(From Rosanne)
The Academy looked very different from the last time we visited it, with quite a lot of soldiers guarding the entrance, and even the surrounding areas. I was getting nervous, thinking that we would be rejected for going there without previous notice. But as soon as we got near the door, a soldier ordered the others to open the door for us.
—W-welcome, Madame Dragonroot! —he said, sounding a bit nervous.
He was wearing more elaborate armor, and had an insignia of a star of eight points. I was pretty familiar with that one, as it was what identified the knights who were assigned to protect the castle and the royal family. His face also seemed familiar, but I couldn't quite place when I had met him. Perhaps during one of my visits to see Erzi when I was a kid?
—Thank you, and thank you for your hard work —I said, trying to sound as elegant as possible.
I didn't want to make him look bad in front of his subordinates, since he was helping me a lot by letting us in without any problem. I thought about inquiring about asking his name to give him a gift as a reward, but we had already walked past him when it crossed my mind. It might also have been a bit too obvious and suspicious. I made a mental note to ask Maxwell later.
We arrived at the inner garden, right before the entrance to the main building, and I took a moment to look at where the Ygdrassil tree would sprout in the future. I could also see a lot of movement through the windows.
—Please, wait here —I said as I put Violet on the ground.
She let go of me very easily, as if she hadn't been acting as a spoiled baby just a few moments ago. I kissed her, and told Allysa, Sophie and Nora to stay with her.
—Are you sure? We can come with you —Nora said.
—No, I... I'll be fine —I said.
I looked ahead and started walking, feeling a bit of dread. In that building the victims of the curse were being treated. I wasn't afraid that they could get infected, I knew the curse didn't work like that. What I didn't want was to expose them to what the afflicted were going through. The myth described the process very gratuitously, as it probably was written as a cautionary tale. Those who had succumbed to the curse of Calliope would have turned into deformed and pitiful creatures, barely resembling humans, before they turned into monsters. I took a deep breath as I stood in front of the door, and pushed it slowly. To my surprise, the first person I saw was someone I knew.
—Oh, Rosanne, why didn't you tell us you were coming?
—Car-Carmila? What? —I managed to say.
She was on a wheelchair, but she was moving it on her own. She also had a pretty good complexion, all things considered.
—A-are you alright? Are you really alright? —I asked as I closed the distance between us, and kneeled next to her.
I looked at her even more intently. She had a few gray hairs, and the skin on her hands resembled obsidian. She must have noticed I fixate on that, as she grabbed my head and forced me to look at her eyes.
—I am fine. At least better than those first days. All thanks to the doctor's treatment.
—Thank goodness —I said, feeling a weight lifted from my shoulders that I didn't know I was carrying.
The doctor's letters had told me she was fine, but I couldn't fully believe it until I saw it myself. I took a look around, to the surrounding rooms. The people afflicted by the curse were in similar, if not better conditions. The doctors were working hard, but didn't seem completely overwhelmed, thanks to the help of the people of the church. They still took their time to glare at me from beyond their masks before returning to their work.
—Oh, you brought Sophie and Nora? And even Alyssa and Lady Violett? —she said, furrowing her eyebrows a bit, but then she smiled— Would you like to have a cup of tea at my office?
—No, it's fi- wait, you have an office? You are a patient, not a doctor, you should be resting.
—Well, I can't just lie and do nothing all day. I have been helping Maxwell and Lucius with the management, so it is only natural that I would have an office with the necessary amenities.
I couldn't help but smile at the absurdity of the situation.
—I have to talk with Maxwell, but I'm sure they'll be glad to know you are doing fine —I said, pointing towards the people who had come with me.
—Then I suppose I would make room out of my busy schedule to meet them —she said, and we parted ways for the moment.
I went deeper into the building, and once again I lost my way inside of it. I realized too late that I should have asked Carmila where Maxwell was. I found my way to the locations of several events in the game, I could even picture the future saintess standing there. I was starting to get frustrated, my head hurt. I stopped and took a deep breath.
—Maxwell, where are you? —I said to myself, as I tried to calm down.
