Chapter Summaries

Shade returned to the transformed ceremony venue and joined the Witches before taking his place beside the archway. Emilia arrived in a Great Elf’s formal attire, and the coronation reached its central moment as Shade received the Elven Royal Authority crown.

• Shade hurried back with Winnie and found the venue prepared for the ceremony, with guests seated and Elderon growing Oak Trees beside the grounds.
• Shade greeted the Witches, learned Adele would leave after the ceremony, and took his assigned place beside the archway.
• Emilia appeared as a Great Elf in a formal emerald gown and walked the red carpet beneath the guests’ gaze.
• Ellie and Little Liana scattered flower petals as Emilia passed through the archway and took her place beside Shade.
• Elderon presented the crown to Shade, and the Council of Elders emerged carrying ceremonial items.

Emilia Sinode was crowned the new Elf Queen at dawn, with Iluna stepping in to oversee the final oath. The ceremony ended with Emilia inviting Shade to dance with her at the banquet.

• Grandma Qishala presented Emilia with the Tree Staff, the Ocarina of Time, and the Ring of Power before beginning the coronation oaths.
• Galina and Sivie noticed that the oath questions sounded like wedding vows, and Iluna interrupted the ceremony to offer to preside over Emilia’s final oath.
• Emilia agreed to Iluna’s revised oath, swearing in the name of time that she was prepared to become Queen and lead the elves alongside Shade.
• Shade placed the Elven Royal Authority on Emilia’s head as the first sunlight after the War of Fate shone on them.
• Emilia invited Shade to share the First Dance at the banquet, while Little Mia asked when breakfast would be served.

Shade returned to Kael-Todd Town with Luvia’s help, reunited with the Witches aboard the Radiance Messenger, and spent the morning with Leisha and Dorothy. Luvia revealed that the Ring of Miracles could temporarily weaken the curse separating Leisha and Dorothy, allowing them to meet once every seven days for one to two years.

• Luvia arranged for Shade to be reported safely in Kael-Todd Town, where Seer Association Prophets checked on him and warned him to report anything related to the players’ wishes.
• Shade joined the Witches for breakfast aboard the Radiance Messenger, where they thanked him for helping change their Destinies.
• Leisha and Dorothy took Shade to his room, and Luvia later arrived to share news about the Ring of Miracles.
• Luvia explained that making a wish at the Temple with the ring could weaken Leisha and Dorothy’s curse temporarily, letting them meet every seven days for one to two years.
• Dorothy said she and Leisha were content with their situation, while Leisha continued their intimate encounter behind the curtains.

Luvia explained how Miracle ink could let Leisha and Dorothy meet on otherwise forbidden days, then joined them in celebrating after the War of Fate. Shade recovered and underwent postwar examinations before President Lenormand assured him that he had done well in the card game.

• Luvia explained that Miracle ink could rewrite up to three extra reunion days within each twenty-one-day cycle, and Leisha and Dorothy thanked her.
• Luvia shared the surviving [breeding] Mark with Leisha and Dorothy, while Megan later questioned whether the Mark would shield them from its effects.
• Winnie planned to use the [Redemption] Mark to suppress the sealed entrance and the Snake's lingering power.
• At lunch, the Witches reported the Council's casualties, and Shade later met the Prophets and underwent an examination alongside four other card players.
• Shade returned to the Seer Association, where President Lenormand told him not to apologize and praised his role in preventing trouble during the battle's first stage.

President Lenormand thanked Shade for helping break the seals and gave him a healing potion for Queen Diana and a custom Rhodes Card depicting Galina. After returning to Fatumonst Island, Shade reunited with Margaret and went to the Temple to meet Winnie, who led him behind the wall of the Golden Ouroboros Wheel.

• President Lenormand gave Shade a golden button, a potion to heal Queen Diana, and an official Rhodes Card featuring Galina.
• The Seer Association sent Shade and Little Mia back to Tobesk, where Galina visited him and he delivered the potion to Yodel Palace.
• Shade returned to Fatumonst Island and promised Margaret he would visit her in Wilundell during the coming holiday.
• Margaret told Shade that Winnie was waiting for him in the mountain ruins with something important.
• Winnie explained that Upper Spring could still help diviners condense Destiny, though it was less effective after the War of Fate, and said Mr. Charato might succeed soon.
• Winnie led Shade behind the Temple wall displaying the Golden Ouroboros Wheel and four rings.

Shade and Winnie discovered that Lady White had survived as a Snake Egg and discussed the Fate Casino’s true key. After Luvia recounted the War of Fate, Shade told her about the visions from his fall, and she asked who would accompany him to Kalas Mountain.

