Just as Samael was considering letting the troublesome woman stew a little longer, he faintly heard a soft trickling sound.
At the same time, a suspicious wet patch appeared on the floor beneath Aurora.
The corner of Samael's mouth twitched. Clearly, the woman had been frightened beyond her limit.
Since he had already made his point, Samael finally raised a hand and gave a quiet snort.
"If you don't want to go in, fine. Open your mind and don't resist!"
Seeing a glimmer of hope in her desperate situation, Aurora's lifeless eyes immediately blazed with a powerful will to survive. She hurriedly closed them and obediently complied.
Samael flicked a finger. A crimson drop of blood passed through her clothing and landed on Aurora's smooth lower abdomen.
A sharp pain seeped deep into flesh and soul as the bloodstain spread outward.
In a daze, an indescribably profound connection formed between the two of them.
Aurora lifted the hem of her clothes and looked down. On her lower abdomen was a red-and-black Ouroboros-shaped brand composed of dozens of arcane Runes. Her pupils contracted as she murmured instinctively.
"GEASS?"
Originally known as Geis, with plural forms written as Gease or Geass, it was a form of mysterious Magecraft found throughout Norse, Irish, and Celtic mythology. The term could be understood as a "prohibition," "command," or "oath."
Whether someone voluntarily swore a GEASS or had one imposed upon them through Magecraft or an oath, it essentially became an inviolable taboo for the person bound by it.
Breaking it would inevitably bring about a tragic end.
According to legend, the more intricate the GEASS, the stronger its binding power.
And the brand now etched into Aurora seemed to be a lethal contract established directly upon her soul.
She could vaguely sense that if she dared harbor even the slightest disrespectful thought toward the monster before her, the GEASS would punish her accordingly.
At best, she would suffer physical pain. At worst, she would be cast directly into that horrifying illusion and become its prisoner for all eternity.
Her life and death were now entirely at this Lord's whim, and she had no room whatsoever to resist.
It was practically a contract with the devil.
Done!
Samael lowered his hand, examined his handiwork, and nodded in satisfaction.
Come to think of it, Scáthach had been the one to teach him how to inscribe a GEASS.
However, the Queen of the Land of Shadows had certainly never taught him to manifest one as a talisman and inscribe it over the part of the recipient's body where life was conceived.
Hmm. Now that he looked at it, it really did resemble that sort of thing.
Samael rubbed his chin as he admired the symbol belonging exclusively to him on Aurora's lower abdomen. The corners of his lips lifted in delight as a distinctly unsuitable-for-children scene took shape in his mind.
"Forget it. Considering the help you gave us before with forging the Holy Sword, and how cooperative you've been this time, I'll let the past go for now. Get up."
"My Lord, I really didn't do anything..."
That long-awaited pardon finally allowed Aurora's anxious heart to settle. Even so, she still sniffled and tearfully offered a few aggrieved words in defense of the freedom she had just lost.
"You should be grateful. If you had actually done it, you wouldn't have had the chance to come out and waste my time with excuses."
Samael crossed his arms and gave a cold laugh, making his position perfectly clear. His sharp gaze swept over Aurora again, full of meaning.
"What happened to Foul Weather?"
"He disappeared, and he'll stay disappeared forever!"
"I heard you've taken in quite a few humans who entered the Nameless Forest. You even auction off the right to use them?"
"I'll shut that business down immediately and release them all!"
Aurora shuddered and answered without hesitation. A flattering smile appeared on her face as she practically turned into a little dog wagging its tail around its master's legs.
No matter how valuable humans were, they were nowhere near as valuable as her own life.
After this lesson, Aurora had finally understood one thing clearly. Her only sensible option was to flatter the monster before her with everything she had.
As long as she kept him happy, she could continue enjoying a comfortable life.
As for resisting him? Foul Weather, that idiot, did not even have a hair left now, and her skull was certainly no harder than a fragment of the Predatory Star.
