Mystery: The Undead Don't Die from Linking the Fire

Chapter 148: Surprised? Unexpected?

North of Backlund, on the outskirts.

After the afternoon tarot session, Fors and Hugh arrived here by carriage. Today was not only Monday, the day of the tarot session, but also the night of the full moon, a day when members of the Abraham family were required to receive 'healing'.

The carriage drove straight into a vast manor, stopping outside the main house along with dozens of other carriages of various kinds. Then, she and Fors each led a petite and adorable little girl into the main house.

"Miss Fors."

As soon as he stepped through the gate, Dorian Gray greeted him with a broad smile. He looked around and hesitated before asking, "Has Mr. Ash still not returned?"

Fors saw through Dorian's thoughts and smiled slightly:

"He's back, but he doesn't want to be bothered by these trivial matters, so I will still be in charge of the 'treatment' afterwards."

Not only was she responsible for the treatment, but she was also in charge of subsequent liaison with the Abraham family. However, Fors did not say it explicitly, because she believed that Dorian would understand her unspoken meaning.

"Is that so?"

Disappointment was evident in Dorian's eyes as he smiled wryly, "To him, perhaps these are indeed just trivial matters."

Fors subtly revealed a slightly displeased expression, seemingly because she had discerned Dorian's thoughts—although Fors had proven she also possessed the ability to 'heal,' Ember was clearly more trustworthy in Dorian's eyes than Fors, a 'beginner.'

Of course, in Fors's view, there was an even more convenient way to "heal" someone: to pray to Mr. Fool for protection. Compared to the method of having to gather together to use "healing tears," praying to Mr. Fool had no strings attached; they could pray anytime, anywhere, without having to make a special trip to Backlund.

This might be the true meaning of the prophecy made by Abraham's family: "Only fire and the fool can save Abraham." However, neither Fors nor Hugh would tell Abrahams about this. After all, they had their own selfish motives.

Dorian, of course, had no idea what Fors was thinking; he simply hesitated and asked:

"Miss Fors, how many more times can you use your healing abilities?"

"More than ten more times."

Fors asked calmly, "Even if it's used up, it can be recorded again. Is there any problem?"

Dorian remained silent for a long time before speaking slowly but firmly:

"I hope to take this opportunity to try and be promoted to a Sequence 6 recorder."

"Has your potion been completely digested?" Fors asked instinctively.

"Yes," Dorian said with a self-deprecating laugh.

"It's not just me; many family members have already digested the potion. After all, we've been stuck at Sequence 7 for far too long."

Fors's eyes were unreadable; she wasn't actually surprised by the outcome. After all, for the Abraham family, who possessed a complete apprenticeship path and acting techniques, mastering the potion wasn't the end goal. The biggest obstacle to their advancement was the curse originating from their bloodline!

It's important to understand that even for ordinary Beyonders, the higher their Beyond sequence, the greater the risk of losing control. But for the Abrahams, tormented by the curse, their risk is far greater than that of ordinary Beyonders! This is because not only during the full moon, but also when they attempt to raise their Beyond sequence, delirium descends simultaneously, and the madness of this delirium far surpasses that of the full moon!

At lower sequences, the Abrahams could endure the delirium with their strong willpower and the help of magical items. However, once they attempted to advance to Sequence 6, which truly served as the threshold to the middle sequences, the terror of the delirium they suffered increased exponentially.

This has resulted in the Abraham family never producing a true mid-sequence extraordinary being for thousands of years. Even members of the council like Dorian are at most Sequence 7, because those extraordinary beings who tried to advance to Sequence 6 have long since lost control in their delirium!

The reason he's willing to try for advancement now is because Fors possesses healing tears that can cure delirium. This ability might help him during the advancement process, allowing him to overcome the most difficult curse.

Fors wasn't surprised by this, as it was evident from the legacy of the Abraham family. Even burdened by a curse, the Abraham family had never settled for mediocrity over the past millennia. Even after splitting into smaller families and scattering across the world, most of them hadn't abandoned their traditions. Otherwise, they wouldn't have maintained such a formidable number of extraordinary individuals—hundreds—despite the curse.

They hadn't tried for promotion before because they knew it would mean certain death. But now, the likes of Abraham had a chance to gamble, and they certainly wouldn't let it slip by. The only problem was that this opportunity wasn't in their own hands—

Because the only person who possesses the ability to heal through babbling is Ember, and besides him, only Fors, who has Lemanor's travel notes and can record these abilities.

Fors remained silent for a long time, then suddenly asked:

"You must have other magical items created using the extraordinary properties of the Recorders, right?"

The Abrahamic family, capable of casually giving away such a wondrous item as the Lemanor Travel Notes, had no reason not to possess other extraordinary items of the same type.

