Everything throbbed in pain. It was certainly not the best way to wake up.

So warm… but why can’t I move?

Diane cracked an eye first towards her torso, her whole body bound together in sheets like a well-packaged mummy on a rather narrow bed.

On the other side of the unfamiliar room, Emily was wrapped in impromptu casts as a young Miko carefully checked on her ward. The lass occasionally shot nervous glances at the whimpering mountain of fur and teeth in the corner while she worked, and otherwise ignored Kristoff cowering next to Clover, wrapped in a bedsheet.

“EM! Hey hey, is she ok?!” Diane tried to perk up, struggling to maneuver like an inchworm off the bed.

“Eep!” The sudden sound startled the miko, who sighed in relief after she had a second to calm her nerves.

The girl stormed over to Diane’s bed and flipped her legs back onto the frame. “Patients need to stay in their beds until they are better!”

“But I need to see Em! She was really hurt! You didn’t tell me if she was ok!” Diane countered as she struggled to get up again, but a well-placed forehead flick sent her reeling back into the pillow.

Why does it hurt so badly?!

Diane groaned.

“First, no, Emily is not doing OK. She will live, but she is hurt really badly, and we can’t do any more for her right now. And you aren’t much better!” The miko stood over Diane authoritatively.

“You have practically scalded most of your veins and mana pathways with burns. Too much more than what you did, and you may have blown them up.” Thistleman spoke sourly over his shoulder as he watched carefully out of the open window, and she finally noticed the rounds of smoke and flame in the noble’s district.

Almost as if it was waiting for her, the loud *THOOM* of a naval battery drove the point home.

“WHAT IS EVEN HAPPENING?! IS AUNTIE OKAY?!” In response, Diane tried to struggle more, forcing the miko to hold her down tightly.

“As long as they don’t leave the inn looking for you, they’ll be fine! As for what’s happening, the moment word started going around of Demons fighting near the city, the whole place started tearing itself apart!” Thistle snapped back.

Diane’s eyes widened as she stopped struggling, partially from being on the receiving end of Thistleman’s anger, and partially from another realization.

“Am I… responsible for this?” Diane whispered, tears gathering in her eyes.

“Eh? What?” The miko chirped, casting concerned looks between the two.

Thistleman sighed. “If not now… then it probably would have happened later anyways. Who cares? It’s probably actually better that those dumbasses started this now. More importantly, why the hell did you even leave the city without even telling me?! YOU. BROKE. YOUR. PROMISE.” Thistleman turned away from the window, looking particularly aggrieved over the last point.

Diane cringed and shot a shifty glance at Kristoff in response, who had been silently watching the whole conversation.

Thistleman followed her gaze, and shot Kristoff a profoundly vicious glare.

But… I just…

“I… I need to get to Auntie! I need to make sure they’re not worried! What if she comes looking for me now?!” Diane quickly changed the topic, a subtle hint of guilt slipped into her voice.

“You aren’t going anywhere! Just… stay here, and stop getting yourself into more trouble. I’ll go tell Auntie Rhyme. The Baron’s soldiers know you saw the Demons out there, and they will probably kill you on sight.” In a final frustrated burst, Thistleman stormed out of the room.

Diane stopped struggling and sank back into the bed.

But I really didn’t mean to do anything wrong…

The shrine maiden sighed, and loosened her long black hair from its bun.

“Look, if you need someone to talk to, I’m here. Kay? By the way, we haven’t been introduced! My name’s Maya!” Maya spoke sweetly and calmly, and offered a large friendly smile.

Alain sat on a wooden stool next to a steel door, blocked by a large fox-masked temple guardian. He stared relentlessly at the empty potion bottle, a small dribble of the pinkish fluid still at the bottom.

It just keeps getting worse…

Theo’s groans slipped through the door again. Damn near the whole leg, up to just under the joint at the waist, had gone to that rotten plague.

There has to be something more I can do? Just waiting like this…

Alain tapped his foot incessantly, his ruminations broken by chatter coming from down the hall.

It was the old priest again, his blue shōzoku fluttering behind him as he tried to keep pace with an angry, cruel-eyed boy.

Why is Kobari…?

