“Tifa and I encountered a nun from the Order in the Dark Realm, so we know a few things.”
Shad nodded.
“The reason the [Order of Spiritual Cultivation] is on good terms with the Council isn't just because His Excellency the Speaker has a wide circle of friends, but more so because of Grandma Cassandra. She is a true native of Midhillburg; she received help from the Order in her youth and has helped them in return. Of course, this is also because, while the [Order of Spiritual Cultivation] has both men and women, it is predominantly female. Especially the nuns qualified to wear silver crowns as blindfolds—their eyes are formidable. Although these women can be even more mystical and eccentric than the diviners of the Prophet Association at times, they are very capable. If you need it, I can provide you with a letter to ask for their help, but it can only be a letter of recommendation; our relationship cannot be exposed.”
However, if it were merely a letter of introduction rather than the direct assistance of Lady Cassandra, the Great Witch of the region, the help and convenience the [Order of Spiritual Cultivation] could provide Shad would clearly be limited.
Shad thought for a moment
“In any case, I'll contact the [Order of Spiritual Cultivation] first. As for Lady Cassandra's matter, I'd like to think about it a bit more.”
“Very well. Tifa, give Shad the letter I've written, and remember to stamp it. The [Order of Spiritual Cultivation] is primarily active in the eastern part of the continent; they existed in Midhillburg even in the previous era. Their understanding of the boundary between life and death is greater than mine. The current leader of the Order is Sister Devlin, an Eleventh-Ring Warlock. Though she is disabled, she is a very beautiful and elegant lady, her figure—”
“Ahem.”
Tifa, who was opening the ink pad on the desk, suddenly coughed. The witch glanced at her and stopped the topic, then smiled at Shad
“Anyway, take my letter and go find her; she shouldn't mind giving you some help. The people of the [Order of Spiritual Cultivation] respect nature and death and believe that all things possess a spirit; beyond that, there is nothing to be wary of.”
She picked up her teacup and took a sip. Seeing Shad's contemplative expression, she signaled that he could speak if he had questions.
“That Lady Cassandra... how is it that she is over a hundred years old but only Tenth-Ring? No, I'm not saying Tenth-Ring is low, but compared to you...”
The red-haired witch smiled and set down her teacup. Shad noticed she was wearing a pair of white lace gloves today
“I know what you mean. I am only in my twenties and already Eleventh-Ring, and while Tifa is only Sixth-Ring, she is even younger. This is easily explained: we have two sets of transcendent systems. With their mutual promotion, the progress of witches is very rapid. But this growth requires talent. We are very similar to ordinary Ring Warlocks; the warlocks simply grow a bit slower, and they also encounter situations where obtaining spirit runes becomes exceptionally difficult at a certain level.”
Shad nodded in understanding. It would be stranger if everyone had the potential to become a Thirteenth-Ring. The middle-aged witch he had met at the banquet of the Vampire God [Duke Lauel] had risked attending the evil god's party precisely because she sought the power to break through.
“My limit is roughly around the Eleventh-Ring. To be honest, I've stayed at this level for over two years. To an ordinary Ring Warlock, this is normal, but for a witch, it's almost equivalent to stagnation.”
“Then how is Tifa's talent?” Shad asked curiously.
“That's hard to say. Talent isn't like in storybooks where you can test it just by touching a crystal ball. But doesn't she have Felianna's gift? If she encounters a difficulty, she can simply raise her level by one.”
Miss Felianna's gift allowed Tifa's witch level to be forcibly increased, except for the jump from the twelfth to the thirteenth rank. In other words, if Tifa could advance to an Eleventh-Rank witch like Miss Galina, she could immediately become a Twelfth-Rank witch.
“How enviable...”
Miss Galina sighed softly, though there wasn't much actual jealousy in her tone
“But it's fine; Tifa is my person.”
The black-haired maid winked at Shad, her slightly playful gaze conveying an ambiguous meaning.
Because he had discussed matters regarding Midhillburg with Miss Galina until late into the night, Shad did not return home that evening.
Since he had brought Mia along anyway, he and the cat stayed overnight at the witch's manor. Miss Galina had specially arranged a room for Shad in the manor; henceforth, whenever Shad spent the night at the manor, he would rest there.
Early Friday morning, a carriage took Shad into the city. He first visited the Prophet Association to sign some documents, collect the other prizes for being the "Big City Player 1853" champion, and chat with Vice President Mark for a while about the competition.
Afterward, he headed to Coldwater Port to ask Mr. Edmund about Midhillburg and the [Interstice of Life and Death]. The old gentleman was quite surprised after hearing Shad's account and stated that he did indeed know some things.
“You should know that the Hermetic Order is a very ancient organization; our research and records on it may be more detailed than those of the Five Gods Church. A place that shouldn't exist, like the boundary between life and death, is actually produced by an error of the world.”
“What do you mean by 'an error of the world'?” Shad asked curiously. The old man gave a solemn answer
“The departure of the Ancient God of Death, the [Ancient Reaper], caused the instability of the rules of death themselves.”
He suddenly lowered his voice, indicating that he was about to discuss the Great Ones who truly existed
“Think carefully, young man. Among the current five True Gods, which one has [Death] as their primary divine portfolio?”
