Chapter 83: Two Places

Chapter 83: Two Places

Ever since the war had deepened, Loen soldiers had seen far too many unscientific and unnatural phenomena—so many that they had become somewhat numb to them. Yet the sight of these mangled corpses crawling to their feet one after another still shocked them, leaving them horrified and bewildered. It gave them the feeling that they, too, would not be spared, and would eventually become living corpses.

Of course, there was a reason they could still maintain morale after witnessing so many unscientific and unnatural phenomena without collapsing.

Just as great fear rose in their hearts, waves of chanting came from behind them:

“They lie all night naked, without clothing, and have no covering in the cold.

“…

“Evernight did not abandon them, and granted them Her favor.”[1]

The sacred, compassionate prayer echoed across the entire defensive line, causing every soldier’s fear to rapidly dissipate. Their bodies and minds became tranquil.

Then, some of the soldiers followed orders, bringing out cannon shells covered in silver patterns. They adjusted the muzzles, aiming at the mass of incomplete corpses surging toward them.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Amid constant flashes of fire, shell after shell landed in different parts of the battlefield and exploded, releasing dense darkness.

Those incomplete corpses were either directly destroyed or collapsed powerlessly, returning one after another to eternal sleep.

Behind the resistance army, the mysterious person wearing a black robe and hood raised both arms, as though wanting to embrace the crimson moon high in the sky.

At that moment, his body suddenly turned illusory and took on a faint red glow, becoming a hazy beam of moonlight.

That moonlight shattered instantly, turning into piece after piece of red scale that scattered and vanished from where he had stood.

Moonlight Transformation!

This was a Beyonder power already possessed by Sequence 5 Crimson Scholars of the Apothecary pathway. For a Sequence 4 Witch King, it had practically become instinct.

Where that Witch King had been standing, a figure swiftly outlined itself.

It was an enormous rag doll. Its hair was golden, its eyes crimson, and it wore a black gothic dress engraved with countless mysterious patterns and entangled with sinister vines. Its skin lacked the luster that humans should possess.

Reinette Tinekerr!

What She had summoned using the Staff of the Stars was Herself in complete condition.

Naturally, the Staff of the Stars Klein had lent Miss Messenger was the true Staff of the Stars, brought from above the gray fog to the real world in advance.

If not, it would have meant Klein’s historical projection summoning the Staff of the Stars’ projection, and then that projection of the Staff of the Stars summoning Reinette Tinekerr at Her past peak state. All of that burden would have fallen upon Magician Forsi, causing her spirituality to be drained dry very quickly.

By temporarily handing the true Staff of the Stars to Reinette Tinekerr, that problem could be effectively avoided. The spirituality consumed would be borne by this ancient evil thing Herself.

At the same time, Reinette Tinekerr was also one of the beings least afraid of the Staff of the Stars’ negative effects.

As the representative of the temperance faction, as a Puppet and a rag doll, She could make sure no image surfaced inside Her mind. And after She shifted into a concealed state, it would also become very difficult for the Staff of the Stars to influence Her historical projection.

Just now, Reinette Tinekerr in Her complete state had attempted to approach in concealment and directly possess and control the Rose School of Thought’s Witch King, ending the battle in an instant. Yet the other party had somehow sensed danger in advance and, by relying on the moonlight, escaped Wraith possession one step early.

Beneath the crimson radiance that covered the earth, pieces of red scale rapidly reassembled in the distance…