Chapter Summaries

Joshua inspected the rapidly built Shawshank Prison with Mrs. Si and discussed casting for the film, while Mrs. Si urged Galolie to pursue him and Galolie refused. In the Holy Church Country, Herolia practiced filming Messiah and asked to continue.

• Joshua showed Mrs. Si the nearly completed Shawshank Prison and said it would be demolished after filming.
• Mrs. Si agreed that she looked forward to the film and discussed Master Morgan’s arrival and the casting of Red with Joshua.
• Mrs. Si told Galolie to seize the opportunity with Joshua, but Galolie said she was more interested in games than romance.
• Messiah defeated a group of Holy Army soldiers during practice and joined Herolia upstairs.
• Herolia reviewed her footage of Messiah alongside scenes from Leon: The Professional and asked Messiah to continue practicing for the Camera.

Herolia used charity in the Slums to gather Faith Power, then captured an Inquisitor who revealed that the Holy City's people faced a soul-sacrificing plot. Back in Nolan, Joshua discussed filming Shawshank Redemption and a possible joint awards ceremony with Ciri.

• Herolia healed poor people in the Slums and admitted to Messiah that she sought their faith as a source of power.
• Messiah protected Herolia from Inquisitor attackers, captured one, and brought him back after Herolia blessed her and helped her fight.
• Herolia tortured Bishop Cobblestone for information about the Inquisitors' plan to sacrifice the Holy City's people, then ordered Messiah to take him to the Interrogation Room.
• Herolia healed Messiah's injuries and asked her to choose between saving the captive and protecting the Holy City's people.
• At the Hearthstone tavern, Joshua told Ciri that filming Shawshank Redemption would begin the next day.
• Ciri proposed holding the Oscar Awards with the Skjerrona Award ceremony, and Joshua said he would ask the Council of Sages about it.

Joshua cast White Thorn Flower Jazz as the male lead in the Shawshank Prison production and told the troupe to begin filming scenes outside the prison. Four days later, Reyek brought the Yevirk Serpent to Shawshank Prison to trade footage of their hunt, though the troupe remained wary of Joshua’s intentions.

• Joshua rejected the young half-demon Leon for the male lead but promised him a chance to act after more training.
• Joshua chose White Thorn Flower Jazz to play the male lead and told the actors to film the scenes set before the prison was built.
• Reyek and the Yevirk Serpent discussed their shortage of funds and whether their recorded Black Flame Wolf hunt would earn enough rewards.
• Reyek led the troupe beyond Squirrel Street and revealed that their trading destination was Shawshank Prison.
• Luo Na and the others questioned Joshua’s motives for arranging the trade at a prison, and Reyek said Joshua had invited them as guests.

Reyek brought the Yevirk Serpent to Shawshank Prison to meet Joshua, where they discovered Tylinn among the prisoners. When they arrived on the film set, Reyek surprised Joshua by asking to shake Galolie’s hand because he admired her character Mathilda.

• Reyek led the Yevirk Serpent to Shawshank Prison and noticed Tylinn inside with the prisoners.
• Reyek told the guards that Joshua had summoned him, and they let the troupe into the prison.
• Joshua watched the set with Ciri, Tylinn, Galolie, and Mrs. Si while filming was on break.
• The Yevirk Serpent’s arrival alarmed the actors and Mrs. Si, but Joshua reassured them that the mercenaries were allies.
• Reyek apologized to Joshua and asked to shake hands with Galolie, whom he admired as Mathilda.

Joshua rejected Yevirk Serpent’s footage of hunting a Black Flame Wolf and explained how to make educational magical-beast and survival programs instead, while Reyek agreed to try again. In the Holy City, Messiah questioned the imprisoned Cobler, who warned that no one could prevent the city’s destruction and that its people would soon die.

• Luo Na introduced Joshua and Tylinn to Yevirk Serpent’s members, and Tylinn signed the archer’s Record Stone.
• Luo Na showed Joshua footage of Yevirk Serpent quickly killing a Black Flame Wolf, but Joshua rejected it as an educational video.
• Joshua advised Yevirk Serpent to document magical beasts’ lives and habitats or make a Wilderness Survival program, then encouraged Reyek to post the existing hunt footage on Magic Web Vision.
• Reyek agreed that Yevirk Serpent would make more detailed recordings, and Luo Na recognized the value of the signed Record Stone.
• Messiah visited Cobler in the former Hall of Inquisition and asked whether the Hall planned to kill everyone in the Holy City.
• Cobler said no one could stop the coming disaster and that no one in the city would live much longer, leaving Messiah unable to rouse him.

