Chapter 539

Franca and Jenna's first reaction was to quickly avoid it. In this deep underground, in the dead silence where corpses were everywhere, encountering any living person was worth being vigilant about.

But under the current circumstances, they couldn't avoid it, because they had to hold a lit white candle to keep from being swallowed by the darkness of the catacombs. In such an environment, candlelight was so conspicuous that it could be seen from far away, unless they ducked into some ancient tomb and completely sealed the tomb door, which was the only way to truly hide themselves.

Likewise, they didn't dare to 'turn invisible' or hide in the shadows, not sure if that would count as extinguishing the candle.

After looking at each other, Franca and Jenna chose to take a detour, keeping as much distance as possible from the cluster of candlelight coming from afar.

In the oppressive atmosphere where it was so quiet that time seemed to have stopped, the two 'Witches' relied on the road signs by the side of the road and the black lines on the cave ceiling, carefully moving toward the west in a spacious road that was not piled with human remains and was surrounded by ancient tombs.

When they were in a nearly parallel position to that cluster of candlelight, Franca turned her head and looked over from the tunnel between two ancient tombs.

Relying on her excellent dark vision, she saw the person carrying the burning candle.

It was a man wearing a black robe, with deep black hair, a thin layer, soft facial features, relatively pale skin, and deep brown eyes, giving a feeling different from that of an Intis person.

A Feynapotter? It's more likely, but there are still some differences... Why do I have a sense of familiarity... When have I seen this person? Did the original owner of the body see him before, leaving an impression in the depths of her memory fragments? Franca suddenly had the urge to go over and chat with him.

She took a breath and held it back.

In the dead, dark environment of the catacombs, rashly approaching a stranger could very likely lead to unnecessary conflict.

Moreover, she had spent quite a bit of time investigating the original owner's cause of death and her life experiences, confirming that there was no problem, so there was no need to care about who she had met in the past.

The man in the black robe also turned his head to look at the two 'Witches'. Seeing that they had no intention of approaching, he continued forward and disappeared behind an ancient tomb.

"Doesn't look like a university student." Jenna withdrew her gaze, eliminating one option.

If that person just now wasn't a university student who entered the fourth level of the catacombs purely out of curiosity and to seek excitement, it meant he had his own very clear purpose... Did he take a commission to find antiques, or was his ancestor buried in a tomb on this level, and he came to pay respects? Or was he a Beyonder with a deep understanding of mysticism coming to study the special nature of the catacombs and the composition of the seals? Otherwise, like me and Jenna, was he here to chase the revelations given by those three night pillars? As Franca's thoughts raced, she thought of various possibilities.

On the fourth level of the catacombs, there were two more night pillars, the 'Marian Night Pillar' and the 'Lius Night Pillar'.

The former was the Pope of the 'Evernight Goddess' Church during the Fourth Epoch, and the latter was an attendant of the ancient Death. They both fell in the 'War of the Four Emperors', falling in that Trier of the Fourth Epoch.

After telling Jenna her analysis, Franca waved her right hand that wasn't holding the candle and said:

"Don't worry about his purpose; it won't affect us finding Kriesmana's shadow."

I didn't want to worry about it either; it was clearly you who considered a bunch of possibilities... I felt the urge in your heart; you really wanted to investigate that person just now... Relying on her understanding of Franca, Jenna keenly grasped her companion's thoughts, but she just laughed secretly and didn't expose her.

Sometimes, Franca was still very concerned about her face!

After walking along the current road for nearly a quarter of an hour, they arrived at a natural cave called the 'Crazy Mushroom Cave'.

The entrance here was sealed by dense, pale-with-black mushrooms.

"How come so many mushrooms are growing here?" Franca looked at them curiously for a few moments.

Before Jenna could speak, she added:

"Fine, fine, I know, now is not the time for exploration and adventure."

"Damn, I didn't stop you. Maybe Kriesmana's shadow is inside the mushroom cave." Having felt very oppressed and having a sense of being confined since entering the fourth level of the catacombs, Jenna used a swear word to vent her inner discomfort.

Franca was about to respond when she suddenly saw a figure standing at the corner ahead.

The figure was wearing a simple and plain white robe, with smooth black hair, exquisite features, and a holy temperament, beautiful as if she had walked out of human imagination.

She was a woman, and just standing there, she formed a sharp contrast with the surrounding darkness, dead silence, and filth.

Kriesmana! This name flashed through Franca and Jenna's minds at the same time.

They had really encountered the shadow suspected to be Kriesmana, this high-sequence 'Witch'!

Calming her mood, Jenna stared at the figure and tried to use Ancient Hermes:

"Hello."

The female figure, who was beautiful to the point of feeling unreal but was exceptionally eye-catching, curled the corners of her mouth bit by bit, revealing a very faint smile.

This allowed her charm to explode completely.

