"Don't cry anymore, doll," Caelum cooed gently to the sniffling girl in his arms. Then, he summoned a small velvet box from his dimensional ring, the elegant surface a deep violet trimmed in gold. "I made this for you. You can put it in your music box."
Pixie wiped her tears messily with the back of her hand, still hiccupping between sobs as she took the box from her father. With trembling fingers, she opened it, and gasped, golden eyes widening in wonder.
Inside was a miniature figurine of a woman, graceful and ethereal, crafted with impossibly fine detail. It was the exact miniature replica of the life-sized sculpture Caelum had completed just before receiving the news that the Holy Beast Seiryu had awakened.
Pixie beamed.
Her tears stopped instantly.
Tuf, seeing the sparkly figurine, reached out to snatch it, half teasing, half serious.
Smack!
Caelum slapped his hand away before he could even touch it.
Tuf gave a sheepish chuckle, shrugging at his father who shot him a warning glance without saying a word.
"Let us stop wasting time and begin the report," Luna said coolly, her voice cutting through the warm atmosphere like a blade. She didn't raise her tone, but the command was unmistakable. Her eyes, however, remained locked on Tuf.
"Let us begin with the awakening of the Holy Beast Seiryu, which is the main reason this council meeting was held ahead of schedule."
All eyes shifted to Tuf.
He blinked, confused. "Why are you all looking at me?"
"Because Aquilonis is the human kingdom you're assigned to monitor," Luna replied through gritted teeth, her calm demeanor slipping into agitation. "And that's the kingdom where Seiryu awakened."
Tuf sighed heavily, slouching in his chair. Of all his siblings, Alpha getting mad he could tolerate. But Luna? Luna was terrifying when angry.
She looked twenty-five, but if she snapped, she wouldn't argue, she'd dissect you emotionally, politically, and, if necessary, physically.
"Naelira, report," Tuf said quickly, trying to redirect the pressure.
He was bluffing, he hadn't actually asked Naelira to prepare anything. He'd been holed up in his pleasure den the past two months. In fact, he'd only just learned this morning that Seiryu had awakened.
To his surprise, Naelira stood promptly. She didn't even glance at him as she handed Cosmo a glowing crystal orb.
Tuf's eyes widened slightly.
'Wait, she actually prepared something?'
Cosmo placed the orb on a floating projection disc, and it shimmered to life in the air above the Aetherglass table. An image appeared, blurry at first, then sharpening into a wide-angle view of Aquilonis' northern coast.
"Three months ago, a surge of power was detected emanating from the direction of Aquilonis," Naelira began smoothly, her voice clear and steady. Tuf stared at her in disbelief. This wasn't just a bluff, she really had a report. She always had his back, even when he didn't deserve it.
"The surge triggered the Lightning's decision to escalate this year's Monster Release," she continued. "Twice the number of monsters were released compared to all previous years."
That raised murmurs across the table.
The Monster Release had been Tuf's idea, centuries ago.
Deep within the Hades Den, not the pleasure sector, but a sealed-off dimensional pocket, was a monster breeding ground. For centuries, demi-human monster tamers had trained vicious creatures there. Once a year, these monsters were released into the Azur Deep, the vast frozen sea north of Aquilonis.
The sea had been frozen ever since Seiryu entered slumber.
Unlike the eastern border, the Gilded Abyss, where deep waters and deadly currents made human passage nearly impossible, the frozen northern sea was flat and silent. An inviting path for the curious or the foolish.
And humans, gifted as they were by the Celestial Solmara with diverse abilities from birth, were a constant variable. They might not be as strong as the demi-humans in raw power, but one reckless human with the right gift could cause unimaginable disruption if they made it past the Mist.
The Monster Release served as a deterrent. An ecosystem of danger. A subtle threat: Turn back, or be devoured.
"This footage was taken a month ago," Naelira said as a glowing image projected above the center of the grand table. "It shows the first wave of monsters we released. It was meant to be a surprise assault."
The footage displayed swarms of monstrous creatures charging into the snowy expanse, ogres, trolls, orcs, goblins and others.
"But we were the ones surprised," she continued, her voice calm. "Half of them were slaughtered."
While the rest of the room focused on the footage, Tuf slowly and shamelessly reached across the table to steal Pixie's forgotten golden ice cream container.
Pixie, still entranced by the mini-figurine Caelum had gifted her, didn't even notice.
Tuf smirked and dug in.
"What the fuck?!" Kaelith blurted out, standing in disbelief. His outburst broke the silence and drew everyone's attention to him, then back to the projection.
Onscreen, a single human man blinked in and out of existence, teleporting. One moment slashing through an ogre's throat, the next reappearing behind an orc.
He moved like lightning.
"How is that even possible?" Malrik Ashfur, the shapeshifter and current mayor of Veyln, asked, scowling. "A human… teleporting?"
"That's not all," Naelira said.
The image shifted again.
This time, it focused on suits of knight armor, moving on their own, engaging monsters in close combat, without any visible humans inside.
