Everything seemed to fall silent in that instant.
In truth, when General Tafman told Ophelia to draw the curtains, Karen had already considered how he would react.
Although the captain had told him to immediately break out using Light magic if discovered, and Karen had indeed prepared to do just that—blind their vision with a Light spell, crash straight through the windowpane outside, and flee at all costs to some secluded corner to change into Church of Order robes, or dash headlong toward the Bernard Hotel.
As for what would happen to the captain still inside the villa, Karen believed the captain could slip away on his own.
Yet the moment Ophelia pulled back the drape, Karen knew fleeing had lost all meaning.
Though a black veil masked his face, leaving only his eyes exposed, Ophelia recognized him in an instant.
She didn't speak, but her gaze gave him the answer.
She knew who he was, despite the disguise.
Karen didn't know why, nor did he want to ponder it.
Right now, running was pointless, and using Light magic would be sheer folly because his identity was already exposed.
If Dark Moon Island learned he could wield Light magic, they would undoubtedly suspect his "Dark Moon lineage."
Ophelia didn't scream; not a trace of panic surfaced on her face. At this moment, she was actually smiling, as if enjoying a masterclass comedic performance staged just for her—one that had built up anticipation to the peak before finally delivering the reveal.
If anyone appeared awkward and ill at ease, it was Karen.
Ophelia drew the curtain, which she had pulled all the way back, slightly toward the center again. Karen immediately pressed his hands against the sill and shifted his body over, hiding behind the drapery once more.
Once fully concealed by the fabric, Karen parted his lips, doing his utmost to regulate his breathing.
Ophelia turned and walked toward the bookcase, helping General Tafman take down the books and notebooks.
General Tafman finally finished organizing them, placing everything on the desk alongside Ophelia.
"So many," Ophelia remarked softly.
"It's just an older edition of *Light Era*. However, the most important items are these two notebooks. Both record what transpired on Dark Moon Island during that era.
"This one was left behind by Ancestor Bernard;
"that one was left by that person.
"Fortunately, both possessed the habit of keeping notes. As their descendants, we truly ought to be grateful our ancestors had such a wonderful habit, haha."
"Still, Uncle, I can understand why Ancestor Bernard's journal is here, but why would that person's journal..."
"This villa was originally that person's residence. Didn't you once ask me why the decor here looks so unusual? Because when designing and furnishing it, he preserved the Dark Moon Island style while incorporating some of his own flair—one could call it a Light style."
"Can I take these with me?"
"I'm sorry, Ophelia, not for the time being. These two notebooks must remain here and cannot be taken outside this villa. You should understand what 'Light remnants' signify today.
"Especially now, when your father has finally managed to board the great ship of the Church of Order, we cannot afford any twists or storms. Consider it doing it for your father's sake."
"Yes, I understand. Should I read them here?"
"Mm, read them right here. I need to head into the palace now to meet your father and that lot from the Council of Elders. If I don't pay them a visit, I'm afraid they'll worry—worry that I've had second thoughts and want to reclaim the position of clan leader."
"How could that be..."
"Nothing is impossible, Ophelia. Sometimes events do not shift according to your personal will, because a great crowd behind you will push you forward.
"Still, don't worry. I will handle it properly.
"I will stay in the palace tonight. You may remain here, and my guard unit will continue to garrison this place to protect you.
"See you tomorrow. Don't stay up too late reading."
"Alright, Uncle."
General Tafman walked out of the study.
Karen remained hidden behind the curtain, not because he feared General Tafman had forgotten something and would turn back, but purely because he didn't know how to face Ophelia.
How on earth was he supposed to explain why he was here?
After a long while, a voice came from the study:
"How much longer do you plan to hide?"
Karen sighed and stepped out from behind the curtain.
Ophelia sat behind the desk, an open notebook before her. Her sleeves were turned up, revealing a length of fair wrist.
Her hands were very pale. Because of sword practice, she kept her nails trimmed short and wore no jewelry.
Ophelia looked at Karen and asked, "Why are you here?"
Karen replied, "That's why I didn't come out earlier—I haven't thought of an explanation for why I'm here."
"Do you need to hide your motive?"
"Mm."
"You could fabricate an excuse. Say that after I left the hotel, you followed my carriage here, and snuck into the study just to see me."
"You wouldn't believe that excuse."
"Sometimes what people want to hear isn't necessarily the truth."
Karen pulled out a chair and sat down opposite Ophelia. "I don't want to lie to you. I'm used to being honest with my friends. To deceive you would feel like an insult."
In fact, even the matter of the "Dark Moon lineage" hadn't been Karen deceiving her; she had imagined it all on her own back then. Thus, when Karen spoke those words, he didn't feel the slightest guilt.
"Blunt rudeness isn't honesty."
Karen nodded. "You're right."
He knew Ophelia was referring to what happened that afternoon.
"Are you leaving now?"
"Mm, yes."
"I assume you can leave safely on your own without me seeing you out?"
"No need. Go on reading."
Karen stood up, preparing to leave.
Ophelia didn't try to keep him, nor did she ask, *Did you hear everything my uncle and I just said?*
She chose calm composure.
