Mystery: Big Alarm Clock Ghroth Path

Chapter 354 The Hunt for Ince
"Sir Roger, it seems your plan is progressing very smoothly."

Beside her, Alexis, a woman with three heads, emerged from the shadows where the light did not reach.

At this moment, the "Tri-Headed Sanctuary" seemed to have finally become completely accustomed to the balanced state of the three pollutants in its body, and its body had fully recovered to normal, with all its functions returning to a good state.

"Yes, thanks to everyone in 'New Fog City'."

Roger nodded slightly. He had to admit that the "Readers" were indeed very capable in learning. Roger hadn't been bringing them the books provided by the Church of the "God of Knowledge and Wisdom" for very long, but they had already mastered the key principles of structural mechanics and the corresponding methods for calculating forces and loads.

In addition, the help of those "generalists" who were more skilled in mechanics and architecture made it possible for this huge structure to be built.

At this moment, the huge arched dome support that Roger was standing in front of was an infrastructure spanning about ten meters that Roger had just created by the two groups of extraordinary individuals working together, plus the materials Roger had brought from outside.

This arched dome almost completely covers one of the most important corridors in the central open space, protecting residents who normally pass through from direct sunlight. In addition, Roger also placed another order with "The Moon" Emlyn, asking this vampire to help make a batch of medicine that can be applied to the skin to prevent sunburn.

As for areas where crops are grown, they are not covered for the time being.

Fortunately, over the past thousand years, the people of the "Underground Midnight City" have figured out the optimal amount of sunlight for most of their crops. So sometimes they would use simple tools to help them block out the light when it wasn't needed. However, they had never realized the harmful effects of sunlight on human skin.

Thanks to the joint efforts of all three parties, this crucial infrastructure project has finally been completed, which has brought Roger considerable satisfaction.

"By the way, Lady Alexis, has there been any progress in Jack's research?"

Roger looked at the "New Fog City" people in the crowd below who were helping to set up the tarpaulin, those who were wrapped in thick cloth and had their eyes covered, and asked with some curiosity.

Roger was originally considering whether to bring some of the residents of "New Fog City" whose bodies had been contaminated to "Underground Midnight City" to be exposed to sunlight, but before he could even speak, Jack brought up the idea himself.

Jack's idea was that, considering the purification effect of the "Eye of Glory," it might be worthwhile to call over some of the stronger people from "New Fog City" to help. Bathing in this sunlight might improve their physical condition.

On the other hand, unlike the residents of "Underground Midnight City" who have been exposed to excessive sunlight for a long time, the residents of "New Fog City" have almost never been exposed to any form of light except for oil lamps and lightning. Therefore, Jack is also afraid that their bodies cannot withstand direct sunlight and that they themselves will be purified by the "Eye of Glory" as some kind of "pollution".

Considering this issue, Roger was determined to ask Saint Andreid to temporarily dim the brightness of the "Eye of Glory." The residents who had just arrived in the "Underground Midnight City" had to be fully armed and wrapped up tightly in the early stages, gradually adapting to the heat. Only after confirming that there were no abnormalities on their bodies could their skin be allowed to directly receive the light.

On the other hand, after polluting that tributary of the "Chaotic Sea," Roger made two more surprising discoveries.

First, he discovered that he could use his connection with the tributaries of the "Chaos Sea" to control the "Eye of Glory" to some extent.

He discovered this by accident. When the first group of outsiders from "New Fog City" entered "Underground Midnight City," many of them showed signs of photophobia. So, he subconsciously expressed a strong desire to reduce the light of "Eye of Glory."

To Roger's surprise, the light of the "Eye of Glory" actually dimmed at that moment.

After realizing this, Roger took the initiative to find Saint Andreid and tell him about it.

After discussion, both sides agreed that this was likely caused by the power of the "Holy Remains". Roger and Saint Andreid then agreed that, barring unforeseen circumstances, Saint Andreid would continue to be responsible for adjusting the brightness of the "Eye of Glory".

Secondly, Roger was able to confirm that the "Eye of Glory" was indeed spreading the pollution of the "Chaos Sea" to the residents of the "Underground Midnight City" at an extremely slow rate through light.

This is undoubtedly very dangerous, because although the pollution has not yet caused any serious consequences, it is certainly not a solution to continue like this.

It's not just the people in the "Underground Midnight City" who are affected; many older people in the "New Fog City" also suffer from the same kind of pollution. This is clearly because the tributary of the "Chaotic Sea" beneath the "Fog City" is actually an extension of the "Underground Midnight City."

