When the midnight bell finished tolling, everything returned to normal.
It was as if nothing had happened at all.
Minutes and seconds ticked by, yet the expected plague outbreak never materialized.
Had they succeeded? Was it because the evil god's vessel had failed to complete itself, the conditions to awaken the evil god hadn't been met, and the enemy had paused the sacrificial offering?
Or had they actually failed, and it was merely that the time for the outbreak hadn't arrived yet, with mass infections set to appear shortly?
The waiting for the other shoe to drop left all five of their hearts suspended in anxiety. In fact, they almost found themselves wishing for the plague to just break out already so they could stop worrying.
Of course, that was just a passing thought. No news was good news. Even if the plague broke out in the very next second, everyone was safe for this moment at least—and every extra minute could mean one more person saved.
Time could not be wasted. Dr. Sven had already returned to her post, continuing to compound and distribute medicine without rest. The despicable yet pitiable city lord was finally dead, so the four of them no longer needed to stay in the ward. They followed after her, reasoning that even if they couldn't help professionally, they could at least lend a hand and do their part.
More and more people took the medicine, yet the plague showed no sign of breaking out. As time steadily ticked away, a pale sliver of light actually began to bleed across the horizon.
No matter how dark the night, once the long gloom passed, the dawn would arrive as always.
Day was about to break.
The group paused their work, their eyes filled with a mixture of joy and bewilderment.
Since it still hadn't erupted by now, did it really mean the crisis had passed?
They looked at one another, faint smiles touching the corners of their lips.
They were now just one step away from victory.
Now, everything was heading in a good direction. The medicine distribution was proceeding strictly according to plan. By this evening at the latest, everyone would temporarily escape the threat of the plague. By then, even if the enemy wanted to trigger the outbreak, it would be too late. In theory, once the last person received their medicine and the suppression conditions were met, the four of them could smoothly return home.
Light and hope were right before their eyes, but before that, there was one more crucial task to handle.
The human-faced fruits—the fundamental objective of their journey.
And so, around seven in the morning, the four heartlessly left behind Dr. Sven—whose dark circles were deeply sunken from exhaustion—and took a tour around the city first.
As expected, the remaining five trees in the city that represented Lynch had fully grown, but they were all mad. This further confirmed their previous deduction.
The problem was, looking at over ten heads of himself surrounding him and trying to bite him, Lynch felt utterly exhausted mentally. He hastily dumped them all into Miss Diana's storage space and, amidst the ladies' laughter, rushed toward the small grove outside the city.
Fully armed and extra cautious.
There were no soldiers patrolling day and night outside the city. Something might well be lurking out here at this hour—whether Old Sven, troops from the Republic, or even other ghouls. In the world of the mystery, there were far too many precedents of people falling at the final hurdle before victory. As experienced mystery hunters, the four had no intention of adding themselves to that list.
The site of the original explosion remained largely unchanged, except the gunsmoke had long since cleared. A few small beasts scampered across the scorched earth; death and life had once again reached harmony.
The woods were quiet. The four did a quick sweep, finding no newly dug holes nor any suspicious creatures.
Yet they remained vigilant, refusing to let down their guard as they quickly located the position of the final five human-faced fruit plants.
Without even looking closely, three stood guard while one dug. Repeating the process five times, they uprooted all five bushes completely, packed them up, and took them away.
Moving even faster than on their way out, the four hurried back to the city. Only when they sneakily returned to their temporary quarters inside the fortress with the dangerous goods did they finally breathe a sigh of relief.
We're safe—for now.
Finally, the moment of revelation had arrived. Four hearts beat with nervous anticipation. Suppressing her pounding pulse, Miss Diana threw all five bushes before them with slightly trembling hands.
“Shh.”
Lynch personally picked up one, parting the lush foliage to reveal the heads hanging from the branches inside.
So ugly. Why is it me again? I wanted to see what they looked like hanging up there.
Immediately after, Lynch took a few punches. It seemed everyone got a hit in—even a certain fool had quietly joined in.
Still, Lynch was generous enough not to argue with these silly women. He directed his gaze at their final hope.
Five fruits! That was the normal quantity, and they were plump with handsome features—an unprecedented sight.
A good omen.
Lynch's eyes lit up. Licking his lips, he held his breath, delicately pinched one of the fruits, and gave a sharp tug—
“Ow~~!”
Holy crap, I forgot about that.
On that day, everyone was reminded of the terror brought by those shrieks.
It hadn't been as noticeable outdoors, but inside a room, the sheer piercing quality of this thing's shriek became painfully clear, startling the people queued outside overnight to collect medicine. Dr. Sven, who had just finished compounding a batch of medicine and was planning to rest briefly to alleviate her exhausted mental energy, was startled by the scream and rushed toward the sound in a hurry.
Thus, she arrived to see four fools gathered in a circle, wearing brain-dead grins while poking a human head surrounded in the middle.
The head had vivid features and a healthy skin tone—unmistakably a good head.
Crucially, it didn't bite.
“It seems your mission is complete at last... My sincere congratulations to you all.”
Seeing the tired yet excited expressions on their faces, Dr. Sven couldn't help but be infected by their mood, offering a knowing smile. She had witnessed their efforts and perseverance all along, and seeing them finally enjoy the joy of harvest moved her deeply—right before she kicked them all out.
Plucking human-faced fruits in an enclosed room? Have you outsiders gone infected in the head, or did the infected scoop your brains out? Every last one of you, get out!
And so, on the formerly blood-drenched training ground, continuous shrieks resounded once again. For a time, both the queuing citizens and the working soldiers turned pale as ash. Bizarre urban legends were bound to spread through the city.
Still, the harvest was quite good.
Lynch got eight heads, Diana and Judy got four heads each, and Natalie only got two heads. Hahaha, as expected of a Stubborn Stone Body... Ow!
His laughter and a yelp burst out almost simultaneously. Clutching his stepped-on toes, Lynch wept in silent grief, yet anyone could feel the genuine joy in his heart at this moment.
After pouring out five days of blood, sweat, and tears, the item was finally in their hands.
Although the patients who had already fallen ill in the Fifth Age might not be saved, at least those victims who had only been bitten could be cured.
This would also minimize the impact of their prior actions, allowing a heavy weight to settle off Lynch's heart.
“How about giving me four of them? One from each of you,” Dr. Sven requested with a thoughtful smile. “You've helped us so much, and as I mentioned before, I want to give you a gift. It just so happens that I've gathered quite a few materials over these past fifteen years, which should be enough.”
Only then did the four remember the female doctor's earlier promise. Thinking that they had spare fruits anyway, Lynch agreed, but asked, “What is it, exactly?”
“Just a little toy. Since I'm tired from compounding medicine and want to rest a bit, I might as well craft it right now.”
With that, the female doctor smilingly took one head from each of the four. After waiting nearly an hour in nervous anticipation, Dr. Sven returned to the room.
In her hands were four palm-sized voodoo dolls, their faces looking identical to the four of them.
A bit creepy, but then again, what isn’t creepy in this era?
Exchanging glances, everyone accepted the dolls. “What is this thing?”
“Hehe.”
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