Headquarters of the Continental Magic Parliament, thirty-fifth floor, in a modest conference room. In the center of the room stood an ordinary cherry-wood table surrounded by twenty-four chairs. Each chair was crafted from rather precious wood, its red upholstery soft yet springy, while the backrests bore different carvings—symbols of the elements, storms wreathed in lightning, and crowns of Arcane Magic.
"It has been confirmed that the entity responsible for the changes to the Crimson Moon is the Silver Moon Goddess Eitna, and the being opposing Her is a presence never before recorded—possibly originating from a silent world of only black, white, and gray." The gray-coned "Prophet" of the Tower delivered preliminary conclusions about the events of the previous night. With such an extraordinary phenomenon occurring—one involving two beings closest to "Truth"—the Grand Council of the Continental Magic Parliament had naturally convened at the earliest opportunity to discuss the matter and make arrangements. Of the twenty-four Grand Council members, "Element Dominator" Hathaway and several others were absent due to being away and unable to return in time, leaving only eighteen present.
After hearing the Prophet's words, "Soul Sovereign" Vincent—draped in a black cloak, dark red flames dancing in his eyes—rapped once on the table. "What we should be most concerned with right now is where the unknown extra-dimensional space is where Eitna and that mysterious being were wounded and fell, and why They suddenly engaged in combat."
"This should be related to the conflict between Vampire Prince
Fernando's vivid red eyes swept across the assembly, causing quite a few Legendary Magicians and Grand Archanists to avert their gazes slightly, not daring to meet his eyes for fear of being found wanting and drawing a storm of roaring fury.
"The search for the unknown space—I have already made arrangements. Begner and Anonnis will both cooperate fully. If any of you have time, do join in as well. I needn't emphasize the importance." As the Grand Archanist who had been guarding Alinor in recent years, the initial arrangements naturally fell to him. Begner was the Prophet's true name, and Anonnis was the "Astrologer." "Additionally, I have confirmed through other channels that this matter is connected to
As he spoke, his gaze locked directly onto Soul Sovereign Vincent's.
"Fernando, what exactly do you mean?" The dark red flames dancing in Soul Sovereign Vincent's eyes flickered uncertainly. He was no mindless madman who had thrown himself entirely into research, utterly ignorant of social interaction—how could he fail to realize that Fernando's words were directed at him?
"I obtained intelligence from the Vorlite Principality. At the end of April in the year 816, a dramatic change occurred at Lake Elsinoe. Adventurers survived and described the change as 'the surrounding colors began to fade away, leaving only the monotonous tedium of black, white, and gray, and even sound seemed to vanish.' Don't tell me this has no connection to the silent black-white-gray world surrounding the Silver Moon last night! And at the time, Roderigo was nearby—why did his submitted report contain no mention of this?" Fernando's eyes were sharp, his voice nearly a roar. The Lake Elsinoe "survivor" he referred to was, of course, Lucian.
Due to the Church's ambush and Hathaway's intervention, quite a few adventurers had survived. Not to mention the Night Watch members and principality knights who had participated in the assault on the Silver White Horn. Once one paid attention to this matter, it was not difficult to investigate. So after learning about it from Natasha, Lucian had not concealed anything and had told his teacher Fernando directly. After all, Fernando would find out sooner or later—better to do him a favor in advance and somewhat distance himself from the necromantic realm.
"You'll have to ask Hathaway about that." The Soul Sovereign pushed everything onto the absent Hathaway.
"Then what about the gray-white petrification phenomenon in Hadeler City—do we have to ask Hathaway about that too?" Fernando continued to roar, the violent "storm" forcing the Soul Sovereign to lean to the side involuntarily.
The anomalies in Hadeler City were so obvious that the other Grand Council members were well aware of them. They simply hadn't mentioned them before because no cause had been found. Now, seeing the similarity between the silent black-white-gray world and Hadeler City's condition, how could they not harbor suspicions? But when facing Vincent, they had all hoped that Storm Dominion would be the first to raise the issue.
And Fernando had not disappointed their expectations, ruthlessly exposing the matter with his roaring.
The Soul Sovereign's gaunt face, which seemed to consist of nothing but a layer of skin, remained utterly composed. "It is because Hadeler City is connected to an unknown extra-dimensional space and has been contaminated by it. This space greatly enhances a necromancer's ability to summon the undead and use necromantic arts. Unfortunately, we have never been able to find its entrance, making in-depth exploration difficult, so we are not yet clear whether it is related to the silent black-white-gray world. I had intended to investigate further before raising the matter."
