The only decision left at that moment was Silas’s.

Trafalgar had no real problem with that. If the boy accepted, things would move easily enough. If he refused, the situation would become much harder, because leaving him here was no longer something Trafalgar could allow. Silas was not a normal child, and pretending otherwise would only make the danger grow quietly until it became impossible to hide.

He had seen what the Gluttony Dragon was capable of.

He also knew Caelvyrn.

That old dragon’s strength was not normal even by the standards Trafalgar had already seen. There was a reason people called him the Wise Dragon, and if anyone could understand what Silas carried in his blood, it would probably be him.

’I could ask Caelvyrn to keep an eye on him,’ Trafalgar thought. ’I doubt he would do anything to the kid.’

Sister Alena turned toward Silas.

Her black horns caught the light from the hallway as she lowered herself slightly, her voice softer than the one she had used with Trafalgar and Arthur.

"Silas, dear. Do you want to leave with Arthur?"

Silas did not seem as hesitant as Trafalgar expected.

He looked at Arthur first, then at Trafalgar, and hugged the blanket closer around his shoulders.

"Yes," he said. "I want to go with Arthur and big brother Trafalgar."

Alena stayed quiet after that.

Her attention remained on the boy, but Trafalgar could tell she was deciding something inside her head. Having someone adopted from the orphanage was supposed to be a happy thing. A child finding a home was not a tragedy. And after what Trafalgar had told her, it also made sense that Silas should leave.

He had not found his place here.

The other children were not cruel to him, but he was still standing apart from them, as if the orphanage had given him shelter without yet becoming somewhere he could rest properly. If they told him he could come back to play, he probably would. But trust had not grown deep enough to hold him here.

Alena finally spoke.

"Very well," she said. "Then we can begin the paperwork."

Sister Lunea looked visibly surprised.

She did not argue. She only glanced at Alena, saw the quiet seriousness on her face, and understood that something had happened beyond what she had been told. Her hands tightened lightly over the cloth she was holding, but she did not ask. The tone in Alena’s voice made it clear that some questions were better left for another time, if they were ever asked at all.

Alena turned to Arthur.

"Please follow me, Mister Arthur. Sister Lunea will stay with Silas."

Trafalgar looked at her. "Do you need me there for anything?"

Alena inclined her head politely. "No, Lord Trafalgar. Thank you. This part concerns Mister Arthur as the future guardian."

Arthur gave Trafalgar a small nod before following Alena down the hallway.

That left Trafalgar with Silas and Sister Lunea.

Silas looked up at him almost immediately.

"Are we going home now, big brother?"

Trafalgar crouched just enough to meet him more comfortably.

"Yes," he said. "When everything is ready, we’ll go home."

Sister Lunea smiled at Silas with the same warm, maternal patience she always carried. She lowered herself beside him and fixed the blanket around his shoulders with gentle hands.

"We will miss you," she said. "But you can come back whenever you want to play. Euclid has a Gate that connects the two places, so it will not be difficult."

Silas turned toward Trafalgar at once.

"Is that true, big brother?"

"Yes," Trafalgar said. "You can visit when you want."

That seemed to matter more to Silas than the mansion, the new room, or anything else Arthur had promised. He nodded, and after a moment, Lunea guided him toward the courtyard so he could tell the other children.

Trafalgar watched him go.

A small part of him wondered what the boy understood and what he did not. Silas was young, but there was something in him that made his thoughts heavier than they should have been. Maybe it was the dragon blood. Maybe it was the things his father had forced him to see.

Either way, the child walked toward the courtyard with uncertain steps, and Trafalgar found himself thinking that Euclid had better be ready for him.

Cynthia appeared behind him a little later.

"Trafalgar," she said. "Can we talk?"

He turned toward her. "Yeah. Go ahead."

Her eyes shifted briefly toward Sister Lunea, who was still nearby.

"Somewhere more private?"

Trafalgar understood at once and nodded.

They moved down one of the side corridors, away from the children and the sound of tools being carried near the renovated hall. Cynthia stopped near a small alcove where the wall opened toward a narrow window.

Trafalgar leaned lightly against the stone. "What is it?"

Cynthia took a breath before answering.

"Thank you for what you did. I mean that." She hesitated, then continued more carefully. "But can I ask why Silas? What is happening with him? When you saw him earlier, something changed."

