Tivian North Suburbs, outside the eastern gate of Royal Crown University, Green Shade Town. In the winter season of Green Shade Town, the sky is gray and cold. A light drizzle has just fallen, and a thin layer of frost quickly forms on the roads and lawns. The roads become slippery due to the frost, and one must tread carefully to avoid slipping. As the New Year approaches, some households in Green Shade Town have begun decorating their homes with festive New Year ornaments. Wreaths made of fresh green branches are hung under the eaves, and simple wooden carvings of one of the Three Saints are placed at the entrances. Small flags bearing the emblem of the sun are also hung on the rooftops. In the tradition of the Radiance Church, the New Year is considered the day when the Radiant Savior successfully expelled the evil gods and achieved a great victory. Legend has it that the Radiance Church designated this day as the start of the new year. One month after the New Year, on the first Sunday, the Radiant Savior is said to have officially returned to the Sun Palace, leaving the world to be guarded by the Three Saints, who are his incarnations during the salvation process. This day is known as the Ascension Day, another important holiday in the Radiance Church. Although some households in Green Shade Town have decorated their homes for the New Year, these are few and far between. This is mainly because most of the residents here are wealthy students from Royal Crown University, and the university closes for the New Year holiday. Students return home to celebrate, so there is no need for elaborate decorations. Among the handful of homes that have been decorated, House No. 17 stands out. A cold wind blows through the streets of Green Shade Town. Inside House No. 17, which has a simple Holy Mother altar at its entrance, a crackling fire in the hearth drives away the chill in the living room. Dorothy, with her long silver hair loose, is dressed in a light blue cotton nightgown and white wool slippers. She sits in a single armchair by the fire, a steaming cup of coffee on the coffee table in front of her. Scattered around the coffee table are several books, and Dorothy herself is holding an open, yellowed old book, her expression focused as she reads its contents. The book Dorothy is currently reading is a mystical text sent to her by the Serenity Bureau through the White Craftsmen’s Guild. Yesterday, after parting ways with Misha, the latter quickly fulfilled her promise by sending three mystical texts confiscated from secret societies as payment to "Detective." The postal service of the White Craftsmen’s Guild is quite efficient, and the texts arrived at Dorothy’s doorstep the very next day. Misha adhered to her agreement with Detective Ed, sending mystical texts that matched the spiritualities Dorothy currently needed. Among the three texts, two are related to Lantern, and one is related to Shadow. The book Dorothy is holding is one of the two Lantern texts, titled "Faith and Sanctity." … This book, "Faith and Sanctity," was written by a scholar well-versed in the mysticism world. The author was deeply interested in the development and attitudes of the Radiance Church’s faith and conducted extensive research on the subject. In the text, the author explains the Radiance Church’s absolute and unwavering support for the Three Saints. For them, any attempt to alter or challenge the faith in the Three Saints is absolutely intolerable. In regions influenced by the Radiance Church, any sign of heresy or the spread of alternative religious beliefs among the populace is met with a strong reaction from the church. The author provides several examples of actions taken by the Radiance Church in response to heresy and alternative religions, ranging from the eradication of a secret society to the launching of wars. The church has even orchestrated purges and overthrown governments to ensure the absolute dominance of the Three Saints’ faith in a given country. One of the most significant examples cited by the author is the case of the peninsula nation of Ivengard. Centuries ago, due to the long-standing influence of the Tide Path within its royal family, Ivengard was deeply corrupted by the Abyssal Church and openly worshipped the Abyssal Serpent. In response, the Radiance Church organized a coalition of neighboring countries to launch a holy war against Ivengard, ultimately defeating it. After purging the nation of the Abyssal Serpent’s influence, the church installed a different faction of the royal family to power. In secular history books, the traces of this holy war have been downplayed, with the names of the Abyssal Church and the Abyssal Serpent erased. The conflict is instead portrayed as a normal military clash between Ivengard and its neighbors. … “The Radiance Church takes heresy and alternative religions very seriously. If these beliefs remain hidden within the mystic group and develop slowly, they might be tolerated. But once they cross the boundary into the secular world and begin to spread among the populace, they are met with severe retaliation, even to the point of war. Even though the Abyssal Church successfully controlled