Azik's younger brother?
Hmm… Based on my previous deductions, Jane's ancestor, that Death Consul, was likely another contingency left behind by the "God of Death." He must have had a very close relationship with that "Emperor of the Underworld"—it wouldn't even be surprising if he were the god's illegitimate child…
And clearly, something went wrong with him too, leading to a soul brought over by the White Eye occupying his body…
So, is that why he abandoned the Eggers surname and named himself Miranda instead?
Though these thoughts swirled in his mind, Ebner chose not to share them with Azik in front of him.
After all, restoring some of Azik's past memories was one thing, but if he outright revealed the truth of his identity, who knew if it would trigger a transformation back into that cold and mad Death Consul?
If that happened, it wouldn't just be a matter of losing a "big shot" ally—he might even end up disrupting the Evernight Goddess's grand plan… and that would likely get him "erased" by Secrecy itself.
Azik Eggers noticed his contemplation and asked, "What are you thinking about?"
Ebner casually replied, "I was just wondering… as a Sequence 2 Angel, how exactly did the Death Consul fall?"
"And why is his current state so… unique?"
Hearing this question, Azik let out a hearty laugh and said,
"Don't dwell on these things for now. The circumstances surrounding an Angel's demise are not something you—or even I, in my current state—should be prying into.
"Forcing yourself to seek out the truth will only bring immense danger."
"That's precisely why I didn't venture deeper into Calderón City."
So what you're saying is: 'When in doubt, stay low and keep your head down'? Or, to put it more elegantly: 'In the world of mysticism, curiosity is often the leading cause of death'…
Ebner automatically translated Azik's words into a more practical lesson.
After that, Ebner took a sip of his coffee before recounting what had happened at the hot spring resort, including Closfia's assessment of the ambushing demigod.
He concluded, "To be fair, the 'mysterious catastrophe' tied to that hot spring resort does seem quite suspicious… And since it's within Indor's territory—just like that 'ruin'—there might be some connection between them."
Azik pondered for a few seconds before saying, "That mountain… it feels oddly familiar to me… It would be best to investigate it in person."
Big guy, didn't you just say that we should stay low whenever possible? And now you're eager to charge in? Ebner shot him a strange look, silently roasting him in his mind.
Azik seemed to sense his thoughts and explained, "From your description, I don't think it will be a major problem."
Oh, I see. So if anything goes wrong, the responsibility falls on me, huh? Ebner mocked inwardly.
Still, after some consideration, he figured that a Sequence 5 demigod from the Spectator pathway wouldn't pose a real threat to Azik, and they might not even encounter her again. So, after a brief moment of deliberation, he agreed to Azik's plan.
Azik, seeing Ebner's nod, immediately grabbed his shoulder, taking him into the Spirit World. Guided by Ebner's directions, they sped through the vibrant, layered colors, arriving in no time at the mountain where the hot spring resort was located.
Standing before the pools carved into the mountainside, they saw no sign of other people—the "Greed" lady and her student had clearly already left.
"I feel like I've been here before…" Azik murmured, then turned his sharp gaze toward the upstream source of the hot springs, his brows furrowed as if trying to squeeze memories from his mind.
Seeing this, Ebner chose not to disturb him. Instead, he activated the White Eye and extracted residual traces from the pool where the red-haired girl had bathed the day before. He hoped to track some clues and use scene recall to glimpse into the master-student duo's secrets.
Soon, images unfolded in his mind.
Skipping past scenes that were… less than appropriate for a gentleman to watch, he directly locked onto a conversation between the two that took place shortly after he had left the previous night.
"Teacher, this plan isn't working… Maybe the powerful individual I detected with Eye of Shadows was really just passing by?" The red-haired girl complained, pouting as she clung to the golden-haired woman's arm after getting dressed.
The tall woman with golden locks, dressed in a silver-threaded coral velvet bathrobe, frowned and replied in a tone laced with unwillingness, "That shouldn't be possible… This hot spring resort must have a mystery tied to it. And the person you encountered will appear again, leading us to my teacher's remnants…
"This is the 'predetermined' outcome."
"Teacher… maybe the one I saw yesterday wasn't the person that 'Magic Mirror' mentioned?" The red-haired girl cautiously suggested.
"That's possible… Magic Mirror wouldn't be wrong. The timing must be off…" The golden-haired woman accepted her student's reasoning, murmuring to herself over and over.
