Recaps

Shade traveled to Coldwater Port City to find Jonathan Lemmer’s friend and verify the will entrusted to him. He met Jason Delar, who confirmed that Lemmer had died in a shipwreck, leaving Shade convinced Mrs. Lemmer’s inheritance was genuine.

• Shade walked through the Dock Area to No. 5 Mermaid Alley, where Jonathan Lemmer was said to live.
• Shade told the man who answered the door that he owed Lemmer money from a card game aboard a ship and had come to repay him.
• The man, Jason Delar, invited Shade inside and introduced himself as a Warehouse Dispatcher in the local Dock Area.
• Jason told Shade that Lemmer had died in a shipwreck, and Shade pretended to be shocked and prayed for the dead.
• Jason explained that he and Lemmer had become friends after meeting at a tavern and playing cards together for decades.
• Shade concluded that Mrs. Lemmer’s inheritance was genuine rather than a scam.

Shade discovered that Mr. Deral was conducting a blood-soaked ritual to remove a curse, then confronted him at gunpoint and demanded an explanation. Mr. Deral begged Shade to save him as Shade prepared to question him in the ritual room.

• Shade noticed through Blood Echo that blood was seeping from the ceiling of Mr. Deral's house, indicating something terrible was happening upstairs.
• Shade returned to the house in disguise, climbed to the second-floor window, and entered a room filled with blood, candles, skulls, and occult writings.
• Shade examined the ritual book and learned that Mr. Deral had copied a ritual seeking an evil god's help to remove a curse.
• Shade lured Mr. Deral into the corridor, disarmed him with magic, and held him at gunpoint.
• Shade ordered Mr. Deral into the blood-filled room to explain what had happened, and Mr. Deral begged him for help.

Shade learned that Jason Deral and his smuggling partners had been cursed by Mermaid Statues, which caused recurring nightmares and bizarre deaths. After confirming the curse did not affect Mrs. Lemmer’s inheritance, Shade killed Jason and used Soul Echo on his corpse.

• Jason Deral told Shade that he had taken Mermaid Statues from confiscated cargo and distributed them to his smuggling partners.
• Jason explained that the statue owners dreamed of a ruined palace and a giant rotting Mermaid, then began dying in strange ways; Mr. Lemmer had jumped into the sea.
• Jason said the surviving partners avoided the Orthodox Church to conceal their crimes, and his attempt to perform a curse-removal ritual had summoned Shade instead.
• Shade confirmed that the curse was unrelated to Mrs. Lemmer’s inheritance, then questioned Jason about blood and flesh in the room.
• Jason began to explain that the blood came from homeless people, but Shade shot him dead.
• Shade sprinkled Bone Powder on Jason’s corpse and used Soul Echo, causing the dead man’s phantom to appear.

Shade questioned Jason Delar’s phantom, found the Mermaid Statues and rare Weather Vane Bluegrass in his basement, then escaped as people closed in on the house. He returned to Saint Derain Square by way of the sea and the Space Labyrinth, while a red-haired young woman wondered whether she had seen him.

• Shade questioned Jason Delar’s soul phantom about the Mermaid Statues, the basement, and his money, then dismissed it.
• Shade found three covered Mermaid Statues, confirmed they were a Relic, and took Weather Vane Bluegrass and other materials from the basement.
• After spotting people watching the house, Shade escaped across the rooftops; a red-haired young woman identified as Your Highness wondered if she had seen Shade.
• Shade evaded pursuit by returning to his inn, then swam through an underwater fissure and used the Space Labyrinth to reach home.
• Shade discovered that a fish died near the Old Gods Statue, rested, bathed, and rode a carriage to Quill Avenue.

Shade returned to Miss Louisa’s apartment with Mia and a freshly caught fish, then joined her for dinner at a restaurant. The evening ended with Miss Louisa revealing that Princess Leisha had covered the meal on her tab as the two walked through the rain.

• Shade visited Miss Louisa again, brought her a sea fish, and collected Mia, who eagerly clung to him.
• Miss Louisa invited Shade to dinner, and Shade avoided explaining that his trip involved confronting the Silver-Eyed One.
• While washing his hands, Shade heard the woman’s voice and noticed that his hearing had become unusually sharp.
• Shade and Miss Louisa ate fish soup and butter-fried fish at a restaurant, where the chef prepared a boneless serving for Mia.
• As they walked toward Quill Street, Miss Louisa said the meal had been charged to Princess Leisha Cavendish’s tab.

