Raguel Miyatro
Raguel Miyatro
Gaf left Johan in Raguel’s room, then headed toward the battlement.
From this high parapet, the lord’s manor came into full view.
The rice paddies unfolding to the left were dyed red under the twilight. The clustered homes to the right bustled with anxious residents.
They were hastily wrapping up the rest of their work. Soon, a curfew would be declared.
It was an old rule of the South.
The Demon’s Hour, in other words, clear the streets by night.
People returned home one by one. Before long, silence came to the manor. Moonlight settled down.
Though the territory fell into darkness, the church glowed faintly. It was because the emblem of the Great Saint Church absorbed the moonlight.
Gaf looked up at the church’s roof.
He traced the sign of the cross following the tips of the pentagram.
“Great Saint, Marziel. Your foolish servant has committed apostasy. Please, do not forgive me.”
As if making a deal with a demon was not enough, he had even gotten himself involved in a wicked scheme. It would be a sin that could not be pardoned.
“Rather than the Great Saint, you should be confessing to me.”
A soft voice came suddenly. A familiar voice. Gaf turned his head toward the source of the voice.
His pupils dilated greatly.
“Isn’t that right? Since you set up a second household behind your daughter’s back.”
The girl, smiling quietly, was walking from the bastion tower toward the battlement.
“Illea……?”
The girl lowered her head slightly. Her platinum hair fluttered in the night breeze.
“It’s been a while, Father.”
Gaf’s entire body stiffened.
“I, truly.”
His feet, pressed flat against the ground, could not bring themselves to lift.
Step by step, he had no choice but to force them off the ground.
“Truly…….”
His gaze quivered faintly. He looked like a man who had encountered a mirage in the desert.
“……Are you truly my daughter?”
Having barely walked over, he dropped to one knee with a thud.
“Yes, I am. I’m your daughter, Illea.”
Gaf cautiously caressed his daughter’s cheek. Illea placed her hand over the back of his large hand.
They exchanged warm body heat.
Gaf’s eyes turned red.
“It really is you, Illea.”
“Don’t cry. I’m by your side now.”
“I’m sorry. It’s all my fault. I should never have taken my eyes off you, not even for a moment……. I made a terrible mistake.”
Illea patted Gaf’s back.
“In the end, you came to save me, didn’t you? No parent could do what you’ve done, Father. So don’t blame yourself, and stop, stop crying now.”
Illea’s voice was so calm. A faint smile even hovered on her expression.
“Are you hurt anywhere? Did the Baron touch you? I’ve heard of his strange inclinations. If he laid a hand on you…….”
Illea shook her head.
“He didn’t even touch a single hair on my body. Rather, he treats me very well.”
Her tone was so composed.
Gaf could not help but feel a sense of incongruity.
This was a place where an aberrant monster was lurking, having kidnapped her, yet how could such a young girl remain so calm?
It was an incomprehensible reaction.
“I, Illea. Are you pretending to be okay for your father’s sake? You don’t have to. If you are suffering, we can leave immediately.”
Illea smiled faintly.
“And what then?”
Even if they succeeded in escaping, they would be chased for the rest of their lives.
Gaf spoke in a trembling voice.
“Let’s hide our identities and live on. It doesn’t matter if we go to the West, the North, or the Empire. If you just say the word…….”
“I don’t want to live that kind of life.”
“But!”
Illea gently embraced Gaf’s head.
“Father, go find your own life again. You have a new family now, so live happily with them. You deserve that.”
“I, Illea. What do you mean? They…….”
A strange current flashed across Illea’s expression. She carefully pushed Gaf away.
Then she gazed directly into his eyes.
“They?”
“They…….”
Gaf could not easily continue.
He could not bring himself to tell the truth, that the woman was a succubus and the baby a half-demon.
Illea shook her head gently with a warm smile.
“Don’t force yourself. It doesn’t matter to me. Just,”
A glint passed through her eyes.
“I would like to see my little sibling’s face at least once.”
Right then, hurried footsteps echoed from below.
Someone seemed to be climbing up the stairs. Illea calmed her expression and helped Gaf to his feet.
