Mage of Phantomhive

Prologue: Welcome to a Villains' World, Act 2

Story Guide:
"Hello" - Talking
'Hello' - Thinking, might mix with Memory dialogue
"Hello" - Memory dialogue
"Hello" - Whispering
▶: "Hello" - Author speaking
[Name]: "Hello" - Character speaking
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-Ramshackle Dorm, Entrance-

Arriving at the abandoned dorm, Ciel and Sebastian's eyes twitched at the sight of the wrecked building and both slowly turned their heads at the headmage with a scowl on their faces, fighting the urge to lunge at the man and bury him somewhere nearby. [▶: "If you know the scene from Helluva Boss where Crimson found out about Chaz being broke. Yeah..."]

A dorm? More like ruins. Sebastian seeing the mess that he'll be fixing nearly made him want to burn it down to the ground and provide a blank slate for him to work on, which would've been the better option. However, he didn't want to be responsible for property damage "This dump?", Ciel questions, his tone clearly disappointed at the headmage.

Crowley sensing the rising tension tried to lighten the situation "Isn't it delightful? Right, scoot inside now. There you go", he comments as he tried to avoid the two gentlemen's stern gazes by shoving them inside the building. If the outside was in bad shape already, how bad could the inside be?

-Ramshackle Dorm, Lounge-

Worse. The inside was way worse, to the point that Ciel and Sebastian could make a snowman out of the dust that accumulated from the years of being left unattended, even Sebastian can tell that it was a safety hazard for humans. "This should keep the elements at bay for the time being. Now, I should return to my research, do try to find some way to busy yourself. Don't let me catch you wandering the campus! Bye!", Crowley says as he quickly dashes out the door and leaves the duo dumbfounded.

Once Crowley left, the weather started to look grim. They later hear the heavy rain pour hitting the building's structure and causing a few leaks, yet the property was still standing. Ciel looked around and back at Sebastian, he must've felt them too. They're not alone, they can sense 3 other presences nearby, which they could deal with later. The building reminds him of his previous manor in London, Sebastian thought of the same and got a general idea of what he plans to do. Ciel gave his butler a knowing glance and with a quick bow, Sebastian vanished and started to work.

-Ramshackle Dorm, Entrance-

Meanwhile, Ciel stepped out of the building to let Sebastian do his work and headed to the front yard, or what was left of it. Eyeing the many withering dead trees and beginning to stroll down the overgrown path under the heavy rain, as he did so, he ponders what his capabilities as a demon may be. Even when the years went by in that field, never once did he give his capabilities a chance of acknowledgment.

He stops in his tracks when he caught sight of a dead tree that stood tall amongst the others and had cobwebs growing on its branches. Sensing a faint soul residing inside, he decided to put his abilities to the test. Placing his hand on the tree, an unknown blue energy enveloped it as Ciel felt its life force slowly returning. Stepping aside, he saw the tree start to move its branches and later began to notice a few movements on its trunk, seeing the tree alive made the "dorm" a little bit better.

Feeling satisfied with his little work, he stepped closer to inspect it. The tree somehow recognized the person who revived it and understood what he was trying to do, offering a branch for him to use as support and cover from the pouring rain. Ciel accepted the gesture and held onto the branch as he was lifted off from the ground "Such a peculiar thing...", Ciel mutters as he looked at the markings that were engraved on the branches, the tree let Ciel do as he pleases and played with his hair a little.

"Do you have a name? It would be rude of me to not address you properly since you have resided here much longer than me and Sebastian", Ciel queries in curiosity. Even as a demon, some things can still pique his interest as long as it doesn't bore him, just like any child would act. Sometimes he wonders to himself if he has truly lost his humanity since there were times when things such as "feelings" still kept him at bay.