Chapter 614: Daybreak

"Omirbela."

On Lumian's ear, Thelmipolos's grand, layered voice echoed, repeating Lu Jianuo's words.

"You've heard of it?" Lumian hadn't expected a name he felt nothing about would prompt Thelmipolos, who hadn't spoken in ages, to respond.

"No, never heard of it before today," Lu Jianuo assumed the question was directed at him.

Thelmipolos fell silent again, offering no reply.

It seems the Godchild's true name is problematic… and sounds feminine, too—after all, the "Villain" Path becomes female at the equivalent of Sequence 5, the "Siren"; the Sequence 0 of the "Earth" Path is the "Earth Mother Goddess," also clearly feminine; combined with the "Great Mother" herself, it's highly probable the Godchild is female—very reasonable… Lumian glanced at Lu Jianuo and smiled:

"Not having heard it before is a good thing; otherwise, one day you might become the mother of this so-called Godchild."

After speaking, Lumian glanced at Ludwig, who had somehow wandered onto the cabin's balcony, and walked steadily but slowly toward him.

Following Ludwig's gaze, he looked out at the deck and saw Captain Pedro and others examining Father Montserrat's corpse.

Lumian asked thoughtfully:

"Can we eat it?"

He meant: Could they eat Father Montserrat's corpse?

He had only pledged not to possess items belonging to the Earth Mother Goddess Church—including the Unusual Characteristics extracted from Montserrat—but had made no promise to preserve the corpse intact.

Partial destruction of a corpse from intense combat is perfectly normal!

Ludwig shook his head:

"Not yet."

"Alright," Lumian said with noticeable regret, withdrawing his gaze.

Now he couldn't find out why Father Montserrat had been so closely linked to the invisible Godchild, or why a small section of umbilical cord had grown inside his belly, nor could he confirm whether the earlier Prinipino had been a product of Montserrat's human transmutation.

He could tell Montserrat had been heavily contaminated, but hadn't expected it to reach near "Mad Woman" levels.

Of course, it still paled compared to the "Mad Woman's" corpse—after all, even Ludwig considered that too filthy.

As for "Spirit Communication," according to Lumian's knowledge, spirits driven away by "Exorcism" cannot be summoned again for a certain time, making communication impossible; after that period passes, "Spirit Communication" loses all value.

Back in the parlor, Lumian sat in the armchair, unbuttoning his black waistcoat and linen shirt, and said to Lu Jianuo:

"Help me heal."

Lu Jianuo glanced at the wounds, merely crudely bandaged, with blood still seeping from some areas, and exclaimed in shock:

"That severe?"

"You think Father Montserrat was easy to handle? Without getting injured, I might be the one dead," Lumian replied with a chuckle.

Lu Jianuo instinctively denied:

"That's not what I meant—I mean, with injuries this bad, how are your clothes and pants completely untouched?"

"I changed into fresh ones before coming back," Lumian answered calmly, gritting his teeth against the pain.

His "Traveler's Satchel" held nearly a dozen identical shirts, waistcoats, and pants—though the waistcoats came in several colors, he had multiple black ones.

The only problem was the golden straw hat had been set ablaze in the explosion and reduced to ash.

But for the great adventurer Louis Berry, this wasn't a big deal—he'd specifically stocked several identical hats before leaving Falingang.

That's the advantage of a "Traveler's Satchel"—otherwise, how could a mere suitcase hold so many useless items?

Lu Jianuo dared ask no more and diligently began treating his employer.

He'd initially planned to surgically remove the charred skin for optimal results, but Lumian stopped him, telling him to just do a quick, rough job.

Since his body would fully heal by six a. m., Lumian had no desire to endure surgery without anesthesia.

Once the pain and injuries were under control and significantly improved, Lumian returned to his room, spread out a sheet of paper, and wrote to the "Magician" Lady, reporting on Father Montserrat and the Godchild's true name.

Matters involving a heretical god and a so-called Godchild were always treated with great seriousness—he believed such issues belonged to his superior's burden.

If Mr. K hadn't lacked a messenger, he'd have copied the letter to him too, tweaking a few phrases so the "Aurora Society"'s divine emissary would know—what to do next, how to proceed, wasn't the concern of an ordinary member or a minor Arcana card like him.

Besides, he'd realized that on combating heretical gods, especially those infiltrating from beyond the barrier, the "Tarot Society" and the "Aurora Society" held largely aligned positions; whether as a minor Arcana card of the "Tarot Society" or a full member of the "Aurora Society," he bore responsibility in this regard.

After nearly ten minutes, Lumian had written every detail—the sequence of events, including Thelmipolos's reaction—onto the paper.

Then he summoned the "Doll" messenger.

Since his quarrel with Ludwig, whenever the latter was nearby, the "Doll" messenger always came and went quickly, rarely lingering or chatting.