It wasn’t hard to get the answer to his question, even before he could even finish thinking about it.

“I already told you, just make sure Diane doesn’t leave here tonight, and no matter what, don’t let the baron’s men find her.” Thistleman’s tone was sharp and to the point.

“And you will give us half the potions you make for the next 6 months?” Kobari’s concern was apparent as he pursued confirmation.

“Half the potions I make with the resources you get for me. I’ve already given you the stock I already had left, so you know that it’s more than generous terms.” Thistle repeated in frustration, for the umpteenth time.

“Indeed. Still, you really can’t go out there like this! How can I expect this deal to work in good faith if you just get yourself killed out there?” Kobari asserted, spiking the already-angry expression on the boy even further.

It only took Alain a moment to put the pieces together.

Diane? The girl from this morning? Don’t tell me, this kid… he’s the potion maker?

The thought alone seemed ridiculous. However…

Trying something is better than nothing.

“Chief Priest!” Theo tried to jump into the conversation before the boy snapped.

Instead, he made Kobari snap in surprise, as he was clearly not paying close enough attention to anything else around him. “What do you want this time? I already told you there is nothing more we can do for your friend in there!”

“Yes, I know! But… hey, kid. You made this potion, right?! And these ones?” Alain whipped out the grey and brown potions to go with his practically empty healing potion.

The kid’s face turned to practical shock. “Where did you get those?! I never put any of those up for sa-…” Thistleman stopped himself, already too late.

“You are Thistleman then! Please, can you make something for my sub- my friend? He’s dying!” Alain pleaded.

Please, I need this!

The kid regained his composure. “Your friend’s problems aren’t mine. I don’t have time for this, deal with it yourself.”

“Please! If you do… Kobari! I will escort Thistleman safely to anywhere he needs to go. I swear upon my honor!”

“I don’t need your escort.” The boy turned around to leave and find a different way around.

“We don’t even know what that malady is anyways, how can we expect him to know what you claim those demons conjured up? And you refuse to just cut the damn thing off.” Kobari grumbled as well, as the Sergeant dropped to his knees in despair.

“Did you just say… that he has a malady? Made by demons?” Thistleman stopped in his tracks, and looked incredulously at the chief and the despairing soldier.

“Yes… he got bit by one of the goblins infected by it while we were fleeing from a stone monstrosity summoned by those monsters. The whole thing… we were setup from the start! Please… can you at least give it a look?” Alain answered, a hesitant glimmer of hope in his eyes.

“Curious… I think I can actually spare some time. Are his terms acceptable, Mr. Priest?” Thistleman turned back around, with a complete shift in his attitude.

Alain quickly stood back up, trying keep himself from setting his hopes too high.

I still shouldn’t expect too much. But the kid is clearly a genius for his age… so it still might just be possible!

“That..?! We can’t just enter the quarantined area without taking appropriate precautions! The risk of spreading it is already too great as it is!” Kobari protested furiously.

“The quarantine is absolutely unnecessary. You think this is a malady? If it was a proper malady, it would have already spread across everyone in your temple. Now hurry up and have your guard open the door, so I can see what is really going on in there!” The kid’s curiosity turned to an extremely unsettling grin, one that threw even the aged old man on edge.

I… hope this was a good idea…

“How would you even kno-“ The priest doggedly persisted, and was promptly cut off.

“Fine. You, did any of your friend’s blood get on you after he was bit?” Thistle poked Alain’s chest almost accusatorily.

“Yes, some did. And my na-“

“Doesn’t matter.” Thistleman cut him off too. “And? Did you get sick? Anything strange where the blood made contact?”

“… No.” The Sergeant held his temper in check.

This punk asshole… but I see where this is going. Whatever I have to do!

“Then it is definitively not a malady. Those are relentless, and practically impossible to stop their spread. Maladies affect the very mana in the air around their source, and contact is enough to guarantee spread of the contagion. This is something else, something that is trying to act like a malady.” Thistleman continued, unabated, bashing down the last of the Acting Chief Priest’s resistance.

Defeated, he waved the guardian aside. “Very well. Let us go in then.”

This is one seriously nasty piece of work!

