The Devil's Cursed Witch novel Chapter 282

Morpheus and Aureus landed at the peak of one of the highest mountains in the southern mountain ranges surrounding the kingdom. It was so high that the air was cold and thin, its slope so steep a normal human would probably take a week of climbing to reach the top of the mountain.

'But it's beautiful…'

Aureus let his golden eyes roam the vicinity. The mountain had nothing but rocks and boulders, but it was tranquil and secluded, the kind of place he and his mother both liked.

When he was a child, he remembered that he and his mother would travel from place to place, thus they had no permanent residence, but they would often build their homes on places like this—particularly on caves at the top of the mountain surrounded by a sea of clouds. They loved to spend time in such high places where they had freedom to use their powers without the humans living on the flatlands noticing their existence. Away from the world, such peaceful days those were.

"Is there a cave here?" Aureus asked, a sad smile lingering on his face.

Morpheus didn't feel surprised at what Aureus asked. "There is. Do you want to see it?"

Aureus nodded. "Do you also enjoy being at places like this…? Umm, Mister…? I don't know what to call you."

Draven didn't tell him his uncle's name and he didn't know if this man would feel comfortable to be addressed as 'uncle' without his permission. Though Aureus wouldn't normally have bothered, this was his first time meeting family, and he felt oddly nervous.

"My name is Morpheus. I am your mother's older brother so you should call me 'uncle'. I won't mind if you call me by my name as well."

"Hmm…t-then, Morpheus," Aureus said.

Though a part of him wanted to call him 'Uncle', a part of him also resisted. He was not sure about calling him an uncle yet. Morpheus was still a stranger to him and calling him an uncle felt too intimate. It was strange. They weren't close to each other, but he wanted to at least be comfortable with him.

Seeing the brief shadow of disappointment on Morpheus' face, which disappeared as soon as it came, Aureus felt guilt about his choice. He wanted to smack himself in the head for being so indecisive. Still, it would probably take time for him to accept this man as family.

Morpheus didn't mind that his nephew chose to call him by name. He offered Aureus his usual lopsided smile which reminded the young eagle of his mother. Morpheus could understand him as it was not easy to accept the new relationship that appeared in his life so suddenly. Even he himself unknowingly relaxed his tensed shoulders; he also needed time to accept the existence of Aureus. It saved him from feeling awkward to have someone yelling 'Uncle!' all of a sudden.

"We can be friends first. Morpheus is a bit stiff and formal, don't you think? You can shorten it to Morph. People close to me mostly call me like that," Morpheus said. "Very few of them are left now though."

Aureus didn't know what to say about it, but then conceded on this. "Alright, Morph…"

"Come to this side. I will show you something that belongs to Myra."

Hearing another person saying his mother's name for the first time in a long time, and that too with so much affection, Areus had complex emotions in his chest. However, the most dominant one was excitement. After so many years, he was going to see something that belonged to his mother.

Aureus followed Morpheus as they followed an uneven trail leading towards the side of a cliff, where one could see a large hole enough to fit about three adults walking side by side.

"Hmm? What's wrong?" the gray eagle could not help but ask as Aureus stopped at the entrance of the cave.

"It's nothing." Aureus could not help but look around, as it reminded him of the cave he had near the capital of Megaris.

Morpheus didn't inquire further and merely said, "This place belongs to Myra. It was like her second home."

"I see. My mother probably missed this place a lot," Aureus said. Seeing his uncle's curious gaze, he explained, "When I was young, we used to wander around and she always chose places similar to this for both of us to stay. I thought she only liked high places. Now that I've seen this cave, this must be her real intention—she purposely chose those that reminded her of home."

Morpheus opened his mouth, wanting to ask him about the things the mother-and-son pair experienced, but then thought to give Aureus some more time to feel more comfortable with him. He wanted the young eagle to share his story to him without any hesitation.

"Seems like she was still the same as I remember," Morpheus said as he walked deeper into the cave with Aureus silently following behind him.

As they reached the end of the tunnel, Aureus observed the cozy interiors—the shelves filled with trinkets, the cave art on the walls, the haystack placed on one side as a bed— and just as expected, the arrangements were a replica of how his former homes looked like.

'Everything looks old but well-kept. I can imagine how Mother would have lived here in the past.'

Each and every single thing inside was something that had her essence in it. Aside from one thing.

"What happened here?" Aureus asked.