Invited by a Meteor, Drawn into a Secret Dissection

Bianluoke stood behind the counter, his expression calm, seemingly lost in thought.

Kevin and the others had already returned to the second floor.

However, they did not go straight back to their rooms, but instead gathered in the living room.

Kevin held his phone, flipping through it over and over; the screen showed 11 p. m.

"So just now, you deliberately talked about those things in front of Bianluoke?" Men Qi asked.

They didn't avoid mentioning Bianluoke when they were discussing the matter.

Kevin nodded.

"I have some doubts. Who do you think is the mastermind behind this?" he asked, looking at Gowen.

During this time, Gowen was responsible for building good relationships with the Village and gathering more intelligence.

Gowen said, "First of all, it's certain that the Village Chief's faction definitely doesn't want anyone to disturb them at this time. As for the other faction, although their behavior isn't as obvious as the Village Chief's, they also seem to dislike outsiders appearing at this time."

"In other words, it's possible that a third-party force within the Village led us here. At this stage, my only suspects are the Saintess, Bianluoke, and that vagrant outside the Village."

After saying that, Gowen pointed downstairs. "By Bianluoke's expression just now, it was too obvious, but that also shows that it wasn't him, but he definitely knows who it is."

This is why Kevin would talk to everyone in front of Bianluoke.

The young Village's thoughts were written all over their faces. Kevin hadn't expected to discover some clues so easily. Therefore, he needed to give Bianluoke some time to calm down and think things through.

As a marginal figure in the Village, his attitude is crucial. At least compared to Kevin and his group, the Village certainly trust him more.

Wait a while, then go down and confront him.

Inside the Castle, Melusina half-reclined on the bed, her face bearing a faint trace of joy, but also a hint of melancholy.

Lorraine sat beside her, casually flipping through the comic book in her hand.

"It's <Love Meteor> again? You're still watching it after all these years," Melusina said.

Hearing this, Lorraine didn't seem to mind at all, and smiled as she held up the book, "Because it's really good! I think it's the best work."

Melusina disagreed, retorting, "<Tea Party Accounting Scheme> is the best."

Normally, Lorraine would have argued with her, but today she seemed to have other ideas.

"You guys today, are you—" Lorraine said, her face slightly flushed.

"No, don't jump to conclusions!" Melusina quickly denied, then sighed softly, "I feel he's conflicted."

Doesn't he like it?

"I like it, but I also feel somewhat resistant."

After saying that, Melusina stared intently at Lorraine, gripping her hand tightly.

Lorraine felt a little flustered by her gaze.

"I saw a shooting star with Kevin today," Melusina said.

"You... you guessed it?"

"Um."

Melusina nodded, then hugged Lorraine.

She was very grateful to the other party.

"I think the so-called mastermind might not actually be trying to manipulate you into doing anything," Bianluoke, standing behind the counter.

He looked quietly at Kevin and the other three, and spoke slowly.

Kevin and the others hadn't kept their conversation hidden from him; he sat there and heard the whole thing.

It wasn't that Kevin and the others trusted him that much, but rather that they knew his situation in the Village was more awkward than Bianluoke's.

As he himself said, the Village was divided into two opposing factions, led by Rabik and the Village Chief.

In fact, there is also a Neutral Faction, namely the villagers who go with the flow.

As for Bianluoke, Kevin learned from Melusina and Lorraine that this person had, to some extent, become detached from the Village's mainstream.

He chose a different approach—just as Kevin and the others had guessed—to earn enough money from the outside world and then hire an Exorcist through the Hunter Association to remove the Curse from his body.

It would be relatively easier to lift the Curse on only himself, thus allowing him to regain his freedom.

At this moment, Kevin and his three companions came downstairs, their purpose being to obtain more detailed information from Bianluoke.

"Why do you say that? Or have you already guessed who led us here?" Men Qi turned her head and stared at Bianluoke without any politeness as she asked.

"No, it's just a guess."

Gowen looked at Bianluoke and shook his head. "You can't hide the tension on your face. You must have guessed who it is."

Bianluoke remained silent for a moment. These people were talking about this in front of him, which clearly meant they had sensed something or suspected that he was also involved.

For the Village, expecting them to suppress their emotions and perform like professional actors is extremely difficult.

This confined environment made their inner thoughts completely written on their faces; they couldn't hide them at all.

Or rather, it's so naive that it's obvious at a glance.

"You Hunter x Hunter are really annoying," Bianluoke muttered irritably, before slowly saying, "I'm not sure yet, but I have a rough idea. If I'm right, then your arrival was just an accident."

"It's Lorraine, right?" Kevin blurted out abruptly.

