The person who came in was Aria.
"I found a clue, Eve!"
She came running breathlessly with a flushed face.
"Clues? What kind of ones?"
"A clue to break the ancient magic!"
Everyone in the room widened their eyes at what Aria shouted.
Aria spoke as if blaming herself.
"Why didn't I know this way! Eve, you remember what I told you before, right? That your soul color and that dragon's are similar."
I nodded.
"We're going to use that. Just like I read your memories, we're going to use Eve's connected soul to figure out what ancient magic is! Then we might be able to discover a small clue."
Aria, who had been shouting with an excited face, paused.
"Of course, even if I manage to unlock it, I'm not sure if you'll be able to imprint it, but..."
Then, suddenly, she lifted her head again.
"Still, we have to give it a try! Whatever it takes!"
She shouted in a spirited voice.
However, even if the magic is broken, it will not be possible to stop Noelier's rampage.
'If I am not his mate, if I am not the wolf from a past life who stole his heart.'
We won't be able to imprint, and Noelier will die.
Just like it did in the book.
'But.'
I had no choice. I had to cling desperately to even that small straw.
I nodded.
I looked at the grandmother. She nodded as if she understood.
Then, as I lightly waved my hand, a blue light enveloped Noelier. It meant that the magic I had entered Noelier's body was being amplified.
I slowly pulled my hand away. Thanks to Grandma's magic, the heat subsided even after I took my hand away.
I quietly gazed at his sleeping face. I turned toward Aria.
Aria reached out her hand. As we interlocked our fingers, our hands met tightly without any gaps.
She slowly drew closer to me.
"Listen carefully, Eve. I am about to look into your memories. These could be memories from your past life, or they could be that dragon's memories. One thing is certain: rummaging through memories is not a good thing."
"..."
"You might feel a little dizzy and nauseous. Please bear with it for just a moment."
"Yes."
I nodded without hesitation.
Then Aria spoke in a whisper.
"Eve, close your eyes."
I quietly closed my eyes. Thump. Our foreheads touched.
Then, it felt as if something was flowing between our touching fingers. It was slightly different from Noelier's heat.
Just as my body began to tremble slightly, Aria moved away from my side.
"Was there anything that could serve as a clue? Did you see something?"
"..."
Unlike me, who was asking desperately, Aria's face was full of embarrassment.
"...I'm not sure. I think I might have seen Eve, but you're so faint I can't see you clearly. It feels like something is constantly blocking me from seeing you."
Aria averted her gaze as if she were ashamed.
Something disturbing.
'No way.'
I looked down at my empty hand.
“...Blank.”
Then she muttered blankly.
It was clear that another magic inside my body was interfering with us.
Of all times, of all times...
I squeezed my eyes shut. I resented myself so much for being unable to do anything. It was when my clenched fist began to tremble.
I felt the warmth of body heat touch my hand. I opened my eyes again. The person who held my hand was my grandmother.
“Let’s do it together.”
"... Grandma."
"And you, Mermaid, too."
Grandmother waved her hand lightly. Something glowing blue flew toward Aria. Aria caught that light in her spirit.
Aria spread her hand and checked what she was holding.
The blue gem was Grandma's amplification magic.
"This will be of at least some help."
"..."
"...Let's give it a try. Whatever it turns out to be, it's better than regretting it."
As she said that, Grandmother looked back and forth between me and Aria.
Aria took my hand again. As we intertwined our fingers, a chilling cold seeped into my body.
"Eve, you need to focus. Every time your emotions shift, your mind will try to drive you out."
"... Yes."
I nodded with a determined look on my face.
Grandmother opened her hand toward us. Aria slowly tilted her head.
Our foreheads touched again. Something began to seep between our clasped fingers.
My stomach churned, and it felt as if the world was turning upside down and then back around repeatedly. The magic inside my body.
It seemed as though this was hindering her intrusion.
I straightened my wobbly legs. I couldn't give up here.
I squeezed my eyes shut and concentrated. With the feeling of pushing out the magic that had taken root inside my body.
Then, the raging energy in my body began to slowly subside.
Had I succeeded in reading the memory? I slowly opened my eyes.
***
"This place..."
I blinked blankly.
