Father Elias stared across his desk. His eyes wandered over the parchment in front of him, detailing notes and thoughts on Diadora's development and behavior.

He was increasingly perplexed. After six weeks of caring for the baby demon, the monastery had settled into an odd calmness. Still, he had to remain fastidious and impartial in his examinations and judgment.

For that, he continued to rub his temple as he looked at Sister Eleanor.

"I'd say she's unnatural, but that's a mockery to the strange and unusual," Eleanor grumbled, "She's more than a sponge, she's a monster. Every single day, "What's this? What's that?" with her little lisp. By Benevitas, I think she's had more of the Scripture read to her than Noel and Chelsea!"

Elias nodded severely as he continued to listen to Eleanor's complaints. Along with Siobhan, she'd been additionally tasked with keeping an eye on and caring for Diadora. Better two than one. The past weeks had seen the poor woman increasingly exasperated as she reported daily activities and occurrences.

It was all, quite simply, bizarre.

They hadn't really known what to expect when raising a demon's child. Elias had been told, had read and researched what scant little he could find, that demonic children grew up "quickly". When he imagined the Infernal Sphere and the lackadaisical or downright violent attitude demons had displayed in millennia prior, he couldn't imagine them being attentive parents. Not the way humans were capable of, at least.

Then again, one had seemingly shown up at their doorstep with a king's bounty to take care of the child, so that was a counter argument, despite the simple fact Diadora had still been abandoned.

This was all quite the headache. Elias was just glad that, despite Siobhan's biased reports and Eleanor's much more impartial, if not slightly judgmental ones, Diadora was an incredibly well-behaved child. He'd been very worried that she might have a violent temper, or many other increasingly unlikely hazardous attitudes or demonic displays.

Instead, she'd just attached herself at the hip to Siobhan without a fuss.

Elias had read the notes. Siobhan and Eleanor both had confirmed Diadora could already, to a minor extent, speak. He'd experienced it firsthand when the child had thanked him, of all things. It had left him flabbergasted at the time, so he simply gave her a pat on the head and continued on with that particular meeting.

It worried him, both how intelligent and adorable the child appeared. A small whisper in the back of his head told him this was a demon's ruse to manipulate them. But then he'd seen the times the girl broke down into tears, sometimes over seemingly inconsequential things or statements, or for no discernable reason at all. Which, honestly, was much more childlike and human.

'She said she misses her family.'

That's what they'd both told him. Elias scarcely believed it. Demons were supposed to be predators, creatures that were uncaring towards humans, that would kill and murder and consume. While there was certainly that possibility in the future, little Diadora reminded him more of a lost puppy.

He stifled a groan, still paying attention to Eleanor's continued reporting. They were worried Siobhan had been growing too attached.

Then again, on a different level, he should probably be worried Diadora was growing too attached to Siobhan. The little demoness continued to cling to the poor nun.

Part of that was Elias' fault, along with the situation in general. It wasn't like they had many willing or able to take care of the child. Siobhan was, really, the only one here who could. That or they'd have to ship her off ... elsewhere, but that was about ten logistical hurdles combined with a thousand problems and worries.

No, he'd have to make plans much more quickly than expected to expose the girl to the rest of the congregation, for Siobhan's sake as well. People were already barely holding their curiosity back, and for the men especially it was ill-mannered to show up without good cause in the women's quarters.

Not many were idle and brave enough to visit. There was work, prayer, and self-improvement to be done foremost. Mostly, they'd see her in the back of their services once or twice a week. Which only brought Elias to another issue.

Having those little yellow eyes locked onto him while he was preaching felt just the faintest bit unnerving. Elias thought he was used to crowds, but there was something distracting and slightly impressive about having a demon listen so attentively to the morning prayer and services.

Yes, Diadora really was like a sponge. A bucket constantly filling itself with the words and teachings of those around her. Which made it all the more important to make sure she was exposed to plenty of Benevitas' love and knowledge at such an impressionable age. Or at least he thought so.

The constant adjustments and discussions of how to handle her were tiresome, in a good way. Anita and Geoffry had re-planned the budget for the year and that burden lifting off their finances had been most welcome. The gold bar they'd been left had been appraised at the highest quality and sold for even more than expected. None at the abbey would go hungry this year, or the next several, for that matter.

And so it was with an unburdened mind that Elias was able to tackle the numerous problems that had cropped up since. And by Benevitas, were they numerous.

