Chapter 618: Projection
By the time the Cathedral’s reinforcements arrived at the scene, Wayne was already sprawled on the open ground between two ruined houses in the courtyard, feeling as if he had turned into a piece of cured meat.
After those short, linear ‘soft whips’ struck him, Wayne also experienced the symptoms described by Connal, the number one casualty of the night:
“like ants gnawing and spreading,” “loss of sensation in the gnawed areas,” and what Connal hadn’t mentioned, “a gradual dissipation of all strength throughout the body.”
However, this was not the direct reason for Wayne’s current collapse; the invisible ‘eye’ within Wayne could absorb the extraordinary power contained in those short lines in reverse.
The real reason for his collapse was that he had absorbed too much at once after helping everyone at the scene with first aid…
He felt as if his entire body had been cured with salt, and he was even bloated.
There was a nauseating, sickening sensation, like eating a lethal amount of salt up to his throat.
“The holy ointment that Merlin brought is more effective at clearing curses, but it doesn’t work as quickly as your purification ability. If you hadn’t provided first aid, many people would have probably been sacrificed in that last attack.”
Inessa had just finished her work and walked over to Wayne, lowering her head and, while she was at it, feeding him another mouthful of holy water. “Are you feeling alright now?”
“I should be fine after lying down a bit longer, nothing serious.” Wayne turned his head to look over. People were coming and going around the almost flattened wooden shack, and the Cathedral’s personnel were taking over the aftermath work. “How are the others?”
Inessa showed a comforting smile: “All the on-site treatments were very timely. Currently, it seems there are no seriously injured, but it might take some time for their physical strength and condition to fully recover. Moreover, Coatle seemed to have focused its gaze at the moment the curse erupted, so we’ll need to confirm if there are any lingering effects in the next two days. All in all, the situation is already very optimistic.”
Wayne’s gaze fell on her face, “What about you?”
“I can still hold on, there shouldn’t be any problems.” Just then, a monk carrying a stretcher passed by, and Inessa spoke concisely, lowering her voice slightly.
Inessa had just quietly refused Wayne’s first aid. Due to the urgent situation at the time and the constant presence of Cathedral personnel, Wayne hadn’t been able to ask for too many details.
However, the meaning Inessa vaguely conveyed was quite clear: although the curse that erupted earlier would also have a negative impact on her, it could also fundamentally weaken the ‘restraint’ the Exorcist Association had placed on her. Therefore, this became a dynamic balance problem of ‘one receding as the other grows,’ a competition to see who, she or the restraint, could better withstand the damage.
Lina also came over at this time, carrying a small can of holy ointment that she didn’t know whose hands she had ‘borrowed’ it from. She looked like she was assisting with on-site first aid, but in reality, the surface of that can of holy ointment was still smooth, in a ‘just opened but 99% new’ state.
She, on the other hand, belonged to the type who ‘absolutely didn’t need Wayne’s help with first aid.’ After the curse erupted and she saw everyone fall, she almost waited a second before following suit and collapsing, her condition even better than Wayne’s at the time.
“Hmm…” Lina pondered for a moment, then hesitantly held the can of holy ointment to Wayne’s mouth, “Do you want to eat a couple of mouthfuls?”
Wayne’s face was full of black lines: “It’s a sticky lump, can this stuff be eaten?”
Lina thought for a moment, “Then… should Hark add it to your food these next few days?”
That’s not the problem, alright!
It’s unclear what kind of oil it’s made from, and the specific processing is unknown. How can an external medicine be easily taken orally?
But then again, if it’s clean and hygienic and won’t lose effectiveness at high temperatures, then stocking up on some chili oil might not be impossible either…
Noticing Merlin being helped closer by someone, Wayne didn’t rush to complain, instead turning his head to greet him with his gaze.
After Merlin approached, he, like a patient about to be discharged, expressed his gratitude for Wayne’s first aid on behalf of himself and his cursed subordinates, and Wayne naturally responded politely while lying on the ground.
After a friendly exchange of pleasantries, Merlin found an excuse to temporarily dismiss the monk who was assisting him. He stood with effort, his expression slightly more serious:
“Although I am very grateful for your actions tonight, Wayne, according to my understanding, the firepower configuration of your Detective Agency clearly exceeds the scope permitted by all circles in Richmond. You should be more ‘moderate’ in this regard…”
Wayne understood that for a ‘proper person’ like Merlin, this was already slightly beyond his acceptable limits. If it were normal times, he would probably be reprimanded.
Fortunately, he had at least shown goodwill now, willing to ‘loosen the reins a bit’ for the Detective Agency, so Wayne thought for a moment and decided to seize the opportunity to push further.
However, before Wayne could speak, Lina, who had already quietly capped and put away the can of holy ointment, spoke first: “This is actually quite normal. Wayne used to be a Sheriff in a small town, and people from their hometown in the West are all like this.”
Hey, that’s not how you put it, alright…
Merlin was clearly a bit surprised upon hearing this: “Can the public safety in the West be so bad?”
Lina nodded, “Even Hark, the pastor in Wayne’s town, carries high explosives with him when he goes out, and he uses them whenever he encounters bandit gangs in the wilderness. We’ve all seen it. If you don’t believe me, ask Inessa; she was there too.”
Merlin had great trust in Inessa’s character and professionalism, and his gaze of confirmation immediately turned to her.
Inessa was slightly stunned, then hesitantly nodded, “There was indeed such an incident, but…”
Lina had already interrupted Inessa at this point, spreading her hands towards Merlin, “You see, even a pastor from the church becomes like this when they go to the West.”
“I saw relevant content while reviewing your Detective Agency’s files. That Pastor Hark seems to have only recently transferred to Kankakee. I didn’t expect…”
Merlin certainly couldn’t criticize an outsourced pastor of the church casually. He continued hesitantly, “If it’s influenced by the environment and customs, it’s understandable… I’ll see if I can find a way to help you complete the relevant procedures on paper, but Wayne, you also need to ensure that lever-action rifles and high explosives are absolutely not circulated to ordinary people.”
You can actually do that?!
But then again, Inessa’s bolt-action rifle and high explosives had actually arrived in Blackstone Town with the church people at the time. Pastor Hark even equipped himself with dual pistols, indicating that the church indeed had some special privileges in this regard, otherwise, the items couldn’t have been transported all the way from the East Coast.
Previously, with Bishop Corleone’s special permission, the Detective Agency didn’t have to worry about being troubled in such a small place. Now that the Bishop had changed, if some procedures could be completed, they should be, to avoid being caught off guard later.
Wayne quickly expressed his gratitude, “Then I’ll leave it to Merlin.”
At this moment, the monk responsible for assisting Merlin had returned. Merlin nodded slightly: “The investigation of the plague was arranged by the Bishop, and he should also be aware of your Detective Agency’s situation. I’ll submit a report internally, and it might not be difficult to add a record.”
Compared to applying from scratch, this kind of ‘get on the bus first, then buy the ticket’ matter might not even require the Bishop’s personal approval. A decision could probably be made directly at a certain level within the Cathedral, after all, Inessa already had permission to use heavy firepower. Now it’s only considered a slight expansion of the scope of users.
But it also happened to be useful for observing Tiriel’s current attitude towards the Detective Agency. If Merlin’s application were rejected, then some matters would probably need to be planned for early.
Wayne let the conversation continue, “Thank you. You should go back and rest first. If our situation is still good, we’ll come back as early as tomorrow to continue the investigation.”
Merlin nodded: “Indeed… Even Coatle’s projection has appeared. That fellow’s status in the Silent Church must be quite high. He likely has accomplices in the Dock Area.”