an entire nation, it couldn’t withstand the holy war waged by the Radiance Church…” After finishing the mystical text, Dorothy ponders this. She reflects on the fact that her own Akasha faith currently has only a few followers, far too few to attract the attention of the Radiance Church. As long as she doesn’t foolishly attempt to spread her faith to the masses, the Radiance Church is unlikely to come after her. "Based on the current information, the Radiance Church does actively hunt down secret societies that promote heresy or alternative gods, but their intensity isn’t as high as that of a government agency like the Serenity Bureau. However, once heresy or alternative religious beliefs begin to spread to the general public, they immediately strike with overwhelming force, displaying far greater and more violent power than a government agency. They are willing to wage wars to eradicate any significant competing faiths..." Dorothy summarizes this in her mind. She then places the finished mystical text on the coffee table, takes a sip of her coffee, and picks up the second Lantern text to read. This text is a partial translation of another mystical text called "The Sacred Flame." … "The Sacred Flame" was originally written in the imperial language. The translation Misha provided summarizes parts of the text. The original text of "The Sacred Flame" is a hymn praising the King of Light. The hymn describes a monumental battle fought by the King of Light during the Dawn War. His opponent was the World-Burning Giant. According to the hymn, the World-Burning Giant was a colossal being, many times larger than a mountain, its body engulfed in raging flames. Wherever it went, it would burn the sky and the earth, turning everything into fire. The giant was inherently belligerent and once challenged the Lord of the Mountains to a duel. After being defeated, it was sealed deep within the earth by the Lord of the Mountains. It took the giant thousands of years to melt through the seal, and it nearly evaporated the Young Tide in the process. In its battle with the King of Light, the World-Burning Giant was ultimately defeated and destroyed. … “The World-Burning Giant... sounds like a deity from the Lantern domain, specifically the fire-related path. It seems to be an ancient, fallen god. If it was defeated by the King of Light during the Dawn War, then this World-Burning Giant must have existed at least during the Second Epoch.” “The text also mentions the Lord of the Mountains, which, according to Beverly, is another name for the Stone Prince. And the Young Tide... seems to be a deity from the Tide Path, possibly the predecessor of the Abyssal Serpent, and likely also fallen…” After finishing "The Sacred Flame," Dorothy reflects on this. Reading this text has given her some insights into the Second Epoch. “This World-Burning Giant fought with the Stone Prince, nearly evaporated the Young Tide, and was ultimately destroyed by the King of Light... It seems like the gods of the Second Epoch were constantly at war with each other, engaging in fierce conflicts...” Dorothy speculates in her mind. She then closes "The Sacred Flame," places it back on the coffee table, and picks up the third and final mystical text sent by Misha, which is related to Shadow. Upon opening it, Dorothy finds that this is also a hymn-like mystical text, titled "The Crown of the Wind King.” … This text, "The Crown of the Wind King," is essentially a hymn dedicated to the Despenser royal family of Pritt. It openly praises the Despenser lineage, referring to them as descendants of the Wind Knight, a noble and honorable bloodline. The text extols the Despensers, claiming that they will eternally uphold their oath to protect the land of Pritt. It expresses sorrow and regret over a certain "Chaotic Event," but also celebrates the Despensers’ resurgence after this event. Finally, it emphasizes that the Despensers will forever remain the unchanging rulers of Pritt. … “This is actually a mystical text about the royal family... The Despensers, descendants of the Wind Knight... That’s interesting. What exactly is the Wind Knight? And what is this ‘Chaotic Event’ mentioned here? It sounds like some kind of upheaval…” After finishing this final mystical text, Dorothy ponders. She has read about Pritt’s secular history in the library, and there have indeed been periods of turmoil. However, she isn’t sure which specific event this "Chaotic Event" refers to. "Well... Regardless, I’ve finally finished reading these texts. The information is a bit fragmented, and I can’t piece together a complete picture yet. For now, I’ll just extract the spiritualities." Stretching, Dorothy closes the mystical text and places it back on the coffee table. She then leans back in her chair, closes her eyes, and begins extracting the spiritualities. Soon after, the spiritualities from all three texts have been extracted. "Faith and Sanctity" yields 3 points of Lantern and 1 point of Revelation. "The Sacred Flame" provides 4 points of Lantern, 2 points of Stone, and 1 point of Revelation. "The Crown of the Wind King" contains 2 points of Shadow, 1 point of Stone, and 1 point of Revelation. Combined