Temperance Wrenleigh was a woman of silken poise. The moment she heard Marcille’s tone turn stiff and drawn, she immediately understood the gravity of the situation.

  Without needing to hear much else, she took her hands off the blind girl and stood up, brushed down her fitted pants and sat back onto her chair. Then turned her gaze toward the Drapes sisters.

  She clapped her hands once.

  “Alright, hush now. Seth, Silas”

  That was directed at the twins who were about to attempt another sneak attack on Marcille. They grumbled but obeyed, shrinking down on the floor with the sullen grace of boys caught filching sweets.

  The rest of Duskfall, Arthur, Agnes and Tobias also grew more silent and attentive. The same couldn’t be said about the other attendees of the bar though. They were just as loud and rowdy. But that didn’t seem to affect them.

  “Marcy, I can tell this is weighing heavy on you. So, let’s not beat around the bush. Sit. Both of you”

  There were not many chairs left. In fact, most had been already taken by the gang themselves, arranged around the wide circular table. But there was one more chair remaining, probably meant for Marcille.

  Tugged by the hand, Yuzuriha followed her older sister. Since there was only one chair left, that meant they were going to be sharing.

  Arthur attempted to offer his seat but he was quickly turned down by Marcille, preferring to sit with her younger sister. Yep, dotting as usual.

  Marcille’s long skirt ruffled beneath her as she dropped down onto the wooden chair and pulled the blind girl onto her lap.

  This gesture made Yuzuriha’s heart skip faster as her face was flushed with embarrassment. That wasn’t because she found it demeaning, but it was because it felt so oddly comforting.

  In this dangerous bar filled with possibly dangerous figures, Coffin & Crown, Yuzuriha felt more comfortable and safer around Marcille.

  The sensation of safety pressed in hard against her thoughts and she succumbed to it, folding her hands on her lap as she sat snug in her older sister’s arms.

  With the two settled, Temperance leaned forward, lacing her gloved fingers atop the table and said at last.

  “Tell me everything, Marcy and don’t spare a single bit”

  Yuzuriha could feel the shift in her sister’s body as she hesitated to answer. The tension behind her calm exterior was clear to her.

  In honesty, she also felt the same way. The thought of what this woman will do surfaced in her mind more times than she could count on their way here. And now that she had met her, Yuzuriha was all the more curious.

  To her she felt like…like an enigma.

  “Is it truly necessary to start from the very beginning, Tansy? Not that I mind, but… perhaps it’d be wiser to find somewhere a tad more discreet, given the matter at hand”

  Temperance thought about it for a bit, then nodded her head.

  “I see. Fine, then. You can skip the irrelevant stuff”

  “Huh? But that’s not…what I…fine, very well then”

  Marcille sighed and began to speak about the moment she had realized that something was wrong with her little sister.

  That was the first time Yuzuriha had first reincarnated in this world. Back then she referred to her as a Fallen Soul, a term she was still unfamiliar with in this world.

  She went on to explain the strange stirrings inside her, and the Sacrament. By mere mention of that, the astris of the Duskfall members began to flicker, they all took on dark colors.

  Their reaction further solidified the risk Grace had put Yuzuriha in. Or was it her fault?

  No it definitely was her fault. She was the one who was so eager to touch the damn thing!

  But she had a good reason though. Her assistant who was quiet now was the one who wanted this!

  Admittedly, it did help her though. Seeing colors wasn’t ideal but it sure did beat seeing only darkness all the time.

  ‘Wait, so is this a good or bad thing? I’m confused. Before I couldn’t see a thing without this, but now that I have it I can sort of see. But it also puts me in danger’

  Yuzuriha screamed internally, she felt so conflicted about this that she didn’t know whether she wanted to keep the Sacrament or not. It was good to have it but at the same time, it wasn’t.

  This was so frustrating!

  Thinking back, Marcille did try to teach her a skill that would allow her to see through the same means. However, Azure Ooze’s way seemed much more refined, sustainable and didn’t drain her astris.

  Having it removed might be a huge loss, but if it's really as dangerous as these people imply it to be then maybe it’s best to have it removed.

  ‘Yeah, that’s the right choice. This is a world of magic right? I’ll just find other ways to regain my vision’

  Having finished her explanation, Marcille let her words linger in silence. Before her arms loosened around Yuzuriha’s waist, and for the first time since entering the room, she lowered her head a bit and clapped her hands together.

  “I’m begging you, Tansy. Please…if there’s any way you can remove that thing inside of her, I would be eternally grateful. With your Sealed Technique, it should be possible, shouldn’t it?”

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  She said so in such earnestness and fright that Yuzuriha felt guilty for bringing this upon herself. The girl clearly cared dearly for her little sister.

  Arthur was the first to speak, folding his arms as he leaned back against the table’s edge.

  “Azure Ooze, you said? That’s a name I’m not familiar with. It does not seem like it belongs to any of the Eight Noble Houses, far as I know. Nor any of the prominent churches in Tinsel. I should know, I make it my business to know the Sacraments they horde…If it's a rare kind, what grade is it? Could it be Mythical or Legendary, maybe? There are still things from the Eclipse that haven’t seen the sun since their names were scrubbed from stone…”

  Arthur mused aloud, however Marcille said nothing. The same went with Yuzuriha. It was only Temperance who said something, directing it at the older sister.

  “I’d like to help you, truly. I would…”

  Marcille’s shoulders relaxed in the brief moment of hope, but the woman raised a hand.

