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

Chapter 218 No one can be unlucky all by themselves.

Generous City, Bayam, Dock District, 48 Sour Lemon Street, "Azure Wind" Hotel.

Outside, rain poured down and a storm raged, but inside the luxurious suite, the fireplace was warm and the environment was serene.

A tall woman, dressed in a girlish yellow tiered dress and with long, chestnut-brown hair reaching her waist, stood quietly by the window. She gazed at the torrential rain outside, seemingly appreciating this unexpected rain scene.

Her eyes were a deep, azure blue, as if they contained a condensed ocean, captivating like jewels.

But if someone were to look at this woman from outside the window, they would find that her jewel-like eyes now appear utterly empty.

She makes you feel like she's not a real person, but a beautifully crafted doll.

But if you look more closely, you'll see that the woman's chest is heaving violently; her body is instinctively resisting!

Her chest felt incredibly heavy, and her breathing was rapid and labored. At that moment, she felt as if she had plunged into the ocean, being squeezed from all sides by heavy currents.

Whoosh!

Faintly, she heard the sound of surging tides and saw shimmering waves all around her, as if they were forming a boundless, unfathomable blue ocean.

She has escaped from the seabed and reached the surface, where the sea is calm.

The woman's eyes narrowed sharply, and she instantly snapped back to reality as if she had been jolted back to her senses. Almost instinctively, she staggered back two steps, as if she had been greatly frightened. Her pretty face turned deathly pale, and a fine layer of sweat beaded on her forehead.

It took her a while to recover, and she whispered with a complicated look in her eyes:

"Thanks."

The tiny doll sitting on the bookshelf gazed at the woman below, its voice soft:

"Bernarde, had you heard of this name before?"

"I……"

The woman with chestnut-brown, waist-length hair seemed still shaken, glancing unconsciously out the window as if feeling guilty. Outside, a torrential downpour raged, and the streets were nearly deserted.

After a long while, she gently shook her head and whispered:

"I have never heard of this name before, nor do I know anything about it... There is such a person in Remenberg."

"Yeah?"

The doll-like girl stared at her for a long time before looking away and whispering:

"Krana, the witch of Izalith, she's here too?"

Bernadette's head hung low, her straight eyebrows trembling slightly; she remained gripped by instinctive fear. Her divinity, her spirit, trembled with terror. The surging divinity, like a storm, and the spirituality, like a tidal wave, transformed the once calm sea into a raging hell, seemingly tearing her, her master, to shreds and turning her into a mad monster!

-

In the luxurious suite next door, Klein, who was lying on the bed, suddenly opened his eyes.

He tried his best to suppress his expression, attempting to appear as calm as possible. Yet his spirit was incredibly agitated, his body trembled slightly, and his eyes revealed an undisguised fear.

He was still scared.

Fear made Klein jump out of bed and rush into the bathroom.

Without hesitation, he immediately took four steps backward and entered the gray fog. Within that mysterious space, a majestic and ancient palace stood silently.

He sat at the head of the long, weathered table, in the position of the "Fool," and looked around.

The gray fog stretched endlessly, the deep red was serene, and the palace stood as unchanging as ever. Everything here seemed to have fallen still, yet it brought Klein a sense of security he had never felt before, gradually calming his anxious heart and soothing his restless spirit.

Klein stared at the mottled long table before him, his breathing heavy. When he heard that name, he didn't even have the courage to think, forcibly restraining every thought, letting his mind completely empty, devoid of any distractions.

This is not due to focus, but to fear.

Only by returning to this seemingly eternal gray fog could his thoughts be freed.

A bitter smile crept across Klein's lips as he said self-deprecatingly:

"I almost died this time..."

He secretly vowed in his heart that next time, he absolutely, positively could not be so reckless again, otherwise he would die without even knowing how he died!

Now, what he needs is to think.

Krona.

This name belongs to Edwina's teacher, a high-sequence being of the Church of the God of Knowledge and Wisdom. Klein didn't want to think about who this name belonged to, nor what sequence the other person was in, nor did he want to investigate their identity... even though he had already done so...

"The Chaos Witch, Krana..."

