760 Second Day

In the Southern Continent, Raklev region, the day revealed Lake Dalsh in all its clarity, the serene waters reflecting the azure sky and distant snow-capped mountains in a scene almost dreamlike in its beauty.

Lumian, devoid of any mood to appreciate the scenery, was strolling around a pit at the forest's edge with Ludwig, who was smartly dressed in a tweed blazer, and Lugano, who wore a light cotton coat.

The pit contained highly decayed bodies, half-melted into the surrounding soil as if merging with it, decomposing in a unique way that returned nutrients to the earth.

Seeing this, Lumian understood why Oxyto, a Shaman King, didn't destroy the bodies after his rituals, leaving behind evidence and traces: burying the bodies and allowing them to return to the land was likely part of the ritual!

Last night, after reviewing the documents provided by the Knight of Swords, Lumian had a clearer idea of how to find Oxyto, a fervent disciple of the Primordial Moon.

Clearly, conventional methods like Magic Mirror Divination wouldn't work; otherwise, the Knight of Swords' companion, a member of the temperance faction with sharp spiritual intuition, would have already located Oxyto.

Lumian had three plans:

First, since Oxyto was a member of the Rose School of Thought and often mingled with the indulgence faction, he started by sending Franca and Jenna, both Demonesses, to casually stroll through Raklev City in full regalia, hoping to encounter Oxyto. This Shaman King, who never resisted his desires, might approach them, all under the watchful protection of the temperance faction.

Additionally, Anthony would use Psychological Invisibility or disguise himself as a commoner to follow them and observe the reactions of those around the Demonesses to discern any malice before Oxyto made a move.

Whether or not Oxyto had received the Great Mother's boons and transformed into a woman was a detail that didn't affect the Demonesses' ability to seduce him. Lumian deduced from Madame Pualis's and Franca's experiences that Oxyto would still be attracted to women, and might as well have an interest in men.

Second, using his own lineage from Omebella, and the unique ability of the Great Mother's blessed to sense others within a certain distance, he planned to roam the Raklev area in hopes of drawing out Oxyto. Similarly, Lugano, who also bore an anomaly possibly linked to the Great Mother, would serve as excellent bait.

Third, he considered revisiting the sites Oxyto had been before to see what could be eaten.

Pinching his nose, Lumian carefully inspected the traces around and inside the pit along with the numerous bodies for a while, then turned his head to ask Ludwig, "Is it dirty?"

"Very dirty," Ludwig nodded emphatically.

"Dirty from the Great Mother?" Lumian pressed further.

Ludwig hummed affirmatively, his expression filled with conflict.

Unsurprisingly, he heard his godfather ask, "Is it edible?"

At this question, Lugano couldn't help but gag, while the usually stoic Knight of Swords, Maric, slightly raised his eyebrows.

Ludwig replied reluctantly, "Yes."

"Can you sense the child born from these corpses after eating?" Lumian further inquired.

Based on his experience, these bodies had likely been impregnated during the ritual, carrying rapidly growing clawed bird-like creatures in their wombs, which then tore through their parents' abdomens, absorbing the remnants and emerging on their own.

From a mysticism standpoint, whether voluntarily or forcibly, the clawed bird-like creatures and the corpses shared a deep blood connection, making it easy to trace one from the other, or even cast curses across distances.

However, according to the Knight of Swords' documents, divinations utilizing this blood connection had been fruitless, as if the creatures that had emerged from these corpses had vanished from this world.

This could be due to a high-ranking individual casting a counter-divination or a change in the creatures' state. Lumian's only hope was that Ludwig might glean different information by consuming the flesh.

Ludwig, with a sullen face, said, "You can extract a bit of the bloodline from the corpses through a certain cooking method. While this won't allow me to sense the child's position and condition from a great distance, I should be able to detect its presence within a thirty-meter radius."

"Okay," Lumian felt the results were better than expected.

Then, he watched as Ludwig squatted down and used a child's silver knife and fork to separate a piece of half-melted, half-rotten flesh from one of the corpses.

The flowing yellow pus and the grotesque state of the flesh made Lugano turn away, looking out towards Lake Dalsh and Raklev City on the other side of the water.

Ludwig then had Lumian retrieve a cast-iron skillet, a stand, wheat flour, liqueur, various spices, and a chunk of solidified lard from the Traveler's Bag.

Lumian took on the role of the Chef's assistant, mainly responsible for starting the fire.

Ludwig first melted the lard, then added a bit of liqueur and some spices, frying them until the mixture was richly aromatic.

