By the time Red had finished the formation, night was already arriving. As the imp told him, the messenger said he would come back at the dead of night so as not to bring any attention to his visit. It was unlikely that would matter, though, considering there were still people watching his manor from afar.

‘I wonder if they detected that increase in Spiritual Energy.’

Even cultivators who hadn’t broken through to the Lesser Ring Realm would still be sensitive to Spiritual Energy. If any vein-opening practitioners were around when the formation activated, they would have certainly felt it from dozens of meters away.

“You said the messenger was a guard?” Red asked Emer.

“Yes.” The imp nodded. “He said he was here on Young Master Leon’s behalf, though.”

‘A guard? Then that may be Pierre.’

Three more hours passed by, during which Red did nothing more than sit and rest. The formation writing had taken an even bigger toll on his condition this time, and he would need a few days of rest at least before he felt completely recovered.

‘If I didn’t have this demonic blood in my veins, I could never keep such a rhythm.’

This increased stamina turned out to be a benefit for him both in and out of combat.

While Red was pondering his plans, he felt someone approach his house through his crimson sense. Their fluctuation told him it was a young Lesser Ring cultivator, and surprisingly enough, the youth wasn’t unfamiliar with his presence.

Soon enough, he heard two knocks at his door. Red threw a glance at the imp, who nodded and scurried off alongside the maid upstairs.

He then approached the door and opened it, being greeted by a serious visage.

‘So it was him.’

A young man with stern and sharp features, wearing the usual armor from the city guard, though its garnishings distinguished him as being of a higher ranking than the common soldier. He wore a metal helmet that covered most of his head, through which short brown locks could be seen, and carried a sword sheathed at his side and a kite shield strapped to his back.

“Master Viran?” The young man asked in a strict tone.

“Yes.” Red nodded, still wearing his wooden mask.

This was the same man that gazed at him from the sidelines when he entered the Guard Headquarters. The youth wouldn’t have bothered to recognize his fluctuation if it was a common person, but he made a point of remembering every Lesser Ring Realm individual in the city. This revelation, in turn, explained how Leon came to know of Red’s interrogation so quickly.

The guard regarded him up and down with a severe gaze, though it was hard to tell if that was just the usual solemnity of soldiers or undisguised unfriendliness towards Red.

“I’m Pierre.” The young man said. “I have something to report on Young Master Leon’s behalf.”

Red nodded and stepped aside, allowing the guard to walk in and closing the door behind them.

Pierre frowned as he looked around at the mess the living room had turned into, but his gaze was drawn towards the large Spirit Gathering formation that now occupied most of the space. There was a flash of surprise in his expression, which soon returned to his usual professional stare.

Red brought two chairs over, setting them across from each other and sitting down. The guard didn’t stand on ceremony and also took his seat.

“We have investigated the girl you told us to look into.” Pierre said. “Since you required discretion, though, I chose not to write down a report and speak of our findings directly with you.”

Red nodded. “That’s for the better.”

“It’s important I mention how deep we went with this investigation. I wasn’t given many specifics by Leon, but he told me this was not a background check, so me and my subordinates merely gathered information about her current situation. Some of her background, of course, came up naturally as we investigated, but since it is not relevant information, we didn’t bother pursuing it.”

The youth was surprised at this sudden disclaimer, as Leon could have just as easily pried into the matter and gained information about Rimold and Red. In fact, he could have still done it in secret, but to declare outright he hadn’t done spoke of an intent to be as honest and cooperative with the youth as possible. Red would always be suspicious, as was his nature, but since that was a risk he accepted, he didn’t bother worrying about it too much.

“First, then, is her general description.” Pierre said. “Her name is Yrsa. She is 20 years old, about 168 centimeters tall, pale complexion, dark hair, light brown eyes, freckled face. Sister to a Rimold, daughter to a Margaret and an unknown father. As far as we can tell, has no extended family in the city.”

Pierre pause and looked up at Red, as if waiting for his confirmation.

The youth, though, knew nothing about the woman before, so he only nodded. “Continue.”

The guard then proceeded, as if reading things from a mental list. “Her mother, Margaret, has been dead for over ten years. She lives in a tavern alongside a man by the name of Tulley, who is a friend of the family, and she works there as a maid, serving costumers and cooking. She rarely leaves the house, something likely brought about by her illness, which causes her to have a weak physique and leaves her bedridden for long periods of time every few weeks.”

