Holding their breath, they waited until the strange grinding sound from above faded into silence.
"What is that noise?" Juliet asked—it had been bothering her for some time now.
"It comes from the dogs. Sebastian's guard dolls."
"Guard dolls?"
"Oh, my child—you're a fortunate woman. You haven't encountered them yet, have you?" Hildegard said, laughing with unexpected mirth.
Juliet was taken aback by his words.
*If Sebastian's dolls are sophisticated enough to forge a will and convincingly impersonate a dying person, then why does this old man consider me lucky for not having met them?*
"You'll understand everything if you see them, my child. But if you'd prefer not to have nightmares—it's best you never see them at all."
"I'm not a child anymore. My name is Juliet, though you haven't bothered to ask."
"Very well. I shall call you Miss Juliet, if that's what you prefer."
Juliet, who had introduced herself in a rather tense tone, fell into contemplation.
Never before had she heard of or witnessed divine power granting such abilities.
"I still can't believe he can create dolls that look like actual humans..."
*Is such a thing even possible?*
"Your Holiness, I have another question."
"Yes? Ask me anything. I'll share all my knowledge."
"You mentioned that you knew Sebastian and his sister since childhood, correct?"
"Yes. That's true."
"What was special about Xenovia's divine power?"
"Unfortunately, beyond the fact that she was a natural-born genius, I can't speak to the specifics of her abilities."
Hildegard's voice carried clear notes of regret and sorrow.
It seemed he had loved Xenovia no less than her brother Sebastian did.
Juliet smiled to herself and pressed forward with her next question.
"And was her divine power greater than her brother's?"
"Hmm. Children's divine powers are unstable—there are cases where talent only manifests under certain circumstances. And not all children are born with identical abilities."
"Then answer me this: was Sebastian also a child born with divine power, just like Xenovia?"
Hildegard shrugged somewhat vaguely and smiled at the question. He was already beginning to understand why Juliet had asked.
"But, my child... ah, Miss Juliet—as you may already know, divine power often manifests belatedly. It's one of its peculiarities."
"So since Xenovia died in the fire, there were no traces of her body remaining?"
"Absolutely correct."
"I see. I see."
After these words, Juliet began to rise, rubbing her numb legs. They had gone completely dead from sitting on the cold floor for so long.
She had essentially asked everything she needed to know.
"Oh—one more thing."
Juliet patted her skirt, shaking off the dust, and looked at Hildegard.
"Don't you want to get out of here?"
---
## — The Commotion Above —
"What's happening?"
Sebastian hurried down to the first floor of the Terrarium.
"Oh, Your Holiness! Come here—quickly!"
The priests, who had been standing about in helpless confusion, were visibly relieved to see him.
"No—what the *hell*?! You crazy bastards! Where did everyone go?!"
Sebastian's expression soured slightly when he identified the source of those shouts.
This rude, hot-tempered, red-haired youth—the instigator of the escalating commotion—was a notorious troublemaker. But he was also the grandson of the famous Lionel Lebatan, who made substantial donations to the temple annually and appeared on the list of honored guests.
*Annoying bastard,* Sebastian cursed internally, his face darkening.
He didn't know the precise nature of the relationship between them, but... this red-haired boor had arrived with Viya.
Sebastian had also heard that the younger Lebatan was her brother—though, in his opinion, he was utterly unworthy of such an honor.
Such an insignificant creature could not possibly share blood with the noble and beautiful Xenovia.
"Please, calm down and tell me what happened."
"Yesterday—no, until this morning—the girl who came with me was here! But then she suddenly disappeared, leaving only this note! Look! Does that make *any* sense?!"
Sebastian calmly accepted the note from his outstretched hand.
The message, written in neat handwriting, was brief:
> *I'm leaving because I have a bit of a headache. I'll contact you later. Sorry I couldn't warn you in advance.*
Juliet's name was signed below.
"Well, it appears my sister simply left. What exactly is the problem?" Sebastian said, as though he'd never seen the note before.
"What?! You don't think there's a problem here?!"
Theo was incensed by the bishop's indifferent response.
"She disappeared after leaving that note—but her luggage is still here! Besides, no one saw her leave by carriage or on foot! Even knowing all this, you still think there's no problem?!"
Sebastian smiled with condescending patience and replied as though nothing were amiss:
"Calm yourself, young man. This is all the work of the Goddess. My sister has probably departed this place, seeking freedom."
With that, he turned and began walking away.
"Hey—what are you talking about?! What the hell kind of *freedom* are you talking about?!"
Theo shouted after him, but Sebastian decided the young man wasn't worth further attention and continued on his way.
"Dear guest! You must not speak to His Holiness so disrespectfully, regardless of how upset you are!"
Several priests rushed toward Theo to prevent him from pursuing the bishop.
"I'm so furious I could strangle someone..."
Suddenly, Theo—who had been about to shove the priests aside—froze.
*Wait a moment.*
Did that holy man just call Juliet "*my sister*"?
Why would the bishop call Juliet his sister?
