Chapter Summaries

Shade, Iluna, and Emilia destroyed the curse monster, and Emilia gained a new Spirit Rune while Shade learned about Prejudice. After lunch, Shade escorted Emilia back to the Three Cats Hotel with weapons and warnings about the city’s dangers, where Mrs. Goodman failed to reach her because Emilia’s protections kept her at bay.

• Emilia fired Iluna’s rune-engraved bullet into the weakened curse figure, shattering the dark world and destroying the monster.
• Emilia gained Whisper—Fear and Iluna gained Whisper—Envy, while Shade received insight into Prejudice.
• Iluna explained that the Church had been searching the Three Cats Hotel for an Apothecary who had vanished despite divination locating him there.
• Shade promised to show Emilia around Tobesk after her mission and gave her a pistol, ammunition, and Steam Bombs for protection.
• Emilia returned to the Three Cats Hotel and declined Mrs. Goodman’s invitation to afternoon tea.
• Mrs. Goodman withdrew into her nonexistent room after Emilia’s protective relics and the lingering Cat scent prevented her from reaching the elf.

Shade investigated the Bloodkin-related case with Mr. Bernhardt, who reported a new Vampire Beast attack and warned that it might be part of a frame-up. Shade also asked Lady Anne Bonnie about strange sounds and old dockside legends, then left to investigate the harbor himself as Twilight approached.

• Shade met Mr. Bernhardt at the Spider Inn and compared notes about Georgia Black’s missing memories and the investigation into the Unnamed Female Corpse.
• Mr. Bernhardt told Shade that a powerful Vampire Beast had attacked someone in Moon Bay City and suspected the attack was meant to divert the Church and frame the Bloodkin.
• Shade agreed to meet Herman Wood at a card game the next night while Mr. Bernhardt continued investigating the Crowley Steam Bathhouse.
• At Princess Trading Partner, Shade learned from Lady Anne Bonnie that dockworkers had a rule about fleeing and praying if they heard strange sounds at sunset during Twilight.
• Lady Anne Bonnie gave Shade a large package of records sent by Mr. Dylan, and Shade left to investigate the harbor as Twilight appeared.

Shade connected with the ocean, gained its temporary favor, and heard it ask him to save Moon Bay. Illustrious Miss shared clues about the coming disaster and the Radiance Messenger before Shade prepared to approach the man she had chosen for his next task.

• Shade used Red Dragon Force and his sea-related divinities to reach out to the ocean, which asked him to save Moon Bay.
• Shade gained insight into the ocean and the temporary status Sea's Favor, which would improve his recovery and Luck near the sea for two months.
• Illustrious Miss praised Shade for completing her previous task and explained that a Great One's believers were searching Moon Bay for traces of the divine war.
• Illustrious Miss said Shade should seek answers about the Radiance Messenger in another direction and pointed him toward a dockworker whose child was involved in a task.
• Shade decided to use the Time Key the next morning, and a boy carrying an iron lunchbox ran toward him as he considered how to approach the dockworker.

Shade helped Newman Anderson and shared dinner with him and his father, Laurie, learning about the dockworkers’ association and the secretive group Eternal Light. After arranging to meet them again, Shade visited Belinder Manor and found the witch watching the sunset with a lonely, sorrowful expression.

• Shade caught Newman and his lunchbox when the boy tripped, then invited Newman and Laurie Anderson to dinner.
• Laurie explained that dockworkers needed membership in the Dock and Warehouse Workers Association, and Shade noticed Newman did not want to inherit his father’s place.
• Laurie said he attended Eternal Light gatherings for the food, warned Shade that the group might be a Cult, and described a man who died after trying to report them.
• Shade arranged to meet Laurie and Newman again the next day, intending to learn more about Newman’s wish and Eternal Light.
• Shade visited Belinder Manor and found the witch sitting alone, watching the sunset with a sorrowful expression.

Shade visited Miss Belinder at her home, learned that the relic was improving her condition, and discussed new evidence about the Dragon Devouring Order and the Chosen One. The chapter ended with Miss Belinder suspecting Shade might be a Chosen One and wanting to confront the diviner who had ruled him out.

• Miss Belinder introduced Shade to her family as a business partner, and he joined them for dinner.
• Miss Belinder told Shade that the relic had sharpened her spiritual perception and given her Moon affinity, while he warned her about its dangers.
• Shade reported his investigation of Freeman Hawthorne and the Dragon Egg Fossil, and Miss Belinder found no direct evidence linking Hawthorne to the Dragon Devouring Order.
• Miss Belinder explained that the Poem Chapter Fragment described a Chosen One as someone connected to Dragons who could contain powers from different Dragon races.
• Shade said he possessed Red Dragon Force but had been divined to be ineligible, and Miss Belinder questioned that conclusion.

