Part 48: Chapter Forty-Seven: The Crimson Power

A very odd scene waited for them in the Altena Forest on the way to the church.





What are you doing here?
Oh, Noin darling! It’s been so long since I last saw you.
Well, you know how the Empire was defeated and all, right?
So, I was thinking that maybe I don’t need my guards anymore.
Puni Enforcer: If that’s the way you feel, we will respect your decision…
But remember, we Puni will always be there for you. Just call for us when you need us…
Okey-dokey! I’ll never forget you guys!
Puni Enforcer: Farewell, fairest Tolena!
Okay! Bye bye!
Puni Enforcer: Be careful.
That was over dramatic, don’t you think?
I must be on my way, too.
See you later, dear Noin.
That girl hasn’t changed a bit. Even after the Empire collapsed…

The Altena Church was silent when they arrived.

Video- “Altena Church”

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You’re right. It’s too quiet.
Wait, there’s something over there.

It was soon plain why.



What… what happened?
Why would he fossilize her?
We’ll have to ask her to find out…
Viese, can you cure her fossilization like you did for Max?
You mean with the Mell Orb…
Yes, I’ll do it!

Feinne’s Fourth Wall Lectures: A Little Note
I’d strongly suggest you be careful about making items like the Mell Orb with Mana Synthesis right now, because we have very limited Life Elements in general and especially for the near future. They’re super easy to make with normal synthesis, fortunately.

Just as with Max, they cured Eizlen’s fossilization.



Uh, uhhh…
Mother Eizlen!
Fee…?
And, everyone else…
It looks like she’s all better.
Mother Eizlen, what happened to you?
The Crimson Azoth… and its wielder came here.
Chaos?!
I thought so.
He went inside… looking for Gardo…
Looking for Gardo?!
I have a bad feeling about this…
Let’s check inside, hurry!

Their fears were entirely justified.



This is… horrible…
Even Yuveria was… What the hell happened here?
Felt! Felt!
Calm down.
You can cure him with one of those Mell things, right?
Y-Yes.
Alright, let’s cure Felt.
That’s what we came here for, right.

But things would not be so simple this time.



What?!
Why?!
Why didn’t it work?
It has to work…
Why?!
Why isn’t it working?!
Viese, calm down.
The Mell Orb didn’t work…
So, how do we save Felt?

They brought Felt up top with them.



It looks like they battled each other in front of the continental drive.
Felt and Chaos… They both fight with an Azoth.
It was a showdown between the Crimson and Azure Azoths.
If that is so, Felt was fossilized with the full power from the Crimson.
The power used would be far greater than the one used against me…
I don’t know if I can…
And, we came all this way…!
Is there anything other than the Mell Orb that can cure fossilization?
Not that I know of…

Viese had a sudden idea.



What is it?
Yes, that just might work…
But I need some time to study in the camp.
We’ll try anything at this point.
Let’s go to the camp.

Viese studied the formulation of the Mell Orb and eventually realized there was a way to make it more powerful.



Just as I thought… I think I can create a stronger orb… A derivative Mell Orb.
What does that mean?
Well, by studying the Mell Orb…
I believe I can create an even stronger version of the Mell Orb that can cure Felt.
Really?!
Yes, and I think a certain ancient stalactite is the key to a stronger orb…
A stalactite…?
The cave to the north is a perfect place to find ancient stalactites.
Unless, of course, you have somewhere else in mind.
No, I think you’re right.
Then, let’s go.

They set out to find the ancient stone needed to cure Felt, and next time we’ll see the horrors they found there. Well, just one horror. But it’s horrible.