Chapter Summaries

Shade learned from the Doppelgangers that the Chosen One Ritual would take place in the Sea of Origin, and received their knowledge about the Birthing Room of Creation and its door. He suspected he had found the door’s opening incantation, but still lacked the key or qualification to open it.

• Shade decided to ask Sivie’s family fleet for help finding the Scarlet Order, then left Fragrant Residence after Wei Ge sent him away from Angelina’s lesson.
• Shade met the Doppelgangers beside the Thornir River, where they confirmed that the Chosen One Ritual was tied to the Sea of Origin and explained how mortals could reach it.
• Shade asked about reopening the door to the Birthing Room, but the Doppelgangers refused to let him enter their core room again.
• Shade accepted knowledge about doors and the refinement of Mother Liquid as the final payment for their transaction.
• The Doppelgangers revealed that only Shade and Ellie had ever affected the door, and Shade identified [Creation], [Life], and a prayer as likely parts of the procedure for opening it.

Shade learned a ritual that could open the Birthing Room of Creation if he found a Seed of Life and a qualified descendant of an Ancient God-created race, while also obtaining a blood-transformation spell intended to treat Wei Ge. After the Doppelgangers vanished, Shade returned to Arcadia and accompanied Angelina and Miss MacDonald to Candlekeep Library.

• Shade learned that the ritual for contacting the Birthing Room required a Seed of Life, which could also grant a deceased person a costly second life.
• The Doppelgangers taught Shade the Mother Liquid Manufacturing spell, which Wei Ge would need to learn to process Shade’s bodily fluids for treatment.
• The House of False Men disappeared from Arcadia, and Shade said he would not trust or cooperate with the Doppelgangers.
• Shade told Old Mr. Finch about the Skin Object Hall incident and asked about the Birthing Room; Mr. Finch suggested asking Old John.
• Shade went with Angelina and Miss MacDonald to Candlekeep Library, where Angelina obtained a membership and visited the black market beneath it.

Shade gathered black-market intelligence with Angelina, then heard an unusual clicking sound near Miss MacDonald’s heart but found no signs of a problem. He helped Wei Ge learn a spell to extract Mother Liquid, and its first use made her lose control while drinking his blood, though it improved her condition and could extend her lifespan.

• Shade and Angelina bought dubious intelligence slips describing scattered Skin Objects and a suspected Mechanical Infectious Disease ahead of the Old Continent Industrial Expo.
• Shade heard a gear-like click near Miss MacDonald’s chest, examined her with three Thaumaturgies, and told her to monitor her health and avoid going out alone.
• Wei Ge postponed Shade’s Chaos Bestowal ritual until Wednesday and learned the spell for extracting Mother Liquid.
• Wei Ge used the spell to drink Shade’s blood and became so entranced that Angelina, Miss MacDonald, and Miss Lorraine worried she had lost control.
• Wei Ge recovered and said she would need to use the spell five times a week for a month, then once or twice weekly, to stabilize her improved condition.

Shade learned from Old John about the Hermit Order’s past encounters with the Sea of Origin and a door suspected to lead to the Birthing Room of Creation. The Chosen One Ritual may take place at the Sea of Origin, and Shade asked the Hermit Order to share its records so they could prepare for its return.

• After saying goodbye to Wei Ge, Shade returned home and arranged to postpone Red Butterfly Day with Dorothy and Leisha.
• Megan joined the Duchess at Shade’s home, and the three decided to spend the night at Galina’s manor while Shade first visited Old John and Doctor Schneider.
• Shade asked Old John about the Birthing Room of Creation, and Old John explained that the Hermit Order had found a door in a sea cliff beside a briefly appearing Red Ocean in Astra City.
• Old John described how a predecessor had approached the door but lost much of his memory, while several other visitors to the Red Ocean had gone mad or failed to return.
• Shade told Old John that the Chosen One Ritual was likely to take place at the Sea of Origin, and Old John noted that Finch might need to prepare to enter it.
• Shade asked the Hermit Order to share its records about the Sea of Origin’s appearances and the signs that preceded its arrival and disappearance.

Shade learned that Withering Demon Valesius was likely in the Arcadia Region and prepared to face it with the doctor's help. He then joined Galina and Megan for a candlelit garden dinner, where they set aside current dangers and enjoyed the evening.

• Shade asked Old John to acquire a Seed of Life and learned that Serkses Higher Medical Academy had once possessed one.
• Shade discussed the Demon Man's attack on [Skin Object Hall] with Doctor Schneider, who suspected Valesius was seeking Life Energy and sins.
• Doctor Schneider gave Shade an umbrella that could shield him from Valesius's influence and urged him to remain cautious.
• Shade declined the doctor's dinner invitation and traveled to Galina's Manor with Little Mia.
• Shade joined Galina and Megan for dinner in the garden, and they talked about fashion, potions, and his visit to Candlekeep Library.

