novelraw Chapter 868: He Lost Time, He Lost Anna, Now He Has Even Lost His Mind
Chapter 868: He Lost Time, He Lost Anna, Now He Has Even Lost His Mind
— The Gate of Hell...
A barely audible whisper echoed through the cold basement.
Darkness shrouded the place; there were no other colors here, only black, and an even purer black.
The whisper merged with the darkness, and silence reigned.
But at some point, a waking groan drifted down from the attic above the basement.
— Ugh...
Dragging his cold, stiff body, the young man pushed himself up, gazing around in confusion at the pitch-black darkness.
"Am I still alive?" he wondered, before the horrifying truth suddenly dawned on him.
The swirling darkness enveloped him.
Light... light!In a panic, the young man fumbled about, his hands finding a broken, cold oil lamp, its fuel long dry. He clutched it to his chest desperately.
Minute by minute, time passed, but nothing happened.
"Why am I okay?" he wondered, bewildered. He looked around and saw the dim light of snow reflected through the attic window, and with it, the silhouette of a girl—a shadow darker than the darkness itself, graceful and profound.
"The monster from the darkness has come for me! Am I... am I going to die...?" the young man thought in terror, but his fear froze as the Shadow Maiden moved toward the door.
— I... I'm John... do... do you know me?
Realizing something, John couldn't stop himself from speaking.
— Do you know something? Was it you...
— You are already dead, she said.
Dead...?
John froze as recent memories flooded his mind.
His hand subconsciously reached for his chest; besides the dried blood, there was only a gaping emptiness.
— Those monsters... Tashana...
Tears streamed down John's face as he was consumed by hatred, pain, and despair.
— He hasn't lost his memory, nor has he broken down from the news of his death... Is it a success?
A faint whisper sounded.
John lifted his head, his face wracked with pain.
— Excuse me... how much longer can I live?
— Until others find out you're dead, or until you are killed again.
— What...?
...
— A symbol... what is it?
Ofelia looked at the symbol, which resembled the silhouette of a girl.
Lu Li took out the intelligence report on the Church of Shadows and handed it to her; the same symbol was drawn on the first page.
— How... did... they... find out... about this place?
— If the church is connected to her, of course they would know.
The mark of the Church of Shadows is here, so there must be other clues.
Unfortunately, Ofelia had melted the ruins into lava, and there were no more clues to be found in the basement.
After leaving the basement and closing the iron door, they searched the house but found nothing besides a bloodstain on the attic floor, deeper in color than the floorboards, and a broken oil lamp.
Why the Church of Shadows had appeared here remained a mystery. The ruins beyond the Gate of Hell were still there, and Gades had never seen anyone else arrive...
— Have Vinnelag investigate the origin of the church's symbol, Lu Li told the Merchant, Antoni.
— You... suspect...
— Only Anna and I know about this place.
— And... me.
— And me! Elder Sister echoed.
— But I didn't understand.
— The symbol... of the Church... of Shadows...
— Perhaps it came from Anna, or it's a symbol Anna herself left behind.
Back on the street, battered by the piercingly cold wind, they had two choices now that the matter with Prusius was settled.
Return to the Church of Twisted Vines to wait out the Calamity, or push forward through the dreaded fog tide and the Eternal Night.
— Tracks.
Elder Sister, her doll's head dusted with snowflakes, stretched out a small hand, pointing into the gloom at the far end of the alley.
The approaching oil lamp dispersed the fog and darkness, revealing a pair of footprints in the dull, yellowed snow, leading deep into the alley.
Thanks to the wind, the tracks in the alley were exceptionally well-preserved.
The tracks were made after the Severe Winter began, no more than a week ago.
The tread marks on the soles indicated they belonged to a human, or at least a humanoid creature capable of wearing shoes.
Was Lu Li wrong? Was it really someone from the Church of Shadows?
Ofelia looked at Lu Li, waiting for his decision.
...
— It's... here.
John gritted his teeth and lifted the wooden cellar door.
His hands were red with cold.
Can the dead still feel cold? It was unbelievable.
Sighing, John turned and climbed down into the cellar. Soon, the dim yellow light of an oil lamp flickered to life below.
The empty cellar contained only a corner with a bed made of old clothes and useless junk, and a glass jar holding a few pieces of fluorite that emitted a faint glow.
Oil lamps were a scarce resource, and John almost never used his.
This cellar, located on the outskirts of the Sentry Post, was also cold, but it was far better than being on the surface.
John didn't know why the Shadow Maiden had followed him. After lighting the oil lamp, he stood awkwardly to the side, ignoring the gaping hole in his chest and the bloodstains.
Nothing happened after that; the Shadow Maiden's graceful silhouette was merely projected onto the wall. She watched him in silence for a while, then turned and left.
— You're leaving?
John asked instinctively, and seeing the Shadow Maiden ignore him, he hurriedly called out.
— Please, wait! Can you tell me your name?
— The Shadow Maiden.
A quiet whisper replied.
— Thank you... You're a good... a good person.
— A good person...
A sharp, cold wind swept through the cellar's opening.
Watching the Shadow Maiden—who had resurrected him only to leave—disappear, John stood alone in the cellar, lost in a daze.
"I probably don't count as a human anymore, do I?"
"Should I just stay here, barely scraping by? It's impossible to find food in the Sentry Post now that those monsters are gone..."
"So where should I go? Belfast or Himpfast? I've heard the Lennon Archipelago and a place called Vinnelag on the Main Continent are safe..."
...
Thump.
Ofelia lifted the wooden cellar door.
A cloud of musty, rotten gas billowed out.
— It must... be... here.
Unfortunately, the tracks disappeared after they left the alley. They had headed in this direction, toward the outskirts of the Sentry Post, and the sharp-eyed Elder Sister had spotted this cellar.
Ofelia's hand, holding the oil lamp, lowered into the cellar. The edges of the fog prevented them from seeing the bottom; it was deeper than they had expected.
She raised a finger, and dark red lava dripped from its tip, forming bright threads of light that illuminated the cellar's contours.
They also illuminated that graceful, pale face in profile, which seemed to have a blush on its cheeks.
In the corner was a bed made of old clothes, useless junk, a table, and a glass bottle with a piece of fluorite in it.
Ofelia tilted her head and said to Lu Li:
— It's... safe... inside.
Lu Li lowered his eyes, and when he raised them again, he gave Ofelia a slight nod.
He and Ofelia entered the cellar, while the Merchant remained outside.
Lu Li, holding the oil lamp, leaned against the table; the drawers were empty.
The person hiding here had taken everything they could, except for the fluorite.
— A symbol... here.
Ofelia had discovered something.
At the bottom of the stairs, another mark of the Church of Shadows had been carved.
It was useless; apart from knowing that Anna or the Church of Shadows had been here, they had learned nothing.
Leaving the cellar, they looked around.
There were no tracks; the snow had covered everything, only to be swept away by the wind.
The trail went cold here.
But at the dark, foggy edge of his vision ahead, Lu Li saw Anna in her white dress, standing barefoot on the snow, her eyes curving as she waved at him.