Bermuda

“Since it’s roughly organized now, I’ll be going. The pulsating will stop within three days. If it still doesn’t calm down after that, use this.”

Leonardo handed over an amulet he had made by melting the Siculus mineral at high temperature and then solidifying it. It was shaped like a ring, with a sun-shaped piece—spikes protruding—set on top.

At a glance, it looked like an ordinary ring, but looking closely at the center, a magic circle was engraved inside the melted mineral. Though it was blurry and difficult to make out, since he said to use it if the pulsation didn’t stop, it must be magic related to sealing. The owner held the amulet up to the store light, examining it with curiosity.

Siculus was an ambiguous mineral with soft hardness and a dull color, making it unusable even as an imitation jewel or grinding material. So when the customer had chosen Siculus over the flashy weapons, he had inwardly rejoiced. But he never expected it could be utilized like this.

Since the mineral itself was soft, it was easy to reprocess with heat, and its dull light seemed suited to situations where magic needed to be hidden. The owner, who had been trying the ring on his finger, spoke to Leonardo as he gathered the gold bracelet:

“You’re quite skillful. But I don’t have any more money to give you now?”

“It’s a service. Oh, and for keeping your mouth shut, too.”

This guy, really. The owner let out a hollow laugh. He knew today’s youngsters were ill-mannered, but this one took the cake among all he’d seen.

Nevertheless, the owner responded heartily, as if amused:

“Drop by from time to time. I treat my regular customers well. If you request items that are hard to find, I occasionally procure them for you. Sometimes I even throw in extras when you buy something expensive.”

“So just selling makes me a regular customer?”

“That makes you a seller.”

“I’ll drop by as a seller occasionally.”

The red lips curved playfully. Just as Leonardo, having finished packing his things, turned around without lingering, the owner muttered candidly as he looked at his back:

“If what’s hanging around your neck becomes suffocating, come by. I’ll at least reduce some of the energy for you.”

At that moment, Leonardo’s steps came to an abrupt halt. Having unconsciously held his breath, he slowly turned his head. The golden eyes held both puzzlement and a vigilant gaze.

“Pardon?”

The owner stopped speaking there. He’d instinctively detected the eeriness that suddenly emanated.

Leonardo stood there, staring at the other man. As the silence hanging in the air made them both uncomfortable, he dropped his gaze. He also fumbled at his neck with his hand. Though it was clearly covered with a handkerchief, it was surprising the owner had noticed it.

“I told you, didn’t I? I’m exceptionally good at handling cursed items. When we’re in the same space, it’s impossible not to know.”

The owner said this while picking up utensils and scattered newspapers, turning his eyes away. Though he was tidying up, his attention stayed fixed on the customer who’d stopped in his tracks.

Only the sound of the old cart carrying the chest circulated inside the supply shop. Then Leonardo, who’d been looking down, lifted his gaze again and fixed it on the owner. Soon, he rushed to the front of the counter, his footsteps thudding. After practically tearing off his handkerchief, he thrust his head toward the other man and asked, his demeanor suddenly excited:

“Can you remove this?”

“Good heavens!”

The owner, who had been moving the chest, was yanked toward the customer by his ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) grabbed collar. The first thing he felt from the customer’s flushed face and trembling breath was an indescribable chill.

With the air so tense that one wrong word could mean trouble, the owner couldn’t make any more groaning sounds. Instead, he stared into the desperate golden eyes waiting for an answer.

Unfortunately, what he could say wouldn’t be welcome. The owner, smoothing his chest, added in a tone that suggested he regretted bringing it up:

“How could I remove something even a mage couldn’t? That’s a curse with deep thoughts. I don’t know how you ended up with such a thing... but it’s not something that can be easily removed.”

The fiery spirit subsided instantly. The eyes that had been chasing hope let out a silent sigh. His lips moved as if he had expected this, revealing deep disappointment.

“Moreover, it’s not just one person involved.”

The golden eyes, which had been about to fall to the floor, snapped up again.

“How do you know that?”

“I can feel it. Curses always carry thoughts, and this one isn’t from just one person.”

“Do you know what kind of curse it is?”

“I think it would be big trouble if I did, right? Isn’t that why you can’t talk about it either?”

The eyelids, soaked in surprise, opened slightly. Though he didn’t nod, it was affirmation.

Leonardo didn’t continue and closed his mouth. The black line crossing his neck undulated with his Adam’s apple. He released the owner’s clothing he’d been gripping so tightly, and instead covered the symbol of bondage again with the handkerchief he had untied.

The owner, who had barely escaped his grasp, sighed and clicked his tongue while dusting off his collar. He picked up an ash-tree staff placed beside him and patted Leonardo’s shoulders with it as well.

“How pitiful, how pitiful. With so many lives already attached, yet your own life is in another’s hands.”

“...How do you reduce the energy?”

“I’m doing it right now. You need to periodically reduce the thoughts. Otherwise, you’ll be influenced even when the owner of the thoughts isn’t nearby.”

“.......”

“Drop by when you get a chance. I’ll introduce you to someone as versed in curses as I am. Ah, of course, you’ll have to go to the mountains to find him yourself. He’s been detached from the secular world for a long time.”

Leonardo didn’t say anything until the staff brushed his arms and head and was withdrawn. His heart had raced and then settled, leaving him feeling more deflated. But despite saying nothing, few had recognized this as a curse. Though it was disappointing for now, he found himself curious about the person the owner was suggesting.

