Chapter Summaries

Shade considered how Luvia of the Past might have inherited Laplace Klein Howard’s research before Howard warned him that the person who disrupted spacetime had not told him the truth. After Howard died, his final words left Shade realizing something about the destruction of spacetime and the new Sixth Epoch.

• Shade reasoned that Luvia of the Past had created the Sun, Moon, and Stars Ritual Matrices and might have inherited Laplace Howard’s research.
• Laplace Howard recalled arriving on the island more than two hundred years earlier and told Shade that his descendants could decide their own fate.
• Howard said that after fusing with Envy Edwards and the Door in a Bottle, he had glimpsed a destroyed time and warned Shade not to trust the spacetime destroyer.
• Shade said he would investigate Long-Haired Luvia’s secrets rather than accept Howard’s warning without question.
• Howard described the destruction of spacetime and the rebirth of the Sixth Epoch as an impossible accident and asked Shade to witness the new story to its end.
• Laplace Klein Howard’s final cards turned to ash over the lake, and Shade stared at his reflection as he realized what Howard’s words meant.

Shade learned that he had entered the world because repeated collapses of time created a loophole, and that his arrival was connected to the despairing girl who had restarted the Sixth Epoch. At dawn, he used the Goddess in the Lake’s final feather to separate Grace, Helen, Leisha, and Dorothy, who then demonstrated how they could reunite as the Chosen One of Space.

• Shade understood that the Outlander’s arrival was an accidental consequence of the world’s repeated damage and realized he had come because of the girl who wished to begin again.
• Luvia and the six Great Witches found Shade at the dock as dawn broke, where he used the feather’s last power to separate Grace and Helen from Leisha and Dorothy.
• Grace and Helen explained that they became the Chosen One of Space only when they fused, while Leisha and Dorothy revealed that their Linked Hearts Thaumaturgy had become Two-in-One.
• Leisha and Dorothy reunited as the red-gold-haired girl, explaining that their fusion could be reversed and maintained only on Red Butterfly Day.
• Grace and Helen joined Leisha and Dorothy to summon the Chosen One of Space, whose power included the Red Butterflies as well as her Ring Arcanist strength.

The Butterfly Wings Girl explained how the Chosen One of Space came to be, while Shade comforted Luvia and learned that the Guardian of the Earth wanted to meet him. When Speaker Isabella arrived, Shade hid as a cat under Miss Galina’s skirt as the Great Witches introduced the fused girl and answered Isabella’s questions about the God Summoner.

• The Butterfly Wings Girl speculated that Dorothy and Leisha had joined the Chosen One of Space through her Thaumaturgy, and said her full power could contaminate their souls.
• Grandma Cassandra reported that Sister Devlin had advanced to the Twelfth Ring, and Miss Aurora told Shade that the Guardian of the Earth wanted to speak with him in Randall River Valley.
• Shade asked Luvia for a hug and told her that he had been born because of her.
• The Great Witches spotted Speaker Isabella arriving, so Shade transformed into a silver cat and hid beneath Miss Galina’s skirt.
• Miss Aurora introduced Luvia as Miss Annette and the Butterfly Wings Girl as the Chosen One of Space, while Miss Isabella recognized that the latter’s soul had four components.
• Miss Galina explained the God Summoner’s connection to the group, and Miss Isabella asked whether the God Summoner was a woman.

After the Battle of Green Lake, Shade returned to the inn and slept through most of Red Butterfly Day. When he woke, Leisha and Dorothy’s fused form appeared, explaining that the Chosen One Ritual had reset Red Butterfly Day and left them able to meet again.

• The Time Great Witch questioned the witches about the battle, accepted Grandma Cassandra’s reassurance, and left Green Island after confirming everyone was safe.
• Shade emerged from beneath Miss Galina’s skirt, changed back from a Silver Cat, and returned to Green Lake Inn with the witches.
• Shade rested at the inn, reunited with the other survivors, and then fell asleep beside Mia until sunset.
• Shade woke, found the fog gone, and used Enhanced Space Perception to check that the city had no serious spatial disorder.
• Leisha and Dorothy’s fused form entered Shade’s room and explained that the Chosen One Ritual had reset their Red Butterfly Day state.

Shade woke to find Leisha and Dorothy able to fuse into a six-ring form, though they remained determined not to merge their souls permanently. After hearing how Green Island had changed and learning that they had gained spatial abilities, Shade said he already had a way to address their souls’ growing tendency to merge.