Shade spent a restful weekend at Galina's Manor with Galina and Megan, then began the new week by preparing to investigate the Big Mouth Sparrow's whereabouts. His latest draw from [God's Gift Box] was the Poet Level relic [Cream Apple].

• Shade discussed life after their adventures ended, and promised Galina and Megan that he would stay with them.
• Shade joked with Galina and Megan about Angelina thinking he liked women with big tails, then danced and spent the night at the manor.
• After resting well, Shade returned to Arcadia City with Little Mia and Megan as Margaret prepared to travel to the western Frontline.
• Shade planned to visit Saint Byron's with Little Mia and drew a [Cream Apple] from [God's Gift Box].

Shade and his companions prepared a Divine Art Contract beneath the Oak Tree on Lake Heart Island, intended to bind the Dragon Maids across time to his Thaumaturgy. After Shade and Emilia completed the ritual’s vows, the Moon Egg began to glow, but the contract’s outcome had not yet been revealed.

• Shade offered Ellie the Cream Apple, and she thanked him with a kiss before Winnie stored it away.
• Daniste asked Shade about the apple’s task and worried over the contract, but Shade reassured her and explained his suspicions about the Dragon Maids.
• Shade wrote the ancient contract in red ink across the Moon Egg, while Daniste said goodbye to the egg and returned to Ellie.
• Emilia invoked the World Tree’s power, turning the contract’s runes gold as Shade signed his name.
• Shade agreed to regard the Dragon Maids as family, protect them, and uphold the contract, and the Moon Egg floated above him amid golden light and trembling time.

Emilia completed the ritual that sent the Moon Egg away with Shade, and Shade promised Daniste they would find Helena Carter at Saint Byron’s. The search turned toward the Academy’s Space Labyrinth and its oldest Dragon Blood Tree, as Shade and Emilia headed to investigate.

• Emilia asked the Moon Egg whether it would become Shade Suellen Hamilton’s Dragon Maid, and the egg vanished with Shade beneath the World Tree’s light.
• Daniste wept over Helena Carter’s disappearance, while Shade promised they would find her within a week; Emilia and Ellie planned to keep searching for the egg’s scent.
• Emilia suggested Helena might be disguised as an Academy student, and Daniste planned to have the Student Management Office check the enrollment records.
• Shade proposed searching the entrance to the Space Labyrinth for clues in the Fifth Epoch manuscripts, and Daniste left to ask the professors about them.
• Shade asked Emilia to take him to the Academy Castle’s Central Courtyard to inspect its Dragon Blood Tree, and he rode there on a Little Unicorn with Little Mia.

Shade, Ellie, and Emilia discovered that the ancient Dragon Blood Tree might be hiding something, but a Knowledge Catastrophe at the Academy Library drew their attention. Shade and Ellie prepared to enter the Catastrophic Knowledge Domain and find the book causing it, while Emilia waited outside.

• Shade, Ellie, and Emilia examined the Dragon Blood Tree, and Ellie and Little Mia both sensed that something was wrong with it.
• A Mermaid Girl summoned Emilia and Ellie to the library because Professor Daniste needed their help with a Book Catastrophe.
• Daniste explained that the book Ancient Druid: Elementary Transformation Analysis had created a primeval forest domain filled with malicious entities, where entrants turned into animals and gradually lost their self-awareness.
• Shade agreed to handle the Catastrophe with Ellie, and Emilia said she would wait outside and join them for lunch afterward.

Shade retrieved a Calamity Book from the Academy Library and discovered that his Moon Library could contain and potentially purify it. Later, Wei Ge told him the Church had identified the rescued black-haired girl as a human subspecies, prompting Shade to connect her bloodline to the origins of the Blood Spirit School’s modification technique.

• Shade used Library Retrieval to summon the Calamity Book, then placed it in his Moon Library and showed Daniste that the library could contain it.
• Daniste asked Shade to keep the book in a separate section of his library while she explained its containment as a divine artifact left by the Silver Moon Sage.
• Shade told Daniste he was seeking the Seed of Life, then left the Academy and visited Wei Ge in Arcadia City.
• Wei Ge reported that the rescued black-haired girl was descended from the Derainore Royal Family and belonged to a human subspecies with enhanced abilities, longer life, and a need for blood products.
• Shade wondered whether the Blood Spirit School’s New Humanity Modification Technique and ancient Bloodkin bloodline research shared the same origins, and Wei Ge considered his theory.

