While Arthur worked with complete seriousness inside the room, a heavy silence reigned in the corridor…
"Why hasn't she come out yet?"
Caules muttered to himself, his voice laden with anxiety. His sweaty hands kept intertwining and pulling apart endlessly as he paced back and forth in front of Fiore's closed door. With every passing second, his breathing grew more erratic, as though time itself had turned into an iron prison around his mind.
Chiron, who was observing the scene with serenity, lifted the corners of his lips in a faint smile, trying to convey calm.
"Don't be so nervous, Caules. This kind of ritual can take hours… even an entire day."
The word echoed like thunder in the young mage's ears.
"A ritual…?" he repeated, swallowing hard.
Hearing the explanation, Caules's steps slowed until they stopped completely. His body seemed frozen, his thoughts colliding in his mind. Deep down, he knew that no matter how anxious he was, he could not, under any circumstances, interrupt it. To interrupt would be the same as condemning Fiore.
All he could do was pray silently in his heart, pleading that the process would be successful, that his sister would return to him whole.
In truth, Caules's presence there was purely accidental. He had only come to discuss some future matters of the faction with Fiore, a simple routine meeting. But as soon as he arrived, he was caught off guard by Chiron's news: Arthur was performing a treatment on his sister.
And in that instant, Caules's heart plunged into an abyss of unease. After all, it was his sister's legs at stake. Her dream. The hope she had always carried in her gaze.
"Have more faith in him, Caules," Chiron said, his voice firm yet gentle. "Gilgamesh would never do anything that could harm my master. You need to believe that."
Caules raised his eyes, meeting Chiron's gaze — a gaze filled with an almost supernatural calm. It was difficult not to be influenced by that aura of wisdom and confidence.
"Chiron is right," added a soft but steady female voice.
It was Jeanne, standing nearby, observing the situation with serenity. She had been at Arthur's and Chiron's side since the beginning. She knew exactly what was happening inside… but chose to remain silent. Telling Caules the details would only feed his anxiety further. And in that moment, silence was the most compassionate decision.
"Fiore is stronger than you think, Caules." Jeanne smiled tenderly. "She will overcome this. Believe in her."
Caules swallowed hard, his hands trembling. He wanted to believe. He needed to believe. But his soul still writhed, torn between hope and fear.
Just then, a figure approached and, without a word, gently tugged on the hem of Caules's shirt. It was Frankenstein.
"Grr…" the servant muttered, her large, innocent eyes conveying a raw but sincere comfort.
Caules blinked, and a knot of emotion tightened in his throat. That simple gesture touched him deeply. Forcing a smile, he murmured:
"Thank you… all of you. I… I just want her to be okay."
Time seemed to crawl like centuries. Until suddenly, the soft sound of a doorknob turning broke the oppressive silence. The door opened.
Arthur emerged first, his expression serious yet calm, pushing Fiore's wheelchair out of the room.
But something about her was different. Something almost supernatural.
Fiore's green eyes now carried a faint emerald glow tinged with red, like embers burning in a forest. And the tips of her once ash-brown hair had turned blonde, radiating a strange vitality.
"Fiore…" Caules rushed forward, his voice trembling. "How are your legs, sister?"
He was so focused on his concern that he didn't immediately notice the evident physical changes in her.
Fiore lifted her gaze to him. Her lips curved into a soft smile, warm with sisterly affection.
"Don't worry, Caules. He said I'll be able to stand up from this wheelchair soon."
Arthur, standing beside her, added naturally:
"I'd say it'll take only a day or two. No more."
His words rang like a decree.
Fiore, her cheeks still faintly flushed — a blush that hadn't faded since the ritual — looked at her brother. Seeing the relief in his eyes, she couldn't help but comfort him even further.
Placing her hand over his, she spoke in a sweet yet firm tone:
"Caules… I'll be fine. Trust me."
"Fiore, that's wonderful!" Caules exclaimed, his eyes shining with relief, almost letting out a sigh of satisfaction.
Arthur smiled at the scene and said:
"All Fiore needs now is to relearn how to walk. Beyond that, she'll need proper training. After all, she's now a semi-servant… and she'll have to test her new powers."
"A… semi-servant?" Caules repeated, confused. Only then, as if waking from a trance, did he truly notice the changes in his sister.
Fiore's once green eyes now bore an unusual hue, like emerald embers tinged with soft red — alive, restless, like fire burning at the heart of a forest. Her once dull, ash-brown hair now bore golden tips, radiating a strange, almost ethereal vitality.
Arthur averted his eyes briefly, as though deciding to end the subject before anyone probed too deeply.
"Long story," he muttered, turning to Chiron.
"I'll leave her in your care from now on, Chiron."
Chiron simply nodded, though in his mind he was already structuring every step of a proper training program for Fiore. A meticulous plan, tailored to her new abilities as well as her physical limitations.
"Fiore," he said firmly yet gently, "you'll begin training tomorrow."
"Yes, Chiron," the young woman replied without hesitation. There was no trace of fear or insecurity in her voice; on the contrary, a spark of expectation glimmered there — the same spark that now burned in her newly transformed eyes.
---
The days that followed were intense.
Fiore trained under Chiron's direct supervision, while Arthur observed from a distance with discreet interest. Her body, once fragile and limited, responded in surprising ways. Beyond her enhanced magical circuits, Fiore had also acquired a unique ability: Bab-ilu.
Unlike Arthur's Gate of Babylon, which allowed him to summon treasures through distortions in space, Bab-ilu manifested as ten radiant orbs, floating in a circular pattern around her like resplendent sentinels. Each orb was a portal, a direct extension of Arthur's treasury to which Fiore now had access.
Arthur, however, seemed unconcerned. His trust in her was absolute.
---
(End of Chapter)
"Hmph. If you really want to be useful, then entertain me, try to throw those pathetic power stones at me. Let's see if even your insolence can amuse a king."