Right at that moment, I felt something pulling my pinky finger. Confused, I turned in that direction, and I managed to hear his voice. It was only a murmur in the distance, but I started to walk towards its source. I went downstairs, and through a long hallway, picking up the pace with each step until I was practically running. Finally, I found a door that had his name written on it. In retrospect, it wasn't that far from the entrance. Without really thinking about it, I opened the door and walked right to his face, grabbing him by the shoulders to pull him even closer.
—Maxwell! I got it! I know where the saintess is! —I said, perhaps a bit too enthusiastically.
—T-that's great... —He managed to say.
Only after that did I notice there was another person in the room, a person dressed in the church's robes, but not wearing a mask.
And only after THAT did I realize I had lost my sun hat while running, so my horns were completely exposed. I froze.
—Oh! —the man suddenly said—, you must be Madame Rosanne Dragonroot.
He didn't seem weirded out by my appearance, if anything he seemed intrigued by it.
—A-ah, yes, that's who I am. It is a pleasure to make myself your acquaintance —I said, trying to act as the member of a noble house I was supposed to be.
—Rosanne, he is Lucius, a priest from the church of Enki that has been helping us —Maxwell said, barely hiding the irritation in his voice— Lucius, we have something important and private to discuss, so could you please leave us alone for a moment?
—Of course, please call me if you need anything —the priest replied with a smile.
He left the room, trying to close the door, but the hinges seemed to be damaged. I turned towards Maxwell, who was glaring at me. Then he sighed and relaxed his expression a bit.
—There is no point in worrying about that now. Lay on the table, so I can examine why you grew horns now, while you tell me everything you discovered —he said, as he picked up Selphie and came close to me.
I did as he asked me, explaining to him to the best of my abilities how the genius that was my daughter had figured where the future saintess might be.
—I understand, I will ask for an audience with the Queen as soon as possible to inform her of this discovery. Just, next time, try to not withhold any detail from your "visions".
—Huh? Did I forget to tell you something?
He pondered for an instant.
—No, nothing important. Now, about your health... you seem to be perfectly healthy. That's actually what's worrying me.
—I know what you mean, but I feel like there was a better way to say it.
—You understood me, didn't you? —the doctor said with a smirk, which was quickly replaced by a concerned look—, your mana flow is stable, but it is noticeably stronger than it was before. According to my medical knowledge, such sudden increase in someone's mana flow would suddenly turn their bodies into mist. You, on the other hand, seem to have adapted pretty well to the change. And we can't ignore the fact that this isn't the first time that you grow horns and become stronger out of nowhere.
—Y-yeah —I muttered. I didn't particularly want to remember that night.
—We can think of this event as the same category as the previous incident, but the circumstances aren't exactly the same. And you mentioned that Alyssa thinks this is connected to your draconic powers —Maxwell closed his eyes, deep in thought, for a moment. It was in moments like those where I could see the wise men that he would become in some years, during the events of the game.
—I can't make any conclusions right now —he finally said—, but your health doesn't seem to be for the moment. That being said, we need to keep you monitored.
—So we don't know why I grew horns at all?
—Not for certain, but if I can make a guess, perhaps it is self defense against the curse? Your condition reminds me a lot of the description of the later stages of the affliction, but also the opposite in some aspects.
—That... that could be it, I think.
Maxwell then wrote a letter to inform the Queen about this advance in our investigation, and we planned to go and deliver it personally at the palace.
—Afterwards, we'll pass to my department for some things and we'll go back to your house —he said— I was planning to take a break anyways, and I can keep an eye on you that way.
—Sounds like a plan — I said, as we walked to pick up Violett, Nora and Sophie, saying goodbye to Carmilla for the time being.
However, as soon as we got into the door of the palace, and informed the guards who we were, we were let inside. I immediately got a bad feeling, which only became worse as we were guided to a meeting room where lots of important-looking people were already waiting. Only Maxwell and I were allowed inside, so I told everyone to wait for me outside. There were high ranking knights, representatives of several guilds, nobles with high influence and big territories. But more importantly, one of the cardinals of the church was there, alongside with the priest who I had met at Maxwell's office.
—Doctor, I predicted you would need an assembly with the Queen, so I took it upon myself to organize one. I was about to send for you when we heard you were at the door —he said with a smile.
—Yeah, thanks, Lucius —Maxwell replied, taking the letter he had just written and ripping it into pieces.