At this point, Vincent had no choice but to reveal the situation of the necromantic realm with a mixture of truth and lies. After all, finding the entrance would not be easy!
"Good, we have leads on both matters. The next step is to question Hathaway and Roderigo. Everyone here, please arrange your research and exploration accordingly and set aside some time to assist with these two matters. After all, this concerns the truth of the world."
After the other Grand Council members had departed, Fernando, who remained behind, shook his head gently. "This is more complicated than I imagined."
He had not actually believed Lucian's account entirely, but he respected his right to confidentiality and had not pressed for details—as long as the general sequence of events was correct. For the self-confident Storm Dominion, in this world, anything that had been done would always leave traces behind. He believed he could investigate or explore his way to the truth.
For instance, although Lucian claimed that
So Fernando had brought Lucian along via spatial jump back to the Vorlite Principality. First, to confuse them with a mixture of truth and lies—after accomplishing something so dramatic, any normal person would not immediately return to the scene. Second, if there was some hidden secret and someone truly suspected Lucian, Fernando's own actions would signal that the secret had already been reported to the Magic Parliament. If they wanted to silence him, they would have to silence the entire Magic Parliament!
……
Spiritual power was closely related to the soul and the world of cognition. Exploring it and improving meditation techniques required the utmost caution and more caution still. Over the years, the number of high-level Magicians who had been injured due to improving their own meditation techniques was not one or two. There had even been extremely unlucky fellows who died. So after Lucian redid the photoelectric induction experiment and extended the wave-particle duality of light to spiritual power, he had not immediately developed a unique meditation technique. Instead, during his daily meditation, he adjusted and modified it methodically, bit by bit based on the results, expecting it would take roughly two to three years to perfect.
He pushed open the window. The evening wind of the Ice Moon howled in, making him shiver involuntarily while bringing complete clarity to his mind. Lucian watched Averis in the garden, who was diligently roasting a whole lamb, and shook his head with a smile.
He had been back for several days now, gradually increasing his public appearances, and no one suspected any connection between him and the Crimson Moon—because in the eyes of the Archanists other than Fernando, Tangpu, and a few others, the director of the Atomic Research Institute, Lucian Evans, had never left Alinor at all.
They believed Lucian had been worried about assassination by the Church, and so had spent this period without distraction, devoting himself entirely to improving his magical strength—a perfectly reasonable choice. This was all thanks to Averis's frequent impersonations and the fact that he had not been away for too long.
"Master, Mr. Arthur is here to visit again. Shall I refuse him with the same excuse as before?" As the head butler, Leou was one of the few who knew Lucian had just returned.
Lucian shook his head. "Let him in. I need to ask about the magic crystal lamp production."
This trip, although he had obtained invaluable items like the Belt of Health and Pale Justice, had consumed most of the high-level materials and potions he had carried. What remained was scant: only one vial of "Solid Helium," one vial of "Averis's Blood," three vials of "Liquid Helium," four vials of Water Song, and little else. Moreover, the ritual materials for his advancement to High-level had been borrowed from his teacher, mortgaging the Holm Minerals and Harvest Company annuity income for three years. Magician and Archanist subsidies had to cover Little Crystal's compensation, and aside from experimental materials that could be expensed through the Atomic Research Institute's budget, he had very few Gold Thalers and Arcane Points left for anything else. He was in urgent need of opening new revenue streams.
Dragon Fear was invisible, but Arthur's calves trembled slightly as he passed through the garden and entered the parlor, an enthusiastic smile plastered across his plump face. "Hello, Lucian! Our youngest member of the Arcane Review Committee—finally, I've caught you when you're not busy."
"This late? Is something urgent?" Lucian asked directly, with no intention of sharing his recent "period of intensive improvement."
Arthur unbuttoned his collar and laughed without any formality. "It really is better at a magician's home. It's freezing cold outside, yet inside it's warm as spring—unlike my villa, where even keeping the fireplace going constantly can't achieve this effect. Ha ha, Lucian, the reason I'm here is that the first batch of magic crystal lamps with your revised materials has been produced.
"Tonight is the first lighting of the electric crystal lamps—the very first noble villa to be fully illuminated by magic, apart from magicians' homes and churches! This is a historic event. As the designer, how can you not attend?" Arthur spoke with a beaming, affable, and humorous smile.