༺ Queen Of The Night (3) ༻
Tywin Cladeco was a first-grade elementary school student.
Although this world was chaotic in more ways than one, it wasn’t to the point where a kid like her should be seen in the red-light district.
“What are you doing here?”
“Just give it back already…!”
Tywin Cladeco struggled to retrieve the veil I had snatched from her.
Since she didn’t seem to be calming down, I was left with no choice but to return it to her.
Whoosh— Swoosh—
Tywin finally regained her composure after hiding her identity again.
Then she spoke to me.
“I am an astrologer. A shaman serving Epar, The Queen of Dawn Stars and Twilight. I can predict people’s futures by looking at the stars. And I knew you would come here today.”
“A shaman, huh? A Demiurge’s champion? Are you saying you skipped school because you knew I would come here? Fascinating.”
There were God-like beings in this world.
They were called Demiurges, and they granted powers to those who served them in exchange for offerings and devotion.
Among those who served Demiurges, there were individuals who received affection and trust from the gods.
They were called champions or shamans.
The holy maiden of Heavenly Father Yahvah, the earthly representative of the deep shadow Nocturne, and the Demon King Sabernak, were all such existences.
The Great Abbot of the Sect of the Ascending Sun was probably the same.
“What was the Queen Epar again? I’ve heard it many times.”
There were many gods in this world.
I remember there were at least twenty.
So, as I was pondering, the astrologer Tywin said.
“Simply put, she is the goddess who governs the magic of the world.”
“I see. So, you are the champion of the goddess that mages serve. Can you become a god’s champion even though you are just a first-grade elementary student?”
“In the eyes of the gods, the age of humans doesn’t matter. Does whether a newborn was born an hour or eight hours ago matter to you? It’s the same.”
Is that so?
No matter what, as a human, I couldn’t relax at the idea of an elementary schooler being in such an adult space.
Normally, I wouldn’t care about other people’s business.
But I couldn’t sit still at the realization that she was someone of the same age as Naru.
“Anyway, Tywin, I’m going to tell your mom about what you’re doing here.”
“You must not tell her!”
Tywin, the self-proclaimed Astrologer, shouted in protest.
But it didn’t give off the impression of a girl who had been caught doing something bad.
“Mother, Elle Cladeco, is walking a dangerous path. If she finds out that I have become a champion of the gods, I… I will die.”
“…Is that so?”
What an odd pair of mother and daughter.
To say she would die to her own mother.
I vaguely understood that it wasn’t just a simple metaphor.
After getting involved in all kinds of situations and thus developing a keen sense of understanding, I quickly grasped what she meant.
“Come to think of it, Brigitte mentioned that she had a reliable source of information. Could that be you? The person who gave Brigitte the information that the headmaster, Elle Cladeco, is making a deal with demons.”
“…”
Instead of answering, Tywin just fell silent.
It seemed like my guess was roughly correct since she wasn’t denying it.
As expected.
The daughter of Elle Cladeco.
There was probably no one who could get as close to Elle Cladeco to steal information as her own daughter.
Swoosh—
Soon, Tywin raised two fingers.
And then he spoke to me.
“With the permission of Epar, the Mother of Dawn, I am allowed to answer two of your questions. Only two, today. Therefore, it would be wise to choose your questions carefully.”
Two questions.
I was now faced with an important choice.
Someone might scoff and ask why I’m being so serious in front of a first-grade elementary student.
But it wasn’t that weird considering she was the champion of a god.
“Two questions.”
Should I start with the whereabouts of Apostate Monk Mara?
Enkidus was the reason I was meeting this Astrologer, to begin with.
“Where is the Apostate Monk Mara?”
Swoosh—
In response to my question, the young astrologer, Tywin, placed her palm on the crystal ball in front of her. And then, as she muttered what seemed to be a kind of spell, the round crystal bead began to emit light.
“He is in the shadows. Shadows so dark that they cannot even be illuminated by the light of Epar, the Mother of Dawn. I can’t figure out where he is.”
“What? You told me to ask a question, and now you can’t give me an answer?”