Klein rubbed his temples, his thoughts in utter chaos.

He was trying to untangle these tangled thoughts one by one, so that he could sort everything out.

In the Dark Souls universe:

In ancient times, before the world had differentiated, it was shrouded in a great fog. Everywhere there were gray rocks, towering trees, and immortal ancient dragons.

Then, one day, the First Flame was lit. As the fire rose, the world began to change.

Heat and cold, life and death, light and darkness.

Then, several creatures born from the darkness were drawn to the fire and found the king's soul around it:

The first dead, Nit, the witch of Izaris, Gwyn, the Lord of Sunlight, and his knights, and the unknown, insignificant humans.

After obtaining the king's power, they challenged the ancient dragon.

During the Chaos Era's "War of the Immortal Dragons," Gwyn's lightning pierced through rock-like scales, the witch's flames formed a storm, and Nit stirred up a deathly miasma. With the betrayal of the scaleless white dragon Seath, the ancient dragons were ultimately defeated, and the Age of Fire began.

After the war against the immortal ancient dragons ended, Nit returned to his tomb in the Tomb of Giants, where he slumbered with his king's spirit.

Gwyn foresaw that the flames would go out, so he threw himself into the furnace of the First Flame to link the flame and continue the world, thus creating the system of linking the flame; everything originated from him.

The witch of Izalith created the city of Izalith and lived there with her daughters.

As the First Flame was dying down, Gwyn gave most of his power to the gods and then resolutely led his most elite Silver Knights into the furnace.

The witch attempted to create the First Flame from the Chaos Flame, but was inadvertently devoured by it, becoming the source of all demons—the breeding ground of chaos.

The Chaos Fire consumed the witch and her daughters, turning the former city of Izalith into a chaotic wasteland. The witch became a breeding ground for demons, and almost all of her children were transformed into terrifying monsters.

Of all the old witch's children, Clara was the only one who escaped.

She escaped the onslaught of the Chaos Fire, but not the erosion of endless time.

Ultimately, in the world of Dark Souls 3, she died in front of her own sister, White Spider...

"But it's clear that the 'plot' is not static."

Klein took a deep breath; it took him quite a bit of time to sort out his jumbled thoughts. But it wasn't a wasted effort; at least it allowed him to gain more information from an observer's perspective and arrive at the correct conclusions.

"The 'Sanctuary' of the Dark Souls world, the painted world known as the 'Primal World,' once descended upon this world. And now, there's Klara, who happens to know the 'legend' of linking the First Flame—this cannot be explained by a simple coincidence!"

"I'm almost certain that the 'Teacher Clarna' that Edwina mentioned is the Chaos Witch Clarna from Dark Souls!"

"Evidence 1: Klara is fond of teaching, and her apprentice, Edwina, is also fond of teaching."

"Evidence 2: Klara of the Church of Knowledge and Klara of Dark Souls have never appeared in the same frame."

"Hmm, the argument is still about Cheng Kun!"

"Krana left the 'Sanctuary' to join the Church of Knowledge, perhaps because the people in the 'Sanctuary' were not of one mind, and there might have been different factions within it. This is understandable; gods, witches, and the undead... there are inherently many conflicts between different races, and even in the same world, they wouldn't be a loving family..."

"The 'Primordial World' is in the hands of the Church of the Night, which at least indicates that most of the 'Survivors' support the Goddess of the Night. But Klara chose to join the Church of Knowledge, and she even played a part in the initial founding of this church..."

"And besides that, there's Patch, who's neither loved by his grandmother nor his uncle... Hmm, Klara probably left the 'Primordial World' on her own initiative, but Patch was definitely kicked out!"

"But since Klara is still alive, the White Spider and the Red Spider Kragg should be safe too. Since Klara chose to join the Church of Knowledge, her sister witches will obviously follow suit and will likely be deeply involved with the Church of Knowledge. This... why doesn't the Church of Knowledge just change its name to the Church of Witches?"

Klein made a sarcastic remark, which did have some effect, at least making him less fearful and helpless than before.

"Wait, Kragg?"

Klein's expression suddenly changed slightly, becoming somewhat subtle.

