Mystery: The Last Shepherd

Chapter 374 The School of Life
As night fell, Luzer hired a two-horse carriage and directed the driver toward Iron Gate Street in the Backlund Bridge district. Passing the "Braveman" pub, he cracked open a window. A moment later, a chilling aura seemed to seep into the carriage through the crack.

"good evening."

Lu Ze said with a smile.

"good evening."

Sharon's figure had appeared unnoticed in the seat opposite him. She was still wearing that black court dress, with a small hat on her head. Her appearance was delicate but lifeless, like a lifelike doll.

The carriage turned at the next intersection and headed north of the city.

"Is that demigod from the Rose School still looking for you?"

Inside the swaying carriage, Lu Ze asked.

"Yes."

Sharon nodded slightly. "His men are all dead, and he's very angry."

A demigod's subordinate?
Oh right, those werewolves, zombies, and vengeful spirits.
"However, because we obtained that 'Crimson Moon Crown,' as long as we conceal ourselves properly and don't reveal our presence at close range, he won't notice us."

Sharon said calmly.

The extraordinary item known as the "Crimson Moon Crown" enhances the abilities of the "Prisoner" pathway, possibly making her even more difficult to detect than ordinary vengeful spirits.

In fact, leaving Backlund would be a permanent solution, but Sharon and the others preferred to stay, even at the risk of being discovered by the demigods, perhaps with their own reasons.

After exchanging a few pleasantries, the two looked at each other and fell into a rather quiet atmosphere.

"."

Sharon seemed oblivious to the meaning of awkwardness, simply staring at Luze with unwavering eyes. She appeared to be waiting for Luze to speak first, or perhaps she had emptied her emotions, becoming a soulless puppet.

We need to find something else to talk about.
"By the way, have you seen this symbol before?"

Lu Ze remembered something.

He cut his palm with his fingernail, letting the blood drip onto the carriage floor, and manipulated the blood to form a repeating, cyclical pattern. This was the emblem that had appeared on the handle of the "Rotation Wheel" gun, something he suspected might be related to another "Mercury Serpent."

Then he saw Sharon slowly nod.

"know."

she says.

what?
We actually know each other!

"what is it?"

Lu Ze asked impatiently.

"This is the symbol of the speaker of the 'Life School'."

Sharon replied.

Life School
Lu Ze recalled the information he had obtained from the Night Watchers' internal documents.

This is a secretive organization established in the early Fifth Era, possessing complete "monster" pathways and partial "pharmacist" pathways. They employ a master-apprentice system of succession and have been spotted throughout the northern and southern continents. In Roselle's notes, he stated that this organization is divided into two factions: one that upholds reason, and the other that worships the moon.

"So, who is the so-called Speaker?" "The decision-making body of the Life School is the 'Destiny Council' composed of seven members."

Sharon explained, "And above the council is the Speaker, who unites the rational members and those who believe in the 'Primordial Moon,' and is the absolute core of this sect. However, the Speaker suddenly disappeared, causing a split between the two factions, and the sect members also faced many dangers."

"You know a lot about this school of thought."

Lu Ze said, both surprised and confused.

"The hedonistic faction of the 'Rose School' and the faction of the 'Life School' that believes in the 'primordial moon' have some overlap."

Sharon glanced at him and said, "They assisted in the split, but afterwards they greatly harmed the members who believed in the 'Primordial Moon' and seized the school's foundation and resources. In short, the 'Rose School' was the biggest beneficiary of that split."

So that's how it is. The Life School was taken advantage of when it was leaderless. The faction that believed in the "Primordial Moon" originally thought that the "Rose School" was helping them, but in reality, they were leading wolves into their own home.
Luzer was speechless at their naivety and stupidity.

"I'm curious, where did you see this logo?"

Sharon asked.

"It's a coincidence."

Luze snapped out of his daze and recounted the events to Sharon. Of course, he omitted two crucial pieces of information: the pregnant couple and the "Blasphemy Card" he had obtained. He only mentioned his involvement in a struggle between demigods, and how the coincidence of the revolver landing negatively impacted the fate of that demigod.

"The Speaker is Sequence 1 of the 'Monster' pathway, skilled at manipulating fate."

Sharon said.

it is as expected!
It all makes sense!

The one who manipulated his "wheel of fortune" at that time was an extraordinary being of the same pathway and a high sequence, the chairman of the "School of Life," a sequence 1 of the "Monster" pathway, the Mercury Serpent!
Lu Ze suddenly understood.

First, He manipulated the revolver, bringing me misfortune. Then, He made the "Abyss" card fall from the "Devil's" body, which I picked up, as if to compensate me for the risks I had suffered.
So, what was His reason for stopping the 'devil' and exposing me?

Was it to save that couple?
That ordinary couple, the pregnant woman...
Lu Ze pondered for a moment, then looked at Sharon and asked:

"Do you know anything else about that speaker?"

"I don't know."

Sharon recalled for a moment and said, "I've only heard that this speaker always appears in different forms, sometimes as an old man, sometimes as a child."

Rejuvenation. Could it be that this guy can be reborn?
Yes, that must be a characteristic of the "Mercury Serpent"!
Luze subconsciously thought of the similarity between this speaker and the symbol of Ouroboros—a serpent devouring its own tail, with layers upon layers of rings. It seemed that this might also represent the endless cycle of their lives.

Therefore, it's highly likely that the woman was carrying a "mercury serpent" within her. To protect her mother, it manipulated my revolver, and afterwards, gave me the "Abyss" card as compensation. As for engraving its own design on the gun handle, it can be interpreted as it recognizing my uniqueness and wishing to establish a friendly relationship.
By this point, Lu Ze felt he had a general understanding of what had happened that day.

He couldn't help but feel a sense of absurdity.

A Sequence 5 being witnessed the battle between two Sequence 4 demigods, unaware that in a deeper, more secretive place, a Sequence 1 angel was manipulating everything in the shadows.

No wonder that "devil" was killed; he actually dared to offend an angel!
Lu Ze kept his head down in thought, while Sharon across from him didn't express any opinion, but just watched him quietly.

The carriage kept moving.

　Thank you to reader "Degenerate Control" for the 5000 Qidian coins.

　　P.S.: The connection between the "Rose School" and the "Life School" comes from the original text and is not something I added myself.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)