“I said I would listen to your question, but I never said anything about giving you an answer.”
Anyhow.
That’s how the so-called gods of this world were.
They never really fulfilled the prayers of humans.
But for me, this answer was enough.
If even an astrologer, one that was even the priestess of a goddess, and had a strange crystal ball couldn’t see through his location, then it meant that the place was truly shrouded in an impenetrable darkness.
“Now, one question remains.”
“The last question, huh…?”
“He who steals treasures in the darkness, thief Judas, it would be wise for you to choose your last question especially carefully.”
Truthfully, there were many things I was curious about in my life.
My mind was full of inquiries.
But what intrigued me the most at this moment was who my wife was-.
─Who is Naru’s mother?
But more importantly, when would Naru be born?
Naru’s birthday.
That’s what I wanted to ask about the most.
But before I could talk about it, a question that had been swirling around in my mind for a long time suddenly popped out of my lips.
“Why am I…?”
Why on earth am I here?
I had always wondered.
Why was I, who was simply returning home after buying ice cream at a convenience store, suffering in this strange continent of Pangaea?
Everything happens for a reason.
Even this strange case of transmigration had to have a reason.
Even if it was just a coincidence, there must be a reason for that coincidence to have occurred.
Participating in the subjugation of the Demon King was also due to this reason.
Why do heroes summoned to defeat the Demon King in common stories often return or discover the truth of the world?
Of course, that wasn’t the case for me.
“I…”
“……”
Tywin tilted her head under the veil.
No, the eyes that shone like dawn under the veil were different from Tywin’s.
“The stolen one. Speak your question. We don’t have much time.”
The astrologer asked again.
It was a very polite conversation.
“I…”
Various thoughts swirled in my head.
And I finally made my choice.
“I want to know Naru’s birthday.”
“Is that really it?”
“Yes.”
Gaze—
The dawn-like eyes that shone under the veil slowly sank beneath the eyelids.
The astrologer closed her eyes.
After taking a deep breath, she opened her lips and spoke.
“In the name of Epar, the one who watches the stars. Naru, your daughter, is the daughter of a lion who tears everything apart and a maiden who sings in the meadow. May the two parallel stars walk a new path together and be blessed by a newfound radiance.”
“What nonsense. When is Naru’s birthday?”
Her answer was incomprehensible.
But Tywin only let out a heavy sigh and did not elaborate.
“My tasks today end here. I have to go home now. My mother might suspect something. Could you, by any chance, give me a ride to my house?”
* * *
“Judas, who is that girl?”
Enkidus asked me.
It seemed the sight of Tywin walking next to me was strange.
“She’s the astrologer.”
“I see.”
I said that, wondering if he would be surprised.
But to my surprise, Enkidus’ reaction was rather dull.
“Aren’t you surprised? That such a young girl is an astrologer?”
“There are things in this world that cannot be explained in words. This monk heard that even the Grand Abbot awakened to the path of enlightenment on his first birthday. Perhaps this girl also possesses an unfathomable destiny and karma.”
“I see. Anyway, I’m going to take her with me now. And I’ve gathered some information about Mara. They say he’s hiding in a deep darkness that even the light of dawn cannot reach, making it difficult to locate him.”
“I see. That alone is sufficient information. Rather than that, this monk will take a walk around 61st Street. Something’s bothering this monk-.”
“Vampires?”
I thought of the women with holes in their necks.
Then Enkidus answered, his golden eyes shining brightly.
“Looks like you’ve already seen them, Judas. There are vampires in this 61st Street. And they are not ordinary ones, they appear to be quite powerful. They also have a lot of servant bats.”
“Is that so?”
“You should be careful not to get bitten, Judas. Your karma will become murky and you will turn into a vampire if you do. Once that happens, there is no solution other than to kill the host before the first sunrise after the bite.”
“I know that much. And I’m sure Brigitte and Cariote have already noticed too. They’ll probably help”
“In that case, this monk will go ahead first.”
Swoosh—
The monk swiftly put his hands together and then jumped.
