Chapter 42

At the tip of Keith’s pointing finger was a phoenix with its wings folded calmly.

The phoenix was silent, like a mere decoration. Its ruby-like eyes reflected us, but that was all. Enoch stood and approached it.

“It’s neither Casad nor Phoenix… this is….”

“That woman summoned it before leaving.”

Keith spoke before I could. I just sat on the sofa, listening to their conversation. I had no energy, so Keith’s interference was welcome for now.

“It’s my first time seeing a form like this.”

Enoch raised his hand. The phoenix watched it silently before pressing its beak against him. Though it hadn’t attacked Marie, I couldn’t relax. I could sense Keith was tense as well. Fortunately, the phoenix simply rubbed its beak and head against Enoch’s hand like a dog seeking affection.

“Incredible….”

“What is?”

“Florence, you’re saying you didn’t summon it?”

The phoenix lifted its head proudly. Enoch looked between me and the phoenix. I shook my head.

“I wish I had summoned it.”

“If we don’t know what it is, is there at least a way to send it back? Having it here makes me anxious, like that madman will come chasing after it!”

“We need to find out if that woman summoned anything else besides this.”

Enoch listened to us while staring at the phoenix.

“This creature belongs to you, Florence.”

“What?”

“She may have summoned it, but you paid the price. That’s why it only responds to you. Look, Florence….”

Enoch extended his hand to me. As if hypnotised, I placed mine on his. When he gently held my fingertips, I finally realised it. I thought he might have smiled, but the sensation at my fingertips surprised me so much I couldn’t confirm it.

Squeak…

The bird’s head was small and warm, its feathers soft like living down.

“You felt it, didn’t you?”

“……What do you mean it only responds to me? It did this to Marie and you too.”

“I couldn’t touch it. It just stopped in front of my hand without contact.”

“What?”

I quickly looked at Keith. He shrugged.

“If you want to send it back, you have to ‘command’ it. Spirits obey their summoner absolutely.”

“How can you say something so creepy so casually….”

Keith roughly ruffled his hair and leaned back deeply into the chair. His mood was worsening. Enoch spoke sharply.

“If you’re going to keep arguing, get out, Keith.”

“No!”

My voice came out before my mind could stop it. Enoch looked at me.

“If anyone’s leaving, it’s you, Enoch Haines.”

His handsome face stiffened. I stared at him and spoke.

“Keith, you don’t have to go.”

Keith looked puzzled, but a small smile tugged at his lips as he uncrossed his legs, slightly cheered.

“Is there any way to find out if she summoned other spirits?”

“……Wait.”

Enoch turned away from me. His broad back filled my vision.

Squeak.

The phoenix cried softly, as if calling me. As if saying, “You summoned me. I am your spirit.” Strangely, knowing it belonged to me didn’t feel unpleasant or frightening as before. But the fact that Jang Hyunji had summoned it remained, leaving me confused. Keith spoke.

“She summoned it, but it didn’t obey her. She told it to kill Marie, but it didn’t move, so she had to strangle her with her own hands.”

Listening to Keith, I clenched and unclenched my palm repeatedly.

“That woman was strange. She kept screaming, her eyes glinting, but she kept stumbling and staggering.”

Enoch spoke.

“Three spirits were summoned.”

As expected. Jang Hyunji was desperate. She wouldn’t let a chance slip by with mere carelessness.

If she couldn’t possess this body, she would die within hours upon returning to her world. How long would that body hold out? And how long would that time feel in this world?

It was a gamble for both Jang Hyunji and me.

“Their attributes were wind and light. They’re higher than my spirits, so they must be great spirits. They disappeared to carry out their previous master’s last command.”

“Last command….”

“They probably went to Marquis Baldwin.”

Keith finished the sentence.

“Damn it, we should have killed that crazy bitch. Ah, but then you’d be dead too. Hah, maybe we need an exorcist or something….”

“That won’t work. It’s not a demon, so even priests can’t intervene.”

“I know. Still, look at what she does, she’s practically a demon herself! And you, seeing your first love like that…”

“You keep twisting my intentions, Keith. I never said she wasn’t acting like a demon. I never defended her.”

“Hmph.”

Keith turned his head sharply away.

They didn’t seem to get along very well. Though Keith saved me because I knew Enoch, he clearly wasn’t fond of him.

He said he hesitated to bring me to Enoch because he wasn’t sure it was a good idea. I thought it was purely for Enoch’s sake, not wanting to involve him in my troubles while we ran from Linus.

But… maybe their relationship isn’t so noble.

Perhaps he saved me only to dump the responsibility onto Enoch, thinking “You handle her now since she’s your first love.”

I almost laughed but my lips froze.

I need to think… I need to think.

They say tears purify the mind. Seeing Enoch made my tears burst forth, cooling my thoughts. My priorities, what I had to do, what I had to protect…

I wanted to be happy. To achieve that, I had to decide what to do. I couldn’t run away anymore.

Until Jang Hyunji was completely dead, I never knew when she’d take my body again, nor when Linus would catch me.

If I lost my body again, only death awaited me.

Jang Hyunji’s body was surely dying. But the short time she could hold out would feel unbearably long to me in this world.

The colder my mind became, the faster my heart raced. Keith, Marie, Enoch, the fire spirit… these were all I had. Meanwhile, Linus was among the kingdom’s strongest and most powerful.

I don’t want to die.

Jang Hyunji’s scream echoed in my ears. She must be desperate for her life. But so was I. I didn’t want to die either.

“Enoch.”

Enoch, who was arguing with Keith, turned to me.

His blue eyes were just as I remembered. He always looked at me with clean, unwavering eyes. Sometimes, those eyes felt heavy.

“You said if I asked, you’d do anything for me.”

“Yes.”

Keith’s lips moved as if to scold Enoch for saying something so dangerous. But it seemed he didn’t. Though he clearly wasn’t happy about it.

Enoch approached me. Leaning towards my face as I sat on the sofa, he asked:

“What do you want me to do?”

His face, matured by five years, carried a new aura. He had grown and become more of an adult. Though his lips were close enough to touch, my heart didn’t flutter or race. I didn’t have the luxury for such things anymore. In the past, I might have gotten angry.

Until Jang Hyunji died on that side.

But to be free, I had to kill Linus.

So he could never again claim my life as his, I had to reclaim what was stolen from me.

“I will kill Linus.”

Enoch stared silently at me. I knew I was dragging him into something he shouldn’t be involved in. It was dangerous. I felt sorry, but I had no other way. I had to cling to this small chance he offered me.

After a short silence, he spoke.