Trafalgar watched her for a while.

He could tell her part of it. Maybe enough to satisfy her curiosity. Maybe enough to earn more of her trust. But this was not only his secret. It was Silas’s life, and Alena already knew more than most people should.

For now, dragging Cynthia and Barth into the truth would only make things more dangerous.

"I don’t think I can reveal anything yet, Cynthia," he said. "Not to you, and not to your brother."

Her expression shifted.

Disappointment. She tried to hide it, but not fast enough.

Trafalgar continued before that silence could harden between them.

"What I can tell you is this. If Silas stayed here, the children would be in danger. So would Alena, Lunea, and Silas himself."

Cynthia’s fingers curled slightly at her side.

She did not like that answer. Trafalgar could tell. It was not enough, and it asked her to trust a decision she did not fully understand. But she also knew him well enough by now to understand that Trafalgar rarely acted without a reason.

He was quick sometimes.

Harsh, often.

But not careless.

"I see," Cynthia said at last. Her voice had less force than usual. "Thank you for telling me that much, at least."

Trafalgar gave a small nod. "If you don’t trust it, you can come to Euclid."

That caught her off guard.

"What?"

"I’m going with Arthur to help Silas settle into my mansion," Trafalgar said. "You can come and see the place yourself."

Cynthia blinked once.

"Mansion?"

Trafalgar looked at her as if the question itself had confused him.

"Yes? I’m a Morgain, and Euclid is the territory I manage."

Color rose faintly to Cynthia’s face.

For a moment, she looked genuinely embarrassed, as if the fact had slipped from her mind because Trafalgar rarely behaved like the kind of noble people imagined when they heard the name Morgain.

She cleared her throat.

"I would like to see it," she said. "I’ll ask Barth if he wants to come too."

A short while later, Alena and Arthur returned.

Arthur carried himself with the same steady restraint as before, while Alena held a small folder against her chest. Lunea was called over soon after, not with surprise this time, but with the careful expression of someone who understood that the decision had already been weighed where it mattered.

The arrangement was simple.

Not a full adoption yet.

That would take more time, more papers, more visits. But for now, Silas would leave under Arthur’s temporary care. Arthur would be the one signing. Arthur would be the one responsible. His home, his name, his promise.

Trafalgar would remain outside the ink.

That was the entire point.

Alena placed the papers on the table and looked at Arthur.

"These documents place Silas under your temporary care, Mister Arthur. You will be expected to provide reports, allow visits if we request them, and keep the orphanage informed of his condition."

Arthur nodded. "That is acceptable."

"If at any point we believe Silas is not being cared for properly, the arrangement will end."

"Understood."

Arthur took the pen.

He signed with a steady hand. Only putting his name.

Alena watched the ink dry before taking the page back and signing beneath it. Lunea followed as witness.

"Then, from this moment onward," Alena said, her voice quieter now, "Silas will be under your temporary care, Mister Arthur."

Arthur inclined his head. "I will make sure he is safe."

Lunea crouched in front of Silas and brushed his hair gently away from his forehead.

"Behave well, alright? Eat properly. Sleep properly. And come visit us."

Silas nodded. "I will."

Barth arrived just in time, slightly breathless, probably because Cynthia had dragged him into the situation before he fully understood what was happening.

"So he’s going to Euclid?" Barth asked.

"Yes," Cynthia said.

Barth looked at Silas and gave him an awkward but sincere smile. "That is good. I mean, if Trafalgar is involved, I’m sure the place will be safe."

Cynthia glanced at him. "Do you want to come with us and see it?"

Barth hesitated, adjusting his glasses with two fingers.

"I would like to, but I can’t today. I promised Professor Rhaldrin I would help him with something related to the history classes he is preparing." His voice grew a little quicker, as it always did when history entered the conversation. "It should not take too long, but if I miss it, I doubt he will let me near the archive notes again."

Trafalgar raised a brow. "You say that like he’s holding you hostage."

Barth blinked. "No, no, Professor Rhaldrin is actually very kind. Strict, yes, but kind. And history is very important." Barth gave Silas another small smile. "I’ll visit another time, alright? You can tell me what Euclid is like."

Silas nodded. "Okay."

That small answer eased something in the room more than the documents ever could.