Ten apprentice exorcists walked through the lawless land of the Land of Light.

The crumbling ruins silently spoke of Old Belfast's former glory.

It is said that the base of exorcists, night watchers, and investigators is somewhere around here.

Old Belfast did not favor these young first-time visitors; apart from the scarlet sky of delusion, a kind of unsettling mist gradually surrounded them, even the revealing potion couldn't uncover its source, nor could retreating make it disappear.

"The weather seems a bit off."

Yodel belatedly said, "The exorcist's rule says not to step into the strange willingly, maybe we should temporarily return to the camp."

"I agree."

"I think so too."

But only four chose to retreat, the majority did not want to face a humiliating failure on their first event, and they couldn't have a split and internal conflict right after leaving, so they complied with the majority and continued forward.

"We might have deviated from the direction, who will use the living map?" Naveen asked.

"I will."

The youngest, only sixteen-year-old Vaughn, said, his sanity value was higher than others.

Vaughn reached into the stomach bag, took the living map potion, lifted his outer garment, and his spine curved from the pain.

Scar-like granulation protruded, presenting a map formed from flesh and blood.

"We haven't deviated, this is the Bow and Arrow District, we are indeed moving along the planned route." Porter pointed vaguely at the edge of the map, having committed the map of Old Belfast to memory.

Despite the unsettling blood-tinted mist, they had to continue forward.

"I'm so hungry... did anyone bring food?"

After peacefully walking through a district, Langeler suddenly clutched his rumbling stomach.

The apprentice exorcists looked at each other awkwardly, realizing they all forgot about this.

"I brought some."

Yodel took out the leftover food from this morning.

"Thanks! I'm so hungry..."

Langeler, overcome by hunger, snatched the jerky and stuffed it into his mouth frantically.

The rest realized the problem and surrounded Yodel, each taking out their potion.

The mutation came suddenly, Yodel, who was stuffed with food, suddenly clutched his neck, painfully fell, and after a few brief seconds, lost his breath.

"He's dead..."

Pouring down a revealing potion, Porter, close to Yodel, said in disbelief.

They hadn't even reacted to what happened. Choked to death? How could that be...?

Choked to death?

Realizing something, Porter was about to exclaim, when overwhelming drowsiness suddenly surged through, stripping him of sanity and thought, and Porter only managed a cry before falling into eternal slumber.

The remaining eight apprentice exorcists retreated in horror, fearing contagion by the awful plague.

"But there's nothing around..."

"Maybe it's related to the mist, retreat into the house and build a fire!" Naveen decisively said.

Leaving their comrades' corpses temporarily, they retreated to the street-side houses.

Walls blocked them, apprentice exorcists climbed over one after another, entering the house. Right then, Riel suddenly cried out, stopped abruptly with a thud.

His foot stuck in a wall crevice, head smashed into shattered slabs, forehead denting into the skull, cerebrospinal fluid mixed with blood flowed out pink.

"Strange! Upstairs!"

No time to think, there was another shout of alarm, spiritual bodies like a curtain fell, enveloping Triss's warning body, lifting him into the mist.

A bottle of potion traced an arc, regretfully missing below the strange spiritual body.

Yodel drew his gun, passing Naveen grabbed him, rushing into the house.

Chaotic footsteps echoed on the floorboards, potion shattered, the invisible force of the shelter potion enveloped the surroundings.

Following them in, Ellison's thoughts paused, a spark of some guess kindled.

"We're too impulsive..."

Naveen muttered to himself regretfully while striking the flint.

No matter hastily interacting, giving Yodel food and corpses, or the fleeing after Porter's death.

"None of us anticipated such danger even in the Land of Light..."

Chah——Chah——

Flint splattered sparks, Ellison's eyes reflecting the radiance, the spark in his heart kindled like ignition.

"Five Royal City kids, fearing the dense fog, went to roast a fire; flames engulf till dead, five left four..." he muttered to himself.

"What..."

Ellison realized the truth too late, the flint ignited the fire, flames spread along Naveen's arm, quickly engulfs the whole body, burning the entire decrepit house.

"It's Waltz of the Dress!" Ellison shouted in terror.

"But we haven't heard anything!"

The four remaining avoided spreading fire, Ellison shouted: "Four Royal City kids, went out together to meet disaster, monster devoured one bloodstained, four left three! We can't go out!"

"If we don't go out we'll be consumed by fire too!"

The scorching heat licked their backs, they already felt their clothes smoking, hair curling.

Pa——

Yodel tossed potion into the flames, it didn't help, they had no potion to extinguish the fire.

"Prepare sequence potion, charge ahead!"

Elson swallowed all sequence potions with sheltering and hiding effects, charged out of the fireplace crumbling house.

The previously attacking spiritual body suddenly appeared, enveloping the sprinting Elson lifting him skyward.

Gripping the Spirit-Calling Gun Yodel raised his hand, pulled the trigger.

Bang——

Silver-plated bullets penetrated the spiritual body, shattered Elson's intestines, strange body released him, he fell together with blood and entrails.

"I'm still alive..."

Near death Elson extended his bloody hand to Yodel.

"I know."

Yodel took off his clothes to explode for him.

"No... don't waste effort, quickly kill me... you must do this...!" he weakly blocked Yodel: "It's Waltz... ritual unknown... kill me... break order... or... all will die..."

Elson's voice grew weak.

Yodel didn't hesitate long, painfully picked up Elson's Spirit-Calling Gun, pulled the trigger.

BANG——

Deafening gunshot rang, hues burst behind Elson's head.

Helping Elson's release, he pursued his companions, scaling the wall across the street.

"Was the ritual interrupted?"

Chaotic footsteps and panting shattered the mist's silence, surviving Allen, Yodel, and Wenger exchanged glances.

"Perhaps..."

Disaster fell suddenly as a corpse from the sky, Allen crushed down, by the time Yodel neared he was already dead, blood flowed along shattered slabs' crevices.

Yodel and Wenger looked at each other, rushed into the house.

Fluorite Lamps held high, Yodel gazed at coils of dust-covered hemp rope occupying the beam.

Two apprentice exorcists, sighed beneath the beam; a rope from the sky sadly, two left one.

Yodel and Wenger already met their fate.

A minute later, Yodel stood on the wooden chair, sorrowfully aligning alongside the gently swaying Wenger, head entering the noose.

BANG——

The wooden chair kicked over, hemp rope creaked for a dozen seconds, silence returned here.

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