Chapter 242 — The Séance Game and Exorcism
According to the archived records, the mother had originally intended to use the Ouija board merely to enhance the "professionalism" of her fortune-telling business.
To that end, she had even modified it—rigging the board so it could spell out words according to her own manipulation.
The results were exactly as she had hoped.
More and more clients came for readings, and she was finally able to support herself and her two daughters comfortably.
But gradually, Mrs. Alice began noticing something wrong with her younger daughter.
The girl often muttered to herself when alone. Worse—she began writing in a style of handwriting far beyond what someone her age should be capable of.
As the number of séances increased, the younger daughter eventually insisted on participating.
And then—
She began to notice something deeply unsettling.
The Ouija board… seemed to be moving on its own.
The incident ended in tragedy.
Alice Zander was found dead inside the villa.
Her eldest daughter was the primary suspect.
When arrested, the girl claimed that an evil spirit had possessed her younger sister.
In the end, the eldest daughter was committed to a psychiatric hospital.
But despite an extensive search of the villa—
The younger daughter was never found.
…
Gideon opened an additional supplemental report.
It revealed that the villa had once belonged to a Nazi doctor during the war—a man discovered to have conducted numerous inhumane experiments.
After the war ended, the doctor fled to North America.
There, inside this very villa, he continued his secret experiments for years.
The victims were many—innocent civilians, and even some of his former "patients."
Gideon quietly returned the documents to their place.
From the information gathered, the spirits inside the villa were most likely former victims.
"Secret human experimentation… classic horror setup," he thought.
Fortunately, there was no mention of ritual circles, sacrificial rites, or organized cult activity.
That was good news.
At least this commission didn't involve demonic cultists.
Otherwise, Gideon would seriously begin suspecting someone was deliberately setting him up. The official threat levels of these commissions never quite matched reality.
---
Meanwhile — Inside the Villa Living Room
Laine, Madison, and the others sat around a table.
A lamp illuminated the center, where the Ouija board rested.
After repeating the rules once more, Laine began the opening invocation.
But this time—
The board did not move.
"Debbie… if it's really you, give me a sign," Laine pleaded.
Suddenly—
The empty chair beside the table slid backward on its own, scraping across the floor as if someone had just pulled it out to sit down.
Several people gasped.
"You… you didn't kill yourself, did you?" Laine asked, staring at the vacant chair.
This time, the planchette moved almost immediately.
It slid across the board, stopping first on the letter N.
Then—
On O.
"No…"
Laine's breathing quickened.
The room felt colder.
And somewhere deep within the house—
Something was listening.
Just as Laine was about to ask the next question, Madison suddenly spoke.
"How do you prove you're Debbie?"
Zor blinked in surprise.
Miss Madison is finally listening to Father Gideon! he thought excitedly.
The others leaned forward, waiting for an answer.
But the Ouija board fell silent once more.
A chill crept up Zor's spine. It felt as though some unspoken truth had just been exposed.
He instinctively touched his pocket. The cold sensation of the Holy Nail steadied him.
Madison's voice grew colder.
"You're not Debbie, are you?"
The planchette moved again.
It stopped on the same two letters.
N – O
This time, Laine and the others truly froze.
"That… that's impossible," Laine whispered. "It answered so many questions before."
Zor suddenly remembered Gideon's earlier words.
"It never explicitly said it was Debbie," he said carefully. "You filled in the blanks yourselves."
Laine opened her mouth to argue—then slowly realized he was right.
No identity had ever been confirmed.
---
"It doesn't matter whether you're Debbie or a spirit," Madison said, standing up.
"I only want to ask one thing."
She stared at the empty chair.
"Do you want to leave this place?"
Everyone froze.
"Miss Madison, c-calm down! Do you even realize what you're saying?" Zor shouted.
She ignored him.
A moment later, the board spelled out:
Yes.
Madison smiled.
"Good. You can see that I'm different from ordinary people. If you help me deal with someone, I can perform a ritual to free your soul."
Zor shot to his feet.
"Miss Madison! You can't make a deal with a spirit! That's betrayal!"
Madison raised one hand.
The blankets in the villa suddenly flew up and wrapped tightly around everyone present.
"Ever heard of spirit-anchoring?" she said coolly. "A ritual that allows the dead to inhabit a human body. If you cooperate, you may choose any vessel here."
