—Aaaah, aaaaah!
Violet grabbed Marigold's jaw firmly with her other hand.
Marigold was surprised by the strength of Violet's grip.
—H-how…
—Your tricks don't work on me.
I am also an aura user.
—It can't be, you...
—Shut up and listen to what I'm going to tell you.
I'm just going to say one thing.
—Ugh, hmm!
Violet's hand, which was holding his jaw, tightened more and more.
Then.
A group of strangers burst through the door.
—Is this the girl?
The person looking at Marigold with an annoyed look was…
Uncle Cyril?
Marigold's eyes widened.
—Yes, it's her.
Violet stood up from her seat.
—Here, help!
Relief!
Marigold tried to scream.
But the Silphir spirit vanished.
But Cyril sat her in the chair and pressed her neck.
—Keep your spirit.
—Ugh, hmm!
—Unless you want to die right now.
No, there is no need for words.
Olive.
Cyril said.
-Yeah.
A woman named Olive approached with an expressionless face.
—Before proceeding with the treatment, we will give you anesthesia first.
I'll put pressure on several points, so it will hurt a little.
Olive pressed firmly on the part of Marigold's neck.
—Aaaaaah, aaah!
Marigold screamed, unable to bear the pain.
But that was all.
He couldn't speak, only utter a metallic scream.
Soon after, Olive pressed other parts of Marigold's body.
Marigold collapsed to the ground, stiff as a log.
Even in that state, Marigold looked desperately at Violet.
Violet looked at Marigold.
And he smiled slowly.
──── ∗ ⋅◈⋅ ∗ ────
The day before Marigold's visit to Cyril's house.
Violet met with the 'curse diagnostician' that Cyril had told her about.
(I am Hayden, a curse-breaker expert on the human body, who works for Mr.
Cyril.)
Hayden seemed like a kind, old doctor.
He sat the nervous Violet down and examined her from head to toe.
(What happened?)
Cyril asked impatiently.
Hayden frowned.
(Miss Violet is under a curse.
And it is a very evil curse.)
When she heard those words, she felt stunned.
(Someone is making a hole in her mana and transferring it to herself.
This… is the most terrible curse that was not even used in ancient times.)
The curse that Violet had on her body was simple but terrible.
It was about transferring Violet's mana to another person.
But not everyone could steal the mana.
It had to be similar, that is...
(It is a curse used between blood relatives.
If you have a family member who is a mana user, such as a mage or a swordsman, you should be suspicious of them.)
Immediately, it occurred to him that Marigold was a spiritualist.
And a spiritualist who had suddenly manifested her power.
(Why is it a curse used between relatives?)
Violet asked quietly.
(Because blood relatives have similar mana, which increases the probability of the curse being successful.
They probably studied the mana of the two people and investigated the possibility for a long time.
Of course, this is also a crime.)
Hayden said.
Cyril looked at Violet.
(You said that your sister, Marigold, is a spiritualist.
When did she manifest as a spiritualist?)
(I remember it was when I was ten years old.
I became seriously ill then.
And I remember that right after, Marigold became a spiritualist.)
Originally, Marigold would not have been able to enter the academy.
But when Violet was ten years old, after taking the academy entrance exam, she got sick for a day.
And what was Marigold doing at that time?
(From now on, it's my territory.
Close your eyes.)
Cyril and Hayden slowly gestured around Violet's body.
Then, his stomach hurt.
(It is in this area.)
Violet hesitated and lifted her shirt to show her stomach.
A strange circular formation floated above his stomach.
(The origin of this curse is this formation.)
Why did he keep getting more and more disappointed?
You, you who call yourself my family, are truly amazing…
The more she discovered it, the more disappointed and disgusted she became.
Marigold was not a spiritualist.
At least, if he hadn't stolen Violet's mana, if there wasn't a curse...
Marigold was nobody.
The one who had true talent, the one who was necessary and noble, was Violet.
His family had simply been blinding him.
Cyril knew it and that's why he kept silent.
(There was a reason my stepmother looked after me back then.
She was worried that the ritual would fail.
She had to be healthy so Marigold could steal Silphir, my spirit!)
(…)
Violet murmured.
His heart hurt.
The expressions of the people around him also showed that they didn't know what to say.
Even Olive, who was standing like a shadow, couldn't hide her distaste for Violet's family.
(We'll think about what price we'll make that bastard Godfrey pay.)
(Uncle…)
(First, let's remove the curse.
I'm very good at this.)
(Yes.)
Violet nodded her head.
(You said that the curse is used to steal mana, right?
Then there must be a pair of formations, or 'jin'.
The other must be in your sister's body.)
The other person involved in the curse.
That was a necessary element to undo the curse, that was how Cyril had explained it.
In other words, they needed Marigold.
(We have to attract Marigold.)
Cyril said.
Violet was lucky.
It wasn't Violet who fell into the trap from the beginning.
It was Marigold.
That was the reason why she meekly agreed to see Marigold, who sought her out and begged her to meet.
—Marigold, you always thought I was stupid, but the one who was deceived is you.
—Ugh, ugh…
Marigold's eyes trembled.
He opened his mouth, trying to say something.
Olive looked at Marigold, dragged her and sat her in a large chair.
Marigold could only stare at Violet with wide eyes.
Violet walked over and looked at Marigold.
—You can't talk.
Olive can press a single pressure point to temporarily paralyze a person's vocal cords.
At that moment, Marigold's gaze was almost hurling insults at Violet.
—'How do I...'?
Oh, I know you know I can't lie.
But, pretending not to know what I know and revealing only a part of my true self, that does work.
I learned it from a friend.
Violet smiled purely.
The truth is that not even she expected it to be so easy.
Wanting to receive the apology letter or affidavit was sincere, so it wasn't a lie.
Although he never intended to forgive her, saying he would consider it was not a lie.
—So don't make that face.
Even if he had lied, you have no right to feel bad.
You deceived me countless times.
…To be continued