On the south bank of the Srenzo River, in the Observatory District, at the entrance to the underground catacombs, a crimson flame spear descended from the sky and plunged into the ground. As the flames flowed, Medici's figure quickly outlined itself on the ground.
On both sides of his cheeks, the consciousnesses of Sauron and Einhorn had awakened. Their slightly ethereal lips parted as they said,
"Medici, you've been tricked. That level of corruption definitely wouldn't have no effect on us. I even suspect it will wear away and replace my own self."
"I smell death. Is that really an influence from the City of Calamity?"
Medici shook his head, his tone not particularly worried, but rather somewhat eager, saying,
"I don't know, but what cannot be denied is that some of my characteristics have indeed been magnified. I can feel something calling to me from underground. It's not just that mad Sauron Family leader; there are other things down here that are very attractive to me."
"Lunatic," Einhorn cursed under his breath, then spoke seriously, "Sauron, let's stop him together. Medici's consciousness might have been unknowingly affected."
"War... War..."
Responding to Einhorn was Sauron's unconscious ravings. The former Conqueror had fallen back into his previous dazed state.
"Damn it, mad, all mad."
Einhorn gritted his teeth and spat out a sentence. He no longer tried to awaken Sauron or Medici. Affected by the trinity of evil spirits, he could clearly feel his own state also beginning to decline, potentially falling into the whirlpool of madness at any moment.
Without Einhorn's interference, Medici smoothly stepped into the underground catacombs. With each step he took forward, he left a crimson, blood-stained footprint on the ground.
As he delved deeper, the call Medici felt grew stronger. His heartbeat unconsciously intensified, echoing in the empty catacombs.
"Mirror World, it's in the Mirror World."
On Medici's face, the consciousnesses of Sauron and Einhorn each formed a mouth, continuously whispering and urging Medici forward.
"Shut up!" Medici roared, crimson sparks spewing from his mouth, as if his entire being could ignite at any moment.
Sauron and Einhorn's consciousnesses were completely unaffected, continuing to urge Medici on like ravings.
Exhaling a long breath, Medici rubbed his forehead helplessly, muttering to himself,
"Headache, I was actually hypnotized by that guy. Who's helping him? That Genie? Or that stinky lizard from before?"
In the upper area of the underground catacombs, several university students from Intis Academy of Fine Arts secretly entered, preparing for a thrilling adventure to find inspiration for their creations.
In the middle of the group, a young woman in a light yellow dress, wearing a beret, elegantly and appropriately dressed, held the hand of the boy in front of her with one hand and placed the other on her chest, cautiously looking around while whispering,
"Bernie, do we really have to explore here at night?"
The boy called Bernie tightened his grip on her hand, slowing his pace slightly to let the beautiful girl behind him get closer. He looked around with a very relaxed expression and said,
"Of course, it has more atmosphere at night. Only by personally experiencing this eerie and terrifying environment can one create true paintings."
"Besides, there's actually nothing here except those horrifying legends. Everyone who comes here just scares themselves. I've been here many times already, so trust my judgment."
As the two talked, a startled cry suddenly came from the front of the group:
"Huh, whose footprints are these on the ground? And they've drawn such realistic bloodstains."
Bernie pushed aside the classmate blocking his way, glanced at the vivid red footprints extending into the underground catacombs, and chuckled lightly,
"It must be a prank by some student from school. We haven't even entered the catacombs yet. This prank is too fake."
"You're right." The boy at the front of the group who first discovered the footprints nodded, agreeing with Bernie's judgment.
Looking at the vivid red footprints on the ground, he curiously stepped his foot onto one, and it perfectly overlapped with the footprint on the ground. This discovery greatly surprised him. He then walked two steps along the footprints, then turned to share with his companions behind him:
"Hey, look, this footprint is exactly the same size as my foot!"
Behind him, the classmates who had been standing in a group had disappeared at some point. His heart suddenly skipped a beat. He pulled at the corners of his mouth, revealing an ugly smile:
"Where did you hide? Bernie? John? Penn?"
Gulp~ Gulp~
He moved his throat, swallowing the saliva produced by nervousness. His gaze swept around twice, his voice unconsciously growing louder:
"Bernie? Don't play around, come out quickly, or I'll just go back by myself."
At the entrance of the underground catacombs, Bernie and the others looked at their classmate, who was walking faster and faster along the vivid red footprints on the ground, exchanged puzzled glances, then also sped up to follow him.
