Chapter 1123: We Three Fairy Knights
Even someone as strong as Barghest couldn't hold back her tears before Eiji after finally being freed from the curse.
It wasn't because she was weak, but because the curse had long tormented her both physically and mentally.
Eiji didn't comfort her, allowing her to vent her emotions alone.
"I've embarrassed myself before you, Your Highness."
Barghest was indeed resilient. After a short while, she composed herself, wiped away her tears, and gave Eiji an embarrassed smile.
"That's quite alright."
Eiji waved his hand dismissively.
"More importantly, what drove you to that point of rampage?"
Even when plagued by a curse destined to become a Great Calamity, there must be a trigger that pushes one into despair.
Just as Melusine's trigger was Aurora's death.
Something must have happened to Barghest as well.
"..."
Barghest fell silent immediately, gritting her teeth tightly, her face filled with uncontrollable grief and indignation.
"My apologies, I spoke out of turn."
"No, you're not at fault, Your Highness."
Barghest smiled bitterly, her expression full of remorse.
"The fault is mine—I actually forgot something so important!"
"Something important?"
"Yes..."
After the Great Calamity occurred, Camelot, built against the Great Pit, immediately became a forbidden land teeming with curses. Barghest promptly abandoned Camelot.
Unfortunately, although she did her utmost to assist in the retreat, the Round Table Army's marching speed was far inferior to hers. In the end, she was the only one who managed to escape from Camelot.
Realizing that the Fairy Kingdom had little time left, she remembered her promise with Chaldea. Without even time to grieve, she rushed back to her territory, Manchester.
Only to find fairies engaged in a massacre.
They dragged out the humans stored in warehouses, torturing them to death as if playing with new toys, even devouring them. Screams and laughter intermingled endlessly.
Hellish scenes were everywhere.
"What are you doing?!"
When Barghest angrily questioned them.
"We're just imitating you!"
The fairies replied cheerfully.
"Storing humans in your bedroom, playing house with them, and then when they let their guard down—gobbling them up in one bite!"
"Gobbling... up?"
"Oh, why act like it never happened? That new lover of yours—the human child. We happened to see it through the window that day you ate him!"
And so it was.
Fairies excel at imitation, mimicking popular trends.
It was like this in Camelot, and it remained the same in Manchester.
The fairies who witnessed Barghest devouring her lover saw this behavior as a trend. Thus, they began keeping humans in their own warehouses, and when the time came, devouring them alive!
"Anyway, we'll be immigrating to Proper Human History soon, right? There are plenty of humans to kill over there. Might as well have some fun before we leave!"
The fairies laughed joyfully.
Barghest slaughtered every last one of them.
Finally, she understood.
No matter which clan or city the fairies belonged to, no matter how splendid and harmonious they appeared on the surface, their fundamental nature remained unchanged.
Watching the fairies under her command reveling in slaughter, Barghest finally understood.
This was the true nature of fairies!
Selfish, cruel, cold-blooded, ungrateful... Their only advantage over beasts was their ability to speak.
Of course.
And the most crucial point.
Barghest finally remembered.
Every time she had fallen in love with another fairy before, she would inevitably succumb to the hunger in her stomach and devour them.
But several years ago, she encountered a sickly human boy and threw herself at him like a moth to flame.
And to this day, the hunger had never erupted.
This made Barghest overjoyed, thinking her curse had finally developed a loophole, that she could experience normal love. She had always treated the boy as her lifelong treasure, protecting him in her mansion's bedroom.
When negotiating with Chaldea, she specifically requested that her lover be allowed to accompany her to Proper Human History.
But in reality.
She remembered now.
One afternoon several years ago, in that bedroom of the mansion, the moment warm sunlight streamed onto the bed.
An intense hunger surged through her, and before she could restrain herself, she had eaten the human boy.
Afterward.
Completely despairing, her curse erupted on the spot, and she gradually transformed into the Black Dog.
But just then.
"It would be such a waste to succumb to the curse now."
A mysterious figure appeared before her.
"I will erase your memory of this day, making your memories of your lover loop within a single day. This should sustain you for a few years. When the time comes, you shall serve me!"
With almost no resistance, her memories were erased by the other party.
Every time she entered the bedroom, her mind would uncontrollably replay the memories of that particular day. Immersed in happiness, she had long forgotten.
That she had personally devoured her lover.
Until today, when her memories fully recovered.
Overwhelmed by despair, she completely transformed into the Black Dog.
"To think such a thing happened..."
Eiji looked at her with a complex expression full of pity.
She had spoken of her lover before him several times, always wearing a happy smile whenever she mentioned him.
But in reality, her lover had long since vanished from that mansion.
Everything was so hollow and terrifying.
"Who was that person?"
Eiji's tone naturally carried disgust.
"I don't know."
Barghest shook her head, thinking hard.
"The only thing I remember... should be a pair of azure beast-like eyes?"
Azure beast-like eyes?
Eiji suddenly frowned.
Speaking of azure beast-like eyes, wasn't that the same shadowy figure with azure beast-like eyes he encountered when rescuing Gudako in the Garden of Lost Will, the one who had been tempting her?
He had never found anyone similar since then and had been somewhat bothered by it.
"Anyway, I'll send you away first."
Eiji temporarily set aside the matter of the shadowy figure with azure eyes and turned to Barghest.
"Send me away?"
"Once we arrive, someone will explain the details to you."
Ignoring Barghest's confused gaze, Eiji lowered his head and began chanting a spell.
"Teleport!"
A flash of white light passed.
As the light faded, Bagest's figure had already vanished from the dream realm.
Eiji dispelled the dream domain.
Calculating the time, his true self was nearly approaching the great cave. Instead of rushing back, he directly dissolved this dream clone.
All that remained was a patch of scorched earth engulfed in flames, still crackling.
On the other side.
Bagest felt her vision blur and suddenly found herself in a dim underground space.
"Where is this?"
She surveyed her surroundings with deep suspicion.
It seemed to be a cavern?
An underground limestone cave?
Simple beds and utensils were arranged around, along with many food items wrapped in oiled paper.
In the corner of the room stood two bell-shaped objects.
"What are you spacing out for?"
A familiar voice suddenly sounded by her ear.
Bagest jolted with a start.
"Your Majesty?!"
Turning around, she stared in astonishment at the imposing woman.
"Has Bagest arrived too? Faster than I expected!"
Beside the silver-haired woman stood another figure.
"With this, among us three great fairy knights, only Bavanxi remains absent?"