"Isradine," Grandfather said.

Isradine's small shadowy form perked up, "Yes, grandfather?"

"You are to catch up on your studies starting tomorrow. Cassius's granddaughter and the boy will attend with you to become familiar with how things work around here." He said with a stern gaze in a tone that brooked no argument. However, Eliza saw a glimmer of warmth in Grandfather's eyes behind the mask.

"...Yes, grandfather," Isradine said dejectedly.

"Once you've recovered your strength, we'll look at progressing your ascent. Otherwise, we'll catch up later." He said, then he turned to look at Eliza and Demitrus.

"As for you two, pray tell, what exactly is the nature of the contracts that she made with you?" He asked. Eliza was still chewing a chunk of meat she had bitten off the stick, so Demitrus answered first.

"I promised not to betray her, to help her and Eliza achieve their goals of revenge, and to fulfill all the responsibilities of my station." He said, counting each point off with a finger while looking off into the air, "In return, I was promised to be the second in command, only under her and Eliza, And their support in achieving my goals." Demitrus finished, looking back at Grandfather with a smile on his face.

Grandfather was silent for a moment, "And what are those goals?" He eventually said, "Or, in other words, what drove you to seek out becoming a Demon?" he asked before sipping at his drink.

Demitrus paused, his voice becoming slightly more serious, "Like them, I have previous grudges to settle with powerful enemies. But beyond that…" he said, hesitating.

Eliza was surprised. She could count on only one hand how many times he'd been uncertain about something.

Eventually, Demitrus sighed and said, "But beyond that, I want the power to control my destiny."

"What does controlling your destiny look like to you?"

Demitrus fell silent once again, visibly reluctant to share what was on his mind.

After a few moments, Grandfather sighed and placed down his drink before saying, "I ask because contracts are no light matter. The more precise you can be about what you want and who you want to become, the easier it will be for Isradine and, by extension, I, to help you."

The conflict disappeared from Demitrus's face, and he finally spoke, and when he spoke, venom dripped in his words "I want to be strong enough that my life wouldn't hang in the balance because some whimsical noble happened to have a bad day. I want the strength to fight back against those whose misuse of power caused the people I grew up around to suffer and even die, and for what? So that they could line their pockets." He spat, tightly clenching his fist with an angry gleam in his eyes.

He closed his eyes and breathed, his body visibly relaxing as he did so, "You asked what drove me to want to become a Demon?"

Grandfather nodded.

"Because if I became a Demon, I could ascend to heights no man in the Kaldria could dream of, and," he said, slightly hesitating before saying, "And I could obtain, study, and wield the magic that would send those same powerful nobles on a witch hunt if they so much as heard a whisper of it being present in their realm." He said, an excited gleam coming into his eyes.

Grandfather carefully regarded Demitrus for a few moments, "And so you shall, "He said before turning to Eliza, "How about you, granddaughter of Cassius? What is the nature of your contract with Isradine?"

Eliza finished what she was eating before she spoke, "In return for me making a contract with her and helping her escape, she would help me get revenge against my uncle who framed and executed my parents." She said, placing the now empty stick down on the table. At the bottom of her vision, a shadow dashed across the table, and her eyes flicked down to see the stick was now gone. Looking around the table, she saw that it was getting emptier by the moment as people ate and the sticks were cleaned up when no one was watching.

"And this desire for revenge. Was it what drove Cassius's granddaughter to become a Demon?" Grandfather asked as he picked up his drink to take a sip.

Eliza clenched her fist under the table until her nails dug into her palms. She didn't know why the question got on her nerves so much. Maybe it was the insinuation that mere anger was enough to make her abandon everything she had been taught and decide to become a monster. But no, it was more likely that his words reminded her of who she was, or should've been. And that she had failed. A prickling pain stabbed into her heart. It reminded her that she was too weak the survive on her strength alone. That she didn't have the strength to live up to the values she had been taught. Furthermore, whether intentional or not, his reminding her of who her grandfather was only made the prickling pain in her heart that much worse.

"...No, no, it was not, and if I had a choice, I wouldn't be becoming one," Eliza said.

"Oh really? If you're that against it, why did you accept making a contract?" Grandfather said, placing his cup down.

"Because… I was too weak to save my friends. And… I couldn't lie down and watch more die in front of me." Eliza said, looking down and clutching her fists even harder. A hand lightly touched her wrist under the table. Her gaze traced it back to the offender, Demitrus, who lightly shook his head when his gaze met hers. She slowly released her hands, revealing thin red lines where her nails had dug into her palms.