“Anyway, from now on, we are strangers.”
Gaf’s face clouded over.
“You just need to be careful, Father. I’ve already silenced the mouths of the children who came with you.”
The girls from Taharan who had been kidnapped along with Illea. They knew Gaf’s face.
“You understand, don’t you?”
At that moment, a youthful voice rang out brightly.
“Sister!”
Illea turned her head.
A small girl was running toward her. She stopped abruptly in front of Illea.
“Rowen, you’ll fall if you run like that.”
“But, it’s almost time for evening study, and I couldn’t find you, Sister.”
Illea patted the girl’s hair.
“You came looking for me. How kind of you.”
“If we’re late, the old hag will punish us. Rowen doesn’t like getting hurt.”
“Yes, let’s go now.”
Illea intertwined her fingers with the child’s hand. She glanced back at Gaf lightly before stepping away.
The back of his daughter, growing distant. Gaf remained rooted to the spot, staring for a long while in the direction where Illea had disappeared.
She was definitely Illea. She was still a daughter who smiled well and was considerate……
Yet, somehow, she felt unfamiliar. It was as if she were someone else.
“Sister, but who was that person?”
“Hmm……. A hopeless person?”
“Even though he’s an adult?”
“Yes.”
Illea drew a faint curve with her lips.
“Still, a brave person.”
***
A small hand touched the rough stone wall. The torches set along the walls only left behind long shadows, unable to serve as guides.
For the blind, there was a separate firefly.
“Are you afraid of the stairs?”
It was a demon.
Johan poked his head out from Raguel’s fur cloak.
“I feel like I might fall…….”
The boy who mumbled like that stretched one foot downward. His leg trembled slightly, as if hesitating to take the step.
Unable to watch any longer, Johan spoke.
“Why not just go down on your butt?”
“I want to walk on my feet.”
The imp let out a hollow laugh.
“Such useless stubbornness.”
“At least guide me properly. You said you would be my eyes.”
Raguel asserted himself more clearly than Johan had expected. Had it been like this in the original work? He couldn’t quite remember. The kid had so little presence there.
“You used to come here well enough from your room, didn’t you? Now it’s your turn. Don’t be afraid, just step forward.”
The spiral staircase was so deep that the bottom could not be seen.
“Go on.”
Raguel carefully stepped onto the first stair.
A look of relief crossed his face.
Johan let out a small laugh.
“See? You can do it, can’t you? Well done.”
Raguel’s lips almost curled up, then stopped abruptly.
“It doesn’t make me happy to be praised by a demon.”
“Your face says otherwise.”
Raguel was a child who would be happy with even a small bit of attention or praise. Anyone who knew his background could have guessed that.
A mother who died giving birth to him, an abusive father, servants who projected their disdain for their eccentric master onto Raguel, glaring at him coldly, and the accusations that he was a parricide who had eaten his mother in the womb.
Raguel could only be lonely.
“You’re mistaken. It actually makes me feel worse.”
“Both you and that guy grumble the same.”
“That guy?”
Gaf also grumbled every time they met.
“Doesn’t matter. Just keep going.”
The staircase extended deep into the underground. At this pace, the sun might rise before they arrived. It would be quite a predicament.
“Hurrying won’t help. This is my best.”
He couldn’t scold a blind child for being slow like a caterpillar, so it was simply frustrating. He even wanted to possess the kid, but that was impossible too.
The method of possession was not imprinted in his mind.
‘Why does the contract work, but this doesn’t?’
Just like contracts with demons, possession was something any demon could do. Only Johan couldn’t use it.
‘Is there some setting in the Demon’s Record that I don’t know about?’
While he was mulling over the original work, a muttering voice came.
Johan cut off his thoughts and spoke bluntly.
“Stop mumbling and speak clearly.”
“If I could see, we would have arrived already. I thought you were going to give me eyes, but you tricked me.”
Johan clicked his tongue.
“You’ll get them soon, so there’s no need to complain.”
“Really?”
“The speed at which you reach the library will determine when.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Raguel’s steps quickened. He was putting in quite the effort.
‘There’s a simple side to him.’
