Recaps

Iver woke in Bayard's arms after falling asleep, and the two shared a final quiet moment before deciding to return to Crescent Moon Manor. Elsewhere, the Sage escaped a private room in the Secret Passage, furious at the Children of the Moon and determined to retaliate against the Iris Flower Kingdom.

• Iver woke in Bayard's arms and could not remember falling asleep after their conversation.
• Iver told Bayard that he would remember her as herself, and Bayard said he had already told her the same thing once.
• Bayard took Iver to look around the tavern, but when he asked where she wanted to go, she said she had brought him to the place she most wanted to visit.
• Iver and Bayard agreed to return, while Bayard resolved to survive through the mark of love she left in his heart.
• The Sage staggered through the Secret Passage after escaping a private room where the Children of the Moon had nearly killed her.
• The Sage recalled witnessing the Children of the Moon's banquet and vowed to increase pressure on the Iris Flower Kingdom and find a way to wage war against it.

The Philosopher used the Hatter’s remains to restore some strength and lay ritual traps through the Secret Passage, while conserving materials in case she needed to force open a door. When a sinister presence appeared, her Drunken Bull ritual revealed an empty black robe, whose voice seemed to recognize her as Alai.

• The Philosopher killed the Hatter in the Secret Passage, then decomposed his corpse and used the remains in a Vitality Regeneration Ritual.
• The Philosopher set Enervation, Strong Acid Arrow, and Poison Thorn traps along the passage to hinder anyone pursuing her.
• The Philosopher decided to conserve her remaining materials and not restore her strength, in case she needed them to open a door.
• The Philosopher sensed a sinister presence and hurled a bundle while summoning the Drunken Bull.
• An empty black robe appeared and spoke in a cold voice, asking, “You are... Alai?”

The Sage tried to bargain with the Wraith, but the Wraith’s companion killed her and replenished his Blood Pool. As the pair sensed hidden observers, Iver and Bayard revealed themselves behind the Secret Passage, and the Wraith realized they had walked into a trap.

• The Sage recognized the Wraith as a preservationist using a substitute and offered to cooperate, but the Wraith rejected her claims and attacked.
• The Wraith slowed the Sage with a Sequence Art, while her companion threw away her last Ritual Pack and consumed her, leaving only her skeleton.
• The Wraith and her companion sensed two women nearby and prepared to face them, believing they held the advantage.
• Iver and Bayard appeared behind the Secret Passage, and the Wraith shouted for her companion to run.

The Shadow Soul’s attack on Iver’s group failed, and Iver’s Shadow Demon killed him through a terrifying illusion. Iver then sent Alice after the fleeing target and ordered her to hunt the Children of the Moon.

• The Shadow Soul explained how she and Janet had prepared to cooperate, using Janet as a Blood Pool to power their spells.
• Janet threw off the ragged cloth and fled, but the Shadow Demon’s Shadow Blades shredded it and revealed her.
• The Shadow Soul realized Gray and Alai had switched identities before a Shadow Blade pierced his heart.
• The Shadow Soul awoke in a dark room and believed his death had been a dream, but a girl’s words and savage smile revealed the illusion had continued until he died of fright.
• Iver introduced Alice to the Shadow Demon and ordered her to kill the designated target, then hunt the Children of the Moon while preserving her existence.
• Alice pursued the target after absorbing vitality, while Iver told the Shadow Demon to remain at his side.

Jinjie tried to understand why Crescent Moon Manor had been sealed while hiding among the guests, but an Earthbound Spirit began killing people through illusions. As the hall descended into chaos, a fleeing Child of the Moon was killed by a young man who called her a monster.

• Supervisor Cornelius told Jinjie and the other guests that Crescent Moon Manor was sealed during a search for infiltrators, and Jinjie considered how the lockdown affected his plans to escape.
• An elderly Child of the Moon collapsed and died, and another Child of the Moon identified an Earthbound Spirit as the cause before falling under its illusion and killing someone.
• Supervisor Cornelius urged everyone not to attack what they saw and said that the church and Necromancy Academy had been notified.
• The woman holding Jinjie ran for cover, collided with a young Blood Slave, and attacked him with her fangs.
• The young man pierced the woman through the heart with a spiral-shaped shadow spear and called her a monster.

Lily and Miss Shadow Demon killed Prohibition, who tried to bargain for her life after realizing another transcendent might still be alive. Miss Shadow Demon then vowed to hunt the monsters and the one who stole the name Bayard, while Bayard and Iver confronted Supervisor Cornelius in the Underground Ritual Room.