"So you were willing to become a monster if it meant saving your friends…" he said, picking up his cup and affixing his eyes to the drink in his cup as he lightly swirled it side to side. "How noble of you." He said, taking another drink and finishing the rest of it off before setting the cup onto the table with a clack.

"One who seeks forbidden knowledge and abilities to get power over those who saw him as lesser." He said, glancing at Demitrus, "And one who wishes to have revenge on the betrayer of her family while protecting those she has left." He summarized after looking at Eliza, closing his eyes, and nodding to himself.

"Very well, those are goals that we can help you with." He said, opening his eyes and looking at them.

"What does that mean?" Leo asked, "Hasn't the contract already been made? Why're you deciding that you can help them now?"

Grandfather's gaze slid over to Leo, "Tell me, what do you know about how Demons gather power?"

"They make contracts or duel others to gain mana, and if they violate them, the mana takes control of them." Leah volunteered by raising a hand, drawing the gaze of Grandfather.

He slightly nodded, "On the simplest of levels, that is true. But it runs deeper than that." he said, turning to look back at Eliza and Demitrus. "At its base level, our power stems from the integrity with which we and others hold to our idealogy, whatever that may be. More fundamentally, it depends on the strength that we gain through following that idealogy."

"So you don't make any contracts or agree to do anything that contradicts who you claim to be?" Eliza asked.

Grandfather nodded, "Exactly."

"How does that work with duels and with this?" Demitrus asked, holding up a stick with meat impaled on it. "How have I been gaining mana from eating this?"

"At its base, our magic gathers to those who are strong. As a result, our mana passively accumulates to us because, to the mana, the longer you survive, the stronger you must be. Conversely, if you die and are eaten by another, the eater must be stronger so whatever mana is still present in the food goes to the new host." Grandfather said, taking another bite.

After a few moments of chewing, he swallowed and continued, "As for the duels, They are a contest to prove who is stronger, but they differ from mere hunting in that they are done to prove that your opponent's idealogy is weaker than your own. Since Demons follow the stronger idealogy, many will try to follow yours, and the more who try to follow your ideology, the more mana will gather to you.

Grandfather glanced at Leo, "to answer your question, if what these two were wanting contradicted with what we could provide, then Isradine would've had to figure out how to provide on her own."

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"Where does that leave the Shadow Weaver's idealogy, then?" Eliza asked.

"Good question. How about you answer Isradine?" Grandfather said, replacing his mask after finishing off the last of the food on the table.

"Devotion, Deception and Decimation." Isradine recited automatically as if she had said this more than a hundred times, "Devotion to our talents, knowledge, and those who nurtured helped us gain them. Deception of our enemies by hiding our true strength, to escape if we're weaker or, if we're stronger, to Decimate them when they least expect it. Decimation also includes no mercy for those who are found to have betrayed the clan." She finished.

"Good," Grandfather said," Any questions about what any of that means?" he said to Eliza and Demitrus.

Eliza's mind turned as she tried to soak in all the information. All of this was far more complex than the common teaching in the empire. Specifically the belief that Demons are dangerous monsters who thrive off of the suffering of others. Something the Grandfather had said earlier came to her mind, "One, you mentioned that you were one of the three patriarchs of the clan. Does that mean there's a patriarch associated with each one? And if so, which one do you ascribe to?" Eliza asked.

"An astute observation. To the first question, yes. As for the second, which one do you think?" He said with a gleam in his eyes.

Eliza thought back on the experiences she's had with the Shadow Weavers so far. By far, the one who represented deception the most was Salendal, so the patriarch of his faction in the Shadow Weavers most probably represented that. As for decimation, she hadn't really experienced anything from Isradine or the Grandfather that would indicate that, so she said, "Devotion."

"Correct, for your information, Potek represents Deception, Tengi represents Decimation, and the clan leader naturally strives for a balance of all three. But enough of that, Darkfall approaches. Now that you all understand what's been explained up until now, we'll wrap up by discussing what will happen going forward from here." Grandfather said.

First, he turned to Leo and Leah, "The situation surrounding you two is complicated. It's likely that Potek will try to use you two to discredit me since you're non-clan members. As I said, we won't throw you out, but while you're here, you're expected to adhere to the idealogy of the Shadow Weavers, even if you haven't made a contract. Furthermore, you'll be expected to help out with any tasks assigned to you for the duration of your stay. You may consider it the cost of housing and feeding you. Any questions?" Grandfather asked.

