The next morning.
Cassian received a final update from Rachel, who had left the capital, on the voodoo practitioner’s whereabouts.
His whereabouts were mysterious, and his last known location was a small southern village in the highlands. Cassian took the time to travel to the village, where he discovered a small mummified body.
The pieces were signs of voodoo, and tracking down the perpetrators of this practice would eventually reveal the full extent of who was responsible.
Perhaps a way to capture the mastermind behind this would appear.
Storing the mummified fragment in an expensive magical pouch, Cassian returned to the palace and made his way to the training grounds, but as soon as he stood in front of the Knights’ camp, Cello appeared, wrapped in a scarf.
The scarf, which had been neatly rolled up, was slightly dampened with dawn dew.
“Tweet!”
“What is this?”
Cello cawed like a crow, as if the scarf was stuffy. Cassian quickly removed the scarf and took the letter.
“…My gift?”
He chuckled lightly. Unexpectedly, he was given a warm scarf.
It was beautifully knitted with orange and green yarn.
‘I see you’re doing well.’
A gift in itself always brings joy, but it was doubly so when Astel, his sister, handmade it for him.
Looking at the scarf, he realized that it would keep him warm, both physically and emotionally, through the winter.
Cassian tied the shawl neatly around his neck and headed back to the arena, pride evident in his step.
“No, what kind of scarf are you wearing to a sword duel?”
“My heart.”
“You’re perfectly crazy, haha!”
For the record, this was a huge compliment.
Cassian raised his sword with a smirk. He had a feeling that today’s duel would go quite well.
…No, it would be a refreshing day if it weren’t for the fact that he had to meet with Duke Anais at the Demon War Strategy Meeting today.
Cassian smiled proudly as he tied his scarf around his neck.
At that very moment, the Duke’s capital mansion was filled with bustling excitement, thanks to the scarf I had worked so hard to knit.
After tucking Rune into bed, I sat down on the couch in the sitting room, only to find Sally and Jenny standing at my side, scarf wrapped tightly around their necks.
“Well, Astel. What do you think, isn’t it pretty?”
Sally grinned as she locked eyes with me.
“Uh, well, you’re cute and pretty, but…”
I swallowed my next sentence with difficulty.
‘Isn’t it a little, hot?’
The Duke’s mansion was very warm, thanks to the heating magic. Sally’s forehead beaded with sweat.
But she clenched her fists and shook her head. Her tail stuck out behind her back, wagging gently.
“Our Astel worked so hard to make me this shawl, and I’m going to wear it forever!”
Jenny muttered gravely next to the beaming Sally.
“Lady Astel, I’ve been researching the murders you ordered me to.”
I noticed that Jenny’s hand was clutching a stack of papers.
Taking the stack of papers from Jenny’s gracious hand, I nodded furtively.
“Thank you!”
“I didn’t realize that Lady Astel was so interested in murder cases or mystery novels!”
I retorted, tightening my grip on the wad of paper.
‘I’m not interested, I’m terrified!’
…But I had to pretend I was interested if I didn’t want to look suspicious.
“You’re so funny! And so interesting to figure out.”
Two puppies, Sally and Jenny, their eyes sparkled.
‘Telling lies is so difficult. How do I practice?’
Frowning, I dug into the stack of papers clutched in my hands.
I’d been reading up on the capital’s murders, desperate for revenge.
‘Surely voodoo murders in the capital would be in the papers this time of year.’
Eventually, I reached the bottom of the paper, where there was an article about a corpse with no heart and a mummy.
I furrowed my brow and scanned the paper intently, until Jenny whispered to me.
“I don’t know if it’s in the paper yet, but they found a heartless corpse in the capital.”
My head snapped up. This was exactly the information I wanted.
Jenny met my gaze and scratched her head in confusion.
“…It’s all easy, but it seems the word has already spread through the Capital District Guard.”
A body was finally found in the capital!
Overjoyed by the news I had been waiting for and still mourning the loss of the deceased, I paused for a moment to question.
‘Shouldn’t a mummy be found, but hasn’t it been found yet?’
I was a little puzzled, but I shrugged it off.
Having already twisted the future, there was no guarantee that all the events I knew would happen with certainty.
I glared at Jenny, dying of curiosity.
“Did you notice anything unusual about the body, by any chance?”
Jenny opened her mouth as if she’d been waiting for me.
“Well, it seems he was holding onto a strange piece of artwork. It was supposedly lost during the investigation, but it’s strange, isn’t it?”
“Yeah, it’s weird. Why would he have a painting?”
I played it off like I didn’t know anything, but I actually knew why the corpse was holding the painting in his hand.
‘The corpse and the painting are the remains of a voodoo practitioner’s failed attempt to use voodoo.’
To use voodoo to resurrect one’s own body, take the body of the dead, or animate the dead, one needed a medium with powerful magical properties.
To do so, they had to use a few special artifacts, or more precisely, a painting that sealed the power of the ancient voodoo practitioners, called ‘voodoo vessels’.
However, most of the artifacts and the only painting they used were of imperfect enchantment, and the side effects were excruciating. Turning into a mummy was one of them.