Therefore, for safety reasons, all the "New Fog City" people Roger summoned to the "Underground Midnight City" this time were those who had previously lived in "Fog City".

Fortunately, compared to the "Underground Midnight City," not everyone in the "New Fog City" who had lived in the "Fog City" had this kind of contamination. This is undoubtedly because the "Fog City" was located on the surface, while the "Underground Midnight City" was located underground and closer to the "Holy Remains."

In addition, Roger discovered that he could occasionally hear prayers directed at the "Original Creator." These voices clearly came from the underground survivor city-states of the "Forsaken Lands," and because of the individual prayers' connections with Roger, the corresponding prayers were intermittently transmitted to Roger, who had already used the power of the "Primal Core" to corrupt the tributary of the "Chaos Sea."

Roger had tried to use his connection with the tributaries of the "Chaos Sea" to reclaim the pollution, but he found that, seemingly due to his insufficient status and strength, he could only reclaim a small portion of it.

Roger guessed that only when his own strength level was raised again and he was promoted to Sequence 3 "Black Prophet" of the "Star of Judgment" path would he be able to significantly remove the pollution carried by the residents of the two city-states.

Considering that Klein is about to be promoted to Sequence 4 "Trickster", Roger's need to be promoted to Sequence 3 is even more urgent.

Just as Roger was thinking this, he suddenly heard some kind of illusory prayer.

The voice did not come from the "Source Castle," nor from the intermittent prayers of the "Chaos Sea" tributary, but from the "Primal Core."

"Lady Alexis, please excuse me for a moment, I will be back soon."

Alexis's three heads nodded simultaneously, then watched Roger leave the shadowy area that had already taken shape beneath the "Eye of Glory".

Roger quickly returned to his room in the "Underground Midnight City," and after a brief silence, he once again arrived at the stone platform at the very center of the "Primal Core."

It was here that Roger finally heard clearly the voice of the person who was praying to him.

The voice belonged to a woman, who was chanting in a semi-recitation style the name Roger had specially given her.

"The intersection of the starry sky and the spirit world, the crimson descendant of the ancient creator, the living embodiment of the starry sky and the calendar, the master of the power of music."

"The great 'star track tuner'!"
"I pray for your attention, I pray for your guidance, I pray for your revelation."

"..."

This was the name Roger had specially created for "Silver City," a name that belonged to him personally. In order to avoid the sensitivity of the "Hercules School" of beliefs, Roger deliberately used the symbol of the "Star of Judgment" to create a new name for himself: "Star Orbit Tuner."

There are three key points. First, Roger connects himself with the "power of music," which indicates that the music with extraordinary power that the "Silver City" obtained earlier all came from Roger.

There has been a long-standing misunderstanding in the "Silver City". The people of the "Silver City" went from being skeptical of this music at the beginning to promoting it into a national culture. This process not only went through the careful evaluation of the "Six-Person Council", but also because this music had been tested in actual combat and practicality.

Many people have speculated about the origin of this music, with the most popular theory being that it comes from the legacy of the Elf King Suniathrem, but this has never been confirmed.

For most people, the greatest value of Roger's music lies in playing it, singing it, and drawing courage and strength from it; where it comes from is not important.

But at this moment, if the Council of Six knew that this music came from a great being they had never heard of, it would inevitably make them feel like they were in a dilemma.

First, they would certainly have an unconscious sense of wariness towards this great being, but despite their wariness, they could not issue another order to prohibit the residents of "Silver City" from playing and singing those songs.

After all, the negative impact of doing so would be very real. It would plunge the residents of Silver City, who had just begun to find some joy and hope in life, back into darkness. To use a popular saying from Roger's previous life, it would be "turning back the clock of history." The Council of Six had to be extremely cautious.

Therefore, the only path before the "Council of Six" is to try to understand the "True Star Map" and, at the same time, find out the identity of that hidden great being.

In response, Roger thoughtfully added the phrase "the red descendant of the ancient creator," which not only points to himself as a mystical symbol of the "true creator" God's son, but also connects the "Star Orbit Tuner" with the original creator.

Most importantly, the word "descendant" contains a great deal of possibilities.

For example, when exactly is the so-called "descendant of the ancient creator"? Did it exist before the destruction of the "Silver Kingdom" or was it born afterward? What is its relationship with the "original creator"?
This will inevitably excite and confuse the Council of Six, as they will certainly believe that this "Star Tuner" has a close connection with the Creator of the Third Age, but they cannot find direct evidence of His existence in the scriptures.

