Chapter 23: Accident
This was a dark "kingdom" filled with Slumber Flowers, Moon Flowers, and Night-Fragrant Grass. On an endless dark plain, She, wearing a layered yet simple midnight-black gown, watched quietly as the surrounding darkness swallowed a distorted, blurry golden figure.
The face of that golden figure was contorted, seemingly trapped in speechless terror. "He" struggled to open his mouth:
"I want to modify the agreement!"
The darkness receded, and the distorted golden figure reappeared.
She finally spoke:
"The agreement cannot be modified."
Her voice sounded like a nighttime lullaby.
"You were the one who broke the agreement first!" the golden figure's voice became grand once more. Resoluteness appeared on "his" face. "I am not afraid to keep waiting!"
"He is about to return."
The distorted golden figure responded immediately: "That is meaningless to me."
"A thousand years ago, you reached an agreement with us."
Regret flashed across the man's face, followed by a laugh: "But He hasn't returned yet, has He?"
The figure in the layered black gown cast her gaze into the void and said, "You aren't worried about whether He returns; you are worried about your own future."
"It won't be any worse than it is now."
She turned her gaze back to the golden figure, looking at the man's face—black short hair, brown eyes—and said softly, "You should be able to sense it. The part that originally belonged to you has already appeared."
"Once I return, what belongs to me will still come back."
"He will not undo your seal."
The distorted golden figure let out a light laugh and countered, "But He won't help you open your seal either, will He?"
"That is why we need a new Lord of the Mysteries."
"A new one? He is far more cunning than you think."
The woman in the black gown chuckled. "I am not you."
The man's face instantly stiffened. He snorted coldly, "As long as you succeed, our agreement stands."
"Good."
"But you must help me take back what belongs to me."
She shook her head; her head was hazy and difficult to see clearly. "That was not in our previous agreement."
"This is a new agreement."
"What else do you have to offer?"
The distorted figure pointed to his own face: "This body was created by my power. If I do not actively give it up, that Outlander will never be able to control him."
She shook her head again. "The power of this body also belongs to you."
"It seems you value this Outlander quite a bit." The golden figure pondered for a moment. "I want back all the power that originally belonged to me, except for this body."
"Good."
---
Inside the Saint Samuel Cathedral's Great Prayer Hall.
"The only home is peace..."
Amidst the silent repetitions, Rolls felt as though he had fallen into a deep slumber. He felt his body constantly falling, while his spirit floated upward. In this sensation of being torn apart, he tried to open his eyes, but his eyelids felt glued shut.
Suddenly, his surroundings went silent. He could no longer hear the prayer. Rolls snapped his eyes open and found himself standing amidst a cluster of crimson light.
Looking at the crimson halo surrounding him, Rolls tried to walk forward.
One step, two steps, three steps...
On the third step, the crimson glow blocked his path.
Rolls raised his arms and slowly placed his hands on the crimson halo. He pushed gently, but it didn't budge.
He took a deep breath and exerted force with his feet, legs, waist, and arms all at once. The crimson light reflected off his hands, staining them red, but the halo remained as immovable as an iron wall.
Rolls tried the same all around him, but it was to no avail. He simply sat down cross-legged.
The space wasn't large or high, much like a small room, only without doors or windows. He couldn't see the outside world; he was firmly locked inside.
Crimson light... in the original work, the only thing related to this is Sefirah Castle. Klein pulled people in through the crimson "stars" above the gray fog to establish the Tarot Club.
But it's only late April right now. Klein should still be Zhou Mingrui, hanging from the ceiling of Sefirah Castle!
Rolls scratched his head. Perhaps that was exactly why he was trapped here.
But he hadn't recited the Fool's Honorific Name—besides, the inventor of that name was still "hanging" there! He also didn't have items like Audrey or Alger that could connect to Sefirah Castle. How did he end up here?
As for why he was trapped, Rolls had a rough idea:
Sefirah Castle currently had no master and was running on "autopilot." It was likely following the lingering will of The Celestial Worthy to release "test subjects." For some reason, he had ended up on Sefirah Castle first. Although he was a Beyonder, he wasn't of the "Coward Trio" pathways (Seer, Apprentice, Marauder), so he couldn't become the master of the Castle. Without a master, the Castle didn't have the "permission" to let him out.
This was all Rolls's speculation. Even if he was right, he couldn't get back! Audrey and Alger were actively kicked out by Klein, but right now, Sefirah Castle had no one to kick him out.
If he had to wait until his spirituality was exhausted to be kicked out, who knows what would happen in the real world?
Time flows at the same rate on Sefirah Castle as it does in reality!
If too much time passed and the prayer ended, his abnormal state would definitely attract the "Nighthawks" team.
I have to copy Klein! See if I can get out by sensing my physical body.
Rolls stood up, spread his spirituality, and sensed for his body, recalling the sensation of falling he felt earlier.
The crimson halo before his eyes vanished instantly. Rolls slowly opened his eyes and finally saw the real world.
He looked down at his hands. A black, inverted pyramid mark surfaced on his palm, then quickly faded until it vanished into his flesh.
He exhaled slowly and looked left and right. By the candlelight, he saw that Belin, Delia, and most of the believers had tear stains on their faces.
He quickly lowered his head and kept his eyes wide open. After a dozen seconds, tears began to secrete, moisturizing his dry, stinging eyes.
Feeling the tears flow, Rolls raised his head and, like Delia and Belin beside him, gently wiped them away.
The Moon Mass was more like a ritual—a ritual involving Beyonder powers. Its function was to resonate with everyone's spirit, allowing different people to see their close, departed loved ones in the darkness, releasing their grief and obtaining peace.