Seth woke up as usual, but something was different this time. The warmth pressed against his back felt unfamiliar. As he shifted slightly, he glanced over his shoulder and saw Killian, peacefully asleep, his arm draped over Seth's waist. Killian's breathing was soft and steady, and his normally furrowed brow had smoothed out in the tranquility of sleep.
Seth chuckled quietly, brushing a few stray strands of Killian's messy hair from his face. "Well, this is unexpected," he muttered, his lips curling into an amused smile.
Despite the warmth of the moment, Seth's memory was hazy. He recalled having dinner with Killian the night before. They had shared several glasses of Vasce's finest wine, and as the night progressed, Killian had gotten drunk, slurring out a flurry of words, even claiming he hated Seth at one point. Seth had simply watched, amused, swirling his wine and inhaling its rich scent.
But after that? His memory cut off abruptly, like a page torn from a book.
"It's like I ran out of energy…" Seth muttered to himself, feeling a strange disconnection from his usual sharpness.
He quietly slipped out of bed, careful not to wake Killian, who was still sprawled out beneath the covers, his bare torso half-exposed. As Seth pulled on his robe, he realized he was naked from the waist up. Glancing back at Killian, he saw that the blanket barely covered the other man's lower half. The sight almost made Seth laugh. "It would've been hilarious if he woke up first," he thought, imagining Killian's reaction.
But something else tugged at Seth's attention—a strange absence. The castle was silent, unnervingly so. Normally, by now, Royfield or one of the servants would be present to greet him, but there was no one.
Seth's instincts flared.
Something is wrong.
He left his chambers, the empty corridor stretching before him in eerie silence. The usual bustle of the castle was nowhere to be found. No sounds of footsteps, no chatter, not even the clinking of breakfast preparations from the kitchen. Seth walked cautiously, his senses alert, his mind sharpening with each step.
What's going on here?
His footsteps echoed through the empty halls until he reached the main hall, and the sight before him made his blood run cold.
A massive creature slithered across the stone floor, its long, eel-like body undulating grotesquely. Four small, clawed legs jutted from its sides, scraping the ground with each movement. Its skin was pale and translucent, almost sickly, with veins pulsing faintly beneath its surface. Glowing yellow eyes, devoid of any warmth or humanity, were fixated on the unconscious servant in its grasp. The creature's fanged mouth hovered over the servant, not biting, but drawing something from the body—a faint, ethereal mist that seemed to be pulled from them and consumed by the creature.
Dreameater.
The word surfaced in Seth's mind. He recalled the creature from the novel—a being that fed on dreams and memories, leaving its victims as empty husks. Normally invisible to the naked eye, but Seth's vision by the blindfold, allowed him to see it clearly. Its serpentine body swayed like it was swimming through air rather than slithering on the ground, its grotesque movements leaving a trail of dread in its wake.
As Seth stepped into the hall, the Dreameater's glowing eyes snapped towards him. It dropped the maid's limp body, slithering toward him with terrifying speed, its jagged teeth bared.
Seth's mind raced.
Dreameaters don't act alone. They need a summoner... but I sense no one.
The creature lunged at him, its mouth gaping wide, but before it could reach him, a wall of blue flames erupted from the ground, forcing it to recoil. The fire crackled with intensity, casting an eerie glow throughout the hall.
Seth extended his hand, his voice steady and cold as he summoned a single drop of blue fire from his palm.
"To eternal life in blazing flames."
The drop fell to the floor, and the moment it touched the ground, a wave of blue fire surged outward, engulfing the entire hall. The very fabric of reality shifted as the flames created a new domain—a vast, otherworldly space. The unconscious bodies of the servants remained untouched by the flames, but the Dreameater let out an agonized shriek as the fire seared its astral form.
This domain was Seth's—the embodiment of his power as granted by the Unseen Lord. Within it, the laws of the outside world no longer applied. The Dreameater, an astral being immune to physical damage in the real world, was now vulnerable, trapped in the fiery prison Seth had summoned.
Seth's breath steadied, but he felt a strange pull. This power, this domain—it responded as if driven by something deep within him, almost as if guided by unseen hands. He moved instinctively, his actions fluid yet unnerving, as though the magic was using him just as much as he was using it.
The Dreameater thrashed wildly, trying to escape, but it was bound by the circle of flames. Seth stepped forward, his eyes narrowing beneath the blindfold. His body moved as if knowing what to do, each movement fluid and controlled.
With a flick of his wrist, Seth summoned a lance of blue fire from above. It materialized in mid-air, glowing with deadly intensity, before it plummeted down, piercing the Dreameater's body and pinning it to the ground. The creature writhed in pain, its eerie cries filling the hall.
Seth stood over it, his expression unreadable. "I will spare you," he said, his voice low and dangerous. "But only if you tell me who summoned you."
The Dreameater hissed, its glowing eyes filled with pain and terror, but it could not speak. It was a foolish hope, and Seth knew it. The creature was incapable of communication. Offering it mercy had been nothing more than a formality—a gesture before delivering the final blow.
The creature's body flickered, phasing in and out of visibility as it struggled against the binding flames. Seth raised his hand, summoning a surge of blue fire from within. The flames coalesced around his palm, swirling with immense power.
With a swift, decisive motion, Seth unleashed the fire, engulfing the Dreameater in a blazing inferno. The flames consumed the creature entirely, its form disintegrating in the intense heat until there was nothing left but scattered fragments of light.