---
## — Sebastian's Delusion —
Sebastian removed the barrier and returned to the separate space he had created.
The intense irritation evaporated the moment he found his sister sleeping peacefully in the bedroom.
After receiving the injection, she slept soundly—unaware of what transpired in the world beyond.
Gazing at her with tender affection, he couldn't have been happier that his sister was finally with him again.
"I recognized you at first sight. From the very moment I saw the statue that Gilliam brought."
*We meet again thanks to the grace of the Goddess,* Sebastian thought. *I'm sorry I had to do this—but I had no other choice.*
The woman who had served as the model for the statue possessed the exact same face as Sebastian's sister, Xenovia.
In life, Xenovia had chestnut-colored hair and soft violet eyes. If you disregarded the eye color, you might believe Sebastian's deceased sister had returned to life.
Sebastian, who had been gently stroking Juliet's hair, suddenly frowned.
"Don't worry, Viya. Soon you'll be as beautiful as ever again," he murmured, slowly tracing his fingers across her closed eyelids. "All I need to do is give you back your sweet eyes..."
Then Sebastian turned to the box he had brought with him, his expression pleased.
Inside lay precious eyes he had preserved for many years.
They were the exact shade Xenovia's had been in life.
*With these, you'll become the perfect Xenovia once more.*
The thought filled him with joy.
But the moment he opened the box—
*Prick.*
"...?"
At first, Sebastian didn't comprehend what had happened.
Then a shudder ran through him. He tried to retreat, but stumbled—his legs had grown weak and refused to obey.
Looking back at the bed, he saw that his sister had opened her eyes.
She was holding a syringe.
"Oh. Just a little more and I would have definitely died of boredom," Juliet muttered with a sigh, regarding Sebastian with flat, unimpressed eyes.
---
## — Onyx's Adventure —
"Q?"
The first thing the little dragon detected was a strange scent in the air.
Onyx opened his eyes and surveyed the empty room. He was hungry, but his mistress was nowhere in sight—which meant he'd have to wait until she returned.
Having awakened from a long sleep, he was full of energy and eager to play.
During his first exploration of the room, he'd noticed a soft toy on the bed. He decided to amuse himself with it.
Onyx dragged it off the mattress and began rolling across the floor with it, gnawing enthusiastically, trying to bite off its head.
But the entertainment grew tedious quickly, and his thoughts returned to Juliet.
*How soon will she come back?*
After wandering aimlessly around the bedroom, the baby finally flopped onto his stomach directly in front of the door and settled in to wait.
*"Be a good boy, Onyx. Wait for me. Under no circumstances show yourself to anyone unless they're from the Lebatan family."*
That's what Juliet had said as she stuffed him into a box before departing for Lucerne.
The clever little dragon understood what this meant. But, terrified she would abandon him, he had secretly hidden in her luggage and followed her anyway.
Unfortunately, hiding in this room proved far more boring than anticipated.
*Tap. Tap. Tap.*
"Q?"
The dragon scrambled quickly toward the box to conceal himself when he heard footsteps approaching beyond the door.
Just as Onyx climbed inside, the door creaked open.
"So it's true?"
"Yes—that's what I heard."
Unfamiliar voices reached his ears.
Still tucked inside the box, Onyx carefully poked his head out—just enough to see who had entered.
The intruders were two junior priests who had come to collect laundry.
While changing the bedsheets for fresh linens, the young priests chatted animatedly.
"Are you certain the ceremonial wreath is worth that much?"
"Yes. After His Holiness consecrates it, the price becomes quite substantial."
"You mean the one displayed at the entrance—on the altar below?"
"Exactly. If you could sneak it outside, you'd make a pretty coin."
"Hmm. But how could I get out without anyone noticing?"
Onyx didn't understand complex words like "consecration," but he knew what "wreath" meant.
It was the same thing—round in shape, woven from yellow and white flowers—that Juliet had brought earlier.
The little dragon wagged his tail slightly, pleased with his own intelligence.
*If Juliet knew about this, she would definitely praise him!*
Having seen the beautiful flower wreath previously, he'd decided to taste it. But it had proven quite unappetizing.
Enchanted by its sweet fragrance, he'd bitten off several flowers without thinking and begun chewing—which had caused one of his mistress's servants to burst into loud laughter.
Only after that incident had Onyx learned that people wore these disgusting things on their heads. Though he still didn't understand why.
When the junior priests finally finished their work and departed, the dragon lowered his head back into the box and fell into contemplation.
Even if the flowers weren't tasty, his mistress had liked them, hadn't she? And these people had been discussing that very "wreath."
Onyx imagined his mistress's face breaking into a wide smile as she received a wreath of flowers from him.
And if he was lucky, she might even reward him with something delicious.
Like an *apple.*
"Q!"
At this thought, the dragon instantly leaped from his hiding place.
Since the junior priests—distracted by their conversation—hadn't bothered to lock the door after cleaning, Onyx was able to exit easily. He simply pressed down on the door handle with his paw.
As the little dragon darted into the wide corridor, his priorities were perfectly clear.