Chapter 140 - The Truth
Elliot's face was filled with dread, seeing the mark on his friend's chest. He slowly touched it, feeling the multicolored mark.
And the fact that Lance knew he had the mark tells something else. It tells him that he was hiding this as a secret all along.
If I find out the truth, will I be set free? Elliot asked himself.
His thoughts were interrupted with a loud roar coming from the air. The night sky brightened, a gigantic white sword appeared in the sky, glowing and hovering as though it was the sun. A boy was riding a dark horse-like figure, he raised his hand and casted a spell.
"The Sword of Heaven!"
Sun appeared beside the sword, his hands trailed on the handle before he gripped it, swinging it and fired an attack. The white attack fell towards Malice. She tried to conjure a shield but the white light overpowered her.
"Revitalizing Heat."
A familiar harlequin jacket hanging over the shoulders walked towards Lance. Two flaming orbs hovered over either his shoulders like they were shoulder pads.
"F-Frederick…" Elliot trailed off.
"He knows," Lance groaned in pain. "He can see the mark, Fred. He–"
"Shh." The guild master placed his hand on the boy's lips, shushing him gently. "Everything will be revealed later on. But for now, let's focus on this problem."
"What if I don't want it to be revealed later?" Elliot found himself asking the question. "What if I want the answers now? What's going to happen? Why would you keep it as a secret? And you all knew? I thought I could–"
Frederick raised his hand and pointed his index and middle finger at Elliot's forehead. He clicked his tongue and fired a pale flame towards Elliot, knocking him unconscious.
"How much does he know?" Luck walked over them, crossing his arm while he used his right leg to lift Elliot, raising him up and pushing his body so he could carry Elliot over his shoulder. "
"I don't know how much but he already has three of them," Lance said. His wound was now fully healed and he could sit up without flinching. "If he gains another one, it will be harder to bring him back."
"As long as you won't die, we can still see the paths," Frederick said. He conjured flames under his boots so he could float, looking at Lance and quirking his brow. "So, don't die."
Frederick fired himself to the roof where Malice was. He got there but only saw a chunk of black soil and the two unconscious lovers. He walked over the soil and examined it, verifying if it was the clone of Malice.
He touched the soil and it suddenly lit up, a black figure appearing above it. Frederick raised his right hand and slammed it against the figure's chest, spreading his flames to engulf the shadowy woman.
As the figure attempted to croak, the sky brightened. Malice's spell was now cancelled, meaning that her clone was defeated. Frederick glanced at the ground where everyone was hustling to retrieve the wounded and heal them.
He found himself falling to what remained of the roof, sighing as he watched over the unconscious Elliot from below.
"Do you need my help?" a cloaked woman said from behind him. Frederick nodded and pointed at Elliot, "Him. Make him forget the memories from the past 5 minutes."
"Everything or just certain parts?" the woman asked.
"Just the part where he opened his friend's chest. You can do the job, right Sittie?" Frederick turned and saw the girl nod. "And the other boy, make him forget about two minutes in his memory. Ed saw Elliot running to Lance and what happened next. Delete that."
"You're still keeping them as a secret from him," Sittie said. "I have no intentions to pry over your business but sooner or later, he will find out."
"And sooner or later, he will," Frederick deadpanned. "Now do your job."
He threw a rolled parchment towards her. It is was the quest for the girl.
"Consider it done," Sittie said and leaped behind the building, starting her job.
Meanwhile Connor, Hope and Ed huddled over Elliot's bed. He was transferred to the infirmary after Luck declared him as wounded. The three tried to look for Lance but Luck said he was going to his father.
"How did he got his injury, again?" Connor asked. "The ground was safe. There were no debris, attack or enemy there."
"A Forest Folk woke up Lance," Luck said. "Elliot helped him and ended up getting injured himself. The guy slammed his mallet on Elliot's shoulder."
"Ed, you were with Elliot, what happened?" Connot turned to his friend.
When Ed was about to reply, a healer rushed over them and shoved Ed to let herself pass. She took his hand and pulled him to the side, same with Hope and Connor.
