Chapter 65: Safe Travels

Ruins of the Dunke Library.

Afternoon sunlight spilled through the broken dome, casting light on the rubble and damaged books scattered across the floor.

The air was still filled with the scent of dust and burnt paper.

“Tap, tap, tap—”

Footsteps echoed in the silent library as members of the Fifth Department spread out, carefully searching every corner.

Audrey knelt down, picked up a piece of blood-stained paper, and frowned as she examined the blurred text on it.

Blake's white dove circled in the ruins, occasionally letting out a crisp coo.

Vilnia stood in the center of the library, her gaze sweeping over the broken bookshelves and scattered papers around her.

Then, she noticed the altar.

The young woman walked forward quickly, stepping on the altar made of countless stacked books.

In the center of the altar was a cushion made of stacked pages, with bloodstains still on it, and the faint impression of a human figure.

As if someone had once lain on it.

Vilnia knelt down, her trembling fingers gently touching the bloodstain.

The dried blood was dark brown, leaving irregular marks on the paper.

“Rustle—”

A gust of wind blew past, flipping over a few torn pages.

Vilnia's gaze followed, noticing that besides the paper, there was also an empty bottle on the ground.

“This is.... a bottle for a Quintessence supplement.”

Vilnia picked up the glass bottle and examined it carefully.

Just then, Lawrence walked over, slowly pacing around the altar.

His gaze roamed the ground, as if searching for some specific trace.

“Looking at these residual traces of Quintessence....”

Lawrence said thoughtfully, “I'm afraid a Quintessence rampage occurred.”

Hyde also walked over.

He knelt down and picked up a piece of blood-stained paper.

“And more than once.”

Hyde's voice was a bit heavy.

“I can even feel a trace of... the aura of Chaos from it.”

Hearing this, Vilnia's face instantly turned deathly pale.

“What.... does that mean?”

Her voice trembled.

“I'm afraid that in the God's descent ritual yesterday, more than just 【Knowledge】 and 【Red Moon】 cast their gazes.”

Hyde said softly.

“Perhaps, even 【Chaos】 and 【Order】 cast their gazes.”

He stood up, looking around at the surrounding ruins.

“Quintessence rampage, conflict between two gods, gazes of four gods....”

Hyde didn't finish his sentence, but everyone present understood his meaning.

Vilnia's legs suddenly gave out, and she knelt down at the edge of the altar.

Her pale fingers gripped the empty bottle tightly, her knuckles turning white from the force.

“No.... impossible....”

A teardrop fell onto the dried bloodstain.

Audrey walked over and gently supported Vilnia's shoulder.

She wanted to say something, but all words of comfort seemed incredibly pale at this moment.

The white dove circled overhead, letting out a mournful cry.

“Let's go back for now...”

Lawrence said softly, “This place still needs a detailed investigation.”

Vilnia didn't move, her gaze still fixed on the bloodstain.

As if, if she stared long enough, Mel would suddenly appear before her.

But she knew, this was just an expectation that would never be realized.

“Whoosh—”

A gust of wind poured in from the broken dome, sweeping up countless scraps of paper.

The pieces of paper danced in the sunlight, like a silent funeral.

Morning sunlight slanted in through the window, illuminating the chalk dust floating in the classroom.

A brand new lesson plan was placed on the lectern, and the blackboard still had unerased notes from the previous class.

The new teacher stood at the lectern.

She wore a light gray suit, her long black hair tied neatly behind her head.

Her gaze swept across the classroom, noticing the curious or indifferent expressions on the students' faces.

“Good morning, everyone. I am your new literature teacher, Mia Howard.”

Scattered greetings echoed in the classroom.

A girl sitting in the front row raised her hand.

“Teacher, where did Mr. Ridel go?”

Mia paused for a moment, then gave a gentle smile: “Sorry, I'm not too sure either.”

Another boy also raised his hand: “What about Teacher Catherine? When will she be back to be our homeroom teacher?”

