Tch, there's an Amon here too?
At that moment, Edward once again felt that strange sensation—only this time, unlike the faint trace he had sensed earlier, it surged with overwhelming intensity. Its source…lay straight ahead, in the heart of this desolate wasteland.
Is this another one of Amon's tricks?
His first instinct was to turn around and run. But the force of that overwhelming sensation held him back—it gnawed at his mind, kept him rooted in place.
He felt just like one of those cliché horror movie characters—knowing something was terribly wrong up ahead, yet still inexplicably drawn toward it, flirting with disaster.
But what if it isn't Amon's doing?
What if that sensation is actually something beneficial?
What if…it's a way out of the Forsaken Land?
With a flick of his wand, Edward transfigured a nearby stone into a rabbit.
Lilith's eyes immediately lit up. "Big rat!"
Without Edward needing to say anything, Bernadette raised her hand and cast Emperor's New Clothes on the rabbit. The creature bounded forward, hopping straight into the yellow-grey fog ahead.
The moment it entered the mist, the illusion covering the rabbit shimmered and distorted like a pixelated blur—but it managed to hold, blocking out the invasive fog.
Unfortunately, it didn't last long.
After another dozen meters or so, Emperor's New Clothes began to warp and unravel. Moments later, it dissipated entirely. The rabbit was instantly contaminated—its body twisted, its eyes dulled—and it began to aimlessly wander, just like the cyclopean giant from before. A few seconds later, the transformation reversed, and it returned to being a lifeless stone.
Bernadette said calmly, "If we keep renewing Emperor's New Clothes, we might be able to hold out…but I suspect the closer we get to the giant, the stronger the pollution becomes."
She looked over at Edward. "But judging by your face, you're debating whether or not to keep going."
Edward snapped out of his internal conflict and muttered, "I suspect there's an Amon lying in ambush up ahead!"
"Then why hesitate?"
"Because…"
He quickly explained the peculiar sensation that had first emerged when the barrier reacted—and how it had returned with far greater intensity.
"You're worried Amon's using it to lure you in?"
"Exactly."
Bernadette considered for a moment. "So, you never intended to come this way in the first place?"
Edward paused before nodding. "No, I didn't."
"But somehow, we still ended up here—without meaning to. That doesn't sound like a trap waiting for you to step in. It sounds more like…"
Edward's eyes lit up. "The Law of Convergence of Beyonder Characteristics?"
She nodded. "Mm."
"But…Amon is the King of Angels of the Marauder pathway, and my path is adjacent to the Marauder…If this is his doing, wouldn't that still align with the Law of Convergence?"
Suddenly, a thought struck him. "Wait—do you think that Amon clone we trapped inside the World Within the Painting and then sealed in The Box of the Great Old One...could it still be alive?"
Bernadette furrowed her brows. "It's uncertain. But to be safe, until we're absolutely sure how to deal with it, we should avoid opening The Box of the Great Old One again."
"…That means my picture frame's out of commission too."
Ugh, I wonder if old man Pallez can help me fix this…
She turned to him. "So, what's your plan now?"
Edward replied with absolute seriousness, "Leave. Immediately. Right now."
No sooner had the words left his mouth than he flung open a Traveler's Door. The two of them stepped through it in sync, disappearing from the twisted, ravine-strewn wasteland.
At that same moment, in the massive gray-and-white building in the depths of Chernobyl, a withered figure slowly opened its eyes.
It wore a pointed soft hat, a vintage black robe, and a single monocle resting in its right eye socket. Its body was shrivelled down to nothing but skin and bones, like a skeleton stretched with a thin film of flesh.
Amon.
The angel's monocled eye glanced lazily toward the direction of the wasteland.
"Huh? Something interesting just left…Should I follow them and have a look?"
Muttering to itself, Amon made no move.
"…Nah. I'll stay right here. Otherwise, the main body will just scold me again."
———
Stepping out of the spirit world, Edward and Bernadette found themselves back at the place where they'd first exited the illusory ocean. In the distance, mountain peaks bathed in golden dusk pierced the sky, crowned with towering spires, majestic palaces, and layer upon layer of walls.
The Giant King's Court.
"Whew…"
Edward exhaled deeply. "Much better. Finally, I don't feel like I'm being pulled along by the nose anymore."
Bernadette raised her gaze to the palace atop the distant peaks. "You brought us directly here—so you've decided to go to the Giant King's Court after all?"
"Not exactly. It's still the same plan as before—staying closer to the True Creator's domain gives me a little more peace of mind."
"…"
She was momentarily speechless.
So you're using the evil god everyone else avoids like the plague…as your bodyguard?
Edward coughed lightly. "It's just…choosing the lesser of two evils, you know?"
After a pause, he pointed ahead. "Let's head that way. There's an ancient town along the road. It's long since abandoned, but there are still ruins and remnants of architecture. Want to check it out?"
The town he referred to was Afternoon Town, a mandatory stop on the road to the Giant King's Court. Humans and giants had once lived there side by side, surrounding the dwelling of an Ancient God forever frozen in twilight. It served as the final gateway to the court itself.
As they moved onward, the number and strength of monsters along the road increased. However, unlike elsewhere, these creatures were noticeably "smarter." They trailed the duo from a distance but never launched an outright attack.