Shade learned Laguerre's Leap and discovered that it let him teleport farther than its normal range while under God's Radiance. He prepared Weather Vane Bluegrass for Priest Augustus to process, then turned his attention to buying supplies and preparing for the ruins in three days.

• Shade inscribed Ancient Incantation on Weather Vane Bluegrass, prepared the required powder, and used Laguerre's Leap to teleport across his study.
• Shade learned the thaumaturgy could move him roughly twice its normal maximum distance under God's Radiance, but Professor Garcia had warned him to wait an hour between uses.
• Shade decided to ask Priest Augustus to make bluegrass extract and appraise the other items he had brought back from Coldwater Port, while lying low after Jason Delar's death.
• Shade planned to prepare for breaking into the ruins in three days and sent Miss Galina an express letter asking to visit that afternoon.
• Shade brought the Weather Vane Bluegrass to Priest Augustus, who explained its high cost and took him to an underground workshop to process it.

Shade sold Priest Augustus materials from Coldwater Port City, then visited Old John's pawnshop to prepare for his coming fight with the Silver-Eyed One. He tested a door-shaped Pendant with the Time Key and asked Old John for a suitable offensive relic; Old John returned with a mysterious golden candle stub.

• Shade showed Priest Augustus the extract and sold him the ores and labeled liquids for 11 pounds, and Priest Augustus explained how a Prayer Ritual worked.
• Shade visited Old John's pawnshop and raised his offer for the relic he had asked Old John to find to 200 pounds.
• Shade bought a tiny metal door Pendant and successfully inserted the Time Key through its keyhole, confirming the key could be used with it.
• Shade told Old John he needed an offensive relic for his coming fight and offered 350 pounds, but declined to reveal his opponent's identity.
• Old John returned from the back room with an old gray box containing a short golden candle stub.

Shade bought the Bordeaux Candle, a relic that granted near-undetectable invisibility, and tested its properties at home with Mia. He left with a versatile new tool but remained limited by his one-ring combat abilities.

• Shade learned that the Bordeaux Candle could conceal him and nearby items for just over seven minutes, but he had to extinguish it every forty-seven seconds and never answer a voice calling his name.
• Old John offered the candle for forty-three pounds, and Shade bought it after confirming the price could not be haggled.
• Shade returned home, tested the candle’s remaining burn time and ignition, and found that its invisibility could conceal both him and Mia.
• Shade confirmed that Mia could not detect him while he moved around her invisibly, and considered using the candle for escapes, infiltration, and surprise attacks.
• Shade reflected that his support abilities were broad, though his weak direct combat power remained constrained by his one-ring level.

Shade visited Miss Galina to ask for relics to help with his plan to defeat the Silver-Eyed One on Thursday night. She offered him the Ancient Witch's Golden Necklace in exchange for attending a cult banquet and retrieving the Metamorphosis Ring, leaving him with two operations to carry out that night.

• Miss Galina summoned Shade to her estate and heard his plan to attack the Silver-Eyed One while the Church raided the Blood of Mercury.
• Miss Galina explained that the Blood of Mercury would hold a banquet to summon an evil god through the missing Mr. Lawrence, and asked Shade to retrieve the Metamorphosis Ring there.
• Miss Galina promised that Tifa and her other servants would help Shade escape the banquet, and offered him a question about the Witch Council and her complete trust in return for the ring.
• Shade agreed to attend the banquet and obtain the Metamorphosis Ring before carrying out his own operation.
• Miss Galina lent Shade the Sage Level Relic Ancient Witch's Golden Necklace, which enhanced Thaumaturgy and spells used against non-Witch targets.

Shade borrowed Miss Galina’s cursed necklace and tested how it enhanced his Mystic Lock. Miss Galina explained the Church’s safeguards against the Lord of the Blood Feast’s descent, then asked Shade to report any strange female Sorceresses from the Church.

• Miss Galina explained that her necklace amplified the Witch Curse but could enhance Shade’s abilities, and Shade agreed to borrow it for his own use.
• With the necklace on, Shade operated the Mystic Lock and briefly changed the room into a snowy night sky beneath a Silver Moon without Miss Galina noticing the secret.
• Shade questioned whether the Orthodox Church could stop the Lord of the Blood Feast, and Miss Galina said the Church planned to control Mr. Lawrence and destroy the grand feast.
• Miss Galina revealed that the Church had brought a Level 0 Relic to Tobesk, guarded by the Thirteenth Ring Warlock “Sunlight Greatsword,” to confine a god in Saint form.
• Miss Galina asked Shade to tell her if he encountered any strange female Sorceresses from the Church.

