Jack looked pointedly at Baroness Artheim. "You want me to inform those factions?"
She looked back at him. Her eyes were pleading. "You are a being of the spectral realm. You can move freely, unseen. You can bypass their surveillance. You can reach the factions I need to warn."
She took three letters and put it on the desk. "The Trinity Churches, the Academy, and the Royal Faction. They need to know that the Valley of Despair is compromised. They need to understand the gravity of the situation. Before one of those bastards put their hand on the Forbidden Chalice."
Jack considered her words. The situation was escalating. The Purity Cult, a fanatical organization that pursued power regardless of the methods. But hid it behind fake façade of purity. And the Night Salvation, a shadowy syndicate whose purpose was still a mystery. Even for its own members, like Reina.
Both factions were either working in tandem or clashing in competition. All to gain control of Forbidden Chalice, the resurrection artifact.
Rune, in her spectral will-o'the-wisp form, glowed reddish. Showing her concern to the danger these factions might cause.
"Do you have any information about the Purity Cult and Night Salvation? Those who join this case? Strength? Numbers?" Jack asked. His spectral eyes were narrowing.
"My intelligence suggests at least thirty. Possibly more." the Baroness replied. Her voice was tight. "And among them are three Illuminated Transcendent individuals. They are the main reason I cannot leave this manor myself."
Thirty transcendent beings. A difficult challenge. But it should still be manageable. However, the three illuminated transcendent individuals... They were beings one tier higher than he currently was. They were the main problems here.
Those three individuals weren't something he could face currently. They had a significant force. A terrifying one.
He had his [Mythical Existence] traits though. They shouldn't be able to detect him. As long as he was careful and didn't take too much risk.
"And the gate to the Valley of Despair they are trying to open? Where is it exactly? The sealed entrance to the Valley?" Jack inquired. His mind was already sifting through potential strategies.
"No. The general location is the same. The southeastern part of Grandrock Region." Baroness Artheim said. Tapping a specific point on the map. "But it isn't the main entrance to the Valley of Despair. Here. This one is the sealed main gateway. And this point here is the back entrance, where the two groups plan to open."
Jack nodded. He knew the general area. The location of the main entrance was the same as the one he researched with Reina.
"I've put the map and the explanation in the letter." The Baroness said. "You just need to stealthily drop them to the headquarters of the three factions. Or any place that is connected to them."
"Do you know why the key was in the hand of your father?" Jack suddenly changed the topic.
"Well, it is related to ancient history." Baroness Artheim explained. "Before the Despair Curse destroyed Lushland Valley, it was ruled by the Claspines. They were connected by marriage alliance to my father's family, the Hashwells. And also a few other noble families in Elrush Kingdom."
She took a deep breath and continued. "According to the history I know, in the Mid Medieval Era, they somehow offended the Saint of Pain of that time, who casted a terrifying Despair Curse to the valley. It was said that the curse was so powerful that it turned the whole valley into a separate spatial dimension. A dungeon."
She tapped the key on the desk. "But, before they completely fell to the curse, they actually managed to send three mysterious keys to their allies. The Hashwells, here. The Ashworths, who had lost it during the chaos of the Elrush Revolution War. And the Primefellers, who kept it in the Central Bank. Only to be stolen by the Night Salvation."
"They had the keys to open the Spatial Dimension even before they became one?" Jack immediately noted the discrepancy of the story.
"No." Baroness Artheim shook her head. "It was originally a normal key. Well, a strange one. But it didn't possess its current ability to open a sealed space. It somehow evolved into its current version after several decades."
Jack nodded. He had a relatively clearer picture of what had happened now. Previously, he did have the intention to join the exploration of the valley when the time had come. But, he hadn't intended to seize the artifact.
It was too troublesome and it would make him a target. Not to mention Saint of Joy. Who knew what he had done to the Forbidden Chalice? Or intended to do? He had no desire to be in the radar of someone whose power was even a tier higher than the Illuminated Transcendent ones.
But now, he wanted the treasured artifact. Even if it was just for a few minutes. Why? His human incarnation's second class was Treasure Hunter. One who gained power from discovering treasure. Even if he could just touch it for a few moments, he would be able to gain a new spell card.
"Alright, Baroness!" Jack said. His spectral form flickered slightly. "I will deliver your letters. They will reach the three factions before the dawn break."
The Baroness managed a faint smile. A rare gleam of hope in her weary eyes. "Thank you, Jack Mystery. But, will you be alright? The Church, the Academy, and the Palace weren't exactly hospitable for spiritual being like you."
"Don't worry about me, Baroness!" Jack replied. A hint of mischief was in his tone. "I have my ways."
The three letters floated up from the desk into Jack's hand and disappeared completely. Placed within Jack's inventory space.
"Good night, Baroness!" Jack said his goodbye. In a low, echoing breath. And disappeared completely from sight.
He didn't bother using a door. The invisible specter simply phased through the thick stone wall of the study. He was already gone from the mansion grounds. Before the spectral echo of his farewell completely faded.
The mission was high risk but straightforward. Deliver the letters to three of the most powerful and paranoid organizations in the Elrush Kingdom. And Jack knew the Purity Cult and the Night Salvation must have had their moles in or near those organizations.
Jack moved in full spectral drift. His speed and invisibility were cranked to maximum efficiency.
