Chapter 570 570 For The Next Generation
The Coven Council fell silent at that news, and even Priya looked stunned at the nature of the array. But the Coven Leader's expressionless response was slowly turning to a cunning smile.
"Yes, we can heal ourselves if we're injured, can't we? So, the array purges the corrupted mana and cells from the body, we heal them, and then never use a Curse again. That's not such a high price. But if the foreign Witches come here, they won't know that, will they? They will begin throwing curses around as soon as they arrive."
She spoke slowly, forming a plan as she talked.
"How large can you make this array?" She asked.
Wolfe considered it, and with a Mana Gathering Array, which he was going to cast for them anyhow if they had agreed to become allies to Forest Grove, he could likely cover at least a five-kilometre radius.
"I should be able to cover everything from here to the edge of the fields there, in every direction." He decided. The distance was a bit understated, but Wolfe thought it was better to play it a bit safe and only claim four kilometres from the centre of the city.
"So, it could affect an army camped around our walls, or the cursed and mutating beasts if they came down from the Frozen Wastes?" The Coven Leader asked. nove-lB/1n
Wolfe nodded, and the old Witch gave a soft, cackling laugh.
"I think that's a price we can afford. They'll never know what hit them." She chuckled.
"I can also cast a [Kind Intentions] spell over the city if you like. It would cut down on murder rates and serious injuries." Wolfe suggested.
The Coven Leader shook her head.
"I don't think that's necessary. We don't have a big problem with it, and we already have a defensive relic that prevents those with hostile intentions from invading the city."
"In that case, the [Mana Purification] array, plus a [Mana Gathering] Array, which is necessary for your powers to grow at a proper rate once you're past Rank One, and some help for your promising young candidates should do us for the day." Wolfe suggested.
"I think that should do. We have a number of others here as well as our likely successors, ones damaged by the Nerve Gas, but they were all promising young Witches as well, before last winter. Would you be able to help them with their Bloodline Curse?" One of the Coven Councillors asked.
"Of course. I'm assuming that I was called here specifically for that, since so few people can actually do it. It's best if they're the most promising among the younger generation. If they're being chosen for political connections, you'll end up wasting everyone's time. Even if they're commoners from unknown families, those that seem the most promising without any potions or assistance are what we need here." Wolfe replied.
"Got it. We have the most promising among the injured soldiers, and the best of our students, in the age range suggested by Madam Priya." The Council Leader agreed.
She sent a message and in only a minute the requested volunteers began to come outside. They all looked a bit awed to be here, on the upper levels of the city, with the Coven Council, where nobody but authorized dignitaries could be, but the younger kids from the city were positively dazzled.
Like Wolfe, when he first left Morgana Fortress City, they had never seen the actual sun before, only pictures of it. This was not only the most significant moment in their life so far, but it was the most magnificent thing that they had ever seen.
The soldiers were understandably a bit more jaded, and they had seen more than enough of the outdoors last winter, but the glamour of being in the presence of their leadership was still enough to give the moment a sense of importance.
"Tell me, before we start, have any of you cast enough curses that you had to hide the damage done by the corruption with a spell? Because if you have, we need to know, or the cleansing process could be fatal." Wolfe asked the volunteers.
None of the group admitted to anything, and [Detect Hidden] didn't see through any spells, so Wolfe gently activated the array inscribed on the silver disc in his backpack.
The corruption of the nerve gas began to sweat from their pores much faster than Wolfe had anticipated, and he gestured for Priya to help.
[Minor oversight. Can you make it rain on them, so they don't get acid burned?] He asked.
[You really are something, you know that?] Priya responded as she first made it rain, and then when the acid seemed to have stopped being pushed from their skin, she created a hot wind around them, blowing them dry again.
"My apologies for any damage to your clothing, I couldn't think of a better way to do that." Wolfe apologized while the witches shook the last of the water off and let the magical wind blow them dry.
"Alright, next up is the fun part. I've been practising, and I can do this in groups of ten. Please step forward and hold hands so that the spell works evenly between you." Wolfe instructed.
Their auras were already reforming, and the ones here still had a bit to begin with, so once they drew enough mana to refill it, they would have most of their original strength back, but doing the Bloodline Curse cleanse at the same time would make the recovery process a bit easier on them.
Wolfe cleansed the Bloodline Curse as gently as possible, and skipped the final surge of mana that he usually gave to help their growth. That way he could get through this without embarrassing anyone, and then get onto the ones who just needed the bloodline curse purged without scaring them.
In the adults, the curse was dried corruption, and Wolfe could see that the [Mana Purification] array was already beginning to work on it, flaking off small bits of dust that Wolfe could sense by their mana content.
"Alright, next group. You're all doing wonderful. But I must ask that the younger ones remove their shoes and socks. Due to their age, the corruption will still be liquid when I purge it from them, and nobody wants sticky cursed socks." Wolfe instructed.
The Coven Council looked a bit pained at the thought of their private garden being subjected to such corruption, but they could wash it off and cast the sludge aside with a simple spell. Wolfe wasn't all that concerned about the aftermath, other than everyone's reaction when the teens began to awaken their auras.
