Chapter 15
“Then I’ll come pick you up in a couple of hours.”
“Oh, you don’t have to! You’re busy, Duke!”
“I’m not busy.”
‘…Tch.’
After the Duke, who had escorted me to the Records Room, left, I rose on my tiptoes to fit the key into the lock and turned it.
Click! Creeeak.
As I’d heard, it was a very small study with no windows.
The shelves were packed tight with record books of five different colors, all covered in dust from lack of use.
[Hmm. Quite a lot for just five people. I guess it’s because, except for two of them, they all lived over a hundred years.]
“You’re right…”
Who would’ve thought I’d end up studying someone else’s family history?
As I sighed, the beast—Chodae—spoke up.
[What are you sighing for? If they’d recorded all my exploits too, it’d be twice as many volumes. You should be grateful they didn’t.]
What did he just say?
After all that talk about how I’d have to grow stronger or I’d end up living as an animal—this is what he says? Does he think I’m a pushover?
I grabbed a record book and threw it.
Thwap!
“I’m five years old. Do you think I can read or not?”
I deliberately mimicked a child’s voice to threaten him, and the divine beast started glancing around nervously, whites of his eyes showing.
[Ahem, ah, so sleepy all of a sudden. Right, right, one must have peace and quiet to focus. I’ll, uh, see you later?]
He leapt up onto the bookshelf and curled his body up neatly.
That’s right—now he knows his place.
He probably thought I hated reading, but that wasn’t really the case.
Even without any con-artist skills, I had a few decent talents of my own—
a memory that never forgot what it saw, and the ability to speed-read even the dullest of books.
The latter had come from spending twelve long years in solitude, but regardless, this much reading wouldn’t take me more than half a day.
‘Alright then, let’s get this over with.’
Time passed as I turned page after page.
When I finally looked up from the last record book, I called to Chodae.
“All done.”
[Hrrr… snore…]
“I said, I’m done!”
[Hrk, huh?! What, what did you say?]
Drooling, fur bristled, he blinked around wildly before snorting.
[Ha! Don’t be ridiculous. You couldn’t have finished reading all that already.]
“Heh, I’m kinda smart, you know. And besides, most of the former heads were famous. I already knew a lot of what was written. But something’s weird—there’s only your name, no details about you, right? Hang Ju-no?”
[Tch. No one ever calls me properly. Just call me Juno—that’s my name.]
“Juno? Wait, Hang was your family name? That’s weird.”
[Look who’s talking. Yours sounds like it came straight out of an otaku anime heroine’s name.]
“Huh? Otaku heroine?”
After a few days with him, I’d realized that he occasionally used words I couldn’t understand at all.
Sometimes I thought they might’ve been trendy a thousand years ago, but the pronunciation and structure sounded like a completely different language.
[I should really stop talking. Anyway, fine—let’s assume you did finish reading. Then I’ll tell you the truth.]
“Wow, finally!”
At last, I was going to learn about this mysterious power.
Excited, I looked up at him as he sat primly atop the bookshelf. He raised his short mane proudly and began.
[A thousand years ago, this world faced its apocalypse. And it was I who saved it, at the request of the gods.]
“Eh? Saved it? That’s the first I’ve heard of that!”
[What? Then what do you know?]
“Well, a thousand years ago, the First Emperor united the continent at the call of the gods, and as a reward, the gods granted him a holy relic that blessed the land. That’s the official story!”
That’s why royal ceremonies always included rituals involving that holy relic.
But Juno’s reaction was strange.
[Pfft! Are you kidding me? That guy could barely protect himself—he just followed me around like a leech! What a joke. That’s not history, that’s propaganda!]
I stared at him, baffled, but he just snorted like he didn’t care.
“So then, what are you trying to say?”
[That I’m the real hero. Not that loudmouthed wannabe.]
“Well, that’s not exactly something I can confirm myself, is it?”
[Ugh, you’re hopeless. Even if I told you I’d mastered every form of magic the gods ever created, you wouldn’t believe me, would you?]
“What? Every form of magic?”
The more he talked, the more fascinated I became.
The powers he described were incredible—
Druidic magic that nurtured life, necromancy that controlled the dead, elemental communication of spirit mages, divine healing of white magicians, and alchemy that created matter from nothing.
