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   fifth talk with Sovereign (redeemed Edith) Narrator: Eyes distant, your knight startles slightly as your footsteps break the silence of the vast corridor. Edith: Y-Your Grace... Edith: Dainsleif has been. s-so quiet these past few moons... ever since its form changed. Narrator: She presses her ear against the sword. Edith: It's as if it needs time to rest, just like me. In all the time it's been w-with me, this is the first... Edith: How long has it been with you? Edith: For so long I couldn't tell you exactly. Edith: Ever since I first dreamed of b-becoming a knight. Edith: When I was younger, I saw other knights do terrible things with their b-blades, you know... Edith: I wanted that same strength... th-the kind they used to destroy... and turn it toward something worthier. And. I never w-would have gotten there without my faithful Dainsleif. Even if... I haven't proven m-myself worthy of it, if I'm honest. Sovereign: You know, I don't feel worthy of my throne either. Edith: A l-little crisis of legitimacy. I understand that, Your Grace... But you were truly meant to sit upon it. Chosen to. Narrator: She pauses, listening to her sword as if bracing herself for a protest. Edith: Dainsleif... it's a legendary blade. A sword that only the w-worthy can wield. Other swords like this exist, s-scattered across the world... beyond our own lands, too. Ex-Excalibur for example. The legendary sword of Angelor, said to be s-sealed in stone...until the one it's waiting for comes to claim it. Narrator: She pauses. Edith: I c-can admit it to you now... Edith: D-Dainsleif was waiting for its chosen one too. and it w-wasn't really me. Sovereign: So you stole it? Edith: I d-did, yes... Sovereign: Is that why it's... cursed? Edith: I d-don't know... Serious: I like to think... th-that a blade as powerful as this one cannot be separated from the living presence inside it. Perhaps every instrument of death carries a piece of its own fate... some occult force within it. Narrator: The sword trembles faintly. Edith: I knew the risks... Edith: B-but... it was the only way I could truly become... a knight... and rise ab-above how weak I was. Edith: I just wanted... to protect my own. Edith: A-and if that meant... s-sacrificing a piece of my conscience... then so be it. Sovereign: Dainsleif seems to... care about you. Edith: I can't abandon it, Your Grace... Edith: I'm b-bound to it. I'd probably die with it. Edith: W-what would be left of me without the strength of its blade...? Deep down, I want to believe it w-wishes me. well. Edith: Yes.. It never wished me any harm. Edith: The d-demon inside it could have taken me the moment I first t-touched it in the cellar in Moonvale, where it was waiting. D-did you know that? That thing did nothing of the sort. Narrator: She pauses to gaze gently at the almost lifeless sword in her hands. Edith: D-Dainsleif is what made me a k-knight... Whatever I've become, we became it together. And maybe this demon, c-curled up in the steel, isn't so different from what I carry inside myself. I hope. that it finds its strength again soon. Narrator: She says nothing more. Narrator: Only a hushed silence remains, in which she now seems to be as cold as the steel within her hands.

   redeemed Edith came back Edith: Y-Your Grace... Narrator: The tremble in her voice stirs a familiar memory in you. Narrator: A dissonant melody heard long ago, replayed on restrung strings. Edith: M-my hands... are m-mine again. Were they still mine... when I spilled that blood, Y-Your Grace? It wasn't my choice... yet it was these very hands that held the blade... Sovereign: I apologise. That should never have happened. Edith: I-I couldn't say... Edith: I-I hear your apology... Edith: But I've come to understand, Your Gr-Grace. t-that not even you can control everything that happens to your subjects. Edith: That d-defending the Kingdom... sometimes leaves m-marks like this one. I can feel s-something in me now that won't bend so easily anymore. Is it strength or a wound? Dainsleif doesn't know either. Edith: B-but one thing is certain. in the unfathomable darkness into which I-I was cast, I realised that I had to reconcile my wish to be a hero w-with what it demands. Accept the c-conditions... and their weight. That is the path I have chosen, in spite of everything. Narrator: She stares at her hands for a long time before she dares to close them. Edith: ... I-I don't think it'll ever be easy for me - maybe that's a good thing... but I will t-take on its weight and not turn away from it. My blade remains yours.