Bianluoke's pupils dilated instantly, his fists clenched, and he abruptly stood up.

It turned out the secret couldn't be kept hidden after all.

"Why—are you bluffing me?" Bianluoke said angrily.

Hunter x Hunter are indeed cunning creatures.

Facing the furious Bianluoke, Kevin remained calm, shaking his head slightly. "No, it's just a reasonable speculation."

Based on my observations over the past few months, Bianluoke cares about most is his sister.

He even planned to have his sister take over his job after he was freed from the Village's Curse, most likely because he wanted to continue earning money after leaving the village, then help his sister break the Curse and take her away from there.

They wanted to get ahead and establish a foothold in the outside world.

His thoughts and plans are not hard to guess.

Therefore, he only speaks so hesitantly and evasively when it comes to Lorraine.

Lorraine was the one who cared about Melusina the most; she was more of a companion who looked after her than a maid.

The identity of "maid" is a label they gave themselves after reading comics; it's a kind of interesting role-playing.

Moreover, Lorraine is also Melusina's top CP (couple pairing) partner.

According to Kevin's observations during his time in the Castle, while the other maids were still surprised that Melusina liked him, Lorraine had already begun to devise plans.

If it weren't for Bianluoke's unusual behavior, Kevin wouldn't have suspected Lorraine of having a problem.

But once Bianluoke's behavior became strange, Lorraine's actions became highly suspicious.

"That's right, I suspect it's my sister. Her Nen ability is very strange, and I don't know exactly how she uses it."

"But as far as I know, if what you say is true, and your arrival always feels strange, then it's very likely that she caused it unintentionally." After saying this, Bianluoke looked at the four of them with a serious expression.

"I don't care what you do, you're not allowed to hurt her. I'll ask for you, this time it's free."

Kevin smiled and pointed behind him.

"It seems she'd rather answer our questions herself."

The moment the words were spoken, the Gate was pushed open.

Lorraine, dressed in a maid outfit, stood in the doorway.

"Lorraine?" Bianluoke exclaimed in surprise.

He instinctively looked at Kevin, assuming Kevin had done something wrong.

Lorraine was also a little annoyed. She had only come to chat with her brother and find an opportunity to talk to Kevin. She hadn't expected that these people were still awake in the middle of the night and were all gathered at the door.

The room fell silent for a moment.

"Have a seat. It seems you have something you'd like to talk to me about." Kevin smiled and gestured for him to sit down.

Lorraine nodded, glanced at her brother, and then sat down in the chair next to him.

Before she could speak, Bianluoke preemptively asked, "Did you use your Nen ability?"

Upon hearing this, Lorraine's eyes widened in surprise.

This once again proves that the young people in this Village are not good at lying and express their emotions very directly.

"How did you know?" She didn't remember mentioning this to her brother.

Bianluoke rubbed his forehead and sighed helplessly.

Lorraine looked at everyone and suddenly realized that she hadn't arrived at the wrong time, but rather too "punctually".

She took a deep breath, feeling like a deflated balloon.

Looking at Kevin, she slowly said, "There are many things I cannot say, especially to outsiders like you."

Kevin and his group wanted to know the Village's secrets, which was far too obvious to the villagers.

Normally, no Hunter x Hunter wouldn't be curious.

Bianluoke, who was standing next to her, nodded in confirmation.

"Melusina's time is running out, and she hasn't gotten anything, hasn't even had a chance to do anything, yet everyone in the Village is so selfish." At this point, Lorraine couldn't help but cry.

"I've always wanted to do something, but I've never been able to. Until about half a year ago, a shooting star streaked across the sky."

"I used my Nen ability. I don't know what wish Melusina made, but if I don't act now, I'll miss my chance."

"So, when I heard that a group of Hunter x Hunter was coming at this time, I guessed that it might be Melusina's wish that had come true." After saying that, she looked at the crowd.

Although she didn't say much, and what she said was disorganized, the information she revealed was crucial.

"So, you can only use your Nen ability once?" Men Qi asked curiously.

She was so curious; if that were true, it would be like making a wish, which was incredible.

Lorraine didn't know how to explain, so she took a comic book out of her pocket and handed it to Kevin.

<Love Meteor>

Can you build your Nen ability through comics?

It must be said, this is indeed one way to do it.

After all, this Village is isolated from the outside world, so they receive limited information from the outside world, and their worldview, formed from childhood, is relatively simple, either influenced by their parents or yearning for freedom outside.

Kevin casually flipped through the comics.

One chapter in particular details the core setting of the entire book.

"So your Nen ability is similar to what's described here?"

Lorraine nodded. "There are some differences, but most of them are the same."

