Berevreth and I walked through the Green Alley__a narrow path leading to the cathedral gardens. The air was cool and quiet, carrying the scent of damp earth and old leaves. All around us were trees with thick green crowns, grass brushing softly against our boots, and herbs growing in neat, endless rows. No flowers, no fruits, only shades of green. It was said that this place was older than most of the kingdom, crafted by our ancestors __Aurelen and her sisters themselves.
They called it their sacred ground, a place where they prayed, played, trained, and found peace. Perhaps that's why this place had always felt so calm to me since I was a child. Maybe their essence still lingers__faint, but alive. I feel it every time I step here. A strange pull in my chest, like i have been here before, Perhaps I am truly her reincarnation…
Wait__why am I talking like this?
*sighs*
'It seems Father Simon's words are finally getting to me,' I thought, scratching the back of my head.
Just then, Berevreth turned, her sharp eyes catching my movement. My sigh must have been loud.
"So," she began, "are you going to tell me what happened that night?"
I froze mid-step, then scoffed, waving it off and continuing forward while she followed beside me.
"I don't really recall what happened that... "
She cut me off with a laugh. A laugh so sudden I wondered if she had gone mad. Then again, this was Berevreth__Unpredictable as always.
"Elowen," Berevreth called, her tone flat as ever, resting a hand on my shoulder. "It's true we haven't seen each other for a long while now, but nothing about you has really changed…" She paused, eyes sweeping from my head to my toes. "Well, except you've grown rather… frail."
At that, I lifted my arm, inspecting my wrist. Thinner, Too thin making my sleeves hang loose, my once chubby cheeks now sucked in, and replaced with cheek bone. Where have they gone? I used to pinch them whenever I was bored, now, all I felt were little fleshes and bones. I'd spent half my life wishing for a sharper face, but not like this.
"Well," I muttered, to myself, "I always did want to lose my baby fat… just didn't think it would take a near-death experience to get there."
Berevreth stared at me for a moment, then sighed and shook her head. "Only you would turn an attack from a Nharoth into a beauty transformation." she said, but before I could respond, she continued,
"Either way, Elowen, you haven't changed much. Which means I can still tell when you're hiding something."
I turned my eyes away at once. I may be a skilled liar to most, but when it comes to Berevreth, I was as transparent as a glass window.
"Start talking," she pressed. "I heard you were attacked by a Nharoth. What else happened?"
Always direct. Berevreth never entertained roundabout talk.
Just then we arrived at the garden and sat on a wooden bench. The weather was cool enough that we didn't bother sitting under the trees, instead, we sat right under the clear sky.
With a sigh, I began.
"I saw a knight that night," I said quietly. "A Sanctum Knight… but I'm still not sure what I really saw."
"Why do you doubt that?" she asked. "Of course there were Sanctum Knights in the castle that night. It wouldn't be strange if you saw one."
A question popped in my mind.
"Berevreth," I said, leaning in slightly, "I heard that demons can't… feign the body of a Sanctum Knight. Not even a dead one. Is that true?"
She nodded without hesistation "Yes, it's true," she said. "A demon cannot embody anything sacred. And the Sanctum Knights are as sacred as they come."
"But how do they know the knight is sacred? They're still men, aren't they? Men can sin, men can fall and could also be possessed."
Berevreth smiled faintly. "A Sanctum Knight isn't chosen by priest, bishop, or even pope. They're chosen by a holy relic, and a relic cannot be deceived. It searches through the bearer's body and soul to find truth. Each knight represents one relic, and whoever dares to wield it without being worthy faces a swift consequence, which is death,not by sword, but by light itself. The light that purges lies."
I nodded, fully understanding, but before I could speak, she added,
She turned fully towards me then. "So," she said slowly, her voice low, "did you see… a demon-possessed Sanctum Knight?"
My head snapped towards her. "How did you... how did you know?"
A small, knowing smirk curved her lips. She held my gaze for a long moment before saying, almost too calmly, "Have you ever heard of the Lone Saint?"
I blinked, shaking my head. "No."
Her eyes shifted, glancing toward the distant trees swaying under the soft wind. "The Lone Saint," she began, "is one of the Order. A Sanctum Knight… born of a nun."
She paused extending the suspence.
"And a demon." she added
The words hit harder than I expected. I stared at her, wide-eyed. "A Sanctum Knight who's half demon? That's... how's that even possible?" I asked, half in disbelief, half in awe.
"As I said, the relic chooses its wielder, not the Church. Even if the Church lays down laws about who may join the Sanctum Order, The Holy Relic seeks through flesh and soul alike__it sees the truth of a person far beyond what priests or popes can."
"But why would they let him train in the cathedral? From what we know, demons are never spare, they're slain on sight, Yet they allowed him to live? Under the churches roof at that?"
Berevreth's lips curved faintly, that knowing little smile of hers. "There's always a reason behind the Church's decisions, Elowen. Even the ones that seem impossible to understand. You just have to trust them."
That answer only fueled the storm in my head. Curiosity itched under my skin, refusing to stay quiet.
"And that reason…" I leaned forward, trying not to sound too desperate. "Do you… know what it is?"
She tilted her head slightly, eyes glinting with mischief. "Hmm." She nodded once, so casually it made me want to shake her.
I nearly groaned aloud. She had just ignited every ounce of curiosity I possessed and then had the nerve to sit there, unbothered. But this was Berevreth, I had to tread carefully. If I pushed too hard, she'd make me beg before giving me the answer.
Gently, I placed my palm on hers. "Tell me," I said softly.
She smiled, covering my hand with hers. "Tell me first," she countered. "What else did you witness?"
"I told you already," I said. "I only saw the demon knight, and he saved me."
"Yes, that," she said, leaning forward. "How, on the gods' green earth, did you know he was a demon? From what I know, he look just like us."
"Well," I began slowly, "that night… he looked nothing like us. His skin was pale, his eyes... unnatural. His height..."
As I spoke, the image of him grew sharper in my mind. The way he stood__taller than any man I'd ever known or seen, impossible....Or perhaps my memory exaggerates it, but I remember seeing a dark halo around him, restless and shifting like smoke.
I continued, my tone soft but certain. "It was obvious he wasn't human."
Berevreth's brows drew together, her gaze thoughtful. A whisper slipped from her lips.
"Does that mean he… lost control?"
"Lost control?" I echoed, my heartbeat quickening. "You mean i really did almost died that Night?"
"Of course," she said calmly. "What did you think happens when someone like you stands close to a demon? You're like a poison to them."
"Poison?" I muttered under my breath.
"Yes," she nodded, her expression faintly pained. "That must be it. He's spent his whole life being trained, forced to maintain control. But near you… maybe even that discipline couldn't hold.'
Her words trailed off, but my heart was pounding. The idea that I__someone who doubted her gift, could affect a demon knight like that…
I wasn't sure whether to be terrified or strangely flattered.