The huge black sailboat, carrying an invisible pressure, cut through the waves on the Berserk Sea. Lanterns hanging from the mast swayed and flickered, illuminating the nearly hundred-meter-long ship with three pitch-black sails.
Louise stood near the cabin, carefully setting down the unconscious Elaine she had been carrying, and casually caught the diamond-encrusted bracelet. She looked up at the two-to-three-meter-tall mottled stone chair in front of her, feeling a bit uneasy.
After a brief silence, "King of Five Seas" Nast, wearing a spire crown and a black robe with silver trim, spoke in a deep, majestic tone:
"No need to be nervous. I also believe in the 'Lord of Order'. This time, I merely have something I need to discuss with this lady, the Puppet."
Louise only relaxed her body after glancing at Sharron, who had emerged from the void and did not refute his words. If not for her trust in Sharron, she would have probably used her trump card to leave the moment Nast appeared.
With a sigh of emotion about how far the influence of that hidden existence had grown in the real world, Louise nodded slightly, pointed to the unconscious Elaine, and explained with a peculiar tone:
"This one should be Vice Admiral Ailment Tracy's mistress. Keep her for now; she might be useful later."
"Also, I trouble Lord Nast to provide a private room for me."
The dark red light in his eyes flickered, and Nast nodded steadily, gently waving his hand. A certain barrier covering the Black Emperor was consequently lifted.
"Viscount of Fear" Byrd Maston, dressed in an intricately patterned Intis-style shirt, respectfully emerged from the shadows and led Louise deeper into the cabin.
When the deck returned to silence, Nast slightly turned his head to look at Sharron, who was silently floating in mid-air, and spoke in a low voice:
"I hope to meet your teacher. This is also a task given to me by that Duke. I hope you can relay it for me."
Sharron's clear, empty eyes shifted slightly, and her voice was ethereal:
"I will relay it, but it might require some waiting…."
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In the deepest part of the magnificent palace filled with dark golden mist, Aaron leaned casually on the throne, watching two objects fly out from the open dark golden doors.
Aaron casually drew over the mass of flesh faintly threaded with spider silk. Holding a divining pendulum, he began to use the bloodline connection between Tracy and Katarina to divine the current location of this Demoness Sect high-ranking member.
The hazy dream world lasted only an instant before shattering. This reaction caused Aaron to suddenly open his eyes, looking playfully at the mass of flesh in his hand, which had detached from its host and was gradually losing its vitality.
Although he was not a pure Seer and only completed the dream divination with the help of a corresponding Mystical Item, his Sequence 3 status and the blessing of the Nation of Disorder were enough to compensate for those shortcomings.
Even if it couldn't compare to Sefirah Castle's boost to divination, as long as it didn't involve an Angel, the results of the divination wouldn't be too far off.
Aaron threw the flesh in his hand onto the pile of sundries. The emerald green "Stone of Life" immediately glowed, engulfing the mass of flesh faintly threaded with spider silk, maintaining its vitality.
In his mind, the blurry image he had divined in that instant appeared:
A vast ruin hidden deep in the Darkness, covered in the dust of history, yet almost perfectly preserved.
"It seems that the Conqueror Beyonder characteristic has already fallen into Katarina's hands. She should be in the Blood Emperor ruins in the outskirts of Backlund now."
"Once the meticulously planned Great Smog event concludes, Katarina will likely leave Backlund and sacrifice it to the Primordial Demoness…."
He exhaled lightly, inexplicably thinking of Tris, who had been forcibly renamed Cheek. Aaron's gaze flickered, and then he took out a gem from the pile of sundries that looked like solidified rich blood—it was the Shaman King Beyonder characteristic harvested from hunting the "Saint Tenebrous".
Watching it disappear into the Sacrifice Door, Aaron casually pressed the other bracelet that Louise had sacrificed onto the "Scepter of Sun".
A wisp of black mist with distorted human faces drifted out, accompanied by sharp, cold wails, finally perishing together in the suddenly dazzling Sun Holy Light.
Casually dispelling the hidden trick Katarina had left in the bracelet, Aaron looked at the Guardian bracelet, whose light was now more restrained, and returned with it to the real world.
