Chapter 372
The sound of the door opening echoed, and a familiar set of footsteps approached.
It was Aivina.
After casually closing the door, Aivina glanced at the untouched lunch on the dining table and asked, “Are you not used to the food here, Shaer?”
As she spoke, Aivina's gaze shifted to Shaer. When she caught sight of Shaer’s right hand, her pupils constricted slightly.
“Shaer?” Aivina hurried toward her.
“What’s wrong?” Noticing Aivina’s slightly anxious expression, Shaer instinctively released the pen in her hand and turned to face her.
In Aivina’s eyes, Shaer’s right hand was covered in cracks, and ethereal tendrils were writhing out from the fissures in her skin, seemingly expanding them further.
However, Shaer seemed completely unaware of this, even wondering why Aivina was acting so tense.
But when Aivina took hold of her right hand, Shaer began to realize something. “Has it gotten worse?”
In Shaer’s view, her right hand showed no signs of change—if anything, it looked better than before this simulation. She couldn’t see any cracks or tendrils at all.
At that moment, her mind was free of dizziness or buzzing; she felt no impairment in her mental faculties.
“It’s worse than it was at the beginning... Shaer...” Aivina looked at Shaer’s right arm, feeling a twinge of defeat.
During the time they had spent together, Aivina had witnessed Shaer’s mental state improve day by day under her care and guidance...
But just after stepping out for a moment, she returned to find Shaer’s condition had deteriorated so drastically, leaving Aivina with a deep sense of frustration.
She had worked so hard, and they were so close to purifying Shaer’s spirit, yet just when they were on the brink, things took a turn for the worse.
It was like a wife who had saved up a little money through hard work, only to have it taken by her gambling husband—at least that’s how Aivina felt right now.
Now, she wasn’t sure if she could help clear this spiritual pollution while ensuring both of their safety.
Worse than before?
Soon, Shaer realized something.
The mental boost from her skill, 【Calm Reflection Lv.4】, had allowed her to resist this wave of spiritual pollution... to the point where she hadn’t even noticed it had worsened.
Was it due to the over-limit summoning? Or the communication with beings from the other realm?
Perhaps it was both...
“Did something happen?” Aivina sensed something was off. She looked at Shaer and asked, “Was it because of the explosion last night?”
Just last night, while Aivina and Shaer were sleeping, an explosion had rocked the Royal Medical Academy, leaving Ashford in a state of near-fatal injury, beyond the help of even the Redemption Society.
This explosion was also the beginning of the conspiracy involving the Strong Sound.
“Part of it,” Shaer shook her head, then smiled reassuringly, “But most of it has been resolved, so we won’t need to stay in the hotel any longer.”
Yet even as Shaer said this, Aivina didn’t let go of her hand.
“Your condition isn’t looking good, Shaer.” Aivina said, “Don’t try to tough it out alone. If something’s wrong, just tell me, and we’ll face it together.”
“I’ll let you know... but for now, let me finish what I’m working on.” Shaer deliberately avoided the topic.
Aivina noticed this small gesture, but she still released Shaer’s hand. Once Shaer picked up her pen again, Aivina said, “For the next few days, I won’t leave your side until your symptoms improve.”
Hearing Aivina’s words, Shaer paused for a moment, but quickly nodded.
“Okay.”
She understood that Aivina was concerned for her, worried that Shaer might slip into a state where her mental condition would worsen again.
Aivina pulled a chair over and sat beside Shaer, watching her write diligently. After about an hour, once Shaer had copied half of her notebook, Aivina curiously asked, “What are you writing?”
She could tell Shaer was jotting down some medical-related experimental notes, but she wasn’t sure about the specifics—Aivina had mostly been focused on observing Shaer’s mental state and hadn’t paid close attention to what Shaer was actually writing.
“Some things for Adele,” Shaer explained. “Research materials that the organization provided, about the Rotting Plague... Is Adele in her room?”
“She shouldn’t have gone out.” Aivina shook her head. “Do you want to go find her?”
“Yes.”
“I’ll go with you.”
Aivina was genuinely worried now; she felt she needed to stay close to Shaer to prevent her from doing anything that might further pollute her spirit.
But just before they left, Shaer seemed to remember something.
She stood in front of Aivina, placing her hands on Aivina’s shoulders, and looked at her seriously. “Aivina, you need to listen carefully to what I’m about to say.”
Aivina met Shaer’s gaze without speaking, but she nodded gently.
“Be careful of the Order of the God of Order...” Shaer recalled the notes she had made in her notebook during the simulation. “They have their eyes on Nia.”
“Got it.” Aivina nodded, without a hint of doubt. She trusted Shaer—except when it came to matters that could endanger Shaer’s life.
“Be cautious of Windsor... If you find yourself in a situation where you must meet Windsor, you need to bring me along.” Shaer added another point of caution. “And I must stay by your side the entire time, including Nia.”
In the simulation, during a banquet hosted by Windsor, Nia had gone missing, triggering a series of events that indirectly led Aivina back to her family, while Adele and Amy were forced to live in the dark underground.
Before dealing with the Strong Sound, they had to be prepared for these eventualities... but at least for now, they didn’t need to be overly concerned about the Strong Sound.
“Princess Windsor? ... She’s probably forgotten all about me by now.” Aivina hesitated, having not seen Windsor come looking for her during her stay.
“She has many secrets and isn’t someone to be trusted.” Shaer shook her head and said, “Let’s go find Adele.”
“Okay...”
At that moment, Shaer also opened the simulation interface to check the timing for the next simulation.
As for how to obtain “uniqueness” from the Strong Sound in reality, Shaer had no clue yet.
She would have to continue relying on simulations to conduct the necessary trial and error.
.
.
.
PS:
182 (overdue) - 3 (extra) = 179 (overdue)
Daily goal achieved.
But it’s over, folks.
The gap to the top of the annual ranking isn’t that far... If I were to open a monthly ticket reward...
Forget it! I’m going for it! I’ll open it soon!
Good night!
Chapter 203: Searching for Suitable Combat Potions (6200 words)
Knock, knock, knock—
“Um, um—come in!”
Creak—The door opened.
Adele, sitting at the dining table, puffed her cheeks as she looked at Shaer and Aivina at the door. She closed her eyes and pounded her chest a few times with her right hand, swallowing the food in her mouth, then quickly wiped her mouth with a napkin, sitting up straight at the table as if nothing had happened.
“Sorry to interrupt your lunch.” Shaer smiled at Adele, nodding as she stepped aside to let Aivina in, then closed the door behind them.
“Is something wrong?” Adele stood up and moved to the nearby sofa, asking.
Seeing both Shaer and Aivina come to find her made Adele instinctively think something serious had happened again.
“No, I just got some research notes about that sample, and I thought you might find them useful.” Shaer took out the notebook and walked over to Adele, handing it to her.
While copying the notes, Shaer had consciously erased many of Adele’s writing habits—she had read enough of Adele’s notes to be quite familiar with her style.
“What’s this...?” Adele curiously took the notebook and opened it.
Just after reading the first few lines, Adele instinctively straightened her back, holding the notebook and reading it seriously.
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