"…So the saying's true—the culprit always returns to the scene of the crime?" Klein looked once more at the wide-eyed corpse of Adelaide. After a moment's hesitation, he slipped on his gloves and gently closed her lifeless eyes.
"Sorry I couldn't prevent your death…but I promise, your killer will be caught."
When he opened the door, he found Aldrich standing across the hall with his arms crossed, leaning against the wall.
"How'd it go?"
"I know who the killer is."
Aldrich blinked. "You do?"
Klein's tone remained even. "Divination."
Aldrich nodded in sudden realisation, then lowered his voice.
"Who?"
"Olivia."
He froze for a beat.
"…Olivia?"
"You seem surprised," Klein noted.
Aldrich hesitated before replying, "…This bodyguard commission we're on—it was actually initiated by her. In other words, she's my true client."
A faintly cold smile tugged at Klein's lips.
"Then what do you plan to do about your blood-sucking, murderous employer?"
"…"
After a few seconds of silence, Aldrich finally said, "I'm not a police officer, nor a member of the Church. I've no obligation to arrest her. As long as I can restrain her and prevent her from killing again, that's enough."
Klein said quietly, "Don't forget—she's likely a vampire. And vampires are, at minimum, Sequence 7."
From their interactions the previous day, Klein had already determined Aldrich to be a Weapon Master—a Sequence 7 on the Warrior pathway. Among the bodyguards, there was also a Sequence 8 Pugilist, along with two Sequence 9s: a Hunter and a Sailor.
Aldrich fell into thought, then said, "I'll try speaking with Miss Olivia first. If that doesn't work…then I'll use force."
Klein absently ran his fingers over the thin, skin-like glove on his left hand.
"Do as you please."
———
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Three pirates exploded into a mist of blood and flesh. The remaining six or seven immediately underwent all sorts of bizarre mutations—but they, too, were instantly swallowed by brilliant scarlet flames and burned to ash.
The entire sequence had been swift and seamless.
Edward clapped the dust off his hands and returned to the pirate ship.
The moment he stepped through the Traveler's Door, he was met with the sight of all the pirates lowering their heads in silence. The excitement and bravado they'd shown earlier were completely gone.
No surprise there. Anyone would grow wary after watching their companions get taken away one by one…only to never return.
Some of the braver pirates with a bit of strength had tried resisting. But Edward hadn't even needed to lift a finger—Lilith had handled all of them effortlessly.
Now, this group of pirates feared Lilith—the "dwarf witch"—even more than they feared Edward. After all, none of them had actually witnessed Edward kill anyone. But Lilith? She'd slain more than a dozen right before their eyes.
(Yes, they all believed Lilith was actually a dwarf.)
Edward turned to Red-Hair with displeasure.
"It's already been over a day since you spread the word. And you've been performing follow-up sacrifices every two hours since. So why hasn't anyone shown up yet?"
Red-Hair replied in a small voice, "They're already on their way. So far we've confirmed eight ships headed this way. They should start arriving later this afternoon and into the evening."
"You're sure?"
"Positive!"
Edward paused to gauge the digestion rate of his potion. If he could draw in seven or eight ships full of pirates every day, then he'd be able to fully digest the potion in less than a month.
But that was wishful thinking. Even a child could tell that wasn't sustainable.
That meant the dissemination of Outer God knowledge needed to proceed in tandem. If he could infect each pirate with some of that knowledge, it should speed up digestion by at least another third!
That thought gave Edward a burst of motivation.
He stepped forward and, using his Invisible Hand, dragged five more pirates from the group. They immediately began struggling in terror, begging for mercy—but not a trace of pity stirred in Edward's heart.
Compared to the atrocities these pirates had committed—robbing and murdering for years—dying in a daze from hearing a story was practically a kindness.
Edward raised his wand and bound the remaining forty-something pirates. Otherwise, he was sure they'd try to jump overboard the moment he left.
As usual, they arrived at the island.
Edward landed with the five new pirates and went straight into his routine.
"Do you know…this world is on the brink of doomsday? Yes—it's those Outer Gods again. What are Outer Gods? They're evil deities that come from beyond this world. For example: the Son of Chaos…the High-Dimensional Overseer…the Mother Tree of Desire…"
Bang! Bang!
Two pirates exploded on the spot.
Of the three remaining, one twisted into a mass of flesh-worms, another grew a single eye so large it nearly burst through his skull, and the third transformed into a writhing tree of blood and meat.
As expected, based on his repeated tests, the type of corruption was typically linked to a specific Outer God. The ones most often responsible seemed to be the Fallen Mother Goddess and the Mother Tree of Desire.
Just as Edward raised his wand to dispose of the three monstrosities—
They froze.
Then, right before his eyes, they began to disintegrate—inch by inch—like chalk being wiped from a blackboard.
"!!!"
Almost simultaneously, Edward felt the spirituality around him begin to tremble violently.
