Den's voice hadn't fully faded from my ears when—
Knock… Knock…
A soft knock came at the door.
My spine straightened instantly.
"Master…?" Historia's calm, refined voice came from outside. "May I come in?"
For a second, my mind raced. My gaze immediately went to the ring on my finger—the one that had been a full holo just a few hours ago. Historia knew. She remembered. If she saw it—questions would come. And I wasn't ready for those questions yet. Without wasting a second, I removed the ring from my finger, lifted the pillow lying on my bed slightly, and slid it underneath. Everything was done in a completely natural manner. Then my eyes went to Den. He had already understood. Without making a sound, he slipped off the bed and went straight underneath it. As for the spirit—he wasn't visible anyway. I took a deep breath and said in a normal voice, "Yes, come in."
The door opened slowly. Historia entered. She was holding the same tray—with a glass of milk on it. Her gaze went straight to my face. "You look fine, Master," she said. "Your condition is better than yesterday." I gave a faint smile. "Yes," I said, "I feel much better now." She stepped forward and placed the tray on the table near the window. A light, warm fragrance of milk spread through the room. Historia glanced around. The room… was normal. No disturbance. No mess. I picked up the glass of milk and took two or three sips. Historia stood quietly—as she always did. "For breakfast today," she said, "your favorite dishes have been prepared." I looked at her. She said, "You'll be called to the table in 20 minutes." I placed the glass back on the tray. "Alright," I said. Historia picked up the tray, bowed lightly, and headed out. The door closed. The room became quiet again. I looked at the pillow. Then under the bed. Everything was under control. Den's voice came softly from below, "Good job." I didn't reply. One thing was clear now—every small action would need to be thought through carefully. I looked at the clock. 20 minutes. Then I'd have to go to the breakfast table.
As soon as Historia left the room, Den crawled out from under the bed. His eyes were calm now, but his mind was clearly moving fast. He looked at me. "Now there's something important," he said. "Since you've formed a contract with that spirit, you need to give it a name." "A name?" I repeated. Den nodded. "Yes. A name gives identity. And identity strengthens the bond." I stayed silent for a few moments. My gaze went to the spirit, who was standing quietly near me. "Before thinking about a name," I said, "one last question." I looked at the spirit. "What use can you be to me?" The spirit went silent for a moment, as if looking inward. Then its body stirred. Blue light slowly spread around it. The next moment—its body began to change shape. Blue, transparent light condensed into a solid form. Now in front of me, it transformed into a shield. Its shape was like a Heater Shield. Its color was blue. With a faint glow. Transparent—but not weak in any way. Instinctively, I extended my right hand and lifted it. It was… shockingly light. But the moment I held it, a strange solidity settled into my palm. A thought came to my mind without thinking—this shield could protect me. From any attack. Especially from ordinary humans. Because they couldn't even see it. A few seconds later, the shield melted and returned to the spirit's form. I looked at it. A faint smile appeared on my face on its own. And Den… had the same look of satisfaction on his face.
"Alright," I said softly. "Now the name." I thought for a moment. When that spirit had transformed into a shield, its shape had been like a Heater Shield, and after that, the name surfaced in my mind on its own. I looked at the spirit. "From today," I said clearly, "your name will be—Heater." The moment I said the name—Heater's faint blue aura intensified. Tiny blue particles spread into the air from that aura, dissolving and disappearing. I was stunned for a moment. But Den wasn't surprised at all. Immediately after that, I realized the time. Breakfast time was approaching. But before that— I felt a strange sensation in my Aurum. A faint jolt. Then… another feeling. As if my Aurum had sensed something. Suddenly, inside my mind, someone… was trying to intrude. Before that—darkness covered my vision. I didn't fall. I was conscious. But… everything slipped away. And the very next moment—I lost consciousness.
After some time, I regained awareness. The first thing I saw was the familiar pattern of the ceiling. My head felt heavy, as if someone had forcefully altered something inside my brain. I turned to the side. Beside me stood Heater. And next to him—Den. Both of them… looked like they were waiting for me to wake up. As soon as my eyes fully opened, Den leaned toward me. "Are you alright?" There was clear concern in his voice. I didn't answer. I just slowly sat up on my bed. There was still a faint tightness in my chest. A few seconds later, I looked at Den. "What… suddenly happened to me?" I asked. Den took a breath, then spoke. "What happened earlier," his voice was serious, "was not an ordinary incident." "You losing consciousness," he said, "was not a coincidence." Den continued, "A high-sequence Paragon came to this palace." "And he wasn't alone," Den said. "Narco was with him." "That Paragon," Den said, "used some kind of mind magic." "Due to the effect of that magic," Den continued, "all the family members in the palace, all the servants working in the house—" his gaze stopped on me. "And you as well—lost consciousness." For a few seconds, complete silence filled the room. "As soon as the magic ended," Den added, "that Paragon left the palace."
I remained silent. Only one thought kept circling in my mind—why would a high-sequence Paragon come here and suddenly perform magic? Something about this was strange. I asked Den why he might have come, but Den didn't answer. I began thinking on my own. Who was that Paragon? And why did he need to come to the palace? For me, this wasn't just a question. After that, I went to the bathroom, brushed my teeth, and then took a bath. The warm water eased my body's fatigue, but my mind… was still not completely calm. After bathing, I opened my wardrobe. After some thought, I picked good clothes, wore them, and looked at myself in the mirror. My face looked normal, but there was still something heavy in my eyes. I opened the door and stepped out of my room, heading straight toward the dining hall.
As soon as I reached the dining table, I saw that everyone had already arrived. All the family members were seated in their places. And among them… was Narco. The moment Historia saw me, she set a plate for me. Her face was calm as always, as if nothing unusual had happened. Looking at the faces of the family members, it felt the same. I sat in my seat. There was a strange calm in the room. The faint sound of spoons, the clinking of cutlery—that was all that could be heard. Everyone was quietly having breakfast. I was just about to look at my food when—my gaze fell on Narco's neck. And there I saw a mark on his throat. Not an ordinary injury. A symbol—as if someone had stamped a seal onto his neck. The mark was clearly visible, but the strange thing was that no one else seemed to notice it. My fingers froze on their own.
A thought crossed my mind—does no one in the house remember that a person came and did something strange? But looking at their faces, it was clear that they remembered nothing. At that moment, I understood. What had happened the night before last at the party—the chaos, the Paragon powers—involved too many noble families. Too many people shouldn't know about it. Especially ordinary people and servants. That's why that Paragon was probably going from noble palace to noble palace, using mind magic to erase those memories from the nobles and their servants—so that knowledge of Paragon powers wouldn't spread. The pieces began to connect in my mind. What happened at the party was a disaster. Paragon powers were a massive threat to the general public and ordinary noble families. To keep the Paragon World's secrets from leaking out, that "High Sequence" Paragon had been sent. His purpose was clear: to erase memories of Paragon powers from the minds of noble families