The red-haired girl's expression momentarily revealed a flash of concern, as if she had actually wanted to advise her teacher against placing too much faith in "Magic Mirror."
Seeing her teacher's mental state becoming increasingly unstable, the red-haired girl had no choice but to forcibly divert her attention. Feigning curiosity, she asked, "Teacher… now that I think about it, I still don't know what secrets this hot spring mountain holds. Can you tell me about it?"
The blonde woman seemed to regain some clarity, but her gaze remained dazed as she murmured dreamily,
"This mountain was originally a volcano. In the late Fourth Epoch, it was the domain of a giant family, and they built a castle here.
"But after a cataclysm, the volcano vanished without a trace, and the castle disappeared along with it, leaving only this small mountain behind.
"All records of this event are vague, even those of the War God Church…
"My teacher believed that this history was likely 'concealed.'
"However, at the end of the Fourth Epoch, the Loen Kingdom once sent a knight here… It seems he found some kind of treasure…
"That knight was quickly 'silenced,' and even his family gradually declined.
"Twelve years ago, my teacher followed some clues to this hot spring mountain, but after delving deeper, she vanished… 'The Mirror' says she has long been dead…"
As she spoke, a grotesque mask with a mouth stretching to her ears briefly flickered across her face. Then, as if finally snapping back to normal, she nodded slightly at her student and said, "You did well. I'm fine now."
The "recalled" scene ended there.
Ebner stared at the pool water, his eyes still pure white, while his mind meticulously analyzed the conversation he had just witnessed.
It seems that 'Greed's' mental state is indeed quite unstable… But the fact that I was able to 'retrace' so much information must be thanks to her nearly losing control at the time.
And the way she 'recovered' at the end… it was more like she 'refreshed' her persona. This method only treats the symptoms, not the root cause. Over-reliance on that mask might actually make her condition worse…
'The Mirror'… From the way they described it, it sounds like a sentient, intelligent, and somewhat precognitive Sealed Artifact.
Hmm… I remember in the original timeline, it was mentioned that every member of the Psychological Alchemists' Council of Elders controlled a Grade 1 Sealed Artifact. Could it be referring to that?
Loen once sent a knight to explore this mountain? And he found something? Then his family gradually declined…
This sounds oddly familiar… That knight wasn't by any chance Azik's foolish son, the second-generation Baron Lamud, who dedicated himself to Loen only to meet a miserable end?
If that's the case… then this hot spring mountain might be linked to a 'Death God' ruin…
Twelve years ago, 'Greed's' teacher ventured deep into this place to investigate its secrets?
But twelve years ago… that was also when, for the first time, Indor Port's fishermen unknowingly entered the 'Dream Ruins' in the open sea…
That was also when Miss Gwen found the diary left behind by a giant's descendant…
This can't just be a coincidence!
Come to think of it, could 'Greed's' teacher actually be the so-called dragon skeleton that the fishermen and later merchants claimed to have seen?
Did she reveal her Mythical Form within the ruins, only to ultimately perish in it?
And then, the entrance to that ruin started appearing in the dreams of certain people near Indor Port? Could that also be related to this woman who turned into a Mind Dragon?
Perhaps the ruin's entrance was originally hidden within a dream, and when 'Greed's' teacher discovered it, she somehow pinpointed its location, leading to the subsequent influx of ordinary people…
A hidden dream… a catastrophe that was mysteriously concealed… even the Church of the God of Combat has no records of it…
Suddenly, Ebner pulled out a notebook from his pocket—the one he had exchanged with Miss Gwen for the giant descendant's diary.
The earlier entries contained standard journal entries and knowledge on mysticism, but the final page had a line written in clearly different handwriting:
"Dusk descends, all things wither; everything falls into darkness, never to wake again."
Ebner had never quite grasped the meaning behind this sentence before, but now it seemed as though the giant family was still trapped in a nightmare, desperately trying to send a message out…
If I were to make a bold assumption… Could it be that the Goddess and the God of Combat clashed here in the late Fourth Epoch, and as a result, the giants' castle was dragged into some hidden nightmare—one that 'coincidentally' blocked the entrance to a 'Death God' ruin?
And the reason the Church of the God of Combat has no records of it… could it be because They suffered a loss?
Wait… no, if this was something the Goddess 'concealed,' why am I able to deduce this much?