* * *
As is common with imaginative children, Juliet occasionally suffered from vivid dreams.
They were dreams so clear, as if she had seen them herself. They were more often nightmares than happy ones.
[Hurry!]
An unknown middle-aged couple was running down a familiar corridor.
The couple, constantly looking around, was holding something tightly in their arms. Wrapped in cloth was a little girl with an angelic face and blonde hair.
The girl lay motionless, as if asleep.
[We have to run now!]
Though Juliet had never seen these people before, she already knew who they were.
They were the Fran couple, who had worked at the Duke’s Castle in the North.
In the midst of their frantic escape, the wife grabbed her husband.
[Honey, are you sure this is okay?]
[Stop saying stupid things now! Do you not know what this is?]
The husband snapped angrily.
Under the torchlight, greedy eyes sparkled unnaturally.
As if driven by some obsession.
[With ‘this’, we’ll become very rich!]
[Okay, I understand…]
They started running away again.
However, Juliet could clearly see. When the husband turned, he no longer held the blonde girl.
What he wrapped and held wasn’t a child, but a sparkling golden crown.
Juliet stood still until they left the corridor.
Surely, 20 years ago, the couple who worked at the Duchy ran away with the Duke’s treasure along with their young daughter.
– The Fran couple didn’t have a child.
But a knight who had been loyal to the Duchy for generations confirmed it.
It was true that the couple had stolen the Duke’s treasure, but they didn’t have a daughter.
Lennox told her directly.
– Say hello. This treasure’s name is ‘Dahlia’.
‘Dahlia’ was not their daughter but the name of the stolen treasure.
But why did she believe otherwise?
(Human memory is truly simple.)
Suddenly, a strange voice came from behind her.
(Once you believe something, it’s tough to realize it’s wrong, isn’t it?)
As she turned towards the sound, her vision darkened.
(You’re awake.)
And Juliet found herself lying in a familiar bedroom.
The first to greet the awakened Juliet was neither human nor beast.
(Hello.)
Juliet stared at the black panther that suddenly appeared.
It was a familiar presence. The beast that had lurked around Lennox when they met in the square.
(We finally meet.)
Juliet calmly asked:
“Are you a demon?”
(You’re sharp, indeed.)
The black panther grinned.
Realizing the identity of the panther as a demon wasn’t difficult. Like the butterflies that invaded Juliet’s dreams and toyed with her mind.
So, it was obvious that this panther was a demon.
(Yes, you humans call me a demon.)
Juliet got up and looked around. It seemed a bit dark, indicating time had passed.
‘What time is it?’
While observing her surroundings, Juliet suddenly realized she still held the sparkling tiara in her hand.
(You seem a bit unresponsive for someone who just met me.)
The black panther leisurely commented. Juliet briefly looked at the tiara and then looked up.
“Do you know me?”
(How could I not?)
The demon in the form of a panther seemed to enjoy this conversation.
(We’ve met many times. You might not have seen me, but I’ve seen you. Recognize me now?)
Juliet stared at the black panther and suddenly said:
“You’re that sword.”
Guessing that the all-black panther form was the sword wasn’t difficult.
The sword of Duke Carlyle, commonly rumored to be possessed by a ghost.
(You’re right. For a human, you’re pretty intuitive.)
A realization struck Juliet.
The chatty butterflies couldn’t communicate with her because they were anxious.
Very few humans can awaken artifacts, so the demons attached to them become obsessed with their contractors.
‘But how?’
(Yes. Usually, a demon can only communicate with their contractor.)
As if reading Juliet’s thoughts, the black panther smirked. It was strange to think of a panther smiling.
A frown appeared on Juliet’s face.
“So, the reason I can talk to you now is…”
(Because your butterflies are weakening. You should be thankful to those idiots.)
Juliet bit her lip. She didn’t want to realize that there was something wrong with the butterflies like this.
The black panther seemed delighted with Juliet’s attention.
(Don’t be mad. There are plenty of demons that grant wishes, right?)
The black panther nonchalantly knocked over a stack of books with its tail.
(Me and your butterflies are the same. What do you think we want?)
Juliet thought for a moment.
If these demons were beings from another dimension that were forcibly summoned and tied to artifacts a long time ago…
“You want to return permanently to the dimension you belong to.”
(You’re smarter than I thought.)
The black panther seemed pleased and wagged its tail.
(Yes. I want to return to my original dimension. It’s fun here, but…)
The black panther trailed off, seeming sad.
(Think about it. Do you think it makes sense to wait for hundreds, even thousands of years, just to grant the wishes of fleeting beings like you humans? Especially for someone as magnificent as me.)
The black panther’s face contorted for a moment.