"have."

Dorian nodded and said frankly, "There are at least five more magical items of the same type, but I can assure you that no Abraham tried to secretly record this ability during the last treatment."

"What's the use of just talking? Even if you guys secretly record it, I still won't know," Fors muttered to himself.

Of course, Fors was just making a sarcastic remark. She knew Dorian had no reason to lie to her; after all, the initiative was in her hands. If a member of the Abraham family secretly used similar extraordinary items to record the healing of tears, Fors could use that as a reason to refuse further treatment.

Even if the Abrahams successfully recorded the healing tears, it wouldn't last. Each recording is an iteration, and each iteration only has 80% of the effect of the previous one. This means the recorded "healing tears" will only become less effective over time, not to mention that the success rate of this iteration isn't 100%!

With each iteration leading to failed records and diminishing effects, the Abraham family will soon lose their ability to heal, at which point they will have to turn back to Fors and Ember for help. And once there's a precedent of betrayal, the difficulty of obtaining help again is self-evident.

What Fors understood, the members of the Abraham family certainly understood as well—rather than risking a falling out by secretly recording abilities, it was better to be honest. That's why Dorian was here, proactively revealing his desire for advancement to Fors in order to seek her help. Of course, this was also a test, a probe of Fors's attitude towards their advancement.

"Can."

Fors nodded slightly and said frankly, "But let me make it clear beforehand, I am only responsible for using the ability, and not for anything else. Because I am not sure whether 'Healing Tears' can eliminate the babbling heard during the promotion, Mr. Dorian, you have to weigh the risks of the promotion yourself."

"Thank you for your help, Ms. Fors."

Dorian chuckled softly, his voice low but his eyes unusually firm, and said gently, "As for the risks, they are unavoidable, but I am prepared, and each of us is prepared to sacrifice ourselves for the family. If something happens to me, Verdu will take my place and represent the Abraham family in dealings with you."

Fors nodded silently, then seemed to suddenly remember something and reminded him:

"Do you have any leads on Mr. X, whom I mentioned before?"

Dorian paused for two seconds, his previously relaxed and carefree expression suddenly turning serious, and he said in a deep voice:

"Based on the portrait you provided, Ms. Fors, we can be fairly certain that this is one of those who betrayed Abraham and joined the Aurora Society. Considering their strength at the time of their defection, this Mr. X is very likely my student, Louis Wayne. This man is extremely dangerous; if you encounter him again, remember to avoid him!"

How dangerous is it?

"Hugh asked in return."

As an Arbitrator with a Sequence 7 pathway, she can effortlessly memorize anyone's face and image and accurately recreate it. The Abrahams determined the identity of Mr. X based on the portrait she provided—although he wore a mask at the party, his figure and height could not be concealed, after all, he was not a faceless man.

Dorian glanced at the short woman and gave her some instructions:

"When he betrayed us, he was already a recorder, and now he might even be a traveler. You should already know what the abilities of an apprentice-level traveler and recorder are; often, he's even more difficult to deal with than some demigods!"

Hugh and Fors exchanged a glance and immediately understood.

The 'Recorder' can record a demigod's full-force attack, while the 'Traveler' grants the opponent a speed that most demigods cannot achieve. Against certain types of demigods, the Sequence 5 'Traveler' can easily escape, and even has the potential to turn the tables! Of course, this is only a possibility. After all, every demigod possesses immense power, and even without the 'Traveler''s agility, they are not easily defeated.

As they spoke, they were led by Dorian to the gathering hall. Hundreds of extraordinary members of the Abraham family were gathered together, and unlike the anxiety and tension they felt at the villa outside Pulitzer Harbor, the Abrahams, having already undergone one treatment, were full of confidence in this one, so the atmosphere was much better.

They gathered in small groups, sitting or standing, chatting about various things. Some took pastries and fruits from the self-service tables, while those seeking a brief escape from the noise went to the balconies attached to the hall, gazing at the garden scenery and the twilight sky. They were not worried about the approaching red moon and the curse, for the Abrahams already had a way to combat it!

Fors affectionately ruffled the little girl's hair beside him and asked with concern:

"Kurara, what would you like to eat?"

"Hmm~"

The adorable little girl tilted her head up and whispered, "Ice cream."

Fors hesitated for a moment, glancing at the table. While there were various exquisite pastries on it, there was no ice cream. After all, it was December, winter. Even though the temperature in Backlund rarely dropped below zero, it was far from warm, and probably no chef would have imagined anyone wanting to eat ice cream in winter…

"I'll instruct the kitchen immediately..."