I was definitely in the bedroom, but the surroundings had changed.
I could not find Grandmother, Rachel, who had been looking at me with tears in her eyes, or Noelier, who was lying there like a dead person.
A scene of utter chaos, everything engulfed in flames. A sky thick with smoke. Suffocating heat.
It was when I was staring blankly around me.
"It feels like a memory from the past."
Aria spoke in a whisper.
"To be precise, it is the dragon's memory glimpsed through Eve."
"Can a memory be this... vivid?"
"It feels just like reality," I added as I reached out my hand. The thick smoke spreading out scattered weakly at my touch.
"...I don’t know either. It’s the first time this has happened to me, but what’s certain is that just being able to see this is a miracle."
Aria said that while looking around.
"Has Eve ever seen this situation?"
"It's not exactly accurate, but I've seen a similar scene in a dream. However, that was..."
I hesitated to speak. What I saw was the scene of Noelier dying.
'Even if that isn't the case, it's a little different from the current situation.'
There was nothing around Noelier, whom I met in my dream. There was only a hot pit of fire.
"Then is it the dragon's memory..."
Aria, who had been muttering, nodded.
"I guess this scene was the most important memory."
Aria said that and looked around.
What clues might there be in this memory?
It was then that I was looking around along with them.
Pajik!
We heard the sound of something moving. Aria and I instinctively recoiled.
"...Did you hear a sound just now?"
"... Yes."
Aria and I walked silently toward the source of the sound.
Beyond the thick smoke, a figure flickered. We moved closer to it.
Someone was sitting in the midst of the ruins where everything was burning.
No. It would be more accurate to say that he collapsed.
Barely leaning against a tree on the verge of turning to ashes, he was breathing heavily.
I instinctively realized who he was.
'Noel.'
It was clearly Noelier.
Aria grabbed me as I was about to instinctively run out.
"Shh! Don't touch it carelessly. It would be a big problem if the memory gets distorted."
"But...!"
I couldn't just stand by and watch him in pain like that.
Just then, footsteps were heard from somewhere. They were running urgently toward us. Aria quickly pulled my arm. We hid behind a collapsed building. The sound of the hurried footsteps slowly slowed down. The steps stopped exactly in front of Noelier.
I wanted to lean my head out to see who the owner of the sound was. But Aria shook her head, saying no. We had no choice but to concentrate on the sound as much as possible.
"...Why did you come?"
Then, a low bass sound was heard.
It was Noelier's voice. I instinctively covered my mouth.
The other person did not answer Noelier's question either. Only the sound of something burning filled the gap.
"...I came because I wanted to help you."
And after quite a while, the answer came back. It was a woman's voice.
“Help me?”
It was a voice filled with mockery.
"What do you expect to do by helping me, you wolf? Are you trying to pity me? I'm as good as dead already. Stop your useless nonsense and get lost."
The woman did not answer. Judging by Noelier's hollow laugh, it seemed he was expressing his dislike.
Who on earth is that woman?
If Noelier was that on edge, it was right to feel fear.
'Besides, if you're a wolf like me, it's normal to be afraid of Noelier...'
The moment I thought that, I paused.
Wait a sec.
'That woman is a wolf?'
Then that person...
It felt as if all my thought circuits had stopped.
"...That can't be happening."
Then the woman spoke again.
It was a voice filled with fear, yet it did not lose its firmness.
"Because I want to help you."
The moment I heard that voice, it felt like my heart sank.
It was a familiar voice.
No, it was the voice I had never forgotten, the voice I had hoped to meet, even if only in my dreams.
"Eve."
"My daughter, whom I love the most in the world."
"..."
The hand covering my mouth slowly dropped down. Aria grabbed me, asking why, but I couldn't answer.
My hands began to tremble slowly. Then, my vision gradually began to distort. The situation started to unravel, following my agitation.
“Why?”
However, the memory continued. Noelier asked the woman sharply.
"You want to do something good. Is that it?"
"Yes."
The woman answered right away.
And at the words that followed, my heart sank.
"Because we have to help people in danger."
"Eve, if you do good deeds, you will be blessed."
"You must help people in danger. Understand?"
It was my mother's voice, which I had never forgotten for a single moment.
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