Next, he wrapped the rotten flesh in wheat flour and tossed it into the skillet, frying it in the deeply colored, fragrant lard.

The odors of fragrance and foul mingled together, gradually spreading.

Finally, Ludwig finished cooking and forked up the fried, golden-brown flour-coated meatball, stuffing it into his mouth.

He chewed, tears seemingly welling up in his eyes, looking pitiful as if wronged.

"You didn't complain when you ate Loki raw," Lumian joked.

Ludwig muttered as he spoke, "Rotten doesn't taste good, and there's no spirituality in it."

After swallowing the fried meatball that looked rather appealing, Ludwig continued thoughtfully as he savored it, "The deceased's birthday is on the second day of every year."

"Is there something special about that?" Lumian asked.

Stuffing candy into his mouth, Ludwig responded offhandedly, "In myths, on the first day, the Oldest One created the world; on the second, the Great Mother was born."

"I've never heard of such a myth..." Lugano murmured to himself, puzzled, with his back to Ludwig.

Lumian, deep in thought, shifted his gaze to another body.

"Their birthdays couldn't all be on the second day of each year, could they?

"I remember that the new year for many tribes on the Southern Continent isn't the same as on the Northern Continent; it's not necessarily January 1st. So, which day is the second day, and which calendar are we using?"

Ludwig, with candy in his mouth, said, "Any would do, as long as it's the second day of the new year according to the calendar one believes in."

Purely symbolic, then... Lumian turned towards the Knight of Swords. "Have you confirmed the identities and birthdays of these bodies?"

Raklev in the Star Highlands was a relatively prosperous area with a significant population, similar to the City of White Rapus, where Lumian had been before. It was one of the ancient Highlands Kingdom's support points ruling over the entire Star Highlands.

This area was known for its rich mines, but interestingly, all mining sites were far from Lake Dalsh, preserving the sanctity of this highland lake in the hearts of its people.

In the past, the Star Highlands were primarily a battleground between the Intis Republic and the Feysac Empire. After the war a few years ago, the Feysac Empire's influence waned, and the Loen Kingdom began to extend its reach. Even the Evernight Goddess Church of Loen Kingdom seemed to be spreading its teachings in this area-a fact Lumian had heard about while in Rapus.

And throughout the Star Highlands, the city atop the mines, Raklev, had the largest Loenese population.

Knight of Swords Maric nodded slowly and said, "We've confirmed 90% of the bodies; their birthdays, according to the Northern Continent's calendar, are mostly on January 2nd. For the rest, using local calendars, their birthdays also fall on the second day of the new year.

"For those whose identities remain uncertain, they seem to be foreigners, who may have come here either voluntarily or involuntarily. Give us a bit more time, and we'll surely determine who they are."

With a sufficiently large sample, the findings mostly align with Ludwig's explanation that the ritual required a strong symbol of the Great Mother... Lumian didn't stop the more temperance faction members from wasting energy verifying the remaining deceased's identities-what if there was something else peculiar?

Looking across the lake at Raklev City, Lumian said, "Let's head back to the city now and walk around."

Let's see which of the three are more effective-Omebella's bloodline, the anomaly of the Earth pathway, or the blood connection with the bird-clawed babies!

Walking towards the city, made of numerous gray and white stone houses, along the shimmering lake as blue as the sky, Lumian suddenly had a thought.

He asked the quiet Knight of Swords walking beside him, "In the Rose School of Thought, was Oxyto in charge of the Raklev area?"

"Not previously, and now it's uncertain," replied the Knight of Swords succinctly.

Lumian nodded, musing to himself, "If he isn't in charge of Raklev and merely initiated a ritual here on a whim, he should have left after it ended. Why is he still here?

"Does he have a deeper purpose in the Raklev area?

"Or perhaps, the Rose School of Thought is planning something for this place?"

The Knight of Swords paused for a few seconds before responding, "We suspect there might be a deeper purpose."

Pausing momentarily, he added, "Before the Highlands Kingdom was established, many areas of the Star Highlands worshiped Death, and Raklev was one of the places most influenced by this belief. Even today, some local customs still carry remnants of this death worship."

As they spoke, the three adults and one child arrived outside Raklev City.

Raklev, compared to the refined City of White Rapus, the architecture here was much more rugged. Although there were people in dark red robes and bright dresses, most wore more durable canvas work clothes.

Before even reaching the city gates, Lumian could already sense the hustle and bustle.