“You people, what do you think you’re — argh!”
Teresa, writhing on the floor, screamed before she could finish her sentence.
‘That One’ had kicked her leg.
“Ugh…”
Teresa groaned, curled into a ball.
She had let her guard down, thinking they were customers coming for an exorcism, only to be ambushed by Villains.
She should have been suspicious the moment she saw them wearing cloaks.
Getting caught by surprise in her small shop left her with no room to escape, and eventually, she was blindfolded and dragged to this unknown place.
Upon arrival, they removed the blindfold. She thought she knew why.
Even if she could see, she wouldn’t be able to identify the location, and they likely assumed her exhausted state meant she couldn’t escape anyway.
Her hands and feet were bound, and with her mana depleted and no way to drink a Magic Potion, she was no different from an ordinary old woman without a Skill.
Even if they untied the ropes, she probably wouldn’t be able to run. These four — no, three — Villains were guarding her.
She might have stood a chance against one, but taking on three was impossible.
‘Iris mustn’t check the tracker…’
At first, she only had suspicions, but now she was certain.
The Black Shadow Figure was likely the caster who had placed the Curse on Iris’s Necklace.
The wicked energy she had felt from the Necklace was radiating from that person.
Based on their conversation, it seemed they had kidnapped her to lure Iris here.
She wanted to tell her it was a Trap and not to come, but her hands were tied, making it impossible to press the button on the Tracker hidden in her inner pocket.
She could only hope Iris wouldn’t use it to check her position.
‘Even if she doesn’t know where this is, seeing a different location than usual will make her realize something happened to me. Iris, don’t come…’
Lately, Teresa had been living a peaceful life, only traveling between her home and the Exorcism Shop.
Since Iris knew this, she would surely notice something was wrong if a strange location appeared on the Tracker.
Moreover, a place where people could be dragged and locked up without consequence was clearly not ordinary.
Where on earth was this? While scanning the dark basement with her dim vision, a remark the Black Shadow Figure had made suddenly flashed through her mind.
‘They said they could complete the power of the Relic. These people must be the ones in possession of it. If this is a place where a Relic is kept… is it the Enraka Church Shrine?’
At first glance, the basement had no distinguishing features, but a closer look at the walls and pillars revealed repetitive Symbols.
It looked like religious art. On top of that, there was the faint sound of a bell. Teresa began to calmly work through the possibilities.
Abellus looked down at the groaning Teresa and frowned.
Any normal person would have passed out long ago, yet she still had the energy to shout.
She was a stubborn and quite impressive old woman.
The man who was now a corpse had mentioned that, based on her use of Superpowers, she seemed like a retired Hero.
The person who lived with Iris and purified the Curse was even more formidable than expected.
Heroes who survived in Gyodam City until they reached old age were rare and universally respected.
Of course, to a Villain who believed in attacking the elderly rather than honoring them, she was just a bothersome old hag.
“Hah, the old hag is quite sprightly. To think she still has the strength to get angry after dealing with those guys.”
“Ugh, I’ll kill…”
Teresa raised her head and forced out the words before collapsing again.
Abellus shook his head as he watched her. He had to admire her tenacity.
“I flinched for a second thinking she was actually going to do something.”
Just then, ‘That One’ began rummaging through the bags the dead man had brought.
He heard they were items taken from the old woman’s shop.
Soon after, it checked the contents and threw them aside irritably.
There were pouches filled with red beans, crosses, and so on.
While they didn’t have a direct effect on ‘That One,’ they were items that could purify the power of evil.
“To think these things were in the old hag’s shop. As I thought, this is how she purified my Curse.”
“Hmm, we’ve dragged this old woman here, but what’s the plan now? How is the Vessel supposed to get here?”
Abellus stared at the items with a bored expression. ‘That One’ spoke as if the answer should be obvious.
“Since the Exorcist is gone, she won’t be able to control the Curse anymore. The Vessel will arrive here soon. She’s under a Curse that causes her to lose her reason and come to where I am.”
“Whew, the Total Solar Eclipse isn’t far off. What if she doesn’t come before then? We might need to try something else…”
Abellus fidgeted anxiously, unlike his usual self.
The Total Solar Eclipse was scheduled for one week from now, and he had heard that sacrificing Iris then would complete the power of the Relic.
If this eclipse passed, there wouldn’t be another opportunity for a long time, so he couldn’t afford to be patient.
‘That One’ raised both hands, dismissing Abellus’s concerns.
“Don’t be so anxious. With the Exorcist old hag here, she won’t be able to control the Curse on the Necklace… wait.”
“What is it?”
Abellus’s eyes narrowed as ‘That One’ suddenly paused and glared. ‘That One’ slowly scanned the surroundings before its eyes suddenly flashed.
“No, there’s a strange energy… No, it’s not strange. Now that it’s closer, I can tell. The Vessel is coming here. She’s almost here.”
“Don’t tell me, already…”
*Crash!*
A massive roar echoed, drawing everyone’s attention in the basement to a single spot.
Dust rose from the smashed stone door, and as it slowly settled, the figure of Iris, the Chastity Belt Hanger, appeared in her white Gown.
Having destroyed the stone door with her greatly evolved Pincer Claws, she walked forward with both middle fingers raised.
However, unlike her bravado, her expression was very poor. It was because she felt an unbearable, extreme cold as she drew closer to ‘That One.’
Iris, having moved within range for a long-distance attack, retracted her Pincer Claws and spoke in a strained voice.
“Give… Senior Teresa back.”
“You really are here already. It’s been a while, Iris. Or should I call you Angel Girl? Hmm, what would you prefer to be called?”
Abellus, whose eyes had widened slightly, now greeted her with a relaxed expression.
“…Shut up.”
Iris glanced at Abellus, then looked away, spitting out the words.
Since both sides were aware of each other’s identities, Abellus decided not to continue his disgusting act. Seeing her face twist with emotion filled him with elation.
A vein throbbed on Iris’s forehead. She had been prepared to curse him out if he continued to act innocent in this situation, so it was just as well that he stopped the act first.
Her honey-colored eyes scanned the basement.
For a moment, her face went pale at the sight of a pool of blood on the floor, but she was relieved to find the trail of blood belonged to an unidentified man.
Since the basement was small, she quickly spotted the fallen Teresa.
Her heart rate spiked when she saw her teacher lying bound behind the Black Shadow Figure.
She instinctively twitched as if to run toward her but stopped.
She had caught the slight rise and fall of Teresa’s chest.
‘Senior is safe. Though it looks like she’s badly hurt…’
Now that she knew Teresa was safe, Iris became aware of her own condition.
Her teeth chattered uncontrollably from the extreme cold.
Her headache was also getting worse.
She had stormed in here with determination, but it seemed she wouldn’t be able to hold out as long as she had expected.
Abellus noticed that Iris was in poor condition as well. The smile on his lips deepened.
“Speaking of which, this isn’t the first time we’ve met lately. You followed me in secret before, didn’t you?”
Iris didn’t answer and only glared at Abellus.
She didn’t have the luxury of arguing with him.
The situation was worse than she thought.
She had expected two enemies, but she hadn’t anticipated another mysterious person standing beside Abellus.
‘Is that thing even human?’
The cloaked man looked at Iris with hollow eyes, but it was different from a simple lack of emotion.
To be precise, there was no soul to be felt in those eyes. Like a doll.
Just then, the Black Shadow Figure stood up and looked Iris up and down. Then, it tilted its head.
“You’re quite something, Vessel. To endure such extreme cold while wearing the Cursed Necklace. I like how sturdy you are.”
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