But it did not take long for the illusion to crack.
"Oh my heavens, she's bleeding from her nose! Did you hit her so hard that her brain came out from her nose?" Marianne gasped and she ran towards the dazed Libitina.
"But, but I didn't even use all my strength? Could she be inherently weak?" Yurian quickly held her Libitina in his arms and shook her roughly. "Hey, there, are you alive?"
"It might be better if you staunch her bleeding first," Alistair walked over, his arms crossed as he wore a look of wonder. "Her overalls are all bloody. I've got a handkerchief."
Sylvester made a eureka expression. "I think I remember! My mom used to make me hold my head back, like so!"
With that, he pressed his right palm against Libitina's forehead and pushed it back roughly, like how an exorcist would try to repel a demon spirit from a Satanized victim. It almost worked, too; Libitina almost felt her blessed soul leave her mundane body.
Her head flopped over Yurian's arm pathetically.
"Ah! What are you doing, Sylvester! Don't be so rough," Marianne glared at Sylvester, "you're supposed to bend your head forward, like so." She gently tapped the back of Libitina's head.
It looked gentle, so Libitina was not prepared when she felt her head being lopped forward. The only redemption was Yurian holding her securely, or she was sure she would have flown off to another continent.
'Who said the Moon Saint was weak! I'll fight it out with you!"
With her head bent forward, the nosebleed began to run in earnest, pouring heavily onto the front of her overalls. It seemed like the vigorous activities had broken a few more blood vessels in her head. In all honesty, Libitina was just glad they did not break her neck.
'Or perhaps they were planning to do just that?' Libitina thought in horror. 'Maybe it was not unintentional that they were swatting my head back and forth like a tennis ball. Perhaps I saw something scrupulous and they were going to silence me! Maybe, I'm not in the Moon Princess III Saga but a more twisted fan-fiction version where all my loveable characters have become demons in human skin!'
The grey lines on Libitina's forehead were fortunately covered by her bangs as she flustered at her sudden existential crisis. While Libitina was self-absorbed in her own inner ramblings, Alistair and Yurian looked helplessly at each other.
"Handkerchief, Yurian!"
"Ah, okay!" Yurian hurriedly received the handkerchief and pressed it firmly on Libitina's nose bridge.
"No, put the handkerchief at her nose and press the nose bridge with your finger."
"Oh, yeah."
"It's okay. I can do it on my own," Libitina woke from her absentmindedness and whispered. She took the handkerchief from Yurian and pressed it to her nose. Then, she struggled out from Yurian's embrace and sat a distance away from the quartet, her eyes displaying conflicting emotions of excitement and dread.
Yurian: …
The others: …