He gradually gained speed.
“That’s enough. Be careful.”
He wobbled a few times, making Johan unnecessarily anxious.
“Slowly…….”
As expected, his legs crossed over each other.
Raguel let out a groan of panic. His body tilted forward.
“You fool!”
He fell forward and started rolling down.
‘This kid can’t get hurt.’
Johan jumped out from the fur cloak. He tried to support him somehow, but it was futile.
They were swept down together.
Thunk, thunk, thunk.
The shock struck both of their small bodies directly.
At some point, his consciousness began to fade far away.
***
“……Where are you.”
A sharp pain throbbed in his head. His whole body burned as if scorched.
“D-Don’t leave me alone.”
His vision spun round and round.
“I told you I can’t see anything.”
Johan swallowed a groan and suppressed the pain.
“Where are you…….”
Then he looked around.
A vast cylindrical interior. The underground library of the Miyatro Baron’s household unfolded before him.
It was very dark, but demons were unbothered by it. Their eyes glinted far brighter in the darkness.
His sense of smell also reacted keenly. A musty stench pricked at his nose. It was the moldy smell of the massive bookshelves encircling the area.
“Please.”
Only then did he hear the sound of sobbing.
Johan turned toward the direction of the sound.
The boy, curled up tightly, was trembling.
“Tsk.”
Johan stood up and approached him.
It was only yesterday that he had stood up on his own, yet he was already taking his first steps.
‘Should I be thankful to Gaf or something.’
His feelings were complicated.
Johan stopped in front of Raguel.
He was even shorter than the crouching boy.
“Maybe I should have taken your little thing as payment for the deal.”
Raguel’s head snapped up.
“Y-You!”
“A boy whining like that.”
The boy flinched in surprise, then slowly looked relieved.
“I thought I was alone again……. If you’re here, you should have said so.”
“Don’t whine. You’re not alone anymore. More importantly, are you hurt?”
The boy was clutching his right shoulder with his left arm.
“I can’t put strength in my shoulder.”
Was it a dislocation? Considering he had tumbled from that height, he had gotten off easy.
“Your ancestors will fix it.”
The boy made a puzzled face.
“……Ancestors?”
“More precisely, the legacy they left behind.”
He could not understand what Johan meant.
Johan swept his gaze over the library as he spoke.
“It’s a wide but ordinary library. There’s no reason to bury it so deep underground. Have you ever wondered why it’s arranged so inefficiently?”
Not particularly. He had been grateful that it was deep, but had never questioned its practicality.
He was simply thankful for the space itself. It had freed him from abuse and scorn. To him, it would have been a refuge.
Raguel shook his head.
The demon’s lips curled up.
“Because there’s a lot to hide.”
“Hide? What…….”
“You’ll know soon enough.”
Johan helped Raguel to his feet.
“Follow me.”
Then he grasped the boy’s index finger. He was guiding him.
Because of the height difference, Raguel had to bend awkwardly as he followed.
“Where are we going?”
“The place where you always sat.”
They headed for the round table placed in the center of the library.
Though small in size, the table was crafted from gold crystal, the most expensive mineral in this world.
Stopping in front of the grayish-white round table, Johan spoke.
“This will sting.”
With a sharp claw, he lightly cut the boy’s palm.
“Ouch.”
Blood began to seep out.
“W-What are you suddenly…….”
“There is a table before you. In the center, place your palm on it as if stamping a seal.”
Though puzzled, the boy did not argue.
As instructed, he placed his hand on it.
“A bit more to the left.”
“L-Like this?”
“Now down.”
“Down…….”
Johan sighed as he climbed onto the table.
Taking the boy’s hand directly, he guided it to the exact center of the table.
A drop of blood seeped in. At the same time, the gold crystal began to blaze brightly.
The pure white light revealed an unseen formula on the surface. Lines entangled like a spiderweb engulfed the table.
The boy’s blood spread over the engraved formula.
The gold crystal turned red. When it finally confirmed the Miyatro bloodline, the ground trembled once.
The table dropped straight down.
The dust that had accumulated over countless years filled the library in a hazy cloud.