Marvel Magic Case Files

Chapter 140 Ritual Instruction (Second Update!)

"Uncle..." Abigail tugged at Randolph Carter's sleeve in fear, but Randolph grabbed the girl's slender arm and pulled her behind him.

"Let's go home," he said, turning and pressing his hand to Abigail's head, preventing her from seeing the ignorant crowd. He didn't want Abigail to witness these scenes, nor did he want these people to destroy her sanity. Although Abigail would one day return to where she belonged, revealing her true self, just like her brother born in Dunwich, not here, but behind that door.

In fact, Randolph Carter was able to find Abigail entirely because the One of All Things noticed Abigail's transformation and at the same time, He noticed the presence of a very familiar spellcaster.

Upon receiving the request, Randolph, who had descended into his own body, devoted almost all his power to maintaining this false reality. He allowed Abigail to temporarily forget what had happened after 1692, thus delaying her transformation. This was Randolph Carter's own selfish motive; his hometown was Arkham, not far from Salem, where he had come into contact with the silver key (although he found it strange that he still had lingering feelings for Arkham, it was indeed the case). If Abigail were to lose her mind here, the consequences of her transformation would be beyond his current ability to prevent.

However, the false reality wasn't working well. Randolph Carter had already reset reality multiple times, and whenever he tried to summon the One of All Things, the annoying Dark One would always interfere. As for Nyarlathotep's prank, it was nothing more than an attempt to destroy Abigail's sanity, forcing her to display her inhuman side here—which made no difference to Abigail's real father, and the few days Nyarlathotep delayed were meaningless to the ruler of time and space.

Randolph Carter originally thought he was unable to escape and go to find the wizard that the One of All Things was looking for, but he did not expect that the wizard would actually cross the outside reality and arrive here.

It was only then that Randolph Carter understood the whole story. For someone like him who had once passed through the Silver Key, time did not unfold linearly; he had seen all the possibilities, and only when Salomon stepped into Salem was the final possibility fulfilled.

That's why Randolph Carter told Salomon that this was his last chance to repay the debt owed to the One of All Things—as long as Abigail Williams was returned to the Gate, the bill for a minor sorcerer could be easily cancelled. Especially since Abigail was the One of All Things' most outstanding offspring (non-bloodline), far superior to her failed brother born in Dunwich, a beast-like creature. If Salomon successfully returned Abigail, not only would the sorcerer's bill within his stigmata be repaid, but Salomon himself would even receive a reward.

Because of Titusa's disappearance, Randolph Carter had to care for Abigail himself. After watching Abigail fall asleep hugging her teddy bear, he silently stood up and gently closed the door. He went downstairs, boiled a kettle of water, took out Ceylon tea (quite expensive in the colony), and placed a clean white porcelain cup on the table. After doing all this, Randolph took out his pocket watch from his coat pocket, carefully checked the time, and at 2:15 a.m., he put the watch away, went to the entrance hall, and opened the front door.

Salomon emerged from the alleyway beside the house, scrambling through the muddy path. He looked filthy—he'd encountered more than just one Grog. The dark forest at night seemed to be a gathering place for some kind of monster; besides ghouls and Grog, Salomon had also encountered a Shatak bird circling overhead. It was an adventure Salomon himself didn't want to recall, filled with stench, filth, and a touch of terror. After his fruitless search, Salomon decided to ask Randolph Carter for help—it was a gamble. He didn't know what Randolph's motives were after losing his human identity, but he had no choice but to gamble, unless he wanted to be trapped here forever.

But just as he stood at the door, it opened by itself. He was slightly surprised, but when he saw that it was Randolph Carter who opened the door, his small question vanished. "Honorable Ancient One," Salomon bowed slightly in respect, "I have not found that being who delights in chaos."

"You failed," Randolph Carter said with a hint of exasperation, the first time Salomon had seen such an expression on his face. "You rushed things," he said. "I haven't even given you some of the knowledge you absolutely need."

"Feel sorry……"

"You need to learn, you need to learn a lot." Randolph Carter stepped aside, inviting Salomon into the house. "But you have one night, and I will personally teach you. However, I have some black tea here, so it shouldn't be too strenuous."

"Thank you very much, Mr. Carter. I haven't had tea for days," Salomon nodded in agreement. Even knowing that learning that knowledge might affect his mind, Salomon still chose to study, because the mastermind behind it all was too deeply hidden, and he had absolutely no clue whatsoever.