The main branch had sent a missive, detailing their instructions and support for having Diadora in the abbey. At least, for the time being, until further observation. So willed both the Church and the Oracles. A most compelling statement, especially when paired with the backing of Hokhmah and signed in angelic ink by several other angels.

It was mind-boggling.

Elias had been requested to present that information and the child in question to the town itself. Edouard had refused, then objected, then whined incessantly. Yet, if the man had enough daring to stand up to an order from the Sage of Wisdom himself? That would have been most courageous, if not disastrously advised.

Most in the town had larger concerns than a demon's child amidst them—namely, food and income. That didn't mean dropping such a revelation had gone smoothly. The amount of questions he continued to field, the church's attendance, the amount of confessions, they'd all drastically increased. There was no end to the work, it seemed.

Which made him feel a bit guilty. He hadn't gotten to interact with Diadora nearly as much as he'd hoped, and so that burden had fallen to Eleanor and Siobhan. Thankfully, the latter especially had taken to it surprisingly well.

Elias mentally chuckled to himself. Even he had to admit, Diadora was as cute as a button. And precocious enough to put a hundred toddlers to shame. He could fully understand why Siobhan had grown so attached to the child. He'd even had to assure her there was nothing magical or demonic affecting her.

He'd checked, repeatedly. Little Diadora hadn't shown any form of demonic powers or magic yet.

Small mercies. His heart wouldn't have been able to respond to such a rapid development so soon.

That still left the question of 'feeding' the girl. Elias continued to do so, but that was another worry he'd have to address eventually as her appetite grew with her size. It seemed inevitable.

The ambient mana couldn't sustain demons on the Mortal Sphere. He'd need to keep supplying her with slivers of Soul—or an inordinate amount of mana. The latter wasn't much of an option. His mana pool was middling at best. And Elias doubted he'd be able to keep such a pace up for more than a few years. He'd need help that he dared not ask for.

With his many concerns firmly in mind, Father Elias continued to chat with Sister Eleanor, both to ease her burden and to plan for the future. He'd received a few replies from the surrounding abbeys and monasteries. There was much to do.

----------------------------------------

Back and forth. Back and forth.

Inside my crib, I was currently exercising my body and trying to learn to walk again. I'd advanced up to the 'get on all fours and try not to faceplant while you wiggle' stage. A person more generous than I might compare it to planking. Most excellent.

Now, I'm not sure what it's like to go through physical therapy, say after a coma or something awful, but I wondered if this was similar. It was frustratingly slow. My body didn't do what I wanted it to, my limbs had little strength and quickly grew tired, and everything still felt surreal and wrong.

None of those complaints were going to help me get through the situation, so I firmly smooshed them down and kicked them to the back of my mind. Mornings and nights were the times when I normally tried to exercise, as the rest of the day was spent exercising my brain and socializing instead.

Most days I'd be happily glued to Siobhan, though there were a few where she was suspiciously absent and I'd spend my time with Eleanor instead. That wasn't nearly as fun or enlightening, but at the same time I could respect not being a baby person.

I'm not sure if I'd consider myself one, previously. Dogs were nice, same with cats. Babies? That felt like a lot of anxiety and commitment.

Thankfully, today happened to be a Siobhan day, so we were currently curled up on the couch. Siobhan was currently feeding Dinah while I was sitting up and relaxing beside her, mostly succeeding in not falling face first anymore.

Today was one of the days that the older children had off, so it was unlikely we'd see them until tomorrow. I still wasn't entirely sure what they did when they weren't in this nursery or classroom or whatever. I'd only had small glimpses of the building so far. Judging from the courtyard, I'd probably only seen a third of the building in my forty-something days here.

I was slowly losing track. The more time that went by, the more real it felt. And with it, another small tinge of depression threatened to pull me down under.

Thankfully, my mental state and emotions had been improving in my 'time off'. Actually being able to have very ... simplistic conversations with people helped.

Being able to do something besides eat, sleep, and not-poop? It was utter bliss.

I was slowly but surely coming around to the whole 'not having to use the bathroom' thing. Weird as all fuck. Hurt my brain to think about. Felt like I was doing something wrong and everyone knew it. But overall? Kiiinda convenient. Helped preserve my dignity too.

Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

My teeth had come in some more, bringing the total up to eight. They were, surprisingly, not barbed little death-needles that could be used to chew into flesh. Dare I say, they seemed pretty normal. Much relief, wow.

