Sakolomé, Bakuran, and Salomé had arrived at the location designated by Édouard. Strangely, this place seemed rather deserted, and a chilly atmosphere prevailed.
Salomé: "Uh... do you think it's a good idea to continue?" she asked, concern evident in her voice.
Bakuran: "We didn't come all the way here to turn back. Besides, I really want to see that famous book Sakolomé mentioned."
Salomé insisted lightly: "It's your curiosity that could play tricks on you, Bakuran. Curiosity is a bad trait..."
"Shut up!" Sakolomé interrupted, cutting off the argument between Salomé and Bakuran.
He pointed to a small house overgrown with weeds. "I think that's Albert Félixon's house."
A shiver ran through Salomé. "This place is really terrifying. Let's go back home."
Sakolomé looked at her disapprovingly. "You're here now, it's too late to back down. We have to see this through."
Bakuran nodded in agreement with Sakolomé.
Salomé closed her eyes for a moment, took a deep breath, and then agreed: "Okay!"
Sakolomé moved forward with Salomé and Bakuran toward the house. "Well, I suppose we need to go inside."
He broke down the door with surprising ease despite its appearance.
Inside, the darkness was oppressive.
Salomé: "Damn, we can't see anything!"
Bakuran extended his right hand, which suddenly lit up. "This will allow us to see in this darkness."
Sakolomé gave him a grateful smile. "Well done, Bakuran!"
Impressed by what he had just done, Salomé asked: "Were you able to produce light with your mana?"
"Yes," replied Bakuran.
"I want to do it too!" exclaimed Salomé, extending her hand and concentrating her violet mana on it.
Unintentionally, her mana became too powerful and blinding.
Sakolomé and Bakuran closed their eyes to protect themselves from the intense light.
"Salomé, stop that!" Sakolomé shouted.
She made her mana and the blinding light disappear, leaving only Bakuran's softer light.
"I still have trouble controlling my mana," she admitted with an embarrassed smile.
"I should teach you how to master it later," Bakuran suggested, taking Salomé's right hand with his left.
Surprised, Salomé asked: "What are you doing?"
Bakuran covered her hand with mana that came into direct contact with hers. "Release your mana onto this hand."
Salomé released her mana, and strangely, it balanced Bakuran's; her aura transformed into a soothing light.
"Wow, I did it! I produced a beautiful mana light like Bakuran!" she exclaimed joyfully.
Bakuran released her hand and admired her achievement. However, Sakolomé was intrigued.
"What just happened?" he asked.
Bakuran explained: "I noticed that a more ordered mana can command a less ordered one. So, I used mine to give instructions to Salomé's."
Sakolomé was impressed. "That's incredible! Does it only work when you touch?"
Bakuran nodded. "Yes, because it allows us to make direct contact and interconnect our manas when the other releases theirs; it also works with energy..."
The door opened abruptly, interrupting the young Satsujin Otoko.
Sakolomé: "Who could that be?"
At the entrance stood a female figure who asked: "Who's there?"
The voice seemed familiar to Sakolomé.
"It's not the voice of..." he began before the girl approached closer.
"Sally?" he recognized with surprise.
Sally looked at him and exclaimed: "Sakolomé? But what are you doing here?"
Also surprised, Sakolomé replied: "I'll return the question!"
Sally was dressed all in black, giving the impression of a bad girl.
Salomé: "Sally!!!" she cried out in joy.
Sally smiled at Salomé. "You're here too?"
Bakuran observed the scene, feeling left out. "Uh... I'm here too! I'm Bakuran!" he added awkwardly.
Sally looked at him and asked: "Are you Sakolomé's brother?"
Bakuran nodded.
Sally thought for a moment before saying: "How many brothers and sisters do you have?"
"I have a sister and two brothers," Sakolomé replied.
"Then one is missing. Introduce me to him when you can," she said with a mischievous smile.
"When you want! But first, tell me what you're doing here," Sakolomé insisted.
Sally frowned. "Don't try to outsmart me, Sakolomé; I asked you first!"
The two friends engaged in a friendly argument while Salomé found it amusing, and Bakuran discreetly admired Sally.
In his thoughts, he said: This girl is beautiful; her long pink hair and beautiful gray eyes... I'd love to become her boyfriend.
Returning to reality, Bakuran approached the two disputants. "Stop arguing!"
They immediately ceased their quarrel.
Bakuran turned to Sakolomé. "My tender and irresponsible big brother, don't you see that an argument between a man and a woman has no place?"
Sakolomé and Salomé were surprised by Bakuran's unusual tone.
He continued: "It would be ideal to accept that the girl is right; don't forget that they carry men for nine months!"
Sakolomé and Salomé were stunned by this unexpected declaration.
Sally smiled proudly in response: "Haha, Sakolomé, you should take an example from your little brother; he knows the value of women."
Bakuran blushed under the compliment while Salomé retorted: "Since when do you know this value? You never easily agree with me! Stop this circus!"