Just as Karen reached for the study door, footsteps sounded outside. He could only slip behind the door to hide.
The study door opened, and a maid stood at the entrance. "Your Highness, the general instructed us to prepare a late-night snack for you. Would you like any dessert?"
"No need, I'm not hungry. Also, I don't want anyone disturbing me over such matters while I'm in the study."
"Please forgive me." The maid closed the door and left.
Ophelia closed the notebook, stood up, walked to the door, opened it, and stepped outside.
Karen knew she still intended to escort him out. Not being pretentious, he followed behind her.
At the top of the stairs, Ophelia stopped.
"It seems every time we meet, you bring me some surprise."
"This time, it really was an accident."
"I won't tell my uncle that you were here, nor do I wish to pry into your purpose—but only for tonight, and only until you step out of this villa. After that, I will handle everything by the book."
"Understood."
Just then, the door to the master bedroom behind Karen pushed open.
Karen and Ophelia turned simultaneously to look back. The door had opened, but no figure was in sight.
"Your companion?" Ophelia asked.
It couldn't be a faulty door swinging open in the wind; the servants inspected everything in the villa daily, especially upon learning that her uncle was returning today.
"I was chasing him. He broke in here when I left the hotel. I didn't know whose villa this was, nor that you would be here."
Ophelia walked into the master bedroom, Karen following closely.
At that moment, a figure appeared by the ceiling chandelier. He wore a stag's head over his face—the kind of decorative mounted stag head hung on living room walls.
Yet from the clothing, Karen recognized him immediately: it was the captain.
Most of the time, one really could place unconditional trust in the captain; in such a brief window, he had even realized he needed to change his disguise so Miss Ophelia wouldn't connect the two of them as partners.
Only, clinging to the ceiling with such a massive stag head perched on him looked thoroughly comical.
"To think you pursued me all the way here."
With that, the captain reached out and twisted the chandelier before him. The chandelier was intricate, but he turned only a single component. In an instant, the glow of an array manifested across the bedroom floor.
Karen was certain the captain had prepped everything inside, leaving only the final step untouched while waiting for him.
Once the array materialized, white light surged forth—a teleportation array.
The stag-headed captain let go and dropped straight down. No sound of landing came; he was teleported away instantly.
Seeing this, Karen immediately yelled, "Stop right there!"
Then he dashed forward as well. Stepping into the circle of the array, his figure vanished.
The sudden activation of an unfamiliar array inside the villa alerted the guards downstairs, who came charging toward the third floor.
By then, the light of the teleportation array was rapidly fading.
Ophelia didn't wait for the guards. Before the array completely dispersed, she stepped right into it. As the final flash of white light died down, the array dissipated, and Ophelia's figure vanished on the spot.
…
*Thump!*
Karen landed on a patch of grassy sod. Raising his head, he found himself in an exceptionally vast, open area. Above was a starry sky, and behind him stood a stone tablet. There were no inscriptions on the tablet, only a single handprint.
Where was the captain?
Karen was searching for the captain when a disturbance sounded from above. Ophelia dropped down. Karen instinctively reached out to catch her, but she adjusted her posture midair and landed steadily on her feet.
"Karen, what on earth is going on?" Ophelia asked directly.
"I don't know either."
"Then where are we?"
"I know even less."
"Just who were you chasing?"
"Light remnants."
"Light remnants?" Ophelia frowned slightly. Just then, her body twisted, crimson light coalescing in her hand as she slashed directly behind her.
*Slash!*
A black python was severed clean in half at the waist, but the fallen half bearing its head sprang upward on momentum, snapping toward Ophelia once more.
"Order—Guardian Wall!"
Three black walls materialized, slamming straight down on the snake's body and pinning it dead to the ground.
Ophelia looked at the three walls before her. This was merely a simple Order spell, yet the feel of it when Karen cast it was completely different. Walls this solid and massive were enough to make most attacks pale in comparison.
"Your strength has improved tremendously." Ophelia remembered that when they met in Wien, Karen had possessed nowhere near this level of strength—or at least, none of the imposing aura he displayed now.
"After you left Wien, I worked rather hard."
Before they could say another word, six or seven pairs of green lanterns appeared in the darkness, swaying as they rapidly approached.
They were snake eyes. There were actually this many pythons here!
Ophelia raised her arms. Two Dark Moon Blades manifested like crimson whips, slashing straight ahead.
"Order—Purification!"
Karen didn't choose to engage the snakes in melee. Instead, he stood behind her, continuously casting Purification on Ophelia. These pythons looked terrifying, and ordinary people facing them would be little more than snake food, but Ophelia had no trouble handling them. The only real concern was the venom they might spray.
At last, all the pythons were chopped into neat sections by Ophelia.
Karen thought that if he had a big enough pot, he could whip up a feast of braised eel.
With so many pythons slaughtered here, the surrounding reek of blood grew overpowering. From not far off, rustling sounds arose again; the scent of blood had evidently drawn even more pythons.
"Go!"
