Ch 11 – A priest, a mage, and a demon walk into a… sitting room? Wait, this isn’t right.

“As requested, the demon,” the provost announced with a gesture, as though presenting me for inspection.

The arbiter gave a nod, his dark, empty eyes never leaving my own. Provost Selvune gave me a nudge forward, though in my petrified state, I barely moved a step. Instead, the arbiter moved forward to meet us, until finally I had to look up to match his gaze.

Sickening dread rose up my throat like a thick bile, threatening to drown me. I’d have gulped, had I the capacity.

“You may… back away.” His voice held a low, gravelly roll, accented by an eerie whistle. The sound made me flinch.

With his intense stare, I at first thought he was speaking to me. Though I was in no state to reply.

The provost’s nails dug one last time into my shoulder, making me wince. “If you are certain.”

The arbiter gave a single nod in the stead of a reply, and finally, the tight grip disappeared. As the provost stepped off to the side of the room, the piercing ache in my shoulder slowly faded.

I felt no safer in his leave.

Unlike the provost, who expelled mana like a demigod, the arbiter was more like a dark void, ripping it from the world around him. It felt like the icy chill of winter soaking into my bones after a day spent basking in the hot sun. I held my arms together beneath my chest as my skin prickled.

The arbiter shifted, and I looked down from his mask to see a large, white hand, no longer covered by his glove. It was nearly twice as large as my own, with bones just as thick. Despite that, his skin was the pale-white of the dead, as though his flesh had never once seen the light of day—and perhaps it hadn’t. It hugged the bones beneath, looking more like the deathly hand of a large skeleton than one of the living.

As his hand eased toward my face, I stood frozen in wide-eyed shock. An invisible wall pressed into my back, preventing my escape. Cool fingers brushed firmly against my forehead just between my horns. As I stared up at them, the arbiter’s eyes momentarily held the barest spark of life, and I felt a cool sensation flow out from his fingertips. The cold soaked into my mind.

“W-what are you…” My words drifted as an intense bout of dizziness overwhelmed me. I swayed, body threatening to tumble just as the arbiter pulled his hand away, sucking back out the coldness that had invaded me.

He caught my shoulder, hand once more gloved almost as though I’d imagined the whole thing.

“Well?” the provost asked.

I jumped, having already forgotten he was still in the room. The arbiter released me, stepping back.

“She is not a child of Mir,” the masked being replied slowly, voice devoid of emotion. “We have no quarrel.”

“Is that so?” the provost replied, his voice thoughtful.

I glanced back and forth between them both. “What… what does that mean?” Not a child of Mir? Weren’t we all said to be children of Mir?

The arbiter’s dead eyes stared back into my own. “Mir has no claim on your soul, young one.”

“B-but—”

“Is she then a creature of the other realm, then? Or has her soul perhaps been altered?”

The nameless one gave a deep, resonant hum, shaking my bones. “Perhaps the latter, perhaps not,” he intoned.

“Would that not break the Pact of Life?”

“Mir presides not over the souls of demons. She is not of Mir’s children,” he repeated. The provost let out a sigh and the arbiter continued, “I request a moment alone with her.”

My gaze flickered over to Provost Selvune, uncertain of whether I wanted to be left alone with whatever this inhuman being was.

“If it is Mir’s will,” he responded, words carefully phrased.

At the nameless one’s nod, the provost stepped into his office. I gazed at the being in front of me, nerves once more rising.

“You have questions,” he stated simply. The comment surprised me. Was he giving me a chance to ask him about this in private? My mouth opened, only to once more be interrupted by his slow, whistling voice. “I cannot speak on the nature of your soul, nor its destination once you have passed from this world.”

I frowned. If not questions over my soul, then what did he mean?

Then it occurred to me that he perhaps meant my nature as a demon. It was true that I knew little about this new body I inhabited. As much as I wanted to know about what he’d meant before, this was an opportunity I couldn’t pass up. There were not many I felt I could trust enough to ask these sorts of things. The arbiter was a neutral party of sorts, uninterested in the politics of men. My eyes glanced toward the door that the provost had left out of, and I hesitated.

As though reading my mind, he said, “We will not be overheard.”

With a nod and a gulp, I finally responded, “Is there a way for me to become human again?”

Silence followed as the arbiter’s lifeless eyes stared off at nothing. Finally, he spoke, “I am uncertain. Though perhaps there is a chance.”

My gut sank at the answer, having hoped for a more definitive one. “Oh.”

“Nor do I know if Mir would welcome you were you to find a way.”

I nodded absently. Mir was not the kindest of deities, and the resting place of the dead was not often spoken well of. Even in the best of circumstances, I had no illusions that my soul would continue in the cycle of reincarnation. In that sense, perhaps the chance at immortality was a blessing.

But no, I still wanted to become human once more. It was what I was at heart, and choosing to stay like this would be like asking to become some man’s toy to play with. I will not be owned.

I met the arbiter’s eerie gaze. “Can you tell me what you know of succubi? How often do I need to drink blood? Do I have any other, umm, dietary needs? And is there anything that I should look out for?”

The arbiter took a long moment before finally responding. “It has been long since I studied your kind. Perhaps centuries.” I winced at his phrasing of ‘your kind,’ but made no comment. “I believe you require blood at least daily, much like humans. Perhaps more.”