• Winnie showed Shade Lady White’s Snake Egg and explained that she had frozen Lady White’s existence before it dissipated.
• Shade and Winnie moved the Snake Egg to a concealed area of Upper Spring, where Winnie planned to nurture it.
• Winnie explained that the Fate Casino could be opened by someone who understood their own Destiny, allowing Shade to activate the door at 6 Saint Derain Square.
• Luvia summarized the events of the War of Fate for Shade and asked why the evil god had descended.
• Shade told Luvia that his fall had shown him the past and revealed what happened at Moon Tower on Kalas Mountain.
• Luvia connected Shade’s fall and peculiarities to the Moon Tower, then asked whom he planned to take with Daniste to Kalas Mountain.

Shade and Luvia discussed his upcoming trip to Kalas Mountain, her completed High-Ring Words of Sublimation, and the power of the Moon Mark before attending the elves’ banquet. At the banquet, Shade spoke with Daniste about the elves and his departure, then asked Claire whether the Fatu People might send young priests to Saint Byron’s.

• Shade told Luvia that he and Daniste would search Kalas Mountain for the items needed for the Newborn Ritual, and Luvia explained her completed High-Ring Words of Sublimation.
• Shade gave Luvia gifts of crystal-like eggshells for her and Bella, and Luvia reminded him to dance with Sivie as well as Emilia.
• Shade and Daniste discussed the surviving elf clans, recruitment to Saint Byron’s, and a possible departure for Kalas Mountain before the twentieth.
• Shade joined the Witches at the banquet and told Miss Bell he would play cards with her before leaving Fatumonst Island.
• Shade asked Claire whether Elder Harald had considered sending the Fatu People’s young priests to study at Saint Byron’s.

At a banquet after the War of Fate, Shade spoke with Claire, Stella Larson, Church representatives, and the Prophets about Fatumonst Island’s future and the threat of Doomsday. He left the Prophets with no promise of a way to stop the ultimate end, only ways to delay it.

• Claire explained that she would stay on Fatumonst Island to help rebuild it and serve as a liaison between the Witch Council and the Five Gods Church.
• Shade thanked Stella Larson for helping in the War of Fate and invited her to dance with him as the final moment of her island adventure.
• Shade told Miss Eden that the God of Misfortune had descended to help him defeat Mr. Snake, and she agreed to record his account.
• President Lenormand and Old Mr. Charat asked Shade about Doomsday, and he described the Guiding Light Hermitage and the Association’s Rhodes Cards as ways to prepare for it.
• Shade told the Prophets that Doomsday could not be eradicated and that even the Ancient Gods could only delay its arrival.

Shade exchanged President Rod’s button for information about Rod’s card-based Mystic Incantations, then met Miss Sabelle, who gave him notes on time magic before departing Fatumonst Island. That evening, Shade invited Emilia to share the banquet’s First Dance, while the Witches prepared to interrupt their moment.

• Shade gave President Lenormand Rod’s button and asked whether Rod had created Mystic Incantations based on Rhodes Cards, and Old Mr. Charat promised to send the materials to Kael-Todd Town.
• Shade met Miss Sabelle beneath an oak, where she revealed her connection to a time-related Ring Arcanist organization and asked him not to mention her to Isabella.
• Miss Sabelle gave Shade a scroll containing her knowledge of time magic, then vanished into the void and left Fatumonst Island.
• Emilia finished greeting the gift-bearing elves, and Shade invited her to share the evening’s First Dance.
• Adele watched Shade and Emilia begin dancing before leaving the island, while the Witches prepared to spoil Emilia’s good fortune.

After the Elf Queen’s coronation banquet, Emilia met Shade beneath a tree and asked him to formalize their relationship. Shade vowed to stay by her side and gave her a moonlit bracelet, and Emilia invited him to share an intimate moment.

• At the banquet, Emilia danced with Iluna and worried about the morning’s ceremony, while Iluna reassured her that Shade would keep the Witches from punishing her too harshly.
• Before the banquet ended, Emilia sent Shade a note asking him to meet her at the Frost Kiss Corridor, and Galina and Vanessa urged him to accept.
• Emilia apologized to Shade for the morning’s events and explained that uniting the elf clans mattered more to her than issuing new laws.
• Emilia asked Shade to make their relationship official, and he fashioned her a silver bracelet engraved with the Elf Runes, “May the Silver Moon shine upon the New Tree,” before vowing to stay by her side forever.
• Emilia kissed Shade, transformed into a Great Elf, and shyly invited him to taste a little rabbit prepared in the elven style.

Shade grew closer to Emilia, then reunited with Sivie aboard the Radiance Messenger, where Vanessa and Megan joined them. The next morning, Sivie accepted the other Witches as family but decided that Bella and the others would have to wait their turn.