Joshua continued filming Shawshank Redemption while Mrs. Si observed his directing, and the Magic Web Vision grew popular with adventurer videos. The chapter ended as Joshua prepared the crew for the next scene and asked Ciri to take him to the forests she once explored.

• Joshua approved a courtyard scene and called the crew to a lunch break at Shawshank Prison.
• Ciri visited the set and asked when Shawshank Redemption would be released.
• Mrs. Si praised Joshua’s directing after watching the rough cuts, while Joshua credited his detailed shot choices to memories of films he had seen.
• Joshua checked Magic Web Vision and saw that Foya, Arl, and Thunder Crystal ranked among its most popular creators.
• Joshua and Ciri watched Yevirk Serpent’s Black Flame Wolf speedrun video gain attention, and Joshua asked Ciri to take him to the forests she had explored.
• Joshua called everyone to prepare for the next scene.

Luo Na filmed Yevirk Serpent's hunts and the Extincter Mountain Range ecosystem to create videos for Nolan's viewers, while Shu Lisi discovered that their footage had made her famous. The chapter left Luo Na recording an Earth-Devouring Lizard battling a giant bear as Shu Lisi returned to camp and warmed to the attention online.

• Shu Lisi watched Luo Na's hunting videos and saw viewers praising her strength while some mocked her and Yevirk Serpent.
• Luo Na spotted Earth-Devouring Lizards leaving their nest and led his group into the undergrowth to film them, ordering Shu Lisi to stay behind.
• Luo Na explained the Earth-Devouring Lizard's defenses as he recorded it hunting a giant bear with a concealed Camera and sound-recording Source Crystal Stone.
• Shu Lisi left the filming to return to camp, where she watched admiring comments about the Serpent and its warriors on Magic Web Vision.

Herolia explained that the Judges had marked the Holy City's citizens and that fleeing would not save them, so she planned to gather power by building a cinema and making films. After a late-night shoot at Shawshank Prison, Joshua received a message from Liya asking for advice about filmmaking.

• Messiah asked Herolia whether her plans were meaningful, and Herolia revealed that the Judges had marked the Holy City's citizens with magic that could not be fully removed.
• Herolia said she needed more power to protect the city and planned to turn the former papal chapel into a cinema, though she admitted she needed to ask Joshua for filmmaking advice.
• Herolia told Messiah that the portal to Nolan would open in a month, but Messiah refocused on saving the Holy City's citizens.
• Joshua ended filming at Shawshank Prison and met Ciri, who insisted on driving his Magic Mechanical Vehicle after playing Pixel Racing.
• Joshua told Ciri that Liya had messaged him to ask for advice about making films.

Joshua advised Herolia to begin learning filmmaking by making a short film, while Ciri worried that someone might surpass him with a better movie. Later, Joshua prepared to discuss the Skjerrona Award ceremony with the Demon Realm and invited Cecily Anoroth to visit Nolan.

• Ciri suspected Herolia's interest in filmmaking might conceal a dangerous motive, but Joshua dismissed the idea and advised Herolia to start with a ten-to-thirty-minute micro movie and a strong script.
• Herolia thanked Joshua, saying his suggestion reminded her of something, then stopped messaging him.
• Ciri asked whether Joshua was willing to let others make films, and Joshua said he would be happy if someone made a work better than Shawshank Redemption.
• Ciri drove Joshua back to Nolan, where they had dinner at the Hearthstone tavern before she went to bed.
• Joshua showed Ciri his invitation to the Skjerrona Award ceremony and contacted Cecily Anoroth, asking if she wanted to visit Nolan.

The Council of Sages discussed the Skgerona Inscription Award and learned that Blue Robe and Black-robed One had found the fog in the Underground Ruins calming and left through a Teleportation Portal. Meanwhile, Reyek and his companions visited Shawshank Prison and discovered Joshua was filming Shawshank Redemption there.

• Yellow Robe objected to giving the Skgerona Inscription Award to a demon, but White-robed One affirmed the candidate was qualified and the sages approved the recipients.
• White-robed One told the sages that Blue Robe and Black-robed One had reported the Underground Ruins’ fog had calmed and had left Nolan through a Teleportation Portal a year earlier.
• White-robed One said he would invite representatives of every nation to negotiations when the Teleportation Portal next opened, since the threat beneath Nolan might affect other places too.
• Reyek, Luo Na, and the archer arrived at Shawshank Prison and saw what appeared to be a guard shooting a prisoner, but a Daytime Banshee explained that the scene was being reshot.
• Reyek and his companions entered the prison and realized Joshua was filming Shawshank Redemption, a movie already widely discussed on the Spellcaster Forum.

