Mystery: Good Witch

Chapter 1382 Savior

West Bayron, Port Caesar.

With its antique three-masted sails, painted black, and over a hundred meters long, making the entire ship appear somewhat elongated, the "Queen Anne's Revenge" is docked at the most prominent berth in the busy harbor.

One by one, ships carrying the Intis colonists' army and some administrative personnel set sail from the side, heading north to Midway Island or Partis Island, before returning to the northern continent.

These were the last colonists to leave the Pass Valley in East Bayran, while the Bayran-Pass Import and Export Company, which had a large private army and fleet, had been expelled long before.

The river valley, which had been occupied and ravaged by outsiders for a century due to its rich mineral resources, was finally liberated.

As these colonists left, either dejected or resentful, they did not notice a woman who had been watching them from the sidelines on the huge black ship.

Of course, even if someone did discover this, it would be difficult to connect this woman with chestnut-brown, slightly wavy hair and eyes like the sea with the princess of the Intis Empire more than a hundred years ago, after all, times have changed and Intis no longer has an emperor.

Two years ago, the echo of "The Emperor is back" was regarded by most people as a collective hysteria.

……

As the fleet, flying the tricolor flag, gradually sailed away, and listening to the merciless mockery and barely suppressed cheers from the locals in the harbor, Bernadette Gustave closed the window of the captain's cabin and turned to look at the door.

A moment later, deliberately lowered footsteps and a soft knock came from the door.

"come in."

Bernadette said, as if she already knew who was outside the door.

The door opened, and the "Queen of Stars," Cattleya, dressed in a black robe with purple patterns and wearing thick glasses, walked in.

"Good afternoon, Your Majesty," she still addressed Bernadette, who had long since become a Sequence 3 "Master of Prophecy" and a great figure in the Five Seas. "The last angel of the Morse Penitentiary, 'Dragon Scholar' Letia, has died. Her extraordinary qualities were corrupted by the madness she suffered before her death, and I sacrificed her to the 'Goddess of Calamity'."

Bernadette nodded slightly and answered calmly:

"Well done."

Who else is participating in the battle?

"Two angels under Mr. Fool, and several saints of the Star Pirates."

Cattleya briefly recounted the battle to the queen before her.

Tracking down the members of the "Morse Ascetic" who had become too deeply devoted to the "Hidden Sage" and could no longer turn back is what Gadalia has been doing for the past two years. Most of the "Ten Pillars" members who were not at headquarters when that evil god fell have surrendered or died, leaving only the Sequence 2 "Sage" Letia, who faked her death and escaped, still missing.

However, recently, Gadriya received some clues from the Steam Church and, with the help of the "secret" ability of the "Magician" of the Tarot Society, launched a surprise attack on Letia's hiding place, killing the dragon scholar who was disguised as the mind dragon "Luminvis".

Under Miss "Chariot's" ability to kill clones and then attack the main body, Letia's attempt to fake her death and escape failed, and she died on the spot, leaving behind a "Sage" trait that had long been corrupted by the Hidden Sage.

This property, which could originally be shattered, reassembled, and separated from pollution by the power of angels, was solemnly sacrificed by the magician to the goddess of calamity, which surprised Cattleya.

Fortunately, whether it is sacrificed to the Fool or Miss "Queen", this characteristic will belong to the Tarot Club and will eventually be able to return to Cattleya's side through trading or contribution exchange, putting her at ease.

After listening to her account, Bernadette didn't seem concerned about the whereabouts of the extraordinary properties, but instead said thoughtfully:

"Therefore, the mental dragon 'Luminvis' is indeed fake, and it is not one of the three ancient dragons that exist in the world."

"This is the foundation of the dragon magic created by Letia, and the reason why she was able to resurrect after death."

"That's what I'm saying," Gadriya replied.

The numerous documents she found at the place where Laetitia was hiding also confirmed this.

Bernadette smiled, looked at the window that had just been closed, and muttered to herself:
“So now, of the dragons that have survived from the Second Age to the present, there are only two left…” Before she could finish speaking, she frowned, her tone hesitant as if she sensed something, “…now there is only one left.”

Just now, her angelic "prophetic" abilities had a vague sense of what was happening, which led her to revise her words.

But both of the existing Mind Dragons are angels of the "Dreamer" pathway, capable of concealing their existence. I shouldn't be able to predict their state... One of the dragons was attacked, and its concealment was broken by an external force? Bernadette pondered, seeing that Cattleya was still standing in front of her, waiting quietly as if expecting her praise, she smiled and said:
"Stay here for a few days, and I'll see how well you've absorbed the 'Master of Prophecy' potion."

These words immediately brought a smile to Cattleya's face.

