Ch'en looked at Talulah in the photo, intending to keep her sister's black history as a memento. If possible, she even planned to use this photo as her phone wallpaper.
"It's possible, I suppose, but you must ensure it remains confidential! If your sister finds out I secretly took a photo like this, she won't let me off easily."
Jeanne could imagine what kind of reaction that dragon would have upon seeing this photo. In any case, Talulah wouldn't let her off easily when that time came; she might be greeted by a bombardment of all the higher mathematics exercise problems on Terra.
"I am actually curious how you found out there was a connection between me and Talulah. I don't remember mentioning Talulah in Lungmen, do I?"
Jeanne was not yet clear where they obtained their intelligence, which almost sparked a fight due to its fragmented nature. As for the Black Cloak that Talulah mentioned in Chernobog, since no trace of him was found afterward, even Jeanne had forgotten about it.
"The information I know was discovered by Wei Yenwu's subordinates while they were scouting for information in Chernobog. She has already left that city, right? Then where did she go?"
Ch'en was still uneasy, putting down the camera to ask about Talulah's whereabouts. She had investigated—that fellow never inherited Kashchey's legacy; where had she been all these years? Ch'en had made countless guesses about where Talulah had gone. She had even thought about whether Talulah would return to Victoria; after all, given her status, returning there was not impossible. But she had asked classmates to inquire for a long time without hearing any news about the descendant of the Draco. In the end, she could only wait and believe the other party would return here one day.
"Her? She ran off to the Snowfields. You should have heard of the Ursus Snowfields, right? I reckon your people couldn't find her because you absolutely cannot penetrate deep into that place."
Hearing "Black Cloak," Jeanne also remembered having heard Talulah mention it once before, but they hadn't cared much at the time. As a result, too many things happened later, and she forgot about it. Thinking of this, Jeanne was also fortunate that she usually maintained the black state rather than the white mode. If others discovered she could change colors, then once her identity as a Saintess was exposed, her cover for moving freely would be blown. It seemed she would have to be more careful and pay more attention to her surroundings when going out in the future.
"The Snowfields... I have heard others mention that place. I heard it is an area with a very difficult living environment. What is she doing going there?"
Hearing Jeanne mention the Snowfields, Ch'en's heart skipped a beat, and she hurriedly asked Jeanne in a somewhat nervous tone. It wasn't that she didn't understand the situation in Ursus; she knew that in the Snowfields, basically nothing could grow, and the only outsiders were the Infected sent there from various places.
"She voluntarily became Infected, then went to live on the Snowfields for a while; that's when we met. Right now, she is in the Snowfields leading the Infected to fight against the tyranny of Ursus, and she is quite accomplished now."
Upon hearing Jeanne say Talulah voluntarily became Infected, Ch'en's eyes dimmed, and she subconsciously touched her lower back. Ch'en didn't expect Talulah to have voluntarily become Infected; what must her state of mind have been when she used Originium to stab herself? Would she have resentment toward her at that time? Ch'en could not imagine what kind of situation could make a person voluntarily become Infected; how desperate must she have been?
She picked up the camera again to carefully inspect Talulah in the photo, but could not see any signs of Originium crystals on her, which meant her condition was not severe.
Here, Jeanne began telling Ch'en about her life with Talulah over the years, from when they met until coming to Lungmen this time, though Jeanne had to censor many things to a certain extent.
"Don't worry about the issue of Oripathy. Although that fellow contracted Oripathy, her condition is being suppressed very successfully! That fellow has lived with me for several years, and her illness has never flared up."
Looking at Ch'en worrying for her sister, Jeanne explained Talulah's situation to her. Thanks to Jeanne raising her, Talulah was now much healthier than the average normal person.
However, Jeanne did not expect that at this time, Ch'en had already contracted Oripathy and had discovered she was sick. But considering how hard she worked in the L.G.D. all these years, and her opponents could not all be fair players, contracting Oripathy did not seem so strange. Just like her former superior, there should not be a small number of people working in the L.G.D. who contract Oripathy. It was just that they did not have Ch'en's family background, and no one was willing to help them cover it up.
From her situation, it could be seen that Wei Yenwu had put quite a bit of effort into helping her stabilize and hide her Oripathy. Moreover, she was not very skilled at using Originium Arts in the first place, so she rarely came into direct contact with Originium products, which was why she was able to hide it for so long. It had to be said that both sisters contracted Oripathy for their own reasons; one could only say that fate is fickle.
However, Ch'en did not say anything, still worrying about her sister's situation. As for what Jeanne said just now, she took those words as mere comfort. She naturally knew what kind of environment the Snowfields were—a place surrounded by strong enemies on all sides, with extremely scarce resources for survival. How could Talulah possibly use her Originium Arts less? As for Talulah's situation, Ch'en was already thanking the heavens that there were no overly obvious Originium crystals on her body, and her condition was controlled within a certain limit without a clear tendency to worsen.
Being Infected herself, she naturally knew how terrifying Oripathy was. Furthermore, Talulah had no medication, not even a doctor proficient in Oripathy. Now, Ch'en also understood another reason why her sister had not come to Lungmen: it was because she had already become Infected, and she did not want to disturb the life of her sister, who in her eyes was a normal person.
And an idea formed in her heart: she must find a way to go see her sister while she could still move freely. After all, both of them were infected with Oripathy; who knows when one of them might suddenly burst, causing them to be separated by life and death forever.
"Did she... cause any trouble for all of you in daily life? Actually, I cannot imagine her helping you farm or mend clothes; she was a bit clumsy when she was small."
Recalling the sister who was always protecting her in front of her, a bitter smile appeared on Ch'en's face. In any case, the moment they hear a family member has contracted Oripathy, everyone feels as if the sky is falling. Even Ch'en, who thought she had grown up a lot, was no exception. Only when such a thing falls upon you do you realize how terrifying it is.
If Jeanne were not right there, Ch'en would even want to find a place with no one around to cry for a while. Clearly, she had just received news of her relative, but in the next second, she received news that she had a terminal illness. This feeling of plummeting from the top to the bottom like a roller coaster was truly too hard to bear. She could only inquire about what Talulah was like in daily life.
"Your sister is quite a good hand at farming now, but mending clothes is still not working. This bag of mine was mended by her; she spent a lot of effort just for this one bag."
While speaking, Jeanne pointed to the bag on her shoulder—the result of Talulah spending a great deal of effort to make. However, the appearance of this result was still a bit amusing. Ch'en looked at the crookedly made shoulder bag on Jeanne's body, not expecting her sister could actually make such a thing; her hands truly suffered. Ch'en naturally understood that the so-called Duke Kashchey would not teach Talulah to mend clothes or farm, because such things were servant work in the eyes of nobles.
"By the way, Jeanne. Have you heard Talulah mention a person named Kashchey?"