Seth stepped forward, kneeling down to inspect the remnants. Among the fading glow, a single shard stood out. It was small, translucent, and pulsed faintly with a strange energy—like the heartbeat of something ancient.
Seth picked up the shard, turning it over in his hand.
"I've seen something like this before..." he muttered, trying to grasp the fleeting memory. But the details eluded him, slipping away like a mist.
Deciding to keep the shard for further investigation, Seth pocketed it. As he rose to his feet, the domain around him began to crack, the blue flames fading as reality reasserted itself. The stone walls and floor of the castle returned, and Seth found himself standing in the hall once more, surrounded by the unconscious bodies of his servants.
The silence returned, but Seth's mind was far from at ease. Who summoned the Dreameater? he wondered. And why?
Seth's thoughts churned with unsettling possibilities. He knew there were few who could summon such creatures, and even fewer with reason to target him.
"The church..." Seth muttered. Roland, the inquisitor from the Holy Empire. A major cast that appeared in the arc involving the Holy Empire.
But even as the name surfaced, Seth's instincts told him something wasn't right. Why would they care about a mere baron?
In the novel's timeline, Seth should have been dead long before the Holy Empire's involvement.
The timeline is changing. I know it. Still this makes me wary what will comes next. The thought lingered, unsettling and clear. Something is shifting.
Before Seth could delve further into his thoughts, he sensed a familiar presence behind him. Royfield entered the room silently, bowing low in front of Seth, his face betraying a flicker of unease.
"I apologize for my absence, my lord," Royfield began, his tone strained with regret.
Seth's gaze darkened. "Where were you, Royfield?" he asked, his voice colder than usual. "Do you see what kind of chaos has happened in my castle?"
Royfield lowered his head even further. "I take full responsibility, my lord."
Seth's patience was thin. "So? Where is it?"
Royfield lifted his head slightly, meeting Seth's gaze. "My lord, the intruder used a puppet body. I wasn't able to identify their true motive, but I did manage to caught its tail."
With that, Royfield stepped aside, revealing a lifeless body of a young man, artificial in appearance, clearly like human.
"A homunculus..." Seth muttered, recognition flooding through him. But how could they have developed this so early? This was far ahead of the timeline he knew. The Holy Empire didn't have access to this kind of alchemy yet—nor did the One-Eye Alliance.
The thought was disturbing, unsettling his careful plans.
Seth's voice hardened. "Preserve the body. Store it in the dungeon and expose it to the energy of the beast core."
"But, my lord," Royfield began cautiously, "what do you plan to do with it?"
Seth's gaze turned icy, cutting Royfield off. "Do I need to explain everything to you?"
Royfield bowed immediately. "No, my lord. I apologize."
Without another word, Royfield left, dragging the homunculus's body out of the hall. Seth glanced around at the unconscious servants, knowing they would recover soon. His mind, however, remained troubled.
He left the hall, heading to check on Claire. When he entered her office, he was relieved to find her unharmed, fast asleep on the sofa surrounded by documents. Watching her for a brief moment, Seth's expression softened, glad she had escaped the chaos unscathed. Quietly, he left, heading back to his chambers.
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Upon entering, Killian was awake, sitting on the edge of the bed, his gaze locked on Seth as he entered the room. He watched Seth pace back and forth. Killian's sharp eyes tracked every movement, his expression unreadable.
Without warning, Killian stood and approached the lord. His hand reached out, gripping Seth's shoulder, forcing him to stop.
Seth, startled out of his thoughts, turned to meet Killian's intense gaze.
"Oh, you're up?" Seth smiled, trying to lighten the tension.
Killian's eyes pierced through him, his voice calm but probing. "What's wrong? You're so distracted that you didn't even notice me."
Seth chuckled lightly, attempting to brush it off. "It's nothing serious. Something happened, but it's been dealt with."
Killian could tell Seth was avoiding his questions. His jaw tightened. He wasn't one to press, but this time, he wasn't going to let Seth off easily. Without warning, Killian wrapped his arms around Seth's waist, pulling him close. The sudden, bold move caught Seth off guard, but he didn't resist.
Killian held Seth tightly, his mind wandering. How is it that someone so small can irritate me so much? He inhaled deeply, pressing his face against Seth's neck. "You smell... relaxing," he muttered softly, his voice rough around the edges.
Seth chuckled, a warm smile crossing his lips as he embraced Killian in return. "You're quite bold today."
Without a word, Killian scooped Seth up effortlessly, lifting him off the ground. Seth's eyes widened in surprise. "Wait... what are you—"
Before he could finish, Killian carried him to the bed and laid him down gently. Killian then climbed in beside him, wrapping his arms around Seth, pulling him close as if shielding him from the world.
"Let me rest like this for a while," Killian murmured, his voice muffled against Seth's chest as he buried his face in the crook of Seth's neck.
Seth blinked, momentarily at a loss for words. But as he looked down at Killian, who had his head resting on his chest, he couldn't help but smile. He began to brush his fingers through Killian's messy hair, letting the tension melt away.
The warmth of Killian's body pressed against him, the steady rhythm of his breathing, the quiet intimacy of the moment—all of it brought a strange sense of comfort to Seth. For the first time in what felt like days, Seth's mind calmed. The chaos of the Dreameater, the homunculus, the lingering questions about the future—none of it seemed to matter right now.
"I don't mind this at all," Seth whispered to himself, his voice barely audible as he continued to run his fingers through Killian's hair.
Rest well, Killian