CBDBS l CH 56

Chapter 56

“By now, it should’ve been moved into the storage.”

Ever since hearing Eloise’s words, one corner of my mind had been filled entirely with the crystal.
According to the oral legend passed down for generations, the crystal was said to amplify the power of beastkin.

If that’s true… then maybe, even without Konig, I could return to human form.

I glanced at Konig’s face, illuminated by the moonlight.
For now, my usefulness was recognized, and I was treated kindly as the duke’s pet squirrel.
But life was never something you could predict even a step ahead.

“Tch.”

Who could have guessed that I, once the heir of Aymond, would fall into ruin as the family’s outcast?

I slowly closed my eyes, recalling my past glory.

Just as Konig had been designated as the head of the Kreuz family since birth, so had I.

Born an albino like the very first lord of Aymond, not even the most talkative vassal dared utter a word against me.
From the moment I was born, I was marked as the next head.

A month later, Lania was born, stealing away all attention and love.
Still, until then, I was the unquestioned heir.

The problem began when I was about five.
It was when Lania awakened her abilities.

While she bloomed with mana, I couldn’t even manifest a flicker of it. That was when the vassals began to look down on me.

Their contempt spread like an infection, until even the servants treated me as invisible.
In that vast mansion, the only one who still called my name was my mother.

Was it just before my sixth birthday…?

That was the first time I got to hold my father’s hand in Lania’s place.

“Really… I can attend the banquet with you?”

“Tch. Yes. The heirs of other families will be there too. It won’t hurt for you to get acquainted.”

I still remember vividly the furrowed brows and pained expression he wore, as though it were a burden.

“But that banquet is where all the nobles of the capital will gather! If you take him, it’ll only end in humiliation! I want to go. I’ll go! Father’s side has always been my place!”

“My dear, if it were up to me, I’d take you too… but just this once, I can’t. Every noble is bringing their heir. And you…”

Though Lania clung to his arm and cried, not even the Marquis could change the situation then.
Yes—she may have awakened mana early, but she hadn’t been born with the qualifications of an heir.

I, on the other hand—though powerless, was born with that very qualification.
Undeniably.

“You useless thing, how dare you…!”

From that day on, Lania began tormenting me in earnest.
She poured filthy mop water over me, framed me for things I hadn’t done, locked me in storage rooms.

“If I could’ve chosen, I would’ve been born ordinary. Then at least… I wouldn’t be ridiculed like this!”

“You’re ridiculing me even now!”

I cried, baring my true feelings, but Lania never believed me.

After enduring countless abuses, I finally attended a banquet holding my father’s hand for the first time in my life.

…Warm.

That hand, usually cold and rough, now carried warmth.
It amazed me so much, I bit my lips hard just to stop my tears.

My father, who had shown me little care, spoke only of “the heir of the ducal house” the whole way.
Still, I didn’t let go of his hand.

The banquet was held in a luxurious villa on the outskirts of the capital.
It was to celebrate the development of a new energy source—the so-called Soul Stone of the Divine Beast.

“Yes, let’s name this soul stone the ‘Crystal.’
From now on, this crystal will lead the Yggdrania Empire into a new era of prosperity!”

When the young emperor raised his glass with a flushed face, my eyes stayed fixed only on the glowing mineral that shimmered like waves.

The crystal.

It felt as though it were calling to me.

I remember walking toward it as if entranced… but after that…

For some reason, the memory is gone.
As if someone had cut it away with scissors, cleanly erased.

When I opened my eyes, several days had already passed.
My mother said I’d simply been exhausted from the outing. But…

I instinctively felt that something was wrong.

***

“They say the Marquis carried the young miss home? Surely they meant Lady Lania?”

“No, it was silver hair, I’m certain of it!”

I once overheard servants whispering that maybe they ought to apologize for what had happened that day.

But nothing changed.
In fact, Lania’s tyranny grew worse, and my father began to look at me as if I were some hideous monster.
He recoiled from my touch like it carried a disease.

“You dare… try to control me?!”

All I wanted… was to know if that warmth from his hand had been real.

That was when I abandoned the hope of my father’s love—just as he had abandoned me.

“Tch tch tch…”

Yes, there was something there.

As forgotten memories returned, my certainty solidified.

If the rumors about the crystal were true, I could achieve human form without Konig.
And with luck, those lost memories might even return.

***

Whiiiistle—

With that conviction, I moved to the balcony and pursed my fingers to whistle.

Nothing happened.
The Black Dragon Castle was as silent as death.

No, no—like this. Whiiiistle! Whiiiistle!

Frustrated, I rapped my knuckles hard against the windowpane.

Then, a massive shadow fell over me, and a drowsy voice sounded above.

[Why do you keep bothering me?]

It was Bishop.
The whistle was my signal to summon him.

[As I’ve told you countless times, I am not a dog.]

Bishop flapped his wings irritably.
This savage bird even hated the name I’d given him.

Well, nothing I could do.

I shrugged and got straight to the point.

Take me for a ride!

[No.]

The reply was curt.

[Yaaawn. I couldn’t sleep today, what with all the racket. I’m exhausted.]

Racket?

[So many carriages coming and going at this cursed demon castle. They’ve all gone mad.]

It had to be the Rose Trading Company’s wagons delivering goods.

Then… you must’ve seen where they unloaded them, right?

[Of course. This body’s nest is perched at the very top of this castle.]

Bishop boasted as if the Black Dragon Castle belonged to him.
It was nothing more than a rented roost, but I let it slide.

From the duke’s bedchamber to the separate palace was quite a distance; without Bishop, I could never return in time.

So, I laid down terms the Bishop couldn’t refuse.

One lamb rib—fresh, unsalted.

At that, Bishop’s eyes lit up, blazing with hunger.

[Contract established.]