Glancing at the crimson moonlight outside the window, Aaron casually placed the Guardian bracelet from his left hand on the table. In his right hand appeared the "Gluttony" mask, which was between illusory and real.
Without hesitation, Aaron placed the mask over his face. After preparing, his spirituality surged into the Night imprint on his wrist.
A darkness emerged, enveloping the bone cross that Adam had given him in Tingen, which bound the grayish-white stone dragon.
After emerging from its hidden state, the grayish-white stone dragon's eyes seemed to ripple. With the help of the Gluttony mask, Aaron's eyes gradually seemed to reflect a splendid yet subdued twilight.
A fleeting sense of weightlessness, as if present yet absent, vanished in an instant. When Aaron recovered, the scene before him had already been turned upside down.
He was in a magnificent mountain range enveloped by a solidified twilight, surrounded by architectural complexes with countless palaces, countless tall towers, and layers of majestic city walls.
They were grand and magnificent, like miracles found only in myths and legends, grand and splendid, layered and encircling. Each one was unusually huge, unlike a place where humans would reside.
Combined, they possessed an indescribable sense of epic, miracle, and myth. In Aaron's impression, only Calderon, deep within Groselle's Travels, evoked a similar feeling.
The twilight light covering the entire world came from a huge cross at the top of the mountain. Seeing the somewhat familiar scene, Aaron paused, then suddenly remembered:
Back in Tingen, Adam and Ouroboros fought on the mountaintop inside the Corpse Cathedral.
However, at that time, he was merely an observer at the foot of the mountain, but now, he had personally entered.
Looking at the manifested steps, Aaron secretly guessed that this might be a world constructed by Adam, using his status as a King of Angels and his nascent Divine Kingdom as a foundation.
But without the power of Sefirah, how could such a dream world spanning an entire continent escape the detection of the major Churches?
As this question arose in his mind, Aaron looked to his side. Hermes, with a gentle expression, quietly appeared, and his convincing, calm voice sounded:
"The meeting has begun. You just follow me. That mask can help you conceal your specialness here."
Begun? Aaron's expression froze slightly, guessing that he might have stayed in the Nation of Disorder for too long. However, he didn't explain, only quietly followed behind Hermes, walking up the steps towards the peak where the cross stood.
The closer he got to the mountaintop, the more clearly Aaron saw that beyond the sky enveloped in twilight light, there was a deep ocean composed of countless obscure lights, flickering on and off.
This is… Before Aaron's voice could drop, Hermes, who was walking ahead, spoke gently:
"This is the deepest part of the Sea of Collective Subconscious. Only here can the Divine Kingdom of that Creator from the Second Epoch be conjured into reality by relying on the second Blasphemy Slate."
Upon hearing this, Aaron couldn't help but glance around, secretly wondering what special things were hidden in the deepest part of the Sea of Collective Subconscious.
Hermes, however, only pointed the way and did not dwell on the topic. He looked back at the Gluttony mask on Aaron's face and said meaningfully:
"The nature of any living being is all-encompassing, with good and evil originating from the same source. Among these, the most special and typical is humanity."
"Each person's personality is composed of many sub-personalities, and each sub-personality is a facet of the main personality. I like to call such sub-personalities 'masks,' which are the personality masks you wear on your face."
"In most cases, personality masks are subordinate to the main personality, but when the main personality is forced into dormancy and a personality mask takes over the main personality's position, it will become the 'leader' that integrates other sub-personalities."
Aaron subconsciously touched the exaggerated mask on his face, which almost reached his ears. His gaze flickered, and he softly asked in return:
"You mean, being corrupted by the True Creator's Degenerate Nature authority is essentially being devoured by another self."
When he asked this question, Aaron couldn't help but think of Adam's situation. Wasn't he an example of being completely replaced by a divine personality? This might also be the reason why he could gain the upper hand in the fusion with the True Creator after achieving the Visionary Sequence in the future.
The seemingly long staircase ended in just a few breaths. When Aaron, wearing the Gluttony mask, appeared on the mountaintop with Hermes, several gazes also turned towards them.
First and foremost was the priest sitting cross-legged beneath the Unshadowed Crucifix, simple and gentle, dressed in a plain white robe.
His eyes, clear and pure as a baby's, seemed to peer through the mask, quietly observing Aaron. A cross pendant hung below his light golden beard.