…………

In a clean, tidy bedroom in Beklan, Kingdom of Ruin.

The "Magician" Lady, who had been sleeping, suddenly sat upright.

She murmured in confusion:

"Spiritual warning?

"Is something important about to happen?"

The "Magician" Lady had just poured herself a glass of Sounia blood wine and hadn't begun her astrology when she saw the "Doll" messenger appear on her desk, placing a folded square of paper beside the dark red fountain pen.

Lumian's letter… Had the issue with the Earth Mother Goddess Church's priest been discovered? Worth the hint I gave him… The "Magician" Lady let the wineglass float midair, picked up the letter, and unfolded it.

As she read to the end, her expression changed abruptly; she whispered the name again:

"Omirbela?"

The Godchild's true name is this?

Did my spiritual warning come from this?

This is definitely worth discussing at the next "Tarot Society" gathering…

After a pause, having indirectly confirmed it with "Astrology," the "Magician" Lady sat down and watched as the dark red fountain pen leapt up, removed its cap, and began writing words on the imitation parchment, expressing her thoughts:

"Omirbela is a name hidden in the mists of history, rich with esoteric symbolism…"

…………

"Using Omirbela as the Godchild's true name—I don't know if it relates to the secrets of the Second Era, the age before the 'Ancient Sun God,' when the Old God ruled the earth, or if the 'Great Mother' is exploiting this potent esoteric symbolism to gradually erode the Earth Mother Goddess's authority, even her very essence.

"If we could uncover the hidden past of those ancient times, perhaps we'd find the answer.

"The one worshipped by the 'Aurora Society' might know something."

Lumian stared at the reply written on imitation parchment and felt certain the "Magician" Lady was hinting he should ask the "Aurora Society," or Mr. K, about this.

He continued reading the rest:

"Simply put, Omirbela belongs to the ancient Giant race; during the age of the Old Gods, she was called the 'Goddess of Harvest.' Other details I cannot yet tell you; don't actively investigate this—just keep an eye out for Earth Mother Goddess Church's Divine Favored, members of the 'Night Walker Society' and the 'Divine Descent School.' We'll handle the follow-up; eventually, we may assign you one or two small tasks."

"Goddess of Harvest"… So it's tied to the "Earth" Path… Lumian burned the letter in his hand with crimson flame, stood up, returned to bed, and feigned sleep while listening to every sound aboard the ship.

Until sunrise, his body healed instantly, and nothing unusual occurred.

Lumian returned to the parlor and said to Lu Jianuo, who had risen an hour early and clearly hadn't slept well:

"Still hear the baby crying?"

"No," Lu Jianuo answered, unable to hide his relief mixed with unease.

He felt he needed to observe for a few more days before drawing a final conclusion.

Lumian laughed:

"Clearly, seeking help from Father Montserrat was the only way to fully resolve your aftereffects."

This left Lu Jianuo speechless, nearly choking.

So that's what you meant when you told me to seek Father Montserrat's help?

Killing Montserrat equals completely curing my aftereffects?

Lumian took a few steps toward the balcony, then changed the subject:

"Go find Enio later—use a follow-up check as an excuse to confirm his condition."

Hmm, Enio was saved by Father Montserrat's surgery; if Montserrat was compromised, Enio might be too… Lu Jianuo felt uneasy about approaching the patient, fearing danger—but as he looked out the window and saw the sunlight brighten, the horizon turning red, he inexplicably felt reassured.

At nine a. m., Lu Jianuo returned and told Lumian the special patient had recovered well, showing no signs of surgical failure, hidden complications, or contamination.

Almost simultaneously, Captain Pedro came to Lumian, saying the ship would make an unscheduled port stop to allow Earth Mother Goddess Church personnel to retrieve Father Montserrat's corpse and belongings, and to take away the relevant individuals.

He emphasized that the Earth Mother Goddess Church had explicitly stated the "relevant individuals" did not include the great adventurer and his servant.

Lumian smiled, offering no reply, appearing utterly confident and certain.

At noon, several battle nuns and priests in brown clerical robes boarded the ship and took Enio and others away.

Watching Enio, bewildered and terrified yet powerless to resist, being "invited" off the ship from the balcony, Lu Jianuo sighed:

"He's fine now—why are they still taking him?"

Lumian chuckled:

"You say he's fine, so he is?

"Think positively—once the Earth Mother Goddess Church confirms he's clean, he might land a clerical job within the Church, able to interact with battle nuns every day."

Lu Jianuo fell silent, then after a few seconds said:

"But he'd lose his freedom.

"He's a victim…"

"Freedom?" Lumian sneered. "The premise of freedom is not harming others."

Even so, seeing Enio's fear and tension, and recalling the now-normal Montserrat who had died peacefully, he remembered a strange phrase his sister sometimes said:

"All beings suffer."

Hoo!

The whistle blew—the ship was about to set sail again.

(End of Chapter)