Demon's Virtue

Eiro closed his eyes, pressing them shut as he took a few deep breaths, with Solomon pacing around in front of him, "Really, you overdid it this time... How could you talk to a king like that?"

"Because I'm sick and tired of people acting like pieces of trash. Again and again, people ignore my words and turn around to then be utterly disgusting. You heard what he said last night, didn't you? And then again today. Those people aren't worth being kind to, you know that."

"...I guess you're right. And it's not like they can really do anything against us, since they signed that contract. They won't officially pursue Arc and Samantha again, but they might privately try and make some things happen, so just be careful."

"Of course, don't worry." Eiro replied as he slowly stood up from his seat to take off his jacket. He took a proper seat, and split up his arms, since it was more comfortable that way. Eiro leaned back a bit, and Solomon looked at him with a light frown, "Please at least act like you understand the consequences of your actions."

"What do you think I'm doing right now? It takes a lot for me to concentrate properly since my evolution started, and after using that much mana earlier it's even harder. But even so, I'm thinking about what might come from this, and how to make sure that it won't. Of course, the easiest way would be to just kill those four, but I don't really think that's the best way to do things." Eiro pointed out, and pulled open his eyes a moment later.

He fused his arms together again, and had Bavet once more turn them properly into arms that would seem to belong to a human, "Speaking of, there's one surprising visitor." Eiro said with a light frown, as a few knocks could be heard on the door.

"...Come in." Solomon replied, and a certain woman stepped into the room. It was someone that Solomon and Eiro had seen not too long ago. It was Samantha's mother, Jasmin.

She stood in front of the two with her blank expression, and soon slightly bowed forward apologetically. She wasn't able to speak, after all. Even so, Eiro let out a long sigh, "Come on, at least say something."

"Eiro, she's mute..." Solomon pointed out with a wry smile, and Eiro rolled his eyes, "I know. I didn't tell her to speak, I told her to say something. She knows sign language."

Jasmin stood up straight and locked eyes with Eiro, as she soon started to sign to converse with him, "How did you know?"

"Your eyes were glancing at my hands a few months ago when you visited the manor, when I was translating things for Felix." Eiro replied quickly, of course speaking, since she seemed to be able to hear things normally, and so that Solomon could at least slightly follow along, "Now, why are you here?"

"I would like to ask you for something." Jasmin explained, and Eiro frowned, "You dare think I would do you a favor after what you did? Fuck off."

Slowly, Jasmin continued to sign, and said something surprising, "I..." For a moment or two, Jasmin stopped, before starting again, "Back then, when Samantha was... when my husband sold Samantha, I was very sick. I was on my deathbed."

"And then you used the money you got from selling her to the holy empire to get medicine?"

"No, my husband spent it on whores and alcohol." Jasmin replied bluntly, "We were never lacking in money. What I am trying to say... I had no ability to do anything against what was happening. I was unable to move my body, so I could not write or sign to the few servants that I had learn it to understand me. I laid there, unable to do anything."

Eiro looked at Jasmin, and slowly turned toward Solomon, who was unsure what exactly was just said, and let out a deep sigh, "Take a seat. This seems like it will be a longer conversation." Eiro explained, "Don't worry, I will make sure that nobody can hear your words, but I will directly translate them to Solomon so that he understands what's going on as well."

Jasmin formed a gentle smile on her face, the first time Eiro had seen any sort of emotion on her, and slowly sat down on a chair opposite to where Eiro was sitting at the table. Meanwhile, Eiro told Solomon what Jasmin had said to him.

"Then... what is it you want right now? Even if you were unable to do anything, that doesn't mean that we will allow you to take Samantha back with you." Solomon pointed out, and Jasmin immediately nodded, "I know, that is not what I am asking. Even before my husband sold Samantha, I was not a good mother to her. Cold and distant. I... was scared of her. Of what she could do with that voice of hers. I was jealous, as well. Her voice was filled with such power, but I was denied the gift of even a whisper. When I became sick, my perspective on things changed. Samantha, despite my actions, tried to be close to me. For the first time, I looked at her as a daughter. And the next day... my husband gave her away."

Eiro closed his eyes in anger, really just despising Loid more and more now. He was a disgusting man, in any way. But even so, "You still didn't try and get her back."

"...I know. I really never tried. That is another sin of mine. I am not her parent, not anymore. That is a title only you deserve, I see that. But when, on that day, that man... Aaron came to see us, tell us about his son, I had hopes. Maybe I could see Samantha again, hold her for the first time in her life. Be a mother to her, like she deserved to have growing up." Jasmin explained, and beyond translating this for Solomon, Eiro stayed silent.

And that silence lingered for a few moments, until Eiro finally spoke, "I think I know what you want. You... still want to be part of Sammy's life, right?"

And now, for the first time, Eiro noticed this woman's heart skip a beat. Slowly, she continued to sign, "Do you know what my greatest talent lies in?" She asked, and Eiro stayed silent, not even fully translating her question.

"Singing." Jasmin added, and Eiro pulled open his eyes wide, "It is cruel, is it not? A woman who is unable to even hum, to be given a talent for singing. We do not always get what we want."

"...I will try give you a chance to speak to her. But only once, and in private. She knows sign language as well, not fluently, but well enough to hold conversations. Speak to her, say your piece, and then let her make the choice of what happens once." Eiro said, and Jasmin's face practically seemed to glow, although it barely moved beyond a slight smile, "However. I can only try. I will ask Sammy if she wants to speak to you, and if she doesn't, then... I won't let you see her. It is completely up to her."

Eiro knew that Jasmin was completely truthful in what she was saying, and some other things now seemed to make sense. It wasn't that she didn't show any sort of expression, and that she was unnaturally calm during those few conversations out of self control. It was against her will. A disease that influenced her muscles to the extent where she could not even write a single word, a disease that brought her nearly to her death, must have shown some effects even when cured. She could move around, and the muscles in her hands seemed well-recovered, even if only through the fact that Jasmin used them to sign instead of speaking. But the muscles in her face in particular seemed out of her control. That slight smile she showed earlier must have been the equivalent of a bright smile that went from ear to ear for others.

The fact that she was unable to express herself even through expressions after that disease seemed to have made her feel shut-off to an extent. She disconnected, dissociated from the situations she was in, even during that first meeting. That was why she didn't seem to react at all, no matter what happened.

Tears formed in Jasmin's eyes, and soon began to stream down her face. It seemed surreal, since even now, her expression didn't seem to change in the slightest beyond the fact that she tried to press her eyes shut to stop the tears.

Eiro handed her his handkerchief, which she quickly used to remove the tears from her porcelaine face. Slowly, she stood up and signed at Eiro, "My husband must be wondering where I am by now. I will have to take my leave. We will be staying here for a little while longer, I am sure you will be able to find us."

"Of course." Eiro replied, as he watched Jasmin walk toward the door. She pulled it open and stepped outside, but before she closed the door, Eiro said something else.

"Sammy, she... she is an amazing singer." He said, and once more, he noticed a skip of her heart and a slight smile on her face, a bit greater than before, on Jasmin's face, as the tears returned to her. In what was clearly an incredible effort, she slowly mouthed two words, completely silently.

'Thank you'.