"Perhaps it was when we let our guard down and the creature saw an opportunity, so it tried to dominate Sandra—if it succeeded, it could have killed us without us even knowing how. And at the time, Mr. Evans, you were attempting to contact the outside world. Once you realized you couldn't reach Mr. Gaston, you would have quickly noticed that it hadn't truly died," Charlotte offered her analysis. "Furthermore, according to Bill's description, this type of creature is tied to emotions like greed, hatred, and jealousy. They tend to lose control of their reason and wouldn't bother weighing the respective odds of attacking recklessly versus hiding and waiting for a better chance."
Thanks to the lingering effects of the "Song of Water" potion slowly seeping through his system, both Lucian's mind and body had improved considerably. He still couldn't cast spells or run, but with a little support from Charlotte, he could walk quite steadily. "If this were the only issue, Charlotte, your explanation would be perfectly sound—it would even fit the truth most closely. But don't you think there are still quite a few points that don't add up?"
The two girls walking slightly ahead both heard Lucian's words. Sandra looked around warily, her mind replaying earlier scenes, while Susan's face crumpled and she said in a trembling voice, "Mr. Evans, you—you're not trying to scare me, are you? That creature is dead, isn't it? You've all done so much to—"
Clearly, at this point, the slightest rustle could send the already nightmare-ridden Susan into a faint.
"Indeed, some aspects of the creature's behavioral patterns are self-contradictory—they're beyond our understanding," Charlotte confirmed Lucian's concern.
Hearing her words, Susan's knees buckled, and she barely managed to stay on her feet.
Charlotte paused briefly before continuing, "But from the many travelogues and journals we have, Abyssal demons and certain nightmare-class creatures are inherently chaotic. If their actions *didn't* contain contradictions, that would actually be the strange thing."
"Whew—Mr. Charlotte, you—you nearly scared me to death just now," Susan couldn't help but complain. Charlotte had paused mid-sentence, making her think the creature might still appear, and she had nearly frightened herself into a collapse.
Lucian wasn't annoyed that Charlotte had pushed back against his suspicions. He gave a slight, acknowledging nod. "The variety of Abyssal demons far exceeds that of the Nine Hells. Especially in the Ashlands—new undead races are created every day. It's perfectly normal for us not to recognize one."
Susan let out a long, relieved breath. Even Mr. Evans had dropped his suspicions—the creature really was dead!
But then Lucian's tone shifted. "However, chaotic as demons may be, none of them would pass up the chance to kill us. Based on the strength it displayed while restrained, during that first attack in the apprentice hall, it had more than enough power to kill me directly. Whether it was Malicious Transformation or a Well of Shadow, I currently have no corresponding magical means to defend against either. Yet it resorted to attacks targeting the soul and mind—similar to the fourth-rank spell 'Evil Eye' and the fifth-rank spell 'Cardiac Arrest.' Under the protection of a Death Ward, the latter couldn't have killed me outright."
As he spoke, Lucian began to reflect inwardly. At present, he only specialized in Elemental and Astrology magic, with insufficient research into other schools. When facing soul-based, mental, curse-related, and bizarre transmutation attacks, he lacked adequate magical defenses. After returning, he would need to select two more schools to study, and also learn the foundational spells of other schools—lest some day, when his options ran thin, even a weak enemy could kill him with strange magic.
"Perhaps during the mirror attack, it couldn't use Malicious Transformation or similar abilities, and could only launch attacks against the mind and soul—just as it later tried to dominate me as well," Sandra offered her own interpretation, and it was quite pragmatic. When the creature had wielded other supernatural forces, it hadn't been inside the mirror.
Lucian smiled faintly. "It seems discussion helps unravel our doubts. Thank you all for answering my questions. But there are still two final puzzles. Why was the restraint room set up the way it was? Mr. Bertrand couldn't have used the restraint room to conduct that absurd summoning ritual, and Bill would never have had the qualifications to use a room reserved exclusively for Mr. Bertrand."
"And why was that special summoning ritual parchment placed right where we would see it? If Bill had already taken control of everything in the castle, and possessed the bizarre, powerful force from the creature, why would he think to burn books? Fine, let's say he wanted to conceal things from the Council and continue using his identity as a magic apprentice—but do you really think a creature like that would burn only most of a book and not notice that a small portion had fallen beneath the desk?"
Charlotte explained with some difficulty. "The first question—perhaps Bill wanted to make it appear as though Mr. Bertrand had done it, so he arranged the restraint room to look that way. When his attack on us later failed, he used the restraint room to buy time. The second question—I believe Bill never intended to burn the parchment. But during the intense fighting, fires were burning everywhere, and the parchment was accidentally ignited."
"As for why we happened to see it—right now, all I can say is that it truly was coincidence." Sandra led Susan down the corridor toward the room with the energy core.
Lucian pulled his pocket watch from his right pocket and glanced at it. "Then I have no more questions. It's five twenty-five now. The senior mages handling the aftermath should arrive around five forty. Let's wait patiently."
"All right, Mr. Evans," Charlotte, Sandra, and Susan answered in unison.
Although each of Lucian's questions had received an explanation, the chain of concerns still left Sandra and Susan deeply unsettled and put Charlotte on high alert. They did not drop their defenses—the colorful energy spheres continued to orbit above Sandra's and Susan's heads, while an Absorption Wall shielded both Lucian and Charlotte together.
They had been walking along the corridor for some distance when they passed a room with its door wide open. Susan glanced inside involuntarily and let out a soft "Hmm?"
Lucian and the others followed her gaze. The room was completely empty—there was nothing inside at all. Sandra asked in puzzlement, "Susan, what room is this? Is something wrong?"
Susan furrowed her wine-red eyebrows in confusion. "This was Mr. Bertrand's vault. It held his accumulated gold, silver, and precious magical materials—but now there's nothing left…"
"The creature would want these things?" The dread that had barely subsided surged back through all of them. These items had vanished in far too strange a manner.