While in Tingen, he learned a recipe from Fry called "Krag Oil," which could help people fight off foul smells such as rot and also had a refreshing effect.

While in Backlund, he also joined a Krag club...

Although he knew that the two were most likely just coincidences, he still couldn't help but wonder if there was any connection between them. For example, could the Kragg Club have been founded by the Church of Knowledge to win over the middle class of the Kingdom of Rune?

"Seeing enemies everywhere" is a classic case of...

Klein kept rubbing his temples; his mind was still a bit muddled, but he knew that was enough. Thinking any further wouldn't yield any useful information, and besides, Edwina was still waiting for him in the dream; he couldn't linger above the gray fog for too long.

Klein looked around; the gray fog remained serene, as if it had never changed since time immemorial.

This reassured him somewhat. He enveloped himself in spirituality and plunged into the gray fog, into the material world.

Klein washed his hands, took a deep breath looking at himself in the mirror, turned and left the bathroom, reaching for a silver talisman:

Dream Spell!

click!

Klein walked out of the room and opened the door to Danitz's room.

"Iceberg Admiral" Edwina stood quietly by the window, gazing at the crimson moon hanging high in the sky.

Even though it's not dark yet, even though the rain in Bayam is pouring down.

But this is a dream, and everything is normal in a dream.

Klein asked in a deep voice:

Where can I find a mermaid?

Edwina's eyes showed a hint of surprise, as if she hadn't expected him to recover so quickly. But she didn't dwell on the matter too much, and after a moment's thought, she replied:

"Sailing east of the Gargas Islands for a week..."

"Besides that?" Klein interrupted her.

Edwina gazed calmly at Klein, seemingly unconcerned, and said softly:

"Most mermaids are followers of the Goddess of Night and are protected by the Church of Night. The Church of Tranquility, the headquarters of the Church of Night, and the Church of Rest on the Island of Denos both house mermaids..."

"The Church of the Night?"

Klein had a bit of a headache.

The Hanged Man had given him this information, saying that the Goddess of Night seemed to be keeping mermaids, but Edwina clearly knew more details. The Sanctuary was out of the question; Klein wouldn't dare steal a mermaid from the Sanctuary—that would be walking right into a trap.

Moreover, Klein didn't really understand how the sanctuary located in Wintershire, nestled in the Amanda Mountains, managed to keep mermaids...

What?

You mean extraordinary abilities?

That's fine.

Denos Island is worth a try, but it would involve the Church of the Night, so perhaps he could give Ember a heads-up beforehand. Given Ember's connections within the Church of the Night, helping him with this shouldn't be difficult.

This would inevitably mean owing Ember another favor, but the problem was that Ember didn't seem to need favors much. If he owed too many, Klein was genuinely afraid he'd be dragged into the fire...

"Why is he looking for a mermaid?"

Danitz found it strange, but quickly guessed the 'answer'—

Mermaids are very popular among noblemen, and one can sell for at least a thousand pounds.

So why would this crazy adventurer, who only cares about the bounty, be looking for a mermaid?

"So in the end, the only option left is the wild mermaids east of the Cargas Islands?"

Klein felt a mix of realization and regret. Going to the Holy Church to walk into their trap was out of the question, but he could try the Church of the Sleeping Ones in Denos. However, since it was under the protection of the Church of the Night, there might be an archbishop in charge of the Church of Denos, making it quite difficult.

He suppressed the urge to sigh, looked at "Iceberg General" Edwina, and said calmly:

"One last question."

Once the beautiful lady and Danitz from Jieyang had both turned their attention to him, he slowly broke into a smile:

"Are you interested in collaborating?"

"What kind of cooperation?" Edwina asked back.

Klein's smile grew wider and wider, almost to the point of madness:

"Hunting, Blood General."

No one can be unlucky forever, and no one can be unlucky all by themselves!

Danitz's lips twitched slightly. One second he was asking the mermaid, and the next he was asking if they wanted to hunt Blood Admiral together.

You're a real talent, damn it. You're truly worthy of being called Gehrman Sparrow.

That makes sense, after all, the 'Blood General' with a bounty of 42000 is much more valuable than a mermaid!

(End of this chapter)