As Bernadette watched the saint, who held special feelings for her, leave the captain's cabin with light steps, the smile on her face faded, replaced by a worried expression.

She already knew most of what had happened in the past few days through her own prophetic and divination abilities, and Rosell had told her the rest before he left.

Today, only five gods remain in the astral plane, and of the "Seven Gods" from the early Fifth Age, only three remain.

In contrast to the fall of the "God of War" and the "Eternal Sun," this divine war seemed somewhat quiet. The "Lord of Storms" and the "God of Knowledge and Wisdom" should have perished directly in the astral plane, their legacy being received by other deities. Her father, the "Black Emperor" Roselle, even entered the astral support barrier directly, as if they had known this all along.

All of this is for the birth of that "omniscient and omnipotent being," to give Earth the power of a pillar-level Ancient... But will the Ancients outside the barrier really sit idly by and wait for their doom? They cannot wait for another pillar to be born; otherwise, if "God" and the "Lord of Mysteries" join forces, along with other possible Ancients, the Outer Gods will have no chance...

As her thoughts wandered, Bernadette thought of the two angels who had helped Cattleya kill "Sage" Leticia.

The gathering organized by that Fool seems to aim to elevate most members to angelic status in the short term. This means that in the final battle, only those who reach this level will have a chance to withstand the impact of the shattered barrier and even have the capacity to protect ordinary people... But in the war between the ancients, what role can angels really play? To deal with the other angels under the Outer Gods?
"Unfortunately, before the apocalypse arrives, Gadriya probably won't have much of a chance to advance to 'Sage.' The ritual requires her to stop a disaster involving high-level forces, but in the current situation, such an opportunity is practically equivalent to the arrival of the apocalypse..."

She muttered to herself, turned around and walked toward the chart table in the center of the captain's cabin. As soon as her gaze shifted, she saw a figure appear in front of her.

She was Anne Gustave, dressed in a white dress, petite yet exuding immense dignity.

Bernadette's furrowed brows instantly relaxed, and she was about to greet him when the latter spoke:

“I’m going back to the ‘City of Dreams’ to borrow the ‘Hand of Order’ property.”

Sequence 1 characteristics of the Judge's Path... Bernadette immediately understood that this was what "Black Emperor" Roselle needed, the cornerstone of her father's ascension to the Old Ones, and the corresponding uniqueness, the "Trensost Brass Book" had already fallen into his hands after that "vortex".

As for the other two "Hands of Order," one is in the hands of the royal family of Fenneport, namely the Castile family, belonging to an archangel who has survived to this day in the Fourth Age, and the other belongs to William I, the "protector" of the Loen royal family.

As the end times approached, Bernadette deduced that no god would deliberately force an angel willing to take on the corresponding responsibility to relinquish their special characteristics, unless it was an anomaly like the "Dragon Scholar" who had been corrupted by evil gods.

Therefore, handing the last "Hand of Order" to her father must have been a tacit understanding between the gods... She had a guess, but still asked as if to confirm:
"Will your contractor, that goddess, agree?"

“We can’t get in touch with Him right now, not through a contract or prayer, but I suspect Roselle has already communicated with Him,” Anne said, shaking her head. “Just in case, take ‘Pale Death’ with you.”

"This is a transaction, not a confrontation."

She added, as if worried that Bernadette might misunderstand.

Sequence 1 for Sequence 1... The latter understood and nodded in agreement.

But before the two could make any further moves, the half-length mirror in the captain's cabin, which was used for decoration, became dark and deep, and a figure was outlined in front of the mirror.

She wore a magnificent crown, had chestnut hair and blue eyes, a full and mature figure, and her appearance bore a resemblance to Bernadette.

The "Empress Roselle" from the mirror has come into reality.

“There’s no need to bring that sealed artifact,” He said in a gentle voice. “The ruler of the Mirror World has agreed to relinquish the ‘Hand of Order’ on the condition that all the Mirror People who fled from the Special Mirror Worlds submit, including me.”

The origin of the mirror world... A passage from the goddess's name flashed through Bernadette's mind. Realizing that making the mirror person, who should already submit to Her, make a promise again was tantamount to giving the "Hand of Order" to her father for free, a smile appeared on her face.

She looked at Anne and found that the latter was the same.

Seeing the two smiling at each other, Roselle, dressed in a black dress, pouted rather boredly, feeling somewhat superfluous, and turned around to enter the mirror world.

Suddenly, Bernadette's worried voice came from behind her:

"And what about you?" Empress Roselle smiled with satisfaction and replied contentedly.
"When the end of the world is over, the mirror world will also usher in true peace."

"At that time, I might have a chance to truly come into reality."