Once Bernadette donned Hades' Invisibility Cap and concealed their presence, most of the monsters retreated in confusion, and the darkness grew eerily quiet.
——
Three or four hours later, they finally arrived at a ruined town nestled at the base of the mountains.
The buildings were constructed from grey stone—some hollowed from single monoliths, reaching up to ten meters high; others were so short a human could bump into the ceiling.
They were densely packed, spreading outward in neat patterns. Some structures had collapsed, others still stood, but all were draped in the scent of decay and time. In the shadows between the ruins, mutated monsters could be seen lurking.
At this point, the City of Silver's exploration teams hadn't yet reached Afternoon Town, and thus the monsters here remained untouched.
Almost simultaneously, the powers of the Black Emperor and Red Priest expired. Edward felt a deep, soul-level fatigue wash over him.
Bernadette immediately noticed the change in him. "What's wrong?"
Edward let out a helpless chuckle. "You could say I've entered a kind of weakened state. Until I reestablish contact with my Lord, I'll probably only be able to operate at Sequence 5 strength."
Bernadette raised an eyebrow. "So you're saying…your previous abilities that far exceeded your apparent Sequence were actually granted by your patron?"
"Well…that's one way to look at it."
A glint flashed through her sea-blue eyes. "Does this have something to do with the Cards of Blasphemy?"
"…"
Seriously, every time I spend time with her, I have to marvel at her sharpness all over again.
"So," she continued, "you handed over the Black Emperor card to your patron already? And when you asked me whether I had any other Cards of Blasphemy, that was also part of your plan to obtain powers from other pathways?"
Seeing that Edward didn't deny it, her expression gradually shifted to one of mild surprise. "In that case, if all twenty-two Blasphemy Cards were offered to your patron…would "He" then be able to master the abilities of all twenty-two pathways? Is that…what it means to be an existence from before the First Epoch?"
Edward stared at her blankly.
Her deductions were half right, half wrong—and the wrong half was only wrong because he'd fed her inaccurate information in the first place. Otherwise, with just a few lines of dialogue, she'd probably strip his entire identity bare.
Gotta hand it to her—these hundred-plus years of experience weren't wasted at all.
Without another word, Bernadette cast White Horse Is Not A Horse, The Emperor's New Clothes, and Hades' Invisibility Cap on Edward and Lilith. "Wait here. I'll clean out the area."
Edward muttered, "Um, I'm not that helpless…"
But moments later, a one-sided massacre and exorcism broke out across the ruins of Afternoon Town.
As a Sequence 3 powerhouse wielding multiple high-level Sealed Artifacts, clearing out these low- to mid-tier corrupted creatures was little more than a warm-up exercise for Bernadette.
Meanwhile, Edward obediently tucked himself into the corner of a half-collapsed wall.
Lilith poked her little head out of his arms, squinting toward the battle with sparkling eyes, and began muttering in a low voice:
"Wow! She's so strong!"
"She just took out that huge monster in one hit!"
"Ah! Her face is so fierce right now—it's even scarier than when Miss Lilith catches mice."
"A monster's sneaking up behind her…oops, never mind, she just shattered it with a spear."
"Now the monsters are teaming up…eh? That was fast. They're all dead already?"
"Aww, the monsters seem kinda pitiful…"
"C'mon, monsters, you can do it—oof!"
She turned around and looked innocently at Edward. "Why'd you bop me on the head?"
Edward glared at her. "She's out there risking her life clearing monsters, and you're sitting here watching like it's a stage play—and cheering for the monsters? What a little traitor!"
Lilith pouted. "But she doesn't look like she's struggling at all…"
Edward: "…"
About ten minutes later, Queen Mystic, Bernadette, returned at a measured pace. Her breathing was steady, her robes unwrinkled and spotless—not a trace of battle clung to her.
"All clear. Let's go."
Edward quickly followed. "Coming."
———
In the depths of the spirit world.
Within Reinette Tinekerr's castle.
Huff!
Klein suddenly bolted upright from the stone bed, gasping for air like someone who had just barely escaped drowning.
His thoughts were tangled, knotted like a headphone cable pulled from a pocket—looping over themselves again and again, struggling to distinguish dream from reality.
His final memory had been…
Falling into the depths of the spirit world.
Looking up at Ince Zangwill's shadowy, high-and-mighty expression.
Hearing that cold, venomous voice say:
"First."
First?
So I was the first person he came after for revenge after returning?
Then second, third, fourth—would be the Captain, Leonard…and Edward?
He wasn't too worried about Leonard or Edward. Those two were…blessed, to say the least. But the Captain…oh right, he had Miss Daly with him.
So I was the weakest one, the easiest target.
Wait a minute—by that logic, I should've had my chest pierced and my heart crushed. I should've been dead.
Then why am I…?
Klein instinctively looked down, unbuttoning his shirt.
Where there had once been a grisly wound over his heart, there was now only a faint, shallow scar.
"…So I've come back to life again?"
———
[Note]: Another day. Another goal missed. Hmmmm....
Anyways, no Extra Chapter tomorrow.
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Link - (P)atre(o)n.c(o)m/ Iseeblack [Remove the brackets]