Tricked by Roselle? Somehow it sounds more like there was a deal between you two… after all, his "Knowledge Emperor" characteristic is still in your hands.
Muttering this in his heart, Ebner listened as Yaloran continued:
"Roselle must have received guidance from the 'Calamity Seal.' He came to me with the God Casket, hoping I would help him open it…
"The God Casket was entrusted by the Elf King to Cohinem, to be carried to the Western Continent. Apart from her and me, only you—back when you were the God of Fortune—knew how to open it.
"Roselle's offer had three conditions. First, he promised me the Knowledge Emperor's Beyonder characteristic. He swore that once he became the Black Emperor, he would give it to me.
"And that, he did not fail to deliver. Even though he was besieged and fell not long after his ascension, he still 'grandly' fulfilled his promise.
"Still, I suspect he did so deliberately—to draw the Hidden Sage's attention toward me, easing the pressure on his daughter.
"Second, he prepared the advancement ritual required for me to ascend to Knowledge Emperor…
"But I suspect that was a trap. My suspicion had no concrete basis, not even a divination could confirm it, yet my 'intuition' told me so.
"That is why, even now, I have not reached Sequence 1.
"Third, he said he had 'foreseen' the clue to the Book of Calamity—that is, the precise time when your Trial Temple would appear.
"At that time, I had a premonition that my future might fall into peril, perhaps requiring me to fuse with my other half to survive. So I accepted his terms.
"But who would have thought, Roselle played word games… When Leticia entered your Trial Temple on my orders, she did indeed find the clue to the Book of Calamity…
"Yet Roselle had already severed her connection with the Book in advance!
"It wasn't that Roselle was helping me find her—it was that he was helping her hide from me!
"I have to admit, that Black Emperor's methods were formidable indeed. He even hid her within your Trial Temple and helped her gain partial authority over it.
"So much so that when I used Mystery Reenactment – Vanished Nation of Evernight to draw the Trial Temple into this nightmare town, I still failed to discover her…
"Until just now—your reaction upon recognizing me gave me a premonition. Only then did I locate her.
"But with your help now, I don't even need to find her for fusion anymore!"
At this, Yaloran wore a clear expression of disdain, as if the idea of "fusion" was deeply repulsive to her.
She paused, glanced at some ornament in the church, and then continued her complaints:
"Roselle opening the God Casket and releasing all the Soul Stones would have been enough, but he even used the Casket's lid to prepare a century-long ritual. That ritual was finally completed eleven years ago…
"I don't know what purpose he intended, but after Roselle's death, the Hidden Sage maintained it. And through that, He confirmed that the imprint of the Knowledge Moor was on me. For the past ten years, He has been hunting me…
"Which forced me to hide in this secret little town, sending only clones outside."
That does sound like Roselle in his later years… always riddled with contradictions… Heh, I remember he even tried to use 'Cohinem's' whereabouts as leverage against my master? If that was the case, of course he wouldn't let you find her so easily!
Besides, Roselle's ultimate aim was for me to save him—he wouldn't set up something that truly made me his enemy…
And behind many of his methods was the shadow of the Calamity Seal.
Yaloran's peculiarity was clearly revealed by the Calamity Seal. The location of the Book of Calamity too. Otherwise, how could Roselle so easily find the other half of Yaloran when she herself had searched for centuries without success?
So what exactly was the Calamity Seal's purpose in all this?
To release the God Casket? To retrieve one of the special souls within? To ensure the completion of that ritual eleven years ago? Or was there some deeper scheme?
Still, if it was me—the "me" of that life who bore the Calamity Seal—while I valued outcomes above all, I would always leave a way out. I don't know if that was habit, or just a trace of lingering humanity…
In any case, Vera's intelligence was right: the Casket's lid could indeed locate Soul Stones marked with Sefirot imprints.
That also explains why, beyond the royal faction of the Church of the Eternal Blazing Sun and Yaldabaoth—both clearly tipped off by Roselle—other hidden powers like the Hidden Sage, the Mother Tree of Desire, and even Will Auceptin all involved themselves in that ritual eleven years ago.
They were trying to trace the locations of the Sefirot imprints! That's why the Hidden Sage went after Yaloran. That's why the Mother Tree of Desire pushed the Dorian family into contact with that sea monster… Even Little Snake must have drawn some revelation from it…
But why would the True Creator care about the ritual? Why nurture a survivor into the Aurora Order's Saint of Secret Supremacy…
Was it for Ouroboros?
And as for "me," the mastermind Little Snake mentioned—what was I trying to gain from all this?
And how does this tie into Lilith's long-term mission…?
Tsk, it seems I'll need to gather all five of the survivors, uncover the secrets on them, and recreate that ritual…
Still, perhaps I should meet Cohinem's other personality first. She might know more.
Ebner thought it over. After echoing Yaloran's criticisms of Roselle a few times, he shifted the topic and probed:
"Would it be possible for me to go to the temple and meet the other 'Queen of Calamity'?"
After all, this hidden town was Yaloran's creation—if he wanted to meet the other Cohinem, he had to get the "host's" approval.
At his words, Yaloran cast him a glance and then, feigning reluctance, said:
"There's no need to go to the temple… If she knows you're here with me, how could she not come?"
As she spoke, Yaloran turned toward a fountain ornament in the church:
"Don't hide anymore—come out!"
Even before her voice had fallen, a layer of watery mist rose over the fountain. Then, from it stepped the figure of a woman in an elaborate, antiquated gown.
Her hair was lustrous black, her features exquisite, her ears slightly pointed, her eyes deep and fathomless, her lines soft and refined. Except for her hair color, eye color, and the shape of her ears, she was identical to Yaloran!
Though shorter, and lacking the "Beauty" concept and alluring aura, her presence carried greater nobility and majesty than Yaloran.
Cohinem was here all along? Madam, that look of disdain you wore earlier—was it just for show, to spite this other 'Queen of Calamity'? I knew it seemed a bit forced…
As Ebner grumbled inwardly, Cohinem was already looking at Yaloran, saying evenly:
"Your behavior grows more frivolous by the day."
There was no trace of the confusion or helplessness she'd shown in the Sea of Collective Subconscious. She was composed and dignified.
"Unlike you, I don't bother with pretenses. I prefer to… well, as Rhine would say, express my feelings openly."
Yaloran smirked disdainfully and continued:
"I wasn't certain before, but now I know—you were determined to take Soniathrym's Soul Stone back to the Western Continent for your own designs!
"Of course you knew he was already polluted by the Unknown. Even if he 'revived,' it would be only Fortune that revived, not him.
"And yet, this way you could still call yourself 'Queen of the Elves'—without it being considered betrayal… Tsk, such clever scheming!"
At this, the Queen of Calamity Cohinem merely gave a cold "hmph." She showed not the slightest anger, calm to a degree that seemed unlike a Beyonder of the Sailor pathway.
Maintaining her stance, she ignored Yaloran's barbs and turned instead to Ebner. She gave him a small nod and said:
"Ask what you wish, and I will answer as best I can.
"But in return, you must promise me one thing."
As expected of the same person… Though their tone and manner differ, their way of dealing is exactly the same!
Hearing this, Ebner couldn't help but complain inwardly.
(End of Chapter)