# 102
Sirius had no reaction to Dearyn's call, he was lost in deep thought.
He took another step into the depths of the forest with empty eyes.
“Where are you going?”
Sirius did not respond to Dyarin's words, but continued to look in front of him.
What's there?
Dearyn redirected her gaze to the direction Sirius was looking at, but there was only dense jungle and unsettling darkness.
'There's something not right.'
Sirius's condition, as well as this forest, was filled with a strange feeling.
A feeling that something was wrong was clinging to every part of her body.
"Let's leave first. Sirius, right?"
Dearyn grabbed Sirius's arm, but instead of stopping, his pace quickened forward.
Sirius, who possessed immense power, attracted her, and she could not resist him.
“Sirius!”
Deyarin screamed in fear.
They had now entered so deep into the forest that they could not return even if they wanted to.
At that moment, Dayaren thought that she might have to light a fire under her feet to stop him if necessary.
Then they heard the sound of a song:
“Sleep comes, the moon sleeps, the stars sleep at night, at night. Everyone, everyone at night sleeps. At night, at night. The birds are sleeping, the deer are sleeping, the rabbits are sleeping...”
It was a lullaby.
Sirius, who was running madly, suddenly stopped.
Deyarin, who was trying to stop him, also stopped and turned her head towards the sound.
“Who was there?”
In this dreary darkness of the forest, someone singing a lullaby? It was inappropriate and he felt strange.
The atmosphere was tense, as if the forest itself was disturbed.
Dearyn looked intently over the bush above her.
“The squirrels are sleeping, the birds are sleeping, the children are sleeping, and they are still sleeping...”
The lullaby continued.
“Huh...”
At that moment, Sirius's held breath burst out.
Dearyn panicked and headed towards Sirius.
"Sirius, what's wrong? Are you okay?"
Sirius's face was pale.
Deyarin forgot everything about the strange atmosphere or the terrifying atmosphere, and all her thoughts turned to worrying about Sirius.
But despite Dearyn's attempts, her voices still did not reach Sirius' ears.
“Oh…, uh…”
Sirius resumed his unsteady steps, looking like he was going to fall at any moment.
She didn't know what was behind the bush, but there was a strong feeling of necessity to find out.
Due to his unsteady steps, Dearyn began to support him beside her.
It was too late for them to stop now and come back.
As they continued walking, the truth behind the forest's hidden secret came to light.
“Here...”
Because of the bushes that had grown to head height, the building that had been hidden from view was now visible before them.
The building looked old, as if it had not been touched by human hands in a long time, covered in moss, vines, and dust, making it appear dilapidated.
However, its large size and carefully executed elaborate carving details gave it obvious prestige.
Dayarin felt intuitively that this place was familiar to her, and she immediately knew what this building was.
“The Palace of the First Prince!”
This was the First Prince's Palace to which the Emperor had prohibited entry.
The garden has turned into a forest, and the building is in ruins. If there was such a place within the Imperial Palace, this was undoubtedly the First Prince's Palace.
In front of this ruin, an old woman was sitting on a rickety, worn-out chair.
“Quiet, quiet, our prince, while the stars are asleep, the moon is asleep, and the sun is asleep...”
The lullaby continued to sound low.
The singer was singing softly while holding a lump of straw to her chest like a small child, and sometimes she would caress it as if it was moving.
Her hair was neatly pulled back and neatly tied, but her clothes were hardly clothes, and looked like old rags.
"Who is she?"
In the imperial palace, even the most humble servants were elegantly dressed. Even the palace maids wore high-quality, clean clothes, compared to the size of the houses in which they served.
As for the nobles living in the palace, there is no need to talk about them.
Even humble people like Hulian or Greylind were not so shabby in their clothes.
However, this old woman in front of them looked more like someone lost in the streets than part of the imperial palace.
Her identity was not clear, but it was certain that she was related to the First Prince.
“Sirius, Sirius, let’s go back.”
They had already violated the Emperor's order.
If they got into trouble because of this strange woman in the First Prince's Forbidden Mansion, the consequences would be dire.
It was better to get away before the problems start.
Dearyn stepped back with hesitant steps and grabbed Sirius's arm.
But Sirius' condition was rapidly getting worse.
"Yes!"
“Sirius?!”
His breathing was coming out as if he was vomiting blood.
