Chapter Summaries

Lanchi, Talia, and Hughberlian spent a leisurely afternoon near Heart Meridian Plaza and discussed exploring South Wantina Territory. They postponed their trip to Azure Wave Coast until the next day, though Lanchi’s fierce determination to make it happen frightened Hughberlian.

• Lanchi teased Talia, then admitted defeat when she became angry with him.
• Hughberlian noticed the unusual tension between Lanchi and Talia and warned Lanchi not to walk too close to the river.
• Lanchi described the attractions in South Wantina Territory, and Hughberlian asked to visit Azure Wave Coast.
• Lanchi explained that the coast was too vast to explore properly that afternoon and planned to take them there the next morning.
• Lanchi vowed to overcome any obstacle to their trip, leaving Hughberlian worried by his seriousness.

Lanchi, Hughberlian, and Talia spent a peaceful afternoon together in South Wantina, sharing desserts and expressing their affection for one another. The chapter ended with Talia playfully feeding Lanchi cake after he teased her.

• Lanchi bought three flavors of cheesecake from a popular shop for himself, Hughberlian, and Talia.
• Hughberlian said she wished the three of them could stay together forever and thanked Lanchi and Talia for staying by her side.
• Lanchi offered his unopened matcha cake, and Hughberlian and Talia divided the desserts so Talia received most of the cakes.
• Hughberlian told Talia that she had sounded gentle when she thanked them, but Talia claimed she was acting.
• Lanchi said Talia focused completely on eating, so Talia pinched his mouth open and fed him a spoonful of cake.

Loren and three of his priest students traveled by train to the South Wantina Territory, where they were tasked with investigating strange border phenomena and preparing for threats from the Destruction Church. As the city drew near beneath an unusually red full moon, Loren began to feel uneasy about the territory’s defenses.

• Loren warned his three students to stay alert for the Northern Continent’s new Cardinal Bishop and discussed their mission to investigate strange activity near the Hutton Kingdom and Krui Di Empire border.
• The students joked about Loren’s exaggerated reputation in the Northern Continent, while Loren reflected on the dangers of his growing fame.
• Loren told his students to flee if they encountered Salomon, the Saint Child of Destruction, because the Tier 7 priest could defeat them quickly.
• Loren explained that disabling the South Wantina Territory’s barrier required keys from both the royal capital and the governor’s residence, followed by an emergency shutdown and an attack on the power station.
• As the train approached the city, Loren noticed the faintly red full moon and felt uneasy despite seeing no obvious sign of danger.

Lanchi, Hughberlian, and Talia spotted Ilene, a high priest of the Destruction Branch, and Lanchi sensed that she carried a Rebirth Proof. They captured her by posing as an unlicensed taxi, and Lanchi welcomed her to South Wantina while she remained immobilized and terrified.

• Lanchi noticed a young woman heading toward the Wilford Family residence and sensed that she was a Resurrection Cultist carrying a Rebirth Proof.
• Talia wanted to capture the woman immediately, but Lanchi stopped her and said they should act without alerting her or others.
• Lanchi, Hughberlian, and Talia later picked up Ilene in a car by pretending to offer her a ride.
• Ilene woke in the car unable to move and saw a terrifying creature with golden pupils beside her.
• Lanchi bowed to a Goddess of Fate Statue, turned to Ilene, and welcomed her to South Wantina.

Lanchi and his companions captured Ilene and convinced her they were Destruction Branch allies, learning that the Rebirth Church planned an operation at the Wilford Family residence that night. Lanchi warned Ilene that Ivanos and Salomon would abandon her, leaving Hughberlian uneasy about his unsettlingly familiar way of comforting people.

• Lanchi calmed Ilene after she panicked in the vehicle and showed her a holy seal to establish his supposed allegiance to the Destruction Branch.
• Hughberlian revealed a divine-grade Certificate of the Saint, and Ilene accepted that the group was connected to a mysterious Northern Continent bishop.
• Ilene explained that her group would help kill Duke Miss Hughberlian at the Wilford Family residence that night and would await orders from Salomon.
• Talia confirmed that Ilene was telling the truth, but Ilene said the group could not contact Salomon on its own.
• Lanchi told Ilene that Ivanos and Salomon planned to abandon her, and Hughberlian recognized his attempt to comfort her as unsettlingly familiar.

