Chapter 15: The Devil Dreams of Cecil II (part 2)

With the aid of the devil’s power, the couple’s hope of moving from the cover to the pages inside now created the illusion of the past.

“…So, is it a lunch box this time?”  

“Yes! Let’s go flower viewing and have a packed lunch together. It’ll be fun!”  

“…Do whatever you want.”  

Was there something else he was dissatisfied with? Cecile, puffing out her cheeks like her daughter Leira, furrowed her brow and pointed at him.  

“And fix that ridiculous way of speaking! How long are you going to talk in such a harsh tone?”  

He just smiled bitterly at her words.  

“Let’s try.”  

***  

To gather his thoughts and clear his head for a moment, Julius took a walk in the forest behind his mansion. 

Cecile was now filling the bathtub and washing herself. The sight of water filling on its own with a single clap and releasing steam felt like a mystery—almost magical, like something from a fairy tale.  

As an Inquisitor, he should have felt repulsed by the devil’s power, but since Cecile used it, it simply felt… magical. Julius, walking through the forest and feeling the wind, stopped to gaze up at the clear sky.  

High-ranking devils. He had asked Cecile about them, and surprisingly, she’d willingly shared her knowledge. These were beings on a different level from the devils that often made contracts with heretics. 

Other than a few forbidden books, including the first Scripture in the church’s banned library, no records existed of them.  

“…If I’d known, I would have studied harder.” He chuckled helplessly, remembering Priestess Emily’s constant reminders to read.  

According to Cecile, most high-ranking devils were now transformed into human forms, just like her. 

Although these ancient beings had been released all at once, the world was quiet. As he tried to clear his head, his worries only grew, and he turned back toward the mansion.  

“…You want to know where the others are?”  

“Yes, you can tell, right?”  

“It’s flattering that you think so highly of my abilities, but unfortunately, I don’t know much about their whereabouts.”  

Don’t know? Was it just that he’d assumed she could do anything, only for her to admit there were limits?  

“Why are you looking at me like that? Anyway, except for a few in the capital and the big one who died in the forest, it’d be a struggle to find them.”  

“Because others had also nearly become human…”

As Cecile explained, she smiled charmingly, like a devil tempting him, just as she had when they first met.  

“…Wait a minute, one of them is already dead?”  

“Yes, I think Priest Brukin, whom I briefly saw at the market, killed him.”  

‘As expected, Priest Brukin knew about high-ranking devils and had already taken action.’ Julius stroked his chin thoughtfully and proposed an idea to Cecile.  

“With your power, you can go anywhere. Could you take me to the capital?”  

“I’m sorry, but I can’t manage that.”  

What could she do?  

As he furrowed his brow and glared at her, Cecile began waving her hands in haste, making excuses.  

“Oh, I can’t help it! The price for releasing the seal wasn’t to bring you to the capital! Besides, I’m having some… issues with my father right now.”  

She twirled her hair with her fingers, the devilishness in her manner completely gone. 

Julius sighed, brushed back his hair, and continued.  

“Then can you locate the high-ranking devils in human forms?”  

“Well, if I try, maybe one a week?”  

“Then please, help me. As an Inquisitor, I can’t just sit back and watch.”  

“…Is there really a need to harass people who are just trying to live their lives?” Cecile tilted her head, looking genuinely puzzled.  

Julius answered simply, “Because I’m a heretic inquisitor.” And because he needed to trust her. He left the last part unsaid.  

Seeing his serious expression, Cecile chuckled softly, covering her mouth. She leaned in, her eyes gleaming with mischief.  

“It’s hard to ask favors without an exchange. If you want to borrow your wife’s power, you’ll need to pay the price.”  

“…What do you want in return?”  

“One favor for each wish we made long ago. Each time you take me on a date, I’ll locate another high-ranking devil for you.”  

Can’t you do this much? 

Her slender fingers trailed delicately along Julius’s cheek, and, feeling the warmth of her touch, he nodded slightly.  

“Alright then! But let’s put that aside for now and pack a lunch. We have to go see the flowers.”  

“…But isn’t it usually the autumn leaves that people go to see in the fall?”  

“Huh? Don’t overthink it. I want to see flowers.”  

She tilted her head, unconcerned with details, then turned from the mansion and walked off without looking back. 

After watching her for a moment, he slowly began following in her footsteps.  

***  

“Ha, life really is difficult. Oh God.” The gray-haired man sighed, inhaling the acrid scent of ash and smoke blowing in from somewhere.  

“On the day war broke out, my parents—whom I barely remember—handed me over to the devil as a sacrifice and fled to save themselves.”  

“Emotionally, they’d be evil people, deserving of punishment. But rationally, it was a wise choice, right?” Sacrificing one’s short life to survive such a miserable existence was sensible, after all.  

Ironically, he later learned they’d perished soon after, caught between the church’s combat priests and heretics. They had died, it turned out, when a blinding shard of shrapnel struck his father in the head.  

Krail, his neatly combed gray hair now streaked with bright red, continued to speak, wiping the blood-red liquid from his head.  

“So, from the beginning, I decided never to harbor love or devotion for people. Sacrificing for children? I despise the thought.” He dropped his formal tone as he scrubbed his head irritably.  

From afar, a girl began to approach, her navy blue silk handkerchief damp with the blood he had wiped. She was a foolish child, unaware that she’d been taken hostage, and she smiled brightly at Krail.  

“Damn it, Rom. Grant me the protection of the wind as I make my way to Kente Village.”  

Although he grumbled, Krail didn’t show a hint of struggle as he stood, slow yet dignified, beneath a sky of dark clouds in a bleak city where it was hard to tell day from night.  

Now, Krail had truly fallen into the biggest crisis of his life.  

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