Chapter 240: The Third Teammate
"None of us were applying any force, yet the Ouija board began to move rapidly, quickly spelling out a sentence."
'Hi, Friend.'
"I jumped in fright, but still gathered my courage and asked the question that had been weighing on my heart—Who are you?"
"The board moved again and stopped on the letter D. That was Debbie's name! But when I asked why she committed suicide, the board didn't move at all…"
"…The lights in the house suddenly dimmed. Strange noises came from the second floor. The kitchen gas stove ignited on its own. Someone even saw the figure of a woman reflected in the mirror…"
"We panicked and fled the villa. But after daybreak, every one of us began experiencing strange things. At home, at school, outdoors—everywhere—we kept seeing that same familiar phrase…"
'Hi, Friend!'
"Phew…"
Gideon let out a long breath.
That was the end of the testimony.
But judging from its contents, those people definitely hadn't said "goodbye" when they left the villa that night.
"You… are you willing to take it?" the wizard Zor asked softly.
Even though they had already reached a verbal agreement, Zor's heart was still pounding.
In his view, this commission was genuinely dangerous.
Gideon's gaze grew thoughtful.
From the difficulty rating, this was a classic spirit-summoning incident.
The primary threat would likely come from the summoned dead spirit itself.
In such a case, the amount of evil aura might not be especially high—so Gideon felt it necessary to clarify terms properly.
But before that, he had one lingering question.
"From the moment we met until now," Gideon said calmly, staring at him,
"I haven't carried any visible weapons, nor do I have an obvious physical advantage."
"How do you know I even have the means to deal with an evil spirit?"
Zor froze for a moment, then smiled awkwardly.
"Oh! I forgot to mention—this commission requires three people to carry out."
"The last teammate is still missing. Madam Madison sent me to find someone."
The young wizard scratched the back of his head.
"Actually… you'll still need her approval before you can officially join. Sorry about that~"
Gideon's lips twitched.
So he was basically just filling a slot.
"Madam Madison should be in her room right now. I'll take you there…" Zor said, leading the way.
Only then did Gideon realize that beneath the main hall were several additional floors, all built as private resting quarters.
Halfway there, Zor suddenly turned around.
"Mr. Gideon, you should be careful once we go in," he whispered.
"Madam Madison Montgomery has… a rather peculiar personality. It's best not to anger her, or you'll suffer for it."
As he spoke, Zor rubbed his cheek, as though recalling something unpleasant.
Gideon narrowed his eyes.
"If she doesn't want to cooperate, does she kill people?"
"No! No!"
Zor waved his hands frantically.
"It's just that she's… she's a bit… ah, you'll understand soon enough!"
The young wizard sighed, ultimately choosing not to elaborate.
That only made Gideon more curious.
A moment later—
Room 303.
Knock. Knock.
Zor lightly rapped on the door.
"Madam Madison, there's an exorcist willing to participate in this commission. I've brought him with me."
The next instant—
Creak.
The door opened on its own.
Yet no one stood behind it.
"Please, come in," Zor said with a practiced smile, stepping inside.
The moment Gideon crossed the threshold, a faint, lingering fragrance drifted into his nose.
When they entered the sitting room, he saw a woman seated on the sofa.
Gideon examined her quietly.
She was a young woman, her long golden hair shining softly under the light.
She wore a black sleeveless crop top on her upper body. Reclining against the sofa, a small expanse of skin was pressed forward at her chest, outlining two distinct curves beneath the fabric.
Her lower half was clad in black leather shorts, her pale thighs crossed casually against each other. Paired with knee-high black boots, her legs looked even longer—provocative without effort.
Because she was wearing sunglasses, Gideon couldn't clearly see her face.
But judging from her sharp nose and full lips, she was almost certainly a beauty.
At the same time, she was openly sizing him up.
After a moment, the girl turned to Zor and said bluntly,
"This is the loser you brought back?"
"Uh…" Zor froze.
Gideon's eyelid twitched.
Loser?
That was… impressively rude.
No matter how you looked at it, Gideon had once been considered a handsome standout at the seminary.
He glanced down at himself.
…Alright.
His current appearance really wasn't doing him any favors.
He'd been busy lately, hadn't had time to freshen up before leaving, and his ill-fitting clothes only made things worse. Right now, he looked like someone who'd just crawled out of a long night shift.
Still—exorcising evil spirits didn't require good looks.
What, was he supposed to tell a demon, "I'm handsome, you can't kill me"?
If anything, a demon would probably decide that such a soul was especially stupid.
So Gideon remained calm.
But Madison frowned.
From her perspective, this man looked like yet another coward too frightened to speak.
She straightened up and said,
"Zophie, take him to get a shower later. I'm not walking around with someone who smells like that."
She waved a hand in front of her nose.
"I—I'm actually called Zor," he said awkwardly, scratching his head.
"But… Zophie sounds nice too. If I were a girl, I'd probably choose that name, haha…"
Gideon was genuinely stunned.
Does this guy have some kind of masochistic tendency?
Madison continued coldly,
"And during the mission, you two won't act on your own. I'll handle the spirits personally."
"You are not allowed to move without my orders. If I call you, you respond within three seconds."
Gideon's gaze slowly cooled.
Honestly, he didn't mind someone else taking the lead—it reduced risks.
But given the legendary self-destructive tendencies of people in this world, he had little faith in her judgment.
