Mercenary Wars

Chapter 78 The Cursed House
curse?

Upon hearing this news, Gao Jiano's brow twitched slightly: "Could you tell me more about it?"

The waiter sighed. "Before this house was cursed, it belonged to a man named Tom, a sailor on the Nemesis... You should know the 'Nemesis,' right?"

Gaucano nodded: "I've heard of it, a pirate ship that only robs pirates."

The waiter continued, “This sailor received a prophecy that he was destined to drown, so he left the Nemesis, went ashore to do business, got married, and started a family. However, not long after his marriage, he drowned in a barrel of wine while drunk.”

As he spoke, he pointed to a spot in the room: "Tom probably drowned here. Since then, this house has been cursed; anyone who falls asleep or gets drunk here will soon be covered in water."

Gao Jiano thought for a moment: "Didn't the subsequent homeowners seek help from the church or a monk?"

“Finding a high-level spellcaster might cost more than buying another house,” the waiter said. “As for low-level ones, they did try, but all they got was one suggestion—to tear down the house.”

He shrugged and said, "That is indeed a solution. Most haunted places will be free of curses once they are fully exposed to the sun."

Gao Jiano nodded after listening, and then asked, "Has anyone died because of this curse?"

The waiter said, “An old man drowned, but no one else did. This drowning curse only lasts for one day each time, and during that time, as long as you wipe the water off your face in time, you won’t drown.”

Gaucano pondered for a moment.

The waiter hesitated for a moment: "If you're willing to buy it, the price can actually be reduced a bit."

Gaucano: "How much cheaper?"

Waiter: "Eight gold coins."

Gao Jiano was silent for a moment, then shook his head: "I can accept it if you sell it to me at the price of an empty plot of land."

“If we use the price for an empty plot, it would be about one gold coin cheaper, so it would be seven gold coins…” The waiter seemed to do some calculations and then symbolically hesitated for a few seconds. “Alright, we’ll use the price for an empty plot!”

Considering that demolition would cost money, the actual value of the house was definitely lower than that of the vacant land, so Gaucano had already guessed the other party's attitude.

"Deal," he said.

Of course, before finally paying, he inquired to confirm that what the waiter said was true, and then officially bought the cursed house for seven gold coins.

The seller and the agent seemed a little worried that he might change his mind, so they completed all the formalities that same day.

By evening, Gaucano had become the new owner of the house.

Curse aside, he was very satisfied with the house. It had two floors with nine rooms, a cellar, a courtyard, and basic furniture.

The location is a bit remote, near the northeast corner of Nanhai Town, but for someone like him with so many secrets, that's actually an advantage.

“Boss, aren’t you worried about the curse?” Darius couldn’t help but ask.

Gaucano didn't answer, but instead asked, "Are you worried?"

Daryls shook her head: "I'm not worried, I won't drown."

"That's good."

Despite saying that, Gao Jiano still had some concerns.

After all, the Curse of Fairness is not an immunity curse, so it's not impossible for him to be affected. However, based on the experiences of previous homeowners, this curse isn't that terrible even if he gets affected.

The worst-case scenario would be losing a little money on demolition, which is why he bought it without much hesitation.

In the dead of night, Gao Jiano lay down on the bed, took off his clothes, and used the technique of feigning death to instantly fall asleep while retaining a portion of his consciousness.

About a few hours later.

[Status Acquired: Drowning Curse (Level 4)] [Countermeasure: Drowning Curse (Level 4)]

【Successful countermeasure】

As a few lines of information flashed through his mind, Gao Jiano instantly opened his eyes and touched his face.

water.

A few seconds later, he could clearly feel water droplets clinging to his skin, accumulating and slowly sliding down, gradually wetting the bed.

"Dallis!"

"They're here!" As an undead, Dariss didn't need to sleep. Upon hearing the sound, she immediately grabbed her wand and ran into the room, holding a light spell in her hand.

"Help me break the curse," Gao Jiano said, wiping the water droplets from his face.

Darlis chanted a spell, and a moment later a glimmer of light flew toward Gaucano.

[Remove Status: Drowning Curse (Level 4)]

After the curse was lifted, Gaucano took out a scroll of holy light spells and began searching the room.

found it!
A patch of water on the ground quickly caught his attention.

He strode forward and unfurled the spell scroll.

The water stains immediately spread outwards.

As Gao Gano approached, wielding a spell scroll, the water trails continued to extend in the direction he was trying to evade, until he was forced into a corner of the room.

With nowhere left to retreat, the puddle of water accumulated, convincing Gaucano that a ghost was lurking there.

Daryls, standing to the side, looked somewhat surprised and couldn't help but ask, "Boss, how did you do that?"

“I’ve broken his curse,” Gaugano said. “Do you have any way to let me see this guy directly?”

Darius shook her head: "To see ghosts directly, you need either 'Sight of the Spirit' or 'Divine Vision,' but Divine Vision is a sixth-circle spell, which is probably only mastered by cardinals and archmages. Although Sight of the Spirit is only a second-circle spell, it is classified as necromancy by the Church, and very few people master it."

Gaucano frowned slightly.

Just then, Daryls suddenly exclaimed, "Boss, look!"

When Gao Jiano looked up, he saw some water stains appearing on the wall and gradually forming the shape of words.

"I was a victim..."

Looking at the line of text written with water stains, Gao Jiano thought of something: "Are you Sailor Tom?"

The water stain continued writing: "Yes..."

Gaucano: "Who hurt you?"

Tom: "My wife Mary, and her lover... I beg you to help me get revenge..."

Gaucano stroked his chin: "If what you say is true, I sympathize with your situation. But many years have passed, and I don't think we can find enough evidence to convict Mary. Without evidence, I can't do anything to her based solely on your account."

“Besides, you are an evil spirit who has killed innocent people, and you just cursed me. I have every reason to destroy you,” he added.

Tom remained silent for a while.

He then wrote again with water stains: "Mary has a demon whose real name is 'Silensa.' You don't need to do anything, just tell this message to the church..."

(End of this chapter)