Chapter Thirty-Nine: Remember

While heading towards the cavern took time, going back out was easier. When the demon beast closed its eyes, the chaotic magic behavior in the environment calmed down. Helix was able to cast his teleportation magic directly from the cavern back to the castle. It took them no time at all to get back.

'But somehow, I'm more exhausted thinking about this demonic beast than I was when we were walking earlier…' Such thought was in Kai's head as he stared intently at the new creature inside their castle. He looked at Helix sitting on the opposite side of the table and asked, "Bringing this demon beast here is fine, isn't it? Wouldn't it be dangerous for us?"

Such a question made Helix raise his gaze from the book he was reading, which was about demon beasts, and look at Kai with his eyebrows raised, "I'm here, what's there to worry about?"

…

'Indeed, that makes sense.'

The demon beast has yet to open its eyes, and did not show signs of doing so either. It seemed like it returned to a state of slumber, completely unbothered by what's happening outside of its unconsciousness. Kai looked at it for a moment before standing up and leaving the library. Helix only glanced at his leaving figure for a second, before moving it to the demon beast and then back to his book.

'This is my first time seeing a demon beast either, but something tells me… that there is something unusual about this one…' Such thought was in Helix's mind as he carefully examined every pages of the book. Perhaps, he might find some clue regarding the identity of this strange demon beast. 'And, that man seems to personally know about it… all the more reason to be suspicious.'

A demon beast who slumbered on the White Forest, occupying an unknown cavern filled with magic…

No records have shown or matched anything regarding the identity of this demon beast.

In the first place, records, books or any other literature regarding demonic creatures were sparse due to their rarity. During the existence of humankind, there were only a few encounters with the demon beasts, more so with their ancestors, the primordial demons. Collecting information seems to be futile.

Helix closed the book and stood from his seat. He looked at the demon beast and narrowed his eyes. "The way it looked at me earlier, that was even stranger. It felt like…"

The door to the library opened once more, and Kai entered with a cushion and a small blanket. Helix looked at Kai blankly as the other moved the demon beast above the cushion and tucked it with the blanket. Kai looked at Helix awkwardly and said, "Well, even though it's a demon beast, it has the form of something similar to a cat… So I thought providing warmth and comfort could help it adjust here and warm up to us. After all, it will be staying here with us for a while…"

"... Is that so." Helix replied. He looked at the slumbering demon beast and added, "Bring it to the room next to mine. That way, I can keep an eye on it."

-

Night fell on the eternal winter forest of Rukadius. Both Kai and Helix retired to their respective rooms. After such a long day, all Kai wanted was a good night's sleep. Thus, the moment he dropped on his cold bed, he instantly fell asleep.

Helix meanwhile had a few books by his bed. All were about the primordial demons and their two variant descendants. Regardless of how many books Helix would read, it was all still the same information written in paraphrased form. It was all the same and reading would have no point at all… But reading does calm his nerves more than sleeping.

'The fragments of memories I saw from the cavern and the demon beast…'

Helix has grown curious regarding these two subjects. He personally has no interest in learning about another person's life and memories, but he thought that perhaps, those memory fragments were something related to the demon beast. If so, he really wants to understand every bit of those memories.

But… How?

Hekix closed the book after he finished reading the very last page. He then reached out for another one, with the intent of reading all the books he brought from the library in a single night. He grabbed the book and⸻

Thud.

The small desk lamp which allowed Helix to read his books flickered so slightly. An eerie silence fills the room as Helix laid on his bed, unconscious. The book in his hand fell to the floor, pages folded due to its position. Helix personally hates book pages being folded in an unsightly manner, but how was he going to feel bothered when his consciousness slipped away?

Another flicker from the lamp and it finally turned off. Light disappeared from the room, but a feline's eyes were still intently staring at the face of the unconscious dark mage.

Sitting next to Helix's head was the same demon beast from earlier. Moments passed without any movements but after a long while, it raised its black furred paw and touched Helix's forehead. Faint glowing red light emerged from the same spot it touched.

That same glow filled the room for a long, long while. Despite the brightness inside the room however, Helix showed no signs of waking. Gradually, the glow dimmed down, returning to its original intensity.

"I remember…"

The voice was calm, but cold and eerie. The feline continued to look at Helix as it then whispered yet again,

"Helix Vernon… I remember you."