‘There it is.’

Until now, Pierre might have been speaking about any woman as far as Red was concerned, but the mention of an illness gave more legitimacy that this was whom the youth was looking for.

“What illness does she have?” Red asked.

“Her illness is undiagnosed.” Pierre said. “What is keeping her ill, though, is her Decaying Spiritual Veins, as far as we could gather.”

Red was familiar with the term. Decaying Spiritual Veins were a condition where the body’s twelve spiritual veins, whether they were open or not, started to decay and rot inside one’s own body. This would spread weakness and potential disease to the rest of the body, while also cultivating harmful Spiritual Energy inside one’s own rotten veins.

Decaying Spiritual Veins was a common symptom in mortals with spiritual illnesses, just like fever was to other diseases. It was a signal something in their body was draining Spiritual Energy, and since they didn’t have any, it would directly target their Spiritual Veins trying to absorb something that wasn’t there, which in turn, caused harm to said veins.

The problem was, though, that there were countless illnesses that could cause such a symptom in mortals. Trying to diagnose someone just off of that was impossible.

“Any other symptoms?” Red asked.

“None.” Pierre shook his head. “Just the Decaying Spiritual Veins, and at a rather high intensity.”

The youth frowned. “She has visited Spiritual Healers?”

“Yes, some of the city’s best ones. They inspected her entire body in search of invading Spiritual Energy, but found nothing that was causing the decay. Her illness is still undiagnosed and they could only treat the symptom.”

‘How strange…’

Illnesses that could cause vein decay often brought about other symptoms. Someone infected harmful cold spiritual energy, for instance, would have their body temperature drop and suffer from chills. This made it easier for cultivators experienced in healing to identify and treat said illnesses.

Not all spiritual diseases were that simple, of course, but the majority were accompanied by other symptoms than just simple vein decay.

“She takes medication?” Red asked.

“Yes, and of good quality, provided directly by a Golden Hand mediator, which is why she has remained alive for so long.” Pierre said. “We did not trace where said medicines or the money for it comes from, however.”

Red, of course, knew exactly who provided money for said medicine, but he didn’t plan on mentioning it to the man.

“Anything else of importance?” The youth asked.

“Not necessarily.” Pierre shook his head. “She doesn’t seem to have any close friends other than the owner of the tavern, and her schedule remains the same throughout the week. The Golden Hand has no one keeping an eye on her, and from what my men gathered, the mediator only delivers her medicine at the beginning of every month.”

“Good.” Red nodded. “And where is this tavern located?”

As the youth said this, the guard fell silent. The already stern expression seemed to become even more serious as he stared at Red.

“Before I answer that, may I ask what your intentions with this girl are?”

The youth frowned at this. “I thought you weren’t supposed to pry.”

“That may be so, but while I am Leon’s friend, I am also a guard of this city.” Pierre said. “How could I possibly put a citizen in harm’s way?”

After some thought, Red shook his head. “… I assure you I mean her no harm. My only interest in her safety.”

Pierre fell silent for a long time, and his gaze directed at the youth didn’t relax.

“… Some people may mean no harm to others, but can cause it by their mere presence.”

These words struck Red’s mind, and for a second he remained completely speechless.

“I don’t believe you are an evil person, Master Viran.” Pierre said. “But I can imagine you’re someone involved in a lot of troubling matters. Leon and the others know the dangers and have the means to defend themselves, but innocent people like this girl have no idea about it. Even if you mean to help them, just by being around them is enough to put their lives in danger. Since you don’t mean her any harm, then listen to what I say…”

The guard's gaze pierced into Red’s mask.

“Leave her alone. Leave not just her alone, but every single peasant in this city, too. Do your business, profit as you want, advance your cultivation, but also do as every cultivator should do and stay out of matters concerning our citizens. Neither of you will gain anything from it.”

“… It often seems like I don’t have a choice.” Red said.

“That may have been before, but now you do have a choice.” Pierre said. “The girl is safe, and you can’t cure her of her illness. If you wish to pay for her medication, that can also be arranged, but I beg you to leaver her alone and not to involve any more people in this mess than we already have.”