• Shade bid farewell to Emilia after their intimate encounter, and Galina and Vanessa teased him before returning with him to the ship.
• Sivie told Shade she regretted losing two years and resented that several Witches had already received Moon Marks; Shade embraced her and they spent the night together.
• At midnight, Vanessa and Megan entered Shade's room and joined him and Sivie.
• On Sunday morning, Vanessa and Megan asked Sivie whether she would keep their secret or share Shade with the other Witches, and Sivie chose to make them wait.
• Sivie agreed that they were one family, and the Witches wondered whether Claire, the Speaker, or Moon would be next.

Shade took Ellie to the Hermits of the Forest, where they gave her a Golden Apple in recognition of her status as a Chosen One of Fate. Back at Ice and Snow Castle, the others examined Ellie’s Destiny Ring and wondered why it transformed into a dark gold apple.

• Shade brought Ellie to Vesta Woodland, where she played with the Luku Birds and insisted on carrying him as a Unicorn instead of letting him ride one.
• At the Hermits’ camp, Shade returned the Holy Bell and told Mr. Davis about the War of Fate; the Hermits gave Ellie an Empty Bottle Fruit and a Golden Apple.
• Ellie declined to eat the Golden Apple immediately and agreed to save it for when she and Shade needed it.
• Back at Ice and Snow Castle, Luvia, Daniste, and Emilia discussed Ellie’s forms and her future training alongside Little Liana.
• Ellie summoned her nine-ring Destiny Ring, which transformed into an Ouroboros Roulette and then a dark gold apple, prompting Daniste to question its connection to the ancient God of Fate.

Shade, Luvia, and Daniste discussed Ellie’s unusual Destiny Ring, her powers, and the need for her to study before advancing further. Daniste began arranging Ellie’s enrollment at Saint Byron’s Academy, while Luvia took her to meet Bella and make Alchemy Items.

• Luvia suggested that Ellie’s perception and Unicorn nature let her Destiny Ring transform between an Ouroboros and an apple, and Shade translated the Spirit Runes on the ring.
• Ellie confirmed she could still gain Spirit Runes by eating apples, but Luvia and Daniste advised her to pause her rapid advancement and build a solid foundation at the Academy.
• Ellie revealed her High-Ring Words of Sublimation, and Daniste recorded them while considering whether she should attend the Astronomy College or the Chemistry College.
• Luvia asked Ellie about the Murmuring Chapters, and Ellie said she wanted to help Shade with Chloe’s mission.
• Daniste planned to arrange Ellie’s enrollment for the following week, while Luvia took Ellie to find Bella and make Alchemy Items.

Shade explored Chloe’s private quarters in the Ice and Snow Castle, discovering relics and a meditation room that could help the Witches advance. After lunch, he traveled to Sikar Mountain to meet Sister Devlin and tell her about the flame he had found.

• Shade found Chloe’s painted mountain scene, Fifth Epoch sheet music, and a small amount of Philosopher’s Stone in her rooms.
• Shade discovered that Chloe’s Meditation Room preserved her experiences on the Demigod Road, and he considered it valuable for himself and the Ice-wielding Witches.
• Winnie invited Shade into her personal quarters, and the two spent time together before leaving the castle.
• Shade took Fifth Epoch wine from the cellar, arranged for the sheet music to be copied for [The Sound of Music Order], and told the Witches about his discoveries.
• Shade traveled to Sikar Mountain and met Sister Devlin at the Sacrificial Ground, where he began explaining the flame’s origins.

Shade helped Sister Devlin return the flame recovered from Fatumonst Snow Mountain to the Primordial Fire, sharing the pain with her and receiving an unexpected kiss. Later, he met Major Rades, who was troubled by the limited role ordinary soldiers had played in the War of Fate, and reassured him that they still mattered.

• Shade told Sister Devlin how Snake had thrown him into the mountain, where he found a passage and the Sacrificial Ground.
• Shade joined hands with Sister Devlin, then embraced her as the flame burned them both until she returned it to the Primordial Fire.
• Sister Devlin kissed Shade, pushed him away, and remained silent as he left the Sacrificial Ground.
• Shade learned that Major Rades had replied and met him at the Drowned Ghost Tavern, where Rades discussed the war’s losses and his doubts about ordinary people’s purpose.
• Shade told Major Rades that soldiers still served by scouting and protecting communities, and Rades said the Church had arranged psychological care for the survivors.

Shade said goodbye to Major Rades, then visited Xiao En Asmon at Earl Reade’s manor to hear about a supposed demonic dagger. Asmon gave Shade the dagger, and the two prepared to continue their unfinished story in the rose greenhouse.