  “You must understand, Marcy. Sealed Techniques are not without their price. Conditions as they are called…”

  Seeing that her words might have fallen on deaf ears, Temperance made a conscious effort to demonstrate what she meant. She first reclined a little further into her seat as if to ease the gravity of what she was about to share.

  Then she reached forward and took hold of two glasses that had been resting on the table. One of them was only half filled with amber liquid while the other was empty.

  She brought the filled glass to her lips, gulped up whatever was left and licked them afterward.

  “Mmh…peculiar choice. Notes of lavender and bloodroot. How terribly you, Toby. And apologies, didn’t mean to take liberties”

  Tobias, who had been quiet the entire time, gave no real protest. Just a wave of his gloved hand was enough to settle the matter. But wait…

  ‘Wait a minute…if he’s been wearing that mask the entire time then how was the glass half drunk in the first place?’

  Out of everything, that was the only thing that had her interest. In hindsight, it didn’t seem important because before they arrived he could have just taken out the mask, drank his liquor then put it right back on.

  Another question surfaced in her mind. If he could do that, then what was the point of wearing that mask?

  Yuzuriha wondered why and how Tobias looked under that plague mask.

  ‘No, that wouldn’t make much of a difference. Not with these eyes anyway’

  Her vision was still alien and new to her. As incredible as it was, she still couldn’t see the contours of a real face. No, everyone in her sight reclaimed formless. They appeared as blank figures with no faces or features, just bodies sculpted by glowing colors.

  Though thanks to a little practice last night, she did somewhat enable herself to see more than just a humanoid figure. By focusing on the astris pressure, posture, and aura of a person or something she wants to see, she can get a pseudo vivid image of them.

  It wasn’t ideal, and a far cry from ordinary vision. Still, she could see enough to marvel at the wonders of this world.

  Yes, it wasn’t all bad. This strange way of viewing the world around her had its merits, one of which was not just seeing darkness anymore.

  She will take seeing colors more than pure darkness any day of the week!

  At any rate, something far more riveting now had her full attention.

  Temperance had held out the glasses for everyone to see, especially the Drapes sisters. This also made her wonder if Duskfall knew she was blind.

  Other than her eye color, they didn’t really comment on anything else that might hint toward it. Marcille did tell them a few minutes ago, right?

  As she pondered that, there was a shimmer around Temperance’s fingers. It was subtle enough that even someone like Yuzuriha had a difficult time registering the concentration.

  Her astris gathered like vapor before a storm, directed onto her fingers. And then, she flexed, clenching her hands.

  Both glasses shattered with a sharp crack, their shards littering the table and some still rolling in place from the force of the break.

  Unlike everyone who seemed like an experienced veteran, Yuzuriha flinched at the sound of shattering glass. But her big sister comforted her.

  After a beat of silence, Temperance lowered her hands, placing them gingerly atop the ruin she had just made.

  Yuzuriha’s eyes widened as she saw astris coil around the shattered pieces like silk thread tightening through a needle. Piece by piece, the broken glass lifted from the table and knitted itself back together.

  The process wasn’t instantaneous, but it was mesmerizing to witness. The same glass was back and whole, while the other remained broken.

  And just like that, it was officially the coolest thing she had ever laid her eyes on.

  ‘Amazing!’

  Yuzuriha was so amazed about what she just saw she couldn’t keep it together. She didn’t even notice the massive grin enlisted on her face.

  “Well now, look at that charming smile. She’ll be quiet the looker soon”

  Arthur was the first one to point it out, which was promptly followed by Agnes who gave a gleeful gasp as she leaned forward across the table.

  “Oh she’s adorable! Look at that endearing smile! Marcy, can I, may I please pull her cheeks just a little?!”

  Marcille’s hand shot out before Agnes even finished.

  “Try and I’ll snap your fingers like twigs!”

  She said that in such a cold tone Agnes was immediately defeated. Yuzuriha also didn’t like the prospect of having her delicate cheeks being pulled by that giant woman. The pain would be too great.

  Temperance chuckled and turned back to the matter at hand. She held up both glasses again. One whole and the other in pieces.

  “You should already know this Marcy, but let me reiterate for the little one. My Sealed Technique is called [Hourglass]. It allows me to rewind the physical state of something, revert it to what it was before, no matter what damage they’ve taken. But…”

  She set both glasses down.

  “Just like every Ascendant, there’s a Condition that must be met before I can manifest my Sealed Technique.

  In my case. I can’t simply fix anything I please. There has to be a fair and equal exchange. The damage I undo must be reflected somewhere else. In this case, I let one glass return to its past state, at the cost of ensuring the other remains broken”

  Yuzuriha frowned slightly, voicing out her thoughts out loud.

  “It’s like reversing time, but you’re not actually reversing time. You’re just shifting the damage between two designations”

  There was a moment's silence before Temperance gave a chuckle.

  “That’s one way to explain. An interesting one, this girl. You sisters sure are bright!”

  Then, she folded her hands behind her back.

  “Mine is that for something to be restored, something else must be left in ruin.

  This is why Sealed Techniques are more than just fancy abilities. Each of us has our own, shaped by our nature and burdened by the Conditions we must obey. The stronger the ability the crueler the toll”

  Before she could say something else, Yuzuriha already knew what it was. Looking at the sisters, Temperance concluded.

  “So you see, helping you separate that thing from inside you. This Sacrament, Azure Ooze, isn’t impossible. But it will require a trade. Something of equal value. And depending on how deeply rooted in you…”

  (MON - FRI at 6 PM (EST).