Miss Galina warned Shade about a secret prophecy and discussed plans for Thursday’s operation. On Wednesday morning, Greta Wosente hired Shade to help arrange a funeral for her long-missing husband, whose skeleton had recently been found in her basement.

• Miss Galina told Shade that powerful organizations were searching for people connected to a secret prophecy and asked him to report any unusually gifted Sorceresses he encountered.
• Miss Galina explained her arrangements for Thursday’s operation, and Shade returned home with the Bordeaux Candle and Witches' Golden Necklace ready for the plan.
• Greta Wosente visited Shade with an escort and asked to hire him, though Shade warned her he was busy until Sunday.
• Greta told Shade that workers had uncovered her husband’s skeleton in the basement, and that Ridgewich Field had confirmed its identity and closed the case.
• Greta explained that her husband’s Brother had confessed to killing him decades earlier, but the Wosente Family now demanded a noble attend and deliver a eulogy before they would come to the funeral.

Shade agreed to read Mr. Wosente’s eulogy at his funeral in the East District of Tobesk Public Cemetery, planning to visit Detective Sparrow’s nearby grave as well. While preparing for a major operation, he noticed Mia was unusually insistent about getting more cat food but concluded she was simply a clever cat.

• Mrs. Wosente asked Shade to read the eulogy at her husband’s funeral and offered him 20 pounds, travel expenses, and a special-rules Rhodes Card.
• Shade agreed after learning the funeral would be held near Detective Sparrow’s burial place, which he planned to visit beforehand.
• Shade spent the morning practicing Thaumaturgy and adapting to the Ancient Witch’s Golden Necklace, which strengthened his Silver Moon Slash.
• Mia refused her reduced lunch, tugged at Shade’s trousers, and pointed toward the cupboard until he gave her more cat food.
• Shade wondered whether Mia could understand human speech, but recalled that Miss Annette and the woman’s voice in his heart had said she was an ordinary cat.

Shade attended Mr. Wosente’s long-delayed funeral, where he delivered a eulogy and met the dead man’s family. While Mrs. Wosente spoke, a ghost appeared beside Shade, and he suspected it was Mr. Wosente.

• Shade rode to Tobesk Public Cemetery and learned from the coachman that the Silver Parrot Milk Delivery Company had lowered its subscription price because of a warehouse problem.
• At the funeral, Shade met Mrs. Wosente and John Watsont, then delivered a eulogy for Mr. Wosente.
• After his speech, Shade sat near the church doors and received a note from a young girl, which he crumpled without pursuing.
• As Mrs. Wosente began speaking, Shade noticed a transparent middle-aged man standing beside him and realized the man was a ghost.
• Shade suspected the ghost was Mr. Wosente and searched his knowledge of ghosts for an explanation.

At Mr. Wosente’s funeral, Shade overheard Mr. Wosente and Mr. Mason’s souls reveal that Greta had killed her husband and that Mason had concealed the body and taken the blame. As the funeral procession continued, the two souls wondered whether Greta had truly forgotten the murder or deliberately avoided responsibility.

• Shade saw a soul beside him at the funeral, then watched Mr. Wosente’s soul appear and speak with Mr. Mason’s soul.
• Mr. Mason revealed that Greta had killed Mr. Wosente after learning about Miss Emma and his child.
• Mr. Mason explained that he hid Mr. Wosente’s body, while Greta believed her husband had left after an argument and Mason was imprisoned for the murder.
• Mr. Wosente and Mr. Mason questioned whether Greta had forgotten the killing or knowingly let Mason take the blame.
• Shade followed the funeral procession toward the Underground Tomb as the two souls continued beside him, unable to ask Greta what she remembered.

At Mr. Wosente’s funeral, Shade discovered that the two ghosts following the family intended to contact Mrs. Wosente through a living person. He revealed his power as a Ring Arcanist, stopped them, and agreed to ask Mrs. Wosente whether she had forgotten what happened that night.

