The underground passage seemed well-maintained, not damp or moist. However, the temperature was cool enough to cause goosebumps on her arms.

A whistling sound of wind leaking from somewhere created a chilling atmosphere.

Diana’s heart pounded as she stepped forward to find Noel.

There are no ghosts. There are no ghosts. She muttered to herself as she walked through the vast corridor, fearing something might suddenly jump out.

After a while, although there was no wind, the candles illuminating the space started to flicker erratically.

An ominous sign. Something’s going to jump out. Diana thought with a downcast face. And sure enough.

Yikes! It was like a breath of wind. Diana was startled by the breeze brushing past her ear and collapsed on the spot.

Noel, who had entered the secret passage holding Diana’s hand, tilted his head in confusion.

A very familiar magic was pulling the child as if calling him.

That’s how he knew about the knight’s armor secret mechanism. It was due to the magic lying dormant beyond the wall.

“What was this made for?”

As they walked along the passage, they came across a broader space with multiple pathways. Diana and Noel walked wherever their feet took them.

Precisely, Noel was walking, following the familiar magic. His red eyes moved, tracking the familiar magic.

Diana couldn’t notice Noel’s subtle changes because the magic was pervading all around.

As they advanced in exploration, a longing voice reached Noel’s ears.

Noel’s pupils dilated. His heart thumped wildly at the sound calling him.

“Noel! Where are you going!”

Despite Diana’s call from behind, Noel broke free from her hand and started running towards the source of the sound.

His heart raced uncontrollably. His body reacted first.

“Panting heavily.”

How far had he run? His small body had physical limits. He walked and walked, following the voice calling him.

“Ah.”

The child’s small body stopped at the end of the corridor. There, hung a life-sized portrait.

The portrait was so lifelike that it felt like looking at a real person.

Come here. I’ve been waiting for you. The woman in the portrait seemed to be smiling and saying that.

Shocked, tears welled up in the wide-open eyes of the child.

Crack— The seal on a spell locked in his heart broke, and memories started to flow.

“Why.”
The child’s face distorted.

“Why. Why are you here?”

With a choked voice, the child, or rather, the man returned to his original form, approached the portrait slowly.

He stretched out his hand to touch the rough surface of the painting, and a familiar magic power surged into his body.

“Why are you here? Why! Why are you in Schwarz Castle!”

The man vented his frustration towards the silent portrait. Tears, which had pooled in his eyes, eventually streamed down his cheeks.

“How much I… missed you.”

He closed his eyes tightly, and under his clenched eyelashes, his pupils, now long like a reptile’s, were evident in his red eyes.

“Could it be, that Schwarz brought you here?”

The traces of her he had been searching for were here. It was all Schwarz’s doing.

How dare he touch what’s mine. As his anger surged, the space shook as if an earthquake had struck.

It seemed as if he heard a familiar voice. The voice he longed to hear was encapsulated in the portrait.

Noel, looking at the woman as if he never had been angry, smiled affectionately.

Time was running out. Once his body reverted, his memory would not be intact.

“Beatus. I met that child. She’s very kind to me. So don’t worry.”

I will live, not die. With those final words, his body shrank, and he heard Diana calling from behind.

“Noel!”

Diana, as if she had seen an illusion, rubbed her eyes. Did she see it wrong? Noel had appeared like a beautiful young man.

But all thoughts evaporated as she saw Noel’s tear-streaked face.

“Noel, what’s wrong? Are you hurt? Are you okay?”

Ignoring her own shoulders stiffened by fear of ghosts, Diana hugged Noel.

The child wept bitterly in her arms, shaking softly to console him.

“What happened? Huh?”

Noel didn’t answer, only held tightly onto Diana’s neck.

With his face buried in her embrace, Noel continued to cry, overwhelmed by sorrow, not understanding why.

Diana, not minding her dampened shoulder, patted the child’s small back. Then, feeling as if someone was watching, she looked up.

“……!”

She gasped in surprise. She hadn’t noticed the portrait before, having been focused only on Noel. Or perhaps it wasn’t visible from a distance.

The woman in the portrait, dressed in a fashion popular generations ago, with her distinct purple hair flowing down, smiled brightly as if greeting someone.

It felt as if she was making eye contact with Diana.

“Pink…….”

Below the delicately painted long eyelashes were pink eyes. They were different from the distinct red of the Beatus family, resembling Diana’s eyes.