Corpse-Hiding Mirror

"I have a friend in Middlesburg, a captain. He asked me to inquire with you about Twin Worship."

Shade said casually.

"Oh, Middlesburg. I see."

Professor Manning set down his teacup.

"But let me emphasize this first: some of the texts I saw back then were prohibited by The Church from being circulated. I signed an agreement with The Church, so there are certain things I cannot disclose."

"That's fine. Just tell me what you can."

Shade said:

"First, I'd like to know whether the traditions of prehistoric Twin Worship had anything to do with death."

"Death?"

The professor was taken aback, then shook his head.

"What do those two have to do with each other? No, perhaps they are not entirely unrelated. I was still very young back then, not one of the main excavation staff, so I saw few textual records. But I heard a local belief in Middlesburg that twins could actually be regarded as one person. Therefore, when one twin was seriously ill and might die, the other could be killed to make death come early, thereby preventing the sick twin's death."

He glanced at Shade's expression.

"Of course, that was merely an ignorant practice. Even when I was young, it was nothing more than a rumor used to scare children."

In that case, Twin Worship probably had nothing to do with the third Chosen One.

"Then did Twin Worship have any rituals that allowed twins separated by great distances, never to meet again, to convey their longing—or even break through that barrier?"

"That is quite a strange question."

The professor said, but he still nodded.

"Of course there were, but I must remind you that I am a professor of history and archaeology, not folklore. I do not understand all that occult stuff. I merely