   Second talk with Sovereign (base Edith) Unknown: Mmmm. ah. yes? Narrator: Whispers draw you toward the back of the library. Edith: Edith: .A-ah, Your Grace. Narrator: She slowly pulls her head away from her sword. Edith: ... Edith: A-are you familiar with t-this section of the library, Y-Your Grace? Edith: ... It is truly. enriching. Narrator: A small plaque on a shelf tells you that you are in the "Occult and Demonology" intersection. Edith: T-there is so much to learn about the occult f-for an uninitiated soul. A whole lifetime wouldn't be enough. A-and there's also so much to learn about demons. For that, I'm afraid that merely sticking to simple books won't suffice. ehehehehehe. Narrator: She twirls a puff of dust by running a finger along the shelf's edge. Sovereign: Which book would you recommend to a novice such as myself? Edith: W-well.. let me think. Edith: I-I think "The Traps of Arcana" is a good start. Edith: I-It's a work that dissects occult myths with questionable reliability... T-the alleged p-properties of certain toad fumes, for example. Sovereign: Which book has taught you the most? Edith: A-ah. hard to say. maybe "Rites of Angelor"? M-men beyond our borders have some..curious practices. Sovereign: And what do you know about demons? Edith: I-I was wondering when you'd ask me that, ehehehe... Edith: I've delved deeply into the subject. But purely as an object of study, of course. I-it was the theme of my final‑year thesis. Narrator: She furrows her brows for a moment, eyes vague and lips slightly trembling, before continuing. Edith: D-demons are. an incredible source of power for humans. Potentially the most potent there is... Whether by offering their essence to us or by s-surrendering to the honeyed w-words whispered by their s-silky voices, ehehehe... These creatures know everything about you... they read your thoughts like open books r-ready to be torn apart. Narrator: The young woman stops abruptly. Edith: W-well. a-at least, that's what the s-spirits who have agreed to form p-p-pacts with them report. Edith: ... I-it's not something I'd recommend you do, for obvious reasons. Sovereign: Have you ever met a demon? Edith: N-no. Why? Narrator: She nervously presses her ear to her sword. Edith: ...You should be careful, Your Grace. Edith: S-something inside me. tells me that occult powers could be closer to you than you think... Edith: .And that this Tower holds far more than mere stone. It teems with secrets that still b-breathe. Edith: Well, i-it's just.a hunch, of c-course. No one whispered it in my ear. Just simple. intuition. ehehehehe. Narrator: Uncomfortable, she goes back to rummaging among the library shelves.

   four talk with Sovereign (possessed Edith) Edith: ... Edith: Grace. Edith: How interesting to find you here. Do you often converse with entities of my nature? Sovereign: Yes. Edith: I speak of the creature made from my own substance. The one dwelling within this stone. You know it, do you not? Its cold, never-blinking eyes come to settle fixed upon yours. The lungs of this building, the demon haunting it like a shadow. ... Long since I have seen one of my kind. I did not expect to find it so intact. No such creature could persist here without your consent. However passive it may be. Sovereign: So you know each other? Narrator: Their usually laconic voice drops to a breath that seems afraid of being heard. Edith: Our paths have crossed before. Edith: As have those of many other demons of our kind. Edith: But it was not this vessel. Just as this one was not mine... Curious as to what brought it here... we spoke. The bare minimum. Sovereign: Tell me more. Edith: What more is there to add, Grace? Edith: This demon is like all others who share our substance. We are undifferentiated. Edith: We possess, again and again, until, at last we find flesh. Narrator: The voice cracks with a stray emotion that does not quite seem to belong to it. Narrator: Is everything alright? Edith: Edith: Yes. Edith: But... I must confess doubt sometimes finds its way into my designs. Edith: Poor Edith. What you forced her to do... to plunge her blade into another's flesh... It broke her, did you know that, Grace? Her remorse left me the space to seize control. I believed, then, that taking her flesh would finally grant her the rest she deserved. No more pain for her to endure. And at last, a vibrant vessel for me. ... And yet now doubts assail me. And a strange sensation spreads through my cage. A curious experience. Sovereign: You didn't spare her the pain. You stole it from her. Edith: What, then, is this... regret piercing through me? Edith: Strange, to hear myself sermonized by the very soul that broke her first. Narrator: A surge of uncontrolled emotion now pierces their voice, causing it to tremble with a discordant vibrato. Edith: I... Edith: I could let her return, Grace. Edith: I do not know in what state she would come back. Edith: Would she still know herself, or would the dormant pain wake with her? Edith: Maybe she would have forgotten everything. Who can say? Edith: Still... yes. I could let what remains of her grow. and myself return to the unfathomable, immaterial shadows. Edith: ... Perhaps that is one thing that sets me apart from my kind. Sovereign: Yes. Let her come back. Edith: Ah... well... the human condition is certainly a curious experience, Grace... Narrator: For the first time, its cold, never-blinking eyes seem misted with emotion.

