Chapter 2 : Demons

"Mother, is it true that I am going to die?"

The 10-year-old child lay weakly on his bed, his hand clutching the sleeve of a beautiful woman with blonde hair tied up.

"No, Caspiel, who told you such dreadful things?" the woman replied gently.

Her hand stroked the head of the little boy, whose hair matched hers. His pale skin seemed devoid of life, his chest rising and falling weakly as he struggled to draw breath.

Suddenly, her beloved child collapsed during his usual sword practice. Initially dismissed as mere fatigue, dark veins emerged, and his breathing became irregular, prompting her and her husband to plead with the Craenitus King for the royal physician.

The royal physician diagnosed her son with an immune disease, necessitating lifelong medication. Anita nearly fainted upon hearing this, while Derrick bowed his head in silent contemplation.

Not only had their territory been relocated to the north, and now their sole heir was plagued with a lifelong illness.

When Caspiel turned 25, a fortune teller suddenly grabbed Derrick's hand as he ventured to the city to purchase gifts for the Crown Prince's birthday. The fortune teller's face was hidden beneath a tattered cloak.

"Poor thing. What's the point of staying alive if you're just lying down for the rest of your life?"

Derrick's expression hardened, his hand instinctively reaching for his sword, ready to strike down the scoundrel who dared insult his family. Surely, the old woman spoke of his son and his wife, who fell ill so suddenly five years ago.

"Hold on a minute, sir. I truly pity the unfortunate young man."

"Shut your mouth before I shut it for you!"

"Hehehehe," the woman chuckled, "How about hiring humans from the outside world? You know all your descendants can absorb the life force of other creatures."

Derrick was startled, his face turning pale. How could a commoner know his family's secret, a secret not even known to the Craenitus King himself?

Since that day, the old woman's words haunted Derrick incessantly. Absorbing the life force of other creatures to prolong their own lives was an inherited ability of the Evington family. If only it were easy, perhaps all Evington descendants would live long lives. But for five generations, the Evington family remained ignorant of this ritual.

'Maybe it wouldn't hurt to try.'

So Derrick hired a young woman from the human world. Following the tradition of his ancestors when engaging in contracts with humans, Derrick mixed a drop of his blood into the tea he served her on the first day.

This was Derrick's first time doing so; his relatives had informed him that there would be visible signs of a contract in the eyes of humans bound by such agreements. But since the woman's eyes were as black as night, Derrick saw nothing.

Preferring not to dwell on unnecessary matters, Derrick promptly gave orders to the woman named Celine and her first paycheck.

Three months had passed, and indeed, Caspiel, his son, had grown healthier, even joining them for family meals on several occasions. Derrick was grateful; at least if Caspiel continued to adhere to Anita's conditions, the child's condition would not worsen.

.

"Celine, look at me, or I'll carve your neck with this knife."

It was merely a threat; my father would surely be furious if I harmed the first human to work under our County.

Not without reason, I couldn't suppress my curiosity as to why my father forbade me from speaking, answering, or even making a sound in front of this person. I had done so earlier, and nothing happened. But why was she trembling so much, even when I just casually mentioned her name?

'Could it be... this woman realizes who we are?'

I lowered my head to meet her level. Good heavens, she was truly sobbing loudly. Not just her cheeks were wet, but her nose too.

'Uncle said the eyes of humans bound by a contract would be different. But so far, she has never looked directly at my face. Even though it's covered by a curtain.'

Knock, knock, knock

"Sir, Miss Anita needs to return to her world," Josh said, the guard my father assigned to monitor my every move.

My eyes glanced at the woman still crying, then shifted to the medicine container where I hadn't touched a drop.

'Is it okay to skip it tonight?'

"Go."

The knife was placed back under my pillow. I straightened the curtains that had opened due to my sudden actions. The woman stumbled off her chair when she tried to walk away. I watched her flee out of the corner of my eye.

'I don't want to drink this medicine today.'

Perhaps because I was accustomed to being fed by that woman, the medicine now looked repulsive. What was that? Blood? But its scent wasn't like human blood, demon blood, or even animal blood. Its taste, as far as I remember, was bland.

Ding, ding

The servant entered my room quickly after I rang the bell.

"Clean up all this mess."

I gestured with my eyes to indicate the spilled medicine on the carpet and my blanket. The servant meticulously cleaned my carpet and replaced my soiled blanket with a new one made of silk.

I attempted to rise from my bed and walked toward the window. There, I saw Celine, the woman I had made cry earlier, repeatedly bowing her head to Lysa, our head servant. Strangely, Lysa didn't seem angry at all and simply let the woman leave.

'Odd, Lysa is usually not like that.'

Three days had passed, and the woman hadn't shown up for work. I told Lysa that I could handle the spoon myself now and drink the medicine on my own. With a resigned expression, she finally allowed me to take the medicine for these three days. But it was so strange; the medicine tasted incredibly bitter, very unpleasant. I would immediately vomit it back up a second after it entered my throat.

Now, I walked to the dining room; it was already 5 in the evening. Usually, I would request my dinner in my room, but today my father asked me to dine together.

The afternoon light streaming through the window was slightly blinding. I didn't understand why my father placed the dining room right in front of the cherry tree where my brother was buried. He even installed a large window that directly faced the tree.

My father refused to bury my brother in the noble cemetery. I felt that if I were to die, they would probably bury me next to my brother and have dinner with two corpses every day.

"Caspiel, are you still unwilling to talk about that woman at all?"

My father began to rain questions on me, even before I could cut into the sirloin steak in front of me. Ignoring his questions, I chose to slice the tender meat. Oil and blood mixed flowed from the thin slices I made. The fork, which I could now hold firmly, was directed toward my open mouth, even if only a little.