More than once a day?! How was I going to even get that much blood? I’d suck Lilis dry before dusk hit! It made an unfortunate amount of sense, though. It wasn’t as though humans didn’t eat several meals a day.

Seemingly unaware of my internal strife, the arbiter continued, “I believe your kind may eat meat, but to a lesser degree. You are a magical being foremost, consuming the mana-rich lifeblood of others. Most humans will either seek your death or your keeping. Though I suspect you know this already.”

I bit my lip, and gave him another nod. In truth, this told me little that was new to me. If only I’d been able to ask him this beforehand perhaps I could have worked something better out with Lilis rather than falling into things.

“The thirst for blood unfortunately doesn’t explain these… feelings that I’ve been having,” I said, hoping he would understand my underlying meaning.

He reached to his side and pulled out a glowing red orb from a hidden pocket. In his large gloved hand, he held it near to my face, and I couldn’t help but lean back. The orb swirled with ethereal smoke, glowing and fading like an erratic heart-beat.

His odd whistling voice broke my focus. “Your spirit is growing to be more attuned to your new nature. It may take time, but you will approach a rhythm that may come to feel natural.”

I continued to stare at the orb, almost certain that I could make out something familiar within. It took me several seconds before I could work out a reply. “Then, it will pass?”

His hum reverberated through the room. “The discordance will fade, but not your growing desire.” The words made me splutter. “Your transformation has cracked your soul bare from its shell. Even now, I can see the husk as it crumbles.”

I titled my head, looking up once more to meet his gray eyes. What was that supposed to mean?

My eyes narrowed and I held back a snarl. “No, you must be mistaken.” I coughed. “Forgive my impudence, arbiter, but no part of this is at all natural to me. No matter my body, I am not a succubus at heart.” Even just the thought made me shudder.

“As you say,” he intoned diplomatically.

He had to be wrong. Not even the arbiters were perfect. They were the eyes and hands of Mir, those who carried the tolls of death upon this world, but that did not make them infallible.

“I shall now take my leave,” the arbiter said.

I blinked as the being turned. “But I had more questions!”

“All which I am certain you will discover answers to in time.” His words rolled out slowly in a deep rumble.

“But—”

As he made his way toward the door, his body briefly stumbled. The chimes hanging over him jingled, echoing throughout the room. With a lurch, the arbiter rose back to full height, before shuffling forward in an oddly rigid manner. Awkwardly, he bent down, smacking against the upper part of the door as he stepped out. As was often the case with arbiters, it reminded me of the shambling of the undead.

Or perhaps a puppet with invisible strings.

My shoulders slumped as the arbiter left out of view, and a sigh spilled from my lips.

“Finally, the arbiter leaves,” the provost grumbled behind me.

I let out a light “eep” and swirled around to find him once more sitting in a chair. The older man’s thick black brows were creased in plain annoyance, though clearly happy to be rid of the arbiter of Mir. A small frown slid across my face. Had our conversation truly been private, as he’d claimed?

“I’ll admit, that went better than I expected, however. I was certain that he’d kill you on the spot. Truly, I should have anticipated from the start that the arbiter would take an interest in you, in one form or another.”

Provost or not, I couldn’t help the glare that I leveled on the man. “You brought me here knowing that he might kill me? Didn’t you claim to want to keep me alive?”

He scoffed. “I am not so bold as to contest one of Mir’s eyes, no matter how much trouble it may cause me. Though I am rather disappointed to see that Miss Espir did not accompany you.”

A scowl slid across my face. “I do not need—”

The provost gestured, and my jaw clamped shut. Glowing golden eyes pierced into my own. “I was not done speaking. Demon or not, you should remember your place as a student here. As for Lilis, I will have to send an arcwrit to impress upon her the importance of her new obligations. You will need a new wardrobe, for one.” I tried to open my mouth and argue. On failing, he pressed on, “And perhaps she can instill some manners into you.”

As much as I hated to admit it, he had a point on the latter part. I had been behaving far too impulsively. No matter how furious I’d been in the past, I’d never been one to speak out of turn. It was far too out of character for me. This curse was affecting me more than I’d cared to realize.

I brought a hand up to my mouth, gesturing such that I let him know I wished to speak.

The provost let out a hum. “I should let you suffer like this, but against my better judgment, I’ll allow you a question.”

The spell faded and my hand brushed against my jaw. “Thank you, Provost Selvune. I was hoping to inquire as to whether someone could move my things from my previous room. Given my current… predicament, I don’t think it wise to go into the men’s dorm for it myself.”

He raised a brow. “Your things? Little demon, all of Gellin’s belongings are already on their way to the Zelian estate. I made the arrangements barely an hour ago.”

My lips parted, ready to shout, but I managed to hold my tongue.

“Surely that’s not necessary, master provost.”

He waved a dismissive hand. “We cannot have a demon running about the school with such items. You will have to make do without. I’m sure that Miss Espir can provide you with anything you may need.”

I gritted my teeth, eyes narrowing into a glower. “Of course.”

“Excellent. Now leave,” he intoned, shooing me off.

With a huff, I turned, stomping toward the door. As I gripped the handle, I paused one last time, and turned back to face him.

“Why are you really doing all this? Allowing me to continue as a student here and having someone watch over me?”

He smiled, those golden eyes staring intently back. A hand moved up to rub his short graying beard. “Perhaps it simply entertains me.”