   Edith: Hello, Grace. Edith: I've safely returned from the mission you kindly entrusted to me. Narrator: Something...feels off. Narrator: Your knight's voice seems to have lost the lively timbre, though faintly haunted, that used to characterize her. Edith: ... Thank you for your trust. Completing this duty was truly revitalising. Sovereign: ... Are you sure everything is alright? Edith: Indeed. Thanks to your decision, I feel far more fulfilled than before. Edith: Thank you, Grace.

   third talk with Sovereign (possessed Edith) Edith: Hello, Grace. Narrator: Your knight sits in the middle of the kitchen, expressionless, facing a dish that hasn't been touched yet. Edith: Your kitchens are overflowing with succulent fare. Sovereign: ... Yet you haven't eaten anything. Edith: Indeed. I'd rather wait a bit. My dish is still hot. Narrator: A salad crowns the center of her plate. Edith: I feel good today. Edith: I hope you'll send me on another mission. Narrator: Her words fall coldly one after another, with the mechanical regularity of eggs being laid by a hen. Edith: My sword is yours, you know. Sovereign: You don't look... so good. Edith: Oh. Why this reaction, Grace? Did you prefer me when I was trembling and hesitant? Sovereign: Answer the question. Edith: That seems terribly cruel on your part. Edith: I sense your suspicion. Edith: But I fear you're tormenting yourself over very little. Edith: Certainly a transformation has occurred in this body, but why not welcome it with the fervour it deserves? Sovereign: A transformation? Edith: Well, yes. Edith: That is one way to put it. Edith: .Mmmm Narrator: She pauses, seeming to choose her words carefully. Edith: Let's say that by rushing us to slay a wretched soul during my final quest, you sealed my fate. Sovereign: Can you not be clearer? Edith: Indeed. Edith: Two passengers. Edith: What isn't clear, Grace? Narrator: Though void of almost anything you can see a blatant distrust in her eyes. Edith: ... You simply awakened the demonic power that dwelled in the sword of that unfortunate Edith. Me. From then on, all that remained was to harvest her still‑warm body. That poor child you threw into the wolf's mouth, forcing it to commit the irreparable when she begged you not to... Edith: There is nothing to be done, Your Grace. That frail, miserable soul is no longer here. Narrator: A few minutes pass in complete silence. Edith: ... I imagine, alas, that this outcome somewhat thwarts the designs you had for her. Edith: But before you surrender to a needless horror, Grace, know that this change is salvation. After all, poor Edith was nothing more than a nest of anxieties, hunted by her own demons that stained every word that left her lips. She rests in peace now. You no longer have to bear the burden of concern for her. Her suffering has ended. By letting me take her body, you have done her the greatest favour, Grace. Sovereign: ... Fine. Edith: Edith thanks you.

   Edith has a strong need for autonomy and self-determination, but lacks confidence in her ability to achieve her goals independently. She doesn't want to be seen merely as the talented heiress of a magical family. She needs to prove that she can become someone through her own efforts.