Joshua bought Luo Na’s documentary footage of the Extincter Mountain Range for 1,172 gold coins, paid through the Magic Web, and then returned to filming the prison escape. He prepared White Thorn Flower Jazz for Andy’s apparent suicide scene as the crew set up for their first attempt at filming the storm.

• Joshua praised Luo Na’s footage and agreed to buy the documentary outright for 1,172 gold coins.
• Joshua transferred the payment to Reyek through the Magic Web and accepted the Source Crystal Stone containing the footage.
• Joshua led White Thorn Flower Jazz and the other actors back to filming Andy’s escape from prison.
• Joshua instructed White Thorn Flower Jazz to play Andy’s scene with despair so the audience would think Andy planned to commit suicide.
• White Thorn Flower Jazz asked about crawling through a sewer, and Joshua assured him it would be filled with chocolate syrup.
• Joshua ordered the crew to prepare for their first attempt at filming the rainstorm, with a Spellcaster ready to make rain clouds.

Morgan and Joshua filmed the final scenes of Shawshank Redemption while Joshua launched the new television program Monster World. In Nolan’s Mercenary Guild, Yevirk Serpent became the program’s on-screen guides, and younger mercenaries began watching their field lessons.

• Morgan arrived at the inn where Leon: The Professional had been filmed and joined Joshua to film the final scenes of Shawshank Redemption.
• Joshua told the alchemy shop attendants to leave the television on because Nolan Television Station would begin airing Monster World at noon.
• A Dark Elf disguised as a human watched Yevirk Serpent enter the Mercenary Guild, where Reyek surprised the crowd by signing autographs and posing for photos with fans.
• Luo Na persuaded the guild president to switch the television to Nolan Television Station, prompting many mercenaries to leave for another program.
• Monster World showed Yevirk Serpent guiding viewers through the Extincter Mountain Range, and younger mercenaries stayed to watch and take notes.

Messiah learned that her teacher, Cobler, refused to help Herolia stop the Tribunal of Judgment’s plan to sacrifice the Holy City, leaving Herolia desperate for another solution. Herolia brought Messiah to Nolan to meet Joshua, who received word that Sister Leah had arrived early.

• A choir member told Messiah that her father, Bishop Cobblestone, had been missing for nearly half a month, and Herolia offered to pass along a message to him.
• Herolia played recordings of Cobblestone’s wife and daughter in the Underground Prison, but he sided with the Tribunal of Judgment and would not reveal the array’s core components.
• Herolia told Messiah that the Judges had resisted interrogation and could not be found, then rejected Messiah’s suggestion to evacuate residents to Nolan.
• Herolia arranged to open the connection to Nolan early so she and Messiah could meet Joshua, and Messiah forced herself to smile despite the danger to the Holy City.
• At Nolan’s White Thorn Flower Theater, Joshua learned from Sister Leah that she had arrived early through a special method and told her where to find him.

Herolia and Messiah met Joshua at the White Thorn Flower Theater to discuss bringing films to the Holy City. Joshua offered limited-use projection devices and proposed screening Shawshank Redemption and Avatar, leaving Herolia to decide whether to accept the arrangement.

• Herolia told Messiah that silver-white Faith Power from Nolan’s citizens, including some of Messiah’s, flowed toward the Frost Elves’ World Tree.
• Herolia and Messiah entered the White Thorn Flower Theater, where Messiah sensed demons inside and prepared for danger.
• Joshua welcomed Herolia and Messiah at a celebration for the completion of a new movie, then led them away from the ballroom to discuss their trade.
• Joshua explained that the projection devices would need periodic recharging, a method he controlled, and said he did not trust Herolia unconditionally.
• Joshua showed Herolia posters for Shawshank Redemption and Avatar and offered devices that would last about three months; Herolia said she had no reason to refuse.

Herolia bought Joshua’s film equipment before returning to the Holy City, where she prepared to use the citizens’ power to oppose what the Tribunal of Judgment planned to summon. At the cathedral, she and Messiah found the Underground Prison guards dead and Cobler missing, with Herolia detecting traces of gray mist.