Lanchi persuaded Ilene to leave Ivanos’s control by promising the protection of a powerful Cardinal Bishop, then set out to find the other Destruction High Priests. He sent Talia and Hughberlian home to protect the Wilford Family as danger gathered around them.

• Lanchi reminded Ilene that Phoenix had escaped the Destruction Branch and asked whether she would pledge allegiance to a stronger, protective Cardinal Bishop.
• Ilene realized Lanchi meant Sigrid and began to trust him as he urged her to live and help other High Priests escape Ivanos’s control.
• Talia watched Ilene grow dependent on Lanchi and agreed to take Hughberlian home to protect the Wilford Family.
• Lanchi asked Ilene to reveal the locations of the other Destruction High Priests so he could go rescue them.
• Lanchi and Ilene left together while Hughberlian watched them go.

Countess Saberna and the Withered Saint Child escaped into the Nox Mountains after stealing the royal capital key, while South Wantina’s protective barrier was shut down and its defenses came under attack. Loren confronted the Eighth Progenitor Somerset in the South District, where their battle threatened the city and its residents.

• Countess Saberna thanked the Withered Saint Child for helping steal the royal capital key and promised him three Blood Moon Souls in exchange for cooperation with the Withered branch.
• The South Wantina barrier shut down, and Loren discovered that an intruder disguised as the count had stolen the key and destroyed the northwest Energy Main Station.
• Loren sent church forces to defend the eastern station and headed south with the priest investigation group, then changed course after sensing Salomon and Farmer’s Alchemy Beast in the northwest.
• Somerset ambushed Loren, who shoved the three clerics out of danger before being struck through a building.
• Loren recovered and fought Somerset, protecting the residents with a barrier and healing spell as Somerset’s attacks damaged the South District.
• Loren refused to abandon the city or the residents and prepared to continue fighting Somerset beneath the blood moon.

Talia fought Salomon and the Rotten Decay Alchemy Beast to protect Hughberlian, who returned to save her with her defensive magic and spell card. Just as Salomon prepared to kill them, Loren arrived—and Salomon realized the Loren fighting in the south was someone else.

• Talia battled the Rotten Decay Alchemy Beast and Salomon while Hughberlian and the Wilford Family evacuated east with Noe and Hans.
• Hughberlian returned to the battlefield, used Witch's Warm Company to shield Talia, and froze them both with Icebound Guardian to heal their wounds.
• After the ice shield ended, Talia kept fighting while Hughberlian concealed herself, but Salomon and the Alchemy Beast overwhelmed Talia and left her gravely injured.
• Salomon prepared to strike Talia with the Flame of Annihilation and threatened Hughberlian, while the hidden Hughberlian tried to buy time.
• Loren arrived in a flash of primordial magic, caught Hughberlian, and faced Salomon, who realized that another person had been fighting the Somerset Marquis in the south.

Lanchi confronted the Saint Child of Destruction Salomon and let him flee after promising not to pursue him if he stopped the Destruction High Priests from harming civilians. After Salomon escaped and revealed his plans to attack Hughberlian, Lanchi reassured her that Salomon would have died if he had fought, while Hughberlian suspected Lanchi had other plans for him.

• Lanchi offered Salomon a chance to leave peacefully if he ordered the Destruction High Priests to withdraw and stop harming innocents.
• Salomon chose to trust Lanchi's promise, transformed into a black shadow, and fled into the South Wantina Territory.
• Several kilometers away, Salomon celebrated his escape and planned to use the Destruction High Priests to attack Hughberlian and teach Lanchi a lesson.
• Cat Boss emerged from the shadows and used its remaining mana to heal Talia as Lanchi checked that she was still awake.
• Hughberlian thanked Lanchi for frightening Salomon away, but Lanchi said Salomon would have died if he had fought him.
• Hughberlian realized Lanchi had called the Three Illusion Demons and worried that his next move would cost her merit.

Lanchi kept the Three Illusion Demons concealed while carrying Hughberlian to safety. Meanwhile, Salomon’s retreat plan collapsed when a Destruction High Priest stabbed him and brainwashed priests turned on him, leaving him wounded and desperate to escape south.

• Lanchi refused to reveal the Three Illusion Demons, preserving them for his future mission to rescue Duke Migaiya and Duchess Ifatia.
• Hughberlian stayed in Lanchi’s arms and asked him to carry her somewhere safe.
• Salomon met a Destruction High Priest in a South Wantina alley and followed him toward his escape route.
• The Destruction High Priest stabbed Salomon in the kidney and withdrew as a group of brainwashed Destruction High Priests approached.
• Salomon realized the priests intended to kill him and tried to reach the south, hoping to warn Somerset Marquis and the Cardinal Bishop about an evil god.

