CHAPTER 385: A DEMON’S FICKLENESS-II

Xavier’s body shook with coughs, harsh and ragged. Before the fit could splatter the pages, Cassius plucked the book from his grasp with effortless disdain, holding it at an angle that allowed Arabella to glimpse the words as well.

"That hardly seems safe," Cassius remarked, unimpressed.

Xavier swallowed down the pain with a teacup drained in one breath, though shame lingered in his eyes. "It isn’t as impressive as when she performed it. And it’s not a power I can bend to my will. Most times, it fails completely. Today it worked... which is unusual and worrisome."

Cassius gave no reply, his attention fixed on the book. Arabella leaned against his shoulder to read, her brow furrowing as her eyes trailed the lines. "This... it sounds like a child’s story."

"Ah," Xavier rubbed at his head, half embarrassed, half resigned. "Every vision I record comes out that way. Fairytales. But don’t mistake them for nonsense, whatever is written proves true, more often than not. No, I should say, always. Not once has the story contradicted reality."

Arabella’s hum carried unease. "So this one... this story is us, isn’t it?"

Cassius turned to the last page, his crimson gaze skimming the words before he gave a slow nod. "Indeed. But this story is peculiar. It follows the tale that imposter read earlier. Though parts are missing, the meaning is clear enough: one of us will be taken by a demon. The true curse."

"The true curse?" Arabella murmured, her brows knitting as she traced the words with her eyes. A faint unease curled in her chest. "You are right... this story doesn’t make immediate sense," she then quoted the letters from the story, "The lady witch gazes into her reflection, demanding the demon reveal the truth. But the demon only laughs, mocking her. Look into yourself, it says, for the curse lies within, and every misfortune you suffer is born of your own weakness."

"A child’s tale with such a venomous villain," Cassius muttered, clicking his tongue. His frown lingered longer than it should, as though some half buried memory had been stirred.

Arabella drew a quiet breath and pressed on, her voice steady though the words seemed to weigh more heavily with each line. "Unwilling to accept the demon’s taunt, the lady witch demanded again for the truth, she was fierce against the demon’s trickery. But the demon only cackled louder, until its voice seemed to shake the mirror itself. And then, from the darkened glass, a hand reached outward, pale and clawed, beckoning. The demon promised aid, but only if she agreed to play by its rules. To kill... or not to kill."

Her throat tightened, but she read the last line without falter. "The lady witch did not hesitate. She leaned into the mirror’s grasp and answered the delighted demon: I will follow him to the depths of Hell and back."

"This..." Arabella’s voice snapped like a whip as she turned sharply on Xavier, who froze beneath the weight of her glare. His frown only deepened, as though he too had sensed something amiss.

"It was different!" Xavier blurted, fumbling to his pockets before remembering, too late, that his notebook was gone. His hands clenched, helpless. "No, I swear it! The story wasn’t written this way before. The ending’s changed again... it must be because you came here. Because you met me."

Arabella’s pulse throbbed in her ears. "So the future can change?"

"They can split into versions," Xavier admitted, his panic sharpening his words. "But never, not once, did I write that you would speak to a demon."

Her lips parted, a whisper spilling out as her gaze drifted to her trembling hands. "A demon inside me? That’s impossible. I’ve never made a contract, and they told us witches inherit power, not their demons."

Cassius inclined his head in cool agreement, a gesture meant to steady her before fear could spiral. But the words lodged themselves inside him like a thorn. A demon inside her... Why did it feel right, like a truth he had always known but never voiced? His thoughts slid back to fleeting moments, times when Arabella had shifted, her personality change so subtly that even those close to her wouldn’t notice when the shift happened, as if another presence stirred within her. Just like—

His crimson eyes snapped to her.

And in that instant, panic fled her. Arabella’s emerald gaze, wide with dread a heartbeat ago, darkened with a strange amusement, so collected and so unbothered. Her stare locked with his, fearless and mocking, as if she knew exactly what he saw, and welcomed it.

The air between them thickened, vibrating with something far older and far more dangerous than either of them had spoken aloud.

"You," Cassius’s red eyes turn wary but the demon was inside Arabella’s body so how could he do anything to threaten the demon without harming her physically?

The only thing he could do was glare, his hands twitching on the knuckle while Arabella watched it with a soft smile as though she was confident he would never be able to lay a hand on her, not even for the slightest.

"Say," Arabella whispered as she leaned closer toward his face, "I didn’t know that there would be someone with such ability. I guess being loved by the world and Gods are truly a wonderful thing isn’t it? It gives you privilege to enjoy blessings and this one could even see the future."

Cassius turned in front of him, seeing how Xavier hadn’t let out a scream or perhaps found this side of Arabella odd. After a double take, Cassius realized that it wasn’t Xavier who hadn’t realized that Arabella had shifted, rather he wasn’t moving.

No. Nothing in fact was moving in this room.

The clicking clock on the grandfather clock, the whispers that once echoed the entire mansion, and even the sound of heartbeats had all stopped. The time had stopped, not only for a second but for the entire world and all this happened because of Arabella... no, the demon inside of her who was now looking back at him with a confident smile.