The Author's POV

The next day.

"Ukh."

As soon as Priscilla opened her eyes, she was hit with a severe headache. It was excruciatingly painful, and for a good minute, she was forced to do nothing more than lean against her couch.

"What happened over here?"

While she was massaging her forehead, she noticed that her room was in utter disarray, with every piece of furniture in shattered pieces.

"Ugh."

She blinked several times, trying to recall all the information.

"Ah, right, it's about that fucker…"

Faint memories started to enter her mind, and she soon came to the conclusion that this came as a result of her rage toward Duke Ukhan.

Her memory was still hazy, but the more she thought about it, the more convinced she was.

It wasn't the first time that something like this had happened…

"Bastard."

She muttered an expletive as she recalled what had transpired in the cave the day prior. It was difficult to put into words exactly how irritated she was at this very moment.

"I should have someone clean up this mess."

Throwing one last glance at her surroundings, Priscilla gradually stood up.

She ruffled her hair and started walking toward the door, but just as she took the first step toward it, the door suddenly burst open and one of her servants walked in.

"Duchess!"

His tone of voice carried an air of panic, which caused her pretty features to contort into a frown.

"What is it?"

"It's…"

The servant took a deep breath just as a look that could be interpreted as fear crossed his eyes. The manner in which he carried himself piqued Priscilla's interest even further.

"That."

The servant stumbled over his words as if he was having trouble articulating a sentence. His actions annoyed Priscilla.

She glared at him.

"What is it? Spit it out before I get annoyed."

She had no idea what was causing it, but for some unexplainable reason, she found herself becoming irritated by everything at the moment. Be it her servant, the smell that lingered in the air, and the sunlight filtering through the windows.

Even when facing the servant, whom she usually treated with courtesy, she found herself unable to hide her true self. The words coming out of her mouth were rather crude.

'What's going on with me this morning?'

She smacked her lips. It felt as though she was missing something.

"It's…"

The servant kept stuttering, but it wasn't long before he gathered his composure and was finally able to utter a few words.

"...the patriarch is present and would like to speak with you."

The words of the servant echoed in her mind like a clap of thunder. Her mind went completely blank.

"Ah?"

It was at this point that Priscilla finally understood why the servant was behaving the way that he was.

***

To Tok—!

Priscilla rapped on the heavy wooden door in a submissive manner. As she dipped her head, she dared not look directly out the door.

The door induced in her an unexplainable feeling of suffocation.

She waited for what seemed to be hours until a voice finally sounded from the other side.

"Come in."

Something eerie and powerful was housed within the speaker's voice, making her blood boil as a result. It was so suffocating that she felt paralyzed and unable to move until a few seconds after the voice had ceased to be heard.

"If you'll excuse me."

She did not linger and immediately opened the door. Almost immediately after that, she was presented with the sight of a sizable office area.

The entire room was illuminated by two large windows and a large chandelier that hung above the ceiling.

But the person seated in the middle of the room was the thing that drew her attention. A demon with long, pinkish straight hair, red eyes that glowed brightly, a black suit, and extremely handsome features.

He sat behind the desk in a relaxed manner, quietly writing over a couple of papers.

Priscilla's anxiety was only exacerbated by the unnatural serenity that he exuded, which, despite giving the impression that he was not dangerous, only served to heighten her concern about him.

She bowed her head and greeted.

"Greetings grandfather."

"You're here."

The strange feeling of oppression that had lingered in his words faded away, and in its place was a voice that was calm and clear.

He stared directly at Priscilla, his gaze hazy.

"Something big has happened."

"Yes?"

Priscilla was taken aback by his words, and she immediately pulled herself together and stood up straight.

She immediately thought of a possibility.

"Has the meeting with the World Decree gone badly?"

With the World Decree soon coming up, her grandfather, the Patriarch, had set out to meet the other Patriarchs in order to discuss the terms of the event.

It had been about a month since she'd last seen him. Had something gone wrong with the meeting?

Were the other houses planning on joining together against them, or was the house of envy up to something again?

"It's not what you're thinking."

The Patriarch swiftly put an end to her train of thought. When she looked up, she was taken aback to see a rare frown appear on his face. Something that she'd only witnessed a couple of times in her life.

At that very moment, she had the sudden realization that the situation was a great deal more serious than she had anticipated.

'If grandfather shows such face, I'm afraid that things are a lot worse than I expected…'

Her heart dropped at the thought, and she kept her mouth shut, waiting for her grandfather's instructions.

This didn't take long, as he soon spoke. The contents of his words stunned her completely.

"Something very big happened last night. On a scale large enough to alarm all of the Patriarchs."

"…"

Priscilla experienced a brief pause in her breathing. She was just starting to get a grasp on how dire the situation really was.

While she was already somewhat prepared, things were far more serious than she had originally anticipated, and she already thought things were serious.

…but for some reason, Priscilla felt something was amiss with the current situation.

'Why is grandfather looking at me like that?'

His gaze was odd in a number of ways. She was at a loss for words, but she tried her best to keep her composure. Whatever it was, she would just follow his instructions.

His next words shed some light on the situation.

"…I had originally come here expecting the worst. However, seeing that you're still safe here, it seems like we've fallen for a scheme."

"A scheme?"

"Mhm."

With a nod of his head, the Patriarch stood up from his seat and waved his hand.

"There's no time to explain. You'll get a better understanding of the situation soon."

After hearing his words, Priscilla's surroundings began to change and become more drawn out. Everything around her started to stretch and distort.

It was an odd sight, and she sensed that something powerful was pulling her body in a certain direction.

It wasn't long before everything began to take an unexpected twist, and before she knew it, the landscape had shifted.

She was now standing inside a magnificent, enormous, and awe-inspiring room.

'Huh? Why are we here?'

She had been there a few times before, and she found that she instantly recognized the location upon arrival.

'Rotteinhart Hall.'

The holiest site on the entire planet and the location of the most important gatherings presided over by the patriarchs of the seven houses.

After entering the hall, she cast her gaze in every direction. Two magnificent marble columns that reached almost all the way to the ceiling stood to her left and right, respectively.

The passageways, which were adorned with sumptuous velvet curtains and ornate gilded mirrors, extended off into the distance in either direction, while the center of the room was a swirl of activity; A grand chandelier hung suspended from the center of the ceiling, throwing a brilliant cascade of sparkles from hundreds of suspended crystals across the entire space.

A grand staircase swept down from the balcony above, leading to a stage that was set up at the edge of the room.

Had it not been for the sudden appearance of several people at the moment, she would've taken more time to admire the place.

Swoosh—! Swoosh—!

Priscilla found herself choking back a mouthful of saliva as the once-vacant hall quickly began to fill up with people. She lowered quietly, unable to muster the courage to look upward, feeling the pressure from those who emerged.

She recognized the demons that had just arrived.

How could she not?

As soon as she saw them, she was overcome with a feeling that was similar to the one she had experienced when she was with her grandfather. It was suffocating.

"Is everyone over here?"

Soon after, she heard a solemn voice reach her ear. The voice was rather soft, but the moment it was heard, the whole hall trembled.

She shivered even more fiercely. Especially when she felt the gaze linger on her body for a few seconds.

For a brief moment, she felt her life flash before her eyes. To her great relief, her grandfather took immediate action and put an end to whatever was going on.

"Mind your manners. That does not appear to be a friendly way to greet a successor."

"Hmph."

The demon withdrew his gaze briefly before turning and proceeding further into the hall.

His next words were rather ambiguous, but they contained a certain hint of a threat that left Priscilla wondering just what in the world had happened.

"We've got a lot to discuss. I hope I get a clear explanation for what has happened."