He claimed to have mastered them all—abilities said to be granted only by the heavens themselves.
‘So that’s why this family became a magical lineage…’
And it made sense—each head of the ducal house had inherited one of those powers.
Plus, seeing how Juno had even been reborn in a beast’s body, I doubted he was lying.
That meant only one thing.
If I was now connected to him, I could eventually inherit all those powers too.
‘Ha! That means I’ll be the strongest in the world!’
A dark thrill stirred inside me. The thought of the world kneeling before me was intoxicating—
[Hey. You’re not thinking of “world domination” or some stupid cliché like that, are you? You don’t even have a single usable power yet, so calm down.]
“…Tch. Anyway, Juno, why did you make me read the records? You could’ve just told me all this.”
[I told you—right now, those powers are sealed. All five of them. Doesn’t that ring any bells?]
I thought back to what I’d just read—the five founders of the family.
Five abilities, five ancestors…
“Wait! You mean each ability was passed down to one descendant? Because they came from the gods, not normal inheritance? And that’s why you don’t have any power now?”
The divine beast nodded, and I slumped, disappointed.
“Ugh, then right now, the only thing you can do is… make yourself bigger?”
[Wrong, you idiot. What happened to them all?]
“…They died?”
[Exactly. Which means what? Their souls are gone, leaving five empty vessels within me. Those vessels are now inside you. If you can awaken each of their souls, you’ll naturally absorb their powers.]
“Huh? Vessels? Awaken their souls? How?”
[You read their records, right? What did they all have in common?]
“Hmm… They were all ability-users who seemed obsessed with collecting things related to their powers…”
[Bingo. They were all otakus—freaks who’d jump out of the grave if they saw a rare item.]
“Otakus? Rare items? So, if I collect those rare things, their souls will awaken?”
[Exactly. Looks like that tiny head of yours isn’t just decoration.]
According to him, the key was to awaken their souls—
using items deeply tied to their lives, rare enough to stir their lingering spirits.
Once all were awakened, I’d be able to use limitless power.
“Heh heh… Then eventually I’ll become the world’s strongest… heh heh…”
[Silence, dark dragon of delusion.]
“Dark dragon? What’s that supposed to mean? Anyway, Juno, come to think of it… maybe this isn’t such a good idea.”
At my sudden refusal, Juno’s eyes went wide.
[What—what did you just say? Do you even understand how incredible this power is—?!]
Oh, I understood.
But what mattered to me wasn’t power.
“It’s because… the Duke’s family comes first. I have to find the Duchess who went missing.”
I said it with all the determination I could muster.
But he only sneered.
[Pfft, a missing person?]
Huh? That reaction—does that mean…?
“Don’t tell me—it’s easy?!”
He jumped down and tapped a golden-bound book with his claw.
[Here—the Spirit Mage. Spirits exist everywhere, and they retain all memories. With that power, tracking someone would be nothing at all.]
“Whoa!”
I remembered that one—
Ebony Eberhardt, the 13th head of the family.
‘…So it’s true. If that’s the case, I could just ask the spirits at the place she was last seen…’
The only catch was that I’d have to awaken the earlier souls in sequence before I could use that power.
“So that means… I need to awaken three more souls first, right?”
[Exactly. Now you’re getting it. Heh heh heh.]
Having found common ground, we exchanged satisfied nods.
Our goals were different, but both of us were desperate—and we would see it through to the end.
‘Duke, I’ve found a way. I’ll find your wife—I promise! Believe in me!!’
Just as determination burned within me, the door opened.
The Duke stood there, face stern.
“It’s time for liars to eat.”
“…Tch.”
As I was dragged away, Juno yelled after me—
[No! You have to awaken them, now! If I don’t regain my powers soon, I’ll turn into nothing but an animal! Look! This is what I have to do just to stay calm!]
Lick, lick, lick.
The divine beast started frantically grooming himself.
Apparently, if he didn’t regain his strength soon, he really would be stuck living as a beast.
But there was nothing I could do.
Despite all my resolve, the truth remained the same—
for now, we were just an untrusted child and a talking animal.