Shade learned that the Dragon scale could grant Golden Dragon blood or open the Holy White Chapel, but he declined to use it and kept it for the possible Chosen One. After spending the night with Miss Galina, he began preparing to use the Time Key and travel into the past.

• Shade heard from Miss Belinder that the Ancient God Dragon scale had two uses and that the Chosen One of Light was expected to appear in Moon Bay.
• Shade refused Miss Belinder's offer to use the scale and asked her to keep it until the Chosen One Ritual's connection to it became clearer.
• Miss Belinder told Shade about her investigation into the Seekers of Light Research Society before he left for home.
• Shade returned to find Tifa and the maids waiting, and Miss Galina later joined him for dinner after the Council meeting.
• Miss Galina said she had passed Shade's request for help to Miss Benanis, but Shade would have to wait until at least the next day for an answer.
• On Friday morning, Miss Galina kept Shade in bed past his planned wake-up time, so he began packing for the past at seven.

Shade returned to the Sea of No Light and found Miss Teresa waiting on the floating platform, where he comforted her and learned that the other three women had repeatedly tried to throw themselves into the sea. He planned to fish for Teresa’s maid next, while Little Mia joined him on the platform.

• Shade entered the Time Corridor and returned to the Sea of No Light, where he swam to the floating platform and met Dream Giver fishing.
• Shade awakened Miss Teresa with Cindyia's Silver Moon Gift, and she embraced and kissed him after believing she had escaped her nightmare.
• Miss Teresa told Shade that the other three women had tried to leave the platform and that their prayers had summoned countless rotten hands from the sea.
• Shade questioned whether the maid Wayne Maxim and the other two women were truly who they claimed to be, then said he would try to fish up the maid.
• Shade dried his coat and Little Mia, transformed the cat back, and let her hide in his clothes as he and Miss Teresa prepared to approach the others.

Shade questioned the awakened women about the Radiance Messenger’s sinking and what they had done beforehand. Maggie Malone admitted she had boarded to find something, then described meeting a beautiful blue-eyed woman who vanished before the shipwreck.

• Shade asked Miss Teresa, Miss Maxim, Professor Evans, and Maggie Malone whether they remembered new details about the Radiance Messenger’s sinking, but none recalled anything specific.
• Miss Teresa and Miss Maxim recounted their evening together, while Professor Evans said she heard signs of a theft aboard the ship before going to bed.
• Maggie Malone described drinking stolen rum and mentioned a captain and first mate carrying an oilcloth-covered box, then admitted she had no sister and had boarded to find something.
• Maggie said she entered an unlocked first-class cabin intending to search it, but instead met a beautiful blue-eyed woman who took her to watch the sunset and invited her to pose naked for an oil portrait.
• Maggie recalled falling asleep after returning to her cabin with the woman, then waking during the shipwreck to find the woman gone and swimming toward the firelight.

Shade questioned Miss Maron about the night the Radiance Messenger sank and learned of several suspicious events aboard the ship. He then went to fish for Miss Maxim’s memories, while the god revealed that it had caught three bubbles of childhood dreams.

• Shade concluded that Miss Maron had not caused the sinking, promised to protect her, and asked whether she knew Angie Illustrious.
• Miss Maron described a disguised sailor entering the kitchen, strange patterns in the Steam Engine room, fewer casino guards, and the chief mate’s absence from the theater on the night the ship sank.
• Miss Maxim explained that most passengers had attended the lavish dinner, while Miss Maron said she wanted to be last for Shade’s memory fishing because she was not ready to reveal her past relationship.
• Shade proposed that the Captain and his accomplices had sacrificed the passengers to summon and control the Seven-Tailed Player, but the god asked him for evidence.
• The god gave Shade the Fishing Rod and Miss Maxim’s earrings, then showed him three glowing bubbles that it had caught from the dead beneath the sea.

Shade and Miss Teresa fished up objects that revealed Wayne Maxim’s childhood wishes and regrets. The third catch showed Wayne preparing to travel with Miss Teresa and revealed an ominous Tarot card.

• God showed Shade three childhood dreams and offered him a childhood dream crystal if he could lead people out of the darkness.
• Shade and Miss Teresa fished up Wayne Maxim’s notebook, and Shade gave her younger self the Mirror Fairytale she had long wished to own.
• They pulled up a severed arm and witnessed young Wayne struggle to kill a shackled creature; Miss Teresa comforted her, helping her face the moment.
• Their third catch was Miss Teresa’s rose-embroidered handkerchief, which revealed Wayne preparing for the trip to Silver Beach Island with the Royal Maids.
• Wayne drew a Tarot card showing a dragon entwined around a great ship, an image Shade recognized as abnormal.