After all, the Creator might occasionally have an illegitimate child, and that child might have a son, and that grandson might have a grandson, and so on. They have neither the right to comment on it nor the ability to verify it.

If something cannot be verified, we cannot say that it exists, but conversely, we cannot say that it does not exist.

In other words, it cannot be proven or disproven, but an alluring possibility is right in front of us, and it would seem like a huge loss not to explore it.

Furthermore, the title of "Star Tuner" contains knowledge related to astronomy and calendar systems. The "Council of Six," who have already opened the "True Star Map," will definitely have a strong desire for this knowledge, because it is a new path that may lead "Silver City" away from the "Forsaken Land."

So it was inevitable that Roger would receive this prayer today; he had been waiting for this moment, and today his wish has finally come true.

"By the way, the person praying here seems to be Lovia?"

When Roger magnified the rust-colored spot in the spiritual sky of the "Primal Core," he saw a blurry female figure.

Although Roger couldn't see clearly, he could still tell that the woman looked to be in her early thirties, with a smooth, fair face and a very attractive appearance.

Her thick, slightly curly silver-gray hair cascaded down her back, and her pale gray eyes were faintly visible.

These physical details all matched Lovia's characteristics. To Roger's surprise, it was this "shepherd" elder who was the first to take the plunge, rather than someone else.

Most importantly, at this moment, Lovia was carrying a quietly burning lantern, with lush darkness behind her and a faint male figure not far away, seemingly holding a weapon.

"Ugh……"

Roger understood that Lovia, an elder who believed in the "True Creator" but was actually fiercely loyal to the "Silver City," had taken the initiative to offer the first prayer to the "Star Tuner" in order to express her loyalty to the "Silver City" and her fearless attitude of sacrifice.

Most importantly, judging from the surrounding environment, Lovia had clearly left Silver City temporarily and, accompanied by a companion from a distance, came to the darkness of the Forsaken Land to pray.

This means that she was prepared to lose control due to the attention and corruption of the evil god, and made this decision so as not to drag down her fellow citizens of "Silver City".

"This time, I'll be the one to save you."

Roger took a deep breath and then connected his consciousness to Lovia's spirit through the spiritual sky of the "Primal Core".

With the precise control of a high-sequence "singer" over his breath and pronunciation, he spoke a sentence in the giant language he had recently honed:

“I have heard your call. What do you thirst for?”

Upon hearing this, Lovia's body visibly trembled violently. She seemed completely unprepared for her first prayer to the "Star Orbit Tuner" to be answered.

"Great 'star trail tuner,' thank you for your kind response."

“I, Lovia, beg you to show ‘Silver City’ a way out of darkness, from hardship and calamity.”

Lovia's voice trembled uncontrollably as she asked the question that concerned her most, and indeed the entire "Silver City."

Roger paused briefly to organize his thoughts before answering:
"The matter of praying for light is like gazing at the stars in the deep night."

"Know the circumstances and understand the principles, and the path to enlightenment will naturally appear."

“You have already received my enlightenment.”

After saying this, Roger wisely shut his mouth, withdrew his spirituality from the sky, and ended the communication.

His words were very clear: to find a way out of "Silver City," one must take the "True Star Map" as a starting point and deeply understand the knowledge it contains.

This is very intriguing, because for the "Silver City," the entire world they inhabit is like a vast, boundless fog of war. It's not that they don't want to leave the "Forsaken Land," but they simply don't have a clear direction.

But things are different now, because the "True Star Map" can display the starry sky at any time, which is equivalent to anchoring a series of fixed beacons for "Silver City" in the fog of war.

In particular, when they discover that the positions of most celestial bodies in the sky change at different times, and only the position of a certain star located on the North Pole axis remains constant, they will naturally develop a concept of the cardinal directions, thus systematically developing an understanding of orientation.

Although the path to leave "Silver City" is not absolutely in any of the four directions, in fact, whether "Silver City" can leave the Forsaken Land largely does not depend on their own will, in the process of learning knowledge, they are also able to recover lost time and calendar, gradually integrate with the world of light, and provide important support for Roger to finally digest the "Living Star Chart" potion.

On the other hand, Roger understood that Lovia, the "shepherd" in the "forsaken land," must have used the "listening" ability more than once. Even though the activity frequency of the "true creator" had decreased significantly, there must still be pollution and madness tendencies in her mind.