In fact, if Salomon had followed the four witches, he could have met the Dark Ones, but there was no time left—this was a feeling Randolph had placed in Salomon's subconscious through his dreams, and it was also the driving force urging him to come here.

Salem was eerily quiet the next morning, as if everyone's energy had been burned out like kindling in the previous night's witch trials. The men slept soundly, while the women remained silent, beginning to feel lingering fear about the day's proceedings.

Salomon walked out of the mansion with his forehead in his hand. He had already stored the book Randolph Carter had given him in his dimensional bag—the cover of the book was too sinister, and taking it out now would be asking for trouble. He had learned many secrets from Randolph Carter, many things that even the Sorcerer Supreme did not know.

For example, this universe is somewhat connected to another universe, but not by much. If it weren't for Abigail's own uniqueness—that is, as the "living Silver Key" with countless possibilities—she might just be an ordinary little girl. Salomon could understand this, because he had already witnessed the effects of parallel universes—if mutants were like ripples spreading across a pond, then Abigail Williams was like splashes of water from the next pond, only these splashes happened to land in this pond and create some ripples.

Randolph Carter also explained to Salomon in detail the mastermind behind it all, Nyarlathotep's various avatars, and the measures to be taken when facing them. Originally, Randolph Carter had intended to use the "Nordenston Divine Art" to request help before Salomon's arrival, but due to Nyarlathotep's obstruction, his power had weakened considerably, and his body could no longer withstand the full force. Therefore, the main task had to be handed over to Salomon.

"It's destiny," he said. "Whether you believe it or not, your coming here is your destiny, and you are destined to obtain something. That has already happened, but you are moving along the timeline, which is why you are unaware of your destiny."

But when Salomon asked about this, Randolph avoided the topic and instead turned the conversation to the essence of this reality—fragments of 1692 covering 2010 (or 2011, Salomon didn’t know how much time had passed in the outside world).

This was accomplished by Randolph using the power of the One Who Unifies All Things, and in doing so, he altered parts of reality. But Salomon thought of the Eternal God—or perhaps his presence here was at the Eternal God's behest? After all, the Eternal God's role also concerns time and space…

Randolph continued, explaining that this reality was on the verge of collapse. If the "Nordenston Divine Art" were used and Nordens descended, this reality would be unable to withstand the arrival of the One Who Unifies All Things, and Abigail, exposed in the true reality, would become uncontrollable. Therefore, the best solution was to first eliminate the mastermind behind it all, and then use the "Yog-Sothothton Divine Art" to have Him take Abigail away. After that, everything that happened in this illusory reality would no longer affect the outside world.

This was the task Randolph Carter had given Salomon—to kill or banish Nyarlathotep's avatar, "The Dark One," and then cast the Yog-Sothoth Divine Art. According to Randolph Carter's description, Yog-Sothoth would descend upon an avatar of an ancient immortal named "Tavel At Umur," a far more benevolent avatar than the other. As long as Salomon didn't try to uncover the avatar's true form, he could guarantee his safety.

This was the focus of last night's lesson. He spent a lot of time teaching Salomon how to perform the ritual, repeatedly mentioning every detail. Salomon also copied the ritual onto parchment. As for the other book, it was Randolph Carter's spellbook. He had given Salomon several spells, but due to time constraints, Salomon would have to study them on his own later.

In addition, Salomon mentioned Tituba to Randolph Carter. Randolph Carter said he could bring Tituba back and hide her in the house, because once this matter was over, Tituba would cease to exist.

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"Where have you been?" Coulson, who also seemed to have been up all night, waited for Salomon in the room. He saw Salomon return, clean and tidy (magically cleaned), but his face betrayed his exhaustion. Coulson said, "Natasha went to monitor those four girls. What happened yesterday? Any new operations today? And those who were captured…"

"Forget about the witch, and forget about the people who were captured," Salomon said. "I've found the mastermind. Taking him down will solve everything, and we'll be able to leave this place soon. As for what happened to me last night... dear Coulson, you wouldn't want to know."

P.S.: This refers to the books *The Dunwich Horror*, *The Dream of Kadas*, *The Silver Spoon*, and *Through the Gate of the Silver Key*.

It seems many people want this part of the story to end quickly… so I can only try to finish it as soon as possible, but there's still so much to write QAQ. However, this part of the story isn't entirely useless; it's foreshadowing, concerning the reunion of a parallel world and the future starry sea, so…

Please vote for me!!!

(End of this chapter)