Loren fought Somerset Marquis at South Wantina Territory’s Southern Border while the city’s troops supported him, but Somerset warned that Salomon was breaking through toward the rear. When Salomon finally saw Loren, he retreated in terror, leaving both Loren and Somerset baffled.

• South Wantina Territory’s troops evacuated civilians and supported Loren with defensive formations, magic devices, and the Goddess of Fate Church’s barrier.
• Loren and Somerset Marquis fought for dozens of minutes, and Somerset realized Loren seemed to grow stronger as the battle continued.
• Somerset warned Loren that Salomon was nearing the rear defensive troops, and Loren sensed Salomon’s mana disrupting their formation.
• Loren prepared for an attack from both sides as Salomon charged toward the battlefield beneath the city wall.
• Salomon saw Loren, froze, and retreated in terror, while Somerset stopped and Loren wondered why he seemed so frightening.

Loren’s victory in South Wantina ended with Salomon taking his own life, while the public celebrated Loren and debated Salomon’s final accusation. In Rosam City, Ice Witch read the news and decided to investigate the turmoil, starting with the Royal Capital Ikelite.

• Salomon mistook Loren for the mastermind behind the chaos, while Somerset Marquis abandoned him and fled toward the Nox Mountains.
• Loren urged Salomon to surrender, but Salomon destroyed himself with his own magic before Loren could stop him.
• South Wantina’s soldiers celebrated Loren’s victory, largely overlooking Salomon’s final warning.
• Ice Witch arrived in Rosam City and read a newspaper report about Salomon’s death and his accusation against Loren.
• Ice Witch resolved to investigate the source of the turmoil, beginning with the Royal Capital Ikelite.

After South Wantina Territory celebrated its victory, Lanchi arranged for the High Priests of Destruction to travel to the Protos Empire and contact Sigrid. He watched their ship depart, leaving himself free to enjoy the peaceful coast while planning his next steps.

• Lanchi walked through South Wantina Territory as its people celebrated their victory and a bard sang a poem about Loren.
• Lanchi considered his plans to reach Tier 5, visit the Krui Di Empire, and help Duke Migaiya and Miss Ifatia before the vampires endangered them.
• Lanchi reflected on the Rotten Decay Alchemy Beast’s research in the Royal Capital Ikelite and hoped Loren and Juliana would finally go on their promised date.
• At East Port, Lanchi gave the High Priests of Destruction a recommendation letter to contact the Ba Tian Sect in the Protos Empire.
• Lanchi asked Ilene to deliver his personal letter to Sigrid under the name Luo Qi McCarthy, then watched the High Priests sail north.

The Kingdoms United Council used the Star Chessboard to investigate the new Cardinal Bishop, but its divination showed three indistinct figures tangled together. The Holy Knight Captain volunteered to investigate in Hutton Kingdom, while Planai secretly realized the vision showed the king, Hughberlian, and Talia together and vowed to keep it hidden.

• The Kingdoms United Council divined the most important scene involving the new Cardinal Bishop and saw three figures entangled together.
• The council decided to circulate the image as art and send investigators to Hutton Kingdom to uncover the Cardinal Bishop’s identity.
• The Holy Knight Captain volunteered for the mission because he wanted to check on his friend Loren.
• At Cat Boss Restaurant, Planai’s Thousand-Mile Eye showed him the king, Hughberlian, and Talia entangled on the ground.
• Planai concealed what he had seen and resolved to take the secret to his grave.

After waking from the attack, Talia recovered in the Wilford Merchant Guild while Lanchi and Hughberlian cared for her. Hughberlian confirmed that she knew Talia was her most important family, and the two held hands as they faced the truth between them.

• Talia woke after one night and learned that the family was staying at the Wilford Merchant Guild while she recovered.
• Hughberlian hugged Talia, fed her breakfast, and cared for her with Lanchi.
• Lanchi canceled their planned trip to the Azure Wave Coast so Talia could rest, then left the two alone.
• Talia asked Hughberlian whether Almirs had given her the freezing magic, and Hughberlian explained that Almirs had taught her and given her a Divine Spell Card.
• Talia asked whether Hughberlian knew who she was, and Hughberlian answered that Talia was her most important family.

