Chapter 1058 – #251_After Death(4) – DeepL

#1052

1.
“I feel nauseous….”

Gretel stuck her tongue out and whimpered like a heatstroke puppy.

Unlike other magic, this work of reading soul traces doesn’t just involve Xiu sharing memories and emotions.

Gretel is caught in the middle and must be affected to some degree, whether she likes it or not.
She can’t assimilate emotions or even thoughts, but it means she has to replay a person’s final moments over and over again.

It’s hard to feel good about watching a movie with a simple storyline, but it’s hard to feel good about having to watch a “real death” that’s not acted or staged over and over again.

Gretel, who was a stranger and had no contact with anyone, is also in this situation.
What about her lover, Xin Xiu?

“…Hey, are you okay?”

Xiu’s face was white as a sheet.
His body is sticky with sweat, and his eyes are red and bloodshot.

The half-focus and thinly quivering lips are the hallmarks of someone whose mind has become tattered.

“I’m fine.”

But his voice is colder than a frozen lake in the middle of winter.
He doesn’t even shed a single tear in the end.

Technically, he’s a Gretel, practicing medical magic, which is more in the realm of the mind and soul, or spirit.

That’s why I know.

That’s already not the realm of the mind.
It’s more like the work of a madman.

“This must not have been easy for you. Thank you for your cooperation.”

Xiu washes his face one last time and dries himself roughly with the hem of his robe.

It was obviously out of character, and Gretel hated sticking her nose into other people’s business, but this time she felt she had to speak up.
He looked quite precarious.

“I think I know what you’re trying to do, but do it in moderation.”

Was he going to snarl at me with a half-assed comment again?

“Thanks for the advice. I’ll see you later.”

Contrary to your expectations, Xiu politely bows, thanks you, and lets Gretel go.

2.
After five trips to the memory, we have a lot of information.

Appearances of the 52 people who participated in the raid, the types and characteristics of the magnetic magic they use.

However, the plan is not complete.
The absolute amount of information is lacking.

Xiu asked Branch Leader Sua to provide him with information about the Lehar Group from the Witchpoint DB.

Only 80 years old.
The group is not that old.

The leader of the group is the War Witch Herya Valhirie, ranked 22nd.
The group is composed of several teams that are usually scattered, but when a request comes in, they form a task force.

Their main duties are to be commissioned by the state to defeat homunculi and participate as mercenaries in inter-witch conflicts.
In addition to this, the group is involved in a variety of other shady businesses, including pornography production, casinos, drug and arms smuggling, and human trafficking in collusion with the Russian Red Mafia.

“Not enough.”

But even after scraping the WitchPoint DB, there wasn’t enough information.

The group is so sporadically organized that even their faces and tattoos are unknown except for the most elite members, and even their main base is a continental unit called South America.

If it weren’t for Dorothy’s memories, I would have been lost from the start.

The fact that they’re a loose, dotty organization rather than a hierarchical, cohesive group makes their tactics a bit of a mystery.
On the other hand, it’s easy to cut off tails and there are too many gateways to go through to find each one.

If you don’t know who’s where, revenge is a non-starter.

Anxiety sets in.
How do we find her?

Xiu visits Linnaeus in the hospital.

“Ms. Linnaeus, how are you feeling?”
“Much better.”

Thanks to the intensive treatment, her physical condition has improved a lot.
She still can’t stand up properly, but she can breathe on her own without relying on a respirator, and she can communicate.

This is typical of Linnaeus, who lives 99% of her life with an expressionless face.
She doesn’t show any signs of sadness.

But Xiu knew what she was feeling.

Linnaeus was also deeply saddened and discouraged.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t protect you properly.”
“It’s not your fault, Linnaeus. Besides, I have a plan.”
“A plan?”

Xiu put his arm around her and patted her back.

“I’ll tell you right now, this is not going to involve any possible lovers.

Except for Master, Amelia, and Linnaeus, who are in no condition to fight, but even then, it would have been the same.

Xiu will cross the line.
She will throw off the bridle.

There will be no justice for Xiu in the process.
It will be theirs.

Sin is in these two hands.
Xiu loved his lovers too much to drag them through the mud with him.

“For now, I’d like to keep this to yourself, Ms. Linnaeus.”
“Nangong, I’ll help you too. When your body recovers a little bit, I can help you….”
“You can’t. Especially Lin’ne.”

Rinne is a public figure.

And this is a tightrope walk, even by Gehenna ethics.

Xiu doesn’t know.
But if Linnaeus is hunting down witches to fulfill some sort of agenda, it’s likely to lead to trouble.

