Micah's group was on the move, fleeing from the crawlers that pursued them. As they navigated through the town's alleyways, both Micah and Lyon sensed a familiar presence about two hundred meters away. The veil, a mystical barrier, seemed to stabilize as they approached, and the crawlers began to abandon their pursuit.

"There’s an Abler kind nearby. Could it be someone from headquarters?" Micah asked Lyon.

"Possibly, but he feels different. He might be a powerful exorcist sent by the order," Lyon replied.

"Could he be a grandmaster? His aura is far from ordinary," Micah added.

Rolly, puzzled by their conversation, looked to Eckart for an explanation.

"Abler kind exorcists can sense others with similar abilities, even from a kilometer away," Eckart explained to Rolly.

"That's incredible! But why didn't they sense him earlier?" Rolly asked.

"The veil affects their senses. It was weak earlier, but it’s stronger in this part of town," Eckart answered.

"We can also gauge an Abler's ability by sensing his aura," Micah noted.

"Let's take a rest here," Lyon suggested, leaning against a wall.

"What for?" Micah asked.

"I'm tired, Micah. We need to rest our feet. We can also send a signal to our rescuers," Lyon suggested.

"Is that wise?" Eckart questioned.

Looking around, Lyon replied, "Yes, it is." He then turned to Micah, "Do your thing!"

Micah nodded, pulling a paper talisman from her jacket. She began chanting, causing the runes on the paper to glow red. She then applied her flame to it. As the talisman was consumed by the flames, she released it, and a light painted the sky above them. Symbols and runes illuminated the town's limits.

Mitchell, noticing the veil stabilizing around the area, advised 2nd Lieutenant Armstrong, who agreed. Lucia saw the ward's candle nearly melted, signaling the need for a replacement.

Mitchell called Lucia over. Seeing her strain, he told her, "Rest for a while and let others take your place. We need you to be able to aid the wounded."

"No, I want to contribute. This is the least I can do," Lucia protested.

"Listen to me, the ward will drain your energy," Mitchell insisted, assigning another mercenary to carry the ward.

"The ward works for thirty minutes at most," Mitchell reiterated to the mercenary.

"Mitchell!" 2nd Lieutenant Armstrong approached him.

"Yes, sir?" Mitchell responded.

"We can only rest for ten minutes," Armstrong advised.

"Yes, sir. That will do. At least our medic can regain her strength," Mitchell said, referring to Lucia.

All of a sudden, a reddish light illuminated the sky. Everyone looked up, amazed.

"It is a signal. We must head there as fast as we can!" Mitchell told everyone.

"We still have five minutes left, my boy!" Armstrong said.

"The clairvoyant signal will only last for ten minutes. Judging by the distance, it will take us a while to get there," Mitchell argued.

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2nd Lieutenant Armstrong sighed and then barked his orders, "Boys and girl, get up! We'll resume our mission!" He looked at John, who was sitting in the corner, and said, "Lead us to where the light guides us."

John replied, "Roger!"

As everyone started to move and the ward was lit, Mitchell secretly used his ability to locate the source of the clairvoyant light. He concentrated as a warm flame gently enveloped his hand. "Two hundred meters..." he muttered as he snuffed out the flame.

Lucia, noticing the warm sensation, looked at Mitchell approaching from behind. She felt something strange about him as she felt the same warmth when Mitchell touched her shoulder. She felt comforted as he did that and moved on with Mitchell in front of her.

"M-Mitch..." Lucia stuttered, trying to get Mitchell's attention.

Mitchell, however, did not hear her. Lucia decided to keep what she had observed about Mitchell to herself and continued on their way. As the group left, two shadowy figures followed and observed them carefully, keeping a distance of fifty meters.

Meanwhile, at Major Galahad's office, a courier pigeon landed at his window. Lyla approached and retrieved the pigeon carrying a small letter. Major Galahad stood up from his desk and grabbed a lighter from his pocket. Lyla, seeing Major Galahad approaching, smiled at him. Their eyes met, but Lyla broke the contact and looked away.