"That's a marionette," Neko muttered under his breath, narrowing his eyes. His voice held no panic, only quiet recognition.
He knew the technique well. After all, he shared the same ability. But where he could manipulate living beings, turning flesh and blood into puppets, this one was focused on objects.
Still, the mechanics were unmistakable.
The room buzzed with hushed voices. None of the representatives could believe what they were seeing.
Meanwhile, Caelum remained quiet, his expression unreadable. His children, all but Tuf, watched in silence.
Tuf, for his part, was still eating Pixie's ice cream like it was the most important thing in the room. Pixie herself remained oblivious, happily twirling her figurine, unaware that her brother had stolen her dessert.
"We couldn't risk sending our Aetherdrones in any closer," Naelira continued. "We weren't sure if the human could detect them. Because of this unknown variable, we dispatched four additional waves, fewer in number, meant to test the frequency and nature of the teleportation."
The projection paused on a still frame of the mysterious human, mid-blink, sword raised.
"We've concluded," she said, "that it's not a spell. It's an ability. Innate."
Nugget let out a sharp breath. Then, without filtering her words, muttered, "That Celestial is fucked up. He hates them, and yet he gives a human something like that?"
Confused murmurs rose from the younger representatives.
Who was she referring to?
Wasn't the Celestial Solmara their shared god? Why speak of him that way?
But none of the Demon Lord's children corrected her. Not even Caelum.
Because they knew the truth.
And truth was not for the council to question, yet.
"There's more," Naelira said.
Tuf, mouth full, froze. "There's more?" he asked, voice muffled and incredulous. He looked genuinely betrayed.
Luna's eyebrow twitched. Tuf glanced at her and grinned innocently.
Naelira ignored him. She gestured, and the projection shifted again.
"This footage was taken three weeks ago. The day Seiryu awakened."
"You said it was a rumor!" Tuf protested, nearly choking on a spoonful. "Why do you have footage?!"
Naelira simply shrugged, unbothered.
"You'll notice at the beginning," Naelira continued, eyes scanning the floating projection, "the monsters held the upper hand. The teleporting human wasn't present, nor were most of the knights or mages. But…" she redirected the projection, shifting the angle, "if you look here, on the three islets just a short distance from the battlefield…"
A faint shimmer appeared.
"An unbreakable barrier," Alpha stated flatly.
Naelira nodded. "Exactly."
Then the footage changed again, showing movement, deep beneath the ice. Ripples. Tremors. Shadows circling from under the frozen sea.
"Although there are no clear marks or ritual circles visible from the aerial view," Naelira added, voice low, "we believe what happened here… was a blood ritual."
"A blood ritual?" Virelya echoed, frowning. "For what?"
"To awaken Seiryu," Naelira answered.
"That makes no sense," Neko cut in, arms folded. "They don't need a blood ritual to awaken a Holy Beast. A drop of blood is enough. So why go that far?"
Naelira hesitated.
She didn't have an answer.
And none of the representatives did either, because none of them, none of the demi-humans, had ever had the power to awaken a Holy Beast. It was a human thing. Their realm. Their bloodline. No one in Velrathis had ever needed to learn how.
Across the room, Tuf quietly finished the last spoonful of Pixie's ice cream and snapped the lid shut with one hand. Instead of returning the empty golden container to its rightful owner, he slid it down the polished table… until it stopped in front of Alpha.
"Peanut can answer that question," Tuf said smoothly, sounding, for once, completely serious.
"Shut up, Tofu!" Peanut snapped immediately, panic flashing in her eyes. She looked at Caelum. "He made me do it, Father!"
Caelum raised an amused brow in her direction, a faint smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth.
"Why me?" Tuf replied with mock innocence. "You were the one who didn't follow Luna's instructions to destroy all records in the human kingdoms during their Great War, regarding Holy Beast awakenings. And now you're blaming me?"
"Peanut." Luna's voice was deceptively calm, and that alone made Nugget, who was seated between them, slide her chair back several inches without a word. Just to be safe.
"I did destroy them all!" Peanut insisted, voice rising. "But that asshole challenged me to a game… and I lost!" She jabbed a finger at Tuf like it could set him on fire.
"And so you left dangerous information behind for the humans to find?" Luna asked, disbelief dripping from her words.
"Not exactly!" Peanut said. "I rewrote the information. I made up instructions saying they had to perform a blood ritual. I said the more blood they offered, the more control they'd have over the Holy Beast they awakened. But, I made sure to delete the actual names of the beasts. And I erased the chant used for subjugation. Plus, I wrote it in English, not in any Solmarian dialect. How was I supposed to know someone would decipher it?"
Luna's eyes narrowed.
"And why were you playing a game with him?" she asked flatly, pointing at Tuf.
"Hey!" Tuf barked back. "Missy, need I remind you, I'm your big brother. Show a little respect, woman."
"Big brother, my ass." Luna shot to her feet. "Then act like one! All you do is fool around. You were assigned to monitor Aquilonis, and you didn't even know Seiryu had awakened! Your subordinates are doing all the work while you play around in your den!"
