Chapter 25

“Wow, what a spirited little fire spirit. Makes me proud to see our kind so bold and full of drive.”

Blizzan whistled with his arms crossed.

[Blizzan, this isn’t the time for jokes.]

Graum scolded him, and Blizzan sighed, nodding once.

“Yeah, yeah, I got it. Could you all maybe shrink down a bit? You’re taking up half the room.”

At his words, Eva’s massive body shimmered into droplets of water that swirled together, forming the shape of a woman.

Enria’s eyes widened at the sight — Eva was as breathtakingly beautiful as Silri.

Eva brushed back her long, blue-tinted hair and said to Blizzan,

“Those are words I’d rather not hear from the biggest one in the room.”

No sooner had she spoken than Windel’s body turned into a spiraling gust of wind and condensed into the form of a young boy with white hair identical to Silri’s.

‘He’s so young—and pretty!’ Enria blinked rapidly. Windel had the sharp, wild aura of a white tiger, while Silri gave off more of a catlike charm.

But her surprise only deepened when a swirl of sand revealed Graum’s form.

“Wh–what, a child…?”

The earth spirit who had looked like a cross between a dragon and a turtle—and whose voice and demeanor were always dignified—had transformed into what looked like a ten-year-old boy with brown hair.

“Dya, dyaaa!”

Hayden, in Enria’s arms, reached out toward Graum, babbling eagerly.

Graum folded his small arms and looked up at Hayden.

“I am not your friend. I may look young, but I’ve lived thousands of years longer than you.”

‘Even his voice sounds like a child’s now.’

Enria blinked again, unable to hide her fascination.

Lonn, another spirit of the same element, looked like a solemn king—so why did Graum appear as such a small child?

As if reading her thoughts, Silri appeared beside her and said, “The physical form a spirit takes depends on the strength and nature of its contractor’s power. Graum and Windel’s contractors both wield a unique black mana—that’s probably why their forms turned out so young.”

Enria nodded thoughtfully, glancing between Graum and Windel. Then her gaze landed on Blizzan. She pointed at him.

“Then what about him…?”

If Windel looked around seventeen and Graum about ten, Blizzan looked like a grown man well past his youth.

“Ah, Blizzan. He’s one of the highest-ranking fire spirits.”

Silri explained that higher-ranking spirits like Blizzan weren’t influenced by their contractors’ abilities, and so they appeared in their natural, mature form.

Likewise, spirits whose gender differed from their contractor—like Eva and Silri herself—were also unaffected by that link.

After finishing her explanation, Silri smiled as she gently poked Hayden’s chubby cheek, who was still trying to grab Graum.

“If you’d formed a contract with me, my appearance might have changed too—something that reflected your influence.”

“Ah…”

Enria nodded slowly.

Refusing Silri’s playful poke, she held Hayden firmly while looking at Roseanne approaching. She offered a sheepish smile.

“This celebration turned into chaos.”

“I know. I didn’t think it would appear even in the Grand Duke’s castle…”

Roseanne muttered as she turned toward Caldeon.

“I thought the whole Grand Duke’s castle was under the earth spirit’s protection barrier.”

“It was.”

Caldeon replied evenly, glancing down at the now childlike Graum.

Graum furrowed his tiny brow at him.

“If something broke my barrier, then that tells you how strong it’s become.”

He couldn’t hide his disbelief—Panz had devoured human souls and grown beyond imagination.

“How strong is he now…?” Windel murmured anxiously.

“Strong enough that even if we all joined forces, we’d have a hard time winning,” Blizzan said with a crooked grin.

The joking tone did nothing to ease the tension; all their faces hardened.

Meanwhile, Graum tried to maintain a serious expression even as Hayden reached out and tugged at his hair.

Enria, also with a serious expression, offered Hayden, who was struggling to get out of her arms, toward Graum and asked Roseanne, “Then Hayden and I… are really in danger, aren’t we?”

“You don’t need to worry,” Caldeon said calmly. “I’d give my life to protect you.”

Enria looked at him. Somehow, she believed him completely.

When Caldeon said not to worry, her heart really did settle.

‘Am I allowed to trust him this much?’

She almost laughed at how her fear had vanished so quickly.

“Wait—the baby’s trying to eat Graum’s head!”

Windel’s pale face and pointing finger drew everyone’s attention.

There stood Graum, arms crossed, looking oddly resigned, while Hayden—held securely in Enria’s arms—had both hands on Graum’s head, trying to bite it.

The moment Enria pulled him back, the room erupted in laughter.

***

After the chaotic party finally ended, Enria left the sleeping Hayden in Chavel’s care and went to Caldeon’s office.

He’d looked unusually serious since earlier, interrupting her tea time with Roseanne to call her in.

Enria sat by the window, watching curiously as Caldeon finished discussing a document with his aide, Arsen.

Once the aide left, Caldeon turned and approached her.

“Should I have tea brought in?” he asked, noticing the empty table.

“Oh, I’m fine.”

He nodded and looked at her intently.

Enria blinked, unsure why he was just staring.

“Um… is there something you wanted to say?”

After a long pause, Caldeon finally spoke.

“Hayden used the same kind of power as mine.”

Enria’s heart dropped.

‘He noticed.’

She hadn’t expected him to find out like this—though in truth, she had been trying to break Silri’s spell to tell him eventually.

But since Roseanne was still the Grand Duchess and Tearen hadn’t yet appeared, the timing was complicated.

‘Still… I should’ve expected this when Hayden used his magic in front of him.’

“Let me ask something I really can’t understand,” Caldeon said slowly.

Enria swallowed hard.

“Is that child’s father… one of my mother’s relatives?”

‘Ah. There it is.’

Enria squeezed her eyes shut.

“My mother’s kin—is that who fathered Hayden?”

Caldeon’s next words made her eyes snap open.

“What?”

Caldeon’s expression was dead serious.

“I asked if Hayden’s father is related to my mother, Enria.”

Her face twisted instantly into one of sheer disbelief.

‘What kind of ridiculous nonsense is that?’

***

“Hahaha! Ahaha!”

“Ha…”

Silri was laughing so hard she nearly fell over, while Roseanne offered a polite, awkward chuckle beside her.

Enria forced a thin smile, feeling both drained and exasperated.

All that tension, all that overthinking—and it turned out that’s what Caldeon had assumed?

Just remembering his face when he’d accused her of having an affair with one of his mother’s nonexistent relatives made her feel exhausted.

“Well, I can’t blame him for imagining it,” Silri said, wiping tears from her eyes.

Roseanne sighed softly. “He’s probably too shocked to think straight. Once he calms down, he’ll realize.”

Seeing Enria’s incredulous look, Roseanne continued,

“Caldeon’s mother was the only woman known to possess black mana. She had no parents or siblings—so the origin of that power remains a mystery.”

“…”

“That’s also why Caldeon’s mana surges have been easy to hide all this time.”

Enria frowned. “But even then, how could he think something like that?”

Roseanne offered a sheepish smile. “He’s just too stunned. Honestly, I was surprised too—but imagine how he feels.”

Caldeon had always believed, with absolute certainty, that he could never have a child—unless his name was written on a sacred marriage vow.

So it had never even occurred to him that Enria’s child could be his.

Enria’s face went pale.

“Wait—then doesn’t that mean Silri’s curse can never be broken?!”

Silri looked away toward the window, feigning interest in the view, while Roseanne patted Enria’s arm soothingly.

“Tearen’s still out there. Let’s have faith in him, all right?”

At that, Enria, looking defeated, gave a small nod.