"Remember, nine mice hearts tainted with daffodil pollen can be used to replace a baby's heart during the ceremony," the Wizard slowly began to teach, "Because nine is the number of blood and desire. However, each heart must have no more than a third of it covered in daffodil pollen, otherwise Lady Silence would 'reject' it."
Only four or five people quietly widened their eyes, watching the Wizard perform miracles.
As for the others, they had taken Deafening Potions—a cheap transformative substance that temporarily causes deafness, quickly restored by the smell of feces.
Before each ceremony began, those 'White Snakes' high up in the hierarchy who were not yet qualified to learn the rites, but hoped to become core members, would conscientiously ingest Deafening Potions.
They also knew that this was for their protection.
In recent years, they had seen too many die horribly from failed rituals...
