7

There are three kinds of people with power in this world. The Demons, the angels who are also called the Guardians, and deviants who are half breeds. Angels are forbidden to reproduce their kin and out of all the three of the species they are the only ones who do not come in contact with the humans, living in seclusion and balancing the world. Unlike the stories, Angels and demons do not fight with one another, or more precisely they have nothing to do with each other. Demons are more like humans. And deviants are half breeds born out of the union between the demons and humans. Cronus was different …he was a demon but was brought up by angels. He was a really strong demon who later became the guardian of time inheriting the position from Angel of time, his adopted parent. If given a chance Cronus would surely go back to the land of Angels where I guess he would still be welcomed and loved even now.

'Nolga Art Museum' I told the carriage driver. It was noontime, after having breakfast I told my parents that we were going for an outing. I was shocked to sense that Cronus was only visible to me. Maybe because we are bound by the contract now.

'What is there in the Nolga Art Museum?' Cronus asked sitting adjacent to me on the carriage. He looked sullen and tired. Dark circles were formed present under his eyes and he looked paler than usual. It was just this morning he looked so pleasant but now it seemed to have faded somewhere.

'What happened to you? You look tired.' I asked.

'It takes a lot of energy to maintain this form while being contracted. Usually, when living in the Grimoire I only needed the life force once a while. I will feel better in some time.'

'Since you are still bound to the grimoire it takes effort to be present like this?'

'Yeah…tell me what is contained in the Nolga Art Museum.'

'The clue of finding the painter.' I spoke.

I looked outside through the window of the carriage.

The streets looked different from two days before…more like a year in the future. The citizen of this prosperous nation looked happy and contented. The last memories I had of them were their faces contorted with disgust and anger. They were flinging stones at me, calling me a witch and a villainess as I went to the gallows bare feet. My bruised leg and stinking body. Hair matted and lips bit red …everything is still fresh in my memory… since for me, it was just two days ago. For the first time in my life, I felt what hunger meant, lack of freedom and the darkness of the slippery cell where mold grew on its damp walls. How much I was blessed with, the love I grew up in. I retrospect so much that many of my inhibitions started fading away. The grey stones were filled with the scratches of the tortured souls of millions of condemned waiting for being executed. They were kept there to make them realize…that death was much better than being alive.

"And you see my harvest, what I reap,

This very day now a year is run...'

The people were fickle and so was I...unable to understand many things in my life. The suffering which I felt must have been experienced by so many people yet I blindly turned away.

'For the best sight is, all allow,

At the Shambles' Gate- or better yet .'

'What are you spacing out for? Come out get out of the carriage.' Cronus called out to, bringing me back to reality. He had already jumped out of the carriage waiting on the entrance of the Museum.

'Cronus I finally understand why you were so pissed off towards my ancestor.' I spoke.

'Don't be…I don't need your understanding.' He said as he went inside.

He truly was strong, despite being imprisoned and repeatedly tortured in the grimoire he could still stand proud and think about the good of others. I takes nothing to be kind but it feels so prized by the person you have shown this kindness towards. Hating anyone would only mean I am hating myself since once I was one of them .

*****

Nolga Art Museum was the national museum of the Empire where paintings of various artist throughout various centuries are contained. In the novel there is no mention of the Museum and suddenly the heroine is on a quest to find out the painter of 'Twilight' who acts as a key to the majority part of the Deviant Revolution. Although it the story starts from the end of first arc and gets completed in the third arc ,the painter Elizabeth is someone who is an extremely strong deviant that needs to be saved.

'Cronus can you detect the source of Aether in this museum?' I asked him.

'Aether is everywhere what do you mean by detecting the source of it?' He asked.

Deviants and demons fed on Aether that was present in the atmosphere. Lifeforce that Cronus was fed while in the grimoire could be easily substituted with Aether and over the years he might have become too strong for the grimoire to retrain him since he was taking in aether from both his contractor and the atmosphere. Thus, the only solution that Ares came up with was to put him in a chamber where no aether was present making the Bellhouse family the only source of sustenance for him. Humans and even Ares for that matter cannot see or feed on the aether. Even living without it would not change anything.

'Try finding it …. take a deep breath and detect it. You were already low on energy, right?' I said again.

'Fine.' He said as he closed his eyes and walked slowly towards the source.

The museum was laid with marble floors through which our reflection could be seen. The paintings with uniform golden frames were present on either side of the corridors. They were of the same size…. the bigger one was on the first floor while as we go up the size of the paintings decreases and their price increases. Elizabeth was famous for painting on a smaller canvas. In the novel, a painting of her was made on a canvas as small as a jewelry box. These miniature paintings were naturally bought with more money due to the amount of precision and vibrant colors she had mixed in them.

'Elizabeth.' I am sure this is a pseudonym.

'Aria …somewhere…. there is something in this room that is flowing with aether.' Cronus said ecstatically.

The amount of Aether must have exceeded the total amount present in the air of whole the Empire. That is how novel described it to be.

We were on the third floor of the building in a black marbled room containing only seventeen paintings. Although there was a trend among the nobility to buy small canvas paintings and the demand was high but rarely did painters paint on small canvases. Simply because they were unable to make a detailed and small-sized picture.

The topmost floor had only seventeen painting smallest sized paintings which can be said as the most prized possession of the Museum.

'This…this painting…it contains the purest form of aether I have ever felt.' Cronus was taken aback. His eyes were wide as if he had seen something unbelievable. His face twitched and his hands pointed towards the painting of a little boy burning in the fire. ' A cry for help' it was titled.

'How…can this be possible. This much amount of Aether is impossible.' He spoke. I could feel the wonder in his voice.

Elizabeth needs to be saved…she is just too valuable.

'The painting is the source of Aether because the painter 'Elizabeth' makes it out of Aether. She is a deviant who can generate or can concentrate aether in the air and channel it in her painting.' I spoke. I did not know whether she makes or channels the aether, the novel never specified it.

'Are you serious? You know how much Aether is present in the painting?' Cronus shouted. His voice echoed in the silent room.

Yeah…he has completely lost it.

'Geez!! For God's sake! Don't shout so much.' I plugged my ears.

His eyebrows were scrunched up with a deep scowl on his face.

'Tell me where is she!' He shouted again but this time a little softer.

'I don't know…in the novel Lisbeth who is a deviant came across the painting on her tour with the king. She sensed so much aether from the painting that she started looking for that person with Sebalion her friend.' I spoke.

'If that person can produce this much aether then a deviant who can absorb at least three of her paintings would conjure powers of a demon for a short while. Cronus looked seriously distressed.

'That is what would happen in the future. The deviant revolution which would be started by the powerful deviants to take over the empire would abuse the power of Elizabeth and become stronger.' The word revolution would be wrong for the events in the near future…more like rebellion. High-Class Deviants are not some sorry lots, they are just full of themselves who hate being ruled by a capable human king. They would use many unethical means to achieve what they want and, in the process, will involve innocent deviants.

'She is being abused to use her powers for making the rebellion grow stronger?'

'At least that is what was written in the novel.'

'What was the outcome of her?'

'Lisbeth found her but she was already dead from overuse of her powers and starvation. Upper-class Deviants sucked her dry. This all will happen in six months from now on. We can easily save the painter you know.'

'There might be some underworld auction going on among the deviants to collect her paintings. Let us find it.'

'You do that work. I will try to contact the most important person of this search operation.'

'Lisbeth?' He spoke.

'No Sebalion…the captain of the first knight squadron. After all he was the one who found Elizabeth in the novel.