Fear filled Laine and the others' eyes.
"Forbidden spirit summoning requires entering the Unknown Realm!" Zor cried. "If your magic isn't strong enough, you'll lose yourself!"
"So noisy."
Madison flicked her wrist. A shoe flew into Zor's mouth, silencing him.
"You're not afraid the Exorcist Guild will come after you?" Laine trembled.
Madison crouched down and lifted Laine's chin.
"If you're all dead… no one will know."
She stood again.
"The one I want should be nearby. Decide quickly."
The board spelled out:
How?
Madison began outlining her plan.
But Zor could no longer hear her.
His vision blurred. His mind dulled.
One by one, the others' eyes rolled white.
"Be… careful… Gideon…"
Zor's warning never finished.
Darkness swallowed him.
---
The Illusion
"I—where am I?"
Zor jolted awake.
The room was empty.
Only him.
And the Ouija board.
He tried to speak.
Nothing came out.
His lips wouldn't open.
Panicking, he rushed to a mirror—
His mouth had been stitched shut.
White thread pierced through swollen lips.
He tried to tear it out, but pain stopped him.
Behind him—
A black shadow crept closer.
Think. Think.
He replayed earlier memories.
Madison… the others…
This changed in an instant.
Hallucination!
He reached for his pocket.
The Holy Nail was gone.
Or was it?
Father Gideon said it wouldn't be affected by illusions.
The shadow pressed against him.
His body froze.
Then—
Pain shot through his palm.
Real pain.
He had grabbed the Nail.
The illusion shattered.
He gasped.
The villa returned.
Laine and the others slumped over the table, eyes white.
Evil aura clung to them.
He had no awakening spell.
But he had the Nail.
---
Outside the Villa
Gideon had already returned.
He waited.
The evil aura surrounding the house had reached its peak.
Suddenly—
The front door burst open.
Madison stumbled out.
"Father Gideon… we were tricked… I should have listened…"
Her clothes were torn. One strap hung loose. Boots gone. Bare feet on grass.
A pitiful sight.
Any ordinary man might rush to her.
Gideon stepped back ten meters.
He calmly uncorked a thirty-year Holy Water bottle.
"What happened inside? Where's Zor?"
"They're dead," she said softly.
She produced a bone fragment.
"Zor found this in the basement. He said to give it to you."
Gideon recalled the timid apprentice from earlier.
A forbidden ritual caster?
Unlikely.
Madison, on the other hand…
Far more suspicious.
Still, he approached cautiously—stopping at a boundary line.
"What's wrong with the bone?"
Madison extended it.
Suddenly—
Over a dozen vengeful spirits burst out.
They lunged at Gideon.
Madison's eyes flashed with surprise.
She didn't expect that.
The spirits slammed into an invisible barrier.
"What is this?" Madison whispered.
"High-grade holy artifact!" the spirits hissed together.
Then they turned—
And rushed at her.
"What—!"
She blasted a few away.
But more swarmed.
Her eyes rolled white.
They tried to possess her.
Gideon watched.
She had tried to use spirits to kill him.
He hated collaborators with evil.
But she wasn't finished.
A rope amulet flew from her pocket.
Mental energy shielded her head.
One eye cleared.
The villa door opened again.
Zor emerged with the others.
"Father Gideon! I escaped the illusion—"
He froze at the sight.
Madison stood rigid.
Half her body normal.
The other half twisted, veins blackened, dark mist rising.
Her clear eye begged silently.
"Father Gideon… maybe we should save her?" Zor hesitated.
"Maybe she tricked the spirits earlier…"
Gideon smacked him lightly on the head.
"Do you have a martyr complex?"
Zor rubbed his skull.
"She tried to let the spirits kill me and reap the benefit afterward."
Madison's clear eye widened in panic.
"If that's how you think exorcism works," Gideon continued calmly, "quit while you can. Or you'll lose your soul someday."
Zor lowered his head.
"Sorry…"
"But… will you really just let her—"
Gideon smiled.
"I'm not someone who calculates against teammates."
He looked at Madison.
A strange enthusiasm flickered in his eyes.
"Of course we'll save Miss Madison."
He turned toward the writhing spirits inside her.
"But first… shouldn't we deal with these spirits?"
At that moment—
Madison.
And the spirits inside her—
All felt the same sudden, ominous premonition.