• Miss Shadow Demon killed the wounded Child of the Moon while the young man coached her on using shadow needles and blades.
• Prohibition identified the young man as Miss Alai and tried to persuade him to spare her, but he killed her before she could finish.
• Lily decided to report the encounter to Young Master after they escaped, while Miss Shadow Demon declared she would hunt the monsters and the name thief Bayard.
• Bayard sat with Iver on her lap in the Underground Ritual Room and challenged Supervisor Cornelius as Alice materialized behind him.

Lily returned to the hall and found Iver had arranged the final steps of the New Moon Ritual, including a confrontation between Bayard and the Shadow Demon. After Bayard was swallowed and the victory conditions were met, Secret Reflection ended early, revealing a series of unsettling scenes that left Iver protesting.

• Lily returned to the ash-covered hall, where she found Iver waiting with Bayard, the Shadow Demon, and a girl who resembled Lily.
• Iver told Lily that six advancement candidates had been killed, while one escaped, and the Shadow Demon realized the events were part of a Promotion Ritual.
• The future Shadow Demon explained that Bayard had once offered herself willingly, then merged with her past self to reconsider her revenge.
• The girl hugged Bayard and asked permission to kill her, and Bayard agreed; the Shadow Demon then swallowed Bayard with Shadow Hound's Bite.
• Iver revealed the identities of the remaining participants and asked Lady Terpsichore to settle Secret Reflection, triggering an early victory.
• The collapsing Dream Realm showed scenes of the participants' deaths and a girl sleeping in a black-haired woman's arms, prompting Iver to exclaim in dismay.

After Iver’s victory in the Secret Reflection ritual, Twin Mirrors replayed his experience and granted him two purple entries before upgrading Illusory Blood to a golden entry through Pillar God’s Grace. The new entry let him assume the Child of the Moon form, giving him a near-undetectable disguise and a transformed mana pool.

• Iver’s results showed a first-place score of 6400 points, with three survivors and the Twin Victory failure condition untriggered.
• Twin Mirrors replayed Iver’s experience in reverse and showed No. 14 embracing and kissing him through the mirror.
• Iver received the purple entries Shape-Shifting and Heart-Taking Whisper, then wondered whether the sensations from the mirrored scene had been real.
• Twin Mirrors upgraded Illusory Blood to the golden entry Child of the Moon, allowing Iver to switch races through a ritual with a disguise that could not be seen through.
• Iver realized the Child of the Moon form could grant him bat transformation and Fascination, while converting his combined mana into Wind, Earth, and Dark pools.

Iver completed his promotion and gained the Golden Entry Illusory Blood, letting him disguise himself as a Child of the Moon. Lily also advanced and chose Shadow Avatar, while Hai Na remained unconscious during her more difficult promotion.

• Iver's promotion granted him the Golden Entry Illusory Blood, allowing him to switch between human and Child of the Moon forms through a ritual.
• Iver assessed his new mana balance and planned to delay further advancement while he strengthened his Phantom Demon and prepared to address Avalon's problems.
• Lily woke and told Iver she had chosen the purple Entry Shadow Avatar, which could enhance her shadow abilities and mana.
• Iver checked on Hai Na, who was still struggling through her promotion from the Third to the Fourth Level.
• Sherlock asked about Iver's gains, and Iver surprised him by revealing that he had obtained a Golden Entry.

Iver used Twin Mirrors’ blessing to take on three forms, including Fourteen as a Moon Child, and demonstrated the form’s frightening powers to Sherlock. He returned to his usual appearance, grateful for the abilities while recognizing that the form was false even though its power was real.

• Sherlock doubted Iver’s claim that a Pillar God had blessed him, so Iver used a mirror to reveal that he could choose among three forms.
• Iver transformed into Fourteen’s Moon Child form and asked Sherlock to give him a name.
• Iver turned his eyes crimson and became a swarm of bats, terrifying Sherlock with Gaze of Fear before returning to his usual form.
• Sherlock recognized the form as a Moon Child, and Iver explained that he had gained the form without being transformed into one.
• Iver examined the Moon Child form’s blood-drinking instinct, vitality, and ability to turn his hand into a dagger, then changed back and thanked Twin Mirrors.

