Chapter 726: Leader

Not long after, a "Purifier" team from Saint Vief Church arrived at Morane Avini's study, carrying a nearly sealed wooden crate.

Each of them wore a waxed white robe edged with gold thread, thin rubber gloves, and leather hoods with masks shaped like bird beaks, curved downward over mouth and nose.

Angoulême signaled the other Purifiers to vacate the floor and clear adjacent levels, then donned the bird-beak mask and similar attire, securing his wrists and ankles with bandages.

Through the red glass lenses of the bird-beak mask, Angoulême saw several colleagues open the wooden crate.

The crate's inner lining was fitted with mirrors—above, below, left, right, front, and back—each precisely sized.

Enclosed by the mirrors was a milky-white stone statue, half a person's height, depicting a beautiful woman bare-chested, her dress lowered to her waist.

The female statue had one arm broken off, her hand hanging down to cover her navel, her posture alluring, her features exquisite—causing Angoulême to suddenly feel flushed, his mind flooded with the urge to kiss "her," to engage in a relationship beyond friendship with the stone statue.

He dared not take a deep breath, forcing himself to control his impulses.

He knew this was a "Class 1" sealed object belonging to the Trier Diocese, with the serial number "82," named "Statue of Uramos."

This "Class 1" sealed object gradually made nearby living beings obsessed with it, attempting to possess it, while slowly spreading various diseases—both common in the real world and those belonging to the realm of mysticism.

If left unchecked, the area around it would become a hell of suffering, filled with creatures screaming, moaning, dying in horrific forms, and the plague would not cease, spreading farther and triggering larger-scale disasters.

Angoulême requested "1—82" because it could help other beings enter the Mirror World, and as long as time was strictly controlled, the diseases and obsessions would not spread outward.

Two Purifier members carefully, tenderly lifted the "Statue of Uramos" and carried it to the full-length mirror in the study.

Angoulême and two other teammates moved closer, each placing a palm on the shoulder of "1—82."

They walked forward in perfect unison, magically passing through the glass mirror and vanishing from Morane Avini's study.

As Angoulême caught sight of the dark, hazy, nearly illusory space behind the mirror, he felt a tickle in his throat, as if he wanted to cough.

"Ah…" he sighed softly.

The diseases spread by the "Statue of Uramos" were indeed not blocked by their attire…

Their sole purpose in wearing this gear was to maximally delay the actual infection of disease!

Angoulême and his teammates, in a state of gradually weakening yet strangely heightened excitement, inspected the area behind the mirror and soon discovered multiple dull, lifeless shards of mirror glass.

"There was a fight here. Morane Avini was forced to use multiple 'Mirror Doppelgängers,' but no blood, bodily fluids, or hairs were found," one Purifier stated simply.

A fight occurred? Someone ambushed Morane Avini inside the mirrors? Angoulême suddenly had a thought, a corresponding suspicion.

That's it—"Sleeve Dagger!"

"Morane Avini apparently couldn't escape immediately; multiple 'Mirror Doppelgängers' were shattered, meaning his capture was highly likely," Angoulême began with serious analysis, then shifted to misdirection, "Hmm, I understand now. The 'Aurora Society's' assassination attempt never expected success—the assassin's sole goal was to force Morane Avini into this mirror, and the rest of the 'Aurora Society' had already been lying in wait here!"

The other Purifiers accepted this theory, nodding one after another:

"It's definitely the 'Aurora Society.'"

"To deal with Morane Avini, they actually deployed powerful items capable of manipulating the Mirror World."

"The 'Aurora Society' left no bloody, disgusting scene because they wanted to capture Morane Avini alive and extract vital intelligence?"

"Over the past five or six years, the 'Aurora Society' has become increasingly clever…"

After a rapid exchange, one Purifier turned back to glance at the "Statue of Uramos" placed at the entrance, swallowed hard, and said:

"Let's get out quickly. Put '1—82' back in the mirror crate—I can't hold out much longer."

Angoulême agreed.

Once back in the real world, after re-sealing "1—82" and shedding the cumbersome gear, he finally exhaled, then felt utterly drained, physically and mentally.

…………

Inside the hollow of a quarry with a fixed exit to the Mirror World.

Under the glow of carbide lamps and the gaze of the "Eye of Calamity," Morane Avini smiled in reply to Lu Mi's question:

"Through mirrors, the same way."