To hide his embarrassment from Salomé's words, Bakuran sneezed loudly before adding: "It's just that I swallowed wrong; excuse me!"
Salomé was red with anger at this almost comical scene.
Sakolomé turned to Sally to change the subject. "Actually, we came here to look for a book."
"A book? What's it about?" Sally asked curiously.
"A book supposedly filled with magical objects that an old friend told me about," Sakolomé explained.
"Hmm... And you really believe it? What if she lied to you?" Sally replied skeptically.
"No, Melinda could never lie to me; she's someone very sincere," Sakolomé affirmed with conviction.
Compassion appeared on Sally's face as she asked: "Where is Melinda now?"
"Enough about that; let's find that book first..." Sakolomé said before having a sudden realization.
"You, Sally, still haven't told me what you're doing here," he added, frowning.
Sally seemed to panic suddenly. "Well... I often heard about this abandoned house, so I wanted to come see it up close..."
"Up close if you say so; well, can you help me find this book?" Sakolomé asked impatiently.
"Of course! Why not?" Sally replied enthusiastically.
The young Satsujin Otoko, along with Sally, began searching the house for about 45 minutes for the famous book in this strangely disorganized place.
Salomé entered a dark room and headed directly under a dusty bed thanks to her hand lit by her mana. She discovered a book hidden under a thick layer of dust, which she carefully picked up before sitting on the bed to gently dust off the book titled "What People Don't Know."
"Could this be the book Sakolomé is looking for?" she wondered internally before quickly joining her brother.
Salomé: "Big brother, look at this book!"
Sakolomé took the book from Salomé's hands and observed the title "What People Don't Know."
"Where did you find this book?" he asked, surprised.
Salomé replied proudly: "Under the bed."
Memories flooded Sakolomé's mind:
The reaction wasn't normal, and it started to scare me.
"In an old drawer was the dusty residence of an old killer man... There was this book he wrote, 'What People Don't Know.' I, who worked in the police of Monor City, had hidden it at home after reading that it was possible to summon creatures if we expressed our desires to a magical statue..."
Back to reality:
Sakolomé: "Yes, this is the book! It's the famous book!!" he exclaimed enthusiastically before calling his friends:
"Bakuran! Sally! Stop your search; we've found the famous book!!"
Sally and Bakuran reacted immediately:
Sally: "That's great!"
Bakuran: "Where are the spells?"
Sakolomé: "Wait; let's discover it together!"
He opened the book but was interrupted by Sally, who was concerned:
"Wait; are you sure it's a good idea? A book full of spells could be cursed..."
Salomé agreed as well: "It's true; this isn't something you see every day..."
Sakolomé thought while recalling Melinda's warnings about Sy666 and everything that could come from the book's content:
"It's true; normally I should destroy this book..."
Sally: "Huh? Why?"
The door opened again abruptly, interrupting their already tense conversation:
Sakolomé: "Good grief! This abandoned house still attracts so many visitors?"
At the entrance stood four mysterious women.
The first exuded a mystical and menacing aura; she wore elegant attire inspired by Asian traditions, adorned with complex motifs in dark colors. Her long black hair was complemented by refined ornaments, and a mystical symbol shone on her forehead.
The second woman had a provocative appearance; dressed entirely in black with revealing clothing accentuating her warrior silhouette.
The third wore traditional attire contrasted by futuristic elements; she was equipped with a massive technological weapon.
Finally, the fourth woman wore a short top showcasing her muscular build, along with black cargo pants and an oversized jacket.
All these captivating looks left Bakuran completely hypnotized by their beauty.
After Sally, here were more angels fallen from heaven.
The first woman stepped forward slightly before announcing:
"Hello! I am Yue-Ling-Mut; I am the leader of our band specializing in myths."
The second woman introduced herself next:
"Hello! I am Reika-Tan; delighted!"
Bakuran couldn't help but admire Reika-Tan while thinking, She's too sexy!!!
The third woman added:
"I am Mut-Armaïda; delighted."
Suddenly snapping out of his daydream, Bakuran asked:
"Are you all mutants?"
Yue-Ling-Mut replied calmly:
"Yes, of course; is there a problem? We are humanoid mutants."
Bakuran retorted:
"But mutants are supposed to be disgusting; how can you be so beautiful?"
The mutant women burst into laughter at his naivety.
Yue-Ling-Mut explained patiently:
"Who is this child fantasizing about adult women? There is indeed a difference between humans and humanoid mutants."
Bakuran continued on his tangent:
"But let me laugh!"
Yue-Ling-Mut sighed before adding:
"Let me give you a history lesson; once there were only humans..."
She continued her detailed explanation of how certain species were affected by a curse leading to their current transformation, highlighting their unique ability to reproduce without loss.
Bakuran listened attentively but eventually asked bluntly:
"Can I see Reika-Tan's underwear?"
The other observers suddenly found this question inappropriate, while Sakolomé coughed to try to suppress this awkward conversation:
"Do you know why you're here?"
Yue-Ling-Mut replied straightforwardly:
"The book; give it to us."