Siobhan had finished up with Dinah and I was currently just sorta vibing beside her, relaxing against the much-bigger woman. Feeling so small had been mostly disorienting and distressing, but times like this? Comfy.

Plus, this couch seemed huge. Being the length of someone's forearm really put the world into perspective.

One of my largest problems right now was I'd become incredibly used to doing something at all times. Even busying myself as much as possible for a baby, the downtime was still kicking my ass. I had to keep telling myself just another few weeks or months until I could move around more. Hopefully, not long after that I could wander around places.

Or they might keep me cooped up here. Can't have the scary demon toddler stalking the hallways unaccompanied, I suppose. That was a concern, but I'd cross that bridge whenever I was about to fall off it.

Siobhan had finished feeding Dinah, who wisely was probably deciding to take a big fat nap right about now. I was tempted to do the same. Siobhan was still generously feeding me, and as much as I love dairy as a food group and boobs on principle, I had bigger fish to stuff into my head.

"Boo'k!" I rudely demanded at Siobhan as she came to sit back down. That got a laugh.

"Aren't you hungry, Dia? We can always read later."

Please stop tempting me, you unknowing seductress, else I'll turn into a layabout. Time spent suckling is time not spent sucking up literature! Plus, I'm not even hungry. Though I could eat, I suppose? Which was another oddity to worry about eventually.

I shook my head. "Boo'k! No ... hungree!"

My eloquence is unparalleled. Hmhm.

"Oh, you little thing, you. Fine, we'll spend some time reading stories, then I'll read some more of the Scripture to you. Sound good?"

My excellent wordage had won the nun over. I let a satisfied smile appear on my face. These weeks had been worth it.

It was with great gusto and happiness I sat atop Siobhan's lap while studiously attempting to read the book she held in front of us. Getting used to the more angular letters was a work in progress. Mostly, I listened to her.

After several hours of that with only a few interruptions, we called it a morning. Dinah was fed and changed, I decided to get my drink on as well, and then I spent a little time playing with Dinah. Mostly, I wanted her to get used to me. Being cried at hurt my feelings just a tad.

While Dinah and I were engaging in riveting baby-conversation, one of the children came in. It was James, the eldest of the trio. I wasn't sure where the two girls were. Their names seemed to be Chelsea and Noel, but I hadn't really interacted with them much. They were rather shy.

James, however, decided to come poking into our crib while talking to Siobhan, who was looking at him quizzically.

"Hi Sister. Geoffry and Anita asked to see you and the baby."

Even while talking to her, he continued to poke his hand in my general direction. I blew raspberries at him, because simply staring would have been creepy.

"I'm assuming they meant Diadora?"

"Oh. Yeah, her. Not Dinah."

I kept making faces to distract him. He seemed amused, trying to get me to shake his finger.

Siobhan sighed, "I can't exactly leave Dinah here all by herself. Is Sister Eleanor returning soon? I'll take Diadora as soon as she arrives."

James' attention shifted to Siobhan.

"Uhm, I think they said she was about done with Father Elias and some chores? She should be back soon?"

As amusing as the boy's uncertainty was, I was left wondering what use they'd have for me. Hopefully no more big surprises, or parading me around to the entire town.

"That's fine. I'll leave as soon as I can. You're with Scribe Felix today, no? Hurry along, don't keep the poor man waiting."

Her wry tone at the end seemed to remind and compel James into action.

"Oh shoot! Thank you Sister, see you later!"

With haste, we were soon left just the three of us again. I heard Siobhan sigh nearby on the couch, perfectly mirroring my own thoughts.

"Hnn, I wonder what it is now?"

We continued to mosey about, Dinah and I baby'ing, Siobhan getting ready. Eleanor showed up not too long after.

After some brief discussion, mostly about Dinah, Siobhan and I were outbound to destinations unknown! At least by me. Siobhan faithfully navigated the halls to appear in front of a wooden door which we were soon let through.

While I took in the room and scenery, Siobhan spoke with the occupants. Namely, a lady named Anita who I'd seen in passing many times by now, and Geoffry, who I'd briefly met just a handful of times. He was one of the few priest-guys who'd actually visited me, though briefly.

The three exchanged pleasantries before moving onto business.

Anita spoke, "Siobhan, we were just discussing the matter of young Diadora's ... blessing ceremony."

