I Can Copy Curses

"Are we going?" Mark asked uncertainly.

"Of course, we're going," Orion said, smiling. They had a clue about another paper, and they had to get it at all costs.

"What if it's a trap to take our paper?" Mark said solemnly. "What if there are platinum rank or even diamond rank experts waiting to ambush us?"

Orion smiled. "It won't be easy to ambush a group that I'm a part of, so don't worry."

He added, "Before we go, let me ask the page some questions."

He took the page to his study table, sat down, and wrote something on it.

"Is Dark Order real?"

The page turned blank.

Orion frowned and wrote something else.

"Is Zenithans planning a war?"

The page turned blank again.

Orion pondered for a moment and wrote once more.

"Is what Nick Scott said at the back of the academy half an hour ago about the Zenithans true?"

"Yes."

Orion smiled as understanding dawned on him, but his expression soon grew solemn.

"It says 'true,' which means the war is real," he said, looking at Mark. "The Zenithans are truly preparing for a war."

"We have to tell others now that we're sure of it," Mark said, his tone grave.

Orion nodded, adding, "I also understand how this paper works."

He explained, "For some reason, this page can't provide information outside the platinum rank range. When I asked about Dark Order, it turned blank because that information is too high-level. It was the same when I asked if the Zenithans were starting a war. But when I asked about Nick Scott, it answered."

He added, looking at Mark, "Nick is at the platinum rank, so the page could tell me about him."

Mark nodded. "So, it's like the message on the page said: this page has a limitation, and it's set somewhere around the platinum rank."

Orion nodded thoughtfully. "I also think that only those in the platinum ranks like us could use this paper to alter reality, while others above this rank couldn't. But that's just my assumption; I'm not certain."

"Ask it," Mark suggested, pointing at the paper.

Orion nodded and wrote, "Tell me your limitations."

The page turned blank.

Orion wrote again, "Can someone above platinum rank use the power of this page?"

"No."

The page responded, surprising both Orion and Mark.

"It's true," Orion muttered. "That means whoever sent the message must not have told anyone stronger than himself. But we still can't be sure, so we should remain cautious."

He looked at Mark and continued, "How about this: since it's evening, we'll handle this paper situation first and then look for Elijah tomorrow."

"I'm fine with that," Mark said.

Orion nodded. "Alright, we'll leave when the sky turns fully dark, in about three hours."

"Good. I'll wait until then," Mark replied before leaving Orion's room.

Orion looked at the paper on his desk and muttered, "What are your secrets?"

They knew they needed to collect the papers before a specific time, but they didn't know much else about the paper, except that it had godlike abilities within certain limits. Though it was severely limited, if someone knew how to use it effectively, they could accomplish a lot with these papers.

'Wait, that person asked us to meet near the forest… could he have altered the forest or a small section of it to trap and kill us to get our paper?' Orion speculated. Although he didn't know the exact limitations on altering surroundings, he guessed that small changes, like turning trees into vine traps, could work.

'We have to be careful,' Orion thought, and waited for the time to set as he messaged Zeref to meet outside the dormitory three hours later.

---

Three hours were just a short nap for Orion, and they passed quickly.

At the entrance of their dormitory, three figures stood close together. They were Orion, Mark, and Zeref.

"So, how should we handle this?" Zeref asked, looking at Orion. "You know it's a trap, right? We're going in blind. We have to be extra cautious."

Orion had shared the details of the mysterious message on the paper, but he'd carefully omitted any mention of the looming war or the Zenithans. He knew that tomorrow, he and the others would be seeking Elijah's guidance about the oncoming conflict, and he felt certain it was better to keep her uninvolved for now.

As a non-transmigrator, she'd be considered an outsider in this matter—a bystander to the alliance of Elijah and them so he decided to keep the war thing a secret for now.

"There might be others with pages who'll come after seeing the message if they're near the academy," Orion said, frowning. "We should be cautious of them, too."

He added, "I have a plan. Here's how it goes…"

"This is a very passive plan, but I like it," Zeref said, nodding. "If all goes according to plan, we should have the pages in our hands."

"I'm not sure if this plan will work," Mark said suddenly.

Orion and Zeref turned to him, listening.

"Your plan is to wait until everything's done before stepping in at the last possible moment to attack everyone and get the pages," Mark said thoughtfully. "As much as I'd say it's a good plan, it's also a simple one. If we can think of this, so can others."

Orion nodded lightly. "I'm not the best strategist. Do you have any ideas?"

Mark shrugged. "We'll first gauge everyone's strength before deciding anything. No one below the diamond rank should be able to harm us, and that's our advantage. So, we'll act once we know the strength of our enemies."

Orion and Zeref nodded. "Let's go, then," they said, heading toward the forest, unaware that someone was following them.

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