with an innocent smile.

Once we finished discussing future lessons, compensation, and the danger of Sheriel's petrification, we guided Noah back to Sheriel's room. His dignified stride still held the air of someone in a higher position.

As we entered the room, a perplexing scene unfolded once again. Sheriel's adorable smile was heartwarming, but please, I hoped she wouldn't treat Noah like a cat. We couldn't reveal his true identity to Sheriel without proper explanation, and my role as an elder required a certain level of restraint.

Her willingness to change her choice of words was the most endearing thing. She was truly my granddaughter.

The issue lay with Didier. He seemed to have some understanding, but his disrespectful attitude inadvertently led to scolding my dear granddaughter. However, Didier also appeared to be respecting Noah's wishes in his own way. When the conversation turned to Sheriel's limited time, Didier grew agitated again, but there was no room for me to intervene anymore.

Getting too involved might expose Noah's true identity, so I decided to refrain from encroaching on his territory until Sheriel's safety was assured.

Sheriel had already cast away the heavy disappointment she had carried from the failed ritual the day before. He had cleared away the gloom of my granddaughter, and if he could save her life, I was willing to overlook the slightly enigmatic aspects of this situation. If something were to arise, we could deal with it at that time.

After all, even a noble who hadn't appeared in public like the Beriard family could be managed, relatively speaking.

This was the castle where the Beriard family, often referred to as demons, resided.

I would pray, however, that there were not true demons.