Blessing ceremony?

I felt Siobhan tense up.

"Prioress, I don't think she'll ... be able to participate in the ceremony."

I won't? Wait, is that like—

"I'm quite aware."

The three seemed to stand around awkwardly, with Anita sighing openly and Geoffry looking apologetic. He was the one to chime in.

"Normally, we must perform the Rites at the end of the following month that any child takes shelter within our grounds. That day is rapidly approaching, and we're quite at a loss. The situation is a bit, ah, unprecedented, shall we say?"

"What Geoffrey means is that we're worried the blessing will kill the poor child, or perhaps banish her back to the Infernal Sphere," Anita explained, "Father Elias has suggested swapping the holy water out and simply changing the blessing to something more neutral and weaker in nature."

Infernal Sphere? Holy water? Uhm...

"That seems sensible. If we have it away from the altar and statuette, Dia should be fine."

The three continued to speak on the matter while my head whirled around. I wasn't quite used to the pace they conversed at, and having three people to keep track of wasn't helping. Usually it was just Siobhan speaking to me slowly and I could ask questions if need be.

They'd said a lot of words I wasn't quite sure of, which only made things worse. From what I gathered, they were planning some sort of ceremony for me. Except, performing ceremonies for or on demon babies in a church wasn't exactly standard.

Is this going to hurt? I feel like this is going to hurt.

"Has the girl shown any ... erm, demonic magics or the like?" asked Geoffry.

To be fair, that was an interesting question. Did I get demon magic super powers? I listened attentively to Siobhan, who almost seemed offended for some reason.

"Nothing of the sort. Other than ... well, being constantly warm and you know what with Father Elias. She's incredibly well behaved, aren't you, my little sweetie?"

I wanted to reply, but a tickle of my nose simply made me chuckle, then blush at the noise that came out. Most unbecoming.

Wait, was I really that warm? Hm. I guess I'd never gotten cold, but wasn't that just the room temperature?

Questions for another time.

"Ahem. Yes, well..." Anita cleared her throat and paused for a while, looking at Geoffry. The man was the one to continue.

"We just wanted to appraise you of the situation and see if you had any input. So long as everyone is fine with a lesser blessing and modified ceremony, I'm sure Benevitas would recognize our efforts and the legitimacy."

Siobhan responded, "All of that sounds just fine from what I've observed. I can't think of any problems."

I was then tilted slightly to face her.

"What do you think, Dia? Do you want to get a blessing like everyone else?"

Wait, you're asking me?

While I was mostly convinced she was just doing this to be considerate or silly, I felt obligated to reply nonetheless.

"Du'nno. What 'dat?" I said in my tiny warble.

When I looked over to the other two, they seemed quite surprised. I looked back at Siobhan.

"A blessing is from Lord Benevitas, creator of all life. It means he'll help keep you safe and free from sin."

There were quite a few things I didn't pick up on that, and a few that conflicted with what Nex told me, but it sounded good overall. I still wondered if Benevitas had been those 'eyes' on me during the ceremony that one day, but didn't want to get sidetracked.

"Oh'hay."

Giving me a small nod, Siobhan then fussed with my hair a bit. Anita and Geoffry seemed to have lost their words, so I just looked at them confused. Apparently, Anita found hers first.

"S-She talks already? I ... I thought that Elias and Eleanor were exaggerating her development."

I could practically feel smugness emanating from Siobhan.

"Diadora is an excellent learner. She's very smart for her size—" I really wasn't. "—and I've been reading the Scripture and other books to her daily the past month. She's already learning her letters."

This left me as baffled as Anita and Geoffry apparently were. Really, I didn't want to downplay Siobhan's efforts in teaching me, but the praise on my end was ... unwarranted, right?

The other two were staring at me. I buried my face in Siobhan's shoulder.

Embarrassing. Embarrassing. Embarrassing.

Anita raised a brow at me, "She's learning her letters, you say. Next you're going to tell me she's walking around the abbey, too..."

She'd trailed off with a half-disgusted tone, letting off a sigh. I felt Siobhan straighten up.

"N-No, nothing of the sort yet. She's still growing."

Exactly. And believe me, I'm trying my best here. But noodle arms gonna noodle.

Geoffry chimed in with a laugh, "That would certainly be interesting. Please let us know if that's a possibility so that we don't scare any of the monks or nuns. Brother Trevor especially is a bit skittish."