However, her pioneering act of paving the way for "Silver City" has given her a new path to survival: she may very well have become a follower of "Hexing." The fact that the rust-colored spots representing Lovia still remain in the spiritual sky of the "Primal Core" after she stopped praying is the best proof of this. Followers who receive Roger's response in prayer and are imbued with the aura of the "Primal Core" can largely shield themselves from the influence of the ravings of those in their transcendental pathways. This is evident in the cases of Fors Wall and Yale Nicholson, and Roger believes that the current "Shepherd," Lovia, is no exception.

This change will undoubtedly strengthen the Council of Six's confidence in the Orbital Tuners. As long as no black swan event occurs, it is almost foreseeable that Roger will receive a large number of anchors from Silver City.

"For now, this is sufficient."

Roger glanced with some satisfaction at the stone platform with spoke-shaped surfaces inside the "Primal Core," then slowly flew into the air and returned to reality.

Roger did not rush back to the central square of the "Underground Midnight City". Instead, he used his "Traveler" ability to come to the "Goddess of the Night" church in Constance City once again.

The cathedral, originally called the "Crimson Church," has long been renamed the "Sleeping Church," but nothing else has changed.

The entire city of Constance has returned to its former order, and Roger saw more steam locomotives and diesel locomotives on the road than before, both in terms of aesthetics and speed.

"It seems that Stiano has managed to retain his parish in the Kingdom of Rune."

Roger smiled slightly. This was another manifestation of the butterfly effect. Because of the advantage he had gained for the Kingdom of Rune in the war, "Steel and Machinery God" Steano chose to retreat in advance during his confrontation with "Storm Lord" Leodorus. This act of self-preservation undoubtedly allowed him to keep his share in the Kingdom of Rune and avoid being driven to Intis or somewhere else.

Roger picked up his silver-inlaid cane, straightened his burgundy trench coat, and then strode into the "Deep Sleep Church," where a hymn was being sung.

Before we knew it, it was Sunday again.

Roger then realized that life in the "Forsaken Land" often made him feel like his days and nights were reversed. Even with the "living star chart" ability, Roger would only pay a little attention to the time of day each day, and not pay too much attention to the date.

Unless it's Monday, the day of the "Tarot Club" gathering, he's busy with various tasks at "New Fog City" and "Underground Midnight City." He sometimes even forgets to eat, let alone the dates.

Thinking of this, Roger touched his stomach and realized that he was a little hungry.

He looked up at the young choir members dressed in somber colors at the very top of the "Deep Sleep Church," temporarily suppressing his hunger, and simply rested his cane to one side, listening quietly to the heavenly sounds.

"Speaking of which, the goddess truly lives up to her reputation as a time traveler; this performance really does have a bit of the feel of Western religions from the old days."

After the ceremony ended, Roger and the other believers stood up and loudly praised the goddess.

After that, the service proceeded with the invocation and scripture reading. Roger was not in a hurry, but participated attentively with the believers present.

Not only that, Roger even took the initiative to go on stage to assist the pastor in reading the scriptures, while sharing some of the revelations and good deeds he received in the process of believing in Goddess.

It must be said that Roger, as one of the high-ranking members of the "Aurora Society," a large cult, had never properly participated in such a formal orthodox church worship ceremony, but he was quite adept at proselytizing. Before long, he had the many believers present either weeping softly or praising the goddess.

When the prayer ceremony officially began, Roger finally stood up and went to a prayer room at the very back.

This action immediately drew the attention of many believers, who then realized that this devout follower of the "Goddess of Night," though young, possessed an extraordinary temperament and demeanor, and seemed quite unusual.

After all, although this prayer room can be used on weekdays, it is mainly used to receive people of special status on Sundays, such as nobles, prominent members of parliament, or businessmen.

Roger was able to come here because his status was now prominent enough, and because of his relationship with the Church of the Goddess of Night. Fura Jenkins should have known about Roger's arrival as soon as he arrived.

Sure enough, shortly after entering the prayer room, Roger saw the clergyman in the black robe he had met before smiling at him.

"It is a pleasure to see you again, Your Excellency Abraham."

The clergyman nodded slightly, then opened a door behind him:

"Archbishop Jenkins is already waiting for you."

"Thanks you."

Roger touched his top hat, bowed slightly, and then walked up the spiral staircase behind him.