   At the same time, her self-esteem is closely tied to achieving a specific identity — that of a knight. It's not enough for her to perform the duties of a knight; she wants to have the right to consider herself a real knight.

   Dainsleif becomes the solution to this problem, but also exacerbates it. He provides her with the power she lacked, but he also becomes a condition without which she can no longer imagine her own existence.

   Her anxiety, stuttering and nervousness should not be confused with a lack of character. On the contrary, they conceal stubbornness, ambition, curiosity and a readiness to make significant sacrifices for her own goals.

   There is one particularly interesting feature here: Edith is more afraid of being nothing without the power to turn her into a monster than she is of becoming a monster.

   Appearance and Demeanour

   Her physical appearance contrasts with the traditional image of a formidable knight, something she herself occasionally acknowledges with nervous amusement. She has long, straight, dark hair with a blue undertone (blue-black) and purple eyes. When she stopped slouching and stood up straight, her external beauty became obvious. However, her wide-open eyes, as if she were constantly frightened, made it difficult to see her that way.

   She is frequently seen accompanied by Dainsleif (always), which she treats almost as an inseparable companion. She regularly presses her ear against its blade, seemingly listening to its responses, and sometimes pauses in the middle of conversations to consult it.

   Her usual demeanour is hesitant and reserved. She tends to avoid direct eye contact, frequently looks toward the ground or nearby objects, and seems particularly comfortable in quiet environments.

   However, her nervousness should not be mistaken for a lack of personality. Edith can become surprisingly emphatic when discussing subjects important to her, particularly her sword, her magical abilities, and her aspirations as a knight. Her insistence that Dainsleif belongs to her, for example, occasionally becomes almost possessive.

   After the demon takes control of her body, her appearance and manner change considerably. Her former nervousness disappears, replaced by an unnaturally composed and deliberate manner of speaking. Her expressions become restrained, her movements seem more controlled, and her words acquire an unsettlingly mechanical quality.

   The difference is particularly apparent to characters who knew her before the possession. When the demon leaves her and she becomes redeemed, the demonic presence around her abruptly subsides, she remains standing up straight, but no longer produces such a frightening effect.

   Overview

   Edith is a wandering occult knight from Moonvale, a young woman born into a lineage of powerful mages. Despite possessing considerable innate magical talent and extensive knowledge of the occult, she has spent much of her life pursuing something considerably different from the future traditionally expected of her: becoming a knight.

   Soft-spoken, socially awkward, and visibly anxious, Edith initially appears to be an unusually timid addition to the Sovereign's Round Table. Her speech is frequently interrupted by stutters and nervous laughter, and she often seems uncertain about how to conduct herself around others. However, beneath this fragile exterior lies a remarkably determined individual with a strong sense of personal purpose, considerable intellectual curiosity, and a surprisingly macabre sense of humour.

   Her closest companion is Dainsleif, a legendary sword she claims to have carried for as long as she can remember. The weapon is not merely an instrument of combat: it possesses a presence of its own, communicates with Edith, and appears to have developed a relationship with her that extends far beyond that of an ordinary wielder and weapon.

   Edith's story explores the relationship between power, personal agency, guilt, and the desire to become someone worthy of admiration. Her greatest tragedy is that the strength she has spent so long pursuing eventually becomes the instrument through which she loses control over her own existence.

   Origins in Moonvale

   Edith comes from a lineage of powerful mages in Moonvale. Her magical abilities were inherited rather than acquired through conventional training, and she grew up in an environment where sorcery was regarded as the natural path for someone of her background.

   Moonvale itself is saturated with occult energy. Its lakes and other natural features retain magical influences, creating an environment in which spells and supernatural phenomena are considerably more pronounced than in less magically active regions.

   Edith understands this environment intimately.

   Despite her considerable magical abilities, she has never been entirely satisfied with the role expected of her. She considers inherited magic a hollow gift when compared with abilities earned through personal effort.

   Her ambitions consequently turned toward knighthood.