Tuf stood too, not backing down. "First of all, that's why I hire only the best, so they can work hard, and I can play hard."
Naelira's face flushed red. She tried to keep a straight face, but the corners of her mouth betrayed her, she smiled. Just a little.
"Second," Tuf continued, "you need to chill. Seriously. You're more uptight than Alpha, and that's saying something. Third, yes, I won the bet. But Peanut was smiling the entire time we played. And lastly, why are you only mad at us? Milo and Vivi were there too."
"Hey!" Milo and Vivi chorused from across the table, looking equally guilty and betrayed.
Luna stared at them, eyes wide with disbelief. "You two were involved?!"
"I have a short memory, you can't blame me," Vivi quickly said, raising her hands as if washing them clean of guilt.
"I told them it was a bad idea," Milo added, guilt written across his face as he looked helplessly from Luna to Tuf. "I thought we agreed no one would find out!"
"Peanut pointed at me first," Tuf said with a shrug, as if that ended the matter.
"You insinuated it!" Peanut fired back, cheeks flushed.
"All I said was, you can explain," Tuf replied smoothly, brow raised in faux innocence. "You could've made something up. Improvise."
Without warning, the room was swallowed by a dense, suffocating dark aura.
It came from Luna.
A cold pulse of pressure exploded outward like a tidal wave, darkening the air itself.
In the blink of an eye, Tuf had moved in a flash beside Naelira, shielding her.
Nugget stood in front of Melory.
Neko was already in front of Sazrielle.
"Milo, Virelya!" Nugget barked. Milo understood instantly, moving to position himself close to Virelya, who braced against the wave.
The elder representatives, held their ground, straining to form a barrier of resistance. Cracks shimmered across their shields as Luna's aura pressed harder.
But the newer representatives?
They couldn't hold out.
Their shields shattered like thin glass. They gasped, choking for air, their lungs heavy as if the room itself was sinking underwater.
Only the Demon Lord's children were unaffected. Even Orso, now asleep in the corner with a soft snore, didn't stir.
"Can you relax, woman?! It was just a game," Tuf said, voice hardening, no longer amused.
"To you, everything is a game!" Luna shouted, voice trembling with rage. "And that's exactly why we're in this mess! Because of your stupid games! Our peace is in danger, and you still act like a child!"
Her aura flared again, waves of dark energy growing thicker, heavier.
"Kitten. Enough." Caelum's calm voice echoed through the chaos, soft but absolute.
Luna froze.
"But Father!" she turned to him, her fury giving way to desperation. "This is all his fault!"
Caelum gave her a small, knowing smile, the kind that didn't need to be loud to be commanding. "I know," he said gently. "I'll be the one to punish him."
Just like that, the magic dissipated.
The darkness vanished like smoke blown from a flame. Luna's aura collapsed inward, and the young representatives gasped, finally able to breathe again.
"You're joking, right?" Tuf said, his voice cracking slightly, eyes wide in disbelief.
"Back to your seat," Caelum said, his voice still calm, but his expression left no room for argument.
Tuf swallowed and returned to his chair without another word. Nugget, Neko, and Milo followed suit, none of them daring to speak.
"You crazy cat," Tuf muttered in Luna's direction, glaring.
Luna gave him a satisfied smirk and said nothing.
"Continue with your report, Naelira," Caelum instructed smoothly, still holding the now-sleeping Pixie on his lap.
Naelira cleared her throat, composed herself, and the footage resumed.
They watched as the ice cracked open and Seiryu's massive, serpentine form rose from beneath the ice.
Then, unexpectedly, he turned on both humans and monsters, lashing out in equal fury.
The footage captured the moment the "unbreakable barrier" shattered. The monsters froze mid-strike, their limbs locked by an unknown force.
And then, the teleporting human appeared.
Moments later, Seiryu transformed. His massive serpentine form shimmered, condensed, and reshaped into a tall, imposing man with long silver-blue hair. A transformation only possible if the Holy Beast had been subjugated and a bond has been forged.
From there, Seiryu began attacking the monsters alone.
Not a single word was spoken around the table.
The older representatives watched with narrowed eyes.
The younger ones shifted in their seats, shooting nervous glances between Luna and Tuf, who were now silent, still exchanging cold glares.
Then, abruptly, the footage cut off.
The screen flickered and went black just as the Aetherdrones were approaching one of the three islets.
"What happened?" Alpha asked calmly, eyes focused.
"We do not have a clear answer, Master Alpha," Naelira replied. "At first, we suspected Seiryu. But we've had other successful drone footage of him since then. He does not emit a frequency that disrupts the feed. Which leads us to believe…"
She hesitated.
"That the interference is not from Seiryu, but from the Holy Beast Master."
Silence again.
"And though we cannot yet confirm it," Naelira continued, "we believe that the surge of power detected three months ago... is directly tied to whoever that new Holy Beast Master is."