• Leisha and Dorothy showed Shade their fused form, its six-ring Destiny Ring, and the new Core Ling Rune Whisper-Red Butterflies, then demonstrated that they could separate again without lasting harm.
• Leisha and Dorothy explained that they had reached six rings after resisting Soul Fusion and absorbing the power of the Edwards Apotheosis Art’s core ritual in the old Edwards residence.
• Leisha and Dorothy demonstrated their new Space Movement and their ability to transfer inanimate objects between them, while Shade worried about their souls growing closer.
• Leisha and Dorothy reaffirmed that they did not want to become one, and Shade said he had a way to solve their souls’ merging problem.
• Leisha and Dorothy told Shade that Green Island’s fire had destroyed the fiery-red giant tree, three passages to the Reality World remained, and Sloth Edwardz had given Megan and Audrey the island’s authority.

Shade learned that Megan and Audrey had inherited the deeds to Green Lake Central Island, while the Witch Council and the Orthodox Church planned to share limited research and maintain the island’s seal. He gave Dorothy and Leisha Laplace Howard’s cards and explained how they might help delay their Soul Fusion, then went with them to the island inn, where a bonfire commemorated the Battle of Green Lake.

• Leisha explained that Megan and Audrey had received the island deeds from Sloth Edwardz, and that the Witch Council was considering limited joint development with the Orthodox Church while protecting the seal.
• Shade agreed that Dorothy and Leisha should rest and be observed after returning to Tobesk, then remembered Iluna’s approaching eighteenth birthday.
• Shade told Dorothy and Leisha that Laplace Howard’s cards might help delay their Soul Fusion and said he would verify how they worked before handing them over.
• Shade, Dorothy, and Leisha left Green Lake Inn and crossed through Sylvia’s password-protected passage to the inn on Green Island.
• Miss Aurora told Shade that the lobby’s permanent bonfire served the ritual and commemorated the Battle of Green Lake; the inn’s Witches greeted him as he arrived.

Shade told Luvia about Laplace Howard’s final words and renewed their promise to face the Thirteen Chosen Ones and prevent the world’s destruction together. As they returned to Iluna’s birthday banquet, Luvia told him that Doctor was recovering from injuries while Priest had left to fuse with the power of a skull.

• Shade walked with Luvia to the docks and told her that he had inherited Laplace Howard’s research materials and learned more about his origins.
• Luvia urged Shade to keep seeking the Thirteen Chosen Ones, and Shade promised to believe in her and face the final door with her.
• Shade invoked Oath Binding as he renewed his promise with Luvia, and they kissed before returning to the inn.
• Luvia told Shade that Priest had left with two bones and that she had taken possession of the Soul Story Book.
• Luvia reported that Doctor was recovering from injuries, and Shade decided to visit him.

Iluna celebrated her eighteenth birthday at a gathering with Shade, Luvia, the Great Witches, and their friends. After receiving many gifts, she made a private wish for her peaceful days with Shade and the people she cared about to continue.

• Luvia told Shade that Doctor Schneider's Red Mist injury was limited to his right leg and that he should recover after resting, then visited him with Shade at Green Lake Inn.
• Iluna arrived at the birthday gathering, where Galina, Sylvia, Cassandra, and the others gave her gifts and birthday wishes.
• Shade gave Iluna red roses and antique Scales, then presented her with a Golden Apple that drew startled reactions from Galina and the others.
• Dorothy reminded Iluna to make a wish before cutting her cake, and Iluna closed her eyes and wished for her happy days to continue.
• Iluna blew out all eighteen candles and welcomed her eighteenth year.

At Iluna’s birthday banquet, Shade, Luvia, and Iluna discussed the aftermath of the Battle of Green Lake, Laplace Howard’s legacy, and the choices ahead. Iluna left after sharing a toast with them, while Luvia arranged for Shade and Iluna to be alone together.

• Iluna thanked Shade for her birthday gift, and she and Luvia planned to discuss the Battle of Green Lake with him after they returned to Tobesk.
• Shade said he wanted to tell Luvia and Iluna what Laplace Howard had revealed and asked Luvia to verify the diviner’s proposed solution to Dorothy and Leisha’s problem.
• Iluna wondered what kind of person Laplace Howard had been, and Shade said Howard had passed his remaining Kindling to him despite taking the wrong path.
• Shade questioned whether using the Heart of the Living Dead to bring someone back would make him like Joey Barton, and Iluna was reassured when he said he had a way forward.
• Luvia and Iluna toasted Iluna’s eighteenth birthday and wished to keep celebrating together; Iluna then left, and Luvia gave her time alone with Shade.

After Iluna celebrated her birthday with Shade, he spoke with Grace and Helen on the inn roof, where Grace kissed him and he fled. Below, Galina and Sylvia prepared to take the recovering Angelina back to Tobesk, and Galina sent Angelina to retrieve two relics from Shade’s room.

