CHAPTER 842: THE GOD’S CASKET

Beneath the "sky of spirituality," composed of seven distinct-colored beams of pure brilliance, each containing boundless knowledge, Ebner and Audrey rode atop a phantasmal "dragon of the mind," beginning their adventure.

Light and shadow from the sea of the collective subconscious occasionally flashed past their eyes—some containing ancient memories of burns by fire, others carrying the extreme pain of gazing upon something unspeakable...

Beyond the marks left by the ancients and early humans, Audrey also saw many affectionate gazes directed toward her and glimpses of folk rituals worshiping giant dragons.

Soon, they soared over the path Audrey had previously walked with her own legs, nearing a grayish-white mountain whose peak was shrouded in misty brilliance, both clear and dreamlike.

"It’s inside one of the caves on this mountain... But it looks different from last time... I can’t find the mark I left..." Audrey furrowed her brow after gazing downward from the dragon’s back for a while.

Ebner wasn’t surprised by this. After all, they were in the collective subconscious, where people’s thoughts constantly shifted. It had already been a week, so it was only natural for there to be some changes.

After a moment of thought, he took out two pre-prepared items from his pocket: a flattened golden goblet and a roll of yellow-brown parchment.

If the one Audrey had previously encountered really was the Queen of Calamity, then these two items should resonate with her in some way.

Audrey was startled when she saw the book inscribed in Elvish with the words "Book of Calamity," as it had previously been placed beside Mr. Fool.

So, Mr. Fool is actually paying attention to this expedition between Mr. Tower and me?

With that realization, Audrey’s spirits lifted, and she grew visibly more excited.

As the spiritual seals on the two items were lifted, both Ebner and Audrey suddenly heard a faint song coming from afar.

The song was ethereal and airy, like a woman softly humming a melancholic tune, pouring out the sorrow in her heart.

Ebner unknowingly fell into a strange illusion. Scenes of devastated homelands filled his vision, and a sorrow beyond words surged uncontrollably from the depths of his heart. Only when the "Pure White Eye" activated on its own did it block out the sensation.

Taking a few deep breaths, Ebner turned to look at Audrey and found that the emotionally sensitive lady was already in tears, though she hadn’t become as deeply entranced as he had.

The song affected me more than Audrey?

Ebner reflected and listened again.

But this time, he heard nothing. The haunting melody seemed to have never existed.

"I suddenly remembered the moment my grandmother passed away... Forgive my rudeness," Audrey said as she regained her composure, wiping her tears with a handkerchief.

"It’s all right..." Ebner waved it off, then observed for a moment with the "Pure White Eye" before pointing toward a fork on the left side of the mountain. "I’ve found the source of the song!"

That earlier singing had used Elvish—a language that inherently possessed "power"—so it inevitably left traces as it spread...

And any trace was difficult to escape the scrutiny of the "Pure White Eye."

Thus, Ebner and Audrey guided the manifested "dragon of the mind," following the traces left by the sound. Very soon, they found the crystal cave Audrey had previously described in the Tarot Club.

No—rather than calling it a cave, it was more accurate to say it was a palace hidden within one.

At the center of this palace, a woman sat alone upon a throne, gazing in the direction of the entrance, as if waiting for something.

Approaching cautiously, Ebner studied the woman for a few moments and found that she matched Miss Justice’s description: her hair was glossy black, her features delicate, her eyes hollow, her facial contours soft, and she wore an ornate and ancient-looking gown that exuded an air of long-held authority.

But just then, her previously vacant gaze suddenly became vivid. She slightly turned her head and looked at the Book of Calamity in Ebner’s hand.

"I... feel familiar..." the woman said, enunciating each word slowly in Elvish.

She only finds the Book of Calamity familiar, but doesn’t react to the golden goblet at all... If she truly is High Elven Queen Cohinem, then she must be the portion Roselle split from the Book of Calamity, not the part that escaped from the goblet on her own, as I’d guessed...

So, was it Roselle who hid her here? Is this the bargaining chip he prepared to "threaten" me with?

Having made this initial judgment, Ebner felt quite puzzled, but he still gently placed the Book of Calamity in front of the woman and said kindly, "I wonder if this book is of any use to you?"

The woman stared at the Book of Calamity for a long time before finally shaking her head. "I can’t remember more... I only feel a sense of familiarity..."

Roselle severed her and the traits originally belonging to her in the Book of Calamity completely? Cut off their connection on the level of information? Is this the authority of the ’Emperor of Knowledge’?

With that in mind, Ebner activated the "Pure White Eye" again, intending to observe the woman’s specific form of existence.

However, just as the passage to the "Unknown Land" began to form, the eyes of the woman—suspected to be the Queen of Calamity—suddenly deepened. Then she spoke a single word:

"Luck!"

Luck? As in the God of Luck? That Second Epoch Elven god really was a transmigrator brought by the "Pure White Eye"?

Ebner furrowed his brow and asked, "What do you mean by ’Luck’?"

But the woman gave no answer. She just stared at him blankly, repeating the Elvish word for "Luck" over and over. Her emotions grew increasingly agitated, and the entire crystal palace began to tremble.

At this moment, Audrey had no choice but to step forward and perform a "Soothing," which finally calmed the woman down again.

Seeing this, Ebner paused in thought, then took out the crystal box with Elven-style design that he had retrieved from the First Bank.

—Though it belonged to Fors, the "Magician" lady had agreed without hesitation when Ebner asked to study it for a while.

The moment the empty box was produced, the woman seated on the throne—presumed to be the Queen of Calamity—shuddered violently. Her entire demeanor seemed to become far more lucid.

Next, she looked at Ebner with a complicated expression for several seconds before speaking haltingly once more:

"Beware... of the other me... She’s already... completely insane!

"Luck’s friend... severed my connection to the Book of Calamity... blocked my memories... hid me here... helped me escape her..."

As she spoke, she glanced again at the empty box, her tone rising involuntarily as she continued:

"The ’God’s Casket’... it’s empty?

"It must have been... her doing!"

(End of Chapter)