This means that Linnaeus’ integration into Gehenna is likely to be challenged in the future.

“Instead, tell me everything you know about the Lehar Group.”
“…Okay.”

Rinne’s main base of operations was in Japan, but his official background allowed him to obtain additional information.

But they had already withdrawn from the front lines, and Rinne had no way of knowing their location in real time.

It was a high-risk situation, but could they just take it one day at a time?

This is where the unexpected support came in.

Letters.
Letters from all over the world to the Seoul office of LocationPoint.

The letters begin by mourning the loss of Dorothy, who was killed in the attack.

It was typical of his behavior.

As soon as he heard that his men were isolated, he didn’t hesitate to move into enemy territory.
Just as Sister Arin had fond memories of Dorothy.

Dorothy’s reputation as a public figure.

The people at the top of the arms trade she led, the connections she made, the favors she received.
These letters are their way of expressing their outrage at what’s going on and providing information as fighters.

They detailed information about the Lehar group, its secret bases, rallying points, and organizational charts.

The quality of information provided by witches in public life is that of an insider.
It’s a quality of information that can’t be compared to what Witchpoint had.

One even wrote directly to Xiu to explain how she knew about their relationship.
One even offered to lend him a safe house in South America if he needed help.

Of course, Xiu had no intention of accepting.
Maybe it was an opportunistic trap.

With that, I had all the information I needed.

All that’s left is a little bit of time.

3.
After returning to Gehenna, Xiu headed straight for Count Yesod.

This was to collect the lotus.

He didn’t bother to explain the details.
This is not because she doesn’t trust Count Yesod, but because she wants to keep it a secret from her lovers.

At this point, it was obvious what Xiu would do with the lotus if she took it.
Everyone would try to stop or help her in her reckless plan.

That’s not what we want.

It’s Xiu’s artifact, after all, and he doesn’t need to ask for permission.

“…….”

In Count Yesod’s annex for research purposes, the Lotus was under heavy guard.

At first glance, it looks like an ordinary laboratory, but this is a witch’s workshop.

Dozens of force fields and magical devices kept the lotus under strict guard.
What Xiu is trying to do is not much different in difficulty than stealing the most prized artifacts from a museum.

However, these safeguards are ineffective in the face of Ma An, who can read the flow of magic.

Blending into the darkness, Xiu’s body slowly moves toward the target.

Sensors that detect motion are deflected by a combination of shadows and distortion fields.
Sensors that detect weight take advantage of the inevitable dead angle.
Sensors that detect horsepower are no match for Xiu’s understanding of the wavelength of the Yesod force field.

He grabs the lotus floating on the dais.

The lotus is too beautiful to be the fruit of sin, but its contents are hollow.
Ea had burned all the souls, kites, and magic she had gathered to defeat her master.

A sinful artifact created by the Witch of Cowardice and passed through the Witch of Whispers, the Witch of Desire, and the Witch of Aquarius.

I know how many men and witches have died for this lotus, and how many lives have been torn apart to make it bloom.

Perhaps that’s why it feels so heavy.

Xiu placed the short letter she had written in advance on the empty podium.
Based on her usual routine, it will be early this morning before she finds it.

By then, Xiu would have leisurely slipped out of Gehenna and into the real world.

As Xiu quietly slipped out of the mansion and headed for the immigration office, she was forced to stop in her tracks.

“Xiu.”
“Master.”

There he was, leaning against the moonlight at an angle.

Her trademark short shorts and sweatpants, not the relaxed style of clothing she’d been favoring lately.
Clothing that emphasized activity.

Xiu’s expression stiffened.

In the past, Master had burned the lotus by hand.
Of course, things were different then and now.

Back then, the lotus was still unfinished.
He didn’t even know if the Cowardly Witch’s words were true.

The Cowardly Witch’s proposal was to change the past by making humans easier to hunt, so Eloa rejected it, realized the danger of the lotus, and destroyed it herself.

Today, however, the lotus is much closer to perfection than it was then.

Ea Saadalmelik has honed and refined the lotus stolen by Lilith, even developing the fraudulent magic of infinite resurrection.
She has discovered not only its deceptive potential, but also that its most efficient fuel is witchcraft.

By killing the enemy who took the life of a loved one, life is restored.

This path is just, at least in Xiu’s mind.

But deep down, he knows that his teacher would stop him.
That’s why he tries to avoid confrontation….

Whatever he’s thinking, his teacher finally realizes.

“Raise the spear.”

She didn’t say much.
Instead, she silently gripped her contract sword.