• Shade and Iluna toasted their shared victory, and Iluna kissed him before leaving to speak with Sister Devlin about the Fire Guardian matter.
• Shade climbed to the roof and talked with Grace and Helen, who asked him to visit them and seek their help when he was in danger.
• Grace kissed Shade and tried to unbutton his coat, so he jumped off the roof and hurried away with the Cat.
• Galina and Sylvia discussed Angelina’s recovery, her studies at Zaras Academy of Literature, and plans to return to the train for Tobesk.
• Aurora and Sylvia discussed the Edwards Family’s Ring Arcanists and Laplace Klein Howard’s research.
• Galina asked Angelina to check Shade’s room for the Invisibility Cloak of Escaping Death and the Concentric Sword.

Angelina’s curiosity about Shade’s relics led her into the Hide and Seek Wardrobe, where she witnessed Shade with Leisha and Dorothy and completed her awakening as a Ring Arcanist. After Leisha and Dorothy left, Shade noticed something about the girl’s back and stopped in surprise.

• Angelina used Inspiration to find Shade’s relics, then entered the Hide and Seek Wardrobe and became trapped inside.
• Miss Galina realized Angelina had been caught by the wardrobe and decided to leave her there until morning.
• Shade returned to his room and joined Leisha, who had fused with Dorothy for Red Butterfly Day.
• Angelina watched Shade and the fused girl together, and her emotions and Spiritual Power surged until she awakened as a Ring Arcanist.
• Before midnight, Leisha and Dorothy separated, and Shade noticed something on the girl’s back that made him grip her shoulders.

Shade was left wondering who had shared his bed after Leisha and Dorothy fled as Red Butterflies. Later, he joined Luvia and the Great Witches for a late-night snack, discussed their plans to leave Green Island, and asked for help summoning the Ancient Witch to answer questions about the world's future.

• Leisha and Dorothy dressed themselves, fled Shade’s room as Red Butterflies, and left him wondering who he had been with.
• Luvia teased Shade in the corridor and joined him for a late-night snack with Little Mia.
• Shade and Luvia met Miss Galina, Miss Benanis, Miss Sylvia, and Miss Aurora on Green Island’s 1st Floor and discussed when they would leave.
• Miss Galina said she would leave after Angelina awakened, Miss Benanis and Miss Sylvia planned to return to Weilun Dai'er City, and Miss Aurora expected to stay until next month.
• Shade showed the Great Witches his blank Angel Level Relic Poems Card and asked for help summoning the Ancient Witch to question her about the world's future.

Shade planned to use the Poems Card and his Words of Sublimation at the Witch Council to summon Mana Feliana, while the Witches discussed the Edwards sisters’ shared condition. During a private gathering, Angelina Cavendish awakened as an unranked gifted one, and Miss Galina discovered her and took her for an examination.

• Shade told the Witches he planned to use the Poems Card with his Words of Sublimation at the Witch Council to summon Mana Feliana the following week.
• Megan and Audrey explained that their senses were connected because they were essentially one person in two bodies.
• Miss Aurora, Miss Benanis, and Miss Sylvia led Shade and the Edwards sisters to a bedroom, where Angelina watched from inside the Hide and Seek Wardrobe.
• Angelina’s intense emotions awakened her talent, making her an unranked gifted one.
• Miss Galina arrived with Little Mia, found Angelina in the wardrobe, and took her away for an examination.

After Red Butterfly Day, Shade and the others began leaving Green Lake Island, while Angelina's transformation and appointment as a gifted one awaited confirmation in Tobesk. Shade saw Luvia and Doctor Schneider off, then went with Sister Devlin to the island's northern dock for a private conversation.

• Shade was startled when Miss Sylvia, Miss Benanis, and Siris appeared in his room through a Teleportation Gate, and Angelina's scream the next morning revealed that she had become a gifted one.
• Miss Sylvia sent Angelina, Miss Galina, Leisha, Tifa, Dorothy, and the other departing guests away, while Megan agreed to arrange train tickets for the Doctor, Priest Augustus, and Durut Giles.
• Shade visited Doctor Schneider, who said he planned to prepare for advancing to Eight Rings after returning to Tobesk, and learned that the Green siblings had returned to the inn with most memories of the night missing.
• Luvia said goodbye to Shade and planned to return to the association before rejoining him in Tobesk, while Grace and Helen remained out of sight.
• Sister Devlin asked to speak with Shade alone and led him through the forest to the northern dock, where they stood beside the now-clear waters of Green Lake.

Shade strengthened his Primordial Fire, learned to use two Calamity Cards, and discussed the danger of his Mystic Lock with Sister Devlin. He then met Miss Danist at the Green Lake Town tavern and told her Laplace Klein Howard had created the Ritual Matrix from the Rhodes Cards’ back pattern, leaving her questioning how it appeared in ancient ruins.