Besides, things had already reached this point. They were bound by a compulsory master-servant contract, and her life was literally in this Lord's hands. She was nothing more than meat on a chopping block. Whatever he wanted to do with her, she had no choice but to accept it.
"There's no need to release all of them. Just let anyone who wants to leave go. Some people may not necessarily live better outside than they do in the Nameless Forest."
Samael's tone softened as he spoke thoughtfully.
Hearing that she could keep the humans who chose to remain voluntarily, Aurora's gloomy mood improved considerably. Even the way she looked at Samael gained a touch of gratitude.
His Majesty really was quite reasonable.
Still, the thought of losing so many humans she had gone to such trouble to collect made Aurora's heart ache.
Fairies were better at simple imitation and reproduction, while human creativity was incomparable.
It was precisely because the Great Cathedral possessed so many humans that it had risen to become the fashion capital of the Six Great Clans and gained such considerable influence.
Then a small booklet landed in Aurora's arms.
"There are plenty of things in the world to enjoy. What's so entertaining about humans? I wrote this down casually in my spare time. Recreate a dozen or so of the things inside, and you'll have enough entertainment to last several hundred years without getting bored."
Samael, who had noticed Aurora's unusual expression at some point, tossed her the booklet and spoke casually.
The Wind Fairy nervously opened the cover and rapidly skimmed through the descriptions written in divine runes. Her tension gradually faded, while her amber eyes grew brighter and brighter with excitement, as though she had uncovered an inexhaustible treasure trove.
Some entries were little more than brief notes, while others were described in considerable detail.
The contents covered an astonishing range of subjects. There were forward-looking concepts such as wing beauty contests and fashion shows, new forms of entertainment such as board-game competitions and card games, rough sketches of amusement facilities, and even basic scripts for stage plays.
In two words, "fashion" and "entertainment."
This inconspicuous little booklet perfectly filled the gap left in the Great Cathedral's cultural and creative advantage by the loss of its humans.
No, it was more than that!
Whoever possessed this booklet held a treasure capable of leading the Fairy Kingdom's trends and entertainment for hundreds, perhaps even thousands, of years. They would even gain the authority to decide what counted as "fashion" in the first place.
As the one who introduced these trends, Aurora could once again become the fashion godmother sweeping through fairy society!
After thinking it through, Aurora, with a fairy's natural sensitivity toward anything entertaining, became thoroughly convinced. She cast a flirtatious glance at the master before her, her eyes brimming with indescribable enthusiasm and admiration, and could not help sighing inwardly.
His Majesty really is such a wonderful person!
Noticing that Aurora seemed ready to lean closer, Samael caught sight of two overlapping shadows behind him from the corner of his eye and immediately withdrew with impeccable righteousness.
"All right, take your time studying it. My only order is simple. Behave yourself, and don't let anything major happen in the Nameless Forest!"
Aurora cast her retreating master a resentful look, but obediently left without making trouble.
After all, to a vain fairy like her, the contents of that booklet were obviously far more enticing.
Watching Aurora disappear into the distance, Samael smacked his lips thoughtfully.
Sure enough, the carrot-and-stick approach worked.
After this warning, with the GEASS restraining her and the booklet keeping her occupied, Aurora was unlikely to cause trouble again for at least a few hundred years.
Fairies were creatures born to chase amusement. By the time they exhausted everything in that booklet, a century or so would have passed at the very least.
That gave him more than enough time to finally deal with Camelot properly.
Otherwise, if he had only just finished resolving the trouble in the [Sacred Round Table Domain] and a [Fairy Round Table Domain] suddenly emerged from the Nameless Forest, he would work himself to death.
Having tied up the loose ends of this trip, Samael let out a satisfied breath. He turned, called Morgan and Mari over, and prepared to pack their belongings before setting out for Darlington.
***
...
If you'd like to support my work and unlock advanced chapters, you can follow me on p-@-treon.
[email protected]/PinkSnake (50 Chapters Ahead).
You can also follow as a free member to read a few advanced chapters.
***