Mystery: The Undead Don't Die from Linking the Fire

Chapter 211 What have you been protecting?!

Ugh!

The steam train, puffing out white steam, traveled along tracks suspended in the clouds, piercing through the clouds and descending to the city on the ground.

With a long whistle, the train slowly pulled into the station and stopped at the platform, which was made entirely of steel.

On the platform was a crowd that had been waiting for a long time. They seemed to be natives of this world, who had come on this special day to welcome the members of the Mechanical Heart from the outside world.

"Lord Ash."

Khoramik, dressed in a white priest's robe and wearing a clergy cap, stepped forward and smiled as he handed a badge to Ember.

"You are free to move around and go wherever you want. As long as you wear this badge, no one will restrict your movements. But please be sure to return to this platform within one month, or you will miss your return time."

【Steam Emblem】

[A badge bestowed upon the favored by the god of steam and machinery.]

When the holder displays the badge

Followers of the Steam Church would regard it as a favored one of God.

"I will be careful."

Ember took the badge from Horamik, glanced at its description, and nodded slightly.

Khoramik smiled and nodded without saying anything more, then walked toward the indigenous people who came to greet them.

Yu Jin didn't linger and turned to leave the station.

Although he had never been to this world before, he could clearly perceive the core of this world through his connection with the 'fire'.

Although the world of painting is different in itself, even the physical laws within it are completely opposite to those of the outside world.

For example, the Steam Church's "Steam World" depicts an anti-gravity aerial track, a gigantic sun inexplicably suspended in the air, and steam cities scattered across a desolate land—all of which defy the laws of physics. Another example is the Aurora Society's "Flesh and Blood World," where an seemingly endless carpet of flesh and blood covers the entire world, with only a tiny, habitable area on the summit of a mountain.

But regardless, these two worlds have one thing in common—

Every world of painting must have a 'core', and within this 'core' lies the 'spark' that forms the foundation of the world of painting.

When the world of painting begins to decay, only by breaking the 'core' can the 'spark' burn the entire world to ashes.

of course.

This world is far from the brink of corruption, and the embers did not come seeking fire. His purpose in searching for the core was not to destroy it.

Ember looked up into the distance and realized he was standing on a "street" in this city.

Just like the train platform, even the roads in this city are made of steel.

Even with a rough estimate, the steel needed to build this city would be enough to assemble a massive fleet of tens of thousands of ironclad warships! This would be more than enough to replace all the existing fleets of the entire Kingdom of Rune, and there are far more cities like this in this painted world.

There is no doubt that the steel production in this world of painting is far too abundant.

"Perhaps it has something to do with the route taken?"

Yu Jin seemed to be deep in thought, recalling the world depicted in the painting by Aurora, a world covered with a carpet of flesh and bacteria.

The Sequence 6 of the 'Secret Prayer' pathway, which the Aurora Club possesses, is the Rose Bishop, a sequence that undoubtedly has a huge demand for 'flesh and blood'.

The Steam Church's method of communication is the "General Knowledge," and its name and symbols reveal its extreme worship and fascination with machinery and steel, which is related to its beliefs.

But these differences are clearly not inherent to these worlds of painting.

After all, according to the information Ember knew, this painted world was not exclusively owned by the Steam Church, but was to be shared with the Eternal Sun Church. In fact, more than a hundred years ago, this painted world belonged to the Eternal Sun.

The Church of the Eternal Sun clearly doesn't have much need for these steel cities, as they were all built during the hundred-plus years that the Steam Church took over, meaning that this world itself has great plasticity.

This is somewhat different from the world of painting that Ember knew before, but it is not incomprehensible.

Suddenly, a thought struck me, and a faint, illusory light blue appeared abruptly.

His figure blurred, becoming almost invisible.

He saw indescribable shapes, even transparent things that seemed to be nonexistent, and beams of clear light of different colors, containing endless knowledge... In that strange world that was beyond reality, Ember did not linger, but instead took a step in a certain direction.

Soon, he emerged from that transparent, illusory state and returned to reality.

What appeared before him was a steel metropolis that was no different from the city he had been before.

But he knew that this was not the original city, but the 'core' he was looking for.

But this did not make Yu Jin happy; instead, he was somewhat puzzled.

