[Lifespan Remaining: 25 days, 10 hours, 32 minutes.]
"O lightning, deliver swift judgement!"
?Ars Volt.?
A spark of electricity burst from Noct’s hand and traveled across the courtyard just in time to reach the man. His body suddenly convulsed, muscles giving out as the man dropped to the floor.
Aurora reached his wife a few seconds later, using a piece of fabric to cover her mouth. "Please get away from here, it’s not safe! Head to the Diamond Merchantry!"
"W—what’s going on? What will happen to my husband!"
"We’ll handle it. Please follow me."
She then escorted the wife out of the effective zone of mist that was beginning to grow wider by the second.
’Damn it...what now?’
Noct thought of a few ideas. Since mist was just another component of water, he could maybe use Ice Magic to condense it. Or he could use Wind Magic to simply lift the mist above the rooftops and slowly disperse it.
However, both plans hinged on the fact that his magic would be competent enough to do so. And that solution doesn’t solve the problem of the people who were already affected.
Yet, that was when his memory flashed once more to the knight who had been cured when he was given the serum by Don, the Knight Captain.
’That man has the cure...If I can procure a sample, surely Lenia would be able to reverse engineer the method and cure these people.’
But while deep in thought, Noct caught the presence of another bird hovering above him, just far enough away from the layer of mist.
’Speak of the devil...’
"Lenia!" he shouted. "You got any plans?!"
"I can condense the mist! But everyone inside is going to get caught up in it!" her voice came from the bird above. "Noct, you need to knock them out, then drag them out of the effective zone!"
"W—wait. How are you even breathing inside there in the first place?!"
But as the bird dipped closer, the witch seemed to have arrived at an answer on her own. "That green light...You’ve made a contract with that fairy?!"
"What?"
"A spirit contract! Did it give you its name? How did you—?"
"Lenia, this is not the time!" Noct scolded her. "I don’t know what you’re talking about. But people are dying right now!"
A scream rose from the street beyond the gate. Noct turned toward it, but the haze and broken walls blocked his view. Aurora was still helping the woman toward safer ground.
Near her feet, the unconscious husband lay where Noct’s spell had dropped him.
And that was only one household.
Noct looked back at the bird. "I can’t search every building and knock out everyone inside. By the time I finish one street, the mist will have reached three more."
"You need to make them come to you!"
"What does that mean?"
"Look at how they’re behaving!" Lenia snapped. "They’re attacking whatever draws attention! You need to make some kind of big commotion to draw their attention."
"...How big?!"
"Enough! I don’t know, I can’t choose your spell for you?!"
"Ugh..."
It was quite interesting that Lenia had placed all of her faith in a 1-Star Mage who was just bedridden until a few days ago. But still, placed in this position, he had to do something.
"Wait...what if I was able to lift the mist into the air?"
"What?!"
"If I lift it above the buildings, you can condense it there! You won’t have to worry about catching the people underneath!"
"You know that’s impossible for you! You would need to keep it in the air for at least a minute for me to get it all!"
Taking a glance at the bright green light hovering next to his shoulder, he thought about it. Noct remembered a path someone was able to take in the game called [Spirit Mage], but people rarely saw it due to how rare it was to even find a spirit.
But he had one right next to him. And even if they weren’t in a so-called "contract", it had been helping him along the way and following his requests.
Like how it was already protecting him, but when he asked it to extend the protection to Aurora, it happily provided.
’Was it waiting for me to tell it what I needed?’
"You...understand me, right?" Noct turned toward the green light. "I don’t know why you’re helping me, but I promise I’ll pay you back somehow..."
He pointed toward the purple mist gathering between the ruined hall and spreading through the streets of Altaire. "Can you lift that above the rooftops? All of it. Just hold it there until she can deal with it."
The fairy drifted closer, and like it was listening to his request, slowly bobbed up and down. Then the light left his shoulder and floated to the center of the courtyard, stopping just above the debris.
’Please...’
Loose fabric hanging from a nearby window began to flutter. Dust shifted across the courtyard, and the purple vapor around his feet slowly lifted, no matter how heavy it seemed to be prior.
Then, the currents picked up, so much so that Noct had to brace himself against a nearby railing as dust and debris swept past to avoid being hit.
The mist itself peeled away from pretty much everything it had been sticking onto. And beyond the gate, more purple vapor streamed between the houses, drawn toward the growing column of wind.
’It’s actually doing it...!’
More mist followed it out of the neighboring streets, spilling over the walls and rising above the rooftops. And the sweet scent from before gradually faded from the air.
However, Noct’s attention was fixed to the light. It was definitely no longer as bright as before, its glow weakening every second.
’It can’t hold this for long...’
"Lenia!"
But she didn’t need to be told twice.
A beam of dark blue light crossed the sky, almost like a shooting star, striking the center of the suspended mist before bursting into countless branching streaks of light.
Across the street, a familiar woman stood on the roof of a three-story building, her dark blue hair whipped around her face as both hands gripped a long staff that extended toward the sky, maintaining the spell.
’They really don’t call her the Witch of Black Ice for no reason...’
Cold rolled over the courtyard, and water began to form from seemingly nothing. Noct could suddenly see his own breath as the temperature plummeted.
Tiny droplets formed from above, gathering into larger beads before merging together. The swirling cloud grew darker and heavier, like it was being consumed slowly by Lenia’s spell.
A moment later, the suspended water stretched into a long, dark ribbon. It passed through the rooftops, gathering every remaining droplet as it went before the entire cascade landed straight into the Altaire River.
CRASHHHHHHH—!
The violet-stained water mixed in with the river, but as soon as it did, Lenia blocked off both sides of the river, making a makeshift dam in order to contain the mana within the water.
"We actually did it..." Noct muttered in amazement.
The green light slowly flew toward him once more, this time not as radiant as it was before. Noct widened his pocket, inviting it in.
"Thank you. Please rest for now."
The fairy entered and Noct released his pocket, then turning to look at what just happened once more. The entire place was completely free of the mist.
However...
That was quite the commotion.