Chapter 5: Chapter 5: This Week
"Mr. Door!"
The title resonated deeply with Astella's heart, as she knew that the god at the peak of the Apprentice pathway, the one referred to as Sequence 0, was called "Door"!
Could he be the true god of the Apprentice pathway? Was he an ancestor of the Abraham family or an enemy? Why was he trapped? Did he know about the Full Moon Murmurs?
A powerful being at the top of the sequence could easily exert influence on those lower in the same pathway. If a near-godly figure intended to destroy all descendants of the Abraham family, it would be no challenge for them to cause those descendants to hear maddening, uncontrollable murmurs. And since this entity was currently trapped, perhaps the "Full Moon" was his means of breaking through the seal, establishing contact with the outside world!
—Although in this world, different languages have varied pronunciations for "he," "she," or "it," a true god—or any being proclaiming godhood—could very well transcend such distinctions. But as someone from a materialistic background, Astella was not quite used to using the term "It" for a divine figure. After all, according to the Blasphemy Slate, gods were once human to some extent.
"Heh, if I dared to stand before the Lord of Storms and declare, 'I believe our souls are equal!' I wonder how he would react... Probably smite me on the spot... But transcendent beings above demi-god level leave strong spiritual imprints in their Beyonder characteristics, and they're almost impossible to fully kill. So, in that sense, maybe our souls aren't so equal after all."
Setting the diary aside, Astella contemplated that she still didn't have enough information. If she could gather more intel about "Mr. Door," maybe she could confirm the connection between this entity and the Abraham family's "Full Moon Curse."
"It seems I need to collect more of the Emperor's diaries. I can't just rely on my classmates; I'll have to ask Andrew and the others to take me to one of those occult gatherings hosted by wild Beyonder individuals and try my luck there..."
Astella had never attended such gatherings before since she didn't lack knowledge, potion formulas, or materials, nor did she have any immediate need for magical items. But since she had agreed to explore that ruin, she needed to prepare something by next Friday, their agreed-upon date.
The days passed one by one. During this time, Astella asked Andrew to take her to an underground occult gathering—and there she found both Gerald and Lena. The masked, cloaked atmosphere almost felt like a masquerade party. The gathering's mysterious air quickly transformed into something more like a high school club outing.
She noticed a certain "Mr. A," cloaked and shrouded in shadow. Her spiritual intuition told her this was a powerful Beyonder being.
"Mr. A is a divine messenger for the Aurora Order," Andrew explained, knowing she wasn't keen on reading the papers. "The Aurora Order is a cult that worships an evil god. Not long ago, they assassinated the Intis ambassador to Backlund and publicly claimed responsibility."
"How terrifying..." Astella whispered, feigning a typical girl's response with a half-covered mouth.
Inwardly, though, she thought: "Impressive… This was in Backlund! And the Intis ambassador would have been surrounded by Beyonder protectors. Could he have been Sequence 5? At least Sequence 6 with special, powerful sealed artifacts… The Aurora Order wasn't even mentioned in the information my mother left behind. Is this a new organization from the Fifth Epoch?"
The four high school students found a spot to sit in the corner. Astella noticed that Mr. A's gaze lingered on her for a moment, then shifted to Lena. Not being a member of the "Audience" pathway, Astella couldn't interpret his intentions.
A subtle fragrance reached her nose. Astella turned slightly, realizing that Lena, with her orange-red hair, had leaned in close and whispered, "Don't mind him. I've heard Mr. A has a thing for attractive women… or even men. If someone offers their body, he might even exchange rare potion formulas or Beyonder materials for it..."
Astella felt a shiver of disgust.
She didn't dare glance back at Mr. A, but inwardly, she worried for naive Lena.
—A Sequence 6, or even Sequence 5 Beyonder, how likely is it that they wouldn't overhear a mere whisper from an ordinary person?
Lena even wore perfume to an underground gathering! The number of Beyonder pathways that could track someone by scent was vast! Potion names for mid-to-low sequences raced through Astella's mind, making her shrink inwardly with secondhand dread.
Would Lena be silently killed after this gathering? Mr. A had the audacity to assassinate an ambassador and escape unscathed! Should I follow Lena after the gathering to ensure her safety? Astella nervously spun the gemstone ring on her index finger as these thoughts ran through her mind.
The ring was one of several left by her mother. After studying them, Astella realized that these little trinkets were more like single-use charms than magical items. The activation word was "door" in Ancient Hermes, and their only function was "spiritual realm travel"!
If in doubt, flee! Even against a high-sequence being, if they didn't act fast enough, there was a chance of escape!
"A perfect tool for running away… It's just a pity that I can't control the destination yet. I have to rely on my spiritual intuition to find a relatively safe spot within the short time the charm is active."
"When I'm skilled enough to control my destination, I'll be a Traveler, and I won't need these charms anymore..."
Astella decided that if Lena really was in danger, she'd pull her into the spiritual realm with one of the rings. After all, it was just something she had "acquired from an Beyonder gathering." Of course, she wouldn't forget to charge her, at least 200 pounds.
