The same voice I had heard in the Forest of Eternity.
And the ball of fur that had brought me here.
With this, my guess was confirmed—there was indeed a connection between the strange behavior of the spirit beasts and this furball.
—"Hey! How could you just blurt out my name in front of this kid?! Don't you know we're supposed to keep it a secret until he fully passes the test? You sleep all the time, and now your brain's turning to mush!"
The furball was still shouting at the top of its lungs. I grabbed its soft, fluffy tail, giving it a playful tug as I spoke.
"So, your name is Beelzekiel."
—"See?! Because of you, now this brat knows my name! What are you gonna do about it?"
After six years, I had finally learned the furball's name. It was an elegant, old-fashioned name that didn't quite match its plush-toy appearance.
—"Hmm, just my opinion, but if you hadn't been screaming like that, Phaegan probably wouldn't have figured out your name so easily."
—"Ugh! Th-that's…"
—"And showing him your true form means you've decided to trust him, right? You revealed everything about yourself, but you were still keeping your name a secret? Ah! I get it now!"
—"Hey! No! It's not what you're thinking! Shut up!"
—"Beelzekiel, are you embarrassed?"
—"W-who's embarrassed?! You stupid old lady! Stop talking nonsense!"
The banter continued between the furball and an unknown presence.
In the end, Beelzekiel—the furball formerly known as 'Furball'—raised his tail high in frustration, and the warm, sunlit voice carried on.
—"Alright, let's leave it at that. But I have one more question. Beelzekiel, why are you so upset?"
—"You're seriously asking? I told you it was too soon! I told you over and over again that we needed more time, that you had to wait just a little longer! So why were you in such a rush that you had to involve the spirit beasts in your plan?!"
—"A plan? That's a bit hurtful. I know how much you care about this child, Beelzekiel. But I need you to understand that I care about Phaegan just as much as you do."
—"Then why would you do something like this?! Why are you, of all people, rushing things? Sure, this kid's pretty smart, but he's still just twelve years old!"
—"Beelzekiel, won't you at least hear me out first?"
—"And yet, you're already putting all this pressure on him—ugh, forget it! I don't care anymore! I did what you asked and brought him here. The rest is on you."
As Beelzekiel's voice grew sharper, his two pairs of wings flapped even faster.
—"Beelzekiel, you always overthink things too much."
—"Overthink? Weren't you the one always preaching about caution?"
—"Yes, I said we should be careful. But I never said we should hesitate when the right time comes."
Beelzekiel, weren't you the one who always emphasized the virtue of courage? And do you remember what Orpheus said?
Their argument was clearly centered around something important, something that seemed to directly involve me.
—"You may have a better ability to nurture Claudius' potential, but Orpheus said more than once that I have a keener eye for recognizing it at the right time. And I've decided—this is the right time."
—"Tch, that idiot. Running his mouth about useless things."
—"Beelzekiel, please trust me. And if you can't trust me, then trust the judgment of Orpheus, who once trusted me."
—"…I never said I didn't trust you."
—"I know how much you care for Claudius' child. But a true guardian offers the right opportunities for growth at the right time. Please, help me keep the promise I made to Orpheus."
At last, their dispute seemed to settle.
Beelzekiel still wore a sulky expression, but the sharpness in his frantic wing flaps had softened considerably.
—"Hello, child of Claudius. My name is Lamute. I suppose I should have introduced myself sooner, huh?"
"…I am Phaegan Claudius. Regardless of the circumstances, it's an honor to meet you."
—"Would it be alright if I called you Phaegan?"
"Whatever makes you comfortable."
—"Then, Phaegan. First, I must apologize. I have my reasons for not showing myself and speaking only through my voice. I hope you can forgive my rudeness."
"I take no issue with it. However, I do have a few questions."
—"Go ahead. If it's something I can answer at this moment, I will."
I placed the still-flapping furball onto my head and asked,
"On the way here, this fluffy one told me something."
—"Fluffy one…?"
"Yes, Fluffy. Because his fur is so fluffy, of course."
—"Pfft… Ahaha! You're right, Beelzekiel is fluffy. Lucky you, Beelzekiel~! Phaegan cares about you so much. Oh, I'm jealous."
—"You two, shut up! Just ask your question already, kid!"
Despite Beelzekiel's protests, I kept stroking the soft fur on his head. For some reason, doing so put me at ease, making it easier to ask my questions.
"Lamute, I was told that you have a stake in the pact between Claudius and the spirit beasts. Could you explain it in detail?"
—"Oh my, Beelzekiel told you that much? Congratulations! It looks like Beelzekiel trusts you even more than I expected."
"And earlier today—or rather, yesterday now—I heard that the strange phenomenon in the Forest of Eternity happened because of your influence. I'd like to know why that needed to happen."
—"Hmm… Give me a moment. Where should I start?"
As the 'co-owner of the pact' spoke, the entire rocky island responded—the dense purple moss covering the ground pulsed with an even more vibrant glow.
Watching how the island reacted to Lamute's presence, I realized—this being held far more power than I had initially thought.
Deep within this land, beyond anyone's knowledge, not even my father's, an ancient force had been stirring.
—"I suppose I should start by explaining who I am. By now, you've probably guessed, but Beelzekiel and I were close companions of Orpheus and long-time friends of the Claudius bloodline."
"Old friends…?"
—"You're probably thinking, 'If they were old friends, why were their existences kept hidden?' But we had our reasons. When Orpheus first settled in Espetara, we were by his side. We devoted ourselves to making this island the stronghold of Claudius."
Though I couldn't see Lamute's face, I could tell from his voice—when he mentioned Orpheus, his expression must have been filled with sorrow.
—"And the moment we decided that Espetara was ready to be Claudius' home, do you know what our first task was?"
"I'm not sure."
—"We erased all traces of ourselves from the history of Espetara and Claudius."
Not a single record of them existed in any historical texts of my family.
If what Lamute said was true, then he and Beelzekiel had chosen to accept this erasure.
And I couldn't help but wonder—why?
—"Because Orpheus wanted it that way."