His ability to use spirit world teleportation means that this world is also connected to the spirit world.

The existence of the spirit world is quite mysterious. It completely overlaps with the real world, yet they do not interfere with each other. Only extraordinary power can break through the barrier between them.

In theory, the world of painting should be completely independent of the real world, which means that the world of painting itself should be isolated from the spirit world, and any extraordinary abilities that require the help of the spirit world to be used will be ineffective.

But the reality is clearly different; this world is also connected to the spirit world. However, on the other hand, this spirit world seems to be isolated from the spirit world of the real world. This is because the embers cannot teleport directly from the painted world to the outside world through the spirit world.

In other words, the "spirit world" here may be a division of the spirit world in the real world.

The spirit realms of the two worlds share the same world, yet remain independent of each other, a truly remarkable feat of craftsmanship.

Yu Jin gathered his thoughts and strode towards the city ahead.

But just as he took a step, a figure appeared in front of him without him noticing.

It was a woman dressed in a black dress and wearing a black veil. She appeared silently by the roadside and quietly watched the embers.

For some reason, Ember seemed to be able to see the complex expression in the woman's eyes.

Ember stopped and silently gazed at her.

"have not seen you for a long time."

The woman removed her veil, revealing her stunningly beautiful face, and spoke softly.

After a moment of silence, Yu Jin hesitated and asked:

Do we know each other?

"Huh?" The woman in the black dress paused, seemingly not expecting Ember to give such an answer.

The woman in the black dress's expression grew increasingly complicated, and she murmured softly:

"Oh, I see. You don't remember me?"

"As expected, it was meant to be this way. Perhaps, as someone who is taboo, I should never have been known to the world?"

After a long silence, Ember said softly:

"I'm sorry, I really don't remember, but I think it has nothing to do with you."

"No, it's okay."

The woman in the black dress gave a faint smile. "Actually, I was just joking."

Before Ember could react, the woman in the black dress suddenly asked again:

Do you remember the Fire Keeper?

Yu Jin nodded slightly.

The woman in the black dress seemed unsurprised and then asked:

"So, what else?"

After a long silence, Yu Jin said in a deep voice:

"Patch!"

The woman in the black dress paused for a moment, surprised by Yu Jin's answer once again, and changed the subject:

"Who else is there besides them?"

After a moment's thought, Yu Jin slowly said:

"Brother So, Brother Disheartened, Onion Knight, I remember them all."

"I see."

The woman in the black dress nodded thoughtfully and muttered to herself:

"Besides the Fire Keeper, are these the only people you have? Even if you've forgotten all your female friends, will you still remember the Fire Keeper? Ah, of course, how could Ember forget his Fire Keeper? As for the other women? It's normal for them to be forgotten, after all, women only slow down your fire-linking!"

"So..."

The woman in the black dress suddenly changed the subject and asked:

Do you remember your Fire Keeper's name?

Yu Jin paused for a moment, then fell into confusion.

He had never thought about this question. It seemed that in his mind, the Fire Keeper was just a Fire Keeper. Why did she need to have a name? But even the Fire Keeper wasn't born a Fire Keeper. Why didn't she have a name?

Why wouldn't he know his Fire Keeper's name?

"Is that really how it is?"

Seeing Yu Jin's reaction, the woman in the black dress smiled and said gently:

"It's okay if you don't remember. I can tell you the answer. Do you want to know?"

"certainly."

Yu Jin nodded solemnly.

The woman in the black dress held up one finger and said seriously:

"Kalura".

"Your Fire Keeper name is Karula."

Yu Jin looked up at the woman, whose expression was extremely serious and earnest, making it hard not to be convinced.

But Yu Jin could clearly realize that her words were devoid of emotion and were entirely self-serving.

Karula, the Fallen Child of Darkness

Yu Jin withdrew his gaze from the woman's head and said silently:

"Although my memories are few, and I don't remember the Fire Keeper's name, is it possible that the Fallen Child of Darkness could never become the Fire Keeper?"

"Eh~"

The witch named Carula blinked, but instead of being embarrassed by being exposed, she smiled and said:

"Have I been found out? But I'm not kidding you, I'm much more competent than the real Fire Keeper."

Ember didn't bother to determine whether Carula's words were true or false, and pressed on with:

"So, what's her name?"