“This... I'm not too sure either.”

Mia's smile was a bit strained.

“Alright, let's begin class. First, I need to take attendance to confirm.”

She picked up the roster from the lectern and began reading the names one by one.

Responses of “Here” sounded intermittently in the classroom.

“Mel Rossetti?”

The classroom suddenly fell silent.

After a few seconds, a girl spoke timidly:

“Teacher... Mel... she was killed in the accident last Saturday.”

Mia's finger paused for a moment.

She made a mark on the roster, but her voice remained steady: “Vilnia Randell?”

“Vilnia transferred.”

A boy answered.

“I saw her parents helping her with the transfer procedures this morning.”

Anna made another mark on the roster.

When she looked up, she had resumed her professional smile:

“Alright, let's continue..”

She continued reading the names, as if the silence just now had never happened.

The afterglow of the sunset slanted in through the window, plating the room with a dark red light.

Audrey sat at one end of a long table, an employment application form placed in front of her.

Vilnia sat opposite, her hands clasped in her lap, her gaze calmly fixed on the tabletop.

Audrey looked up, carefully studying the young woman before her.

The collapse from a few days ago was no longer visible on that young face, replaced by a determination that was almost cold.

“Are you sure you want to do this?”

Audrey asked.

“The work of the Fifth Department is very dangerous.”

“No matter how dangerous, could it be more dangerous than last time?”

Vilnia answered calmly.

“You're not old enough.”

“But that pigeon told me before, as long as I agree, you can make an exception.”

The meeting room fell into a brief silence.

Audrey picked up a pen and signed her name on the application form.

Then she passed it to Vilnia.

Vilnia looked down and signed her name on the form.

The ink bloomed on the paper, like the wound in her heart that would never heal.

“Then, from this moment on,” Audrey put away the application form, then extended a hand towards Vilnia.

“Welcome to the Fifth Department, Miss Vilnia Randell.”

Central Station.

At dusk, orange-red sunlight spilled through the glass dome, casting a warm halo over the empty platform.

The roar of a steam train could be heard from afar, mixed with the footsteps of a few travelers.

Mel sat quietly on a bench, her hands clasped in her lap, a suitcase beside her.

The contents of the suitcase were simple—a few clothes, a photo frame, and some spare change.

This was all she had.

“Wooo—”

The train's whistle sounded in the distance, steam forming a white mist above the tracks.

The young woman lowered her head, looking at the silver ring in her hand.

The ring glowed with a soft luster under the setting sun.

The train slowly pulled into the station, the sound of wheels grinding against the rails echoing in the empty station.

Then, she stood up, picked up the simple luggage by her feet, and walked towards the soon-to-open carriage door.

“We're leaving, sister.”

The ruby on the ring flickered slightly, as if in response.

A familiar warmth was seeping into her skin from the band.

In a daze, she heard the lullaby from the depths of her memory, accompanied by the rustling sound of paper.

When she looked down at the gem, she was startled to find extremely fine silver threads flowing within, like ink marks splashed when someone was writing with a pen.

The train's whistle tore through the twilight, and Mel sat down by the window.

As the wheels began to turn, she gently rested her forehead against the cold glass window.

The platform lights swept across her face one by one, casting intersecting patterns of light and shadow on the glass.

In a daze, it looked like the shadow of someone writing.

As the train began to accelerate, Mel unconsciously turned the silver ring on her finger.

Ripples suddenly appeared inside the ruby, and a faint scent of ink wafted past her nose—just like the scent that rushed out every time she pushed open her sister's study door.

The twilight flowed into winding ink marks outside the window.

For a moment, the light and shadow reflected on the glass actually outlined the long, slender knuckles of someone writing with a pen.

Mel pressed her forehead against the cool windowpane, her breath fogging the surface.

When the mist dissipated, the ring suddenly became warm.

On the steamy train window, the wet condensation was slowly forming a line of cursive script:

【Safe Travels】