Shad thought about it, then shook his head in surprise
“There doesn't seem to be one. The closest are the Lord of All Things, the [God of Nature and Malice], and the Lady of Creation, the [God of Creation and Destruction], but clearly, neither is directly 'Death'.”
“Yes. The Hermetic Order believes that the appearance of the Interstice of Life and Death represents the initial omen of the world's demise. And the continuous emergence of problems within the Interstice indicates that the apocalypse is drawing closer.”
Shad hadn't forgotten that this was an organization that advocated for eschatology
“But the first appearance of the Interstice of Life and Death can be traced back to the Fourth Era or even earlier. Does that mean the destruction of the world began back then?”
He couldn't help but ask. Mr. Edmund looked somewhat awkward
“These things are still under study, but it is a determinable fact that the world's errors are increasing.”
Although Mr. Edmund didn't know how to rescue those who had accidentally entered the Interstice, his words at least told Shad how terrifying this phenomenon of 'error' truly was.
Skipping lunch at the lighthouse, Shad returned home before noon. After having lunch with the cat, the Doctor, Dorothy, and Luvia all arrived around one o'clock.
The Doctor first distributed the winnings they had gained from betting at the underground casino for the Big City Player championship. Since Shad had basically been guaranteed to advance to the finals when the Doctor placed the bets, the odds at the time were 1 to 1.51. Shad had bet 1,200 pounds, and after deducting fees and a tip for the Doctor's hard work, he received 1,750 pounds back. This sum not only covered the cost of purchasing the spell [Elf's Detoxification] last Saturday but even made Shad's wallet a bit thicker.
Had it not been for the matter of Priest Augustus, this would have been a happy occasion for everyone. But since the priest was now on the verge of death, they had no interest in celebrating the money. Thus, after a cursory second congratulation to Shad for winning the title of "1853 Lord of the Rhodes Card," the others shared the different pieces of news they had brought.
“The Academy has already launched an investigation in Midhillburg. They moved quickly and confirmed Priest Augustus's disappearance. Although they couldn't truly confirm that the priest fell into the boundary between life and death as Shad did, they suspect the legend of Midhillburg. Currently, St. Byron's is negotiating with the Church, wanting to probe the secrets of Midhillburg.”
The Academy was, after all, far from the civilized world, whereas the Five Gods Church possessed the deepest knowledge of the civilized world's many secrets.
“It's not just Priest Augustus who is missing. Recently, over ten people have disappeared in the Midhillburg city area and the surrounding Sicar Mountains. The Church is investigating, but they have refused to disclose relevant details to St. Byron's, as they believe this is unrelated to the three Great Magic Academies.”
“What exactly does the Church know? Why does it seem like they are deliberately keeping secrets?” Shad asked in confusion. Doctor Schneider shook his head
“We can only be certain that the local problem is very serious.”
“Two disappearance cases have also occurred among the Royal Army stationed near Midhillburg, but because it involves frontline bases, it hasn't been reported to the Church yet,” Dorothy said. Luvia and Doctor Schneider both looked at her in surprise, curious about her source of information.
“I managed to get a summary of the abnormal phenomena in Midhillburg over the years. You can check these yourself.”
She gave Shad an exaggeratedly large manila envelope; he wondered how Lacia had managed to gather so much data in half a day.
“Does the Prophet Association have data on Midhillburg?” Shad asked Luvia. The latter nodded
“The Association's records on Midhillburg are very strange. They only mention that the Association's Ring Warlocks must absolutely not perform large-scale necromancy rituals in that city, and they forbid any prophets with strong divinatory intuition from going there. More data requires authorization to view; I need some time to apply. For now, we only know that the Association is very wary of Midhillburg.”
“Alright. The Church and the Academy should both be working to figure out what exactly happened in Midhillburg, but we can't just do nothing either.”
Shad summarized
“I'll be going to Midhillburg frequently lately; I have a few friends there as well.”
“You really have a lot of friends,” Doctor Schneider commented casually.
“The priest disappeared between two and four o'clock on Wednesday afternoon. In the most optimistic scenario, he can survive for one week in the boundary between life and death. Today is Friday, which means that until next Wednesday, I will spend most of my daytime in Midhillburg. Dorothy, I'll have to ask you to help me look after Mia.”
Only the writer lady, who didn't have to work every day, had the time.
“Sure, I'll come to your house every morning. I can write anywhere anyway.”
“Doctor, keep in touch with the Academy. I hope they can come up with a solution as soon as possible.”
The Doctor nodded, but he didn't look very optimistic. If they could save Priest Augustus, the Academy would certainly do its utmost, even if the priest was only a correspondence student. The problem was that the Five Gods Church didn't intend to share the situation in Midhillburg with the Academy, and they had no information channels to investigate the Church's own actions.
“Luvia, you'll need to keep working on getting the data from the Prophet Association. The Academy's understanding of Midhillburg is unexpectedly sparse. Aside from my friends and the Church, we can only look for clues from the Prophet Association.”
“No problem. But I must warn you, Shad—please remember. Unless it is absolutely necessary, you must never enter the [Interstice of Life and Death].”
Luvia spoke very seriously, and the Doctor and Dorothy also nodded
“We have almost lost the priest; we cannot afford to lose a second person.”
PS: Although Iluna has great authority, she is in the Tobesk Diocese and has no reason to abruptly conduct a deep investigation into the Midhillburg Diocese.
(End of Chapter)