Whether it was Jenna or Franca, at this moment, they were lost in that smile, and only one thought remained in their minds:

Approach her, approach her...

They felt like moths; even though they knew that beauty was very dangerous, they couldn't help but want to draw closer, want to be intimate.

One step, two steps, three steps... The two 'Witches' walked toward the female figure in the plain white robe with obsessed eyes and faces full of amazement.

After walking a distance, Jenna instinctively felt a bit of emotion and pity:

"She looks so good when she smiles; why did she sigh before?

"What sad things did she encounter in the past?

"Sighing..."

Jenna suddenly woke up, feeling that this female figure in the white robe and the Kriesmana who sighed and protected them might not be the same, at least not completely the same!

Her vision instantly became clear, and she saw the beautiful figure's smooth black hair all rise up, each strand becoming exceptionally thick, with the tips splitting open like snakes opening their mouths.

The pitch-black snake mouths were aimed directly at Jenna and Franca, as if waiting for them to enter a distance where they could be touched.

Jenna was startled and quickly grabbed Franca, shouting in a low voice:

"There's a problem!"

Franca was stunned for a moment, struggled for a few seconds, and finally broke free from that obsession.

Seeing that they had both stopped completely, the holy figure in the white robe stared blankly for a few seconds, turned into a side path, and disappeared into the darkness.

*Phew*... Franca let out a breath and said with lingering fear:

"Why isn't there a rule in the catacombs' tour guide that you can't communicate with people who aren't holding candles?"

"Maybe it's because normal humans, even if they enter the fourth level, are affected by the environment here and can't suppress their fear, so they leave quickly and won't encounter these shadows." Jenna looked for a reason.

Franca looked at her and said somewhat dejectedly:

"You actually got rid of that female ghost's charm earlier than I did."

Jenna roughly explained the thoughts that had just flashed through her mind.

"But I also heard Kriesmana's sigh and words in that Trier of the Fourth Epoch..." Franca raised her right hand and touched her face. "Am I really more easily obsessed with beauty?"

Speaking of this, she was suddenly a bit puzzled:

"Actually, I've always felt it's very strange that the 'Kriesmana Night Pillar' appears in the catacombs.

"The other two night pillars, one belongs to Marian, the former Pope of the 'Evernight Church', and one is named after Lius, an attendant of the ancient Death. The latter is a 'Death Consul', which fits the catacombs very well, while the former should be on the adjacent pathway of 'Death'. In other words, they are all closely related to death, to a final resting place, and to the dead. Kriesmana, on the other hand, is a 'Calamity Witch', which is significantly different from them.

"I can understand why there is a giant pillar representing Kriesmana in the Fourth Epoch Trier, because there is a special mirror world there and the 'Original Witch' divine power left over from the 'War of the Four Emperors'. But when the catacombs were built, why was the 'Kriesmana Night Pillar' included? There were also angels who followed the 'Blood Emperor' who fell; why did it have to be her?"

Jenna shook her head slowly and cast her gaze back to where the holy figure had disappeared.

She tried to walk a distance toward that side and suddenly discovered that behind the position where the white-robed woman had originally stood was an ancient tomb.

Unlike other tombs on the fourth level, its tomb door was open.

…………

Leaving Aquinas Street, where the Solo Hotel was located, Lu Mian found an empty alley and threw the 'Lie' earring to Lugano.

"Find someone who can make fake identities; don't use your current appearance." Lu Mian pointed to the cafe diagonally opposite. "I'll wait for you there."

"Yes, Boss." Lugano wasn't troubled at all.

Although he hadn't really been to this city, he had several acquaintances settled here.

Moreover, he spoke fluent Highland language.

Watching this translator and guide complete his disguise, return 'Lie', and turn into the bar street, Lu Mian took Ludwig into the cafe, where every table had a bouquet of flowers.

At this time, the sun was shining quite fiercely on the earth, making everyone coming and going look lazy.

Lu Mian wasn't shy at all. Relying on the few Highland words he had mastered and hand gestures, he successfully ordered two cups of Tolar coffee with milk, a Santa egg yolk pastry with cream arranged in a tower shape on top, a portion of roast pork, and a portion of duck stewed with pear juice.

Ludwig was very satisfied with this.

Lu Mian drank his coffee and looked around, discovering that the six or seven tables of guests in the cafe were all dating men and women, mainly around twenty years old, with only one middle-aged couple.

With Lu Mian's hearing, it wasn't difficult to capture the content of the small talk at the nearby tables, but he couldn't understand most of it, only able to extract a few words:

"Ocean... prayer... board the ship... island..."

Are they talking about next month's Sea Prayer Ceremony? Lu Mian cast his gaze out the window.

On the street, two young men carrying long swords started arguing for some reason, drew their swords on the spot, and seemed to be about to have a duel.

(End of chapter)