Before Dorian could speak, a girl next to him who had also heard the request lit up and immediately said, "I can make ice cream. We have the ingredients in the kitchen, we can start right now, but I need two magicians to help me!"

"Me! Me! Me!"

"I'll do it! I've already advanced to Sequence 8, and I'm more skilled with spells than you!"

"Come on! Anyone can make ice! It's not like it requires a huge skill level!"

The young men and women nearby immediately brightened up, eagerly raising their hands. Ultimately, three lucky individuals were chosen by the girl and followed her into the kitchen. As for their use—while the Magician wasn't particularly combat-oriented, one of his abilities was the ability to rapidly cool and freeze water. Although winter was already cold, relying solely on the weather to make ice cream was clearly impractical. And while the Magician's ability wouldn't be very useful in combat, it would certainly be quite interesting in everyday life.

Dorian retracted what he was about to say and said half-jokingly:

"I think the ice cream should be ready soon, but I'm more curious about your relationship with these two girls. Could they be your daughters?"

It's definitely impossible for them to have a daughter, since they're only in their early twenties. How could they possibly have a daughter who's eleven or twelve years old?

"She's a nanny, no, a bodyguard," Fors said seriously.

"oh."

Dorian nodded knowingly, guessing that one of their relatives was too busy to take care of the child and had entrusted the child to them.

She took two delicate pastries from the plate and fed Kuraris while reminding her:

"Weren't you followed when you came?"

Mr. X's presence in Backlund stemmed from his awareness of the gathering of Abraham family members there. While Hugh and Fors could ensure they left no trace, the Abraham family members might not be able to be so discreet.

For example, Dorian, and Mr. X is his apprentice. They only need to meet once, and Mr. X will likely recognize Dorian and then follow him all the way to this manor. The Abraham family, however, has brought over a hundred people, and all of them could potentially be followed!

"Won't."

Dorian replied in a more relaxed tone, "Many of our members arrived in Backlund a month ago and most of them moved directly into this manor upon arrival. The purchase of food and supplies is handled by our hired servants. After receiving your reminder, I also promptly warned the others to avoid going out as much as possible and not to use their abilities. Since those traitors joined the Aurora Society, we've often played 'hide-and-seek' with them, so we're quite adept at dealing with them. And..."

Dori paused, his smile fading, and said in a deep voice, "This situation won't last long!"

If he can successfully advance to Sequence 6, it means that the Abrahams can temporarily ignore the curse and continue to advance! There are quite a few members in the family who have been stuck at Sequence 7 for a long time, which means that the family can have multiple Sequence 6 Extraordinaries in a short period of time!

Once a Sequence 6 'Record Officer' is established, an Extraordinary individual through the 'Apprentice' pathway can truly possess combat power. Furthermore, by leveraging the magical items held by their family, Sequence 6 Record Officers can also acquire a far greater range of Extraordinary abilities than other Extraordinary individuals.

Once someone successfully advances to Sequence 6, Sequence 5 and even Sequence 4 will no longer be out of reach as time goes by! Among the extraordinary individuals who betrayed Abraham, the strongest is still only Sequence 4, because they did not master the potion recipe for Sequence 3 of the Apprentice Path.

This also means that as long as Abraham can have his own demigod, they will no longer have to hide and run away like they do now! With a demigod, they will have the ability to fight against the Aurora Society, and even have the opportunity to take back the lost sealed artifacts from those traitors!

Perhaps one day, they will truly be able to make Abraham great again!

"Oh? Is that so?"

A mocking voice suddenly rang out in the living room, instantly causing everyone in the hall to tense up and instinctively look in the direction from which the sound came. On the balcony, bathed in the twilight, a figure stood there, seemingly out of nowhere.

He was of medium height, with a dark complexion, and about 1.75 meters tall. He wore a black classical robe, a pointed country wizard's hat, and a brass-like mask over his face, giving him an ancient and mysterious air.

Dorian froze, a chill running down his spine. Although the mask obscured the man's features, he recognized him instantly—Louis Wayne!

In the betrayal of Abraham by his apprentices many years ago, this very student, who was once his most prized possession, was one of the masterminds!

Dorian's expression stiffened and turned bitter. He had just confidently assured the two ladies that he wouldn't be followed. The fact that they had followed him to his doorstep was a blatant slap in the face.

He didn't care about his old face, but how could the other party have followed him all the way here just to slap him in the face? Over the years, these traitors have never forgotten to search for the traces of the Abraham family, wasn't it all for the purpose of exterminating the Abrahams?

Louis Wayne's lips curled into a slight smile. He adjusted his hat and strolled into the hall with the leisurely air of a gentleman, even waving and smiling at Dorian.

"Professor Dorian, it's been so long! I miss you dearly. How are you doing?"

(End of this chapter)