Watching the two of them bickering, Leticia asked about her doubts.
“Mr. Phelan, I want to...”
But before Leticia could finish her sentence, Phelan handed another recording crystal to her, all while dodging Lin Ling's attempts to snatch the recording crystal.
“You want to know about Danasuo, right?”
As he spoke, Phelan looked at Leticia.
Leticia was slightly stunned to have her intended question spoken aloud by him.
“Eh? You know?”
Seeing Phelan accurately state what she wanted to ask, Leticia was somewhat puzzled.
Phelan simply grabbed Lin Ling by the collar of her Saintess robe, lifting her up, before looking at Leticia in front of him.
“You rushed back in a hurry from the residential district.”
“And you slept at Mrs. Nashi's house last night.”
“In Mrs. Nashi's house, only Miss Danasuo's room is currently empty.”
“Therefore, I deduced it.”
As he spoke, Phelan glanced at the recording crystal in his hand.
“Of course, there is also the fact that I kept my perception locked onto the residential district last night.”
Hearing this, Lin Ling silently stared at Phelan.
“So, Phelan, you actually knew we left Sia-chan in the residential district?”
Phelan nodded.
“Yes.”
Lin Ling: “...”
“Then why didn't you remind me?!”
“Because you were sleeping at the time, and sleeping very soundly.”
Phelan replied very calmly, his narrowed eyes making it seem as though he wasn't lying.
Like hell he wasn't! There was no way he would tell this idiot Saintess that he had forgotten about it too.
“At the same time, from the perspective of a Saintess's education, staying overnight in the residential district is a very valuable opportunity for observation.”
Lin Ling: “...”
Damn it, that actually made perfect sense.
She couldn't refute it for the moment.
Leticia looked at the recording crystal in Phelan's hand, then glanced at Lin Ling beside her.
She seemed to be asking Lin Ling with her eyes what they should do about this.
After all, this did not seem like a lighthearted topic.
The recording crystal in Phelan's hand didn't seem like something that could be opened casually either.
“This is not a lighthearted story.”
Phelan looked at Leticia.
“However, the fact that you took the initiative to understand shows that you have already taken the first step.”
Hearing this, Leticia lowered her head.
She thought of that ball of light from last night.
“I just...”
Leticia's voice was very soft.
“...felt like I couldn't just pretend I didn't see anything.”
“That is enough,” Phelan said.
Meanwhile, Lin Ling stood on the side with her hands on her hips.
“Alright, Phelan.”
“Let us understand this matter first.”
Lin Ling looked at Leticia and smiled at her.
“When we encounter a problem, we just have to find a way to solve it.”
“Since Sia-chan wants to know, then we'll find out together.”
“Once we know, we can figure out what to do.”
Looking at Lin Ling's smile, Leticia felt a bit more at ease.
She nodded.
“Mhm.”
Afterward, Phelan led the two of them back to the vicinity of the residential district.
Phelan suspended the recording crystal in midair.
As mana was channeled into it, the recording crystal slowly lit up.
An image of Mrs. Nashi's family from the past was projected from within.
“This matter happened before Lin Ling came to the Demon King's Castle.”
Phelan's voice was slightly lower than usual.
“Back then, the children in the residential district were all suffering from the Demon God's curse.”
“The mana in their bodies was growing at a rapid pace.”
“Before their magic circuits could fully develop, they were forced to bear an amount of mana that far exceeded their limits.”
Danasuo was no exception.
Within the images in the crystal...
Leticia saw the girl who had appeared in the recording stone last night.
She looked even thinner than she did in the recording stone.
Although there was still a smile on her face, cold sweat covered her forehead.
Mrs. Nashi stood beside her, her eyes filled with worry.
Meanwhile, little Dashi sat to the side holding a wood carving. Understanding nothing, he simply smiled as he looked at his older sister.
Leticia's hands slowly tightened.
“However...”
Phelan looked at Lin Ling.
“Lin Ling, you should know about the demon race's forbidden spell, right?”
Lin Ling was startled.
Then, she thought of Niya.
“Do you mean the one Niya's parents used?”
“But isn't that something only the Demon King can use?”
Lin Ling was somewhat puzzled.
How did this matter involve a forbidden spell?
Phelan shook his head.
“You are mistaken.”
“The key to the demon race's forbidden spell lies in the 'demon race' part, not the 'forbidden spell' part.”
Lin Ling and Leticia looked at him at the same time.
Phelan pushed up his glasses.
“The reason it is a forbidden spell is because it requires a sacrifice, which is why its use is banned.”
“However, everyone in the demon race knows this forbidden spell.”
When mentioning the forbidden spell, Phelan's tone clearly grew much heavier.
Lin Ling's expression slowly changed as well.
“Everyone... knows it?”
“Yes.”
Phelan nodded.
“In order to let their children live.”
“To allow children who cannot bear mana to obtain a body capable of adapting to it.”
“Parents can sacrifice themselves to transfer their own magic circuits, life force, and even a portion of their very existence to their child.”
“This is the demon race's forbidden spell.”
Leticia looked at Danasuo in the recording crystal.
The girl was sitting on the bed, seemingly sneaking a look at some records.
“But this spell is not gentle.”
Phelan continued:
“It allows the child to survive, and it can make them stronger.”
“But the price is forcing the child to watch the most important people in their life disappear right before their eyes.”
Lin Ling thought of Niya.
She thought of the girl who always stood by Ivelia's side, who was easily embarrassed but would smile every time she saw Lin Ling.
She recalled what Niya had once told her.
“The demon race is small in number.”
Phelan's voice remained calm.