Thistleman hid his adoration as he quickly studied the infected leg.

The black, pulsating veins reached just shy of Theo’s waist, his face dripping in sweat as he softly moaned in pain. Even through the layers of bandages, the smell of rot filled the room.

Thistle silently layered on a series of spells to conceal his use of magic, and amplify his vision.

Conceal energy. True Sight. Detect Magic.

The mana is definitely corrupted, quite similarly to a Malady. But, it isn’t actively trying to corrupt outside of the host. It seems… to be trying to change the state inside the host?

“Strange… very strange… what if…” Thistleman muttered to himself, entranced as he pulled off a couple of bandages around the initial wound site. It sent a sharp jolt of pain up Theo’s leg, prompting a much more aggrieved groan.

Thistle ignored the protests of Kobari and Alain.

This is definitely demonic energy, and it’s not mine. This behavior is much too strange and advanced for a simple Curse of Rot. That only leaves one real culprit, Carinthus… shall I find out what fun you have been up to?

Amplify. Soul Realm.

Thistleman’s eyes widened in fiendish self-satisfaction.

Found you!

Tendrils of black mana tore relentlessly into Theo’s soul. The chunk of white that should have lain within his leg had been completely transformed into pitch black, while blue mana barely held a wall against the assault. On top of the assault, the mana coalesced into the flesh, as if it was trying to grow something within it.

“That would definitely keep any healing from working…” Kobari and Alain practically leapt at the words.

“So you know what it is?! Can you heal him?!” Alain rushed over, succumbing to his hope, only for it to be completely dashed.

“Yes, I have a good idea. And I have some good news, and some bad news.” The excitement slowly drained from Alain’s face, as Thistle continued.

“The good news is that this is not a Malady, but a curse that acts like one. And, you can stop its spread!”

“So then how-“ Kobari and Alain shouted in unison, unable to contain themselves. They stopped mid-sentence in response to a cold glare from Thistleman. “As I was saying”, he continued. “All you would need is someone capable of casting Greater Purification, or you take the priests advice. He was right, after all, if not for all the wrong reasons. You would need to cut his leg off before the curse spreads anymore. If you just aim for the joint, there is enough healthy flesh to keep the rot from splashing farther up.”

“NO! We can’t do that to him!” Alain shouted, his desperation overflowing.

Thistleman continued coldly. “You have, at best, another hour before the curse spreads past where you can contain it. Once it enters his torso, it will speed up and consume him within less than a day. If his will was any weaker, it would have already been far too late. Make your choice, I will be waiting for you downstairs. Oh, and if you do choose to cut it off, make sure to not get any of that cursed blood in your eyes or mouth. It CAN still spread if it gets under your skin.”

Or, a powerful enough demon could intervene. But… I would much prefer to get my hands on some more samples. This one is unfortunately out of my hands, and doing any more than this would be the peak of stupidity. As he said… there are many more out in the woods!

**

The Sergeant trembled as the kid brushed past him.

It can’t… I can’t…. do anything else?

Alain looked carefully at his shaking hands, then back to his subordinate and friend’s pained face. Then, he looked to his sword.

Even if I waited… the Lieutenant is more than a day out… and even then, he doesn’t have better than a mid-tier purification spell.

Alain steeled himself, and drew his sword. He desperately suppressed the tears from his eyes.

“I’m sorry Theo… I… don’t have any other choice. Forgive me…”

The Sergeant drew on his years of experience, breathing deeply to calm his trembling hands. He focused on his target, and raised his sword. He cast one last glance at the old priest, who watched with razor-sharp focus.

“Don’t worry. I’ll close the wound as soon as it’s done.” The old man assured him, as he braced himself in prayer.

Alain took one last breath.

I’ll do it in one strike.

Reinforced Strike. Empowered Strike. Swift Blade. Keen Edge.

His blade glowed and whistled effortlessly through the air, cutting through the bone, cartilage and tendons like they were butter.

Theo awoke violently, shrieking as blood spurted from the cut veins and artery! The Sergeant backed away, finally allowing the tears to spring from his eyes like a flowing river, as the old priest leaped into action.

“I’m sorry, my friend… I’m so sorry…”