• Shade and Major Rades toasted their friendship and parted after Rades reaffirmed his commitment to serving in the military.
• Shade learned that Xiao En Asmon was at Earl Reade’s manor and went to find him.
• Asmon explained that Earl Reade had bought a bone dagger advertised as a demon’s ritual weapon, but Asmon had determined it was ordinary.
• Shade accepted the dagger from Asmon after learning the earl had left the island in anger.
• Shade invited Asmon to continue their unfinished story, and Asmon asked where it had last left off.

Shade heard the eighth Demon story, about the Youth who survived the Cat and Dog’s sacrifice and continued his journey alone. The Youth defeated a scheme by the Demon, but could no longer tell reality from illusion as he pressed on to seal it.

• Shade recounted the seven earlier stories and asked whether the Youth would meet a better fate this time.
• Mr. Asmon told how the ageless Youth sheltered in an Abandoned Church with three murderous travelers who were already dead.
• The Youth realized the three souls represented his own guilt and evil thoughts, swallowed them, and confronted the Demon’s scheme.
• Shade questioned whether the events were real, and Mr. Asmon explained that the Youth could no longer distinguish reality, delusion, and dreams.
• The Youth kept traveling with the Demon because he remembered his mission and would not entrust it to anyone else.

Shade spoke with Xiao En Asmon about the Demon Scholar’s story, then reunited with Iluna and Luvia aboard the Radiance Messenger to discuss what they had gained from the War of Fate. Their new powers left Shade concerned about the four Chosen Ones still remaining.

• Shade asked Xiao En Asmon whether he could distinguish truth from falsehood, and the Demon Scholar replied that he only told stories before leaving for the Drowned Ghost Hotel.
• Shade returned to the Radiance Messenger and learned that Iluna had gained the ability to wield red lightning that could overcome beings protected by exceptional destinies.
• Shade told Iluna and Luvia about his power of descent, the power of the stars, and the changes to his Fate Manual, while declining Iluna’s offer to accompany him to Kalas Mountain.
• Luvia explained that [nobility] had become her own power and revealed that she could wield the dusky yellow power of doomsday, though using it could hasten the world’s end.
• Shade asked about Luvia’s safety and considered the four remaining Chosen Ones, even as “she” urged him to rest after the great battle.

Shade visited the Unicorn camp and found Ellie reading to the herd, after which another young Unicorn transformed into a girl. He arranged for Ellie to enroll at Saint Byrens Comprehensive College as Ellie Marquez and planned a trip to Kalas Mountain with Daniste.

• Shade planned to visit Little Beren at the Dawn Church the next morning, while Iluna said she would be busy clearing underground monsters.
• Shade went to Ice and Snow Castle to see Ellie, learned she had gone to the Elf Camp, and found her reading Fairy Tales to Little Liana and the Unicorn herd.
• Emilia and Daniste explained that Ellie’s stories and presence had helped the Unicorns, and Little Sophie transformed into a human girl before the watching herd.
• Daniste said Ellie would enroll at Saint Byrens Comprehensive College, and Shade chose Chloe’s surname for her registration: Ellie Marquez.
• Shade and Daniste planned their journey to Kalas Mountain, while Daniste prepared for the trip and the ritual to make the Curse-Eroded Great Tree bear seeds.

Shade arranged for the Elven Kingdom to lease land at Saint Byron's from his Academy holdings, giving the fledgling kingdom a territory and a path for elf clans to relocate. News that Professor Alvis Holm might reach Thirteenth Ring interrupted Shade's farewell with Daniste, and Shade later met with the Fatu Elders to discuss the island's recovery and new residents.

• Shade offered the Elves the forest where they lived as territory through his 7.53% share of Saint Byron's, and Grandma Qishala accepted a lease paid from the kingdom's tax revenue.
• Shade asked Bella to coordinate the Academy's arrangements with the Elves, allowing the newborn kingdom to gain territory and welcome clans willing to relocate.
• Daniste left to visit Professor Alvis Holm after he reportedly gained insight that might let him break through to Thirteenth Ring, prompting the Witches to discuss the rise of another Thirteenth-Ring Arcanist.
• Shade went with Claire to Snow Mountain Hall, where the Fatu Elders reported Harald's expected advancement to Twelfth Ring, Ule's to Tenth Ring, and the appearance of seven Talent Awakeners.
• The Elders explained that Fatumonst Snow Mountain would no longer belong exclusively to the Fatu People, as the Seer Association, Five Gods Church, and Three Great Academies would station people there to guard the Mountain Top Ruins and clear monsters.