Talia told Hughberlian that she was unsure whether to reveal her demon identity to Lanchi, but Lanchi entered and reassured her that he accepted her regardless of her race or name. As he cared for her injuries, Talia explained how she had recognized Hughberlian as her relative, and Lanchi learned that demons who questioned the sisters’ resemblance were executed by the Demon King.

• Talia asked Hughberlian whether Lanchi knew she was a demon, and Hughberlian said he did but did not know when he had found out.
• Talia wondered whether she should confess her identity to Lanchi, but he entered the room with lunch and began feeding her.
• Talia told Lanchi she was an eighth-rank Great Demon Race and asked whether he would still get along with her, and he said he would.
• Lanchi asked how Talia had recognized Hughberlian, and Talia explained that Hughberlian’s half-demon form resembled Ifatia and showed Demon Royalty traits.
• When Lanchi noted that Talia did not resemble Ifatia, Talia said the Demon King had executed officials who raised the same doubt about the sisters.

Lanchi fed Talia an elaborate breakfast while Hughberlian watched, and the three discussed resting before returning to Ikelite. Lanchi reassured Talia that the Cat Boss Restaurant was covered and hinted that its new employees would be familiar to her, while Hughberlian kept her old Demon Realm friends a secret.

• Lanchi served Talia lobster and steak by hand until she noticed the serving cart was empty and refused his offer to bring another.
• Hughberlian suggested they spend the day resting and eating fruit together, and Lanchi proposed resting for a few days before heading to Ikelite.
• Lanchi explained that they would delay visiting the Azure Wave Coast and that Noe had agreed to move to Ikelite for safety.
• Talia worried about the Cat Boss Restaurant, and Lanchi assured her that he had brought three talented employees from the Northern Continent to help.
• Lanchi teased Talia about knowing what she wanted to eat, while Hughberlian privately planned to surprise her with three friends from the Demon Realm after her recovery.

At Cat Boss Restaurant, Planai tried to stop Antanas and Sinora from displaying a mysterious painting before Hughberlian, Lanchi, and Talia returned. Talia arrived eating fried chicken and dropped a chicken leg when she saw the three members of the Great Demon Race.

• Planai read a restaurant review describing a beautiful gray-haired young woman who ate a lot, and Antanas and Sinora agreed it sounded unlike the disciplined First Princess Talia.
• Antanas hung a strange painting of three entangled figures on the restaurant wall, and Sinora said it felt familiar to her too.
• Planai urged Antanas to take the painting down, but Sinora suggested they wait for Cat Boss to judge it.
• Hughberlian returned with the Little Black Cat and said that all three of them were back, while Lanchi arrived behind her with his suitcase and Talia carrying fried chicken.
• Talia argued with Lanchi about his surprise, entered the restaurant, saw Antanas, Sinora, and Planai, and dropped her chicken leg.

Talia reunited with Antanas, Sinora, and Planai after Lanchi brought them back from the Protos Empire. She dragged Lanchi away to question him about what happened in the Northern Continent, then misunderstood a thought about his nearly being mistaken for her husband.

• Talia recognized Antanas, Sinora, and Planai at Cat Boss Restaurant and was stunned by their return.
• Antanas hugged Talia and told her that Lanchi had brought them out of the Protos Empire.
• Talia took Lanchi upstairs and pulled him into her room to question him about his trip.
• Lanchi began explaining the political situation in the Protos Empire and urged Talia to calm down.
• Talia repeated a fragment of Lanchi's thoughts about her husband, leaving him bewildered.

Talia read Lanchi’s thoughts and confronted him about his return and his relationships with the Great Demon Race, then became emotionally overwhelmed after hearing the Poet of Great Love downstairs. Lanchi ended up with Talia holding a knife to his neck, while Hughberlian and the others waited outside the room, ready to intervene.

• Talia read Lanchi’s thoughts and demanded to know whether he had used her identity as Demon Race Princess to gain the Great Demon Race’s trust.
• Lanchi tried to calm Talia and persuade her to sit down and hear his explanation.
• A commotion downstairs, caused by the Poet of Great Love mistaking the shrunken Great Fox for a rat, further unsettled Talia.
• Talia grabbed a fruit knife, shoved Lanchi against the wall, and demanded that he take responsibility for her.
• Antanas, Sinora, Planai, Hughberlian, and Cat Boss gathered outside Talia’s room and prepared to rescue Lanchi if necessary.