Continuously casting dispelling magic would keep moving the timeline forward.
His own magic might be weaker, but Freya and the little witch's magic was stronger. When they cast [Dispel~], the effect was more pronounced... a single cast could reduce a lot of time.
In Sean's eyes, the three girls frozen by [Petrification~] showed a countdown starting from [200] hours, steadily decreasing. Especially with Freya's magic, each cast could reduce it by over ten hours, and even little witch Karyana's magic could shave off an hour or two.
Not bad at all!
"Why is there still no effect?" the little witch asked.
"A reaction means the method is reliable. Just hold on a bit longer... most of the time, the biggest denial comes from yourself." Sean looked at her as he spoke.
Earlier, he'd been a bit hasty, wanting them to try casting, so he'd spoken quickly. Now that they could see results, he needed to encourage them. Otherwise, directly stating the remaining time would seem too overpowered.
For now, aside from his unique abilities, his personal influence wasn't very strong, so he didn't want to stand out too much among people.
Denial could easily make him a target...
"Sean's right. Let's keep going, Karyana."
"Okay, Chief!" With Freya's affirmation, the little witch put in even more effort, not caring about mana consumption as she spammed [Dispel~] magic.
[150]...
[140]...
[130]...
The time was dropping rapidly.
Seeing this, Sean truly felt that many people in this world might have died because they couldn't see the numbers. If they let the magic effect run its course or gave up after a few casts, even if they waited for the effects to fade over time, the person would already be done for... Even if the petrification slowly wore off months later, the cursed person would be considered dead from the negative status.
Sean watched as the time approached just a few dozen hours. At this point, he could even see the three girls' eyelids trembling slightly.
"It's working. They're waking up, Chief." Karyana excitedly reported to Freya...
But anyone with eyes could see such an obvious change.
"Mm."
Freya also looked pleased, but beyond the joy, there was a hint of [Confusion!] and [Puzzlement!] in her gaze toward Sean.
As the three girls' skin gradually regained color, their arms began to move slowly.
"Almost there. They should have recovered, but their minds haven't fully awakened yet."
The remaining time hit zero, but above their heads appeared [Confusion!] and [Sleep!] statuses.
Their bodies had revived, but their consciousness hadn't fully woken up yet.
It was like sleeping—it would take a little while for them to gradually become alert!
"Alright then, Karyana, help the three of them back to their rooms to rest. Ask them about the situation when they wake up..."
"Yes, Chief."
Seeing her subordinates slowly recover, Freya returned to her usual strict demeanor and didn't tell the little witch to hastily notify her organization's people.
"Sean, you should rest too. You've been traveling all day!" Her tone toward him had noticeably changed.
"By the way, how did you know that multiple casts of dispelling magic were needed to break this state?"
"You have to fully test magic to know the answer. Isn't that common sense?" With the situation turning around, Sean began to downplay his abilities, and Freya seemed to already expect this answer.
She just smiled and didn't press further.
"Go get some rest."
With that, Sean did feel tired...
He'd spent the whole day traveling on the airship, and after finally arriving, he'd used so much magic that his mental energy was nearly drained.
Back in his room, he fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow, and when he woke up again, it was already the next morning...
He sat up and looked at the sunlight streaming in through the window.
"You're awake. You've been sleeping for so long. The Chief and the others have been waiting for you." As soon as he got up, a discordant voice came from the doorway.
The room was small, and since Sean was a man, in a house with five women, he only got a tiny bed as a sleeping spot...
There was no door, so the inside was visible from outside.
So, as soon as he moved a little, Karyana noticed him!
A prompt appeared: [Being watched...], and it was x2. That meant another pair of eyes was on him.
"I'm not as high-level as you all. After using magic, I need more sleep." Turning around, he could see in the hall by the door not only Karyana but also another girl.
It was one of the three he'd saved with magic yesterday!
She was looking at him with a [Curious!] gaze.
"Is Sean awake? Then get up quickly. Have something to eat, and we'll discuss the situation in the south." At that moment, Freya walked into view from another room.
She had shed her usual cloak, and her voluptuous figure stood out among the three girls like a battle tank.
Too obvious.
Her height and build were almost like an anomaly among them!
One was the leader of some witch organization, the others were members of the witch organization, and he, a fringe baron, was living under the same roof...
This kind of scene probably wouldn't even be written in the wildest street tales!
Sean got up, washed up briefly, and went to the dining room. There, Freya was seated, with two girls around her. Besides Karyana, who seemed normal, the other three looked at him with [Grateful!] eyes.
It seemed they already knew the full story of what had happened last night.
"Thank you, Baron Weigel, for saving us last night."
Sean chose a seat on the left, and next to him was one of the three...
"It was all thanks to Lady Red Dragon Witch and Karyana. I just said a few extra words." Seeing that the three girls' affinity had directly reached [Friendly], he figured his first impression on them wasn't bad.
The three girls were fairly average-looking, with common faces...
Not all witches were beautiful or memorable; many were just ordinary. But that kind of appearance actually felt more real or approachable.
Unlike Freya, with her queenly demeanor and wild mare vibe, who was truly intimidating.
"From now on, Sean is also a member of Sky-Covering Wings. If anything comes up, don't hide it from him. Treat him as one of us."
"Yes!"
Freya had already affirmed his identity multiple times in front of her subordinates.
On the plate in front of him were freshly cooked eggs and a slice of fried meat, serving as breakfast.
But as soon as he cut into it, Freya asked:
"Tell me, where exactly did you go in the south to get hit with such a troublesome curse? And what did that note you left mean?"
"That note was actually a song we heard..."
A song?
Sean, who was eating, suddenly stopped and looked at the witch beside him.
"A song?" Freya asked, puzzled.
Yesterday, both of them thought it was a clue to a specific location, but it turned out to be a folk song.
"Yes, Chief. Following your orders, we went to the village of Katia in the southeast. There, we passed by a traveling circus that only opened at night. The song was a scene from one of the stories told inside!!"