(…Having to rely on lowly humans.)
Fizz.
Suddenly, the beast that was speaking softly was suddenly enveloped in black flames.
Startled, Juliet clutched the bedsheet.
For a moment, instead of the balanced face of the elegant cat and the beast, a grotesque shape flickered and then disappeared.
(Besides, I can’t even use my power properly here.)
Having shown its true form only for a moment, the black panther lamented pitifully.
(Do you know what great things I can do?)
The entity, appearing as a beast and claiming to be grand, whined like a child.
Except for speaking more fluently, it really didn’t seem any different from Juliet’s butterflies.
Though it took on a pitiful beastly form and imitated monsters, its power was indeed tremendous.
However, because they are constrained by their power, their abilities are severely limited. That was the gist of it.
(But all I can do here is rummage through human memories…)
“So it was you.”
Juliet realized in an instant.
(Hmm?)
“You showed my memories to Lennox.”
Juliet’s eyes grew cold.
(Hmm, that’s right.)
“So you awakened past memories in Lennox? What does that have to do with you returning to your original world?”
(Strictly speaking, there’s both a relation and no relation. I had no choice.)
The black panther spoke as if making an excuse.
It seemed like Juliet’s butterflies, rather than exerting physical force, controlled people by showing them their worst fears and then consuming those emotions.
(Don’t be angry. Demons gain the most energy from the emotions of their contractors.)
Listening quietly, Juliet suddenly had a thought.
If, as the panther said, evil spirits draw power from the pain of their contractors, then could her butterflies regain their strength if she gives in to her emotions?
“So… if I recall my memories more, as you said, can I summon the butterflies again?”
(No.)
The previously enthusiastic panther flatly denied.
“Why?”
(Your butterflies lost their power because they were vulnerable to that snake.)
“Vulnerable?”
(Even if you wholly surrender to your butterflies, as long as that snake persists, regaining their full power is impossible.)
“What weakness was exploited?”
(The name was revealed.)
“…?”
The black panther spoke so seriously that Juliet was momentarily perplexed.
“Snowdrop?”
(Yes, that name.)
The panther’s smile deepened.
But how could that be such a significant weakness? Juliet wanted to ask more.
Just then, a faint presence was heard from outside.
(Eek.)
The black panther noticeably flinched and, without any farewell, naturally passed through the bedroom wall and disappeared.
Thump.
The door opened, and the Duke’s maid entered.
“The Duke has returned.”
The panther was already gone.
“I’ll be right down.”
Juliet left her room and headed to the reception room.
Walking barefoot in her thin nightgown through the Duke’s mansion, none of the people she encountered asked her anything, as always.
The lower floor was bustling, and in the reception room, she noticed several people of the Duke’s residence discussing something serious.
And there was Duke Carlyle, dressed as if he had just returned from outside.
From the conversations she overheard, she had a general idea of the situation.
There was an incident in the square where beasts caused a commotion, and an urgent conference was convened. At that moment, Lennox spotted Juliet at the door.
“Ah, Miss Juliet.”
The other members of the Duke’s family acknowledged her presence, and the meeting concluded.
Left in the reception room were just Lennox and Juliet.
Juliet, lost in thought, fiddled with the small tiara in her hand.
‘Is this Dahlia?’
After a long silence, Juliet spoke.
“So who is Dahlia Fran… who is that woman?”
“You call Dahlia ‘her’?”
As Juliet was about to speak, Lennox openly sneered.
Dahlia was not a person’s name but the name of a treasure.
She didn’t understand.
“…Dahlia, that woman, knew your nickname.”
“It probably did.”
Lennox affirmed calmly.
“It’s an item that has been hidden in the Duke’s castle for hundreds of years, so it would have been easy to know at least my name.”
It made sense she knew everything about the family.
“But Dahlia is undoubtedly in the eastern tower of the Duke’s castle…”
Juliet suddenly realized.
The eastern tower was a space only the Duke and his spouse could enter. It’s where all the precious treasures of the Duke’s castle were stored.
“Yes.”
Lennox softly affirmed.
However, that didn’t explain everything.
The timing was too coincidental. Lennox brought Dahlia to the Duke’s castle right after their major argument.
Why did Lennox have to bring Dahlia to the Duke’s castle right then?
“It’s no different from what your ancestors did. They locked them up because they were too dangerous to be let loose in the world.”
“…Locked them up?”
Then, a faint memory returned to her.
Before she knew anything and opened the door to let out the butterflies, they had been trapped for hundreds of years.
Juliet touched the tiara she had been holding since she woke up.
In other words, this, like the key, was also an artifact.
“Juliet.”
Lennox approached and knelt before her.
“That object confuses human memories.”