"Not now, sir..." Lyla said.

Major Galahad reached for her hand holding the letter and said, "We need to have this deciphered."

As Major Galahad took the letter from Lyla's hand, she blushed and let go. The letter was about the size of Lyla's palm, and the marks from being folded were evident.

"But sir, we need Mitchell's ability of pure flame to..." Before Lyla could finish, she was surprised by what she saw.

Crimson letters appeared before them, functioning like a projector screen with the letters embedded on it. The letter read:

"Dear Erwin Pendleton,

We have heard that you have succeeded in your project and we are proud of you! The Sindler's kin will stand by your side. Please continue with your good work and you will be rewarded generously!

Truly,

Felix Braun"

"Sindler's kin?" Lyla asked Major Galahad about the letter she saw.

"It's nothing, Lyla. Just an organization I secretly joined. I can tell you about the rest if you like." Major Galahad smiled at her.

Lyla, noticing Major Galahad's strange demeanor, shook her head. She knew that if she asked further, Major Galahad might not be pleased. Also, she didn't want to disappoint him. "It's okay, sir. You don't need to tell me."

Major Galahad replied, "Good girl..." Then he patted her head.

"I have to leave now, sir!" Lyla bowed.

"You don't need to do that," Major Galahad said, feeling awkward with Lyla's action. "You may leave..."

"Yes, sir!" Lyla replied and hastily left the room.

Major Galahad knew that his relationship with Lyla would keep her quiet about the matter. He returned to his seat and scanned the papers on his table. Finding nothing worthwhile, he stood up again and went to the table where a bottle of whiskey was located. Pouring the bottle's contents into a glass, Major Galahad sipped some of the whiskey.

"Not bad..." Major Galahad commented on the flavor of his drink.

Back in the town of Wales, Mitchell's group navigated through the city's alleys following the clairvoyant marker in the sky. Noticing that the light it generated was fading, 2nd Lieutenant Armstrong ordered everyone to pick up the pace. Ten minutes had almost passed and they were still halfway to where Micah's group was.

"Did you get the location on the map?" a mercenary asked Mitchell.

"No, we don't have maps here," Mitchell replied.

"Corporal Andrews, we don't have an extensive map in this town. Maybe our guide could help us," Armstrong suggested.

Mitchell looked at John, who was standing idly behind Lucia. John was looking around, noticing something strange in his surroundings. He rushed to Mitchell and Armstrong and said, "Sir, that block is close. However, there's a need for us to walk several minutes to get around that wall." John pointed to a tall wall in front of them.

"Great!" Armstrong exclaimed.

"So close but so far," Mitchell sighed.

"We'll have to make a detour," Armstrong replied, reorganizing the team.

John led the team, followed by Mitchell and 2nd Lieutenant Armstrong. The ward was held by Corporal Andrews, followed by Lucia and the rest. As the team moved, they heard the moaning and groaning of the possessed. Emerging from alleys and small corners, the former citizens of the town appeared as ghouls, looking like soulless zombies.

The mercenaries formed a perimeter to protect Lucia, who looked horrified by the scene. If not for the lit ward, the ghouls might have overwhelmed them through sheer numbers. John forced himself to step forward, seeing his fellow townspeople afflicted by the phantasmal anomaly.

"We can do nothing for them... move out!" 2nd Lieutenant Armstrong ordered.

All of a sudden, the flame on the ward flickered as Mitchell noticed that the veil around them weakened. The clairvoyant light lit by Micah's group suddenly disappeared.

"We have to do something, fast!" Mitchell urged his team and asked John, "How far are we?"

John, with a shaking voice, replied, "I-It's about a ten-minute walk."

"I see... then I have no choice!" Mitchell said, grabbing the ward from Corporal Andrews. "I don't like doing this here."

The flame on the ward's candle turned brighter, and a gentle warmth radiated through the team. They noticed Mitchell's right hand was covered by fire. Seeing this, Lucia was shocked.

"It's alright, Lucia," Mitchell assured her.