Gaga’s pupils shrank. It immediately stopped recording and, with a flicker, melted into the shadows in the corner.
A moment later, the metal door was pushed open, and a figure walked in.
Edmund was wearing a dark gray robe, holding a glass of red wine.
His face was devoid of expression, his eyes as still as a pool of stagnant water.
He walked to the stone altar and set down the wine glass.
His gaze fell upon the open tome, his fingers unconsciously tracing the edges of its pages.
A long time passed.
He suddenly spoke, his voice low, as if talking to himself.
"Just one last step..."
He bent down and took out a crystal vial from a hidden compartment beneath the stone altar.
The vial contained a dark red liquid, thick as blood.
Deep within the liquid, something could be seen vaguely squirming.
Edmund uncorked the vial and slowly poured the liquid onto the runes covering the altar’s surface.
HISSS...
The moment the liquid touched the runes, a cloud of black smoke billowed up.
The smoke carried a thick, foul stench, like rotting flesh mixed with sulfur.
The runes on the stone altar began to glow, emitting a dark red light the color of dried blood.
The light grew brighter and brighter, finally coalescing into a phantom image above the stone altar.
It was a twisted spiral with three dark red dots at its center.
It was identical to the one drawn in the tome.
Edmund stared at the phantom image, the corners of his lips slowly curling upward.
The smile... was cold, frenzied, and held a kind of near-devout fascination.
"Soon..."
he whispered, reaching out toward the phantom image.
The moment his fingertips touched the surface of the image, his skin began to wither and shrivel,
as if all the moisture had been sucked out of it.
But his face showed no pain. Instead, he wore an expression of pleasure.
’Once the altar is complete and the Time Trace Bloodline fuses with the Abyssal Power... I will embark on a brand-new Path of the Morning Star!’
His voice grew softer and softer, eventually trailing off into mumbled ravings.
From the shadows in the corner, Gaga held its breath, even though it didn’t need to.
Its small claws gripped the Recording Crystal tightly, recording the entire scene.
Edmund stood before the stone altar for over ten minutes, only withdrawing his hand after the phantom image had slowly dissipated.
His fingertips had returned to normal, though a dark red mark now traced across his skin’s surface.
It looked as if ink had seeped into his veins.
He picked up the wine glass, drained it in one go, then turned and walked out of the secret room.
The metal door slowly closed behind him.
Gaga waited another five minutes. Once it confirmed Edmund was long gone, it emerged from the shadows.
Clutching the Recording Crystal in its small claws, its body flickered and merged into the shadow under the door.
Following the same path back, it silently floated to the study.
It slipped out of the hole in the picture frame and used a feather to perfectly patch the film of light.
It crossed the long corridor and slipped out of the main building.
Finally, it emerged from the shadow of the wall and returned to the alley.
The entire process went by without alerting a single soul.
In the shadows of the alley, Ian opened his eyes.
The feed from Gaga’s vision on the other end of the Soul Link had disconnected.
But he had "seen" the final part of the recording.
The stone altar, the runes, the tome... and Edmund’s cold, frenzied face.
A slight weight settled on his shoulder.
Gaga was back. Its small claws tightly gripped his collar, its body trembling slightly.
"Ian..."
Its childlike voice echoed through the Soul Link, tinged with lingering fear.
"That man... he’s terrifying. As terrifying as you."
Ian reached out and gently stroked its head. The feathers were cool to the touch, carrying a residual chill from its Shadow Shuttling.
Ian knew what Gaga meant. It was saying that Edmund’s Power was terrifying.
"You did very well."
He took the Recording Crystal from Gaga’s claws. The crystal felt heavy in his hand, a faint silver light swirling within.
He sent his Spiritual Power into the crystal.
Instantly, the scene from the secret room replayed in his mind.
...right up until Edmund poured out the dark red liquid.
’Essence Blood, tainted by the Abyss...’
Ian muttered to himself, his eyes as cold as frost.
He recognized it. The liquid had been refined from the blood of Abyssal Creatures.
Its purity wasn’t high, but it was enough to activate a crude altar.