Having just recovered from his thoughts about Adam, Aaron followed another gaze to a black-haired, blue-eyed, clear and beautiful woman standing not far from the Unshadowed Crucifix.
She wore a simple, holy white robe, but with high slits on both sides, revealing a pair of flawless legs. Her skin was like snow, tender as a young girl's, possessing an indescribable charm.
"Saintess of White" Katarina Pelle!
The name appeared in his mind. Aaron casually withdrew his gaze, seemingly unintentionally glancing at the man standing beside Katarina, also wearing a mask—he was at least an Imperative Mage.
His arrival seemed to have interrupted their ongoing conversation. Katarina, without any concealment, withdrew her gaze and looked back at the simple priest beneath the cross, speaking in a deep voice:
"What needed to be done, I believe we have accomplished. Augustus has already agreed to pay the reward immediately."
"Why haven't you withdrawn the spiritual imprint you left in that Beyonder characteristic? Do you intend to violate the contract we signed? The Primordial Demoness values this matter greatly, which is why I am here today."
Lightly gripping the cross pendant in his hand, Adam slightly tilted his head and explained in a gentle tone:
"As long as that Beyonder characteristic does not leave Backlund, the spiritual imprint will not be triggered. According to the contract signed at that time, as a witness, I only promised to lift the corresponding restrictions after the matter was completed."
"As for what private transactions you have made with Augustus, I will not inquire."
The man with the bronze mask, who was suspected to be a powerful member of the Loen Royal Family, did not expect this Demoness to dare directly question Adam. He was clearly an old member of the Twilight Hermit Order, having witnessed a High-Sequence Beyonder being executed with a mere gesture for allegedly violating the trend of the era.
He immediately stopped Katarina, who was about to say more, and whispered a few words into her ear.
Listening to this brief conversation, Aaron's eyes flickered. It seemed that because he had missed the beginning of the gathering, most of the Twilight Hermit Order members were gathered in twos and threes, scattered throughout the peak.
Strangely, even when they were close, no conversation could be heard, as if they were separated into two worlds by an invisible force.
Hmm, it's a bit like the private chat session of the Council of Entropy… After noticing this, Aaron almost instinctively turned to look at Adam beneath the Unshadowed Crucifix. Katarina's conversation just now was intentionally made audible to him.
Various thoughts flashed through his mind. Aaron paused slightly, looking at Hermes, who was walking ahead, seemingly just guiding him, and spoke in a low voice:
"Mr. Hermes, I want to make a deal with that lady."
Hermes seemed to have anticipated this. Perhaps his Discerner ability was even more powerful under the Sea of Collective Subconscious, detecting Aaron's next thought from mere changes in emotion and body language.
He immediately flashed with Aaron to appear in front of Katarina, nodding gently towards the man with the bronze mask and pointing to Aaron, introducing him in a low voice:
"This is Mr. Gluttony from the Psychology Alchemists. He asked me to introduce him to Ms. Katarina."
Hermes was clearly a unique and special existence within the Twilight Hermit Order; otherwise, George III would not have invited him to guard his mausoleum. With a few words, he sent away that Royal Family demigod.
Katarina's enchanting eyes swept over the newly arrived Mr. Gluttony. She couldn't help but think of Hevin Rambis, who wore the Pride mask, and whispered in a lazy tone:
"Gluttony… Your appetite must be very good. If you have anything, just come directly to me. I promise I can satisfy all your requests."
As expected of the Demoness of Unaging… His heart stirred by her alluring gaze, fortunately, with the aid of the personality mask, Aaron's expression remained unchanged. He suppressed the rising desire in his heart and chuckled lightly:
"I am not Hevin Rambis. These tricks are useless against me."
"I came to you simply to make a deal."
"I have a preserved Demoness of Despair Beyonder characteristic. I wonder if Your Holiness is interested?"
Katarina smoothed her silky hair, her expression somewhat playful:
"Demoness of Despair? It wouldn't be a Beyonder characteristic lost from my Demoness Sect, would it?"
"However, since Mr. Hermes is also here, I will give you face."
"Tell me, what do you want? If you want to try the taste of pleasure, I can consider it, but it might require some time, or you can come to Backlund yourself."