Five days later…
"Oh my, is this the plague month? Why are so many people getting infected? This is the tenth one in a row!" Aldo says in his usual monotone voice. He is still wearing the black cloak, gloves, boots, and mask that cover his entire body. He looks around at the people lying on beds in a wooden house, while the village elder stands worriedly in front of him, watching.
"I don't know. This village has never faced anything like this. I know I've been bothering you these past few days, but please see if you can find a way to cure them," the elder sighs, lips tight, looking at the ten men lying still on the beds, their bodies covered with red rashes, a clear sign of the fever.
"Alright, I'll do my best to cure them all," Aldo responds, then leads the elder out of the house and closes the door. He rolls up his gloves.
"Let's begin!" Aldo sighs.
Meanwhile, at Zihao's house, Auburn, Helzard, and I (Veritas) are discussing recent events in the village.
"How is that man?" Zihao, today wearing a dark blue Hanfu, asks.
"He's recovered, but his wife committed suicide, and then he left the village…" Auburn responds, his eyes downcast, his voice somber.
"Suicide!? Why… why would she do such a foolish thing?" Zihao's eyes widen, his mouth forming an O.
"Most likely out of grief over losing her child," Auburn replies, his expression unchanged.
"What about the man Aldo cured of the fever? Why did he leave?" Helzard, lounging comfortably on a stone slab, frowns and asks.
"He said he had lost too much and didn't want to drown in past sorrows, so he wanted to start anew. At least that's what he told Aldo," I reply.
"Isn't he heartless to his family? Leaving his wife's body to float on the swamp water?" Helzard glares, gritting his teeth.
"No, you misunderstand. The people in this swamp area have a custom of leaving the bodies of the deceased on the swamp water, believing that the soul will continue to a new life and the body will merge with nature," Zihao smiles, calmly replying.
Helzard pouts and turns away.
"Furthermore, the ten people who got the fever this morning also have similar traits to that man: they had daughters who left home, caught the fever, and their wives' actions might result in a similar outcome," Fermos, resting his chin on his hand, says.
"Is there such a coincidence?" I raise my eyebrows, looking at Fermos curiously.
"So, we have a clear clue: The Sapphic Church is targeting this village, or more specifically, us!" Zihao says seriously, his eyes gazing into the distance.
"Could it be?" I ask.
"Very likely, not just possibly anymore," Zihao responds.
"So we might have to resort to the drastic measure of… relocating the entire village to a new territory?" Auburn suggests.
Everyone present widens their eyes in surprise.
"Do you think… that's feasible?" Helzard's lips part slightly, one eyebrow raised.
"It's not impossible, but it would be very costly in terms of time and money. Moving 100 villagers to the nearest territory of Rahman Al-khouri would take at least seven days and ten gold coins, not to mention protecting them along the way. The rest… is even more complicated, but deeper intervention is not advisable," Zihao explains.
"No, we should consider other solutions!" Helzard insists.
"What else? Stay here and wait for the enemy to attack? Do you plan to fight the Enchanters, Necromancers, Hags, and Witches of the church? Here, I'm the only one who knows magic, but I can barely counter the necromancer's spiritual spells. The rest of you don't know any magic to fight back. Even if our physical stats are superior to ordinary humans, this advantage will easily be lost if their followers use body enhancement spells, physical adjustments, and size changes," Zihao argues.
Helzard pouts again and turns away.
"So, we evacuate?" Fermos concludes.
"Who agrees?" I ask, raising my hand.
Auburn, Fermos, and Zihao also raise their hands. Helzard bites his lip, showing his disagreement, but after a moment, he raises his hand too.
"What about Aldo?" Helzard still pouts, asking.
"Forget him, Aldo isn't our leader," Fermos responds.
"Well, technically, our group doesn't even have a leader…" I laugh.
"For now, to evacuate, we need to persuade the villagers, starting with the elder, then the others. This will take quite a bit of time, so Zihao, Helzard, and I will handle this. Fermos and Auburn, use these twelve gold coins to hire a large camel caravan and a horse-drawn wagon to carry everyone. Let's complete our tasks in…" Zihao says.
"A week, it should be a week," I interrupt him.
Zihao nods in agreement.
"Then it's decided. We'll start right away," I say.
Fermos and Auburn take the gold coins, prepare their belongings, and get ready to leave. Helzard, still not entirely agreeable, pouts in dissatisfaction but follows us to the elder's house to begin persuading him.
"We need a clear plan to avoid getting lost or losing direction," Fermos reminds us.
I nod and say, "We'll need a small meeting with the elder first. Zihao, can you start preparing the reasons and evidence to convince them? Even for the worst-case scenario!"
"Of course, I'll start preparing right away," Zihao smiles, replying.
