The Cursed Iver
The materials for making the "Wheel of Fortune" card are not easy to find.
To save time, Iver directly mobilized his three companions to help him search.
Although not as demanding as the "Moon" card, it's still a bit troublesome—but thankfully it's just troublesome.
It requires four owl feathers, three griffin feathers, the shackles and key of the Wisdom Prisoner, bandages or gauze used by a wounded person who had survived a fatal injury, and a small amount of sapphire powder.
The first two are easy to find.
Although owls are rare, they are not supernatural creatures. Last night, Iver commissioned the griffin Liz to capture one. And the griffin's feathers were practically within reach.
The main problem is that the latter two materials are harder to find.
The card "Wheel of Fortune" symbolizes change, destiny, and force majeure... while the transformed Thoth Tarot Version the Wheel of Fortune adds the meaning of "changing fate with one's own will".
In other words, one cannot simply lie down and let things happen. Instead, one must take control of Wheel of Fortune, demonstrate one's will, and change one's fate—and to do this requires sufficient wisdom, as well as extensive learning and reading. By turning the lower parts of the Wheel of Fortune, one can influence higher levels, ultimately reversing the entire Wheel of Fortune.
It is Tarot Card belonging to the Path of Wisdom.
The essence of the third item is "the cage broken by the bound wise man"; the fourth item is "proof of the powerful willpower of those who are approaching death to reverse their fate".
Both of these items are hard to find.
It's not just a matter of rarity... but also because nobody pays attention to these things, it's easy to buy the wrong materials and get scammed. For example, hospitals certainly don't know which fatally injured person will survive, so their medical waste is likely piled up and thrown away.
In this situation, how can one find the specific roll of bandage? And if it is contaminated with other people's blood or medicine, its pure symbolic meaning may also be tainted.
The same applies to the shackles used by the Wisdom Prisoner" —how wise must one be to be considered truly wise? Could the shackles he used have actually been lost or replaced? Could others have used these shackles in between... perhaps a fool used them afterward, thus corrupting the concept? They went to great lengths to find these two pieces of material. A substitute was found for "proof of the indomitable will of those who defy death"—that was found by Hai Na.
That was a bullet that belonged to one of her teachers in Bagpipe Town.
The bullet was removed from the teacher's own body. He had been kidnapped and held hostage by criminals, but he refused to give up and tried to escape. Unsurprisingly, he was discovered by the kidnappers at the crucial moment.
The kidnapper was already surrounded by surveillance and was in a hurry to escape, so he couldn't be brought back. But he was unwilling to let the hostage escape, so he fired three shots at him from a distance.
His marksmanship was actually just average, but he was incredibly lucky that day. From a distance of at least thirty or forty meters, he hit the target with all three shots.
One shot hit him in the buttocks, another in the thigh, and the third struck him squarely in the chest.
The bullet, by a very coincidental angle, lodged between the teacher's heart and lungs. It still pierced an artery, nearly killing him. Fortunately, a pastor was present and managed to save his life.
However, the priest's Illumination Spell couldn't remove the bullet directly. He had to undergo surgery again to remove it—and nearly died again. So he kept the bullet as "Proof of Good Luck" and often boasted about it to his students.
It was quite difficult to buy it, but fortunately, the person who came forward was Hai Na.
Seeing his former student finally achieve success, the now elderly teacher was overjoyed. Hearing that Hai Na needed it, he even wanted to give her the bullet directly... but it was only after Iver insisted on paying for it that he finally bought it.
As for the other material, they really had no clue.
So the ruthless Hai Na came up with a very unethical, but effective, solution.
—She had Iver report Sherlock for breaking the law, and then had people from the nearby Bureau of Supervision arrested the "newsboy."
The handcuffed Sherlock was completely bewildered.
Then, Hai Na personally escorted him to Glass Island under the pretext that Sherlock was involved in another major case. Because his crime was not directly absolved, the incident still had to be recorded—therefore, these shackles could be considered "the shackles of a wise prisoner."
In any case, the prisoner's name is definitely not Sherlock Holmes, but a name Sherlock made up on the spot... after all, he's currently using the identity of a child. And once he advances again, this identity will no longer exist.
"... Leaving aside other matters," Iver said, expressing his gratitude and giving high praise, "Hai Na, your work efficiency has indeed improved. I really didn't expect that you would be the one to find these two materials for me in the end..."
There's nothing we can do about it.
Hai Na smiled helplessly, "In that dream, I had to do everything. The more I thought about it, the more I had to make some changes."
She used to be the kind of person who liked to obey orders. Not needing to think or take responsibility is a blissful thing for someone who doesn't use their brain. There's no pressure, and no worry about paying the price for doing something wrong.
But if it's an emergency and she has to step forward... she's definitely not the kind of person who can drop everything and run away without caring about anything.
Over time, she honed her skills.
Afterwards, Iver and his companions quickly used the "Villager Passage" to return directly to Eagle Cape Village on griffins. Once Iver had completed the preliminary work for Card Making, he preserved it using sapphire powder.
Before we knew it, the afternoon had turned into dusk.
Iver clearly felt a sense of crisis.
An undisguised killing intent enveloped him, and an ominous curse loomed over Iver.
They weren't sure when the Punishment Demon would arrive. But now they don't need to guess anymore.
"It's probably that Giant King."
Iver explained this to the others in advance, which put them under immense pressure.
After completing the Card Making, Iver first used his main body to summon the Paradox Flame Butterfly and transform it into Follower Form... and then began to inscribe the Ritual Array.
Most protective rituals are unlikely to be effective against the Punishment Demon. Its high rank results in excessive penetrating power. Similarly, curses are largely ineffective against it. Ritual spells are even less useful.
However, a pure enhancement ritual is still possible.
Using the fresh ritual materials he had collected, Iver performed a simple Blessing Art on the group. This would make them luckier on various levels, albeit slightly, but its versatility was its strength.
Since mastering the Sacred Art of "Blessing," Iver has barely used it. After all, his battles are either overwhelming, require external assistance, or involve surprise attacks... This is his first serious duel.
I was a little nervous.
Iver also took out the potion that Yulia had prepared.
Iver kept one bottle of the Vitality Potion and gave the rest to Hai Na. He also gave Hai Na the Feather Fall Potion, Sherlock the Petrification Potion, and Lily the Snake Venom Ointment.
Iver also drew his Red Hilt Sword.
Its illusion effect lasts until the next sunset. Therefore, it must be activated after sunset to maximize its duration.
And after making all the preparations.
Iver frowned slightly.
He felt the discomfort in his body getting stronger and stronger.
It felt like a scythe scraping across his scalp, or like a dump truck speeding past him—though there was no pain, a sudden chill ran down his spine. He had a bad feeling.
He heard what sounded like drumbeats in his ears, and felt increasing pressure in his heart.
Iver realized it was a scrutinizing gaze—something was watching him.
"The situation has changed," Iver suddenly said with a serious expression. "They seem to be planning to curse me to death before they even enter Eagle Cape Village."