Iluna gave a brief introduction to the situation inside the church, and Shade provided a detailed account of his experiences along the way, as well as what he had seen and heard within the Interstice and in reality
"Although there are no hostile organizations like the [Mercury Blood] or the [Blood Spirit School] this time, the Interstice itself is more terrifying than both combined. We must be cautious from here on; one slip-up, and Midhillburg could truly become a thing of the past."
"The Church has come fully prepared this time. Ms. Shirley Winster, whom you met just now, is the Natural Church's..."
Iluna did not say the term "Thorn Nun," but Shade understood her meaning
"She is a Ninth Ring herself. While her combat power isn't strong, within her area, the effects of divine arts and rituals belonging to the God of Nature are enhanced. If it truly comes down to the final moment, Ms. Winster will return to reality..."
"So, the final battle is in half an hour. After working through the entire autumn, it's finally reaching the end."
Shade nodded, and Iluna sighed softly
"It's finally almost over."
"No, this isn't the end. I don't mean regarding what happens afterward, but rather, perhaps Joey Barton isn't the most terrifying thing tonight..."
Shade gripped the Red Butterfly pendant in his hand. It contained the power of the Twins, though he had rarely used it on his journey.
Gazing at the campfire, he knew that while the Chosen were indeed difficult to deal with, the gap this time—compared to facing Darkness—was at least not absolutely insurmountable. What he worried about was something else, another existence
"I hope my guess is wrong."
While Shade performed his final adjustments and preparations in the church of the Interstice, neither the real world nor Mount Sicar in the Interstice were peaceful.
A thick fog swept through Midhillburg, rapidly spreading toward the plains in the north of the city and the foothills of Mount Sicar. In the fog-shrouded city, ordinary police officers no longer appeared; only the Church's Ring-caster squads continued to patrol. Meanwhile, numerous grotesque figures gradually emerged from the Interstice into reality, advancing toward where the living gathered.
If one were to look down from high above the central-eastern region of the Old Continent centered on Mount Sicar, the swirling dark clouds almost formed a continuous sheet, obscuring one-sixth of the Old Continent. In Tobesk, to the northwest of the Old Continent, there were clouds and mist in the city due to air pollution, but that was merely ordinary smog.
Luvia Annat stood by the window of the large divination room on the second floor, feeling restless. She gazed at the mist, worrying about Shade in the distance. By now, the sky had gradually dimmed, and the streetlights on Silver Cross Avenue below had flickered on, reflecting the night of the Pearl of the North in such beauty.
Behind her, a divination club composed of local noble girls was engaged in an interesting activity. Leading them was Princess Angelina; despite being warned multiple times by Lecia, she still loved participating in such games.
To ensure the Princess's safety—especially since an accident had occurred not long ago—the Association had placed Luvia here.
"Annat, something on your mind?"
President Stan approached from behind. Luvia looked back at the noble girls, who were laughing as they took turns blindfolding themselves with black cloths to pick cards from the divination deck spread across the table.
"Good evening, President Stan. I was thinking about Mount Sicar. I saw intelligence regarding the Mount Sicar region recently, which reminded me of the events that happened in Tobesk during the summer."
"Such worry is normal. The Association headquarters has already sent people there. Calculating the time, the sealing ritual should be starting soon."
The most outstanding diviner in Tobesk took out his pocket watch and glanced at it
"Forty minutes left. I hope everything goes smoothly over there. If it doesn't, we'll probably have an earthquake here, and Midhillburg city..."
He didn't continue, instead changing the subject
"The Secret-Keeper grade relic [The Glowinston Marriage Contract] that you applied to borrow from the Solar Church a few days ago has been delivered to the Association. Additionally, the Church helped you purchase a Document grade relic, [The Fanatic's Soul Coin]. Are you considering the matter of Fourth Ring Spirit Runes? Something related to the undead? Perhaps there's no need to rush; doesn't the Saint Byrons cultivation plan suggest that low-ring casters advance one ring every one to two years?"
Mr. Stan asked. As the head of the local Diviners Association, he was naturally aware of Luvia Annat's status as a joint-training correspondence Ring-caster.
"It's just that too many things have happened recently, so I'm always a bit worried..."
Seeing that the noble girls were still drawing cards and didn't need her to preside over the divination, Luvia asked softly and somewhat shyly
"President Stan, could you please perform a divination for me?"
"Of course. What do you wish to divine? Something related to our city's Player 1853 champion?"
Mr. Stan joked, but to his surprise, Luvia actually nodded
"I want you to divine Shade's safety. He is currently on a very dangerous commission, and I am very worried about him."
"I believe that's possible, but since he isn't present, the accuracy of the divination won't be high. You should know this."
Luvia, whose bad premonition was growing stronger, nodded. President Stan took out the divination cards and asked Luvia to pick any three.
