Chapter 917: Vera
Brother... The Chained God—no, now he should be called the Angel of Spirit, Tolzna—truly valued this bond of kinship.
Was this his way of holding on to his humanity?
At least Emlyn could finally breathe a sigh of relief. After Tolzna received a gift from his "brother," he no longer seed interested in Emlyn’s collection.
Just as Ebner thought of this, the marionette before him added, "If there’s a battle, since losses may occur, I’ll still go buy more..."
"..." Ebner was left speechless. While silently mourning for Emlyn, his mind drifted as he considered the idea of establishing a doll workshop.
After all, with the growth of the "film company," related industries needed to be developed one after another, lest others seize the market.
Yes, dolls, playing cards, original soundtracks, stage costus—all of these must begin... Dolls can be mass-produced in factories to take over the lower-to-mid market, while at the sa ti offering special custom services, hiring master craftsn, and targeting high-end clients... draining money from custors like Emlyn.
Very quickly, Ebner had ford a complete plan. He decided to bring it up during tomorrow’s banquet with Fanny, Helene, and the others.
Though he no longer cared much for money, the people around him still needed it. His future territory would also demand heavy investnt. He couldn’t simply rely on his Beyonder powers to counterfeit currency...
One or two notes didn’t matter, but if the scale grew, it would inevitably draw the attention of Loen’s financial institutions. And if it were discovered that a demigod had stooped to such acts, the disgrace would be unimaginable.
While Ebner pondered, Tolzna had already "taken a seat" and begun tasting the dishes laid out on the table.
Though he had co only in the form of a marionette, as a forr divine spawn, he naturally had ways to transmit the "flavors" back to his true body.
"I prefer stronger tastes... Next ti, add more chili to this, this, and this," the marionette Tolzna said after sampling three dishes and pointing them out.
At this, Ebner’s mouth twitched. While carefully noting it down, he muttered, "Weren’t you the founder of the Faction of Temperance? Is indulging like this really okay?"
Tolzna licked his fingers, his "expression" serious as he replied, "The Prisoner pathway is, in truth, a road that gradually moves from indulgence to temperance. This is evident even in the sequence titles.
"At the lower sequences, the Madman, the Werewolf, even the Ghoul and Wraith—all must vent their desires to perform better. In this sense, the principle of temperance is really just taking advantage of that...
"But with the Mother Tree of Desire present, taking advantage is necessary. Otherwise, indulgence at low sequences inevitably draws one closer to Her. Even if you don’t worship Her, by the higher sequences... well, to use your words from before, you would have long since taken Her ’shape.’"
Wait, what exactly did I say to the Chained God back when I was Danitz? Ebner’s face twitched slightly.
"Looks like you haven’t regained Danitz’s mories..." Tolzna glanced at him, then continued, "At the higher sequences, the Puppet, the Silent Disciple, even the Chained —just from their titles, you can see they lean toward binding one’s desires, showing temperance.
"So, at this stage, if we don’t wish to keep drawing closer to the Mother Tree of Desire, those of us who were once of the Temperance Faction must indulge a little instead.
"Of course, since we are already high sequence, we each have so ability to resist that supre being. So such indulgence depends on personal interests, but must remain moderate, or we risk being used by the Mother Tree of Desire all the sa.
"After all, She is not only the apex of the Chained , but also the pinnacle demon of lust, bodily fluids, and corruption."
I see... So that’s why Miss ssenger always gives people nicknas. Beyond keeping her humanity, it must also be part of this...
But why do I feel like you’re just finding excuses for gluttony?
As Ebner silently complained, the room suddenly filled with a blue mist.
Within the fog, the faint image of a heroic, finely featured woman appeared. She opened the window of a manor and, with the mist as her bridge, stepped directly into Ebner’s bedroom.
Clearly, the mist had "twisted" space, shortening the distance.
The visitor was none other than George III’s sister, Princess Vera Auguste of Loen. Today she wore a red court gown, its skirt elegantly flared. Her attire was dignified and noble, but the emblem displayed on her dress was not the Auguste family’s Sword of Judgnt. Instead, it was a crest ford of a layer of thorns, a wall of shields, and a longsword driven upright through them.
It was the original crest of the Tamara family! Having already learned much about the extraordinary organizations and noble families of this world, Ebner recognized it at once.
