Erin went home after hanging out with Issei. It was pretty late when she returned so by the moment she stepped inside the house, she was interrogated.
" Erin, where have you been?" Her mother asked.
" Just spent some time with a new friend."
" And who is this new friend?" asked Sebastian in a calm tone though Erin knew what he really meant.
" A new friend. Classmate. He seems pretty chill." By the mention of he, Sebastian's protective mode was activated and Erin distracted him by grabbing the flyer from her bag.
" I got this from a devil familiar earlier. Is this their way of getting clients?"
Sebastian and her mother observed the flyer and the Goddess' brother was first to react.
" I can definitely feel some magic radiating from this one. Wow. Never thought that this would be their way of attracting clients. This would easily get thrown away by unsuspicious people."
" Yeah. And what's weird is that the devil familiar's master specifically instructed her to give the flyer to my friend."
" Why's that?"
" I don't know. Maybe they want him to join their peerage? That's the only reason I can think of." came the reply of Erin to Sebastian.
" Want to try this out?"
" Try what?"
" Summoning a devil." Erin gave Sebastian an incredulous look while her brother only maintained his poised look.
" You know, I can't really distinguish whether you are joking or actually being serious." said Erin and pointed out Sebastian's poker face. "I don't even know if you know how to make jokes."
" Can you sense any sort of power coming from your friend?" Archaea's voice interrupted them and they looked at her.
" Not really. He seems pretty normal."
" Hmm..."
" Are you thinking what I'm possibly thinking, mother?"
" What are you guys even thinking?" Erin asked in confusion to the two
" Your friend could possibly be a wielder of Sacred Gears."
" Those gears created by God and bestowed upon humans?"
" Correct." Archaea said and continued. " If you can't sense its presence then its possible that the Sacred Gear hasn't manifested yet on the user. Or it hasn't reached a stage where its presence could at least be detected by someone who has high detection skills."
" But then again, you haven't trained to the point where you can sense Sacred Gears, Erin. So maybe it's possible that your friend indeed has a Sacred Gear and you just can't detect it yet."
"You're right.. But if the Devil of that household targeted Issei to receive the flyer, then that only confirms that he indeed has a Sacred Gear."
"Is he aware that he has one?"
" I doubt it."
" Your friend has to be careful, Erin." Archaea said in a serious tone which caught their attention. " I received some rumors from the clients I had that there are shady personas hunting down Sacred Gear Users. If your friend indeed has a Gear, then his life is in danger."
" Who are these people? Are they devils?"
" Hmm. Beats me. They can be any supernatural beings aside from the devils."
" What about the symptoms, mother?" Asked Erin to the woman. " Do the Sacred Gear users experience any significant phenomena that may hint that they have one?"
" I'm not sure about that. Every Gear is unique so depending on the user's perceptiveness, the gear might manifest without them even knowing."
" That only adds to the mystery." Sebastian remarked. " What about you, Erin?"
" Huh?"
" Do you get the feeling that you have a Sacred Gear?"
" I doubt it." Erin trailed off. " I mean, it says that Sacred Gears can only be bestowed upon humans and I don't even know if I fit that description."
" Why do you say it like you're some sort of monster or hideous being?" Sebastian said which caused Erin to roll her eyes.
" There's a possibility, you know? You need to make sure because dangers might be lurking around the corner and you might be a possible target." Sebastian said in a serious tone to which Archaea nodded.
"That's right. Be wary of any unusual things you might experience."
Erin accepted their advice and resigned to her room afterwards.
The Goddess didn't bother eating dinner and just went directly to sleep.
In her dreams, she was traversing around an empty space covered by an immense darkness. Amidst the space, Erin can hear a distant voice who seems to gradually get stronger.
" C....E.... M.. Ch..D.."
" Huh? Where is that coming from?"
" C....E.... F..O...T..h..."
" I can't understand what it is saying."
" C.... E..!"
"Where is this voice.. " Said Erin as she frantically search for the source of the sound.
" It... i.. Ti...e."
Erin looked around and she can feel a flash of power approaching her and the words became clearer.
" It is time to awaken.."
And suddenly, Erin was blown away by an irresistible force causing her to snap back to reality. Erin woke up from her sleep and clutched her chest with a heavy breathing. The darkness of her room highlighted a bluish gem; shining on the lone choker situated on the Goddess' neck.
- End of Chapter -