Fermos and Auburn are ready to go with the necessary money and some food supplies, including bread, dried meat, rice, and dried rations. They quickly head into the desert of Rahman Al-khouri's territory. The three of us watch their figures disappear. Zihao and I quickly go to the elder's house, Helzard following with a worried expression, lips tight but determined.
At the elder's door, I knock and wait. The elder opens the door, his eyes serious but showing hospitality.
"What do you want with me?" the elder says.
"We have an important matter to discuss with you," I begin, "about the village's evacuation."
The elder stares at me, then slowly nods, "Come in, we will discuss this inside."
We step inside, ready for a long and difficult discussion, hoping everyone will understand and support this decision.
He sits on a mat, and the three of us sit opposite him.
"Elder Ta'an, I bring very serious news," Zihao begins, his voice filled with urgency, his determined eyes meeting the elder's downcast ones, "The Sapphic cult is targeting our village. We must evacuate immediately."
Without looking up, Elder Ta'an replies, "Zihao, you always bring us tales of impending doom, like when Nemele attacked, but in the end, we still triumphed. What makes this time different?"
"Seven reasons, elder. First, young girls are being lured, drawn by promises of an illusory paradise," Zihao says, his tone as calm as ever.
The elder sighs, still not looking at us. "Girls are always curious, easily swayed by new things. They will return soon."
This optimism raises one of my eyebrows in surprise, and Helzard's mouth forms an O of equal surprise.
"Second, happy traditional families are being destroyed. Wives are leaving their homes, some even committing suicide," Zihao continues, the gravity in his voice becoming clearer, his eyes reflecting concern.
"You are aware of Keil's suicide, aren't you?" Helzard says cryptically, his mouth curving into a sarcastic smile, the elder's right eyebrow lifting to glance at Helzard momentarily.
"If a heart is weak, it will falter regardless. This cult is just a passing storm," Elder Ta'an dismisses, leaning back with indifference.
"This old man is too stubborn…," Helzard tilts his head, frowning, whispering to me.
"Third, more and more fathers are getting rash fevers, preventing them from searching for their missing daughters," Zihao emphasizes, "The numbers are like you have seen with Aldo."
"At the same time, there are cases of those who left the village and gave up when they couldn't find their children, like the first man Aldo cured," I add, the elder looking at me the same way he looked at Helzard.
"Diseases have come and gone, Zihao, many times. We have faced worse than this," Elder Ta'an replies, unimpressed.
"This old man is too stubborn…," Helzard grits his teeth, rolling his eyes in frustration, and I smile it off, patting his shoulder consolingly.
"Fourth, this cult uses sophisticated spells, making their influence hard to detect until it's too late. The nearby village is evidence of this, a costly lesson not to be forgotten, you know best how that village was abandoned and destroyed," Zihao explains, hoping to break the elder's stubbornness.
"Spells? Superstitions? Those things won't make us leave our home," Elder Ta'an responds with a bit of disdain.
"Fifth, the ancestors' memories warn us of such dangers. We can't ignore the past," Zihao says, citing the wisdom of those who came before.
"Our ancestors endured far worse and stood their ground. We will do the same," Elder Ta'an replies bitterly.
"Sixth, this cult targets the vulnerable, those who feel unheard or marginalized in our community," Zihao continues, his voice still calm.
"If our people are strong in traditional spirit, no cult can sway them," the elder sternly replies.
"Finally, elder, the consequences are clear. Girls are running away, families are breaking apart, and despair is spreading," Zihao concludes, his voice full of sorrow, "How much longer will you cling to resilience, how many broken families will it take for you to realize?" Zihao's voice is full of reproach.
At last, Elder Ta'an looks up at Zihao. We and Helzard finally have hope, but we are mistaken; he remains stubborn, "And where will we go, Zihao? Abandon our homes, our history, our identity? We are not like the wind, blown away by the whispers of a cult."
Zihao sighs, closing his eyes, "Elder, I understand your reluctance. But we must protect our people, our future. Evacuating now can save many lives."
With a decisive tone, Elder Ta'an declares, "We are rooted in this land. If we leave, we will lose more than our homes. We will lose ourselves. If this cult is truly a threat, we will face it together, as we always have."
"That old fool, he won't act until the fire is blazing," Helzard grumbles, clenching his fist, frowning, and gnashing his teeth.
"My decision is final, we stay, no change. I confidently declare to you young ones, though not well-educated, I have lived over 60 years, my soul is tied to this village. No storm can break that spirit!" the elder asserts.
Zihao stands dazed at Elder Ta'an's determination. His eyes full of worry, he turns to Helzard, his childhood comrade, and mutters:
"Helzard, we need to find a way to convince the elder. If we can't evacuate, we must find a way to protect the village. This cult is very dangerous, they can destroy us if we don't act."
"But…," Helzard looks at him in surprise.
"I know. The situation is developing against our wishes. If only there were a miracle to change the elder's mind, a miracle that…" Zihao is saying when suddenly a door opens, interrupting him...