In fact, the Tamara family had once changed their crest. The one Vera wore was their earliest emblem, while the later version showed a pair of open doors, with the upright sword forming the gap between them.
Now, the Tamara family mbers of the Knowledge Society all bore the latter crest.
Could my earlier guess have been right? Princess Vera... she really is the "Hand of Order" of the Tamara family ntioned in Roselle’s diary, the one saved by Rhine—by ""?
Seeing Vera smiling brightly at him, Ebner felt a little lost. Even though he had rehearsed in his mind, he didn’t know how to face her at this mont.
This was an unfamiliar acquaintance—so awkward!
Fortunately, Tolzna eased the tension. "Leticia Tamara," he said, directly naming her.
"Tolzna..." Vera nodded slightly, then said, "I never found the chance to congratulate you. After being ’imprisoned’ by that one, not only did you successfully complete the ritual of accommodating uniqueness, but you must also have already t the conditions for becoming a god."
Tolzna did not answer. After carefully studying her, he suddenly said, "What state are you in now? Though you look like a high-sequence Beyonder of the Arbiter pathway, that’s just the state of this body...
"In essence, you are the Mist of Uncertainty? No, that’s not right. You lack that level of authority. Even with its will sealed, you couldn’t replace it."
Vera knew Tolzna’s words were less a question and more a reminder to Ebner. Smiling, she shook her head patiently and replied,
"The instinct of a divine spawn truly is sharp... To put it simply, my current state has sothing to do with a system called ’Shoulu.’ Through it, I share part of the Mist of Uncertainty’s authority.
"And with its will sealed, I am now effectively the holder of its highest authority.
"Unfortunately, its true body is not in this world, so I can only wield the portion of its power that penetrates into reality. Otherwise, I would be half an Old One already."
The Shoulu system? Tolzna did not fully understand but grasped the gist of Vera’s explanation. As for her claim of being half an Old One, he neither confird nor denied it. After all, her actual displayed strength was only at the level of an ordinary angel, weaker than himself in his incomplete state.
The Shoulu system? Isn’t that the cultivation system of the Western Continent? In the original story, it was only ntioned in passing, never expanded on...
And right now, the Fool hasn’t beco a god, the seal on the Western Continent still stands... Vera becoming like this must be my doing, right?
Did I really capture the Mist of Uncertainty and force it to grant Shoulu to Vera, letting her escape her madness? But with my past self no higher than Sequence 1, how could I have done it? An Outer God is still an Old One...
anwhile, Vera stopped speaking of matters that could drive ordinary people insane. Still, she did not dispel the surrounding fog. Smiling warmly, she walked to the table, picked up a glass of Ormir wine, and said to Ebner,
"Congratulations to our Mr. Braine for ascending to demigod and being granted the title of Viscount of Beldane.
"Oh, and to placate the old nobility, and to show that he does not support the practice of purchasing titles, George III has decided not to hold a formal investiture for you. Instead, the House of Lords will issue certification and publicly announce your elevation."
Isn’t that actually a good thing? Saves
from swearing false loyalty to his face... Ebner felt indifferent. As long as it didn’t hinder his taking over the territory, it was fine.
Though it might make him a laughingstock among the so-called noble circles... As a demigod, Ebner hardly cared.
So he rely smiled, raised his glass in response to Vera’s toast, then shifted the topic to sothing they had agreed on earlier.
"Vera, you once said that when I beca a true Seer and brought you sothing that could move you, you would tell
the whereabouts of the Mist Monster...
"So now, can you tell
what would move you?"
"These dishes are quite good, with unique styles—better than what the royal chefs of Loen prepare," Vera first remarked on the al made by Shoko. Then she looked Ebner up and down with a smile that carried a sharp edge, and said,
"Do you really not know what I want?"
Lady, could you be a little more subtle? There’s still a newborn child here! Ebner silently complained, but he didn’t reply. He just returned her gaze, waiting for her real demand.
He could tell she was teasing. Even if she was serious, given her appearance, figure, bearing, and charm, she matched his taste—he wouldn’t exactly be losing out.
Besides, it was possible they had already shared an improper bond.
Seeing that Ebner no longer carried the awkward innocence he had before becoming a demigod, Vera grew bored. Shaking her head, she asked seriously,
"Do you now rember the item known as the ’Divine Coffer’?"
(End of Chapter)
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