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Bernadette pursed her lips, and strange runes appeared in her azure eyes, making them even deeper. This was the "Eyes of Mystery Prying" used by a Sequence 3 Clairvoyant.
Amidst the deep Darkness, enduring the slight stinging sensation in her eyes, Bernadette stared fixedly at the empty space and finally saw a strange spirit body with a dark gold mask.
Aaron watched Bernadette activate her "Eyes of Mystery Prying," but he didn't panic. The Card of Blasphemy was already in his hand, and he could end the summoning and return to his room at any time, giving him the confidence to face Bernadette.
Moreover, his spiritual intuition, apart from the instinctive warning against high-Sequence powerhouses, did not detect any killing intent. He also wanted to establish contact with Bernadette, reach an agreement, and maintain a tacit understanding on certain matters.
Aaron shifted into a more comfortable posture, concentrating most of the remaining dark gold mist power and concealment power within his spirit body onto the mask, ensuring that the "Eyes of Mystery Prying" could not see through it for a short time.
Then, to show sincerity, Aaron voluntarily lifted part of his concealed state and revealed his form.
Bernadette narrowed her eyes, looking at the strange spirit body that had appeared before her. She stared at the dark gold mask on his face for a while, but gained nothing except an increasingly stinging sensation.
Being in Backlund, she dared not activate her mythical creature state to further enhance the ability of her "Eyes of Mystery Prying." After gaining no insights, she no longer dwelled on it.
Looking at the strange spirit body before her, who appeared at ease and unafraid, Bernadette frowned almost imperceptibly, and her soft, yet emotionless voice rang out:
"Why did you take that bookmark?"
"Who exactly is behind you?"
Seeing that Aaron did not respond, her voice rang out once more, only with a hint more severity in its softness.
The bloodshot eyeballs around them rapidly expanded, seemingly about to occupy the entire space.
"Why did you only take the bookmark? How did you know to take the bookmark?"
Aaron used the special nature of his spirit body to alter his voice, asking in a slightly neutral tone instead of answering: "Bernadette Gustav?" Although it was a question, his tone was full of certainty. He then paused and said three words in Chinese: "Huang Beibei."
Upon hearing the first half of the sentence, Bernadette was only a little surprised, until she heard the three strange, oddly pronounced words that followed.
A memory hidden deep within the ocean of her mind surfaced. These three pronunciations were identical to those her father often murmured when she was little, but he stopped mentioning them after she grew up.
It was only after she became a demigod that she used her abilities to retrieve those syllables from her memory and kept them firmly in her heart as a place of belonging.
A suppressed emotion surged forth, and the bloodshot eyeballs immediately began to distort, even shattering. The aura raged, and the Machinery Hivemind team guarding below finally discovered the anomaly and rushed upwards.
Sensing the commotion downstairs, Aaron did not explain or respond to the previous questions. Instead, he softly chanted in ancient Hermes:
"The Origin of Order and Shadow;"
"The Great Emperor of the Land of Chaos;"
"The Lord of Order who Wields Rules."
Bernadette's eyes narrowed slightly as she chewed on this honorific name. Her gaze darkened, and she quickly said:
"The Sacred Spirit that Pursues Knowledge;
The Mysterious World's Lighthouse;
Eyes that Pry into Fate;
The Royalty above the Sea;
The Pure and Holy Bernadette Gustav."
Aaron nodded slightly, performed a standard etiquette, and communicated with the Nation of Disorder through his will, ending the ritual.
A vast and terrifying suction force came, and Aaron's transparent, almost invisible figure instantly vanished from the material world, along with the missing bookmark.
Since she had been exposed, Bernadette no longer concealed herself. Pure white, illusory feathers condensed on her back, revealing an incomplete mythical creature form. She fully activated her "Eyes of Mystery Prying," trying to discern the direction the spirit body had gone.
A few seconds later, Bernadette, having found nothing, shook her head in disappointment. Her figure vanished without a trace, and the surrounding vines and eyeballs all turned into colorful bubbles, shattering and disappearing.
Captain Max hurried to the study door, gritted his teeth, and told his teammates to stand far away and report the matter to the Church. He then pushed open the door, but the room was empty.
-----------------
Inside the magnificent palace, enveloped in dark gold mist.
Aaron's figure suddenly appeared on the throne, the mask on his face gradually disappearing. In his hand was a bookmark depicting Emperor Roselle.
Aaron's face broke into a satisfied smile, and he uttered the corresponding ancient Feynapotter syllables in a low voice: "Bernadette."
The bookmark in his hand sank slightly, generating an invisible vortex that frantically absorbed Aaron's spirit. On the bookmark, a clear light slowly rose, and the image of Emperor Roselle on the outside was renewed.
He sat on an ancient stone throne, wearing a black crown inlaid with various gems. He was clad in black armor, covered by a matching cape, holding a scepter in his hand, his eyes gazing forward with indifference.
In the upper left corner of the bookmark, brilliant starlight condensed into a line of text:
"Sequence 0: Black Emperor!"
The Black Emperor card floated in the air, slowly rotating. The surrounding dark gold mist seemed to be drawn, gradually converging to form a small vortex. An uncontrollable impulse surged in Aaron's heart.
He grabbed the Black Emperor card, and as soon as it connected with his spirit body, the boundless dark gold mist seemed to gather into waves, forming a strong wind, creating a majestic armor on his body. A pitch-black crown appeared on his head, and a long cape of the same color draped behind him.
Lines imbued with divinity also appeared on the armor, and an unprecedented feeling emerged. His connection and control over the Nation of Disorder were stronger than ever before.
Aaron opened his eyes, his pupils becoming a mix of gold and black. He slightly raised his hand, and the dark gold mist gathered in the palace, forming a magnificent dark gold figure.
From the back of the dark gold figure grew pair after pair of pitch-black, massive wings covered with golden patterns—a full twelve pairs!
And on each pair of wings were feathers inscribed with numerous mysterious symbols, alternating between light and Darkness.
Gold and black formed a stark contrast. Under Aaron's command, the colossal figure spread its wings, obscuring the vast dome of the majestic palace.
-----------------
Inside the Royal Museum, in the restored study.
"Machinery Hivemind" team captain Maximov reported solemnly: "It is confirmed that only one bookmark was stolen."
As he spoke, he secretly glanced at the important figure standing with his back to him at the desk.
That was an old man dressed in a white priest's robe and wearing a soft clerical hat. He was Horamick Haydn, the head of the Backlund diocese of the God of Steam and Machinery Church, and a member of the Saint Council.
His hands were behind his back, holding an ancient patterned silver mirror. On either side of the mirror were eye-like decorations with black gem bases, looking deep and captivating.
Max's pupils constricted slightly as he recognized this infamous Sealed Artifact, "2-111."
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