"Irina".

Karula's lips curled into a slight smile. "Your Fire Keeper name is Irina. You, who rescued her from darkness, are her only salvation."

This is not a lie.

After all, Irina is indeed the Fire Keeper of the Embers.

"Irina?"

Ember murmured the name, as if a long-buried memory in his mind had been stirred...

"Ah, ah, please, whoever it is, please touch me quickly! It's so dark, I can't see anything, the darkness has gripped me. The insects keep biting and torturing me. So please, please touch me..."

"Ah, Lord Ash, are you about to depart? Please, please come back soon. I'm so scared, so scared of that darkness that torments me."

"Ah, ah, Lord Ash, I've been waiting for you for so long. Please, please touch me. Those insects are torturing me again."

"Ah, there you are. So I'm not alone after all. God, thank you..."

"Ah, Lord Ash, you're talking to me again. I'm fine. This darkness is the mission I'm meant to shoulder."

"..."

"Do you remember now?" Karula asked with a light laugh.

Yu Jin gathered his long-forgotten thoughts and nodded gently:

"I've remembered some of it."

Although his memory was still hazy, and he could only recall a few words, that timid girl was indeed his Fire Keeper!

"It's okay."

Carula smiled and said, "I will help you remember everything. Until then, I will stay by your side."

And it was the same after that.

Ember nodded silently, not rejecting the lady's suggestion, but suddenly asked:

"And what about you?"

"I?"

How did we meet?

"Ah, this is a long story, it's really troublesome."

Carula's lips curled up slightly, and although she said it was troublesome, she honestly began to explain:

"To put it simply, he's some hopeless, perverted lolicon. He keeps saying he wants to change my miserable fate, but in reality, he kidnapped me from my parents and forcibly turned me into his appearance. Then, after I grew up, he ruthlessly abandoned me without hesitation, now that I was no longer a loli."

As Karula spoke, she chuckled and asked:

"It's awful, isn't it? Just like my hopeless scumbag father."

"..."

Ember opened his mouth, then hesitated and said:

"Is it possible that the person you're talking about isn't me?"

"Would you rather that person not be you?"

Karula asked in return with a smile.

"..."

Yu Jin remained silent, then changed the subject, asking, "Who is your father?"

A complex look flashed in Karula's eyes as she softly said:

"Just a fallen knight who betrayed his vows and the saintess for the sake of a forbidden witch."

"To save the saintess, he traveled with the forbidden witch."

"For the sake of the forbidden witch, he abandoned all human ethics and ties."

"What a jerk."

"Until his last breath, he remained obsessed with the forbidden witch, even paying the ultimate price for her..."

While she was cursing her father as a scumbag, Karula's eyes revealed undisguised envy.

That must have been a very tragic love story.

Ember asked softly:

What is your mother's name?

Carla's face held a complex expression as she whispered:

"The Apostle of Jealousy, Catherine, a truly wicked woman."

"Apostle of Desire, Duna Shandra of Dorangregg."

Elena, the Apostle of Wrath, the Queen of Decay, and the City of Sacred Walls.

The Lonely Apostle, the Coal Bride, Nadra of the Tower of Black Mist.

Apostle of Fear, Silent Witch, Yarshuna of Esloes.

The triggered memories flashed through his mind one by one, and Ember murmured softly:

"Apostle of Jealousy, Carula."

"Yes, I'm here." Karula tucked a strand of hair that had been blown across her forehead behind her ear and responded softly.

Before meeting her, Ember had already experienced much. Although his memories were sealed, she could easily trigger them, which meant that the seal itself was no longer an obstacle. Given more time, he could solve all these mysteries on his own.

But she couldn't wait that long; she needed to be by his side in person, just as he had done before.

Yu Jin looked at the woman in front of him, but his expression became increasingly silent.

The fragmented memories only further disturbed his thoughts.

"Oh, you're confused, aren't you?"

Carla walked gracefully to Ember's side and said softly:

"As the saying goes, only those who have a path to follow will get lost; this is proof of your heroism. And whatever decision you make, I will always support you. So, please stay safe and sound."

Yu Jin stared at the woman in front of him, and for some reason, he felt that something was wrong.

Something's wrong with her personality.

(End of this chapter)