• Sister Devlin strengthened Shade’s Life Force and taught him to use the Twin Lovers and Shadow of the Deep Sea with the Primordial Fire.
• Shade warned Sister Devlin that he could make the City of the End Mystic Lock appear and acknowledged the danger it posed to the world.
• Sister Devlin stayed on Green Island to check the seal while Shade planned to investigate Laplace Howard’s records about the Primordial Fire.
• Shade met Miss Danist at the Green Lake Town tavern after the Battle of Green Lake had ended.
• Shade told Miss Danist that Laplace Klein Howard had created the Edwards Apotheosis Art’s Ritual Matrix from the Rhodes Cards’ back pattern.
• Miss Danist questioned how Howard’s Ritual Matrix had also appeared in the Black Night Spirit Temple and the ancient ruins of Kalas Mountain.

Shade met with Miss Danist to discuss Laplace Howard, the island, and Shade’s studies, then returned home after the Battle of Green Lake. Exhausted, he fell asleep in his familiar bedroom, where Little Mia curled up beside him.

• Shade told Miss Danist that Laplace Howard should be dead and that the God Summoner might find answers in the Diviner’s remaining materials.
• Miss Danist gave Shade Mind Compass to help him find the Direction and guidance Spirit Runes for his Words of Sublimation, and asked him to study Laplace Howard’s materials.
• Shade and Miss Danist reviewed the Green Lake Region events, then parted as she reminded him to take her elective course at the Academy.
• Shade returned to Green Lake Inn, told Megan that Miss Danist could enter the underground area, and then went home with Mia.
• Shade organized his relics, fell asleep against his headboard, and a silver transparent arm covered him with a blanket as Mia settled beside him.

Shade discovered that an abnormal late-spring snowfall had affected much of the Old Continent and met the Guardian of the Earth, who explained that the world would experience a Year Without Summer. The Guardian said the Chosen Ones could contain worsening natural abnormalities, and Shade was left considering how their powers would protect the world.

• Shade woke to heavy snow in Tobesk and confirmed that the date was still late spring.
• Shade traveled across the Old Continent and found snow, cold weather, or hail in several regions.
• Shade met the Guardian of the Earth at the Forgotten Church and learned that irregularities in the Four Seasons had caused the snowfall.
• The Guardian explained that the Heart of the Earth had stabilized the seasons, but the coming summer would remain unusually cold.
• Shade learned that further natural abnormalities were inevitable but could be contained by the Chosen Ones, and the Guardian reassured him that the most important Chosen One was still present.

Shade visited the Heart of the Earth with the Guardian, where Mia gained a small increase in power after touching its core. Later, Shade chased Grace and Helen through the snowy woods, and the three rested together beneath the trees.

• Shade discussed the Year Without Summer and the Heart of the Earth with the Guardian, learning how to stabilize the earth if a mutation occurred.
• At the Guardian's suggestion, Shade let Mia touch the Heart of the Earth's stone pillar, strengthening the kitten's small flames.
• Shade returned to the inn and saw Grace and Helen, who transformed into Red Butterflies and flew out the window.
• Shade transformed into butterflies and chased Grace and Helen through the snowy woods until their swarms converged.
• Shade, Grace, and Helen fell into the snow and lay together beneath the trees, watching the light and snowflakes.

Shade reunited with Grace and Helen in the snowy forest, where they affirmed their feelings and chose to become intimate with him. Their Chosen One status had transformed and strengthened the Red Butterfly Twins, and the chapter left them returning to Green Lake Inn as the other Witches realized what Shade had been doing.

• Helen and Grace recalled their millennia of repeated reunions and reassured Shade that their decision to be with him was deliberate and carried no regrets.
• The sisters fused into their eighteen-year-old form, and she kissed Shade beneath the red butterfly wings.
• Through their deep soul contact, Shade learned that the sisters’ Chosen One status had purified and greatly increased their power, giving them potential to approach the Unknown Level.
• Shade and the sisters returned to Green Lake Inn at four in the afternoon, where Miss Aurora helped Megan realize what had happened.

Shade had Grace and Helen prepare Laplace Klein’s blank alchemy cards and install a hidden extra room in his house. The new room became a secure space for experiments, and Shade brought the sisters into his bedroom before dinner.

• Grace and Helen transformed the blank alchemy cards with red butterfly patterns, and Shade named them Red Butterfly Cards.
• Grace gave Shade a red gemstone that could create a stable extra space, and he chose to add a room on the third floor for alchemy and potion experiments.
• Grace and Helen anchored the space to the wall and made its door appear when someone knocked five times in rhythm.
• Shade explored the empty, durable room and confirmed that the Crystal Shoes could take him there.
• Shade returned to the second floor with Grace and Helen, then led them into his bedroom while Little Mia waited outside.