In the end, Ariana still hadn't found Little Bear.
"My bear, my little bear."
Ariana kept murmuring to herself.
John was curious too. Where had Little Bear gone?
His sister never went anywhere without Little Bear, even taking it to bed with her.
That little bear was Ariana's favorite stuffed toy.
It was also an attentive little butler.
It had come to life under the influence of Ariana's magic power.
But now, even Ariana didn't know where Little Bear was.
On the way back, Ariana also explained why she had appeared in Westview.
"It felt like something was calling me," Ariana said uncertainly.
Calling her?
John frowned.
"Something burning hot, something changing," Ariana said, thinking hard.
That description left John even more puzzled.
Still, the burning heat did bring something to mind.
Ariana's bloodline was connected to a kind of fantastic beast in the Wizarding World.
That beast was the phoenix, also known as the immortal bird.
One of a phoenix's defining traits was its burning heat.
"Could there have been a phoenix there?"
John thought it over. He hadn't seen any signs of a phoenix. Or had it already left?
Ariana had followed the call, only to fall into Agnes's trap and be forced into becoming a sacrifice to a Hell Lord.
Fortunately, Ariana wore a bracelet everywhere she went. It was a powerful alchemical artifact that could enhance her mental faculties.
Even for a Hell Lord, entering Ariana's body and taking complete control wouldn't be easy.
"We have human greed to thank for this."
After hearing the whole story, John realized just how dangerous it had been. If Agnes hadn't greedily coveted Ariana's Magic Book, he would never have had the chance to find her.
Agnes had wanted to use someone close to Ariana to break the Magic