Backlund, Hilston District.
"Xio, drink some."
Fors brought a test tube filled with sun holy water to her companion's lips.
Compared to before, she looked haggard, her brown curls having lost their luster, her cheeks slightly sunken, and dark circles very prominent under her eyes.
"Mm."
Xio lay on the bed, her face pale, with a cursed black energy lingering deep within her flesh and blood.
The wound on her shoulder was directly exposed to the air, with twisted granulation tissue growing abnormally, constantly exuding a blasphemous and crazed aura.
"Just pour, pour it..."
Her forehead was burning with fever as she spoke in unclear words to Fors.
"Pour the holy water directly on the wound?"
Fors immediately understood her companion's meaning and said worriedly, "But that will hurt you too much."
"That way... works better."
Xio murmured.
Fors hesitated for a moment. "Then hold on tight."
She moved the test tube to the wound, bit her lip, and poured all of the pale golden sacred liquid onto it.
"Sssss..."
"Ahhh!"
The sun holy water's effect was extremely intense. Accompanied by a burning sound, white smoke rose up.
The twisted, deformed granulation tissue immediately retracted, as if encountering a feared natural enemy.
The originally ferocious wound instantly looked much better.
But the intense stimulus also caused Xio tremendous pain. She screamed, her body convulsing violently.
"Hold on!"
Fors pressed her body on top of Xio's to prevent her from falling off the bed from thrashing around.
She could clearly feel Xio's pain but could only offer futile comfort in a trembling voice.
"It'll be over soon, very soon..."
Xio struggled for a while, then, as if exhausted of all strength, stopped moving and fell into a deep sleep.
Fors slowly got up, her hair disheveled, her eyes a bit moist.
"I should have stopped you then... Miss Audrey already said the target was extremely dangerous."
She spoke in a low voice to the unconscious Xio.
Several days had passed since the two of them encountered Lanevus.
During these days, Fors first brought Xio back home, then quickly contacted Audrey to report the situation.
Because Audrey was still grounded and couldn't go out, she had that golden retriever "Susie" deliver a note instead.
The note read, "I'm very sorry that you were put in danger. I will work hard to save people.
Also, absolutely do not seek help from Mr. A, because he and Lanevus are working together."
The handwriting on the note was somewhat hasty, not matching Miss Audrey's usual elegant temperament.
It was obvious she was also somewhat anxious.
Mr. A was the host of a Beyonder gathering in Backlund, a powerful figure who had even been hired by them to assassinate a national ambassador.
But Lanevus carried the aura of the True Creator, very likely connected to the Aurora Order.
Based on her trust in Audrey, Fors didn't go to Mr. A for help.
Instead, she searched everywhere at other Beyonder gatherings she knew of, looking for a cure.
As time passed and Xio's condition grew worse and worse with no news from Audrey's side, she couldn't help but grow increasingly anxious.
What should I do?
Could Xio really be killed by the curse?
She irritably scratched at her hair, unable to sit still. Her own situation was already bad enough, and now, even Xio had encountered danger. Fate didn't seem to favor the two of them.
Steam God, please give me some hope...
She prayed in a low voice.
The sky gradually darkened. Fors, who hadn't eaten all day, had no appetite at all.
She just stared blankly out the window, watching the crimson moonlight pass through the curtains and spill onto the floor.
She suddenly realized something.
Oh no, today seems to be a full moon...
At the same time, she noticed that the crimson light was rapidly deepening, becoming incomparably red.
Not just a full moon, even the red moon had descended!
"Ahhh!"
Fors clutched her head and let out a short scream.
The terrible murmurs arrived right on schedule.
Not only that, under the red moon, that voice became unusually clear, unusually loud!
"Stop, stop!"
She rolled onto the floor, rolling back and forth, frantically hitting her head.
The unconscious Xio kept her eyes tightly closed, completely unaware that her companion was suffering unimaginable pain.
"Rip!"
Fors tore out a large clump of bloody brown curls, trying to divert the pain by harming herself, but obviously it didn't work.
Damn it, the red moon's influence is even more obvious!
Fors thought painfully. The murmurs filled her mind, as if they would make her head explode.
"Great... Steam and... Machinery God..."
"You are... the embodiment... of essence..."
She futilely recited the honorific name of the deity she believed in, trying to get them to save her.
But even though she recited it over and over, there was no effect. Only the blood-red moon shone upon her.
"Ahhh! Ahh!"
The pain grew more intense.
Fors screamed in short bursts, her fingernails and hair growing wildly, her spirituality gradually going mad, her body severely tilting toward the edge of losing control.
Her struggles knocked into the desk beside her, and the books originally stacked on it immediately scattered all over the floor.
Xio is still injured, and I'm going to die too...
She thought sadly, looking at Xio lying on the bed, sleeping deeply.
No, I don't want to end like this!
I can't die, Xio still needs me!
Fors struggled with all her might. At that moment, she suddenly noticed a note in front of her, covered with Roselle's mysterious script and ancient Hermes.
It was that peculiar note Xio had discovered, with the honorific name of a mysterious existence written on it...
Even if it's an evil god, as long as it can save me!
Fors, grasping at this last straw, crawled toward the note and began to recite the words on it in ancient Hermes in a low voice:
"The Fool who doesn't belong to this era..."
"The mysterious ruler above the gray fog..."
"The King of Yellow and Black who wields good luck..."
"Please save me, save me!"
---
"Huh?"
Klein, who had just said goodbye to Silas and returned home, still wearing his worker's uniform, suddenly heard layers upon layers of illusory prayers in his ears.
A few minutes later.
"Thank you very much, Mr. Fool."
Fors expressed her immense gratitude to that lofty figure.
Not only had he rescued her from the murmurs, but he had also answered some of her questions and invited her to join the Tarot Club, giving her the code name "The Magician."
"This was merely a small effort."
Klein maintained The Fool's mystique and nodded slightly.
He hadn't expected to meet the Fors that Justice had mentioned in this way.
From her condition, she might have been affected by that "Mr. Door" mentioned in Roselle's diary.
At this moment, he noticed that Fors's expression seemed somewhat hesitant, as if she had something else to say.
"What is it? Is there something else?"
He asked in as gentle a tone as possible.
"Respected Mr. Fool, actually, I have a friend who has been cursed by an evil god's spawn. May I ask if you have a way to resolve this?"
Fors asked somewhat embarrassed yet hopefully.
Klein froze, then almost laughed out loud.
What a coincidence. I was just thinking about how to pass the message to Miss Justice, and now this is perfect. One less middleman needed.