The youth was about to ask why this mattered so much to the guard, but he realized how silly of a question that was. Didn’t Leon say this Pierre was of peasant blood? Someone of common blood, now a guard in a prominent position in the capital. Perhaps it wasn’t surprising he wanted to protect the citizens with such fervor.

This fervor, however, wasn’t what moved Red, but rather, how similar the situation seemed to his past. Wasn’t there another time where he knew his mere presence represented danger to others around him? His sect members accepted the risk then, but they all ended up dying for it. Now, there was this girl, whom he thought of helping in her brother’s stead, but realistically, interacting with her was more likely to put her in danger.

It was a very valid point, and yet it put Red’s plans in jeopardy.

‘If it was just a matter of paying for her treatment, I could maintain my distance, but…’

There were other potential dangers Pierre was not aware of, and that he couldn’t speak of so deliberately.

“I understand your concerns, and I promise I will take your advice into serious consideration.” Red nodded. “However, I would still like to know her location.”

The young man was silent again for a long time, his expression showing the slightest hint of conflict. In the end, though, he leaned back in his chair and returned to his professional posture. “… Waking Horse Tavern, at the eastern part of the suburbs.”

The guard seemed somewhat resigned, but he still gave him the information he wanted.

Red nodded. “Thank you.”

“There is something else.” Pierre said. “Leon wants to know when you might be ready to investigate the formation.”

“How long do I still have?”

“A week at most. There is pressure on the guard to have the whole place torn down, and it’s just a matter of time for word of it to reach the court.”

“Then I’ll go investigate it in four days.” Red said.

“… You’re certain you can get results in just three days?”

“I’m not replicating the formation, I’m merely studying it. If I’m unable to find anything useful in three days, it doesn’t matter how much more time I have.”

“I understand.” Pierre nodded, getting up from his chair. “I will relay your words to Leon and the others.”

The guard left the house without ceremony, and Red was left alone with his thoughts once again. Or at least, until the imp and maid came tumbling down the stairs once more.

“M-Master!” The imp ran up to him. “How did it go? Did you find out what you need?”

“Why are you asking when you were clearly eavesdropping?” Red looked at Emer.

“A-Ah, I mean… I-I didn’t intentionally… I j-just so happened to hear-”

“It doesn’t matter. Just be out of my way while I rest.”

“Yes, master!”

The imp was eager to get out of Red’s sight, disappearing behind another room.

“Decaying Spiritual Vein, no other symptoms, no trace of foreign energy.” The youth looked at the wall in front of him. “Does that sound recognizable to you?”

“It can happen.” Aurelia's disembodied voice said. “There’s two possibilities, really.”

“Which are?”

“Either the cultivators were not good enough to detect the foreign energy, which seems possible but unlikely, or it’s an illness targeting the soul.”

“The soul?”

“Yes. Soul illnesses can affect both body and soul, so it’s not out of the question. We call those curses, and they are something demonic cultivators love to use.”

“You mean someone cast a curse on a mortal?”

“Not necessarily. Curses can also be passed through bloodline, and some soul diseases are developed naturally. It’s hard to tell without knowing what it is.”

Red frowned. “But if it’s the soul, then…”

“Yes, that is something only cultivators at the Spiritual Awakening Realm will be able to diagnose and treat.”

The fourth realm. It was no wonder then that Yrsa’s illnesses couldn’t be diagnosed.

“Could you diagnose her?” Red asked.

Aurelia hesitated. “It’s hard to say. My soul sense is not as powerful as it was back then, so if it’s a more insidious curse, it’s possible I will miss it.”

“It’s worth to try, though.”

“So, are you just going to go right now? In your condition?”

“No, I plan to do something first.”

Red was taking Pierre’s advice seriously. If it was someone else, he wouldn’t have been as careful, but this was the sister of his companion. How could he carelessly approach her and bring attention to their possible connection? That would be dooming her.

No, if he wanted to help her and be assured of her safety, it all needed to be done in absolute secrecy, and for that, Red needed a technique that would assure his stealth in a city like this. It just so happened he had picked one a long time ago, and now that the formation was set, he could finally set about practicing it.

Gale Drift - his movement Spiritual Art.