Shade connected ancient Bloodkin technology to New Humanity technology and considered investigating Delinore-era records for a way to defeat the Weeper of Blood. At Saint Byron's Academy, Daniste told him he had earned the chance to choose a Sage Level Relic, and Shade began considering what he might need.

• Shade and Wei Ge discussed how the Blood Spirit School may have joined the Delinore-era Bloodkin and how old records could reveal weaknesses in New Humanity technology.
• Wei Ge invited Shade on a date the day after tomorrow and offered to bring him into the Council during the Chaos Bestowal.
• Shade told Luvia and Winnie that the Sea of Origin might host the Chosen One Ritual and that opening the door on Pink Beach required a Seed of Life.
• Winnie described a Seed of Life as a tiny, densely compressed point of Life Energy, while Luvia said she could divine its location after they found the next Special Coin.
• At the Academy Library, Daniste reported that Shade's work against the Skin Object Hall had earned him the right to choose one Sage Level Relic from the Academy.

Shade and his companions searched the Academy’s Dragon Blood Tree for a hidden Tree Hollow that might contain the Fire Seed Source. Shade’s Fire Seed Source Mark resonated with the tree, revealing a fiery outline in its bark.

• Shade declined to choose a Sage Level Relic, and Ellie said she wanted to plant apple trees with Emilia’s help.
• Daniste told Shade that she suspected the Dragon Blood Tree contained a Tree Hole Spell, and the group searched its bark with branches.
• Emilia tried several ways to dispel the spell, while Shade reasoned that the Fire Seed Source Mark in his palm might be the key.
• Shade pressed his marked palm against the tree, causing its leaves to glow and fiery lines to outline a basin-sized area in the bark.

Shade, Daniste, and Emilia found the Dragon Blood Tree hiding Miss Feliana’s tree hollow and learned that it could open on Thursday night. After returning home, Shade planned to continue purifying Wei Ge’s younger sister and spend Red Butterfly Day reading with Leisha and Dorothy.

• Daniste identified the starlit outline on the Dragon Blood Tree as a Time Lock and calculated that the hollow could open on Thursday night.
• Shade suggested that the Moon Egg might have hatched while it was in the hollow, and Daniste arranged to protect the tree until it opened.
• After Ellie left with the other Unicorns, Emilia kissed Shade, then fled when Daniste returned.
• Shade and Daniste told Luvia they had found the hollow, and Daniste and Luvia celebrated the successful search that night.
• On Tuesday morning, Daniste hurried off to teach, and Shade said he would visit Wei Ge before reading with Leisha and Dorothy for Red Butterfly Day.

Shade spent a sunny spring day at Regent Park on a picnic and date with Dorothy and Leisha. The peaceful outing ended with Leisha pointing out Dorothy’s brother and his family nearby.

• Luvia asked Shade whether she could come home for dinner, and Shade welcomed her.
• Wei Ge found two books beneath Shade’s pillow, embarrassedly asked about his taste in girls, and told him they had a date planned for the next day.
• Shade stored the books in the Moon Library and suggested that Dorothy and Leisha spend their reading day outdoors at Regent Park.
• Shade, Dorothy, and Leisha picnicked, strolled, and read together while Winnie and the maids prepared food and Little Mia enjoyed a strawberry.
• As the park grew busier near noon, Leisha spotted Dorothy’s brother picnicking with his wife and young daughter.

Shade, Dorothy, and Leisha enjoyed a spring picnic until Dorothy’s niece suffered a heart episode, prompting Shade to investigate and offer help. The girl recovered, and Shade and Dorothy returned to the picnic after agreeing to keep an eye on her health.

• Dorothy spotted her eldest brother’s family at the park but chose not to interrupt their picnic because her niece had only recently been allowed outside.
• Shade, Dorothy, and Leisha ate, played Rhodes Cards, and rested together while Leisha sketched Shade asleep beside Dorothy and Little Mia.
• Dorothy’s niece clutched her chest and became unwell, so Dorothy rushed to her while Shade learned that the girl’s breathing was weak and her heart condition had flared up.
• Shade used Life Fire Seed and Eye of Edwardz on the girl, briefly seeing a red point of light over her heart, then brought food and drinks when he went to check on her.
• The girl stabilized, and Dorothy explained that she would avoid mystical treatment unless it became necessary; Shade later reassured her that he had found no traces of elements on the child.
• Leisha showed Shade and Dorothy her completed sketch of their picnic, and they praised it and planned to frame it for Dorothy’s apartment.

