Gadiel’s the one who’ll be saved.

“Then, since you’re all set, let’s move on to the little one, shall we?”

Van claps his hands together with a sharp *pat-pat*. In an instant, the great spirit who looked ready to nod off right there and then materializes in the space.

A garment that’s hard to call a pajama—more like a fluffy, shapeless bundle, with the head lolling every so often.

Yawning widely, mouth gaping open. Definitely exhausted.

The outfit’s so puffy and formless, like a sheep costume, you can’t tell if it’s a man or woman. The hood’s pulled all the way over the head, so you can’t even see the face.

“Allow me to introduce my familiar, the spirit who rules over dreams. Her name is Dritra.”

Dritra, as introduced by Van, gives a silent, quick wave of her right hand toward Elen.

“Y-yeah, nice to meet you…”

Elen bows slightly, and Dritra mimics her—head tilting down in perfect, awkward unison.

"This one’ll guide you into Grandmother’s dream. Don’t mind her—she’s loud, so just ignore whatever she says."

Dritra raised her right hand with a silent, “Leave it to me,” expression. But despite the bravado, her face looked incredibly sleepy, eyes half-lidded.

"...Loud?"

"This one only talks a lot in dreams. If there’s something on her mind, she just barges right in. So keep an eye out."

"Eh...?"

How exactly was one supposed to keep an eye out for that?

Elen was still processing when she was abruptly, forcefully pulled into the dream.

The scene—once completely white—suddenly warped, as if a jagged wave of pitch-black static had ripped through it.

Now blinded by darkness, she nearly gasped—until she felt Origin’s hands rest gently on her shoulders. She wasn’t alone.

"…Mother…? This… is…?"

It’s alright, Elen. Dri-chan brought me into Papa’s dream.

At the same time as the Origin's cheerful voice, Elen herself glowed faintly, like a candle flickering to life.

Scanning the area, both Origin and the Dual Goddesses were glowing brightly.

Welcome, welcome, welcome—Elen-sama! You’re in my dream now~! Hehehe!

A sudden bright voice rang out, making Elen’s shoulder twitch sharply.

Looking toward the voice, I saw Drithra—just moments ago looking drowsy—now lively in her dream, swaying her body back and forth with vivid motion.

"Driltra here, hellooo~! I must visit Elen-sama's dreams sometime soon... ah!"

"Come on, Dr. Dolittle, you’re always so talkative—just get on with it already."

"Ah ah, don't be so rough～～～～!"

While Vol was tickling her ribs, Dr. Dolittle laughed, “Uhehehe,” wriggling her body as she cast the spell.

Elen gasped, “Ah!”—a sudden appearance of Gadiel in front of her.

“Gadiel!”

“Eh… Elen…?”

Gadiel looked at her, stunned.

“How come you’re… Is this a dream…?”

“It’s your dream, but I came here to talk.”

Hearing that Elen had come to visit, Gadiel’s face flushed faintly.

“What a convenient dream you’ve made…”

He covered his face with one hand, ears red, head bowed. The sight was perfectly normal—nothing at all strange about it, unlike the sleeping Gadiel.

But reality is cruel. Even now, Gadiel’s life was slipping away, second by second.

Elen remembered it, and her heart clenched so tight she couldn’t breathe—tears spilled out, hot and sudden, from both eyes.

“E-Elen!?”

Gadiel froze mid-step, startled by Elen’s sudden crying, his foot jerking back as if she might be cursed.

He probably thought the spell would activate.

Unfazed by Gadiel’s hesitation, Elen rushed at him.

She patted his stomach—soft, warm, like a kitchen hearth.

“E-Elen!? W-what… why…?”

Gadiel looked dazed, but then he figured it out—*a convenient dream*, he must’ve thought. He gently placed both hands on Elen’s shoulders, still tapping his belly, and pulled her back a little.

Seeing Elen’s face, red and streaked with tears, her mouth twisted in anger and sorrow, Gadiel let out a low groan.

“Why… why did you save me… h-huh… you shouldn’t have… you shouldn’t have…!”

Elen’s choked sobs made Gadiel blink at first, but then he suddenly smiled—softly, like a man who’d just remembered a forgotten warmth.

“Are you alright, Elen?”

Elen wiped her tears and nodded, barely a twitch.

“I… I just couldn’t not save you. That’s all.”

Gadiel laughed, relieved, and Elen broke down completely.

She couldn’t even speak anymore. Gadiel stared, flustered, at Elen’s tears, frozen—what was he supposed to do?

