Mr. Death in the Steam World

The door had barely been pushed open a crack when a dark shadow darted down the stairs.

"Wow, what an adorable cat!"

Phils's eyes lit up instantly. She crouched down and reached out her hand to Lucy.

"Mimi, come here, come here—"

Lucy glanced at her.

That look in his eyes, how should I put it, carried two parts indifference, three parts disdain, and four parts "Who are you?"

It turned gracefully, its rear end facing Phils, flicked its tail tip, and walked unhurriedly toward Arthur.

Phils froze on the spot.

"Did it just give me a dirty look?"

Moen opened his mouth, about to say something to comfort her, when Lucy had already walked to Arthur's feet.

The black cat tilted its head back, stared at Arthur for two seconds, and then—

"Meow--!"

The sound was sharp and short, exactly like the one it had used to warn Clara that afternoon.

Arthur looked down at it, a hint of surprise flashing in his gray-green eyes.

Lucy cried out again, this time louder, and scratched the floor with her claws, leaving a few shallow scratches.

Then it ran up the stairs without looking back and disappeared from the three people's sight.

Moen glanced at the direction of the stairs, then at Arthur.

Lucy's reaction just now... does he hate Arthur?

interesting.

Arthur looked away from the stairs, shrugged, and his expression remained unchanged.

"Let's go see our patients."

Moen didn't press the matter; now was not the time to investigate why a cat disliked a priest.

The three of them went upstairs.

Before he even reached the bedroom door, Moen heard a cough.

The sound was different from that in the afternoon. In the afternoon, it was just a couple of light coughs, but now, the cough was rapid and muffled.

Clara's face turned even paler, and a fine layer of cold sweat appeared on her forehead.

"Clara!"

Moen rushed to the bedside, knelt down, and took her hand; that little hand was ice cold.

Clara coughed a few more times before finally catching her breath.

She looked up and saw Moen's face. Her pale lips moved, and she managed a weak smile.

"Brother...you're back..."

Then she saw two people standing at the door: a strange man in a black priest's robe and a beautiful woman with long silver hair.

"Who are they?"

Moen's hands trembled slightly as he suppressed the self-reproach welling up inside him and forced a smile.

"This uncle and this sister are your brother's friends; they will try to cure you."

Clara's gaze swept between Arthur and Phils, then she nodded obediently.

"Thank you, Uncle, thank you, Sister, thank you for your trouble."

Phils's eyes immediately reddened.

She turned her head away, blinked hard, and then quickly walked to the bedside.

"It's no trouble at all." Her voice trembled slightly, but she tried to make it sound steady and gentle.

"Your name is Clara, right? I'm your older sister, Phils. How are you feeling? Is anything bothering you?"

Clara thought for a moment, then answered seriously, "My chest feels tight, my throat feels itchy, and..."

She hesitated for a moment, then said softly, "It's a little cold."

"Clara, be good. Let me let you sleep for a while, okay? Once you're asleep, you won't feel uncomfortable anymore."

Clara glanced at Moen, and Moen nodded at her.

"Okay." She obediently closed her eyes.

A soft light shone from Phils's hand, slowly enveloping Clara's entire body.

After Clara fell asleep, she took a step back, a thin layer of sweat beading on her forehead, clearly indicating that this seemingly simple procedure was quite taxing.

Arthur had been standing at the foot of the bed since he entered the room, without moving, his gaze fixed on Clara.

"Ignis, step back."

Phils did as she was told.

Arthur raised his right hand, joined his index and middle fingers together, and slowly drew a cross on his chest.

At the same time, a series of words lit up beneath his feet. Although Moen couldn't understand them, he could sense an aura of sacredness and inviolability from them.

The invisible cross coalesced in the air, radiating a sacred light.

Fils murmured, "This is the priest's specialty—divine magic."

The moment the cross was fully formed, Arthur gave a gentle push with his wrist.

The silver cross flew silently toward Clara and pierced her chest.

Black smoke immediately billowed from Clara's mouth and nose.

The smoke seeped out in wisps from her seven orifices, making a faint hissing sound upon encountering the holy light before dissipating without a trace.

Clara's complexion immediately improved, and her pale lips regained some color.

Moen paused for a moment, then abruptly turned to Arthur.

"Mr. Arthur—"

He stopped before he could even express his gratitude.

Arthur remained motionless in the pose of extending the cross, his face extremely pale, and uttered a few words.

"That's impossible."

Moen frowned: "What's impossible?"

"How is this possible? How could it be such power? But the effects of the divine magic are far too good—no, this feeling, it must be them."

Arthur lowered his head and muttered to himself, without answering him.

He looked up, his grey-green eyes reflecting the candlelight, like the sea before a storm.

"With such a large scope, from schools to factories, from teachers to female workers, affecting at least hundreds of people, it's impossible for the church not to have discovered it."

"unless--"

He didn't finish his sentence, but Moen understood what he meant.

Unless someone manages to cover this up right under the church's nose.

The only sound in the room was Clara's even breathing.

Phils stood in the corner, opened her mouth as if to say something, but seeing Arthur's expression, she swallowed her words.

Moen knelt by the bed, holding Clara's small hand that had regained its warmth, and looked up at Arthur.

"Mr. Arthur," his voice was calm, "can you tell me now what illness my sister has?"

"I can't say, Marcus, I can't say."

"But I can tell you that you don't need to worry about your sister's condition anymore."

"Perhaps it's because I'm in a good state today that the magic I cast on your sister is particularly effective. Tell her not to go out for the next few days, and then it won't recur."

"Now that the problem has been solved, I'll take my leave."

Unlike his usual composure, Arthur hastily left the agency after uttering a long speech, his face visibly grim.

Feeling awkward being left alone in the room, Phils quickly made up an excuse to leave as well.

Only Moen and Clara remained in the room.

Moen sighed, patted Clara's hair, and was very concerned about Arthur's mutterings.

What kind of power would make a pastor refuse to answer?

Just then, Clara, who should have fallen asleep under the influence of Phils's magic, opened her eyes, her gaze filled with astonishment.

"Brother, brother, that lady's hands were glowing! And that uncle could make a cross in the air! Are they legendary magicians?"

"And why is smoke coming out of my body? After it comes out, I feel better. What's going on?"

「!?」

Moen looked at Clara in shock, while Clara looked back at him with a puzzled expression. The two siblings stared at each other, creating an awkward atmosphere.

Why didn't Phils's sleeping spell work?