That night, the two did nothing; Luvia held Shade, allowing him to have a perfect night's sleep.
Closing his eyes shortly after ten o'clock on Wednesday night, he woke up at seven o'clock on Thursday morning after a dreamless night. Mia didn't even wake him up on time at six-thirty, likely understanding that Shade was truly exhausted. When Shade opened his eyes, he felt it was the best night of rest he had experienced in this world.
"I didn't even have that dream of gazing up at the silver moon."
He felt refreshed as he sat up in bed; a night of rest had completely restored Shade to his normal state. The purple-eyed girl was no longer on the bed; she had to go to the Seer's Association and had already departed, but the bedding was still warm, suggesting she hadn't been gone long.
In a great mood, Shade flicked his fingers toward the closed curtains. With a soft click, the curtains parted slightly, letting the late autumn morning light pierce through the hazy mist and shine into the second-floor bedroom.
"Meow~"
A sounding-quite-aggrieved cat cry came from the doorway. Having heard the sound of Shade getting up, Mia trotted in from the living room on her short legs, standing at the door to urge Shade to make breakfast.
Shade pulled back the covers and prepared to get out of bed, but suddenly smiled and extended a finger
"Sunbeam."
A slender beam of positive energy shot from his finger, leaving a small circular spot on the floor in front of Mia. A normal [Sunbeam] could only last for a very short time, used to combat undead with high energy. Shade was controlling his own spirit to output the light at the lowest possible power, which allowed the beam to persist.
"Meow?"
The cat looked at the bright spot in front of her in surprise, then suddenly extended her furry right front paw to swat at it. Mia was an orange-and-white cat; most of the fur on her back was orange, while her four short legs were mostly white.
She hit the bright spot, only to find that the spot had appeared further ahead. She then extended her left front paw to swat at it, once again seeing the bright spot shift and flicker forward
"Meow?"
The small orange cat was momentarily confused, then suddenly leaped up, hopping in place and batting the floor back and forth with her front paws.
This sight made Shade laugh.
A new day began with this friendly interaction between Shade and his pet cat, Mia. He hoped he could maintain this good mood throughout the day.
Since the danger in the house had been resolved, Mia could be left home alone. Having taken the cat out frequently lately, he hadn't actually made her fond of leaving the house.
After breakfast that morning, Shade did not call for Mia when he prepared to depart, which made Mia, standing on the stairs watching him, very happy.
Perhaps for this cat, the simplest happiness was staying home every day and waiting for Shade to return.
The weather in Midhill Castle was still foggy today, but perhaps because of the Ancient God statue, the mountain mist had not invaded the basement of the ruined tower. However, looking up through the trapdoor from the basement, the thick fog was so dense that Shade could not even see the early morning sunlight.
"The seal on the mountainside has been reinforced, so what is happening now?"
After leaving the ruined tower, the fog in the mountains became even more exaggerated. After walking a few steps, Shade even had the illusion that he had entered the space of the Ancient God. Clearly, a large number of undead, who should have departed, were prowling within the mist leaking from the Interstice. Fortunately, the side effect of attracting undead caused by Shade's use of relics had long since vanished. Relying on "her" prompts and the blessing of the Witch Emperor Violet, he barely avoided any potential battles and reached the city at nine in the morning.
The situation in the city was no better than in the mountains. Under the heavy fog, Midhill Castle had lost its usual bustle. Despite it being Thursday morning, hardly anyone could be seen on the streets. The few people encountered were moving hurriedly, clutching the low walls along the roadside for guidance.
Even on the way to the Sun Church, Shade didn't see a single carriage. In this weather, even horse lanterns were useless; the entire city was enveloped in white mist.
Without a carriage, Shade had to walk through the city. The most common sight along the way were policemen running hurriedly along the streets carrying kerosene lamps. Police whistles occasionally echoed from distant blocks; this eerie foggy weather was indeed a prime opportunity for ill-intentioned individuals to commit crimes.
Shade wanted to learn about the changes in the city today, but for some reason, he didn't encounter a single newspaper boy along the way. Fortunately, while passing the intersection of Evergreen Street, he met a little flower-selling girl who was shrinking back by the roadside, afraid to cross the street directly.
The little girl was very small, carrying a basket that, while scrubbed clean, was still worn out. The shoes on her feet were too large, and her gray dress and flat cap were covered in patches. She was very frail, likely suffering from chronic malnutrition, making it impossible for Shade to judge her exact age.
The flower girl also noticed Shade walking out of the fog. She hesitated before stepping forward to greet him, but she didn't dare get too close. Shade stopped and reached into his pocket to get some money, but this action made the girl even more hesitant.
In foggy weather, if what Shade pulled out was a handkerchief that could knock someone unconscious, no one could save her. The children selling flowers and newspapers on the street had long learned how to protect themselves amidst their hardships.
"This is a wallet."
Shade waved the wallet he had inherited from Detective Spyro, signaling the flower girl to come closer
"I want to ask about a few things. When did this fog roll in? I remember the fog seemed to be clearing yesterday evening."
He flicked a one-shilling coin into the air and caught it. The frail flower girl stared at the flipping coin and slowly walked over
"Sir, the fog rolled in last night."
