I felt irritation that she had gotten away, but at least we had managed to get the knife from her. As for the dungeon core, she still had it on her, so she must have taken it. Shaking my head, I turned and approached Miki as she was getting up. Salicia was still on the ground, and she looked even worse now. Some of the veins under her skin had turned black, and it was quickly spreading through her body. One look into Mikis eyes and I could see the tears and helplessness there. She shook her head.
Shes close to death now.
You cant do anything? I asked.
Miki looked down. If she was mana-based, I could flush her soul of the miasma. However, shes already made of miasma. I cant differentiate the two enough to remove it. I cant stop the curse from progressing.
B-but shes a miasma creature herself. How can she even be affected by the blade? I asked.
You forget, creatures that leave the dungeon slowly become mana-based. Salicia had been on the surface for years as the Bandit Queen. She had already started to convert. Although its not enough to call her mana-based, she has some purified soul in there. Furthermore, the miasma from the knife doesnt match the miasma in her. Just because they are both miasmas, doesnt mean they wouldnt war within her body. If mana and miasma were like oil and water, then two different miasmas are like water and brine.
I see
She isnt completely helpless against the curse. If she had a scratch like you did, it was possible she would recover. After all, shes still mostly miasmic, and so the curse cant hurt her as badly. However, the strike was just too much and too close to her heart. If she was a mana creature, shed already be dead. As is, she doesnt have long.
How long?
At best, a few hours. Miki sighed.
As a Spiritualist, Miki was an expert when it came to matters of life and death. Even if she couldnt stop Salicia from dying, she would at least be able to tell me how long. Her answer would probably be more accurate than anyone else in this world. If she said that Salicia had only a few hours to live, it was true.
Grimacing, I walked over to Salicia and then kneeled next to her. She had her eyes closed, looking like she had fallen asleep, but as I kneeled next to her, they shot open. She looked at me, her expression did not give anything away.
S-Salicia I said. You saved my life.
Thats because Im awesome. She let out a laugh, which quickly turned to a grimace. Whats the damage, healer?
Y-youre going to be fine, I responded. Just fine.
Dont lie to a liar. She grinned weakly. Ive lived with enough death in my life that I know whats happening.
Master I heard Lydia speak up as she walked up to me. The knife it wasnt the miasmic knife.
What?
She must have switched it out. The knife Celeste knocked away it was just a normal knife.
So, in the end, Salicia would die, Calypso got away with the knife, the dungeon core, and Siti betrayed us. I wasnt used to losing so badly. Even though I was standing in the dungeon, Calypso had defeated us completely.
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