It didn’t even take three seconds for him to disappear right in front of me.
Now, only Tywin was left.
“Where is your house?”
“House number 1. Building 25, 5th floor, room 505 on 3rd Street.”
“That’s not helping, guide me.”
With little Cladeco by my side, I headed towards her house.
Her house appeared to be a penthouse on the 5th floor.
It was well-secured building with security guards on the first floor.
From the entrance and lobby, the scent of incense and the feeling of a sanctuary where Bourgeoisie lived filled the air.
However, Tywin Cladeco seemed hesitant to enter the building.
“Aren’t you going in?”
“I forgot to go home yesterday. If the security guards spot me at this hour, they will definitely tell Mother, and she will undoubtedly interrogate me.”
“I see. You really don’t want to enter through the main entrance.”
Swoosh—
I lifted little Cladeco up.
“Gyaak…! W-What are you doing…! Touching a lady’s body so casually is…!”
“Quiet down. If you don’t want to get caught. And you’re just an 8-year-old kid, not a lady. Of course, it’s still a good mindset to have. Your princess power will increase this way. Excellent.”
Kick-!
I leaped into the air and stuck to the building’s exterior wall.
Then, I quickly climbed up.
“Is this your house?”
“Yeah. I never thought I would end up entering our house through a window. Just like a thief.”
Suddenly, we reached the top floor.
The window was open, so I simply went inside, only to find that it was messier than I had expected, considering its spaciousness.
Clothes were scattered everywhere, and trash was haphazardly piled up.
“Doesn’t your mother take care of the house?”
“She’s busy working. Aren’t all mages beyond a certain level like this?”
“I guess so.”
Well, most of the high-level mages I’ve encountered were like crazy scholars obsessed with knowledge.
Brigitte was like that as well when I first met her.
But still, compared to other mages, Brigitte was pretty good at keeping her house in order.
Anyway.
Tywin seemed quite accustomed to living in this messy and dirty house.
Watching her move around in this spacious yet empty place, I casually spoke up.
“I know you’re an astrologer, but don’t go to 61st Street from now on. It’s probably going to be turned upside down today. Honestly, it’s not a place for kids to wander around. An accident is bound to happen someday.”
“….”
Tywin didn’t respond.
Thinking that she was not the sociable kind, I jumped out of the building through the window once again.
I headed back to Brigitte’s lab.
It had been a short while since school hours ended.
Today, both Brigitte and Cariote were busy, so I was a bit worried about Naru being alone in the lab.
Squeak-
I hurriedly entered the lab, maybe a bit too hastily.
“Naru, are you in there?”
“Ung, ung!”
Step-
Naru popped out of the room and grabbed onto my leg.
Seeing her face, I felt strangely relieved.
“Naru is here!”
“I was afraid you’d get kidnapped again since I couldn’t go pick you up at school.”
“It’s okay today! Guess what, I had toast for lunch at school! It was delicious! And Tywin was absent today and we had self-study….”
Naru kept babbling about everything that had happened throughout the day in quick succession.
It was as if she was determined to tell me everything that happened to her today as soon as I got home.
“In my dream, Naru joined forces with two cats and their name was Naruberos…!”
“I see, I see.”
Listening to her, I felt strangely at peace.
And then, I noticed that Naru had bandages wrapped around her wrist.
“Naru, what’s that?”
“Oh, this? Naru got bitten by an animal while looking for a familiar!”
“Bitten by an animal?”
Did she meet a raccoon with rabies or something?
I slowly unraveled the bandage on her left wrist to apply medicine.
However, my expression twisted when the wound was exposed.
“What is this?”
“I encountered a strange bat on the way! It was a huge bat, it looked really big and strong! Naru tried to make it her familiar but got rejected! It even bit me!”
“Oh, holy shh…”
“Oh, holy shh…! I’m definitely going to find that bat…! It must be some enormous and powerful Fantastic Creature…!”
Naru raised both her hands high and shouted.
Giggling, Naru’s mouth widened, and her fangs somehow began looking sharper.
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