The tension in the room thickened like a storm cloud ready to burst. No one dared speak as Senator Julius stepped forward, his voice slicing through the silence with biting authority.
"The man you're all desperately trying to catch—the one you call The Fool—you will never, ever be able to apprehend him. Not with the kind of stupidity I've seen in this room today."
His eyes blazed with fury as he stared down at the squabbling politicians and the visibly insulted policemen.
"You argue, you posture, but none of you have done a damn thing to help the investigation. You're loud, useless, and painfully ordinary."
Then, with a sweeping motion, he pointed to the man standing silently by his side.
"This man—Kevin—is the only one who has ever come close to confronting The Fool face to face. Even he struggled."
Kevin stepped forward at the cue, his face impassive, but his presence sharp as steel. His cold gaze swept across the room, locking eyes with every uniformed officer in sight.
"You think your bullets or your technology can stop someone like him?" he asked, his tone low and edged with contempt.
"The Fool isn't just some lunatic in a mask. He's something else. Something… not like you."
Kevin's voice dropped, and the air felt heavier.
"He is what we call an Arcana."
Whispers broke out among the room—uncertainty, confusion, fear.
Kevin let the word hang in the air for a moment longer, then added:
"And the only ones capable of stopping an Arcana…
Are the Arcana themselves."
And just like that, everything changed in the room. The politicians sat back in their chairs, unsure of what they had just heard. The police looked stunned, the truth settling into their bones like ice water.
This wasn't just about catching a criminal anymore.
This was a war between beings far beyond their understanding.
But Kevin raised his hand slightly, steadying the rising tension in the room with a calm but assertive voice.
"Don't worry. The Fool may be powerful, but he's not the only Arcana."
The murmurs returned, this time tinged with curiosity. Kevin continued, walking slowly as he addressed everyone in the room with precision.
"There are others—like me. Individuals gifted with special abilities. And with their help, we'll be able to find him. To bring him down."
He then proceeded to lay out everything he knew so far.
"The Fool wears a crow-like mask, completely covering his identity. He's approximately 5'11 in height, slim build, and typically wears a dark, hooded jacket—elegant, precise, and always with gloves. Everything about him is calculated."
Kevin paused for effect, then added:
"His most dangerous trait? He can control a person's mind."
Gasps echoed across the room. One officer nearly dropped his pen.
"I don't know for how long or how exactly… but he used my own body to escape during our first confrontation. I wasn't in control. It was like I was a puppet."
The room fell into stunned silence.
"My initial theory," Kevin said with a grim tone, "was that he had manipulated someone else to kill the VIPs at that event. Or worse—he commanded the guests to kill each other."
He clenched his fists.
"I still don't know his exact ability… but whatever it is, it's lethal. And I'll admit this—"
"Even with my own power as an Arcana, I can't take him alone."
Suddenly, Kevin raised his hand and called out to the officers near the hallway, "Bring them in."
Two individuals were led out of a side room—hands bound, faces pale and emotionless, yet there was something unsettling about their presence. Murmurs spread throughout the room as everyone turned their attention toward them.
"Who are they?" one of the congressmen whispered. "Why do they look so… broken?"
Kevin stepped forward, his voice cutting through the whispers:
"These two… are living proof of what it means to be an Arcana."
The man and woman—clearly a married couple—stood silently as Kevin walked beside them. The politicians and officers observed them with suspicion, some even scoffing.
Kevin noticed their judgmental stares and without warning, drew a knife.
Gasps filled the room as he slashed the man's shoulder. Blood trickled down briefly—
but just as quickly, the wound began to close.
The murmurs grew louder—astonishment turning into disbelief.
But then something stranger happened.
While the man stood still, unfazed… the woman winced in pain, clutching her own shoulder.
The room fell into stunned silence again.
Kevin smirked. He pointed at the couple and said:
"You don't understand, do you? Let me make it clear for all of you."
"These two share a unique bond—one of the rarest Arcana abilities I've ever seen."
"They can heal from any injury, making them virtually immortal. But the pain from any wound inflicted on one…"
"...is transferred entirely to the other."
He walked slowly back to the center of the room, letting that truth settle in.
"This is what we're dealing with. This is the kind of power Arcana possess."
Everyone now stared at the couple with a mix of fear and awe—realizing just how terrifyingly real this war against The Fool and others like him would be.
While the others continued their heated discussions and Kevin went on explaining the details of their plan, the man gently reached out to his wife, checking on her amidst the surrounding noise, as if the chaos didn't matter to them.
"Loren… I'm sorry. But we have to endure this if we want to be free," he said softly.
His wife looked at him with a faint smile, despite the clear pain she was still feeling.
"I'm okay, Alfi. We'll get through this… don't worry. Let's just follow what this man says, and I know we'll make it out in the end."
A single tear began to roll down Loren's cheek, and even Alfi couldn't hold back his own. But they both knew—they had to stay strong.
Alfi reached into his pocket and held onto the card they had long carried: The Lovers. A mysterious tarot card that had come into their possession without explanation. To this day, they still didn't know if it was a curse… or a blessing.
A blessing—because they could never die.
A curse—because every time one of them was hurt, the other would suffer the pain.
Arcana Card: The Lovers
Default Ability – Love's Burden:
Bound by the Lovers Arcana, the two are soul-linked in a sacred contract of protection and pain. Whenever one is wounded, the injury transfers instantly to the other—but only the pain, not the damage. The original bearer heals rapidly, almost miraculously, while their counterpart endures the full agony.