Owl

Ian, right after finishing his alchemy work, asked his godmother for permission and made a phone call.

He wanted to learn about Dolores's temperament, and since he'd already gotten Dolores's permission, his godmother cheerfully told him the temperament she'd once assessed.

[She's more on the good side than the evil side. That said, if she does something that goes against the good she herself pursues, she's the sort of extreme person who would rather eliminate it than teach it.]

It was close to midnight.

Bathed in moonlight slipping through the crack in the window, Ian let out a low sigh. Perhaps because it was a residential area with few people living there, there wasn't a single pedestrian on the street. Only the streetlamps were lighting the dark pavement.

[Still, her idea of goodness isn't so far outside common sense that you need to worry too much. She is a little high-strung, so she might wear you out, though.]

“Then that should be fine.”

[Yes. Dolores is a good mage.]

Since he had his godmother's approval, there was no reason to refuse accompanying Dolores. He nodded in satisfaction and quietly let the cold wind blowing in from the window wash over him.

The wind was colorless and scentless. It carried no pollen, no trace of dust, no floral fragrance. It was simply cold.

Ian stood there for a moment, letting the wind hit him as he looked up at the sky, then closed the window and turned around.

“Thank you for telling me, Ms. Eunha. I'll repay you next time if I get the chance.”

[No, it's fine…….]

His godmother had been about to refuse Ian's offer with a small smile when something seemed to occur to her, and she trailed off.

After a moment, she spoke again.

[Then could you get just one thing I'm asking for from Owl? I'll cover all the costs, plus extra.]

It wasn't even a difficult favor. Ian calmly replied while drawing the curtains closed over the window.

“Ah, I can do that much. What should I buy?”

[I think the heart of a she-goat, thread spun by a virgin, and a plant that grew by drinking a virgin's blood should do.]

“Hmm... that's a lot of purity-related things.”

Goats had long been regarded as symbols of the devil, and in fact there were quite a few demons that took goat form, so they were beasts far removed from purity. To begin with, even the bicorn was an animal with two horns exactly like a goat's. Goat aversion in occult circles was practically orthodoxy.

By contrast, things like thread spun by a virgin and plants grown by drinking a virgin's blood were items closely tied to purity. They couldn't have been farther from goats.

“They're opposing items, but if it's not rude to ask, could you tell me what you're going to use them for?”

Ian asked cautiously. Eunha answered readily.

[It's nothing special. I'm planning to summon a demon. One called Amdusias—do you know him?]

“Amdusias... Ah, the demon that looks like a unicorn? The one that grants knowledge of plants and talent in music?”

[That's right. You know quite a lot about demons too?]

Eunha gave a soft chuckle and murmured. The faint rustle of the blanket came through between her words. She seemed to be lying in bed.

After turning off the room light, Ian roughly shoved the grimoires on the bed into a corner and lay down on the bed just like Eunha. The soft cushioning gently enveloped him.

“I've done some personal research. I don't know the details.”

[Yes. Everything you said is correct, Mr. Ian. Amdusias is a chastity demon who only makes contracts with virgins, so you have to use purity-related materials for the summoning. The goat's heart is included to symbolize the impurity being purified into purity.]

“Ah, I see.”

[Yes. If possible, it would be best to use a plant soaked in my blood and thread I spun myself, but that would take too long. I don't really know how to spin thread either.]

Eunha said as she shifted in bed. Ian stayed silent for a moment instead of answering right away.

‘...If she can spin it herself, that means she's a virgin too, right?’

“Hmm.”

It was information he'd learned accidentally. Ian kept it off his face and brushed it aside with a low hum, changing the subject.

“All right. Then if you have the materials you mentioned, I'll buy them and bring them to you. If not, I'll order them.”

[Yes, thank you, Ian. I'll transfer the money as soon as you tell me the prices of the materials.]

“Understood. Then...”

[Ah, yes. Have a good night. I hope your deal goes smoothly tomorrow.]

“Yes. Good night to you too, Ms. Eunha.”

[Hehe, yes.]

As Eunha replied, he heard a rustling sound. Ian hung up, set his alarm, and closed his eyes.

Wriggle, wriggle.

The grimoires crawled over to him and plastered themselves against him. The Hand of Re-creation lay across Ian's stomach, the Deep-Sea Chronicle pressed against his side and vibrated as if pleased, and the Blue Shackles and the Book of Contracts timidly came over to cling to the opposite side of the Deep-Sea Chronicle.