Edmund was trying to construct an Abyssal Altar, but his knowledge on the subject was far inferior to Ian’s.
He was taking an unorthodox approach, researching how to fuse Abyssal Power... with the Justice Clan’s Time Trace Bloodline.
’This is the bloodline of a Morning Star Wizard from the Wizard World!’
’That’s enough to attract a sliver of attention from the Will of the Abyss.’
’I see...’
Ian put away the Recording Crystal and looked toward the distant, dark gray manor.
The night was deep, and only a few scattered lights shone from the manor.
It looked like a giant beast crouching in the darkness, its cold eyes wide open.
’I can be sure of it now. The Abyssal seed inside Titus... was planted by Edmund.’
He frowned slightly, not quite understanding Edmund’s motive.
’You can’t be that stupid, can you? Trying to rely on the Abyss to forge a new path of Rule?’
Ian couldn’t figure it out for now, but he knew this matter had to be investigated thoroughly.
It wasn’t just because the Clan Leader was Aidele’s father.
It was also because of... the Abyss.
Every time he activated the >, he was fleecing the Abyss for all it was worth.
Every time he performed a Purification on an Abyssal Aura, the panel would give him rewards.
A karmic link had long since been forged between him and the Abyss.
And Edmund... could be a new opening.
"Let’s go."
Ian turned and melted into the darkness at the far end of the alley.
Gaga perched on his shoulder, its silver-gray eyes vigilantly scanning their surroundings.
The man and the bird soon vanished into the city’s labyrinth of alleyways.
All that remained was the distant manor, silent in the night.
Like a tomb, burying secrets unknown to the world.
「By the time they returned to No. 12 Golden Oak Street, it was late at night.」
Only a single wall lamp was lit in the laboratory, its dim yellow glow casting long shadows across the stone slab floor.
Ian sat at a lab bench, his fingertips tapping gently on its surface.
The Recording Crystal lay at hand, the light within it now dim.
But the images in his mind only grew sharper.
Edmund’s face, the runes on the stone altar, the vial of dark red liquid...
...and the inky-black tendril in Clan Leader Titus Justice’s Sea of Spirit as he slumbered.
’The same source...’
He repeated the phrase under his breath, his gaze profound.
Gaga tilted its head from his shoulder and asked quietly, "Ian, are we going to tell Aidele?"
Ian was silent for a long time before finally shaking his head.
"We can give her a warning, but we need to hold on to the crystal for now."
He looked out the window. The stars were sparse in the night sky, and the moonlight was hidden by clouds.
’This matter runs too deep. Aidele needs to focus on building her influence right now; she can’t afford any distractions.’
Besides... He touched the Dimensional Ring on his chest, where the Recording Crystal was stored.
’I can’t explain how I detected the Abyssal Aura, not on Clan Leader Titus and not on Edmund.’
’Only someone with an extremely deep understanding of the Abyss could have detected such a similar aura.’
’And where did Edmund get his knowledge about Abyssal Altars?’
’I only found a dilapidated altar by chance back in the Underworld.’
’If the panel hadn’t helped me, the grass on my grave would be three feet tall by now.’
’An Abyssal Altar isn’t something a Level Two Wizard should be able to build.’
’Most importantly, there’s my panel...’
’This existence, which not even Gaga knows about, is the foundation of all my Power.’
’Every time I perform a Purification on an Abyssal Aura, the panel gives me a reward.’
’Every time I activate the >, I’m stealing the Rules of the Abyss.’
’If this attracts the intervention of a Power at Level Three or above... and it gets traced back to me...’
Ian didn’t dare imagine the consequences. The Central Continent’s taboo against the Abyss was bone-deep.
Any trace related to the Abyss would trigger the most severe purge.
He couldn’t take that risk.
"But..."
Gaga gently pecked his ear with its beak, its voice in the link filled with worry.
"That man is researching something so horrible. If Aidele doesn’t know..."
"It’s enough for her to know there’s a danger."
Ian soothed Gaga, his tone in the link calm.
"We’ll watch from the shadows for now. Once the time is right..."