Towards the end, her tone became somewhat complicated.

"Hmph, he can't have you, Anne, and Bonova all to himself."

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

The Church of the Sea God is located within the church in Bayam.

Wearing papal robes and a silver-black mask, Alger Wilson sat in a high-backed chair adorned with symbols of lightning and clouds, discussing with Danitz, a fellow believer of "Fools" and also a messenger of God, the matter of setting up a new parish in the southern continent.

Although the original storms, nights, and lands continued to spread their teachings in the southern continent, the retreat of colonial forces inevitably caused the original faith to waver, which naturally made it the best time to spread the "Fool's" faith.

"...Not only do we need to build new churches, but we also need to develop the extraordinary power within the church. You'd better be promoted to sainthood within six months, otherwise the spread of faith in the Southern Continent will not have enough strength to support it."

He spoke solemnly to Danitz, the "Reaper," a blond man with somewhat sallow eyebrows.

When it came to matters of faith, Danitz, who was usually carefree and often spoke rudely, became serious and nodded repeatedly.

He has been stuck at Sequence 5 for quite some time. Although he knows the "playing method" and has no shortage of relevant materials, he has not yet achieved the goal of building a team of at least 30 people who are extremely compatible with him, which is required for promotion.

Danitz originally wanted to ask the captain of the "Golden Dream," Vice Admiral "Iceberg," who was practically his mentor, for help, but before he could even meet Edwina, he was stopped halfway by his old friends on the ship and thrown back, who told him that he had been voted out of his position as bosun and exiled.

"...I will do my best, Your Holiness the Pope."

He answered with a bitter expression, lowered his head, and left the church, not wanting Alger, who had once been in the same middle order as him but was now a saint, to see his expression.

The latter, though hiding behind the mask, had a slight upturn at the corner of his mouth, inwardly assessing the strength of this "Fool's" follower.

I've heard that many extraordinary individuals who wanted to join his team were scared away by his personality... Did he learn his provocation from that "strongest hunter in the Misty Sea"? If you ask me, he might as well switch to the witch's path, that might be easier... Alger muttered to himself, then thought about his own path to advancement, and his smile disappeared again.

He made remarkable progress in his search for the remains of "Giddas," demonstrating his abilities before the two deities of the Tarot Society. He will likely soon have the opportunity to be promoted to angel. Meanwhile, he has fully digested the "Sea King" potion as he plays the role of the Pope of the Sea God Church and performs miracles in various places, making the necessary preparations.

But choosing which path to take proved difficult for Alger.

The "Storm" pathway sequence 2 "Cataclysm" is naturally the best choice, but there are currently no corresponding potion main ingredients or extraordinary properties in the Tarot Club;
The "Hanged Man" pathway sequence 2 "Elder of Filth" Tarot Club has readily available extraordinary characteristics. At first, Alger was worried that Miss "Justice" or Mr. "The Sun" would compete with him, but now it seems that they will all go on their own pathways.

The "White Tower" pathway Sequence 2 "Cherarch" is also a good choice, but its extraordinary nature requires shattering a level 0 sealed artifact, which would cost him extra, and the corresponding ritual would be the most difficult for him, so it is the last resort.

Of the three, Alger the Hanged Man originally wanted to switch to the path that matched his nickname. The Elder of Filthy Words not only had extraordinary characteristics, but the ritual could also obtain the help of the Goddess of Calamity, making it undoubtedly the best choice. However, just recently, the Queen of the Tarot Society told him that he could wait a little longer, perhaps until he could obtain the characteristic of "Calamity," at which point he could make a final decision.

The fresh "Storm" pathway sequence 2 property... Thinking of the extraordinary property that Miss "Queen" had repeatedly peddled at the Tarot meeting, Alger couldn't help but suspect that an angel from the Church of Storms was on the other party's death list, feeling both excited and uneasy.

However, he felt that the "End Times Church," which had become a true church, would not directly provoke the storm, thus denying this possibility.

Could this be related to that bizarre dream I had a few days ago, and the thunder that startled me awake...? Alger recalled the giant of light in his dream, the lightning surrounding him, and the "white tower" he held in his hands, and a terrifying thought formed in his mind.

After the fall of the "Eternal Sun," I felt that this day would eventually come... Looking at the setting sun outside the window, Alger decided to discuss this matter later at the Tarot meeting—if Miss "Queen" would allow such a discussion.

But when the appointed time passed, the "Hanged Man" did not go up to the gray fog. Instead, he sat in the same spot with a blank expression.

He went to the wall clock as if to confirm, and found that according to Backlund's time, it was already 3:15 p.m.