'It's always delicious; the chef in our county is truly the best.'

"Caspiel." My father's voice grew louder.

"Before I became your father, I was Count Evington."

I sighed softly and placed the knife and fork I held on the table.

"I've already told you, I didn't do anything, Father. I don't know why she suddenly cried like that."

I stared at the food in front of me, not looking at my father at all.

"Do you want me to believe that? If that's really what happened, she couldn't possibly have not come here for three consecutive days!"

My father's voice began to rise. Even without looking, I knew the expression my father was wearing right now. It was the expression "How dare you demean me like that."

"Find another servant, Father. Even that woman didn't wear a servant's attire while working. Why does Father seem so concerned about that human?" I protested irritably. I couldn't believe my father asked the same question for three days.

Brak!

I flinched as my father slammed the table. His shoulders were seen rising and falling rapidly. Without responding to my words, my father raised one hand, a signal for our servant.

The door opened, and there she was, Celine, wearing a long white dress that covered her neck and arms. Her head was still bowed. She didn't enter alone but with Lysa.

"I have brought Celine, sir."

Lysa briefly bowed her head, then retreated and passed through the dining room's exit. Only leaving the poor woman alone. Even from a considerable distance, I could see her trembling shoulders.

"Wait, it's only 5 in the afternoon; as far as I know, she can only pass through the portal after 2:30 in the morning because of the contract."

"Lift your head." my father commanded the unfortunate woman.

.

My heart nearly leaped out of my chest as I saw Count Derrick standing right in front of me when I woke up, dressed in luxurious and impeccable attire, starkly contrasting with the condition of my room.

Stupidly, still half-awake, I merely rubbed my eyes. It took me about a minute to realize that what I was experiencing was not a dream.

With a disgusted look on his face, I knew he was thoroughly repulsed by this peasant's shelter I called home. He gave orders to visit Evington County at 5 p.m. later, even handing me a new contract saying that I must stay in Evington County for the next 9 months. With trembling hands, I had no choice but to agree to the contract.

"I'm sure you must be surprised to find me suddenly in front of you like that. I didn't realize you were still asleep at 10 in the morning," he said, maintaining a serious demeanor.

"It's alright, sir. It's my fault for still being asleep at 10 in the morning," I replied, trying to hide my embarrassment. Not because Count Derrick, the head of Evington County, apologized to me, but because I felt like an employee caught slacking off by their boss.

"There's something I need to tell you."

Count Derrick straightened his posture, indicating to me that the conversation that was about to begin was serious.

"I beg of you, continue to care for Caspiel as before."

I fell silent. A nobleman, pleading with me?!

"I-I apologize for" Before I could finish apologizing for skipping work for 3 days, Count Derrick interrupted.

"Your mana, Celine, is being able to neutralize the side effects of the medicine consumed by Caspiel." Count Derrick spoke with a serious expression.

'Mana? What's that? I think I've seen it in a video game.'

Long story short, Count Derrick instructed me to meet with Caspiel directly for further explanation about what had just given. I was surprised because Count Derrick invited me, a commoner, to dine with them.

I sat across from Lord Caspiel, somehow. For the first time, I saw his face; his red eyes looked melancholic yet sharp, I was sure it was due to the illness he had suffered for years. His tall and proportionate body, though still somewhat thin, at least seemed a bit 'fuller'. His large hands and slender fingers elegantly played with the dining utensils. Undoubtedly, nobles learned about table manners since they were young.

One thing I never expected at all was how handsome this man was. Not just handsome, but

'Crazy handsome!'

I choked on the cherry tomato I ate whole without realizing it. I knew Count Derrick and Countess Anita had charming looks. But I never imagined that the face I was forbidden to see was a face that could rival an award-winning actor's face in Illuxar.

Perhaps feeling like I had been staring for too long, Lord Caspiel stopped feeding himself and glanced in my direction. His hand still held the fork in front of his mouth. I could see his face more clearly now because he was facing me completely.

I, who had just realized, immediately grabbed a drink from the glass that I thought cost 10 times my salary.

The image of Lord Caspiel wanting to kill me that night passed through my mind again.

"Celine, you will stay in this mansion for the next 9 months. Your salary will be increased tenfold, and we will provide for your food and clothing. On the condition that you must be willing to be studied by our researchers. Especially regarding your unique talent compared to other humans," Count Derrick saved me from the awkwardness that ensued.

He hadn't touched his food at all since I entered the dining room. I couldn't help but think that Count Derrick had no appetite because a peasant was eating with him.

"As I explained earlier, Celine's mana helps Caspiel's medicine react more effectively and reduce side effects. Caspiel's condition for the past 3 months has been his best since he fell ill," he continued. Even though I still didn't fully understand, a salary of 100,000 lunar coins made me shiver.

Occasionally, I glanced at the man in front of me to gauge his response. He was simply busy finishing his meal, wiping the corners of his mouth with the cloth provided on the table, and calmly observing his father who was speaking. There was no protest, no refusal, no answer, nor any questions.

Meanwhile, I had many questions flooding my mind.

'How could an ordinary human like me have mana? What kind of medicine is that? What are the side effects? What illness does Lord Caspiel suffer from? What research are they conducting?'

Before I could speak, the dining room door was violently slammed open. The three of us were startled, and automatically focused on the servant running clumsily towards us.

"Count Derrick! Countess Anita! He hasn't woken up!" the servant exclaimed, his lips turning blue and trembling.

Count Derrick and Lord Caspiel hastily got up from their seats and immediately rushed out of the room.

Before the door closed, a more shocking sight unfolded before me. Lord Caspiel suddenly collapsed, blood pouring from his mouth and nose. His red eyes briefly met mine before he fell unconscious.