Leah and Leo shook their heads.

"Good, I suspect that you both have a situation similar to these two, "Grandfather said, indicating to Eliza and Demitrus with a tilt of his head, "but any help for that from the Shadow Weavers will be limited to any agreement you have with them," he said, then added with a gleam in his eyes, "unless you make a contract that is."

"...Good to know," Leo said.

Grandfather nodded before turning to Eliza and Demitrus, "As for you two, as I stated earlier, you'll attend studies with Isradine to familiarize yourselves with the clan. The clan won't solve the issues of your revenge for you for the simple fact that if you want help, you need to provide something in return, and right now, you have little to offer." He said solemnly, "But what we can do is help you gather what you need. If you want knowledge, we'll bring you to a place where you can study. If you want strength, you'll train. And if you need an army or at least followers, which I suspect you will," he said, looking at Eliza. "You'll attract them yourselves by applying what you've learned from this conversation, is that understood?"

Eliza nodded. She wasn't expecting to instantly get the power she needed anyways, as nice as it would've been. She hated the fact that the longer it took her to gather power, the more time her uncle had to gallivant around her family's land. But there obviously wasn't much she could do about it, yet.

"Any last questions?" Grandfather asked, slowly standing up.

"What should we do in regards to Salendal?" Demitrus asked, likewise standing up. The rest of the group stood up one by one.

"Salendal and Potek aren't a new problem, and I'm sure they're planning something as we speak. The nice thing about them being so focused on deception is that you can be certain that they're always up to something. As long as you stay on my pillar, you'll be safe. If you go anywhere else for any reason, be sure to speak to Io, who'll assign someone to protect you. I suspect they'll try to do something internally in the clan, but I'll handle that to the best of my ability. However, don't be surprised if you two are summoned in the near future." Grandfather said to Eliza and Demitrus. "If nothing else, a servant will take you to rooms where you can rest."

Eliza couldn't think of anything else pressing to talk about, and looking around, neither did the rest of the group. When no one said anything, Grandfather stepped up to the door and slid it open while saying, "Corell."

"At once, master," Corell formed at the side of the room as Grandfather stepped out of the room and slid the door shut.

"If you'll come with me," Corell said. The wall behind him slid open to reveal a hallway. Eliza and the group followed him as he started down the hallway.

"We should congregate tomorrow morning to discuss everything we just learned and what we'll do as a group from here," Leo said.

"Agreed, "Eliza said, and the other two affirmed as well.

As they walked down the hall occasionally, the wall would slide open to reveal a room. Corell would then direct a member of the group into the room. Soon the group was separated until only Eliza and Demitrus were left. Eventually, a door opened, and Demitrus was directed to enter. He met Eliza's eyes and gave her a slight nod before stepping into the room. He slid the door shut, and then Eliza was left alone with Corell and Isradine.

Correl then started leading her down several halls, a disconcerting distance away from the rest of the group.

"Where are you taking us, Corell?" Isradine asked trepidatiously.

"Surely you haven't forgotten where your room is?" He said.

"Of course not, but why are you taking us to my room?"

"Your grandfather instructed me to do so. He thought it best your Herald understand you more, so she'll be staying in your room. Don't worry. Your room was left exactly as it was before you were captured, save for the occasional cleaning, mistress Isradine." Corell said, bowing toward Isradine's small form after they came to a stop in front of another sliding door.

"...Thanks, you're dismissed." She said, and Corell dissipated into the floor.

Eliza stepped up to the door to open it, her curiosity peaked. What could be so embarrassing that Isradine would be this worried? Right as her hand was about to touch the edge of the door.

"Wait!" Isradine said.

"What?" Eliza asked, looking back at Isradine's small form.

Isradine hesitated for a moment, "...Please have mercy."

"About what?" Eliza asked, hand still hovering near the door.

"I didn't expect them to put you in my room. Just… ignore anything weird that you see, please?" Isradine said, almost pleading.

Now Eliza was really curious. She opened the door, stepped in, and scanned the room. Along the left wall of the room was a low-seated table that held paper, ink, needles, and various types of string. To its right was a shelf that held several different-looking scrolls. On the opposite side of the room, a soft-looking thick fabric was spread out with a blanket laid across the top to make a bed. Immediately to the right of the door was a full-length mirror. That was everything that was normal, but she could no longer ignore the obvious.

"Isradine, what is this?"