This set of cards was a Poet-grade relic belonging to a witch diviner of the Fifth Epoch. Like the [Diviner's Silver Coin], it could assist in divination. This was a gift given by the Association's general headquarters when President Stan took over as the head of the Tobesk region.
Luvia simply picked the first three. After checking the faces of the cards, President Stan frowned slightly
"Mr. Hamilton will encounter a life-threatening danger in the near future. Oh, don't worry, because of a friend's help, he can turn the crisis into safety, but then... hm?"
He showed the three cards to Luvia. The first was a bleeding dagger held in the darkness—a quite dangerous omen. The second was a circle of people holding hands and dancing around a campfire, which usually represented meeting a rescuer or receiving rare help.
And the third was actually the [Red Butterfly] that Dorothy had drawn two months ago.
"President Stan, what does this mean?"
The middle-aged man was also somewhat puzzled
"It's difficult to interpret. Fate has not told me what kind of future this card predicts, but it is not a good omen..."
He put the cards away
"Annat, fate is interpreted by people, so even as diviners, we cannot blindly trust interpreted fates. Perhaps Mr. Hamilton will indeed encounter a danger soon, but since we didn't flip Death, he must be safe. I have always believed that Mr. Hamilton is a very mysterious person; his story with the Rhode cards certainly won't end here."
President Stan's comfort worked, and Luvia smiled
"Yes, Shade's journey to collect Rhode cards has only just begun."
"Go back and rest; I'll keep an eye on things here," President Stan said, leaning on the windowsill to look out at Silver Cross Avenue.
"Give my regards to Detective Hamilton. I hope he has a pleasant night... don't forget to pick up the 'Glowinston Marriage Contract' and that coin. The cost will be deducted from your monthly salary. The relics are in Containment Room 2 in the basement; Grandma Raya is the Secret-Keeper on duty today. We borrowed that contract from the Solar Church for one week, which should be enough for your research... Also, do not attempt to write the names of a living person and a dead person on it at the same time; that will break the boundary between life and death."
After Luvia said her goodbyes and left, Angelina—who had heard her name from Lecia and wanted to talk to her—felt somewhat disappointed. The divination card in the Princess's hand was a shining crown.
President Stan looked at the hazy night sky where the setting sun had not yet fully retreated, recalling the events of the past few months
"Midhillburg... I truly hope everything can be resolved smoothly."
Thousands of miles away in Tobesk, they had not yet received the latest news from Midhillburg, but Priest Augustus at the summit of the Interstice was very aware of how dire the current situation was.
Together with other old priests, he was praying before a divine statue inside a safe house pre-arranged at the summit of the Interstice. His keen perception allowed Priest Augustus to know what was happening outside even without looking.
The undead tide crashing against the summit, the undead cavalry descending from the sky, the sudden ambush of giant burrowing undead worms—not to mention the grotesque existences that had died in the depths of the fog ten thousand years ago striking at the summit, only to be forcibly repelled by the Dawn Church's Thirteenth Ring-caster, the "Light-Bringer," using a ritual and Words of Sublimation.
The light and shadow of divine arts and the roars of monsters made it seem as if a legendary battle from the Mythic Age was taking place outside the safe house. Dazzling spiritual light occasionally shone through the cracks of the wooden door, and the tremors of the ground had not stopped from the beginning. However, the old priests here were the most devout believers of the True Gods in the material world; these things could not disturb their pious prayers. Even if the undead appeared inside the room, they would not have any reaction.
Priest Augustus had heard Shade mention the past of the Twin Red Butterflies, so he guessed that the final terrifying undead might be the fragmented soul of a sub-space evil defeated by the descended Twin Gods during the Fifth Epoch.
Because the most problematic passage in the Interstice was at the summit, the summit faced the most attacks. Priest Augustus had already decided that if things went south, he would risk exposing his identity and use the power of an Angel to stop it all. Thus, his current solemn prayer was also born of a heavy heart.
"If sacrificing myself can save everything, I am willing to be the sacrifice. I only hope that this time, Shade doesn't come to save me again."
As he thought this, someone from outside brought new news. A powerful sword-wielding Ring-caster had appeared in the Natural Church of the Interstice and brought brand new intelligence regarding Joey Barton. After the Church verified the information and confirmed its accuracy, they needed to prepare the ritual in advance before the final undead riot.
"A powerful sword-wielding Ring-caster..."
Because his hearing was too exceptional within the Interstice, Priest Augustus accidentally overheard this intelligence. Immediately, the image of that young detective popped into his head. For no particular reason, he was almost certain that the person who appeared in the Natural Church of the Interstice was Shade Hamilton.
"What on earth is Shade trying to do? Could it be that this time, I'm the one who has to save him?"