Shade and Miss Teresa continued investigating the Radiance Messenger’s wreck and fishing people and objects from the black sea. Shade rescued Wayne Maxim, then caught a colorful feather that revealed Professor Evans’s childhood dream and a juvenile Rainbow Bird.

• Miss Teresa explained how Monica’s Strange Painting Divination Cards had revealed a Dragon entangled with a ship, and Shade concluded that the Dragon had not simply destroyed the Radiance Messenger.
• Shade and Miss Teresa fished Wayne Maxim’s living body from the sea, and Shade asked Miss Teresa to calm Miss Maxim while he prepared for another attempt.
• Shade told the deity he believed it had answered the wish of a child who did not want to die, then cast the Fishing Hook tied to Professor Evans’s ring.
• The hook caught a colorful feather, and the deity revealed the phantom of Professor Evans as a child holding it.
• Shade looked up and recognized the colorful bird above them as a juvenile Rainbow Bird, a rare creature associated with Luck and blessings.

Shade completed another thirty-minute visit to the lightless sea, helping Professor Evans recover her lost bird and fulfill her wish for Black Flame Ice Wine. Before leaving, he learned that Miss Maron wanted to live, be free, and discover her true identity, then promised Miss Teresa they would meet again.

• Shade caught Professor Evans's Rainbow Bird after Little Mia frightened it out of the sky.
• The deity taught Shade how to use his opponent's force while fishing, and he caught an empty goblet that brought back Professor Evans.
• Shade gave Professor Evans the Black Flame Ice Wine she requested, and she pointed him toward another fishing spot before disappearing.
• Shade returned the Fishing Rod to the deity as the thirty-minute visit ended.
• Miss Maron said she wanted to live, have freedom, and learn who she truly was, and Shade promised to fulfill her wish.
• Shade kissed Miss Teresa's forehead and vanished, while Miss Teresa's younger self wished he had kissed her lips.

After returning from the past, Shade consulted Miss Danist about a strange radiance in Moon Bay and a time-related Thaumaturgy he could not use. Her advice helped him partially redirect an attack, and he then set out for Moon Bay, where July snow began to fall.

• Shade told Miss Galina about his encounter with Miss Illustrious and said he planned to speak with her again in Moon Bay.
• Shade met Miss Danist at Saint Byron's Library and warned her that the Chosen One of 'Light' might appear near Moon Bay.
• Shade asked Miss Danist for help with a Thaumaturgy that reflected attacks, and she advised him to practice its traits separately.
• Shade partially turned back Miss Danist's Red Moon radiance by redirecting it, then returned home and tried to practice with Little Mia.
• Shade traveled to Moon Bay with Little Mia and saw snow falling despite it being Thunder Month.

Shade visited Sir Donald to warn him about the Bloodkin investigation and learned his theory that Moon Bay’s legends foretold a dragon’s return and the city’s destruction. Sir Donald showed him an ancient inscription, which Shade translated as a record of the Devouring Dragon’s defeat rather than the transaction Sir Donald had imagined.

• Shade found Sir Donald at the Political Economy College and warned him that the Five Gods Church was investigating Bloodkin after a prostitute was found drained of blood.
• Sir Donald said a colleague’s husband had been found dead and headless, and he believed Moon Bay’s recent crimes and strange events were legends coming true.
• Sir Donald explained his theory that the Seven Great Families had gained their enduring power through contact with an ancient being, and that many local legends predicted a dragon would return to destroy Moon Bay.
• Sir Donald showed Shade his folklore research and photographs from ancient ruins, including a stone inscription in Ancient Draconic runes.
• Shade translated the inscription and discovered that it described the Devouring Dragon’s god being defeated in Moon Bay, not the exchange of power and payment Sir Donald had inferred.

Shade learned that a photograph of ancient Draconic Runes came from an excavation in the Poisonous Swamp and traced a former researcher to Professor Tiris Manning. He then met Newman and his dockworker father, encouraging Newman to recognize the value of his father’s work and consider a stable future.

• Sir Donald told Shade that the photographed carving came from a ruin in the Poisonous Swamp and that Northern Kingdom researchers had joined the excavation.
• Sir Donald gave Shade an old business card for Professor Tiris Manning, whom Shade recognized as his friend.
• Shade visited Miss Lisa and Maria, then examined the silver anchor ornament and grew more certain about Illustrious Miss's identity.
• Shade met Laurie Anderson and Newman at the tavern and heard Laurie describe dockworkers' work and local gangs, including Princess Trading Partner.
• Shade praised Laurie’s work and urged Newman to understand the dignity and stability his father’s profession provided.

