Trissy's expression was somewhat frenzied as she vented, telling Edessak all the words that had been building up in her heart for a long time, as well as all the truths she knew.
Looking at Edessak, whose eyes were glazed over, as if he had finally awakened from a long dream, Trissy unconsciously stroked the sapphire ring on her left ring finger, with a hint of pity and self-mockery:
"Poor thing, even liking someone was arranged for you, just like a Puppet on strings."
"You are an expendable object, and I am both a hostage needed for the cooperation between the Royal Family and the Demoness Sect, and a necessary disguise for deception.
"I carry important items of the Demoness Sect and am under your strict supervision, liable to be destroyed at any time, and lose treasures. This is the sincerity of our cooperation."
"And once the matter is exposed and known to the three major Churches or other factions of the military, the development of the matter will be very simple."
"Prince Edessak, infatuated with beauty, secretly kept a Demoness, and, knowing his deep sins, committed suicide by shooting himself. Then, all problems will be covered up."
Tilting her head slightly, Trissy looked at the mirror world in the sky, invisible to the naked eye, her lips curving upwards. As she reached the door, she turned her head and sneered:
"This is your fate from now on, but I have to say, you are very lucky."
"The Demoness monitoring me doesn't know the situation here yet. I can help you escape from Red Rose Manor, and from then on, we owe each other nothing."
On the deep, layered sea of collective subconscious, Edessak's mental island trembled gently, and specks of light converged, as the virtual personality of Hvin Rambis quietly emerged.
Sensing the terrifying and dangerous aura emanating from Trissy, this virtual personality ultimately did not leave the mental island. Invisible fluctuations spread outwards from its body, diffusing across the sea of collective subconscious towards the distance.
At the same time, within the portion of the mental island submerged by the sea of subconscious, a faint glimmer flashed and disappeared.
His sealed memories awakened, the previously silent Edessak finally raised his head, his rounded face showing both relief and pain, and he said bitterly to Trissy:
"They've already found out. You should leave quickly. I have a hidden move left by the Psychology Alchemists on me."
"Let me live in this beautiful story and face its final ending. Perhaps, I can buy you a little more time."
Trissy's expression changed slightly, and she couldn't help but look back, then took a deep breath and no longer lingered.
Edessak slumped into the chair, his expression forlorn, and took out a golden revolver from the drawer.
Looking at the "Judgement Sword" emblem carved on the revolver, pointing vertically downwards with a ruby crown as its hilt, Edessak's arm trembled slightly as he aimed the muzzle at his temple.
"Heh, even a woman dares to fight against fate, but you are cowardly choosing suicide here?"
A familiar voice entered his ears. Edessak turned his head in disbelief, looking at Aaron who had appeared in the room at some unknown time.
As early as when Edessak's mental island experienced strong fluctuations, the contingency plan Aaron had left during the hypnosis of the subconscious at the charity foundation sensed the anomaly.
Having already returned to Backlund from Tranquil Church, Aaron was previously at St. Samuel Church, recounting the events that had occurred at St. Lofte Church to Archbishop Anthony, and immediately teleported there.
However, sensing a faint threat from Trissy, Aaron chose not to cause further complications, allowing this quasi-god descent vessel of the "Primordial Demoness" to leave.
With his index finger, wearing the "Dream Weaver Ring," Aaron touched Edessak's brow, swiftly sealing off the mental island and directly extinguishing the virtual personality of Hvin Rambis that hadn't had time to transmit the latest news.
The hypnosis originally hidden deep within Edessak's subconscious quickly invaded the mental island. Aaron looked at the strangely calm Edessak and nodded in satisfaction.
Aaron took out the Edessak shell, which he had prepared long ago and crafted from Life Essence, from the "Traveler's Bag." After a gunshot, the room quickly returned to quiet.
"From today onwards, Edessak Augustus is dead. Next, you can observe closely what that King has been cooperating with the Demoness Sect on…"
Aaron reopened the "Traveler's Door." Hermes' virtual personality was extinguished, and even if the culprit was unknown, necessary investigations were surely imminent.
He had no intention of lingering here. The curtain had already risen, and he needed to make some preparations.
-----------------
Thick stone pillars supported the dome, and mottled gray flagstones were soaked with scarlet blood, a rich smell of blood permeating the hall.
