Volume 3 Chapter 26 Holidays For Each： Ciel Vermilion ／ Ciel Wisteria
In the locked room at the back of the castle's library, there are several books that are prohibited from being taken out.
These include grimoires detailing the powerful theories of magic studied by ancient court sorcerers, as well as records of the kingdom's dark history. If exposed to the public, these books could cause harm, but disposing of them would also pose a problem.
Ciel pulls one of these books out and begins to read.
To enter the castle library, one needs the permission of the librarian in charge, and to access the forbidden section, permission from the king, His Majesty, is required.
However, in Ciel's case, due to his position as the chief magician of Saintwise, he has received permission to use the books without the need for approval documents from His Majesty.
Being a gem person who is given special treatment by King Zeere, Ciel is aware that there are many who do not think favorably of them.
His actions and behavior could be detrimental to the gem people.
He must do what is right. He must live correctly.
For Ciel, who felt a thick membrane separating themselves from emotions like joy, anger, sorrow, and pleasure, their mother's words, "Live correctly," served as a guiding principle for life.
To live correctly, what actions should one take? What should one accomplish?
Without that guidance, Ciel thinks he might have used his power in vain and hurt someone.
If he had hurt someone, he would have felt nothing.
Without his mother's words, he might have harmed the people of the Margrave Wisteria family.
Severely.
To the point of taking their lives.
"...As expected, what is written is the same."
In the empty forbidden section, the sound of turning the pages of an old book echoes.
The unique scent of paper fills the forbidden room, which has no windows.
The light from the magic stone lamp illuminates the dark room due to the absence of windows.
When the room is dark, one might lose track of time, but for now, it is still daytime.
In the evening, Ciel planned to check on Lydia.
The sealed power of Alexandria had just been released, and the magical energy that had been stagnant in her body was beginning to circulate, like a cork being pulled from a bottle and liquid being poured into a glass. However, Lydia had pushed herself quite hard in the recent battle, likely without realizing it.
Magical depletion is similar to a state where one has suffered severe injuries and lost a significant amount of blood.
If blood is drained from the body, sustaining life becomes difficult.
One would feel a sense of crisis if they were bleeding. The blood lost alongside an injury is visually apparent, making it easy to understand.
The troublesome aspect of magical depletion is that it is not easily recognizable by appearance.
If one continues to push themselves without awareness, they will end up draining their life force instead of their magical energy.
Lydia, who had always believed she had no magical power, is oblivious to such matters.
──I think I must carefully manage her condition and protect her body, her life.
However, that might just be a pretext for visiting her.
If only he could say that he just want to see her.
It would surely be easier.
Ciel traces the pages of the book with his long fingers.
The way his white, supple fingers follow the text is somewhat reminiscent of gently touching the strings of a stringed instrument.
"Before the divine ancestor Theobart, Alexandria appeared. The two fell in love, and the kingdom prospered."
This is the same teaching as that of the Rest priesthood.
The royal history book contains nothing beyond what Ciel already knows.
"The witch Sylphina, who was jealous of the two in love, attempted to destroy the kingdom. Alexandria bestowed the holy sword upon Theobart, who fought against Sylphina, but could not destroy the witch. Therefore, she was imprisoned in the red moon."
Ciel stops his finger, which had been tracing the pages of the book.
"...But why? What kind of witch could not be destroyed by the holy sword? Is she different from a human? If Sylphina, who possesses strong magical power, is called a witch, then she must have originally been just a human. ...According to Ms. Lydia's memories, Sylphina was from Kirschtein."
Placing the history book on the table, Ciel begins to search the shelves.
He pulled a record detailing the history of the war with Kirschtein from the shelf and opened it.
"The oldest war with Kirschtein was... before Theobald became king. The Kingdom of Bernard and Kirschtein were neighboring each other, and they continued to fight over land... To end the long-standing war, Theobald launched a large-scale expedition against Kirschtein... After that, invasions from Kirschtein have temporarily quieted down."
Suddenly, he felt a sense of discomfort.
Lydia's memories were likely true.
To make peace with Kirschtein, he took Sylphina as his wife──only to later start a large-scale war with Kirschtein, trying to subjugate it.
"...Strange. Is the record altered? Or was it originally filled with lies?"
Ciel closed the book and returned it to the shelf.
Then, he also put back the history book that had been left open on the table.
"Although Alexandria and Theobald were supposed to be a couple, the Bernard royal family and the Rest priest family have their bloodlines split into 2. Something must have happened. Something that isn't recorded... And so, Sylphina is imprisoned in the red moon, causing the Tears of the Rose."
Ciel was skeptical about the monsters falling from the moon.
He had thought that it might just look that way, and that the monsters were actually emerging from the magical veins flowing on the ground.
However, with the actual appearances of beings like Eiris and Famine, along with Lydia's memories, he concluded that Sylphina was indeed imprisoned in the red moon, continuously giving birth to monsters.
"There are 2 more daughters of the witch... Even if I ask Ms. Eiris or Famine, they probably won't know... I just hope they stay quiet for a while."
And if possible, he wanted to deal with it this time without involving Lydia.
To find them first, before they could harm Lydia.
He wanted Lydia to lead a peaceful life, free from war, sorrow, and conflict.
Ciel turned off the light of the magic illuminating the room and left the forbidden books room.
Upon returning to the mage's office, he was stopped by Leavis, who had just come out of the break room.
"Sir Ciel, do you have business with Ms. Lydia?"
"I was thinking of going to see her in the evening. Is there something up?"
"Regarding the last incident with the spider woman, we received help from Ms. Lydia again. Without her power, many innocent people would have been killed. Her extensive healing ability to revert those who became monsters... it's truly remarkable."
Leavis handed Ciel a bag he was holding.
"However, because of that, Ms. Lydia is experiencing magical exhaustion. Now that it is known that Ms. Lydia is a saint, Saintwise will take responsibility for her safety. This must be kept a secret from Ms. Lydia."
"Ah. If anything happens, let me know immediately. It would be nice if I could always be with her, but that's not possible."
"It would be nice if you could always be together... I believe Sir Ciel is truly deserving of Ms. Lydia."
"...It's not something to say so recklessly."
"I apologize. I just spoke my mind. ...This is a token of gratitude. I would like you to give it to Ms. Lydia, if that's alright."
Inside the paper bag were a scarf that seemed to have been made for Eiris and a doll resembling Eiris.
"She was pleased with the hat and shawl I gave her last time, so this is a new creation. It will soon get really cold. Snow will fall... I actually thought of making a scarf for Ms. Lydia, but I thought it would be better if Sir Ciel gave her a present instead."
"...A present, huh."
"Yes. I'm sure she will be delighted."
"...That's true. ...It seems snow will fall soon. I hope the days during the snow will be peaceful."
A present──Ciel reflected on Leavis's words.
Should he buy something?
What would make Lydia happy?
Thinking about that made his cold heart, made of ore, feel a little warmer.
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