Shade learned about Eternal Light’s hierarchy, received Siris’s memory-retrieval relic and holy emblem, and visited Professor Manning to ask about an old excavation in Moon Bay. Manning recalled strange stone inscriptions that Shade suspected were connected to the Dragon Series, but he had kept no records or artifacts.

• Shade completed Illustrious Miss’s second task by explaining how adults should respond to children’s wishes, while Mr. Anderson described Eternal Light’s leadership and secrecy.
• Shade received Siris’s letter, the Forgotten Old Man holy emblem, and the Sage-level Relic Faded Memories to help recover a memory.
• Shade visited Professor Manning and asked about an excavation in Moon Bay more than ten years earlier.
• Professor Manning recalled that the excavation uncovered strange stone inscriptions that caused fear and mental strain, but said he had kept no unauthorized records or artifacts.
• After Shade mentioned the Dragon Series, Professor Manning realized the patterns he had seen might have referred to dragons.

Shade learned that Moon Bay’s harbor legends linked dragon roars to thunderstorms and found a forecast for a major offshore storm on Sunday. He spent a snowy afternoon with Miss Belinder, discussing his investigations and the Witch Council’s preparations, while her mother began wondering about their relationship.

• Professor Manning told Shade that an old boatman had heard what might have been dragons roaring in Moon Bay’s harbor during thunderstorms.
• Shade asked Luvia for Moon Bay’s weather forecast, which predicted a major thunderstorm offshore beginning Sunday at noon.
• Shade brought Little Mia to Belinder Manor, where Miss Belinder admired the Cat and examined the relic Faded Memories.
• Shade and Miss Belinder discussed his investigation into the Eternal Light organization and the Headless Serial Murder Case, then talked about preparations for the possible arrival of the Chosen One of "Light".
• Mrs. Belinder saw her daughter walking with Shade and asked Matilda what Bella thought of him.

Shade joined a card game at the Parliament Club to recover a missing memory from Herman Wood, using a Special Rule Card given to him by Countess Belinder. He dominated the early rounds, and the chapter ended as he and the other players revealed their hands for another game.

• Countess Belinder gave Shade the Fool's Story · Lightning Strike Maniac card and reminded him to obtain Herman Wood's missing memory.
• Shade explained the card's significance and promised to secure the memory while playing at the gathering.
• Shade met Baron Wood, Herman Wood, Earl Martin Eddington, and Great City Player 1850 champion Viscount Bell Gra at the Parliament Club.
• The Belinder, Eddington, and Wood Families discussed grain tariffs while Shade, Herman, and Bell Gra played cards.
• Miss Belinder learned that Herman had lost nine games and Bell Gra three, while Shade had not lost any.
• Shade held Sun 9 and Flower 8 as Herman and Bell Gra placed their hands face-down on the table.

Shade won the thirteenth round against Viscount Bell Gra and Herman Wood, then began a new Rhodes Cards match with them, wagering Special Cards. The first draw left Shade standing while Bell Gra revealed a card that could raise his hand to twenty-one points; the match remained unresolved.

• Shade revealed Sun 3 to reach twenty points, beating Bell Gra and Herman Wood and winning their final round.
• Shade told Miss Belinder that he planned to win Bell Gra’s Special Card, and she reminded him of his task for the evening.
• Shade, Bell Gra, and Herman Wood began a new match, wagering Fool's Story · Lightning Strike Maniac, Ancient Fairy Tales · Mermaid's Song, and Words of the Era · Terrarell River News.
• Belinder and the other family members added valuable prizes to the first game’s stakes, including a statue, horses, a pearl necklace, and access to the Wood family library.
• Shade drew Moon 2 and Star 13 with Flower 3 as his hole card, then stood; Herman also stopped drawing.
• Bell Gra drew a fourth card and revealed Sun 1, Modern Textile Technology, which could adjust his hand to twenty-one points if its conditions were met.

Shade won the first game against Viscount Gra and Herman Wood, then took the lead in the second game when Herman’s special card lowered Shade’s score. As the second game continued, the players and their companions added wagers, and Shade proposed further stakes for the current round before revealing his hole card.

• Viscount Gra activated a special card in the first game, but Shade’s adjusted total of 20 beat the Viscount’s 18 while Herman Wood’s adjusted score busted.
• Shade won the first game, and Miss Belinder congratulated him before refusing his offer of champagne.
• Herman Wood played a special card in the second game that reduced Shade’s even total of 18 by one, leaving Shade with 19 and securing another win.
• Miss Belinder, Earl Eddington, and Baron Wood added wagers to the second game, including a painting, winter firewood, and access to a library.
• Shade revealed his Fool’s Story · Lightning Strike Maniac card but declined to activate its effect, then proposed that he, Viscount Gra, and Herman Wood wager on the current round.