He spun around—and saw a familiar face standing just a few meters away:
A woman in a simple robe tied with a bark belt, barefoot, her presence serene yet somehow commanding.
It was Arianna, the Servant of Concealment.
Why is she here?
Isn't the sea supposed to be Leodero's domain?
But this time, she looked very different from their previous encounters. Gone was her usual calm and detachment. Instead, her expression was…strange. Something between shock and unreadable complexity.
"Lord Edward…" she said directly.
Arianna wasted no time: "You've clearly acquired knowledge of the Outer Gods…You're aware it carries dangerous corruption, aren't you?"
Edward nodded. "I am. But perhaps I enjoy the protection of certain deities—this corruption doesn't seem to affect me."
He paused. "And I've cleaned up the corrupted pirates. There's no hidden danger left."
"But…" Arianna sighed softly. "You mention the Outer Gods far too often. That alone doesn't just invite Their corruption—it risks attracting Their gaze."
Edward froze.
"…You're not telling me "They" can project "Their" power here just through that, are you?"
Arianna shook her head.
"I don't know. But my Lord hopes you'll stop."
"…But I…"
Her demeanour returned to its usual serene stillness.
"Of course, you're free to continue. If you do, however…my Lord will revoke your concealment. And then, the next one to find you will be a servant of the Lord of Storms."
Edward was left speechless.
Seriously? You're a divine-level being, and you're threatening a humble little Sequence 5 like me?
"…Understood. Thank the Goddess for her protection of secrecy."
Left with no other option, Edward drew a sacred symbol of light across his chest in resignation.
"Good. Take care," Arianna said simply, and turned to leave.
"Wait, wait, Lady Arianna!" Edward called out quickly. "Could I borrow a few more minutes of your time?"
Then, with practised ease, he conjured a blackboard, a desk, and a row of chairs. Smiling warmly, he said, "May I have the honour of sharing some knowledge with you—things you may or may not already know?"
Arianna was silent for a few seconds before sitting down at the desk.
"…Go ahead."
"Are you familiar with the Forsaken Land of the Gods?"
"I am."
"The legends of the Ancient Sun God?"
"I've heard them."
"Then…do you know how the Ancient Sun God was backstabbed, and how that led to the birth of the Seven Gods?"
Arianna gave him a long, meaningful look.
"…No. But I'd advise you not to speak of it."
"…"
Oho…the Goddess doesn't want me exposing her dark history, is that it?
Fine!
"Then I'll just give you a simple and basic astronomy lesson. You probably don't know about the Milky Way Galaxy, the Solar System, or the eight planets, right?"
"Go on."
"Alright! So, the land we're standing on—it's actually a massive planet. Just like the sun and the moon in the sky. In eras even older than the First Epoch, it was called 'Earth'…"
Truthfully, while the scientific development in the world of Mysteries was not particularly advanced, there were individuals who possibly understood planets and the cosmos better than modern Earthlings.
For instance, those on the Apprentice Pathway—Planeswalker—could freely roam the universe and set foot on any planet. But first, there were very few who could ascend to that level. Second, after Mr. Door was exiled, it had been over a thousand years since anyone had reached that Sequence.
And now, the night sky was occupied by Outer Gods. The knowledge surrounding it had been corrupted. So, most people's understanding of the universe was extremely limited.
It took Edward over twenty minutes to wring out every last drop of astronomy knowledge he had.
Once he was finished, Arianna vanished without a word.
…And his potion digestion hadn't budged in the slightest.
Edward seriously suspected she already knew all of that—and had only pretended not to, just to stop him from "leaking even bigger secrets."
Ugh…Not only am I banned from spreading Outer God knowledge, but I didn't even gain any benefit from it. What a loss.
Let me think…there's got to be another way…
Just then, Lilith's voice came from within the leather pouch.
"Edward, are you done yet? You're being super slow this time."
"You hear that, Edward? I can't hear anything right now, and I don't like this feeling."
"Eeedward~"
He quickly opened the pouch, lifted the Muffliato charm, and brought her out.
"Sorry. Someone came to see me."
"Who was it?" she asked, blinking wide-eyed and looking around.
"Arianna. The lady in the black robe. Remember her?"
Lilith nodded immediately.
"I remember! Last time she even asked you to divine what I'd eat for dinner. What'd she want this time?"
"She told me to stop spreading those forbidden truths you're not allowed to hear."
"Why?"
"She said…it's too dangerous."
Edward took her hand and teleported back to the pirate ship.
Looking over the bound pirates on deck—tied up like squealing pigs—Edward gave them a sunny smile.
"Good news, everyone. I've decided to stop feeding you any more forbidden knowledge."
A wave of silent jubilation swept through the pirates. They exhaled in pure relief.
Edward raised his wand.
"But…I've come up with something new."
"Magnify—Obliviate!"
———
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