Be Gentle

"What are you guys doing for food, this can be mixed in and steal a 4th-rank seal?"

In the inn, Witcher, who had found a drop of mercury through a crack in the floor, stood up and turned his head to look at the few people behind him.

Looking at the drop of silver liquid on his finger, the faces of the acolytes were very ugly.

"The whole thing was planned by the other side... do you recognize this spell-casting material?"

"Not impressed."

Eleazar replied absently but was a little taken aback.

This kind of material he had seen once.

In that Black Rose Tavern.

This is the Secret Mage's mannequin!

How can you fake it to such an extent?

Inwardly pondering in silence, his face showed no abnormality as he watched the acolyte still investigating other clues, and left early.

Coming outside into the dimly lit street, Eleazar looked up again at the seven-colored clouds drifting across the sky, and the knot of holy light that buckled back down like a large bowl.

The entire city has been sealed off by holy light.

To hunt down the secret mage who stole the 4th level seal.

This natural phenomenon, disguised by the Church as being like a polar day, has the city's residents talking.

Eleazar looked around again out of habit, then let out a soft 'eep'.

I came to the newsstand on the side of the road, paid for a cup of hot milk, and went to sit on the bench next to it.

"You've got a lot of nerve, too."

Eleazar stares ahead and speaks to himself as if to air.

At the other end of the bench, an old man who seemed to be waiting for a bus leaned on his cane.

In the middle of the day, a husky female voice drifted over.

"It can't be helped that the things we seek are always so fraught with risk."

Eleazar held up his glass and said lightly, "And what makes you so sure I won't turn you in?"

"How can someone who can go through fire for his beloved Miko have bad intentions~"

The mannequin grinned, "I did a little research ..."

"Pfft!!!" A head sprayed with silver liquid flew up.

Witcher, whose figure didn't seem to move, but was holding a silver sword and gently caressing it, spoke with an unmistakable indifference.

"I can pretend I didn't see anything this time, but the next time you show up in front of me..."

"You will die!!!"

At his warning, the mercury mannequin's body melted into a liquid that quickly flowed clean from the roadside sewer.

Eleazar stands up, picks up the mercury head, casually removes his jacket and wraps it up, then takes out his mind ring and puts it back on, casting a mind suggestion spell on the already dumbfounded-looking newsstand vendor.

Back in the bright white light of the church, the cardinal who was maintaining the holy light boundary slowly looked up.

"Hard work."

Eleazar blurted back, "I'm ready to go back."

"You can leave anytime you want."

Permission to pass was granted and Eleazar turned around with the package.

After getting on a night train and waiting quietly to drive out of the holy light-blocked city, he threw his jacket right out the window.

"Get out!!!"

In the bright night air behind them, that jacket wrap slowly unraveled in the air, and a spinning, flopping head was exposed.

Mercury's head kept bouncing off the ground like a leather ball, tumbling to the weeds by the side of the road for a long time before he stopped falling.

Lying back in the weeds, she looked behind her at the distant train and grinned.

"Thanks..."

The Secret Mage, who had blocked off the entire city in pursuit, was thus taken out of a mannequin to the outskirts of the city.

After that, Eleazar doesn't care what means his opponent has to use to escape.

And not bothering to care why she was stealing that seal.

The other party's favor of taking in and resettling the witch was completely cleared. Perhaps the next time they met again, they might be enemies in arms.

...

...

The next day, stepping into the dim light of day, Eleazar quickly made his way back to the church in Dallon City.

First, he replenished the cursed armor, which had sunk deep into his flesh and blood and was beginning to recoil, with a good dose of holy light, and then he came back to the cafeteria.

Drinking five cups of Sacred Energy Juice in a row in one breath completely stabilized the transcendental activity in his body that was on the verge of going out of control.

"Whew~"

Eleazar let out a relieved breath, then looked up to see the cleric who was mixing the stabilizer looking at him like he'd seen a ghost.

"Everyone has a drink, you want a pot?"

"No way!"

With a heartfelt retort, Eleazar walked out of the church.

He didn't want to drink the stuff, his body demanded a magic potion!

But what to configure for the next magic potion, he didn't have a clue until now.

That dragon's tooth hasn't been determined if it will work or not.

And the other main material, still in the hands of that damn woman.

Eleazar took a deep breath and pushed open the office door in front of him.

Inside, the two women who were scrutinizing one thing looked up.

Qishi then smiled lightly and leaned back in his chair.

"Yo, the big hero is back~"

Ignoring the implied teasing, Eleazar glanced at the object on the tabletop.

A head soaked in solution, with five senses that seemed to be overflowing with endless black mist.

The lost head of the Headless Horseman, a legendary and precious material.

Like the harsh formation conditions of the Headless Horseman, the formation of this material is very rare.

It had to be a quick kill that was taken to eliminate the Headless Horseman before the other party could retrieve his head, which would allow all of those unwillingly fading transcendent traits to converge back into this head.

"It was sent here by order of the Cardinal."

Qishi smiled faintly and pushed the container.

"I heard you came back all night without even taking the loot?"

"That's not like you~"

Eleazar grimaced, "You know what I want!"

The Headless Horseman's head was precious, but his father had already saved him one, and he didn't need a second one for his rituals and magic potions.

"Oh? You do want this after all, don't you~"

Qishi pulls the vial of Time Dragonscale Hourglass that dangles around his neck from his collar.

The room was silent for a moment, then the air suddenly burst as the carpet fell against the door with a 'pop', and all the clutter on the tabletop was lifted off the floor as an arm broke through the air, its palm grasping at the hourglass viciously.

The nun, whose skirt was swept up by the wind, gripped the scythe that appeared momentarily in her hand and slashed down heavily with an annoyed look on her face.

"Dang!"

A flash of fire lit up, and an arm covered in black armor lifted at some point, casually blocking the blade.

Looking at the claws coming towards his chest, Qishi smiled faintly and turned the hourglass upside down.

The colors in the room faded instantly, frozen in time, and frozen in a bursting stance, Witcher, left leg stomping straight, right leg knee braced on the tabletop, sliding, one hand raised to block, one hand straightened to snatch, two fingers barely holding the hourglass, flipping it back with all his might.

The force of time that seemed to weigh ten thousand pounds on his body then faded away.

Regaining his ability to move freely, Eleazar grimaced as he held the other end of the hourglass in a death grip.

Qishi raises the corners of his mouth slightly, then lets go of his hand.

"Gently~"