But in this moment, his calm voice felt even heavier instead.
“In order to survive here, the Demon King will take in children who have gone through the forbidden spell as much as possible.”
“Because they survived.”
“And because... they will become combat forces.”
Lin Ling seemed to realize something.
She looked up at Phelan.
“Phelan.”
“Could the Four Heavenly Kings also be...”
Phelan looked at Lin Ling.
“You are correct.”
“Some of the Four Heavenly Kings were born this way as well.”
He paused.
“Even the Demon King was born this way.”
Lin Ling opened her mouth.
But this time, she couldn't bring herself to say anything sarcastic.
Leticia remained silent as well.
For the first time, she learned that the beings in the Demon King's Castle whom humans feared so much had actually come to be in such a manner.
“However...”
Phelan looked at the projection in the crystal.
“Not all demons choose to use this forbidden spell on their children.”
“First, the Demon King's Castle cannot accommodate that many children.”
“Second, for a child who hasn't grown up yet, watching their parents sacrifice themselves right in front of them just for a sliver of hope to survive is incredibly cruel in itself.”
Lin Ling lowered her head.
“Indeed, it is very cruel.”
“However, Danasuo found out about this forbidden spell.”
Phelan's voice grew even lower.
“As a child, she learned of this forbidden spell.”
The image inside the recording crystal shifted.
In the projection, a young Danasuo stood before Phelan.
At that time, she already appeared very weak due to her magic circuits being burned.
Yet she still forced herself to stand up straight, her tiny hands clutching the hem of her clothes.
Her gaze, however, was exceptionally serious.
“That day, Danasuo, who was already suffering from the burning of her magic circuits, came to my side.”
“She asked me about the forbidden spell.”
“She said she had a younger brother.”
Hearing this, both Lin Ling and Leticia fell silent.
They simultaneously thought of Dashi.
The child who would smile and call out “Miss Saintess,” and who carved wood carvings.
“I guessed what she wanted to do back then.”
Phelan looked at the recording crystal.
“But I still chose to give her the recording crystal containing the forbidden spell.”
Lin Ling snapped her head up.
“Phelan?”
Phelan did not avoid Lin Ling's gaze.
“I know what you want to ask.”
“Why did I hand over the recording crystal containing the forbidden spell to her when I clearly knew what she intended to do?”
Lin Ling didn't say anything.
But her expression was indeed asking exactly that.
Phelan looked straight into Lin Ling's eyes.
“Because at that time, Dashi had also begun to show signs of unstable magic circuits.”
“Mrs. Nashi and Data didn't know.”
“But Danasuo knew.”
“She noticed her younger brother's anomaly earlier than anyone else.”
“By then, Mrs. Nashi and Data had already exhausted almost everything for Danasuo's health.”
“If Dashi collapsed too, this family would be completely crushed.”
Phelan gently placed his hand on the recording crystal.
The Danasuo in the projection held the recording crystal close to her chest and bowed to Phelan.
She still had a smile on her face.
As if expressing her gratitude.
“I could have stopped her.”
“But I couldn't stop the erosion brought by the Demon God's curse.”
“Nor could I stop the decision that child had already made.”
Lin Ling bit her lower lip.
“So the result was...”
Phelan closed his eyes briefly.
“As you have seen.”
The projection in the recording crystal dimmed to black.
The air fell silent.
Leticia stared at the darkened recording crystal, only speaking after a long while.
“Mr. Phelan.”
“Yes?”
“I saw a ball of light last night.”
Leticia said in a low voice:
“She said her name was Danasuo.”
“Light?”
Phelan looked at Leticia.
Then, he noticed the faint light radiating from Leticia's eyes.
It was like a shimmer capable of seeing the true essence of things.
Phelan's expression grew slightly more serious.
“It seems you possess some special ability.”
Leticia somewhat uneasily raised her hand to touch the corner of her eye.
“A special ability?”
“As a Saintess, you should know about the Original Saintess, right?”
Phelan said, “According to legend, the Original Saintess possessed eyes that could see through all people.”
“She could see people's sins, and she could also see people's light.”
“And you seem to possess a similar ability.”
Phelan looking at the faint light in Leticia's eyes, again recalled that the old lady in the dream also seemed to mention seeing the light on both of them when she met them.
Perhaps there was some sort of connection between the two.
Just now, there wasn't enough data to make a judgment.
Phelan lowered his head and wrote down a few lines.
“Leticia is suspected of awakening a vision ability related to the Original Saintess.”
“Manifestation: Able to observe light that ordinary perception cannot detect.”
“Requires continued follow-up observation.”
Right then, Lin Ling suddenly stood up.
“In that case, let's go find that light!”
Lin Ling looked in the direction of Mrs. Nashi's house.
“Instead of standing here thinking about it all day, we should take action first.”
“Who knows, maybe Miss Danasuo is waiting for us to go over.”
Leticia was taken aback.
“But...”
“No buts.”
Lin Ling turned her head to look at her.
“Doesn't Sia-chan want to know?”
“Then go ask.”
“The one who can see her is you.”
“So this time, Sia-chan might actually be the most crucial person.”
Hearing Lin Ling say this, Leticia's eyes widened slightly.
She had never thought that she, too, could become the key to resolving something.
Phelan looked at Lin Ling, who was already walking toward Mrs. Nashi's house, and smiled gently.
“True enough.”
“Sometimes, no matter how much you think, it's better to just take some action first.”
With that, Phelan put away the recording crystal and followed.
Leticia stood in place and took a deep breath.
Then, she took a step forward and caught up with Lin Ling.
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