"...I went through a phase when I was younger okay?"

The room was filled to the brim with different stuffed creatures. Save for the bed, the small table, and a small walkway between each area, virtually every surface in the room was covered in them. Several were mutilated and impaled on the left wall with needles, one of which looked distinctly similar to Salendal, with each of his three tails impaled by a separate needle.

Eliza silently looked around the room, soaking it in.

When Eliza didn't say anything, Isradine said, "Look, when I was younger, I liked to practice my weaving by making stuffed versions of Demons that I had seen. Though I do admit that I maybe made one too many."

"One?" Eliza asked, raising an eyebrow, looking at the mountain of stuffed creatures.

"Okay, I admit, I made way too many, I realized it after I had been captured for four or so years, and I almost died from the embarrassment," Isradine said as Eliza stepped into the room, stepping around a little stuffed nymph. She slid the door shut behind her.

Eliza spotted something in the corner of her eye. She made her way over to it and reached down to pick up a stuffed mini Grandfather from the middle of a mountain of other stuffed Demons and examined him as she made her way to the bed. Isradine had asked for mercy, but really how could she grant mercy when she was begged so profusely for it, and she was given an opportunity like this? A small smile grew on her lips.

"Why don't we give this to your Grandfather? I'm sure he'll be pleased," Eliza said, sitting down on the bed. The fabric was soft to the touch and felt more comfortable than anything she had slept with in a long time.

"You can't." Isradine immediately said, panic coming into her voice.

"And why not?" Eliza asked, her smile widening as she thoroughly enjoyed this.

"Because if other Demons see it, they'll think less of my grandfather, and he will be weakened as a result."

"Really? Would they really think him weak because his granddaughter made a mini version of him? Are you sure you're not just saying that to justify not giving it to him?" Eliza asked.

Isradine's silence told Eliza all she needed to know. Eventually, Isradine simply said, "Please don't."

Thinking she had done enough, Eliza shrugged, "If you say so," she said lightly, tossing the small Grandfather onto the top of a nearby mountain.

Isradine let out a sigh of relief, "Thank you. We can take care of this…mess later. Right now, you should get some rest. You'll have a lot you need to do tomorrow."

Eliza could feel her tiredness beginning to set in, and the soft blankets were calling to her. Still, she sat back and leaned her back against the wall so that she could watch the door. "I'll stay up for a bit, just to be sure."

"Sure about what? Are you worried we would do something after separating the group?" Isradine asked incredulously.

"It's happened every time the groups been separated so far." Eliza pointed out with a raised eyebrow.

"Did you not hear grandfather say that you would be safe so long as you're on this spire?"

"I did, but I also heard that one of the three tenets of the Shadow Weaver's is deception, so don't blame me for being cautious."

Isradine sighed, "That's not how deception works. It may work that way up where you came from, but saying something and not accomplishing it is a sign of weakness to Demons and our mana, so true deception takes the form of speaking half-truths and making others come to incorrect ideas on their own. But since grandfather said you would be safe on this pillar, you can be certain he'll make sure of that." Isradine said.

"I see… just give me a few days, and I'm sure I'll be able to trust that. For now, just leave me be. I'll ensure I get enough rest to do everything I need tomorrow." Eliza said, but wanting to change the subject, she asked," Speaking of your grandfather, is that all he had to say to you after fifteen years?"

"He likes to keep family matters and formal matters separate. He'll likely call for me in a bit so we can speak more privately." Isradine said, letting the other subject drop.

"How would that work? And by that, I mean, how far can you go away from me?"

"As of right now, I can go anywhere in a sizable radius around you and Demitrus. When I get more followers, that will naturally extend to them as well. The difference between you and them is that you serve as the central link between me and them, and I can employ more mana around you than I could with them. Either way, I can still meet with my grandfather without too much issue."

"I see," Eliza said, and they both fell silent.

After some time had passed, as Isradine predicted, a shadowy servant appeared, summoning her to meet her grandfather. Isradines presence slipped away, and Eliza was alone. Time passed, and she could feel her eyes getting heavier by the minute. Despite her best efforts, she would've fallen into a restless sleep, if a sudden headache hadn't beset her. She drew her knees to her chest and tightly closed her eyes as a wave of nausea swept over her, and the pain in her head grew in intensity. Wrapping her arms around her legs, she braced herself as the now familiar pain that signified a transformation was occurring spread around her body.

It grew and grew until, eventually, she mercifully passed out.