• Shade waited outside the Underground Tomb while Mrs. Wosente and the coffin were taken inside.
• Mr. Mason and Mr. Wosente chose Shade as the person to control so they could question Mrs. Wosente.
• Shade confronted the ghosts away from the funeral party and used his Soul Echo and Silver Light to frighten them into submission.
• Mr. Mason and Mr. Wosente said they did not know why they had appeared or when they would leave, and Shade ordered them to stay away from Mrs. Wosente.
• The ghosts asked Shade to find out whether Mrs. Wosente had truly forgotten what happened that night, and Shade agreed to ask her.

At Mrs. Wosente’s funeral, Shade received his payment and learned that the Watsont family still suspected her of murdering Mr. Wosente. He warned her that Johns Watsont planned to hire a Detective to investigate the basement wall, and Mrs. Wosente reflected on the long-past events as the funeral ended.

• Shade refused a coal merchant’s request to help with factory permits and declined to take money for it.
• Shade spoke with Johns Watsont, who described his family’s longstanding belief that Mrs. Wosente had killed Mr. Wosente.
• Mrs. Wosente paid Shade twenty Gold Pounds and gave him a special Moon Dance Festival Rhodes Card.
• Shade told Mrs. Wosente that Johns Watsont intended to hire a Detective to investigate what she had found behind the basement wall.
• Mrs. Wosente said that the truth would change nothing after so many years and recalled visiting her Brother in the Underground Tomb.

Shade listened as Mrs. Wosente recalled her marriage and the rainy night when she killed her husband, then helped the ghosts of Mr. Wosente and Mr. Mason play one final game of Rhodes Cards before they vanished. Their farewell left Shade with a card that he could summon from his deck for a year, while he returned to the rain determined not to regret his own choices.

• Shade used a hypnotic speaking technique to prompt Mrs. Wosente to remember the night of the murder, and Mr. Wosente said her confession had released them both.
• Mr. Wosente and Mr. Mason told Shade they were leaving, but Mr. Mason asked to play one final game of Rhodes Cards with his old friend.
• Shade dealt the cards, and Mr. Mason chose to draw again after winning, wanting to learn what might have happened if he had not sacrificed his life.
• Mr. Mason won the final game, and he and Mr. Wosente thanked Shade before their ghosts vanished beneath the tree.
• Shade learned that the ghosts had left him a card he could summon at will for about a year, then returned to the path thinking about the ruins he would enter the next night.

Shade visited Sparrow Hamilton’s grave before the coming battle against a Nine-Ring Arcanist, reflecting on Sparrow’s unknown life and his own uncertain future. He left feeling more resolute, then welcomed Luvia Annette, who noticed the change in him but did not explain her own resolve.

• Shade found Sparrow Hamilton’s grave and lamented that the detective’s extraordinary life and secrets had ended without anyone knowing his full story.
• Shade admitted he feared dying unexpectedly before the coming battle and remembered how Sparrow had helped establish his life abroad.
• Shade told himself to keep moving forward, and the woman in his heart promised to help him write his story.
• Shade went out to eat with Mia, then waited at home with the cat for Luvia Annette and Miss Bayes to arrive.
• Luvia Annette noticed Shade seemed more resolute, but she avoided answering his question about why she had been resolute from the beginning.

Shade, Miss Annette, and Miss Bayes prepared for their operation in the ruins while spending the night at Shade’s house. After gaining the first hint of a new Thaumaturgy from Witch’s Copy Paper, Shade woke before dawn and found Miss Bayes watching the rain alone.

• Miss Bayes arrived after an assignment in the Northern City Sewer and told Shade and Miss Annette that her team had caught smugglers carrying red salt.
• Shade and Miss Annette reviewed their preparations for the next night’s operation, including Shade’s Sage Level Relic and Miss Annette’s borrowed relics and Steam Bombs.
• Shade invited Miss Annette and Miss Bayes to stay the night so they could revise their plans and remain together before the operation.
• Shade used Witch’s Copy Paper to gain the rudiment of a powerful Thaumaturgy that formed a cutting blade of Silver Moon light from his finger.
• Shade woke before dawn in Detective Sparrow’s bedroom and found Miss Bayes standing alone by the window, watching the rain.

Shade spoke with Miss Bayes as she worried about becoming a Chosen One before that night’s ritual, and she revealed a new understanding of her power of balance. She prepared to complete her transformation, while Shade resolved to use his drop of divinity if the operation went disastrously wrong.