• Joshua showed Herolia how a Source Crystal Stone projected a film and agreed to sell her cameras and blank stones for money.
• Herolia returned to the Holy City with Messiah and refused to evacuate its citizens, explaining that panic could weaken the power she needed to suppress the Tribunal of Judgment’s summons.
• Herolia admitted she feared her gathered power might not be enough and went with Messiah to the cathedral to consult her teacher.
• Messiah and Herolia found the Underground Prison guards, including Legion Commander Oulus, dead and discovered that Cobler had escaped his destroyed cell.
• Herolia detected a faint influence of gray mist on the bloodied prison floor and left with Messiah.

Herolia opened the Holy City's first cinema while Messiah searched for the Judges hidden nearby. Bishop Cobblestone, a Judge acting under orders, entered the cinema and bought a ticket as he moved toward his mission.

• Herolia told Messiah that the Legion Commander's sacrifice had revealed two possible Judges' locations, and asked her to find the Judges at the cinema.
• Herolia and the missionaries finished converting the Pope's prayer hall into a cinema, while Messiah searched its visitors with her Third Eye but found no Judges.
• Bishop Cobblestone took gray medicine to ease his pain and followed the Judges' orders to enter the prayer hall.
• A missionary directed Cobblestone to buy a movie ticket, so he joined the line and purchased a ticket for Shawshank Redemption in One Screening Hall.

Bishop Cobblestone searched a movie theater disguised as the Pope’s Prayer Room for the Messenger, touching audience members as he watched a film about Shawshank Prison. The film’s religious authority and a prisoner’s desperate cries unsettled him, while his search continued.

• Bishop Cobblestone entered the First Prayer Room and found the God of Holy Light’s statue replaced by a glowing screen.
• Bishop Cobblestone realized the room was a screening hall and searched the audience for the Messenger by touching people.
• Bishop Cobblestone stopped when the film’s warden warned prisoners not to blaspheme against God and declared that their minds belonged to God and their bodies to him.
• Bishop Cobblestone watched the prisoners endure their first night and tried to dismiss the film as demonic trickery.
• Bishop Cobblestone heard a prisoner cry that he did not belong there and muttered that begging would do no good.

Bishop Cobblestone watched a film about prison abuse and initially dismissed its prisoners, but Andy’s story gradually drew him in. Seeing his wife and daughter in the audience deepened his despair, and the chapter left him transfixed by Andy’s quiet stroll through the prison yard.

• Bishop Cobblestone took a seat and watched the Prison Guard leader beat a prisoner while the audience reacted with shock.
• Bishop Cobblestone recognized something of himself in Andy, a promising businessman trapped in a prison that sealed away magic.
• Bishop Cobblestone tried to leave, but Andy’s request for a rock hammer caught his interest and brought him back to his seat.
• Bishop Cobblestone spotted his wife and daughter in the audience and overheard them discuss Andy and the prisoners.
• Bishop Cobblestone watched Andy stroll through the prison yard as Red described him, feeling that Andy was like him yet different.

Bishop Cobblestone watched Andy find brief freedom and hope within Shawshank Prison, while the film’s story about Bruce’s release and death unsettled inquisitor Gray Rope. As Andy’s music eased Cobblestone’s torment, he felt free for the first time in the theater.

• Bishop Cobblestone watched Andy escape an assault, then use his business knowledge to save himself from the Prison Guard leader in exchange for ale for the prisoners.
• Andy became a valued tax adviser to the Prison Guards and the warden, while Gray Rope remarked that he remained a prisoner regardless of his status.
• Bishop Cobblestone’s daughter recognized the book Andy had held as Teachings, and the film showed Bruce struggling to adjust to life outside prison before taking his own life.
• Gray Rope called Bruce’s story boring, and the hoarse voice in Bishop Cobblestone’s mind punished him with intense pain for neglecting his duty.
• Andy played a record over the prison’s amplifying device, and the song soothed Bishop Cobblestone’s pain as he felt free.

Bishop Cobblestone watched Andy endure the warden’s cruelty in the film while struggling to carry out his mission in the theater. When he finally moved to attack, the audience’s magic stopped him, and the film revealed that Andy had escaped.

• Bishop Cobblestone watched Andy’s new inmate reveal evidence that could clear him, but the warden killed the young prisoner to keep the secret buried.
• Gray Rope urged Bishop Cobblestone to kill someone in the theater and cause chaos, while Bishop Cobblestone searched the audience for a target.
• As the film showed Andy preparing to hang himself, Gray Rope discovered that more than an hour had passed and ordered Bishop Cobblestone to act.
• Bishop Cobblestone charged at an old man, but a magic barrier knocked him back, and Gray Rope shattered the barrier.
• Bishop Cobblestone and Gray Rope saw that Andy had escaped from his cell, then the screen went dark.