~Chapter 97~
“What are you…!”
Before Rueiri could protest, black sand-like dust suddenly spilled from his body.
“You dare bring traces of a demon into the temple!”
He hadn’t realized it, but the residue of Eclipse’s black magic was still clinging to him.
If anyone knew how to defeat a demon, it would be this man—the High Priest.
Clutching his cracked ribs, Rueiri painfully stood and knelt before him.
“Please… help me.”
“You dare ask for help after such a reckless act?”
The High Priest scoffed and returned to his desk as if he already knew everything.
Rueiri held his posture like stone, ignoring the pain.
“I tried countless times to give up… but I just can’t.”
Tears streamed down Rueiri’s face, his clenched fists trembling.
“Because of my selfishness… I hurt the woman I love.”
The High Priest finally turned his sharp gaze toward him.
“I want to set things right. I beg you… please…”
The sincerity in Rueiri’s voice reached him. The High Priest narrowed his eyes and said coldly,
“Leave.”
Rueiri’s face darkened. Only the High Priest could tell him how to fight the demon.
But seeing his firm rejection, Rueiri rose weakly, clutching his side, and headed toward the door.
Then a voice came from behind him.
“There is nothing more I can do… because the woman already has the power to defeat the demon.”
“What do you mean…?”
“You know what karma is, don’t you?”
“The consequences of one’s good and evil deeds…”
The High Priest nodded gravely.
“The Goddess sees everything.”
“Everything…?” Rueiri asked, confused.
The priest clicked his tongue.
“Are you a mage of the Magic Tower and still don’t know the basics about the Goddess?”
He explained patiently:
“If someone secretly kills in a place where no one is watching, do you think that crime will remain hidden forever?”
Rueiri thought deeply, then answered quietly,
“In a place where no one is around… yes, I suppose it would.”
The High Priest shook his head firmly.
“No. There is no secret in this world that can be hidden.”
Rueiri listened intently.
“The air around you, the passing wind, the swaying trees, even the smallest creatures… nothing goes unwatched. And all of these… become the Goddess’s eyes.”
Rueiri finally began to understand.
“Those who do good will be rewarded. Those who do evil will face the price of their sins.”
Then the High Priest added:
“The mage who was expelled from the Magic Tower… he died in vain, didn’t he?”
Rueiri’s eyes widened.
“How do you… know about that?”
“I told you. The Goddess sees everything.”
Rueiri realized the truth.
“The good deeds that woman has done until now… they have become the light inside her body, capable of destroying the demon.”
“When… when will that power awaken?” Rueiri asked.
“When that demon falls into his own trap.”
Rueiri’s face brightened with hope.
Could the Goddess be forgiving me for using black magic to save Diana?
Tears welled up again, but this time from gratitude, not despair.
“Thank you, High Priest…”
“Thank the Goddess. She even shows mercy to someone like you who nearly made a pact with a demon.”
Rueiri bowed deeply, ready to leave.
The High Priest called out once more:
“Had you used that magic for yourself, you would never have been forgiven. But her kindness and your sacrifice together created the power to break the curse.”
Rueiri smiled faintly and walked out with renewed strength.
* * *
“This is impossible…!”
Eclipse had searched even ancient texts to understand what was happening to Diana. But nowhere was there mention of a demon’s curse being neutralized without any condition.
Defeated, he returned to the room.
His crimson eyes narrowed as he stared at the unconscious Diana.
My power scatters in her presence… it refuses to gather.
Then, golden light began to emanate from Diana’s body.
“This…!”
Eclipse instinctively stepped back from the brilliant radiance. The shimmering light surrounding Diana made his red eyes tremble.
* * *
“Hey, Aisel!”
Catherine burst into Aisel’s room, frustrated by the lack of answers. But Aisel wasn’t there. Out the window, she saw the Aiberg family’s carriage leaving.
Did the Duchess not believe her… or could she not say anything?
Either way, Catherine felt relieved. She let out a breath and turned to return to her room.
Then, a golden glow leaked from the crack in her bookshelf.
“What…?”
She reached out to open it, but at that exact moment, Aisel and Rueiri burst into the room.
“W-What the…!”
Startled, Catherine scowled.
“Move!”
Aisel shoved her aside and flung open the bookshelf door.
Inside, Eclipse stood looking fearful, while Diana floated in midair, wrapped in dazzling golden light.
“Diana!”
“Mother!”
Rueiri and Aisel shouted at once.
Eclipse ground his teeth. The mysterious power radiating from Diana was weakening him, and now Rueiri had appeared too.
He twitched, ready to escape.
But Rueiri wouldn’t allow it.
“Eclipse!”
He summoned a blazing fire dragon from his palm, sending it roaring straight at the demon.
“Gah!”
Eclipse tried to counterattack, but his black mana dispersed uselessly into the air.
Aisel joined the fight. Her magic was small compared to Rueiri’s, but together their mana was enough to wound Eclipse.
Catherine!
Eclipse looked toward her in desperation, silently pleading for help.
Catherine stared at the glowing mark on her palm—the power he had given her. But she didn’t intend to use it for him.
She clenched her fist and looked coldly at Eclipse, who was struggling against the fire dragon.
Eclipse let out a bitter laugh.
I knew she was this kind of human… but to betray me, the one who gave her power…
He had never imagined he, a demon, would be cornered like this.
Catherine smirked. She no longer needed his power now that the Magic Festival was over.
If Rueiri and Aisel finish him off here, it might actually work in my favor.
With that thought, Catherine turned and left.
Diana’s body, floating in the golden light, stirred. Her eyes slowly opened.
“Mother!”
“…Aisel?”
Diana looked at the girl clinging to her with confusion. She then glanced around.
This was… Aisel’s room.
“What is happening…?”
“Damn it!”
Eclipse cursed. If Diana’s power combined with theirs, he could really lose. That could not happen.
He turned toward Rueiri with a wicked grin.
“Rueiri.”
His sharp voice filled the room.
“You didn’t sacrifice yourself… you did it for your own desire.”
Aisel and Diana tightened their embrace, glaring at Eclipse.
“You’re the one who made her miserable, even after coming back in time.”
“What…?”
Both Diana and Aisel turned to look at Rueiri in shock.
“What are you talking about? Rueiri didn’t make us miserable!”
Aisel looked at Rueiri as if begging him to deny it. But he couldn’t speak.
Rueiri carried the guilt of dragging Aisel and Diana back into this life. Perhaps they had only wanted peace, but instead their pain had been forced to repeat.
“Yes… I’ll break the curse, as you wished,” Eclipse sneered.
“You…”
“But they’ll resent you. You’re the one who forced them back into this suffering!”
Before Rueiri could respond, Eclipse snapped his fingers.
A black flame flickered on Aisel and Diana’s foreheads.
When the light faded, they gasped in shock. Their cold eyes turned toward Rueiri.
The curse had been broken. They now knew the truth.
Rueiri lowered his head in despair.
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