Bernie felt the pressure on his hand, then slowed his steps, and at the same time called out to the classmate who was ahead, head down:
"Misel, slow down."
The boy called Misel ignored the voice behind him, walking faster and faster, and soon disappeared into the depths of the darkness.
At this moment, a boy walking behind Misel raised his hand and said with uncertainty,
"Did you notice that Misel's footsteps just now were always perfectly aligned with the bloody footprints on the ground?"
Beside him, a tall boy with abundant body hair, clearly of Feysac or Highland descent, hesitated and said,
"This is his prank, right? I also stepped on the bloody footprints on the ground just now."
No one answered him. The surroundings were so quiet that even breathing could be clearly heard. He turned his head somewhat stiffly, only to find that the classmates who had been behind him just a moment ago had all disappeared.
"No, no, don't scare me!"
"Penn?John?"
Hesitating for two seconds, he suddenly started running towards the direction where the streetlights could still be faintly seen behind him. His steps were very fast, as if an invisible, terrifying Monster was chasing him.
Despite the short distance, he ran until he was out of breath but still didn't get closer.
"This... this isn't right..." Stopping, he nervously looked around, his hands unconsciously forming the Sun symbol on his chest: "Praise the Sun!"
At the Execution Ground, after Leyton cleaned up the lingering abnormal aura, he glanced in the direction of the underground catacombs and muttered,
"The water of the River of Eternal Darkness is really effective. Sauron Einhorn Medici didn't realize that he had briefly fallen into a dream just now. He should have entered the underground by now."
In his hand, the wishing lamp in the shape of a golden teapot emitted a faint golden light, and the Genie's voice came from within:
"Accompanying you in that act just now was extra help, and I also helped you magnify his obsession. In exchange, you need to provide me with extra help later."
Leyton smiled, his tone calm: "Your last wish was destroyed by Amon, which made me waste a wish. This should be compensation for that wish, which is after-sales service according to human transaction rules."
"I am The Anarchy; I never follow rules."
"Moreover, neither you nor I are human, and there's even less need to abide by the transaction rules set by humans."
The Genie's voice was indifferent and majestic, making one unconsciously want to agree with his words and follow his philosophy.
"I know the whereabouts of the Justiciar Uniqueness." Leyton did not continue to argue with the Genie, throwing out the news of the Trunsoest Brass Book to appease this temporary collaborator.
Before the Genie could ask more, his body instantly dematerialized, breaking down into streams of complex and pure information flow, surging away towards the Square District on the north bank of the Srenzo River.
Inside a hotel near the botanical garden in the Square District, countless complex pieces of information surged in from around the room, quickly converging to outline Leyton's figure.
Thoughts floated through his mind: Arrodes, a Sealed Artifact belonging to the Church of the God of Steam and Machinery, should know a lot about the Church of the God of Steam and Machinery's internal information. Leyton walked to the desk against the wall and sat down, picking up paper and pen from the tabletop to begin writing a letter to Klein.
After the letter was written, he simply set up a ritual to summon a Book Messenger. After a slight delay, Reinette Tinekerr, carrying four golden-haired, red-eyed heads, appeared in the hotel room.
"Did something happen?" Leyton asked curiously, as normally, summoning rituals of this nature could respond and appear immediately.
"Playing..."
"...hide-and-seek"...
"...with..."
"...Suah."
Reinette Tinekerr's voice was very calm, seemingly not taking Suah's pursuit too seriously. Leyton nodded lightly, no longer focusing on the question, and handed the newly written letter to her, saying at the same time,
"Postage due."
"No problem."
One of the heads held by Reinette Tinekerr's right hand replied, then extended forward, opening its mouth to bite the letter Leyton handed over. Then her other three heads spoke one by one:
"Recently..."
"The Spirit World..."
"...Is very chaotic..."
As her voice fell, Reinette Tinekerr's figure faded and disappeared from the room.
Leyton looked at the spot where she disappeared, lost in thought... Isn't the Spirit World always chaotic? Did Miss Messenger mean that some bad changes have occurred in the Spirit World?
After a moment of thought, he summoned his Book Messenger and established contact with his avatar remaining on the Southern Continent:
"Has anything happened recently?"
A moment later, lines of neat handwriting appeared on the Book Messenger's pale yellow paper:
"Everything is happening gradually, nothing too abnormal, except that the Devils seem to have become more active, and quite a few have joined the Rose School of Thought."