407 Reward for Good Luck
After the surgery, the blind sheep stepped off the treatment table, calm and docile, no longer resisting. The duty doctor felt like he was in a dream.
The doctor watched in a daze as the arsonist devil guided the blind sheep—now cured of its mental illness—out of the room and disappeared into the crimson moonlit night.
Wherever they went, crimson flames ignited the white bandages and barely visible fur.
In the blazing flames, black fire flowed like a river, “cleansing” away the remaining icicles, footprints, and any other traces.
The doctor felt no immediate danger and watched in a daze, as if enjoying a spectacular fireworks show.
After an unknown amount of time, all the flames subsided. The guard who had been dispatched returned to the Delta Asylum with a group of black-uniformed police officers.
“Why did it take you so long?” the doctor blurted out instinctively.
The leading officer cursed angrily, “Son of a bitch, we were ambushed in the shadows on the way here. Someone was shooting at us from the darkness!”
…
In Apartment 601, 3 Rue des Blouses Blanches, in the market district.
After securing I Know Someone to one of the dining table’s sturdy legs, Lumian paid the sheep no mind. He lay on the sofa in the living room and pretended to be asleep.
His appearance had been altered back by Lie, and the Decency brooch had long been taken off.
Franca glanced at the sheep, which stood silently and didn’t attempt to escape with the dining table, and asked, “Aren’t we going to interrogate him now?”
She avoided looking at Lumian because he had become so irritating that she felt like punching him. Even the sheep, now a pacifist, was eager to do the same.
Lumian’s voice remained calm as he replied, “I’ll question him once I’ve regained my spirituality.”
That makes sense. It’s safer this way. After all, I Know Someone is now a sheep with his frontal lobe removed. He can’t use his abilities or put up resistance… Franca, dressed in an Assassin suit, averted her gaze and headed to her bedroom to avoid losing control of her hands, black flames, frost, or spider silk.
She wasn’t worried that any accidents might occur prior to the interrogation, leading to I Know Someone’s bizarre death or him turning into a monster due to losing control. Madam Magician and the Major Arcana card holder had already confirmed I Know Someone’s identity. They must have seized the opportunity to obtain the most important information.
Jenna, holding the broken obsidian arrow, approached the divan with a warped expression.
“Your trophy.”
She offered the obsidian arrow to Lumian, who hadn’t yet closed his eyes.
Lumian didn’t take it and calmly said, “This is your reward for your good luck.
Why does he sound like a circus fortune-teller… Jenna didn’t refuse. After mumbling to herself, she quickly turned around and entered Franca’s bedroom.
It had to be said that after her companion advanced to Demoness of Pleasure, even as a woman, she would blush and feel her ears heat up when she saw her change her clothes.
After changing into comfortable home clothes, Franca used Magic Mirror Divination to get a rough understanding of the name, abilities, and negative effects of the obsidian arrow.
“Name: Arrow of the Bloodthirsty.
“Ability: Plunge it into the chest where the heart and let it absorb blood. The user will gain potent self-healing and regeneration abilities, along with exceptional physical attributes. Whether it’s speed, agility, the ability to communicate with animals, vision, smell, or hearing, they will all be greatly enhanced. Their charisma will also receive a significant boost.
“In addition, the user will gain Dark domain spell-like abilities such as Abyss Shackles, Claw of Corrosion, and Wings of Darkness.
“Negative effects:
“While in use, you will despise sunlight and crave blood.
“Your blood will be continuously drained by the item until you succumb to excessive blood loss. You must constantly monitor your condition and remove the broken arrow in time.
“The more you use it, the more likely it is to cause subtle changes in your body. If these accumulate beyond a limit, it might even lead to bodily collapse. Note: Try not to use it for more than three minutes at a time. It’s best to use it with intervals of more than three days. This way, your body will have a chance to recover and prevent any mutations.
“Avoid using it during a full moon. While it can enhance your condition, it can also easily lead to illusions and danger.”
“Not a bad mystical item,” Franca praised sincerely as she handed the Arrow of the Bloodthirsty back to Jenna. “Carrying it doesn’t have any negative effects. Such a mystical item could fetch over 40,000 verl d’or at various mysticism gatherings.”
Holding the Arrow of the Bloodthirsty, Jenna pondered and said, “If I give it to you, will that settle the debt I owe you?”
She believed she owed Franca 30,000 verl d’or.