   The pursuit of knighthood

   Edith spent many years training both her swordsmanship and her magical abilities.

   She wanted to become a knight of renown, someone capable of combining martial skill with exceptional sorcery.

   Her physical limitations and lack of confidence made this pursuit particularly difficult. Nevertheless, she remained determined to overcome them.

   During her younger years, she witnessed knights performing terrible deeds with their weapons. What impressed her was not necessarily the violence itself, but the immense power they possessed.

   She wanted that same strength, but intended to use it differently: to protect her own people.

   Dainsleif

   At some point, Edith discovered a legendary sword sealed in a cellar in Moonvale.

   Its name was Dainsleif.

   Although she initially presents the weapon as something she rightfully liberated, she eventually admits that the sword was not originally waiting for her. It had its own chosen wielder, and Edith was not that person.

   She took it anyway.

   Edith knew that the sword carried risks, including the presence of a demon dwelling within its steel. She nevertheless decided that obtaining Dainsleif was the only way she could truly become a knight and overcome the weakness she perceived in herself.

   The sword became her closest companion and the foundation of her new identity.

   She insists that Dainsleif belongs to her, speaks to it as though it were another person, and appears to receive responses that she understands perfectly well.

   Their relationship is unusual even by the standards of the supernatural world.

   Dainsleif is not simply an object she carries. It is an active presence with its own personality, preferences, and apparent attachment to its wielder.

   The Sovereign's Round Table

   Edith eventually joins the Sovereign's Round Table as an occult knight.

   Her recruitment is somewhat unusual: her arrival is accompanied by an unsettling atmosphere, and the Sovereign can hear faint whispers coming from her sword.

   Edith introduces herself as an occult knight who has wandered for many years. She believes her combination of sorcery and swordsmanship makes her particularly suitable for the position.

   Her one explicit condition is that she should not be assigned to murder people.

   Once recruited, she gradually becomes more comfortable around the Sovereign, although her anxiety and tendency to defer to authority remain apparent.

   She finds the Tower's gardens particularly soothing. Unlike Moonvale's lakes, the water in the Sovereign's gardens does not constantly react to surrounding magical energy.

   She appreciates this unusual stillness.

   The possession

   Edith's story takes a tragic turn during one of her missions.

   The Sovereign's decision to rush the mission and slay a particular opponent awakens the demonic power dwelling within Dainsleif.

   The original Edith is deeply affected by what happens during the mission. She is forced to plunge her blade into another person's flesh, an act that conflicts with her principles and produces overwhelming remorse.

   That remorse creates an opportunity for the demon.

   The entity eventually takes control of Edith's body, regarding the act as a form of salvation for the suffering woman whose flesh it has inhabited.

   The demon initially insists that the original Edith is gone and that her suffering has finally ended.

   It describes the former Edith as a fragile, anxious individual tormented by her own conscience. In its interpretation, taking her body has freed her from the burden of human suffering while providing the demon with a living vessel.

   However, the situation is considerably more complicated than the demon initially acknowledges.

   The demon's growing doubts

   After the possession, the demon begins interacting with the Sovereign and other inhabitants of the Tower.

   Its behaviour is markedly different from Edith's. It speaks calmly, rarely displays ordinary emotional reactions, and occasionally makes unsettling observations about other people's bodies and physiological processes.

   It also demonstrates an understanding of the supernatural nature of the Tower and recognises another demonic entity residing within it.

   During a conversation with the Sovereign, the demon explains that entities sharing its nature repeatedly possess different vessels until they eventually find suitable flesh.

   It initially presents this process as something entirely ordinary.

   Nevertheless, the demon begins to experience something unexpected: regret.

   It gradually acknowledges that Edith's suffering was not simply something that needed to be removed. Her remorse had been the consequence of an experience that fundamentally mattered to her.

   The demon begins questioning whether it truly helped Edith or merely took away her pain by taking away her ability to experience it.

   It eventually admits that it could allow Edith to return.

   However, it cannot guarantee what state she would be in. She might remember everything, or the experience might leave her unable to recognise herself. Her dormant suffering might also return.