“…….”

It was quite uncomfortable, but since he knew they'd just stick to him again by dawn if he pushed them away, Ian didn't shove the grimoires off.

But thinking that he'd have to live like this for the rest of his life gave him a slight headache.

Still, what could he do? All he could do was accept it as fate.

Ian fell asleep with the grimoires beside him, thinking that.

It wasn't particularly warm. Instead, it was hard.

*

The next day, 8:50 a.m.

Ian came out about ten minutes early and waited for the others on a nearby bench.

The weather had warmed up quite a bit, so it wasn't very cold. The air was clearer than usual too, and there weren't many people near the station. Unlike the crowded public transit, that was thanks to the fact that few people took the train.

Well, it was a weekday morning, so that was only natural.

“......Phew.”

Ian sipped the iced Americano he had bought at a nearby café while watching the street.

Perhaps because he usually kept himself more immersed in the extraordinary, looking at this ordinary daily life often made him feel quite at ease.

It was a pleasant feeling, like he wasn't being shut out from everyday life.

Slurp.

He sucked on the straw in his coffee cup and gazed across the crosswalk. Then, among the crowd, he spotted a woman with light brown hair.

A woman with her upper body bent forward about fifteen degrees, fingers fidgeting over her stomach, and an overwhelming bust that couldn't be hidden even by her rather loose clothes.

It was Han Yuna. Ian tossed his almost-finished Americano into a nearby trash can and, working the stiffness out of his body, walked toward the crosswalk.

Just then, the light turned green. Han Yuna timidly mixed in with the people and walked over, then spotted Ian standing across from her and quickly picked up her pace. Her expression changed from moment to moment.

Surprise. Excitement. Nervousness. Awkwardness. Shyness. Fear. Acceptance. Resolve.

The rapidly shifting emotions were all laid bare on her face. Ian smiled faintly and waved at her as she approached.

“You're early.”

“Y-Yeah. I got up e-early and... g-good morning...”

With her ears dyed bright red, she answered in a tiny voice. Ian led her back to the bench in front of the station.

“The others haven't come yet. I'm the first one, and you're the next.”

“Y-Yeah...? Then we can talk a little just the two of us...”

“Mm, right? Why? Did you have something to say?”

“N-no! Nothing special. I just... hehe, I was wondering if you'd been well... It's been a while since we saw each other...”

“Ah.”

Come to think of it, the last time he'd seen Han Yuna face-to-face was when he'd been pretending to be her boyfriend.

That had been almost two months ago by now, so it had been quite a while. Ian gave a bitter smile and leaned back against the bench.

“Sorry. I should have at least reached out once in the meantime.”

“N-no. You're busy too... you don't need to go out of your way for me.”

Han Yuna answered while rubbing her fingers together on top of her thighs. Ian nodded.

“Yeah, thanks. More importantly, have you been well?”

“Y-Yeah. Nothing special happened. I just waited until you c-called... You said you were going vampire hunting.”

“Ah, that. Something came up, so I just went alone and came back. So, could I ask for something else instead?”

“U-um... yeah. I think that's fine. As long as it's not too m-much of a request...”

Yuna gave an awkward ehehe and lightly stroked the guitar case she'd brought with her.

Then it happened.

“Hmm, the young lady's here. Where are the other companions?”

“I think we'll have to wait until they come looking for us first, Dolores unnie. Those people know what you look like, but we don't.”

The word “young lady,” which she usually didn't use, came from behind them. Ian's head turned on its own.

“That's true too, Ari! I'll give you some special pats!”

“Ghk. Don't, unnie.”

The owners of the voices were a petite girl and a woman as tall as a grown man.

The taller woman was wearing a red dress.

Yes, a red dress. It was the kind of flashy, romance-fantasy-style dress you'd expect to see in a romance fantasy novel. It was painful just to look at.

“Ohoho.”

Because of her flashy appearance, the people around her kept looking at her one by one. Though it should have been embarrassing, she seemed to actually enjoy the attention, smiling slyly as she spun around once. Her red hair fluttered lightly along with the skirt of her red dress.

“……Ah.”

Ian felt his head spin for a moment, desperately hoping she wasn't Dolores.

+

This is an illustration of Dolores!