As he spoke, he pulled a compact mirror from a hidden pocket in his clothing and explained with strong eagerness:

"In the Mirror World, every mirror is unique, with its own coordinates. I gave him the coordinates of my mirror, and he gave me the coordinates of one of his mirrors. With that established, I can use my inherent nature to transmit information directly onto his mirror via the Mirror World, leaving it there for a time—just as he contacts me, relying on the artifact I gave him."

"IP address, right…" Franca muttered in a language no one present understood.

Lu Mi smiled warmly and asked:

"Can you give us the coordinates of the 'Overseer's' mirror?"

Morane Avini shook his head:

"It cannot be described in words or written down—only those of us who originate from the Mirror World can sense it, or 'Witches' who have attained divinity and become 'Despair Witches.'"

Sequence 4 "Despair Witch"? Sequence 5 is "Pain Witch"… both sound unpleasant, difficult to embody—but "Ageless Witch" after that sounds excellent… Franca extracted the "Witch" path information from Morane Avini's words.

"Why can the 'Overseer' sense it?" Jiana pressed.

Morane Avini smiled:

"He can't sense it himself—but his artifact can record and use it."

"Can this artifact do it?" Franca smiled, lifting her sleeve to reveal the glass-like "Mirror Clasp."

Morane Avini was startled, then his expression eased:

"You killed Ye Busi."

"The 'Overseer' killed him," Lu Mi explained sincerely, "We never intended to kill him—we even wanted to be friends—but the 'Overseer,' from a great distance, used mystical power to kill him. I'm worried you might suffer the same fate."

Morane Avini fell silent for several seconds, then said:

"It can record."

He meant the "Mirror Clasp" could record the coordinates of the "Overseer's" mirror.

"I told you it could," Franca said, unsurprised.

When she had used the "Mirror Clasp," she had sensed several mirrors in the Mirror World giving her clear, precise sensations—this exit, Morane Avini's full-length mirror, and several others whose locations were unknown.

Franca suspected that every time one passed through a mirror, the "Mirror Clasp" naturally recorded its coordinates.

Morane Avini continued:

"You cannot directly locate the 'Overseer' through that mirror—I've always suspected his mirror is actually on one of his subordinates, though that subordinate must be very close to him, or information transmission would be delayed."

Like many members of the "Curly Baboon Research Society," who left contact points for Madame Hela's messengers far removed from their real lives… Lu Mi nodded slightly and said:

"It's fine. We can visit them one by one—as long as they're truly close."

"Can you give us the coordinates?"

Morane Avini fell silent, the effects of hypnosis and truth serum clashing fiercely with his inner resolve.

This was the self-principle and corresponding restriction of a "Punisher Knight."

Observing the shifting currents of Morane Avini's fate, Lu Mi smiled and said:

"You can take more time to consider. Let's talk about something else first."

He had seen Morane Avini's potential for collapse, so he planned to ask for other intelligence—if the man still refused afterward, he would kill the spirit medium.

"Alright," Morane Avini exhaled deeply.

Lu Mi carefully asked:

"What transactions has the 'Overseer' made with you?"

Morane Avini answered easily:

"Mainly providing certain assistance to specific individuals; in return, I received help from the 'Overseer,' and both of us gained higher standing in politics and more resources."

"This is something political figures routinely do—but with the 'Overseer,' it became more covert, less noticeable, and far more effective."

"Also, protecting certain individuals or indirectly benefiting non-upper-class people to fulfill the 'Overseer's' demands in his secret deals."

Lu Mi pondered and asked:

"Has the 'Overseer' ever communicated with your 'Mirror People's' leader?"

He didn't know whether the "Mirror People" even had a real leader—he said this to bluff Morane Avini, implying his group already possessed vital intelligence.

If the "Mirror People" truly had no real leader, and Morane Avini saw through the bluff, the truth serum and hypnosis would still ensure his subsequent answers remained unaffected.

Morane Avini's expression changed slightly:

"He has indeed communicated with our leader."

"How did they communicate?" Lu Mi asked calmly.

"Through a ritual I provided. What exactly they discussed—I wasn't present, so I don't know," Morane Avini answered honestly.

"Is your leader in the real world, or in the Mirror World of the Fourth Era Trier?" Franca asked curiously.

"In the Fourth Era Trier," Morane Avini sighed. "Powerful-divinity 'Mirror People' cannot escape through leakage points or disaster events."

Franca thought for a moment and asked:

"Does your leader have a corresponding real-world self?"

"Yes," Morane Avini smiled. "You'll never guess who."

(End of Chapter)