"Sorry," he said flatly.
"I don't have a habit of blindly following orders."
The room fell silent.
Zor immediately started winking frantically.
"Father Gideon! You're going to make her angry!" he whispered urgently.
Madison's expression darkened.
She lifted a hand.
The desk lamp floated into the air.
Then—other objects followed.
With a violent clatter, furniture and decorations were flung about, smashing across the floor.
"Madam Madison, breaking the furniture costs a lot of money…" Zor said, clutching his head.
"Shut up! I'll pay for it!"
Madison stood up and strode toward Gideon, pulling off her sunglasses.
They were undeniably beautiful eyes.
"Now," she said arrogantly, chin lifted,
"tell me—what exactly can you do?"
In that instant, Gideon sensed an overwhelming surge of psychic energy filling the room.
A natural psychic… telekinesis, he thought.
Impressive—but telekinetic manipulation still required time.
At that speed, he calculated calmly,
I could snap her neck before she fully activates her power.
His instincts had already begun mapping countermeasures.
"Hey," Madison snapped,
"are you deaf?"
"Could you step back a little?" Gideon said calmly, brushing his collar.
"Your spit is getting on my clothes. That's disgusting."
Zor's mind screamed a single word—
It's over.
Madison stared in disbelief.
Then her brows knitted together sharply.
She clenched her left hand.
Instantly, Gideon felt his suit tightening around him.
But in the next second—
A hand clamped firmly around Madison's slender neck.
"Second lesson," Gideon said evenly,
"approaching an enemy without any precautions is extremely stupid."
Madison gasped, pain flashing across her face.
She tried to push him away with her powers—
—and realized in horror that her telekinesis wasn't responding at all.
Impossible!
She didn't know that an invisible barrier stood between her and Gideon, completely blocking all mental interference.
"C-could you two maybe stop fighting…?" Zor pleaded, pacing anxiously.
"You're teammates! If the guild finds out, we'll all be punished!"
Gideon looked at Madison's eyes.
"As long as she doesn't do anything reckless, I'm happy to let go."
Zor quickly turned to her.
"I'll follow your instructions! We won't trouble Mr. Gideon at all, alright?"
Madison clenched her fists—then, reluctantly, nodded.
Gideon smiled and released her immediately, extending his hand as though nothing had happened.
"Glad to join your exorcism team."
"W-welcome…" Zor said reflexively, shaking his hand.
"Hmph."
Madison snorted and turned away, disappearing into the bedroom.
Knock. Knock.
Someone was at the door.
Apparently, the noise had been reported.
"Everything alright in there?" Manager Farlin asked with a professional smile.
"Oh—y-yes! Everything's fine!" Zor laughed nervously.
"We were just discussing the commission!"
Farlin glanced around at the shattered TV and broken planters.
This didn't exactly scream fine.
He looked at Gideon.
"Madam Madison was demonstrating her abilities," Gideon shrugged.
"Things… got a little out of hand."
Crash!
Something else shattered in the bedroom.
"I never make mistakes!" Madison shouted.
"I see," Farlin said calmly, clearly unsurprised.
Still, he took another look at Gideon.
Someone who can restrain Madison Montgomery… interesting.
"The damages will be added to Madam Madison's room charges upon checkout."
Even delivering bad news, his smile never faltered.
"Please enjoy your stay."
He closed the door behind him.
Zor wiped his forehead.
"If Manager Farlin finds out about private combat, this commission might get revoked…"
"He hasn't gone far," Gideon said calmly.
"You might want to lower your voice."
Zor instantly clamped his mouth shut.
"Relax, it's just balancing the books." Gideon patted him.
"And broken furniture is just 'additional income' for the guild."
"…What does 'balancing the books' mean?" Zor asked weakly.
Outside the room, Farlin paused briefly on the stairs.
---
One Day Later — Los Angeles
39th Tree-Lined Avenue
A red-and-white taxi pulled to a stop.
This was a quiet residential neighborhood—the agreed rendezvous point.
Gideon stepped out, now back in his priest's robes, all exorcism tools prepared.
The midday sun beat down harshly. There were few pedestrians.
Soon after, Madison and Zor exited the car as well.
Since their earlier clash, Madison had been unusually silent.
But Gideon didn't believe she'd truly backed down.
Someone that proud and domineering was likely brewing something unpleasant.
So he stayed alert.
Dressed in all black, Madison carried a brown leather handbag at her elbow.
Anyone else might have mistaken her for a celebrity.
After confirming the address, she led them toward a house.
"Father Gideon, would you like some water?" Zor asked, offering a bottle.
"No, thank you."
Zor nodded and took a sip himself.
"I didn't expect you to be clergy," he said curiously.
"I've heard the Church has many powerful exorcists…"
As they walked, Zor chatted endlessly.
Gideon learned that Zor was only an apprentice wizard, specializing in healing and emotional soothing.
He needed evil remains to fulfill guild requirements—failure meant losing access to magic training.
That was why he'd accepted this mission, despite the danger.
"Here."
Madison stopped and knocked on the door—using a floating stone.
A girl answered.
"You're…?"
"We're from the Exorcists' Guild," Zor said quickly.
"We heard something strange has been happening here."
"Yes! Finally!" the girl exclaimed.
But Gideon frowned.
In her hands was a triangular board with a circular glass inset.
It radiated unmistakable evil.
"…That's not a Ouija board, is it?"