Franca chuckled.
“Don’t worry. This Arrow of the Bloodthirsty can significantly boost your strength, providing you with true self-preservation abilities. You can sell it later once your Sequence has advanced to the point where it’s no longer useful.
“Take your time paying back the money you owe me. There’s no rush.”
Jenna fell silent for a few moments before nodding in agreement.
…
Lumian slept until 6 a.m., feeling refreshed but still with a slight throbbing in his head.
As he sat up and looked around, he noticed that the sheep I Know Someone had transformed into was standing quietly by the dining table, its empty eye sockets filled with dried blood.
Lumian chuckled.
He led the sheep into the living room and poured the remaining truth serum into its mouth.
With that task completed, Lumian recited an incantation in Hermes.
“His Grace.”
A dark light flashed, and the grayish-white sheepskin split open, revealing I Know Someone’s body in a blue-and-white-striped hospital gown.
Lumian guided him to a chair and had him sit down. Staring into his empty blood-red eye sockets, he smiled and sighed.
“As I mentioned yesterday, we can finally have a good chat.”
The calm I Know Someone remained silent.
Lumian retreated to the sofa and sat down. He patiently waited for the truth serum to take effect before asking, “What’s your name, what was your original occupation, and why were you in the Delta Asylum?”
He began with the simplest questions, using the truth serum to guide the other’s instinctive responses.
I Know Someone’s voice was unremarkable, yet strangely compelling.
“My name is Pierre Theuriau. I was originally one of the deputy editors of Basic Medicine.
“I once mentioned that I know someone who ended up in an asylum due to negligence and overconfidence. Well, that someone was me. I was obsessed with manipulating the minds of others and didn’t pay enough attention to my own issues. One day, I just lost my mind.
“When I finally regained consciousness, I found myself in the Delta Asylum. Fortunately, I was only mentally unstable and didn’t completely lose control. I still had some sense of self-preservation and didn’t unleash my Beyonder powers recklessly. If I had, they would have sent me to the Inquisition.”
The person you mentioned is indeed yourself… After discovering that “I Know Someone” was hiding in the asylum, Lumian gained a new understanding of what he had said back then.
He pressed further, “Now that you’ve regained your consciousness and the ability to think, why do you choose to remain in the Delta Asylum?”
I Know Someone didn’t show any mockery or amusement. He answered calmly, “I find the asylum fascinating. The thought patterns, mental states, and mental constructs of the patients here are significantly different from those of ordinary people. They deserve observation, research, and analysis.
“Moreover, some of them have gone mad due to illness, while others have become mentally unstable due to other factors. The latter group includes individuals who have come into contact with the mysterious and abnormal.”
“Including the one that posed as you?” Lumian asked, seeking confirmation.
I Know Someone nodded slowly.
“Yes, he’s quite special. I’ve been observing him for a long time. He’s like a philosopher, constantly posing unusual questions. Patients close to him, nurses who care for him, and even doctors who treat him have gradually shifted toward his mental state. There were also guardians with hidden supernatural abilities lurking around him.
“We dealt with the guardians and worked to gain his trust. Everything went smoothly. We learned that they are part of an organization called the Entry Persons and practice a secretive ritual known as Midoro’s Worship. It allows one’s Astral Projection to ascend to various heavenly domains and witness extraordinary phenomena. They can touch the fringes of immortality and gain knowledge and corresponding abilities, enabling them to undergo a fundamental transformation behind the formless door.”
Entry Persons… Formless door… Lumian memorized the information and continued asking,
“After Loki’s resurrection and his given warning, why didn’t you immediately flee Trier?”
I Know Someone’s response lacked any emotion as he said, “How lame would that be? We’d have to eliminate a few pursuers before making our escape.”
So that’s the reason… Lumian thought there must be something significant that had kept I Know Someone in Trier.
“Then why didn’t you go into hiding somewhere else?”
I Know Someone replied calmly,”I want to witness the despair and suffering of those chasing me.”
Using my life for amusement… Lumian couldn’t help but chuckle.
“Do you not realize the strength of the Tarot Club?”
I Know Someone pondered for a moment and then said, “The secret organization that uses tarot cards as their code names? What do they have to do with you?”
Upon hearing this, Lumian burst into laughter as he bent over, his amusement clearly exaggerated.
Updat𝒆d fr𝒐m freew𝒆bnov𝒆l.c(o)m