Simply put, her Nen ability marks a wisher and a celestial phenomenon that triggers the wish—essentially a shooting star—but she cannot make a wish herself.

When the celestial phenomenon that marks the beginning of a wish appears, and the marked wishers simultaneously make their wishes, her Nen ability will be activated.

However, whether or not to activate it ultimately depends on Lorraine herself.

More than half a year ago, when the conditions were met, she activated her Nen ability.

This is a linkage that can only be used once, at least that's what the book says.

After using it, your Nen ability will be gone.

It's not that she can't use Nen Aura, but rather that the Nen ability itself is unusable; her memory space is filled with information about related abilities.

She has temporarily become a Nen user without Nen ability.

Kevin couldn't understand why someone would have such Nen ability, and the characteristic of "it can only be used once in a lifetime" set in the comics was clearly replicated.

However, upon closer reflection, possessing such powerful abilities does indeed come at a huge price.

However, only Lorraine herself knows whether it can truly only be used once.

"It seems you really like this comic." Kevin said, looking at the well-preserved comic but with obvious signs of being flipped through.

Lorraine nodded.

I've liked it since I was very young.

It's an old comic book.

No wonder, it turns out I've had this thought since I was a child.

Kevin handed the comic back to her.

Although much of the dark fog has dissipated, many mysteries remain unsolved.

Upon learning this information, they understood that there was no mastermind deliberately manipulating them to come here; it was all just an accident caused by their Nen ability.

After learning about Lorraine's Nen ability, everyone fell silent.

Gowen muttered to himself, "There's actually such Nen ability?"

Although he had unveiled the mystery of Nen user six months ago, he was only now discovering that Nen ability could reach such an unimaginable level.

As time went by, everyone began to think about the current situation.

Gowen frowned and said, "If the person who made the wish was Melusina, judging from the current situation, she probably wished for a 'White Horse Prince,' that is, a compatible romantic partner."

"But the reality is not so simple, because the 'Coming sound' messages from outside are clearly directed at Kevin, which suggests that Melusina's wish is not just that simple."

Lorraine was a little confused; she didn't quite understand what Gowen was talking about.

In her view, when she made her wish, Melusina wished for a perfect romantic partner.

The reason she came to confess everything at this time was because Melusina's time was running out.

It would be a real shame if Kevin couldn't respond directly because of the conflict this wish caused. She hoped Kevin could let Melusina experience the sweetness of love in this last month.

"You mean, Melusina's wish wasn't what I thought?" Lorraine asked.

Gowen looked at her and explained, "That's definitely a factor, but it shouldn't be the whole story."

Kevin checked the time and regained control of the conversation.

"What the wish is isn't important; what's important is that we know why we're here. Now the most crucial issue is the Festival, the source of all this."

After saying that, he looked directly at Lorraine.

"You probably have a lot to say, so don't say anything now, and don't deliberately reveal any information. Just listen to our questions."

Lorraine didn't know what Kevin was going to do, but she nodded nonetheless.

"Is Melusina called Saintess because she would make Sacrifice during Festival?"

Lorraine couldn't answer, and she couldn't even consciously control her expression; her emotions simply flowed out naturally.

Looks like I guessed right.

Sure enough, we could take advantage of this, thanks to these young villagers who weren't good at lying and whose emotions were written all over their faces.

Although Lorraine cannot actively provide information, she can obtain some answers through passive reactions.

Furthermore, Kevin can also use his emotional fluctuations to make judgments and provide assistance.

Kevin continued, "Melusina didn't know all the details of the Festival, but she knew she would make Sacrifice —she felt it was her duty."

Just as I expected.

"You hate the Village Chief because he instilled this concept of Sacrifice in Melusina from a young age?"

That's partly true, but not entirely.

"You want Melusina to have a passionate love affair in her final moments, rather than granting her freedom. Does this mean there's some kind of mandatory, unavoidable element to the Festival, part of the Curse?"

Uncertain, not entirely.

"Is the Festival part of the Curse?"

No.

"Is the Festival part of weakening the Curse?"

No, not at all.

"Is the Festival part of perpetuating the Curse?"

That's correct.

What kind of logic is this? Does this Village actually want the Curse to exist?

Wrong.

"If the Curse disappears, will it bring even greater danger than it does now?"

I see.

This is why Melusina always avoids discussing the Festival and her own issues.

"If there were multiple Saintess, what did my sister do when the previous Saintess were sacrificed, that caused her to die?"

Gowen seemed to have thought of something.

In other words, the danger caused by disrupting the memorial service was not from attacks by the villagers.

Rather, the act of holding a memorial service itself is dangerous.