“Tell me now. Where is he?”

“Even I don’t know where he is right now—he’s that elusive. I have to find out.”

The golden eyebrows knitted as if in disbelief. Soon he sighed, rolling his eyes upward, then took a black piece of paper from his inner pocket. After engraving a spell on it with mana, he handed it to the owner.

“When you find out, burn this. A signal will come to me.”

“Oh, a renunciation card. I’ll keep it safe.”

“...You don’t have anything else to say, right? I’m really leaving now.”

“Hmm, just listen to one piece of advice before you go.”

“Advice?”

“Thought entities feed on other thoughts to grow. It’s not something I should say to a customer who came to sell me things, but don’t take too many lives. Even now, a lot of grudges are attached to you.”

“.......”

“Things like dragons are okay occasionally, but if possible, avoid those that have lived for a long time, gained awareness, and become close to spiritual beings. The grudges of beings that transcend time are not something a mere human can handle. Such things slowly invade the body and eventually gnaw at the mind. The same goes for ghostly grudges.”

In the owner’s vision, Leonardo appeared as a figure with dark shadows clinging and clamoring amid brilliant golden light. To him, who hadn’t awakened the third eye, they were just faint forms visible only with concentration, but to the suppressed clerics of this land, he would be a subject for purification—someone who should be seized and doused with holy water immediately.

Normally, to drag around that level of thoughts and grudges, one would have to take as many lives as any soldier he knew. However, judging by his search for illegal trades, he seemed far from a soldier who followed strict discipline.

“I’m saying this because you remind me of a son. If you immerse yourself in clear water imbued with purifying energy, some thoughts will fall off. Stop getting blood on yourself.”

The owner added in a melancholic tone. Leonardo, who had been staring at him expressionlessly, smiled with a somewhat bitter face.

“Living like this, that’s hard to do. I have a lot of work.”

“...Hmm, where are you going now? Off to hunt another dragon?”

“How could I go right after hearing something like that? Not dragons—I’m going to find someone. I’ve been looking for months.”

“For months?”

Leonardo rummaged through his inner pocket once more. This time, he pulled out a white sheet of paper and thrust it in front of the shop owner.

“Westforce... what’s this?”

“First, do you know where this is?”

Leonardo’s fingertip pointed to “41 Westforce Romance.” Westforce is the name of the larger area encompassing this Riverside Town. This memo was a transcription of part of a note left by Alec Siles, the mad scholar he met on the peninsula who was in charge of package 2, along with the amplifier.

Find the turtle that took the train at 41 Westforce Romance

The original note contained a strange address along with a promise to talk in detail when they got there. It had been almost three months since he had been chasing that promise.

The problem was that there was no place called Romance 41 in this area. When he first learned this, his head felt dazed, as if he’d been hit on the back of it. It made him think the mad scholar had simply spouted nonsense to hide his whereabouts and break his contract.

Even if that were the case, he couldn’t stop looking for the scholar. If it was a real address, he needed to go there and beat him with his fist for making him train like a mutt, and if it was a trick to shake him off, he needed to cut off his tongue and fingers to prevent any more tricks. Besides, there were many things to silence and to ask about.

Going around and around, covering all 41 addresses within Westforce, he had finally reached 41 Aldenon Street here, while also selling his goods.

This was the last 41 address Leonardo hadn’t visited. However, Alec Siles’s whereabouts were still unknown, and now there was nowhere to retreat. The turtle that took the train seemed like some kind of metaphor, but for now, it was impossible to know whether it was a person or an object. So with the hope that a local might know something, he was sharing his destination despite the risk.

The golden eyes searched the owner’s face with a subtly expectant gaze.

The owner muttered to himself, narrowing his bleary eyes. Then, glancing at Leonardo, he answered plainly:

“I don’t know.”

“.......”

‘That’s not helpful.’

Leonardo frowned but didn’t add anything. As if he hadn’t expected anything in the first place, he picked up the paper and was about to put it back in his inner pocket.

“Wait, wait. I said I don’t know. I didn’t say I don’t have any guesses.”

“...? You should’ve said that first.” 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

The owner, who had hurriedly grabbed his wrist, looked at the memo again.

“The handwriting is so bad it’s hard to read.”

“...What does that have to do with the handwriting? More importantly, what’s your guess?”

“Hmm, a turtle that took the train...”

It was then, as the two men put their heads together across the counter, that Leonardo felt a presence lingering outside the store, not paying attention to him.

Since many people had been passing along the street, he didn’t care much at first. But this presence didn’t just pass through the alley; it stopped abruptly in front of the store.

Leonardo, who had instinctively lifted his head, looked toward the door.

“If you walk about fifteen minutes from here, you’ll reach the train station...”

Sensing something off, he had just pulled down his cap and pulled his face mask back up below his eyes. Someone shoved the store door so forcefully it looked ready to break. With a bang, the bell attached to the door shook violently, and the heavy soles stepping onto the wooden floor sent their resonance through the shop.

The owner, equally startled, rolled his eyes and looked the same way.

The natural light from outside pierced the interior, which had been dim even with the lamps on. Through it, a pair of military boots stepped thudding into the store.

“Is this a smuggling scene?”

The collar of the pitch-black uniform formed a frighteningly neat angle. Leonardo flinched and lowered the brim of his cap.

They belonged to the Imperial Army.