"Celia, Tana, we're back!"
Carrying the unconscious Alice, Ye Lin’s hands instinctively rested on her plump curves as he rushed into the manor.
"You're finally back! All the boxes are sold out..."
Celia ran out to greet him, her small face filled with joy and excitement. In the past few days, without boxes to sell and money to earn, she could only help Tana or Socia.
"Sorry, sorry. After the Sky City incident was resolved, I stayed in West Coast for a while."
"Oh~"
He looked Celia up and down with some surprise. She wore a white cotton jacket and skirt, with black knee-high cotton stockings. As the weather turned cold, this outfit seemed quite normal and appropriate.
Her appearance was still pretty, but her smooth little face seemed a bit rounder?
"Let's go inside first, Kelah, Binuoxiu. This is where I bought, you can stay here for now. Celia, I need your help with something."
Inside the living room, the fireplace fire was blazing. Tana, in a thin silk nightgown that barely concealed her graceful figure, held a glass of red wine, swirling it idly. A lazy, charming aura permeated the air.
"You've brought back quite an important person. You even dared to lay hands on her."
Tana put down her wine glass, teasing him without any hint of blame. Alice was indeed a crucial figure, but she hadn't expected Ye Lin to knock her out and bring her back so quickly...
"I was going to do it sooner or later anyway. Don't just lie there, come help. She has a very deadly curse on her."
Alice was still unconscious. Celia and Tana conducted a comprehensive examination of her, while Siate and Binuoxiu chattered beside them.
"Is Alice really a doll? She looks like a human to me, she talks, she breathes, she has body temperature and delicate skin..."
"Yeah, she's too realistic. I can't believe it."
"Wow, even when she's lying flat, her 'justice' is still prominent, just like Mai Lu!"
"Hmm?"
Siate and Binuoxiu suddenly turned their heads to stare at Kelah. The latter was startled, then stubbornly stuck out her neck, pulling Mai Lu and saying righteously, "I'm telling the truth! Is it wrong to be envious?"
"Alright, Kelah, you've learned bad habits from that shameless guy, haven't you!"
After some playful banter, Siate patted Mai Lu's head, "By the way, did you find that fragment?"
"No."
Mai Lu's eyes held a hint of sadness and regret. The probability of finding fragments was higher where Apostles were present, but only slightly higher.
"It's the Evil Spirit Curse! Oh my goodness, this evil spell only exists in the Elf Race's legends!"
Celia gripped Alice's hand tightly, feeling immense sympathy for the woman she had never met, her eyes filled with pity.
"What is the Evil Spirit Curse?" Binuoxiu turned her head and asked, puzzled.
"It's a spell that falls between the Summoner's 'Ring of Domination' and 'Contract Summoning' abilities, but its wickedness is even greater than the Ring of Domination. It's a subconscious influence, a curse that binds one's true nature."
"That means a person afflicted by the Evil Spirit Curse watches helplessly as they do things against their will, unable to control their own actions, and their mind is tormented constantly."
"Is there a way to save her?"
"We can only try. I need some materials to activate the Evil Spirit Curse, then I'll delve into her mental world and sever the source of the curse."
"Mental world?" Siate expressed surprise.
"Yes, it's like monsters being corrupted by the black nightmare. If someone can pull them out of the dream world, they will naturally return to their original state, though at that time the monsters are very violent. But she is asleep now."
Perhaps Yuena's chop was a little too forceful; Alice remained unconscious, but her brows were often furrowed, and her hands clenched, clearly indicating she was in a state of extreme pain.
"Do we need a strong person to help?" Siate frowned.
"Sister Tana is enough, but because Alice still has the strength to resist, we can't just enter her mind. So, the person who enters her mental world must be recognized by her; the soul is very exclusive."
Celia was very worried. Theoretically, Tana would be the best person to infiltrate the mental world, as she was the strongest and had a greater chance of success. However, Tana needed to sever the Evil Spirit Curse, and there was no guarantee Alice would accept her.
"Because the Evil Spirit Curse has been triggered, if we can't save her before she wakes up, her soul will fall into a deeper abyss, and the next rescue will be much harder!"
Upon hearing this, Ye Lin made a decisive move, clapping his hands, "Alright, let's do it tonight. Celia, what materials do you need?"
"Golden Cubes, which possess a more sacred power than Colorless Cubes, Remy's Aid, and the World Instrument. We'll need a lot."
"No problem."
He pulled over a reclining chair, padded it with a cushion and thick pillow, and gently laid Alice on it. Celia then arranged a magic circle in the living room using Golden Cubes. Faint golden threads extended from each cube, slowly disappearing into Alice's glabella.
After Celia's tests, she found that three people were not resisted by Alice: herself, Mai Lu, and Ye Lin.
However, Celia needed to maintain Alice's mental world to prevent its collapse, and Mai Lu repeatedly shook her head, indicating she couldn't do it...
She was the incarnation of Niemer, God of Wisdom; if her vast mental power entered Alice's mind, the latter might not be able to bear it and simply explode.
"I'm very confused. How could you, a shameless and mischievous person, be accepted? If I hadn't been out of strength back then, I really would have stabbed you to death."
"Maybe my charm is just higher!" Ye Lin felt he should put his hands on his hips and swell with pride, even though it was the Heaven's Seal's doing.
"Shameless!"
Siate gave a middle finger and shook her head, taking her sword and standing with Binuoxiu and Kelah outside the door to guard against any sudden incidents.
"Mai Lu, feed Alice Remy's Aid every three minutes. If she shows signs of pain, feed her the World Instrument."
"Okay, I understand." Mai Lu nodded solemnly.
"Let's get started. The Evil Spirit Curse only affects Alice, and this body is also Alice's. As long as we awaken Alice's will to survive, we can force the Evil Spirit Curse to reveal itself. At that moment, Sister Tana will attack it, and we'll kill it in one blow!"
Celia and Ye Lin sat on either side of the reclining chair, each holding one of Alice's hands, and then their hands clasped together.
"I'm starting..."
Celia slowly closed her eyes, and at the same time, a wave of drowsiness washed over Ye Lin's mind. He would dream, and it would be the same dream for all three of them...
A few minutes later, Celia frowned and sighed, "It's no good. She seems to be on the verge of succumbing to the Evil Spirit Curse. Her mental self-protection is too strong; I can't get in."
"Then what do we do?"
"If there was a strong stimulus..."
Without another word, Ye Lin pinched Alice's thigh. Sure enough, Alice's eyebrows twitched.
"It's working! But it's not enough!"
Another pinch...
And another...
In an instant, drowsiness surged like a tide into his mind. His head slumped, and he fell asleep directly on Alice's pale white leg.
Mai Lu stared blankly at Alice's bruised and discolored legs, wondering what her expression would be when she woke up...