"Excuse me, I have to heal him," the girl said and placed her hands on Elliot's temples. A light green light emitted from her hands and let Elliot recover.
"So?" Connor turned to Ed. "What happened?"
"Well, Elliot suddenly disappeared and–" Ed stopped, thinking of the events that happened right before his very eyes. "Elliot ran towards Lance and he…"
Ed pouted, scrunching his brow as the confusion washed over him. He tried and tried to remember what happened but somehow, he couldn't.
"Ed?" Connor snapped his fingers right in front of Ed's face to get his attention. "What happened next?"
"I-I can't seem to remember," Ed said and gasped. "Why can't I remembered?"
"It is done," the woman said and bowed to Luck. "Let him rest for the rest of the day and the succeeding three days. His body is exhausted."
Luck quirked his brow at her but nodded. "Alright. Thank you, healer."
The girl bowed and excused herself. As she rushed outside, Ed couldn't help but glance at her.
"Is this APRIL?" another girl walked over and asked.
Ed looked around and pointed at Elliot, "Him?"
The girl held a clipboard and she lowered it, sighing. "Yes. He's the only one who looks like a patient so it should be obvious, right?"
"Who are you?" Connor asked.
The girl sighed again, but answered. "I'm the healer of APRIL, real name Elliot Max."
"But the healer just went to…" Er trailed off and looked at the other two. "Sh*t!"
The three of them ran outside the door and into the halls. The woman who said she would heal Elliot was not a healer. They didn't know what her intention was but the fact that she lied said that her intention was not good.
"I'll go check on the hallways and rooms in this floor, Ed you take lobby and the first floor, Hope check the roof," Connor commanded. When the two nodded, he made his way to the closest room and opened it.
Finding that it was empty, Connor continued looking at the other rooms. He had his sword in his right hand and positioned it so if anyone tries to surprise him, he would be ready.
"Hello?" Connor asked out loud, knocking, opening, and closing doors as he did. "Where are you, and what have you done to Elliot?"
He tried his best to find the culprit but every room he pass, his hope was slowly get slimmer.
As Connor continued scouring the sedond floor, Ed had arrived at the first floor and checked in with the clerk. She said she hasn't seen any suspicious woman come in and if she did, she could've missed it because there were too many people who were injured.
Ed also roamed the first floor, trying to look for clues as to who the woman was or what she needed. The fact that she could've killed Elliot easily and could just let him pretend that he was slipping crossed Ed's mind.
If she really had the intention to kill, she would've done it. But her doing otherwise says there's something more to the story than his group knows.
Ed had decided that he would tell Lance about this and his guess after they were done. But for now, they had to focus on Elliot and how he could recover his energy and strength.
"Where are you?" Hope asked out loud while checking the fourth barrel. "Why are there so many barrels in this rooftop?"
Hope proceeded to walk around, over the other roofs in case the woman leaped there. When he saw nothing, he turned and saw Madam Hoot at the edge of the rooftop.
"M-Madam Hoot!" Hope yelled. "Weren't you caught?"
"I saw a well…" Madam Hoot trailed off, looking at the ground over the railing. "A day after the attack I saw a well. There was a voice inside the well."
"Madam Hoot?" Hope slowly walked over to where the woman was.
"She said she'd give me power to avenge my people," Madam Hoot continued. She gripped the railing as tears slowly fall from her eyes. "Me, being blinded by anger, agreed. And then that was when she filled my mind with all the thoughts. All the plans, and filled my heart all the darkness. Just so she could find the boy."
"The boy?" Hope asked.
Madam Hoot turned, her eyes were now pitch black. She grinned and walked one leg over the railing.
"The boy who wields light and darkness in his hands…" she gasped for air. "Kid, you must protect your friend. Malice will come to kill him if you don't do–"
Madam Hoot took a sharp breath. "Too late."
Just when her other foot was thrown off the railing, a sphere of green light encased her, bringing her back to the roof. Fernando walked closer, freeing himself from all the inhibitions.
"Get off my woman, you crazy b*tch!"
Fernando took Madam Hoot's hand and pulled her closer, crashing his lips against her own.
"I love you, Georgina."