The Midhill Castle accent was very heavy; people here tended to emphasize the velar consonants when speaking.
"Did it roll in from the mountains?"
"No, it just appeared in the city, like the usual autumn mists."
The girl couldn't describe the situation when the fog appeared very well, but based on her account, this heavy fog had nothing to do with the Interstice seal in the mountains; it wasn't a failure of yesterday's sealing.
"Alright, I understand."
Shade nodded and tossed the one-shilling coin to the girl, who still refused to come close. As he prepared to leave, he stopped and asked
"The weather is so terrible, you should go home as soon as possible. This weather isn't suitable for being outdoors."
"But... but I haven't sold all my flowers yet," the little girl said timidly.
Shade, of course, knew the reason she was reluctant to go home. Going home now not only meant no income but also meant the money spent on buying the flowers was effectively a gift to the florist. He asked this specifically to lead into the following
"How much for all these flowers? Sell them all to me."
Given the physical strength of a chronically malnourished little girl, there weren't many flowers in the basket. Furthermore, flower girls selling on the street usually didn't buy overly expensive bouquets, so Shade's expenditure was not large.
"Sir, I..."
Whether out of surprise or an inability to give an answer immediately, she stammered, unable to speak.
Thus, Shade took out his wallet and the loose change in his pocket—about 12 shillings in total—and placed it in her hand, then took all the flowers from her basket.
The quantity was even smaller than Shade had expected; he could hold them all in one hand
"Take the money and go home quickly. Remember not to tell anyone you have this much money. Good luck!"
The girl hurriedly tried to thank him, but Shade shook his head and turned around. He waved a hand behind his back and walked back into the fog. After confirming no one was around, the foreigner wrapped the flowers in his overcoat, turning them into "toys" stuffed in his pocket, leaving only a single bouquet of red roses that weren't particularly vivid in color.
Unlike the Nature Church and the Dawn Church located in the center of Midhill Castle, the Sun Church's cathedral in this diocese was in the southwestern part of the city, near the mountains. After descending the mountain and entering the urban area, Shade circled a small portion of the outskirts to arrive at St. Roland Square, the core of the old city district in the west.
Unlike the Dawn Church of the Tobesk Diocese, which sat in the center of Dawn Square, the Sun Church of the Midhill Diocese was only on one side of St. Roland Square. However, because this was the old city district with plenty of developable land, the Sun Church was actually slightly larger than the local, more prosperous Nature Church.
Due to the influence of the divine power radiating from the church, the thick fog near St. Roland Square was slightly thinner. Scattered merchants could be seen hawking their wares on the square, though the number of pedestrians remained low.
Shade spent some time discussing special Rhode brand items with a vendor selling miscellaneous goods before finally waiting for Iluna. She had found a suitable reason to leave the church, so she walked straight out without any hesitation.
"Is this for me?"
Seeing Shade holding a red rose, Iluna asked with a smile. Shade immediately nodded
"Yes."
He handed over the red rose, which made Iluna smile even more happily.
The two had agreed to meet today to exchange intelligence. After finding a teahouse on the street and sitting down, Iluna informed Shade of the results of the encirclement battle against the [Truth Society], while Shade recounted his trip to the Interstice with the witches yesterday.
So far, all three passages located in the Interstice between life and death had been reinforced to some extent. The seal at the foot of the mountain had been reinforced by Shade's Tree's Kiss Maze Lock, with a faint bonfire still burning before the Gate of Death; the seal on the mountainside had been reinforced by the joint efforts of the witches and Shade, with those swaying silver threads and witch hair ensuring the seal would not fail; and the seal at the mountain peak had been stabilized by Sister Daphne on Monday, after meeting the Red Butterfly Twins.
This was only preliminary reinforcement; a large-scale divine ritual from the Church would be required afterward. As for the four nails that fixed reality to the Interstice, one had been killed by Sister Daphne, and one had been abducted into the Interstice by Joey Barton. The four nails corresponded to four intense emotions; the woman in the deserted village was "Fear," and the Clown was likely "Joy."
As for the remaining "Sorrow" and "Wrath," Priest Augustus would attempt to search for them with Shade in the afternoon, and the Church of the True God had already locked onto one of them
"The Interstice between life and death is itself a Grade 0 relic, and Joey Barton is the first candidate for the Chosen. It is difficult for the Church to perform divination on him. But for the resurrected nails, with the cooperation of the Seer's Association, since we could find the Clown, we can find the second one."
Iluna sat opposite Shade, holding her teacup, her tone confident. Beside her was a small bottle bought from the teahouse, filled with water, in which the now-wilting rose was placed.
"You found the other two?"
"Only one, roughly located in the northern part of Midhill Castle. Once more accurate information is confirmed, we will likely act on Friday or Saturday."
Shade noted this information. His search with the priest in the afternoon could begin from the southern part of Midhill Castle
"Additionally, regarding the Chosen, it seems there are unplanned changes every time. We currently don't know what means Joey Barton intends to use to bring back the dead. But once it's certain that what he's doing is irreversible, you must ensure that you kill him with your own hands. Joey Barton might not know about the Chosen ritual, so your opponent this time may not be as powerful as Darkness."