with her existing spiritualities, Dorothy’s current spiritual reserves are as follows: - Chalice: 10 - Stone: 16 - Shadow: 6 - Lantern: 9 - Silence: 23 - Revelation: 30 “I’ve almost accumulated enough spiritualities. I’m just a little short on Shadow and Lantern, which I can easily acquire by purchasing more. The key now is the holy symbols—specifically, the Shadow and Revelation holy symbols…” After reviewing her current spiritual reserves, Dorothy thinks to herself. Among the missing emblems, she already has a lead on one—the Shadow emblem—which she hopes to obtain during the upcoming New Year’s Eve party. “The New Year’s Eve party is my chance to get a lead on the Shadow emblem. But the key is that I need to make contact with Duke Barrett. How can I create an opportunity to interact with a duke?” Staring into the fireplace, Dorothy carefully considers her next steps, thinking about how she should act in the ten or so days leading up to the event. Just then, a familiar voice echoes in her mind—a long prayer has reached her. "This is... Kapak’s prayer?" Hearing the voice in her mind, Dorothy murmurs in surprise. She then listens carefully to the content of Kapak’s prayer, her brow furrowing slightly. “Kapak’s tribe members have come to Tivian for revenge? Why is this happening just before the New Year?” Dorothy is quite surprised by this. Kapak’s prayer was directed to Aka, asking him to relay a message to Scholar. In the prayer, Kapak explains the unexpected situation in his tribe: several radical members have been persuaded to come to Tivian to cause trouble. Kapak is now being summoned by the tribe’s shaman to follow them and bring them back. Kapak is currently on his way to a coastal colonial city and doesn’t have time to write, so he is using prayer to contact Scholar. He hopes that when he arrives in Tivian, Scholar can assist him. After fully listening to Kapak’s prayer, Dorothy immediately responds as Scholar, instructing him to head to Tivian, where she will meet him. After responding to Kapak, Dorothy thoughtfully strokes her chin. “Just before the New Year, a group of radical New Continent natives, likely manipulated by the Nether Coffin Order, are coming here to cause trouble... With all the events happening in Tivian during the New Year, there are plenty of opportunities for them to carry out some kind of terrorist attack... This is a major security risk that can’t be ignored…” Dorothy thinks to herself. A group of New Continent natives with a strong desire for revenge, arriving in Tivian during the holiday season—this can’t possibly end well. “Although Kapak is on his way here, I’m not sure if he’ll make it in time. In any case, I should alert the Serenity Bureau and have them increase their vigilance.” Dorothy decides. Tivian is a large city, and with her limited resources, Dorothy can’t possibly manage the situation alone. This matter will have to fall on the Serenity Bureau. “I’ll write another letter to Misha, asking her to remind the headquarters and the church to strengthen security during the New Year and prevent any incidents. After all, only they have the authority to oversee the entire city... At most, I can help with some divination…” After thinking about the situation with Kapak, Dorothy begins organizing the mystical texts on the coffee table. As she places the three texts back into her magic box, she unexpectedly notices an envelope still on the table. “This is... a letter for me? Oh, right... I remember this was in the mailbox when I retrieved the mystical texts. I planned to read it after finishing the texts, but I almost forgot…” Dorothy thinks to herself as she picks up the envelope. She examines it closely and realizes it’s from Gregor. "It’s a letter from my brother... We just met not long ago. What does he want?" Dorothy murmurs as she opens the envelope and reads the letter. She finishes it quickly. The content of Gregor’s letter is simple: the New Year is approaching, and he plans to invite Dorothy to the city on the 31st to have a meal together and celebrate the New Year. After all, in the vast city of Tivian, Dorothy is Gregor’s only family, and it’s only natural for family to spend the New Year together. In the letter, Gregor also invites Dorothy to attend a New Year’s Eve party after dinner. On New Year’s Eve, there are many events and parties throughout Tivian, and Gregor has chosen one of the more prominent ones—the party hosted by Princess Isabella, the same one Dorothy plans to use to make contact with Duke Barrett. "So... he wants me to attend the New Year’s Eve party in person?" Dorothy murmurs, frowning as she reads the letter. She had originally planned to send a marionette to the party while controlling it from afar, but Gregor’s invitation means she’ll have to attend in person. After all, she can’t very well send a marionette to meet her brother. Looking at the letter, Dorothy hesitates about whether to accept, but she quickly realizes she has no good reason to refuse. After all, what else is there to do during the New Year if not spend it with family? "Hmm... It’s just a party. It shouldn’t be a big deal..." Dorothy murmurs, stroking her chin as she looks at the letter.