The next morning.
Cassian received a final update from Rachel, who had left the capital, on the voodoo practitioner’s whereabouts.
His whereabouts were mysterious, and his last known location was a small southern village in the highlands. Cassian took the time to travel to the village, where he discovered a small mummified body.
The pieces were signs of voodoo, and tracking down the perpetrators of this practice would eventually reveal the full extent of who was responsible.
Perhaps a way to capture the mastermind behind this would appear.
Storing the mummified fragment in an expensive magical pouch, Cassian returned to the palace and made his way to the training grounds, but as soon as he stood in front of the Knights’ camp, Cello appeared, wrapped in a scarf.
The scarf, which had been neatly rolled up, was slightly dampened with dawn dew.
“Tweet!”
“What is this?”
Cello cawed like a crow, as if the scarf was stuffy. Cassian quickly removed the scarf and took the letter.
“…My gift?”
He chuckled lightly. Unexpectedly, he was given a warm scarf.
It was beautifully knitted with orange and green yarn.
‘I see you’re doing well.’
A gift in itself always brings joy, but it was doubly so when Astel, his sister, handmade it for him.
Looking at the scarf, he realized that it would keep him warm, both physically and emotionally, through the winter.
Cassian tied the shawl neatly around his neck and headed back to the arena, pride evident in his step.
“No, what kind of scarf are you wearing to a sword duel?”
“My heart.”
“You’re perfectly crazy, haha!”
For the record, this was a huge compliment.
Cassian raised his sword with a smirk. He had a feeling that today’s duel would go quite well.
…No, it would be a refreshing day if it weren’t for the fact that he had to meet with Duke Anais at the Demon War Strategy Meeting today.
Cassian smiled proudly as he tied his scarf around his neck.
At that very moment, the Duke’s capital mansion was filled with bustling excitement, thanks to the scarf I had worked so hard to knit.
After tucking Rune into bed, I sat down on the couch in the sitting room, only to find Sally and Jenny standing at my side, scarf wrapped tightly around their necks.
“Well, Astel. What do you think, isn’t it pretty?”
Sally grinned as she locked eyes with me.
“Uh, well, you’re cute and pretty, but…”
I swallowed my next sentence with difficulty.
‘Isn’t it a little, hot?’
The Duke’s mansion was very warm, thanks to the heating magic. Sally’s forehead beaded with sweat.
But she clenched her fists and shook her head. Her tail stuck out behind her back, wagging gently.
“Our Astel worked so hard to make me this shawl, and I’m going to wear it forever!”
Jenny muttered gravely next to the beaming Sally.
“Lady Astel, I’ve been researching the murders you ordered me to.”
I noticed that Jenny’s hand was clutching a stack of papers.
Taking the stack of papers from Jenny’s gracious hand, I nodded furtively.
“Thank you!”
“I didn’t realize that Lady Astel was so interested in murder cases or mystery novels!”
I retorted, tightening my grip on the wad of paper.
‘I’m not interested, I’m terrified!’
…But I had to pretend I was interested if I didn’t want to look suspicious.
“You’re so funny! And so interesting to figure out.”
Two puppies, Sally and Jenny, their eyes sparkled.
‘Telling lies is so difficult. How do I practice?’
Frowning, I dug into the stack of papers clutched in my hands.
I’d been reading up on the capital’s murders, desperate for revenge.
‘Surely voodoo murders in the capital would be in the papers this time of year.’
Eventually, I reached the bottom of the paper, where there was an article about a corpse with no heart and a mummy.
I furrowed my brow and scanned the paper intently, until Jenny whispered to me.
“I don’t know if it’s in the paper yet, but they found a heartless corpse in the capital.”
My head snapped up. This was exactly the information I wanted.
Jenny met my gaze and scratched her head in confusion.
“…It’s all easy, but it seems the word has already spread through the Capital District Guard.”
A body was finally found in the capital!
Overjoyed by the news I had been waiting for and still mourning the loss of the deceased, I paused for a moment to question.
‘Shouldn’t a mummy be found, but hasn’t it been found yet?’
I was a little puzzled, but I shrugged it off.
Having already twisted the future, there was no guarantee that all the events I knew would happen with certainty.
I glared at Jenny, dying of curiosity.
“Did you notice anything unusual about the body, by any chance?”
Jenny opened her mouth as if she’d been waiting for me.
“Well, it seems he was holding onto a strange piece of artwork. It was supposedly lost during the investigation, but it’s strange, isn’t it?”
“Yeah, it’s weird. Why would he have a painting?”
I played it off like I didn’t know anything, but I actually knew why the corpse was holding the painting in his hand.
‘The corpse and the painting are the remains of a voodoo practitioner’s failed attempt to use voodoo.’
To use voodoo to resurrect one’s own body, take the body of the dead, or animate the dead, one needed a medium with powerful magical properties.
To do so, they had to use a few special artifacts, or more precisely, a painting that sealed the power of the ancient voodoo practitioners, called ‘voodoo vessels’.
However, most of the artifacts and the only painting they used were of imperfect enchantment, and the side effects were excruciating. Turning into a mummy was one of them.
