Since the Demon King was now absent from the castle, Barbatos placed two familiars in front of Juliaās door. His familiar was an eagle the size of a human with a ferocious eyesight and a sharp beak, as if it would be stopping anything by force if she were to proceed with something annoying.
After hiding behind Bero while trembling timidly, Julia could then let out a sigh of relief but only after the door was finally closed.
āPhew, Iāve never seen such a big bird in all my life.ā
To be more precise, it was a beast rather than a mere bird.
Anyway, there was no time to waste. She straight away changed into a negligee before pulling out the paper and pen which she had kept hidden in her outdoor clothes.
It wasnāt a particularly precious item, but amidst the current situation, it would actually feel strange to ask for it all of a sudden. Therefore, she secretly brought it along from the room while pretending to be waiting for Agares, who had already gone out on official business. There were many similar items back in Agaresās office, so even if she had stolen one, it would not be noticeable at all.
Julia wrote the letters line by line while making only such tiny sounds so that the eagles which were still standing guard in the hallway would not feel odd at all.
[Legion, I heard that one of the Sword Masters has come down to the underworld. Is that you? Did you come here to find me?
If that is really the case then, please donāt waste your time anymore and go back to the Human Realm now. I wonāt be following you. I donāt even want to meet you. Iām afraid that seeing you will bring back all my miserable nightmares on earth. So, donāt worry about me, donāt even think of me for the rest of your life and in fact, just completely erase me from your own mind.]
Julia, who was writing it down hastily, suddenly bit her lower lip. A terrifying sense of shame eventually made her lift her head.
āWhat is this? The nerve I have to actually point a finger at someone else?ā
When she didnāt even hold onto him from leaving back when it was four years ago. No, even if she did grab his hand that was reaching out to her without hesitationā¦ā¦
She had shoved her friend, who would have been free by now, straight into the mud. And it wasnāt enough for the just and weak-minded Legion that she was now spitting out words that could really hurt him like this.
Julia rubbed the corners of her eyes, which started to get a bit stinging, and grabbed the pen.
āLetās not be weak. Itās already the path that Iāve chosen.ā
The more she thought about it, the deeper the guilt that seemed to eventually sink in. Yet this was the only way that he would be aware of her own thoughts.
In exchange for incriminating Legion, she would then survive. And that was not the end at all since she was starting to give her heart to the demons which Legion had been fighting with his life. She didnāt have the courage to tell him the truth, so that was why she became afraid to meet Legion.
āI canāt bear to expose myself as being so selfish and itās not good enough even if I were to just apologize for the rest of my life, but still the only one whoād be happy. Iām afraid of being hated by Legion himselfā¦ā¦ā
He, who was always smiling like the sun, would give her a contemptuous look in return. He would definitely hate her being amidst all of his very own enemiesāthe demons. Just thinking about it had made her heart ache greatly.
[The fact that you are looking for me is terribly inconvenient to me. Itās just so creepy and suffocating. Please, I beg of you, go back to the ground above. And donāt come here again.]
āI donāt want you to be in danger. I want you to live happily under the warm sun for a long time with my set of shares as well. And this time, donāt get tied to me and be freeā¦ā¦ā
It didnāt matter if the reason why everyone became nice to her was merely because she had been useful as a key. She could feel a sense of security only when she was bound by someone. She had been relieved to know that there was someone who had strongly supported her, who had been wandering all her whole life.
Even if happiness was only temporary and the final end was death itself.
As she bit her lip, Julia then cut the tip of her hair a little and enclosed it between her written letter.
Just this afternoon, Julia saw a flash of blue light and black magic alternately flickering beyond the horizon of the Demon Realm. And each time, Barbatos and Revenna would try to keep her out from noticing it, but everything was useless in front of Julia who had already used the sight function.
She could be sure that it was Legion at the end of those flashing lights.
āBero, I have a little request, can you do it?ā
āKiingg?ā
āIf you keep going in that direction, youāll eventually run into someone, whom Iād like you to deliver this to. Heās a very nice warrior with bright blonde hair and blue eyes. Heās very kind and caring and heās also an old friend of mine, so Iām sure heād like Bero as well.ā
Beroās twinkling gaze slowly followed Juliaās fingertips that were beyond the red horizon where moonlight had already fallen, right towards the place where Legion was coming from.
āWhat do you think?ā
Julia swallowed her saliva with tension and looked at Bero. Its tail was wagging like a propeller as she began wondering if it truly understood her or was it just having fun.
She hung the letter at Beroās neck before she carefully opened the window that was leading right to the terrace, so that no sound could be heard outside at all. The night wind that flurried through the crevice softly ruffled Juliaās hair.
In spite of the cold, she went out to the terrace first and took out the toys that she had been hiding since earlier.
āBero, shall we play catch? Catch?ā
āHeh heh heh heh!ā
āOkay, catch it.ā
The young wolfās eyes changed at once when she raised her voice while tapping her lap as she normally would. It was ready to run ahead just at the sight of her throwing something. And as usual, whenever Revenna or Lerazier threw the toys right to the end of the horizon, it would bolt like the wind and tackle it on.