Ophelia didn't choose to keep slashing away. She waved her hand to Karen, signaling to pull back—or at least leave this spot for now.
The two ran forward, passing through a patch of woods. After running for some distance, the sound of breaking waves echoed from up ahead.
Were they teleported to the seashore?
Karen stopped in his tracks. Ophelia looked up at the position of the blood moon in the sky and said, "We aren't on Dark Moon Island anymore. The teleportation array sent us off the island!"
"Where are we now?"
"Southwest of Dark Moon Island. This should be part of the archipelago. We are likely on an isolated islet."
Karen recalled asking the captain if it was just going to be another teleportation array, to which the captain had replied that it was impossible—it couldn't possibly teleport them from Dark Moon Island back to Dark Moon Island.
Well then, now they had teleported to an isolated island in the sea.
Where had the captain run off to?
Just then, Karen sensed an unfamiliar fluctuation of power beneath the sand at his feet.
"Careful!"
Warning Ophelia beside him, Karen formed Dark Moon Blades in both hands and plunged them straight downward.
Yet the Dark Moon Blades shattered on impact. The surrounding sand caved in as a python, glowing green even in the dead of night, reared its body violently upward. A fleshy crest sat atop its head, resembling a small opened umbrella, and its serpentine eyes held a formidable majesty.
It parted its jaws, spewing a terrifying torrent of acid.
"Dark Moon Aegis!"
Ophelia raised a dark-red barrier, enveloping Karen and herself behind it. The acid splashed against the barrier with a piercing hiss.
Earlier, Karen had tested it; the Dark Moon Blades couldn't pierce its scales. This was definitely no ordinary python; even among monster beasts, it was exceptionally formidable.
Karen spread his arms and began chanting. Two archaic black spears manifested above him.
Karen glared at the python, and the two Spears of Punishment shot straight at it.
*Boom! Boom!*
Two thunderous impacts resonated.
Since sharp blades couldn't pierce its scaly armor, he would batter it with sheer blunt force—just like dealing with a heavily armored opponent, where a warhammer served far better than a blade.
The python let out a wail of pain. Though not bludgeoned to death, it was clearly terrified by Karen's twin Spears of Punishment. It made no further attempt to attack, turning and fleeing backward instead.
Ophelia lowered the barrier and looked toward the distant dark moon hanging in the sky.
Karen couldn't help remarking, "Is this... Snake Island?"
"I wasn't aware a snake island existed in this direction from Dark Moon Island. Besides, it isn't very far from Dark Moon Island, yet these snakes shouldn't exist at all. With numbers like this and being so close to Dark Moon Island, they would have been discovered and hunted to extinction long ago, even if it meant mobilizing fleets and troops."
"So you mean this island is isolated and concealed?"
"Yes. Something around this island must be masking it." Ophelia looked at Karen, speaking with utter solemnity. "We must return through the teleportation array. Otherwise, we will never see a passing ship here."
"Then we can only return to where we first teleported in and try to reactivate the array. That stone tablet should be the activation mechanism."
Karen and Ophelia had no choice but to retrace their steps. The best outcome they could hope for now was successfully activating the array and heading back. Otherwise, by tomorrow... No, they wouldn't even have to wait until tomorrow. Karen didn't matter much, but news of Ophelia's disappearance would likely stir up a storm right now.
The snake king had apparently been cowed; on the way back, no more snakes appeared. When they returned to the stone tablet, they found that the severed chunks of python carcasses were completely gone. Only bloodstains stained the ground; the corpses had likely been dragged away by other pythons as food.
Ophelia crouched before the stone tablet to study it. Judging by her posture, she had a deep understanding of arrays, so Karen didn't crowd in, fully aware of his own limitations with magical arrays.
Karen's attention was soon drawn to the patch of sod where he had fallen earlier, as this patch differed conspicuously from the surrounding vegetation.
Squatting down, Karen reached out to touch it. It felt cool to the touch—not grass, but more like... hair.
Yet how could a dense clump of hair be growing on the ground like this?
What lay beneath it?
Right at that moment, Ophelia must have triggered a ward on the stone tablet, causing it to shudder slightly.
Immediately afterward, the "sod" began shrinking rapidly, clumps of black strands drawing back toward the tablet of their own accord.
Ophelia backed up toward Karen's side in some bewilderment, watching the once-broad patch of turf shrink away.
The scene hidden beneath the turf gradually revealed itself: rows upon rows of tightly packed corpses lay beneath. The clothing on some bodies had rotted away, while remnants of white robes lingered on others. Clothes that could endure so long without rotting away in the humid climate of an ocean island... were very likely clerical vestments.
Once the black hair had retreated fully into the base of the stone tablet, an entire mass grave was laid bare before Karen and Ophelia—containing at least a thousand corpses!
The temperature dropped imperceptibly, and a wind akin to whispered murmurs drifted past their ears.
When Karen looked at the stone tablet once more, he discovered a line of words had appeared upon the previously blank surface:
[With heartfelt gratitude for your contributions to Dark Moon Island. You are tired, and you have labored long; I invite you to sleep here forever. —Bernard]
Chapter 256