The tarot reading did not take place as scheduled?
Alger instinctively reached out to pray to "The Fool," but before he could utter that familiar name, a gray mist filled his vision, and a soft, feminine voice reached his ears.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

"...The gathering has been changed to once a month, to be held at 3 p.m. on the first Monday."

The sounds around him faded away, and the gray fog in front of him disappeared. Only then did "Moon" Emlyn come to his senses, sit up from the bed, go to the window, draw back the curtains, and look at the busy streets of Backlund under the glaring sunlight.

The sudden postponement of the tarot reading gave this member a sense of foreboding.

The terrifying night when the crimson moon suddenly turned into a blood moon and the stars lit up one after another as if they were about to fall to the ground made Emlyn, who was full of spirituality, feel uneasy. Then, it surfaced in his subconscious and made him see a scene of light giants formed from the sun, which was like a nightmare, which made him feel panicked because he hated the sun.

What worried Emlyn most was that his prayers to Mr. Fool and Miss Queen went unanswered, while his prayers to the First Ancestor returned only misleading pronouncements that he could tell at a glance.

Could it be that the "end of the world" that has been discussed so many times in the Tarot meetings is about to arrive? Isn't there still more than ten years left...? I, the "savior," am not an angel yet... He paced back and forth in his bedroom, which was filled with many dolls, his gaze briefly sweeping over those dolls that he once cherished but now had little time to spend with.

A moment later, dressed in a formal suit, he arrived at the underground area of ​​a villa and stood before a grave surrounded by many mutated flowers, grass, and grains.

This tomb belongs to a vampire duke, "Full Moon" Olmer. After Emlyn became a Sequence 3 "Summoning Master" and truly stepped into the upper echelons of the clan, he had many interactions with this angel who was said to be over three thousand years old and had once followed the progenitor Lilith. He could sense the other party's goodwill towards him.

After all, he was the youngest saint among the vampires, and the "savior" appointed by the progenitor.

“Emlin,” Olmer’s deep voice came from the grave, “you are feeling lost, which is why you have come to see me.”

Is it that obvious...? Emlyn adjusted his expression, intending to voice his deepest doubts, but the words that came out were different:

"I want to digest the Sequence 3 potion as soon as possible, but I don't know if I should take the risk."

As a "summoning master," he has found a way to digest potions: by using rituals to summon various spirit creatures, gain their help, and thus perform his role.

The higher the level of the summoned creature, the more people watching on the spot, and the more advantageous it is for the role-player.

After a brief silence, the Duke of Full Moon's voice echoed from the tomb once more:

"Based on my experience, you can choose to summon powerful spirit creatures that have been identified as friendly. Of course, if there are angels in the real world who can cooperate with you, summoning them can also speed up the process and even directly consume the remaining potion."

Summoning the real angels... Emlyn's expression froze for a moment, realizing that his previous thinking had been somewhat limited.

His first thought was to use the status of the three vampire dukes to summon these "creators" who could only lie in graves or coffins to slow down their aging process, thus accelerating the digestion of the potion. However, not only the "Full Moon" duke in front of him, but the other two angels were also over two thousand years old, and the summoning process would cause them considerable harm.

Although Emlyn was somewhat eager to be promoted to angel, he had not yet reached the point of harming the interests of the vampires.

Oh, right, there are two angels in the Tarot meeting, Miss "The Magician" and Miss "The Chariot". If I can pay a certain price, I should be able to get their cooperation... He then thought of the meeting that was postponed today, and his thoughts started to wander.

Not only are there two angels, but the Tarot Society also has two true gods... Mr. Fool and Miss Queen... Mr. World bought that kind of medicine from me. In a sense, I have made a contribution to the two gods... A thought flashed through Emlyn's mind, but he immediately realized that this was something he could not say out loud, otherwise he might be punished by the gods as soon as he stepped out the door. His expression became extremely strange.

……

Under the reassurance of Duke Olmer of the Full Moon, Emlyn's fear and anxiety were buried deep in his heart. He went to the Harvest Church in the South District for his routine worship, met with several young vampires who were under his command, and returned home only after nightfall.

Although he was full of energy, Emlyn went back to bed and drifted off to sleep surrounded by dolls, trying to gain some clues in his dreams by relying on the active spirituality of the night.

In his dazed state, he heard a familiar female voice:
Emlyn...

“Emlyn White…”

Opening his eyes, Emlyn found himself in a golden wheat field, where a plump and beautiful figure holding a baby could be seen in the mist before him.

"Ancestor!"

Although he didn't know if his dream was being interfered with by an evil god, he still instinctively called out to the other party.

"Emlin..." The maternal figure drew closer, but the voice was somewhat unsteady, as if disturbed, "I have an important task for you..."

(End of this chapter)