“Huh?”

Dana was truly surprised. So they hadn’t met for the first time when she became an adult?

“When was it?”

“…At your seventeenth birthday banquet.”

“Ah…”

Dana unconsciously opened her mouth and then closed it again. Then Kaiden must have also seen her fail to contract with the Divine Beast and run away.

As an awkward atmosphere inevitably settled in, suddenly a loud noise was heard. Everyone turned their heads at once. The prince had burst into loud crying. The wet nurse, maids, and Queen Bridget surrounded the prince’s cradle with startled faces.

In the distance, they could see Priest Gailos in white robes approaching with the holy knights.

“It seems it’s time for the prince to receive his blessing.”

Then we should watch from up close. Dana said to Kaiden:

“Let’s go.”

She pulled on Kaiden’s arm and walked toward where the prince was.

Bridget held the prince, who had finally stopped crying after being soothed by the wet nurse. Bridget, holding the prince, stood on the Divine Beast summoning circle with Taras.

On the summoning circle was a box containing Daischultz’s sword, which had been moved there by the holy knights. The sword was still covered in plant vines. Since a newborn prince couldn’t contract with a Divine Beast, this was a ceremony to give the newly born Rowen royal family member Daischultz’s energy and Vican’s blessing.

The music in the banquet hall stopped, and everyone paid attention. All guests’ eyes were on the prince, Queen Bridget, and King Taras. Dana took Kaiden’s hand and stood very close to them. It was the same spot where she had stood in the past to properly see Elias receive his blessing. She was careful not to step on the summoning circle.

White holy power spread following Priest Gailos’s hand as he touched the prince’s small head. Light flowed along the summoning circle drawn with luminous grass. The flowing light covered the Sword of Promise.

Dana watched this with Kaiden. Looking at the small child in the queen’s arms, she prayed to Vican and Yurhemia for the prince to grow up healthy.

And then at that moment…

Suddenly, Dana turned to look at Kaiden. He was standing with an indifferent face, watching the prince receive the blessing. Seeing him like that somehow made her heart heavy.

In her past life, she had stood here alone watching the prince receive his blessing. But not now. Now she was standing with her husband who had a set time limit, watching the prince receive his blessing. Everyone here was praying for the baby to grow up healthy.

‘Does Kaiden too…’

Would he want to have such a baby… A baby that resembles him…

As she was thinking this, Kaiden suddenly lowered his gaze to Dana. Their eyes met. Dana was slightly startled.

“Ah…?”

White light was flowing along Kaiden’s body. She unconsciously followed the flowing light with her eyes. The light that flowed down his body, down his legs, and his feet, to the summoning circle his feet touched, and between that summoning circle, the sword…

“What…”

Dana closed her eyes and opened them again to look down properly. Standing close to Dana, Kaiden’s foot was touching the edge of the summoning circle. The light covering the Sword of Promise was spreading through his body that was touching the summoning circle.

“Why.”

Dana looked up at Kaiden again. From the summoning circle, whoosh, wind arose. It was a breathtakingly fierce gust. Dana instinctively squeezed her eyes shut.

Kaiden immediately stood in front of Dana, shielding her with his body. As a result, he ended up completely inside the summoning circle. Dana felt the solid male body embracing her. Despite having her eyes closed, her vision was dyed pure white.

Kaiden continued holding her protectively. After the wind finally died down, her vision darkened again.

Dana slowly opened her eyes. When she opened them, she saw Kaiden holding her. Kaiden, who had been watching vigilantly for something, slowly lowered his arms and stepped away from Dana.

Dana saw what appeared behind Kaiden who had stepped half a step to the side.

“What…”

Spreading its wings above the summoning circle was a black Divine Beast. The black Divine Beast that had appeared with the rushing wind flapped its wings. With its curtain-like translucent black wings spread wide filling the surroundings, it looked as if it was bringing a new night to the banquet hall.

And that Divine Beast was looking at Kaiden.

‘What in the world is happening?’

Why a Divine Beast?

As she stared at Kaiden in confusion, someone’s voice was heard.

“Bazesus…”

Dana turned her head toward the voice. Priest Gailos, with an astonished face, spoke while looking at the Divine Beast.

“It’s Bazesus!”

It was Divine Beast Bazesus, the black windstorm that the founding king Daischultz was said to have contracted with.

Dana looked at Kaiden. Though Kaiden showed no reaction, Divine Beast Bazesus flew toward him and was absorbed into his body, leaving behind black energy.

Watching this, Dana realized.

That the founding king Daischultz’s Divine Beast Bazesus had contracted with Kaiden.

For the first time in Rowen Kingdom’s history, someone who wasn’t of the royal family had contracted with a Divine Beast.

‘How could this happen.’

And this was something that hadn’t happened in the past life she had experienced.

As if confirming the kill, Priest Gailos’s voice was heard shouting toward Kaiden:

“The Duke has contracted with Divine Beast Bazesus!”

With her mind blank white, Dana turned her head.

‘Ah…’

She saw Queen Bridget, who was furious that attention had been stolen from the newborn prince who was supposed to receive his blessing. And.

Behind her, she saw Taras standing with a distorted face.

‘Oh dear…’

That expression – the same one he would have worn when his younger sibling contracted with a superior Divine Beast than his own.