Even though he knew it was a dream, he still felt like he shouldn’t touch her. His hand hovered in the air, unsure.

“Nice to meet you, little grandpa. Thank you for saving Elen-chan.”

“Nice to meet you, little grandpa. You’re… a lot more lively than I expected.”

“Eh… ah, Gadiel Lar Tember, at your service.”

Two unexpectedly seductive women suddenly appeared, and Gadiel’s eyes flew open. But whether it was upbringing or instinct, he automatically introduced himself.

“Know you, know you! Such a good boy!”

“Got it, got it! Such a well-behaved child!”

They giggled, leaning in from either side and ruffling Gadiel’s hair like he was a stuffed doll.

Elen was crying ahead, and Gadiel was caught between them, utterly frozen, not knowing what to do.

“Thank you for saving my daughter. You’re far too pure-souled to be the last of that royal bloodline.”

My daughter. Hearing that, Gadiel couldn’t help but yelp.

“…Spirit Queen, Origin… ma’am?”

“That’s right. These two on either side of you are my elder sisters.”

“Vaal.”

“Vool.”

"Thank you, thank you~! Cursed Prince~! I'm... uh—"

"Driltra's no use anymore."

"Aaah! How cruel! Aaaaaah~!"

Vaal had clearly kicked Driltra out of the dream without mercy. Gadiel stared, pale and bewildered, watching Driltra vanish in an instant—still not quite grasping what had happened.

The sheer lack of mercy from Vaal made it instantly clear: defiance wasn't an option.

"So... you're the Queen's elder sister... meaning you're one of the Dual Goddesses, right?"

"That's right, little one."

"Yep, that's right, little one."

Vaal and Vool giggled, then leaned in on either side of Elen, pinching her cheeks with exaggerated affection.

"Elen-chan, you shouldn't cry."

"That's right—proper gratitude is in order."

"Y-yes..."

Seeing Elen utterly broken, sobbing in pieces, Gadiel finally stepped in to stop it.

"You don't need to thank me. It's just my own satisfaction..."

"Still, you did save Elen-chan. That’s why Elen-chan could fulfill her duty as a goddess."

"Yes, exactly. Thank you for saving Elen-chan."

"...Thank you, Gadiel."

"Y-yeah... is that right?"

Elen’s gratitude made Gadiel look flustered, scratching his neck like he’d just been caught doing something silly.

The air was light, but the Dual Goddesses smiled at Gadiel.

"Anyway, you know... if you keep going like this, you’ll die."

"Yep. You’re gonna kick the bucket if you don’t change anything."

"...Huh?"

Suddenly hit with a brutal truth delivered with a grin, Gadiel froze mid-motion.

"You’ll be making choices now—choices to survive."

"It’s up to you, old man."

The words didn’t quite land. Gadiel’s eyes darted around, wide and confused—his brain still catching up, like a clock that just stopped ticking.

The ward from the corrupted curse protected Lovell and my children from you—but even that had its limits.

Origin began explaining to Gadiel.

"The essence of the curse is the power of mana... you were connected to that curse, weren't you? Lovell explained it, didn't he?"

...Yes. I heard you.

They protected you, but my children were consumed by the curse. At that moment, your soul was torn from your body too.

"Pull… ripped off?"

Your body and soul were forcibly torn apart. Because Lovell had placed a ward on your soul as a marker, we were able to retrieve just your soul.

"Is it... even possible for me to return to my body?"

Gadiel said with a trembling voice, and Origin shook her head.

Gadiel’s face pales in an instant. “S-so… then…” His voice is weak, barely there.

"Oh? Giving up already? You’ll die if we keep going like this, but there’s a way to save you, you know?"

"Yeah. That’s why I prepared a reward."

Vaal and Voul’s voices were bright. Gadiel, still stunned, blinked and muttered, "A reward…?"

"Because you saved Elen! You’ve gotta take it!"

"Right, exactly! But the cost is high."

"The cost…?"

Origin, speaking to Gadiel as thanks for saving her daughter, said:

"The cost is your life as a human. You’ll barely be able to interact with the human world anymore. Can you become a half-spirit like Lovell and bond with Elen?"

Elen and Gadiel both flinched at the words.

"G-Gadiel… a half-spirit…?"

"Can he really… bond with Elen!?"

Their reactions were completely different.

The instant Elen and Gadiel locked eyes in stunned silence, their expressions mirroring each other’s shock, Origin and the Dual Goddesses burst into laughter—echoing through the air like wind chimes in a storm.