I let out a very me-sized huff which no one seemed to pick up on.

After a bit more conversation discussing the specifics of when my blessing-thing would be happening, Siobhan excused us.

"Bye 'Nita! Bye Gef'ry!"

Waving my stubby little hand at the dumbfounded nun and priest—or was he a monk, I guess?—we made our way back. Meanwhile, I pondered the life of nuns and monks and what they did here or just in general.

Religion, huh?

The thought weirded me out. Or at least, it did. Should? Had? Not sure.

I still didn't know much about the town itself or where I was. It was obvious that demon equals bad, but all intricacies beyond that were lost to me. Just a bunch of guesswork.

So instead, I busied myself as I had been in learning and playing with Siobhan and Dinah. Maybe once I could walk and talk better, I could figure out what else was in the church and ask better questions.

This 'blessing' thing kind of worried me too. I hoped it didn't burn. Were they going to like, dunk me in water or something?

If only I could sentence and word better, I'd ask Siobhan. Instead, I relaxed while Dinah tried to grab my face.

Babies are cute. Especially when I don't have to take care of them. Sorry, Siobhan! Good luck with her. I'll try to be as little a burden as possible. After you get her finger out of my nose.

At some point, Siobhan came over to play with us. Dinah attempted to stuff Siobhan's fingers in her tiny mouth. Siobhan tickled the scamp, eliciting giggles from my fellow potato. Unfortunately, my turn soon came and the nun's dastardly fingers descended upon my vulnerable sides.

"Hihi! Nyooo!"

"I've got you, my cute little demon!"

Peals of laughter bounced off the walls, no doubt exasperating the nearby Eleanor, who was busy at her desk looking unamused as usual. That was far from my mind, however, since I couldn't do much other than squirm and laugh.

This only went on for a handful of seconds more before I abruptly hiccuped! and my laughter froze.

Siobhan looked at me curiously. I paused, waiting for the inevitable second hiccup. Maybe if I held my breath— hiccup!

A small squeak escaped. My brow furrowed. What an annoying noise. Then another, and another. My lips screwed together, trying vainly to suppress the noise. Meanwhile, Siobhan burst into laughter and wiped a tear from her eye. I found myself being picked up and patted on the back.

"I'm sorry, Dia. Good girl, shhh! Let it out."

Siobhan used the 'baby tone' to talk to me. It was aggravating how comforting it was. Like a magic trick that you knew how it worked, but was still impressive nonetheless.

I heard Eleanor sigh from the distance, "Honestly, she's more like a little gremlin than a demon. More bizarre than terrorizing..."

Complaints welled up in my chest about whatever the word "gremlin" meant here, but I was too busy trying to fight off the next hiccup.

"She's just a bit silly. Honestly, I kind of wish she'd stay this small forever. I don't think anyone would be afraid of such an adorable thing."

"Hmph, perhaps. She is significantly less imposing than the few I've had the misfortune of witnessing."

Siobhan proceeded to pat my head. While staying small was a tempting proposition, it wasn't like I had much choice in growing up. What Eleanor said got me curious, but I pushed it aside. I then grumbled, Siobhan fussed, and the evening came to a close all too quickly.

While we were preparing for bedtime, Dinah and I were both fed. After that, Siobhan got a small cup of water and a rag, then gently rubbed my teeth and gums. This started a bit after my teeth came in, and I was pleased to see a degree of dental hygiene around here. It certainly explained her rows full of pearly teeth.

"There we go, all done! Good girl, Dia."

Another round of verbal praise over mundane tasks caused me to blush. Siobhan then pulled out a small, oval-shaped object and popped it open.

"Here. This is called a hand mirror. You can use it to look at your teeth, face, and other things. See? This is you."

A small boop! on my nose only vaguely distracted me from the yellow, glowing eyes I saw in the mirror. Tufts of silky black hair sat atop my head, with voluminous eyebrows and eyelashes already framing the gleaming orbs. They were bewitching.

A small, button nose and pouty little lips were framed by two fluffy cheeks that were just the faintest bit darker than the rest of my crimson skin. My ears appeared just the slightest bit pointed.

Hey, Nex. What's the meaning of this?

I absent-mindedly brought my hand to the mirror, continuing to stare at the face before me. Siobhan looked at me quizzically. Then, a strange, foreign thought entered my mind while I continued to look at the reflection.

Aren't I really, really cute?