Rune, his fairy companion, followed as a tiny, pulsing will-o'-the-wisp. Her glow was currently muted. Only a dim, deep blue throb indicated her focus and low-power stealth mode.
Most Lonestone City was a grid of gas-lit streets, clanking steam machinery, and deep, shadowed alleys. But the Academic District he was currently in was quite different. The district radiated a great thirst for knowledge. A an equal desire to show it off.
The exquisite buildings, the towering stone lecture halls, the complicated clock tower, and well-manicured grounds in abstract yet regulated patterns... All seemed to be designed to broadcast intellectual superiority.
Jack's first target was still in thr same district. The Elrush Lonestone Academy. He soon reached it. And he moved quickly to the Mysticism Department.
Unlike the normal departments of the academy, the Mysticism had mystical defense. They were robust, but predictable. Wards against elemental magic. Detection spells aimed at living intruders. And physical security measures.
Yet, those defenses offered almost no resistance to him. A high-level spectral entity who didn't bother touching solid matter.
Jack phased through the outer walls. Avoiding the few patrolling watchmen who looked too tired to notice anything. He bypassed the main library. Navigating directly toward the heart of the administration building for the department.
He quickly noticed the office of Grand Scholar Oarwinter. It was a cavernous space. Dark, save for the sickly yellow light filtering in from the far-away streetlamps.
The air there was thick with the scent of aged paper.
Jack extracted the first letter. Addressed specifically to Professor Oarwinter. He didn't bother admiring the handwriting.
He placed the letter squarely in the center of the Dean's massive, oak desk. It was instantly visible. Yet inert. But, that alone wouldn't do. It required immediate attention.
Jack focused his intent. He had completely mastered the minor cantrip, [Glowing Stone]. It was originally designed to make a pebble glow with soft, pulsating light. Now, the material substrate didn't matter.
Focus. Channel. Imbue.
The parchment flared. Not with harsh, magical light. But with a soft, cyan luminescence that could not be ignored. It looked completely alien against the dark, scholarly wood.
With the delivery complete, Jack needed to ensure discovery occurred soon. Within minutes if possible, not hours.
He drifted overhead. His spectral hands phasing through the brass bust of a long-dead philosopher. Perched on the corner of a nearby bookshelf.
He activated his [Mysterious Anomaly] abd applied a sudden, focused burst of kinetic energy. The bust didn't just fall. It launched itself sideways. Hitting a heavy inkwell on the desk below.
CRASH! SPLATTER!
The sound echoed viciously in the quiet office. Jack heard the immediate, muffled shouting of a nervous night watchman checking the floor below.
Mission parameter achieved. Jack vanished. Slipping back through the stone ceiling and accelerating toward the next target.
...
The Church District was quite a stark contrast to the Academy. It traded intellectual exhibition for religious dogma. Manifested in overwhelming architecture. The Cathedral of Prosperity rose like a gilded thumb. Its spires clawing at the night sky.
Jack slowed his approach. This place was different. It wasn't just secured by mortal guards and anti-magic wards. It was saturated with divine energy.
The God of Prosperity, while perhaps distant in physical existence, was present in the very stones of the Cathedral. Jack did not want to risk a direct, high-level divine confrontation. Over a mere letter delivery.
He needed to be very careful. His target was the Cathedral of Prosperity. The biggest hub for the Trinity Churches' local operations in ELrush Kingdom.
He slipped inside the main sanctuary. The space was enormous. It seemed to be designed to make the individual feel very small. Moonlight slanted through the stained-glass windows. Illuminating dust motes dancing in the cold, holy air.
His immediate instinct was to place the letter on the High Altar. Ensuring maximum visibility. Buy, he immediately suppressed that urge. The Altar was consecrated by true divine power. Touching it with his spectral essence was unnecessary risk.
"No need to tempt the divine." He muttered. Rune pulsed blue-green in agreement.
Instead, he drifted down toward the front-most row of mahogany pews. The ones where the most important and earliest-arriving supplicants sat.
Jack placed the second letter onto the thick velvet cushion of the middle bench. Addressed to 'Cardinal Paddy'. He invoked [Glowing Stone] again. Again, the letter pulsed with a soft, cyan luminescence.
Now, the noise. Unlike the confined space of Oakwinter's office, the Cathedral required a larger, more ambient disturbance.
Jack gathered his spectral energy. The [Mysterious Anomaly]. Not focusing it for kinetic force this time. But for atmospheric disruption. For sound. He didn't want to break anything. He wanted to scare someone awake. With otherworldly noises.
A low hum manifested inside the sanctuary. It grew louder and higher in pitch. It swept across the floor. Carrying the mystical, undescribable sound. One that slammed the heavy oak main with a deafening BOOM.
A moment later, he heard the faint, panicked ringing of a bell. From the attached seminary. Jack was already a fast-moving blur. Leaving the church hall far behind.
...
The Royal Palace was his final, most dangerous destination.
It was located centrally. Dominating the central part of the city through height and sheer, unyielding mass. The Palace was a fortress. Layered thick with centuries of accumulated magical and mundane defenses.
As Jack phased into the Palace grounds, the environment changed. The air felt heavy. Not with religion or academics, but with raw, highly transcended power. It was like breathing thick oil.
Jack immediately recognized the sensation. An Illuminated Transcendent Being was nearby. The stage one tier above his current stage. The kind of being who could easily crush him with power.
It was... troublesome.