I arrived at the sacred spring. If it was such an important place, someone should be guarding it, but strangely, no one was around.

“That’s why they get attacked so easily, isn’t it? The security here is a mess.”

The sacred spring had been naturally formed for a very long time. The endlessly flowing water from the ground had created a clear pool.

The moonlight cast shadows all over the round pool. By tomorrow, the full moon would completely fill the surface of the spring.

In Robero, it was considered sacred, and on important days, people either shared the water or performed acts like washing their hands.

I stared at it in silence.

The pool seemed shallow at times, and at other times, it looked incredibly deep, as if it had no bottom.

In the novel, it was said that there was no sign of the bottom, even if all the festival attendees took a sip of the water. So, it seemed like the sacred spring was indeed sacred.

“Hasn’t it been poisoned yet?”

I tested the water from the spring in various ways, but no matter how closely I examined it, it was just clear water.

“I don’t know, I can’t taste it right now.”

If it were to be poisoned, now, the night before the festival, would be the best time.

After thinking for a while, I went to a corner and hid. I clutched my knees.

“If you’re coming, come quickly.”

Time passed slowly. My eyelids were heavy. I buried my face in my knees, closed my eyes, and sleep began to overtake me.

When I regained consciousness, it was after hearing a suspicious sound.

“Are you ready?”

Who’s there?

I raised my head slightly and peered beyond the stone wall.

“Yes. All the surveillance personnel have been replaced by our people.”

So, it wasn’t just lax security; they had even taken care of that in advance.

“Then let’s begin. The festival starts as soon as the sun rises. We have to finish everything before that.”

“Yes.”

When the man gestured, several more men emerged. They surrounded the area around the spring. The faces of the men were all hidden.

It’s happening.

The trees around rustled as the wind blew, creating a chilly sound.

It looks like they’re going to poison it now.

I swallowed hard, anticipating that I might witness a horrifying sight.

“Are you ready?”

“Yes.”

“I’ll start first.”

It was a determined voice. The man in charge stepped closer to the spring. In an instant, his eyes narrowed vertically. When he opened his mouth, a split tongue shot out.

Ugh, a snake person.

That was the moment I became tense.

“Spit.”

Huh?

He spat into the spring.

No, not saliva… but poison, right? But it really looks like saliva.
It seemed like that was the signal, as other men also approached the spring and spat poison into it one after another.

Ptuh, ptut, ptut. Cough, ptuh.

“Who just spat phlegm?”

“Sorry.”

“Never mind. Focus on the job.”

“Yes. Ptuh.”

Even after that, for a while, the sound of poison spreading through the spring echoed.

Ah, it looks like there’s no shortage of it.

They disappeared only as the sky gradually brightened. That also meant I didn’t have much time. If other people came here and I got caught for no reason, I could be mistaken for the poisoner.

I quickly ran out first and opened the bundle I had brought with me. A shining silver dish came out from inside.

“Silver turns black when it comes into contact with poison, right?”

I carefully poured some spring water into the smallest dish. It turned black instantly.

“Wow, how poisonous is this? Well, they did spit out poison all night.”

I poured the spring water below, being careful not to let it touch my hands. The small weeds around the spring withered instantly. Only the grass around the spring had withered. It pleased me greatly, as it looked very ominous.

I applied more pressure on the substance and sprinkled it around the spring again. The spring water rose fearfully as I poured it. It was truly an amazing spring.

I hoped even a little bit of the poison would dilute.

But I couldn’t stay for long. I could hear signs of activity from somewhere.

I reluctantly finished pouring the water, hoping that the poison would dilute even a little.

Instead, I put all the dishes placed next to the spring into a cloth, and in their place, I put my silverware.

“If I change all the dishes here to silver, someone will notice something strange before anyone drinks from them tomorrow. Surely there won’t be any fools who don’t notice that the dishes turned black, right? Yeah, there won’t be.”

The streets were so noisy that it hurt my ears. Music played incessantly, and a vast number of people roamed the streets, laughing and chatting. Ribbons of various colors swayed above, and round lanterns resembling the moon illuminated the streets.

I kept looking around without a moment’s rest. There was just too much to see.

Wow, what kind of fruit is that? It’s bigger than my face.

I watched in fascination as someone skillfully carved the enormous fruit into a plate.

I wonder what it tastes like.

I adjusted my mask, which was slipping down my face.