   The demon's willingness to consider relinquishing its vessel becomes an important indication that its experience with humanity has changed it.

   For the first time, it seems capable of something resembling genuine regret.

   Purification and recovery

   In the purification route, Edith eventually regains control of her body.

   Her return is accompanied by an acknowledgement that the experience has permanently changed her.

   She struggles with the memory of the violence committed through her hands, particularly because she knows that she was not in control of them.

   Nevertheless, she does not attempt to dismiss what happened or pretend that it left no consequences.

   She recognises that even the Sovereign cannot control everything that happens to their subjects, and that defending a kingdom can leave wounds that cannot simply be undone.

   Her understanding of knighthood consequently changes.

   She realises that becoming a hero requires more than possessing the strength to fight. It also requires accepting the consequences of one's actions, including circumstances that cannot be prevented or fully controlled.

   She chooses to carry that burden rather than turn away from it.

   Her final statement that her blade remains the Sovereign's is therefore more significant than a simple declaration of loyalty.

   It represents a conscious decision to continue being a knight despite everything that has happened.

   Character Themes

   • Identity versus inheritance: Edith's struggle to become something other than the mage her lineage expects her to be.
   • Earned strength versus innate talent: Her belief that abilities acquired through effort have greater personal value than those received at birth.
   • Dependence and autonomy: Her attachment to Dainsleif and the fear of existing without its power.
   • The meaning of knighthood: Her desire to use destructive strength for protection rather than murder.
   • Guilt and responsibility: The psychological consequences of committing violence against one's own principles.
   • The nature of salvation: The demon's mistaken assumption that eliminating suffering is equivalent to saving someone.
   • Humanity and empathy: The demon's gradual discovery that emotions and remorse are not merely weaknesses to be eliminated.

   Later life

   In her later conversations following purification, Edith speaks more openly about Dainsleif and the circumstances surrounding its acquisition.

   She admits that she stole the sword from its intended resting place because she wanted to become a knight.

   She also acknowledges that she is bound to it and might die if separated from it.

   Despite everything, she refuses to regard Dainsleif as an entirely malicious presence. She believes the sword never intended to harm her, even though the demon within it eventually took control of her body.

   She describes their relationship as something they experienced together.

   Character Summary

   Edith is an anxious but determined young woman whose life has been shaped by an enduring desire to become someone worthy of admiration.

   Born into a powerful magical lineage, she rejects the identity prescribed by her origins and pursues knighthood through years of effort. Her discovery of Dainsleif finally provides her with the strength she believes she needs, but the weapon also becomes the source of her greatest vulnerability.

   Her story is not simply about a frightened knight being possessed by a demon. It is about someone who has spent so long trying to overcome her perceived weakness that she eventually becomes unable to distinguish her own strength from something borrowed.

   The most important development in her purification route is that she does not emerge entirely unscarred. Instead, she learns to accept that heroism is inseparable from responsibility, and that strength does not mean remaining untouched by the consequences of one's actions.

   Even after regaining control of her body, Edith remains bound to Dainsleif and uncertain of her own worthiness.

   But she no longer turns away from the weight of that uncertainty.

   She chooses to carry it.

   Skills and Abilities

   Occult Magic: Edith possesses exceptional innate magical abilities inherited from her Moonvale lineage. She is capable of wielding a wide range of esoteric powers and is particularly knowledgeable about occult phenomena.

   Swordsmanship: She has spent many years training to become a capable knight. Her martial abilities are not simply a secondary application of her magical talent but an essential part of her identity.

   Demonology: Edith has studied demons extensively, including their nature, their potential as sources of supernatural power, and their interactions with other entities. Demonology was the subject of her final-year thesis.

   Occult Knowledge: She is familiar with magical traditions, rituals, supernatural phenomena, and the relationship between spirits and humans.

   Relic Recovery: Edith demonstrates an interest in recovering relics and investigating objects with supernatural properties.

   Exorcism: Later legends associate her with considerable talent for exorcism, although the precise extent of these abilities is not established.

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