"May the Storm be with her…" Astella, a casual follower of the Goddess, silently thumped her chest in prayer for Lena.
Luckily, the imagined tragedy didn't occur. Perhaps Mr. A didn't hear, or perhaps he was magnanimous. Astella wrote on a slip of paper, "Buying charms or magical items related to the Sun pathway, price negotiable," while Lena wrote, "Seeking Sequence 9 Lawyer potion formula, budget 250 pounds, willing to discuss." The two young men were mainly there for company and didn't have much to offer.
Unfortunately, neither woman found what they were looking for that day. Astella did manage to buy three pages of Emperor Empire Roselle's diary for 15 pounds, down from the original price of 20 pounds after a bit of haggling.
"Sigh, if I convert this based on purchasing power from our world, it's like I just casually spent over 10,000 yuan on an outing. Such luxury..." Astella lamented inwardly.
Thankfully, her mother's inheritance was substantial, and both she and Martha lived frugally, so they were fine for now.
"Maybe at some point, I can persuade Martha to invest some of our savings in bonds, bank stocks, and reliable funds. Hmm, investing might be more cautious, but we could put some into inventions that align with future trends..."
While Astella indulged in dreams of money making money, the Beyonder gathering came to a close. One by one, the attendees left, staggering their departures to avoid suspicion.
During the week, Astella had also tried her hand at cooking dishes from her home country, much to the delight of her friends—thanks to Emperor Empire Roselle, it wasn't hard to find ingredients like soy sauce and oyster sauce in Intis supermarkets. The final result wasn't perfect, but it was flavorful enough to dazzle the taste buds of the Ruen "food ignoramuses." Even Gerald, who often quipped, "Aren't women supposed to be good at this?" was too busy eating to make his usual complaints.
In the new pages of Empire Roselle's diary, the emperor hinted at discovering the "Law of Extraordinary Characteristic Aggregation" and the "Law of Aggregation for Adjacent Pathways" through the policies of orthodox churches and his own experiences. He also mentioned disguising his second "Blasphemy Card" as a bookmark. These revelations weren't new to Astella, nor could she pursue them further at this time. What she had hoped for—information about "Mr. Door"—remained elusive.
Friday soon arrived
...
"Astella?" Andrew, with his handsome looks and sunny disposition, gazed at the girl in front of him. "We're acting this afternoon, and you've asked to meet me alone. Is there something specific you want to tell me?"
Astella still appeared a bit listless. Today, she wore a dark navy sherpa-lined coat, black Empire Roselle-style casual pants, and a pair of comfortable Martin boots suitable for movement. Her long, deep purple hair was braided and hung down her back. This gave her an ethereal and serene aura, a stark contrast to her previous gloomy and distant demeanor.
Over the past week, Astella had become much closer to the group. Though she still spoke little and, when she did, much of what she said was difficult to understand, she no longer seemed entirely closed off, nor did she seem to have given up hope on life altogether.
"She's starting to pay attention to her outfits, and her style is so different from what the Ruen ladies are wearing these days… more like the Empire Roselle casual fashion from over a century ago."
Andrew mulled this over as he rubbed his nose.
Originally, he was certain his feelings were for the vibrant and charming Lena. But as the group's bond strengthened over the past week, Andrew realized that perhaps Astella, with her cool and scholarly demeanor, was equally captivating…
"Stop it, Andrew, you can't keep thinking like this. Astella asked to meet for something important!" Andrew silently reprimanded himself.
Astella, of course, had no idea what was going on in his mind. She glanced at his amber-like light brown eyes and then removed a beeswax gemstone ring from her index finger and handed it to him. She had worn a ring on each of her hands today, and her pockets held two more.
After much deliberation, Astella had decided to lend Andrew one of the rings that carried a teleportation ability—trusting him the most out of all her companions.
As for why she wasn't distributing a ring to each person—these were her mother's legacy, and each one she used meant one less. Additionally, she reasoned that in most situations, two people could ensure the safety of the others. After careful consideration, this was the decision she had made.
Also, teleportation charms were not something you could easily buy on the market, and the gemstones used as magical materials were worth hundreds of pounds. Naturally, Astella worried about whether the others might be tempted by greed. So she only wore two rings herself, implying that after giving one away, she had no more left.
In response to Andrew's mix of surprise, nervousness, and even a slight blush, Astella remained expressionless as she said, "This is a charm with teleportation abilities. When the time comes, take it off, hold it in your hand, and infuse it with spiritual energy. The incantation to activate it is the ancient Hermes word for 'door.' If we run into something we can't handle, you're responsible for taking the other two guys and 'traversing the spirit world.'"
"Oh, oh..." Andrew instinctively took the ring but quickly realized what he was holding. "No, this... this is too valuable..."
Astella gave him a glance and added, "I'm just lending it to you. If we don't use it today, return it to me on Monday. If you do use it, the cost is 600 pounds, to be split between the four of you."
"Alright," Andrew nodded after a brief moment of daze. He slipped the ring—its gemstone radiating an undeniable value—onto his pinky finger.
Instead of feeling disappointed, he was relieved. This arrangement brought him a sense of security.
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