At this point, "Moon" Emlyn was completely baffled. What "Rose of Redemption"? What "Angel of Fate"? What "breaking the cycle"? What "Gear Book"? Everything was outside the bounds of his knowledge. He could understand every individual word, yet strung together, none of it made sense to him.
They had just been discussing demigod-level topics—how did an angel suddenly get involved? Could it be that this seemingly young "Sun", under The Fool's guidance, had escaped from the hands of an angel?
Emlyn tried to piece things together based on the tiny slivers he did understand.
On the other side, Ebner followed up on "Sun's" words and asked, "What exactly happened?"
Derrick didn't conceal anything and recounted the multiple expeditions he and his Silver City companions had taken, just like in the original story. He also repeated in full what the boy Jack from Enmat Port had said during each "cycle."
This made the other Tarot Club members—excluding "Moon" and "Tower"—both curious and uneasy. They were curious about how the "Land Abandoned by the Gods" could connect with the normal world and worried that the devouring darkness surrounding Silver City might keep spreading, eventually engulfing both the Northern and Southern Continents and all five seas.
The only difference from the original account lay in Jack's description of the Gear Book.
A fallen mountain peak, a ruined tower, and the only intact part within that tower—a Gear Book capable of resisting the cycle of fate… And Jack's father had mentioned "a group of sinners who defied the Lord" and a "Fallen Star"...
Fallen Star… Morning Star Fallen from Grace? After hearing "Sun's" explanation, Ebner immediately made a few connections, then recalled the two occult techniques embedded in that extraordinary item: "Ivans' Veil of Secrecy" and "Vaulite's Perfect Restoration."
"Ivans' Veil of Secrecy" worked even better within the dark domain… and the Land Abandoned by the Gods was filled with darkness.
"Vaulite's Perfect Restoration" could to a certain degree resist losing control and even reverse the mutations brought by contamination… In the normal world, this would just be a better kind of healing spell…
But now that he thought about it, in the Land Abandoned by the Gods, for the survivors forced to consume monster flesh and suffer the deformities and torment brought by corruption, this ability was nothing short of divine magic!
Silver City still had black-faced grass, so the problem wasn't too severe for them. Back when I introduced the Fallen Morning Star at the Tarot Club, I only mentioned it briefly—so Little Sun didn't react much… But if it had been someone from Moon City, they probably would've begged me for the construction method of that occult art already.
So now, I'm almost certain: these two secret arts must have come from a transmigrator who ended up in the Land Abandoned by the Gods. The Calamity Seal probably found the inheritance of these two arts from the Unknown Lands or elsewhere, and then passed them to Roselle to forge into an extraordinary item…
The name Fallen Morning Star—most likely also chosen by the Calamity Seal!
But Ivans and Vaulite… Which one of them was the transmigrator? Or maybe his full name was Ivans Vaulite?
Ebner gave a slight shake of his head and continued pondering over the circumstances in which "Sun" said they had found the Gear Book:
A fallen mountain peak… ruined architecture… a half-collapsed tower…
Could the transmigrator have cut out a mountain from the Land Abandoned by the Gods to build a floating city?
Could the so-called "Ivans' Veil of Secrecy" actually be part of the barrier protecting the floating city?
Just as Ebner was making unfounded guesses, Klein also thought of the "Fallen Morning Star" necklace. Although his understanding of the secret arts within wasn't as deep as Ebner's, he directly deduced that the creator of that "Gear Book," and even the so-called "Fallen Star," were all referring to "Liu Bo."
But why is Mr. "Tower" looking for the Gear Book? He even used "Prophecy"… Is it a task from the Earth Mother?
At that moment, "Sun" happened to finish summarizing what the Chief had told him about the eight Kings of Angels. He speculated that Amon might be the "Angel of Time," one of those Kings, while the one who created the "Cycle of Destiny" would be the "Angel of Fate," Ulotheus.
In response, "Justice," "Hanged Man," "Magician," and the others all nodded silently. They had already heard Mr. "Tower" speak of the Kings of Angels before. They were simply glad to have learned the name and title of another one.
Only "Moon" responded with a blank expression...
Although the blood race had a long history and long lives, and knew quite a bit about the era before the Great Cataclysms, that knowledge was mostly centered around the period before the Progenitor fell into slumber. It didn't involve the so-called "Kings of Angels."
Emlyn looked around and found that apart from "Tower," who was lost in thought, everyone else seemed to understand what was being said… He couldn't help but grit his teeth in frustration. Once I get back, I have to get more of Roselle's diary from the priest and the Iron-arm lady. Next time at the Tarot Gathering, I have to figure all of this out.
At that moment, "The Fool" Klein noticed everyone glancing discreetly in his direction, seemingly trying to get more information about the other "Kings of Angels" from him. So he let "The Fool" speak up first and said with a faint smile, "You will come into contact with them one after another in the future."
Although I know more than you all about the 'Red Angel' and the 'Angel of Imagination,' if I only mention those two and keep the rest hidden, it'll look even more suspicious, and could make Mr. Fool look less dignified.
When "Sun" Derrick heard that, he was somewhat disappointed, but he quickly adjusted his mood. Then, as if remembering something, he turned to Mr. "Tower" beside him and said with some difficulty, "Mr. 'Tower,' although the Gear Book is currently with me, I'll definitely be subject to a thorough inspection before returning to Silver City… I probably won't be able to hide it then… And I won't have any opportunity to 'sacrifice' it to Mr. 'Fool' on the way."
Hearing this, Ebner returned from his thoughts. After thinking for a moment, he smiled and said, "No need to worry. It's fine to leave the Gear Book in Silver City for the time being.
"But just as Mr. 'Hanged Man' and I predicted, once you return, Elder Lovia, who had been imprisoned, will almost certainly be released. The supervision over you will also be relaxed—but following that, there will be plenty of tests."
"Hanged Man" Alger nodded as well. He glanced at Ebner and added, "At that time, you'll need to display some value appropriately.
"Make your Chief believe that the power backing you can truly contend with the Fallen Creator behind Elder Lovia."
"How should I show that?" "Sun" Derrick asked earnestly.
"Hanged Man" Alger didn't answer but instead looked to "Tower," confident the latter had already made plans.
Ebner smiled and said, "Start by trying to negotiate an exchange for the Gear Book.
"You can ask your Chief whether Silver City needs a secret art that can purge the 'pollution' accumulated in the body, heal deformities, and restore people to normal."
Passing secret arts to Silver City also fit with his role as the "Mysticism Magister."
(End of Chapter)