The stench of decaying flesh permeated the stone pillars and walls, which were covered with symbolic patterns and magical signs, quickly merging into the altar in the center of the hall. Muffled groans sounded, and bound mummified corpses fell.
"Demoness of Despair" Panatiya, dressed in a plain white robe, her appearance radiant and beautiful, sacred and dignified, was admiring the bloody and terrifying scene. She chuckled towards Mr. A, who was wearing a hooded cloak beside the altar:
"These slaves are the most the Loen Royal Family can offer right now. I hope you don't mind."
Mr. A's delicate and beautiful face was unnaturally pale, and he said coldly:
"This is the sincerity of the Loen Royal Family?"
"The Lord's descent requires more sacrifices; these are not enough!"
"Moreover, Ince Zangwill has already left Backlund. What you should be doing is keeping a close eye on your Demoness Sect's Sealed Artifact."
Panatiya smiled, tying up her loose hair, adding a few touches of restrained and lazy elegance to her demeanor:
"I will convey your thoughts to those people. As for Trissy, 'Saintess of White' is personally guarding her."
Her smile had not yet spread before it froze on her face. Panatiya was silent for a few seconds, seemingly communicating with an unknown entity to confirm the situation.
Finally, her voice became low, tinged with anger and incomprehension:
"Hvin Rambis sent word that something went wrong with Trissy. What exactly is Katarina doing…?"
"I need to go to Red Rose Manor. I'll leave this to you."
Mr. A replied with a lack of emotional fluctuation:
"No problem."
Wearing his hood, a transparent, blurry book quickly appeared before him, accompanied by ancient, ethereal chanting:
"I came, I saw, I recorded."
The book quickly flipped, stopping on one of its pages, then bloomed with a light blue, illusory glow.
The light enveloped the Demoness of Despair, who was wearing a pure white robe, making her figure first blurry, then invisible.
The Demoness of Despair instantly saw countless indescribable transparent shadows, and discovered that at the highest point there were streaks of clear brilliance containing infinite knowledge.
Her body was dragged forward by a strange force, rapidly traversing, and in a short while, she left her original position and arrived at Red Rose Manor on the outskirts of Backlund.
Pulling down her veil to cover her face, Panatiya looked up at the sky, only to see the dim yellow sunset obscured by clouds and mist, becoming faint.
As a Sequence 4 Demoness of Despair, Panatiya clearly sensed a mirror space belonging solely to the Demoness above the manor, and Katarina's aura was there.
Panatiya's expression shifted, but she ultimately didn't dare to directly investigate Red Rose Manor. For a Sequence 3 like Katarina to make a mistake, something unexpected must have happened here.
She was only a Sequence 4. If the Church had secretly taken control inside, she wouldn't even have a chance to escape.
Thinking this, invisible threads surged from her body, extending towards the mirror space in the sky, and the layered black flames attached to them rippled in the void.
Katarina, who had been waiting for Bernadette's response, froze. Her delicate face quickly showed anger, and her white skirt was enveloped in black flames. She no longer entangled with Bernadette. With a crisp cracking sound, the mirror space that had isolated the outside world instantly turned into dust.
Eyes filled with various abstract symbols looked past Katarina towards Panatiya, who stood outside the manor with an equally gloomy expression. Bernadette did not attempt to stop her.
The array she deciphered pointed to a location very close to, but not entirely identical with, the one Katarina had provided.
She could guess that the Demoness's given location was problematic, but she only needed a general location anyway. With the short distance, that segment of the Evil God's umbilical cord would lead her to the altar's precise position.
Her body gradually dematerialized, dissolving into specks of starlight, and Bernadette directly proceeded to the locked area.
Recognizing the "Queen Mystic," Panatiya waited until the other party left before speaking in a deep voice, repeating the information transmitted by Hvin Rambis.
Katarina closed her eyes and sensed for a moment. The mirrors scattered throughout Red Rose Manor simultaneously deepened, each mirror seemingly becoming her eyes.
Finding neither Trissy's trace nor any possible ambush, Katarina and Panatiya appeared in the small building where Trissy had been sealed. Feeling the lingering Primordial aura, Katarina's previously gloomy expression relaxed considerably.