• Shade found Miss Bayes watching the rain and reassured her that she would not face the future alone.
• Miss Bayes explained that the Sun Church and Peace Church knew she was a Chosen One candidate and that she planned to use her status to gain authority and cooperate with Shade and Annette.
• Miss Bayes realized that she herself was the standard and pivot of balance, then awakened golden light in her palm and saw her Destiny Ring begin to turn gold.
• Miss Bayes said she needed the ritual to fully master her power, then returned to sleep before dawn.
• Shade watched the rain and decided he would spend his drop of divinity if a danger arose that the others could not handle.

Shade attended the Charity Banquet at Earl of Maupassant’s mansion as part of a plan to infiltrate the cultists’ gathering and reach the ruins. He entered the lively event while the Church and the Witch Council prepared to act, and the chapter left him moving toward the next stage of the plan.

• Shade, Miss Bayes, and Miss Annette reviewed their plan and practiced Thaumaturgy at Saint Derain Square, while Miss Bayes arranged to miss her team’s Church operation.
• Tifa Servit gave Shade his invitation, explained the banquet’s dangers and rules, and took his Relics for safekeeping before he traveled to Maupassant Manor.
• At the mansion, five Ring Arcanists from the Witch Council met Shade and agreed to protect him without staying close.
• Shade entered the Charity Banquet, learned that its auction proceeds would fund the cultists if their sacrifice succeeded, and spotted several unfamiliar Ring Arcanists.
• Shade mingled on the first floor, then carried a drink upstairs to the second-floor auction area while the guests continued celebrating.

Shade attended the Charity Auction on behalf of Miss Galina to identify Steve Event, the cultist carrying the Metamorphosis Ring. He approached Event by discussing the lots on display, and Event revealed experience in art collection and preservation.

• Shade received a numbered paddle and learned that the ring-bearing target was standing near the paintings.
• Shade examined a historic gown and an old fairy-tale book, remarking that auction bidders would drive prices above the lots’ value.
• Shade commented on the third lot, the oil painting “Field of Harvest,” and Steve Event explained its artistic value.
• Shade asked Event about his knowledge of oil paintings, and Event said he had worked in art collection and preservation in his homeland.

Shade used his Queen’s ruby ring to tempt Steve Event during the auction, then arranged for his coat to be taken away so Event would follow it. The auction ended peacefully, and Shade learned that the plan had worked when he received a signal from an ally.

• Shade met Steve Event and confirmed that he wore a genuine Metamorphosis Ring and was watching the crowd for trouble.
• Shade showed Steve Event the enormous ruby ring Queen Diana had given him and asked him to estimate its value.
• Shade staged a wine spill and handed his coat to a maid, who carried it away to wash.
• Shade bid successfully on the Delarion Ancient Fairy Tales Collection and the golden fountain pen.
• Steve Event left the dining hall to follow the maid carrying Shade’s coat, and Shade received a signal confirming the plan had worked.

Shade waited for Maid to handle Steve Event, then tried to stay inconspicuous at the banquet while avoiding the ongoing God Summoning ritual. He encountered the Sun Greatsword Hogg Lundell and then unexpectedly ran into Doctor Schneider, whom he hurried aside to question.

• Shade collected the two auction items and chose to wait on the 1st Floor while Maid dealt with Steve Event.
• Shade tested a strange stain on the buffet tablecloth, then joined a crowd watching Rhodes Cards.
• The voice in Shade’s Heart warned him that the middle-aged man beside him was a High-Ring Arcanist, likely Hogg Lundell of the Sun Church.
• Shade left Hogg Lundell after the card game ended and headed through the 1st Floor exhibition rooms.
• Shade encountered Doctor Schneider in a corridor, led him to a window, and urgently asked why he was at the manor.

Shade helped Doctor Schneider escape the dangerous banquet, then left with Tifa to prepare for the Divine Advent Ritual and his confrontation with the Silver-Eyed One. His unease about events at the mansion lingered as he met Miss Annette and Miss Bayes, where Miss Annette revealed a new discovery about the ruins.

• Shade told Doctor Schneider that he needed a client's psychological records, and Schneider left the mansion to retrieve them.
• Shade left with Tifa, declined to take the Metamorphosis Ring, and said he feared something besides his own mission might happen during the Divine Advent Ritual.
• Tifa offered to inform Miss Galina of Shade's foreboding and ask her to watch the mansion.
• Shade met Miss Annette and Miss Bayes at the White Swan Hotel, where Miss Annette showed him documents and a circular emblem she had discovered.