Shade studied documents about the Red Moon and learned more about the Sea of Origin from Old John, including the danger it posed to Arcadia City. He ended the day dining with his companions at Wei Ge’s home, where she confirmed that the Council would perform Chaos Bestowal on him the following afternoon.

• Shade studied Miss Feliana’s documents and found Blaney’s insights into the Red Moon especially useful for understanding its powers.
• Dorothy enlisted Leisha to proofread a manuscript, and Leisha later suggested that the group visit Angelina for dinner.
• Shade collected Dorothy’s ancient storybook from Old John, who gave him records about the Sea of Origin and warned that its descent could cause a major disaster.
• Shade asked whether the Sea of Origin had native life, and Old John admitted that no records mentioned any inhabitants.
• Shade, Luvia, Leisha, Dorothy, Winnie, and the Cat dined with Wei Ge, who promised to look after Angelina.
• Wei Ge told Shade that the Council would perform Chaos Bestowal on him after lunch the next day.

Shade and the witches discovered gears embedded in Eve MacDonald’s heart, and Shade replaced it with a magically created heart. The group began investigating a possible Mechanical Infectious Disease, while Megan examined the removed heart and raised the possibility of Eve having an awakened mixed bloodline.

• At Wei Ge’s mansion, Eve MacDonald fainted as Shade and Luvia heard or sensed something strange inside her.
• Shade and the others saw three interlocking gears functioning within Eve’s heart, though only Shade could hear their clicking clearly.
• Shade surgically removed Eve’s heart and replaced it with one made using Active Mud, then restored its beat and healed the wound.
• Wei Ge ordered an investigation into a rumored Mechanical Infectious Disease after Shade connected it to Eve’s condition.
• Megan examined Eve’s preserved heart and suggested that gears might have grown naturally from her body, possibly because of a nonhuman mixed bloodline.

Shade and the others learned that the mechanical organs appearing in humans were part of an artificially induced directed mutation linked to the Church’s defectors and the Construct Master’s group. The mutation could create a new Mechanical Race, and Shade resolved to confront Gerald Delong while the group considered how to protect those at risk.

• Megan examined Eve’s heart and concluded that its gears and flesh formed a naturally functioning, intricately adapted organ.
• Miss Lorraine brought Church documents revealing that the defectors’ research had caused mechanical structures to grow in a small number of humans, with five fatal cases reported.
• Luvia explained that removing the affected organ could stop the mutation and that anti-flesh-aberration protection could prevent it from occurring.
• Shade said he would question Gerald Delong because the research might be affecting all humans, while Leisha planned to get an amulet for Angelina.
• After examining Eve’s heart, Megan explained that the defectors had artificially induced a directed mutation that could establish a new Mechanical Race if it became inheritable.

Shade and Dorothy checked Dorothy's niece, whose minor mutation had been suppressed, before an unexpected fusion left Dorothy and Leisha briefly unable to separate. Luvia suspected the incident was connected to the Chosen One of Creation and warned them against fusing again until that story ended.

• Megan, Audrey, and Leisha judged that the Mechanical Race research posed little danger, though Dorothy worried her niece might share Miss MacDonald's heart mutation.
• Shade visited Miss MacDonald, who thanked him with a kiss, asked him to call her Eve, and arranged to see him the next day.
• Shade and Dorothy examined Dorothy's sleeping niece, and Luvia's divination confirmed that the child's similar mutation had been suppressed and was harmless.
• Luvia declined to join Shade, Dorothy, and Leisha for the night, then rushed downstairs when Shade cried out in alarm.
• Shade explained that Dorothy and Leisha had fused with him but could not initially separate; after they recovered, Luvia warned them not to fuse again until the Chosen One of Creation story ended.

Wei Ge took Shade on a spring outing to a scenic plateau behind the Astley estate, where they discussed her family’s past and the search for the remaining Life Solution. Their date was interrupted by a visit from a princess of Derainore who had been exchanged from the Skin Object Hall, and she asked to give Wei Ge her pendant.

• Wei Ge and Shade visited the flower-covered plateau behind the Astley estate, which her family had opened to the public, and she shared its history and a childhood memory with him.
• Wei Ge told Shade that the Skin Object Hall had yielded only one portion of Life Solution, but she trusted her mother would reveal another clue.
• Miss Lorraine warned Wei Ge and Shade that a Dawn Church carriage had arrived, carrying two nine-ring Sorceresses and the Black-haired Princess from six hundred years ago.
• The former Princess recognized Wei Ge as a descendant of the Astley family and asked about her siblings and marital status.
• Wei Ge said she was unmarried and pointed out that she was on a date with Shade, while the Princess asked the Sorceresses whether she could give Wei Ge her pendant.