Oliva woke after his failed Promotion Ritual, but his memories of the ritual conflicted with Janet’s, who believed Gray and Alai were separate people. Meanwhile, the Stranger woke in Leipzig after advancing successfully and realized he might have forgotten to meet Prince or General Karl.

• Oliva woke in pain and feared that he was still trapped in a hallucination.
• Janet entered and warned that Oliva’s spirit-body damage might require amputating his left arm.
• Oliva insisted that Alai had switched identities with Gray and controlled the Shadow Demon, the Child of the Moon, and the Earthbound Spirit.
• Janet dismissed Oliva’s account and tried to make him accept her own interpretation of the Promotion Ritual.
• The Stranger woke less than ten kilometers away, pleased that he had advanced and inspired Bashir Valentine, then wondered whether he had forgotten to meet Prince or General Karl.

Albert Lore told Prince Heinrich and Earl Karl about meeting Valentine I during the Promotion Ritual, while Iver decided to travel to Stibium under the guise of Miss Aleister. Iver revealed that Earl Leipzig held the key to the next era.

• Earl Karl rushed in to confront Albert, and Prince Heinrich calmed him before Albert recounted meeting Valentine I during the Promotion Ritual.
• Albert explained how Pengbo Naqi had brought Valentine I to Crescent Moon Manor, prompting Earl Karl to withdraw to the window in anger.
• Prince Heinrich encouraged Albert, praised his service to the kingdom, and said he had tried to recruit Miss Alai.
• Lily told Iver about her recruitment and Earl Leipzig's secret code, but Iver insisted they should go to Stibium disguised as Miss Aleister.
• Iver told Sherlock that Earl Leipzig possessed the key to the next era.

Earl Leipzig revealed Stibium’s plan to annex Avalon before the Rosy Cross Society performed a ritual that could elevate many Fifth Level Demon Avatars to the Sixth Level. He named the ritual the Ouroboros Ring, leaving Albert and General Karl wary of the kingdom’s ambitions.

• General Karl suspected that Alai was the same Aleister who had angered Her Majesty in Avalon.
• Earl Leipzig explained that Drost would be sacrificed to appease Avalon after Stibium annexed it, while the Alchemists would be framed as rebels and purged.
• Earl Leipzig said he expected Alai to attend because the Rosy Cross Society’s inheritance could help her reach the Sixth Level and persuade her to join their side.
• Earl Leipzig disclosed that an ancient tablet described a ritual using the Fallen Angel’s power to elevate multiple Fifth Level Demon Avatars, and said Stibium first needed Avalon’s approval and annexation.
• Earl Leipzig said the ritual might lead to the Seventh Level and named it the Ouroboros Ring.

Hai Na completed her advancement to the Fourth Level and told Iver, Lily, and Sherlock that her Promotion Ritual had shown her a possible future. She had dreamed that the Stibnite People destroyed Avalon, but the others treated the vision cautiously rather than as a certain outcome.

• Hai Na woke from her Promotion Ritual and absorbed the power she had brought back from the Dream Realm, completing her advancement to the Fourth Level.
• Iver noticed Hai Na's demeanor had become sharper and more imposing after her advancement.
• Hai Na hesitated before telling Iver, Lily, and Sherlock that she might have foreseen the future in her dream.
• Sherlock explained that Promotion Rituals could reveal possible futures, while warning that such visions were unreliable and not inevitable.
• Hai Na revealed that she had dreamed the Stibnite People destroyed Avalon and its royal family, then wondered why the others were not surprised.

Hai Na recounted the brutal future she experienced in a New Moon Ritual, where betrayal and monsters left most of the civilians she protected dead. After she vowed to kill the traitor if she met him in reality, Iver offered to help her find him and make him her first target.

• Hai Na described a future Avalon ruined by Dark Magic, famine, and shadow wraiths, while Iver, Sherlock, and Lily listened.
• Hai Na recalled serving as a Bureau of Supervision inspector and trying to protect twenty-eight civilians in that future.
• Hai Na said a ritualist using the code name Cake Maker betrayed her, sacrificed a civilian, and attacked her, leaving only six survivors.
• Hai Na vowed to kill Cake Maker if she encountered him in reality, and Iver praised her resolve.
• Iver promised to help Hai Na find Cake Maker and let her kill him, while Sherlock chose not to intervene.