Confirming that it wasn't a secret attack by the Church, but rather an anomaly caused by Trissy's further integration with the sapphire ring, Katarina then looked at Panatiya and said in a deep voice:
"Trissy is getting closer to the Primordial One, which is a good thing, but she has a strong self-destructive tendency. I will immediately look for her. You go and explain to the King."
"If another accident occurs, the plan can be initiated early. The sacrifices that the Aurora Order lacks will be supplemented by my Demoness Sect."
-----------------
Intis Republic, Dillis City.
As a large city along the Midseashire coast, although its scale and population cannot compare to the capital Trier, it is extremely economically developed due to its proximity to the Hornacis Mountains, which are rich in resources.
On the outskirts lay the outer reaches of the Hornacis Mountains. A figure abruptly fell from mid-air, creating a crater on the rugged mountain ridge.
A hand clutching a pure white quill extended first. Ince Zangwill, whose aura was much weaker due to using an incomplete mythical creature form, slowly crawled out with a somewhat distorted expression and spoke in a low voice:
"You, who exactly are you?"
A crack opened on his forehead, at the position that originally symbolized the core of the Underworld. A slightly mocking chuckle and a spine-chilling chewing sound simultaneously emanated from it.
After digesting the Sealed Artifact corresponding to the "Iron-Blooded Knight" that he had snatched from Riddell, the "Red Angel" evil spirit had already escaped its initial weakened state. Taking advantage of Ince Zangwill's weakness, it forcibly interrupted his preparations to return to Backlund in the Spirit World.
After the chuckle ceased, the playful voice seemed to ponder for a moment before slowly saying:
"Great God of War, symbol of Iron and Blood, master of turmoil and strife."
"This is my honorific name. You can also call me that."
Both sides of Ince Zangwill's face simultaneously split open with bloody gashes, his mouths opening and closing in unison, revealing two rows of illusory white teeth inside, while two identical sounds of disdain emerged:
"Bah! God of War? Do you even deserve that now?"
The "Red Angel" chuckled and slowly added:
"If it weren't for that lunatic Alista, when you two fools stepped into my trap back then, this honorific name would have spread throughout the world."
"But you're the first to die!" The two cracks on the "Red Angel" evil spirit's face retorted simultaneously.
Medici said without hesitation:
"That means I'm the strongest, the most valued!"
After speaking, the three personalities of the "Red Angel" evil spirit simultaneously fell silent. Ince Zangwill, who had been collecting information, frantically searched his mind, recalling the Church secrets he had seen when he was an Archbishop, and finally found the most fitting name in a corner of his memory:
"'Red Angel'!"
"This evil spirit seems to have achieved balance by some external force. Damn 0-08, it must be this thing secretly influencing me, otherwise how could I have been silently parasitized…?"
His expression grew even more grim, and Ince Zangwill took the initiative to speak:
"You, or you all, what exactly do you want?"
"Once I return to Backlund, I will fulfill your demands."
Medici's voice came from within the Underworld of the body, tinged with mockery:
"You want those people from the Loen Royal Family to expel us from your body, don't you? Heh, they can't do that."
"Moreover, preventing you from returning to Backlund now is for your own good. I don't want to inexplicably fall into that little crow's hands."
"As for what we want, heh, what else could an evil spirit need?"
"Of course, all kinds of Beyonder characteristics from the Hunter Pathway. Perhaps we can reach a cooperation: you help us recover, and I help you escape the Church of the Evernight…"
Ince Zangwill's eyes flickered. He assessed his terrible current state and looked at the pure white quill he held in his hand, then spoke in a somewhat compromising, deep voice:
"Your strength in life far exceeded my imagination. A mere promise I cannot trust, unless you are willing to use the power of the Quill of Alzuhod to sign a formal contract with me."
Amidst the rustling sound of writing, Ince Zangwill's face grew paler. 0-08 was uncooperative, so he could only consume spirituality to forcibly write the story. Fortunately, the "Red Angel" evil spirit, residing in the Underworld within his body, was extremely cooperative.
Without expending too much spirituality, and with the help of 0-08's power, Ince Zangwill signed a contract with the evil spirit, allowing him to naturally switch between "evil spirit possession" and "self-dominant" states.