Soon, Roger saw the stained-glass corridor, its walls shimmering in the afternoon sunlight of Constance, once again. He stepped forward and stood before the heavy, half-closed door.

"Bang bang."

Roger knocked twice on the door, and then heard a woman's voice from behind it:

"Please come in."

Roger bowed slightly, pushed the door open, and stepped inside.

Fula Jenkins was sitting at the table. To Roger's surprise, the archbishop of the Church of the "Goddess of the Night" was sitting behind the table with a smile, pouring a pot of Marquis black tea into two exquisite teacups with beautiful colored glazes. There was also a pastry tart beside her.

The dessert tower was filled with various small cakes, candies, and pastries, mostly in the style of the northern coastal region of Backlund.

"What are you doing?"

Roger chuckled, momentarily unable to figure out what the beautiful woman in front of him was up to.

"It's just afternoon tea time, so I've prepared some snacks and black tea for you. I hope you'll be satisfied."

Fura nodded slightly, and then said:

"Oh, by the way, this pastry is filled with puppa jam. This kind of puppa comes from the vicinity of Sunia Island. It takes longer to ripen, but the flavor is somewhat different from the puppa around the Rothschild Islands."

"Thank you for your trouble."

Roger nodded gratefully. Although he didn't know when the news that he liked Pubaguo sandwich cookies had reached the Church of the Goddess of Night, he naturally wouldn't refuse their offer since they had prepared so diligently.

Roger took a sip of black tea, then put a pupa jam sandwich cookie in his mouth.

This type of puma fruit is less sweet and acidic than those from the Rothschild Islands, but it has a subtle cocoa aroma that enhances its complex flavor, giving it a unique character.

He immediately praised:

"It is indeed very different from the pomelo from the Rothschild Islands. It has a different flavor, which I also like very much."

"As long as you like it."

Fula Jenkins smiled and took a sip of Marquis's black tea. The two chatted for a while about some recent events in Rune before the Archbishop of the Church of the "Goddess of the Night" changed the subject:
"Your Excellency Abraham, besides attending the worship of the goddess, you must have come here for another reason, right?"

"Yes."

Roger nodded:

“I would like to ask the Church of the Goddess of Night to help me hunt down Ince Zangwell.”

“I’m so glad you finally made this decision.”

Fula Jenkins raised an eyebrow, then asked with some surprise:

“We should have discussed this issue before. If it's just about hunting down a ‘Night Watchman,’ your strength should make it a piece of cake.”

"If you are unwilling to do it yourself, you can leave it to our people to do, but you just mentioned 'hunting together'... you must want one of your subordinates or friends to do it, right?"

"You are truly exceptionally wise."

Roger praised him lavishly before explaining:
"I hope you can keep this a secret."

"I understand, don't worry."

Fula Jenkins nodded enigmatically:

“This operation will only involve the ‘Night Watchers,’ wouldn’t you agree, Your Excellency Abraham?”

"exactly."

Roger smiled and nodded, then added:

"But I have some personal suggestions regarding the selection of personnel for this operation."

"Please speak?"

Fula Jenkins looked over curiously again, and asked with her lips slightly parted.

“I hope Mr. Dunn Smith can lead the team.”

"Dunner Smith?"

Jenkins racked his brains and immediately recalled the member who was still serving as a "night watchman" in the Tingen parish.

However, unlike his past role as captain, he no longer needs to lead the team personally. Instead, he serves as a "night watchman" who guides the work.

This is an extremely strange case in the Night Watchers of the Church of the Goddess of Night, because normally, Night Watchers who are promoted to Sequence 6 in the local area are usually transferred to the Sanctuary or Backlund, but Dunn Smith is still in Tingen, which is really strange.

However, given the tragic incident in Tingen where Saint Serena's ashes were lost, this is not surprising.

"Why him?"

"Fura Jenkins asked."

"because."

Roger replied indifferently:

“Mr. Dunn and I are friends, while Ince is our common enemy.”

"I understand."

Vella Jenkins nodded:
"I will report this matter to the Holy Church for a decision."

"However, based on my experience, I think there is a very high chance that this matter will be approved. I will contact you as soon as I have any news."

"Now, can you tell me where Ince is hiding?"

"of course."

Roger smiled slightly:
"Inse is hidden in the capital of the Kingdom of Fenneport, in the city of Fenneport."

"He has controlled a 'favored one' of the 'Church of the Earth Mother Goddess'."

(End of this chapter)