Hai Na described the apocalyptic future she experienced, and Iver concluded that it was a future in which he was absent. With a Punishment Demon expected to return with Noble Red reinforcements, the group prepared to fight while Iver planned to test whether Hai Na could wield a demon sealed as an equipment card.

• Hai Na recounted how scarce resources, corruption, illness, and hostile survivors forced her group to flee and suffer losses.
• Hai Na said she had not seen Iver, Sherlock, or Ligeia in the future, but Ms. Mina had sheltered and helped her group.
• Iver and Sherlock reasoned that Hai Na’s vision reflected a future without Iver, whose actions had changed Avalon’s fate.
• Hai Na identified Noble Red as Avalon’s traitors and planned to help the Grand Guardian destroy its remnants.
• Iver warned that the Punishment Demon would return with Noble Red reinforcements and said he had prepared tools to seal it.
• Iver planned to turn the Punishment Demon into a Thunderclap Halberd card and test whether Hai Na could wield it.

Merlin examined Jacob’s ritual and recognized it as an ancient Ring Angel ritual meant to reincarnate the Shadow Angel in a mortal body and seize her Angel Shard. He suspected that the Ring Angel was using Jacob to pursue further advancement and wondered how Iver fit into the plan.

• Merlin left the swamp and recalled that he had hidden the ritual chamber inside the Fairy Hole to protect its foundation.
• Merlin inspected Jacob’s ritual and discovered that it could bring the Shadow Angel into the Material Realm, bind her in a physical body, and take her Angel Shard.
• Merlin recognized the ritual as a Path of Transcendence rite connected to Ouroboros and the Ring Angel’s power of reincarnation and rebirth.
• Merlin recalled that the Ring Angel had once provided him with rituals that let him transform and return to the Material Realm as the Crowned Angel.
• Merlin concluded that the Ring Angel might be seeking to advance further and wondered whether Jacob was his Contractor and what role Iver played in the plan.

Iver gathered the materials to make the Wheel of Fortune card, with Hai Na securing both a lucky bullet and shackles by arranging Sherlock’s arrest. After preparing for Punishment Demon’s arrival, Iver sensed a hostile gaze and realized his enemies planned to curse him before entering Eagle Cape Village.

• Iver and his companions found the materials for the Wheel of Fortune card, including a bullet Hai Na bought from her former teacher as proof of his survival.
• Hai Na had Iver report Sherlock and arranged for him to be shackled, letting the shackles serve as those of the Wisdom Prisoner.
• Iver completed the card preparations, returned to Eagle Cape Village, and used Blessing Art and potions to prepare his companions for Punishment Demon.
• Iver waited to activate the Red Hilt Sword until sunset and felt the ominous curse targeting him grow stronger.
• Iver sensed that someone was watching him and warned the others that they planned to curse him before entering Eagle Cape Village.

Giant Prince Wolfram performed a curse against Iver, but the ritual’s backlash wounded him instead. As the curse faded, Iver realized Sherlock’s mirror might help him evade Wolfram’s next attempt.

• Wolfram invoked the Fallen Angel to punish Iver for three alleged sins, while the Punishment Demon watched and expected the curse to weaken Iver before their fight.
• The curse took effect, but Wolfram suffered a backlash that shattered his drum and left him missing half his heart.
• Wolfram sent the Punishment Demon toward the village and decided to try another curse against Iver.
• Iver felt the pressure lift, and Sherlock advised him not to assume he was safe from further curses.
• Iver took Sherlock’s makeup mirror and planned to use his undetectable disguise to make Wolfram lose his target.

Iver revealed that he had become a Child of the Moon, teased Hai Na about letting him bite her, and then set out to hunt after dark. His companions prepared to follow his command.

• Iver revealed his vampire-like transformation to Hai Na and explained that he was a Child of the Moon.
• Hai Na eagerly considered letting Iver bite her, but hesitated when he treated her as prey.
• Iver transformed into No. 14 and teased Hai Na before leaving the warehouse with Lily.
• Iver flew out as bats and called Chloe his hound, while Chloe, the Paradox Flame Butterfly, and Lily prepared for the hunt.

Wolfram exhausted himself trying several curses against Iver, but none could reach him, so he prepared a host of defensive spells and entered Eagle Cape Village. As a storm of lightning engulfed the village, Wolfram realized the Punishment Demon’s plan was underway and decided to attack everything around him.