When the old woman heard the noise, she suddenly opened her eyes.
“Who are you?!”
The old woman shouted at them, but there was no time to start a conversation with the old woman.
"Ah, ah! Ah!"
“Sirius!”
At the same moment that the old woman shouted, Sirius grabbed his head and fell to the ground.
Dearyn was surprised and looked at Sirius's face.
Sirius writhed in pain as he rolled on the ground.
It was a seizure very similar to the one he had suffered when he first entered the Imperial Palace.
Why now specifically...?!
"Sirius, I'm here. Gather your strength."
As she always did, Dearyn embraced Ceres' body and infused her sacred power into him. But this time, there was no effect as before.
“Ah, aaa!”
His suffering increased even more, and his restlessness became violent.
It was difficult to even pick him up in that state.
Dearyn used all of her sacred power she could and inserted it into his body, it was supposed to calm his condition even if he was writhing violently. But now Sirius was like someone pouring water in a desert.
“I should use another method...!”
When they first entered the Imperial Palace, Sirius struggled for a while, and even though Dearyn was continuing to pump her sacred power into him, its effect was limited, only temporary calming.
Dearyn turned her face towards where they had come from.
They had already entered deep into the forest.
What if I ran right now and got someone?
She didn't know what would happen to Sirius in the meantime.
The old woman was watching them closely, and it was uncomfortable to leave Sirius alone with her.
“Haaa!”
At that moment, Sirius' body twisted again and coughed violently.
Diaren was surprised when a red liquid appeared at the site of her cough. It was blood.
Diaren felt that her head was empty.
There was no time to slow down. She had to find a way at any cost.
“Sirius, wait just a minute. Just a minute...”
Dearyn quickly lifted Sirius' body and treated him.
While she was treating him, another blood fell from his mouth.
Despite the speed, Dearyn continued to pump her sacred power while monitoring the condition of his body.
“Ah…”
His body was in worse shape than I expected.
There was some force tampering with his body, and it was turbulent randomly. When she carefully followed the force, she realized that it had finally reached his head.
“Memory.”
The feeling of pressure inside his throat was as if something was pressing down on him.
Was this a test from the gods after he had recently learned memory-related spells?
Whether it was pure coincidence or luck, she couldn't tell.
But it was certain that part of his memory had been tampered with, and his body was turning over at the same time.
Even if I could calm him down, it seemed like his condition wouldn't get better.
She should have used another method.
She made her decision quickly.
“Help me! Quick!”
Deyarin shouted at the old woman.
The old woman hesitated for a moment, but eventually approached.
"Take the straw away! Lift his legs!"
“Our prince...”
"Prince? That's just straw!"
In a panic, Dearyn grabbed the straw the old woman was carrying and threw it away.
The straw was very flat because the old woman had been holding it for so long and it fell to the ground.
The old woman's eyes widened, but Dearyn's surprise had an unexpected effect.
The straw that fell to the ground looked like just ordinary straw.
“Oh... oh...”
"Quick! Lift his legs!"
“Raise his legs…?”
The old woman was unable to determine whether she understood the situation or not, but under pressure from Dearyn, she complied with orders and grabbed Sirius's feet.
"Yes, I'll take it up! Sirius, just a moment!"
Dearyn grabbed Sirius's arm with all her strength and pulled him towards the building.
There was no real point in helping the old man physically, but the unexpected help had done something.
“Here, there are fewer steps...”
Thanks to the old woman's help, Dearyn was able to get Sirius safely into the building.
But she didn't have enough strength to search for a room and make him there.
“Huh...”
Deyarin rested a little and wiped the sweat from her forehead.
The First Prince's palace was much larger on the outside once she entered.
Although the inside was covered in chrome and dust like the outside, the place was very clean.
“At least...this...”
“Ah, thanks.”
The old woman left the room carrying a blanket.
Dearyn spread the blanket out on the floor in the hallway, then pushed Sirius over to her.
Now, instead of convulsions, Sirius lay like a soggy piece of cotton, his haphazardly thrown limbs looking like a corpse.
She felt afraid again, but Deyarin took a deep breath and made up her mind.
“If I don't do this right now, it's over!”
There was no one who could help her.
She was the only one who could save Sirius.
Dearyn raised her resolve, then moved closer and sat down near Sirius's head.
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