• Wolfram’s Three Great Sins, Nightmare Art, and Scarlet Dancing Shoes all failed to curse Iver, costing Wolfram much of his mana and injuring him.
• Wolfram suspected Iver’s protection came from the Book of Law and decided he had to enter Eagle Cape Village before its dusk barrier closed.
• Wolfram prepared numerous protective spells against curses, physical attacks, and negative energy before entering the forest at the right moment.
• Wolfram crossed into Eagle Cape Village and saw the Punishment Demon flying beneath darkening thunderclouds as a pillar of lightning fed the storm.
• Wolfram understood that the Punishment Demon had drawn him into a dangerous plan and resolved to strike every target as lightning rained down across the village.

Punishment Demon unleashed a supernatural thunderstorm that devastated a village and drew the Wild Hunt Legion into battle. As Merlin prepared a ritual and Ye Zhi transformed to confront Wolfram, Punishment Demon believed the Wild Hunt King had been lured away and declared its intent to claim the Book of Law.

• Punishment Demon directed lightning across the village while Wolfram questioned the villagers’ strange calm and felt events slipping beyond his control.
• Ye Zhi was interrupted by a lightning strike at Sapphire Lake, recognized Wolfram’s troublemaking, and transformed into a powerful werewolf.
• Punishment Demon’s lightning targeted Merlin, who evaded it and created a ritual to redirect nearby teleportation, substitution, and resurrection attempts to his location.
• The Wild Hunt Legion emerged from black mist, its armor turning murky yellow as its forces charged through the storm.
• Punishment Demon stopped maintaining the thunderstorm when the Wild Hunt appeared and believed Wolfram had drawn away the Wild Hunt King.
• Punishment Demon celebrated its plan and declared that it alone would obtain the Book of Law.

Hai Na and her allies ambushed the Punishment Demon and overwhelmed it with coordinated attacks. The demon was left incapacitated and bound, bewildered by the unfamiliar group that had defeated it.

• The Punishment Demon lured the Wild Hunts away from the village and set out to find the butterfly-shaped demon.
• Hai Na attacked the Punishment Demon with Iver's Red Hilt Sword, but its disciplinary spell triggered her Guardian Will and left her free to counterattack.
• Hai Na wounded the Punishment Demon with Charge Slash while Aleister struck it from the shadows and inflicted Curse Poison with throwing knives.
• The butterfly-shaped phantom demon severed the Punishment Demon's lightning form, allowing Hai Na to cleave its halberd and send it crashing into a tree.
• A werewolf bound the incapacitated Punishment Demon, which demanded to know who its attackers were.

Iver revealed himself as a Child of the Moon, reunited with Lily in her werewolf form, and prepared to use ritual materials on the defeated Punishment Demon. Punishment Demon tried to turn Iver against Wolfram, but Iver revealed that he and Sherlock had already acted against him.

• Punishment Demon feared it would die but reassured itself that it could return to the Dream Realm and eventually hatch again.
• Iver arrived in Child of the Moon form, and Punishment Demon realized why its curse had failed against him.
• Iver recognized the gray wolf as Lily, who fought her hunger for his blood and was relieved that he accepted her.
• Iver praised Lily for controlling her werewolf instincts, then took ritual materials from Sherlock's satchel.
• Punishment Demon warned Iver that Wolfram was a powerful Grand Wizard who wanted the Book of Law, hoping to make Iver target him.
• Iver told Punishment Demon that Wolfram would die even faster and asked what it thought he and Sherlock had gone to do.

Sherlock and Iver helped the Wild Hunt King defeat Giant Prince Wolfram, while Iver used a ritual to turn the defeated Punishment Demon into an enhanced Thunder Strike Halberd card. The chapter left Iver contemplating the card’s changed Wheel of Fortune and the words, “All those called human... are stars.”

• Iver directed Sherlock to splash Petrification Removal Ointment on Wolfram and used a Tarot Card to strengthen the Wild Hunt King’s spear, allowing it to break Wolfram’s defense and defeat him.
• Iver left Sherlock to search Wolfram’s fallen body and returned to find Hai Na, Lily, the Paradox Flame Butterfly, and the Shadow Demon had subdued the Punishment Demon.
• Iver invoked the Wise Sage, and a bolt of lightning destroyed the Punishment Demon and drew its soul into a Tarot Card.
• Iver received the Equipment Card: Thunder Strike Halberd, which could be recast to increase its holder’s Lightning Affinity.
• Iver studied the card’s altered Wheel of Fortune and murmured, “All those called human... are stars.”