Chapter Summaries

Shade and Daniste investigated the fallen tower, uncovering the bodies and fragmented histories of nineteen workers but finding no further clues. As Daniste continued her search, Shade prepared to restore the tower with the Philosopher’s Stone, while their latest night of investigation left him unusually refreshed from praying to the Moon.

• Shade and Daniste found seven more bodies beneath the cliff and learned that the workers had died after being reassigned to dig elsewhere.
• Shade guessed that the four missing workers had probably escaped, while Daniste planned to ask Correspondence Students near Thorn Bay to investigate the workers’ fate.
• After two nights of searching produced no clues, Shade persuaded the worried Daniste to rest, and they continued their investigation the next night.
• Shade revealed that he planned to use the Philosopher’s Stone and his Breath of Time Thaumaturgy to restore the tower if their final search failed.
• Shade and Daniste searched the tower foundation with prayers and Moon-related items, but found no reaction; by dawn, Shade’s spirit and spiritual energy had grown unusually strong.

Shade and Daniste restored the ancient Moon Tower and searched it for clues about the Moon God, but found nothing. Shade realized they had overlooked one basic step: neither of them had slept properly since arriving.

• Shade used the Philosopher's Stone and Breath of Time to restore the ruined Moon Tower on Kalas Mountain.
• Shade and Daniste explored all thirteen floors, confirmed the tower matched Shade's memory, and found no hidden areas or useful clues.
• Shade tried recreating his fall from the Moon-Watching Terrace but gained no new memories or insight.
• Daniste concluded the tower likely dated back to the Mythical Epoch and proposed a Moon Worship Ritual before they left on Monday.
• Shade recalled their investigation methods and realized that he and Daniste had not slept properly since Monday evening.

Shade and Daniste entered a shared dream beneath the Moon Tower, where they found the ancient tower and a gigantic Curse-Eroded Great Tree that held Mrs. Carter’s soul. They began fighting the tree so Daniste could perform a ritual and obtain its seed.

• Shade and Daniste linked their dreams and fell asleep together in the tower, where Daniste awoke in a dream near the summit of Kalas Mountain.
• They found Shade beneath the intact Moon Tower and discussed how the dream might connect to the Dreamlands and the tower’s mysteries.
• A gigantic Curse-Eroded Great Tree approached the summit, and Daniste sensed that Mrs. Carter was inside it.
• Shade and Daniste prepared to subdue the tree, with Shade using Giant Shade and the Yggdrasil Staff to resist its time curse.
• Shade bound the tree with Great Sin Chains as he and Daniste attacked it with their moonlight powers.

Shade held back the cursed tree while Daniste prepared a ritual, then entered a gray dream world to free Helena Carter’s soul from it. He awakened at dawn to find Helena had been restored as an Egg, and Daniste joyfully recognized her teacher within it.

• Shade restrained the tree as Daniste prepared the ritual, then used Mind Blast and Soul Whiplash to weaken it and awaken Helena Carter’s soul.
• Shade entered the tree’s gray dream world, found Helena’s soul beneath a great tree, and used Moon Prayer and Mystic Lock to draw away the curse.
• Helena’s soul awakened and embraced Shade as he absorbed most of the curse and glimpsed fragments of her memories.
• Shade awoke in the tent on Saturday morning to Daniste holding an Egg containing Helena and a withered tree root.
• Daniste wept with joy as Shade confirmed that the curse-lifting had worked, while Little Mia meowed for breakfast.

Shade and Daniste freed Lady Helena Carter’s soul from the Curse-Eroded Great Tree and placed it in a seed inside an egg, which they named the Moon Egg. Unable to enter the moonlit tower again for now, they prepared to leave and Shade decided to investigate Kalas Town for clues about his uncle’s old meetings.

• Daniste explained how she completed the ritual during Shade’s resonance with the Curse-Eroded Great Tree, producing one successful egg and restoring her body.
• Shade learned that the Tree Father had diminished his Time Curse and postponed the opening of the Time Key by one month.
• Daniste said the moonlit world had been sealed after their actions, and she planned to seek the Academy’s help in making the Moon Egg sprout and hatch.
• Shade and Daniste packed up camp, concealed the tower with illusion, and prepared to return home with the Moon Egg.
• Shade told Daniste that his uncle Sparrow Hamilton had met the Ace Agent Big Mouth Sparrow on Kalas Mountain and proposed searching nearby Kalas Town for evidence of their meetings.

Shade and Daniste traced the identities and meeting pattern of Detective Sparrow and Big Mouth Sparrow, while bringing the mysterious Moon Egg back to Tobesk. The egg’s hatching remained unexplained, and Shade caught up on events at home and across the region.

• Shade found that Detective Sparrow visited Kalas Town every two years and identified Big Mouth Sparrow’s alias as Leon Elwood, prompting Daniste to arrange a warning when Leon returned.
• Shade and Daniste returned to 6 Saint Derain Square, where Dorothy, Galina, Emilia, and Ellie examined the Moon Egg but could not determine how to hatch it.
• Shade turned the egg into a toy so it could be transported to the Academy, and Daniste left with Emilia and Ellie.
• Shade told Galina and Dorothy about the investigation, while they updated him on events at Fatumonst Island, the Academy, and the commission Dorothy had handled.
• Shade asked Galina and Dorothy for news about the situation between the two countries.

Shade discussed the approaching war and the Moon Egg’s need for creation magic with his companions, then spent the evening with Dorothy. The chapter left him postponing their lessons while planning visits to Margaret and Sister Devlin and preparing for further promotions.

• Galina told Shade that war could begin as soon as tomorrow and that the stalemate between the Sete Duchy and the Milson Duchy would influence the timing.
• Shade told Priest Augustus and Doctor Schneider about the Moon Egg, and they advised him to explore the domain of creation and seek knowledge related to the [Twilight Creator].
• Shade connected his [Flesh] Spirit Rune and [Active Mud] thaumaturgy to creation and decided to search the books at Green Lake Island.
• Priest Augustus, Doctor Schneider, and Dorothy shared news of their recent activities, including the Doctor’s escape from a black-market ambush.
• Dorothy asked to resume Saturday Night Lesson, but Shade suggested waiting until after their promotions and other matters; she ended the evening by claiming his attention for herself.

Shade visited Sister Devlin, learned about her new Death Fire and ash-summoning powers, and gained a related Thaumaturgy. After spending time with his companions, he accepted Queen Diana’s request to investigate a maid’s disappearance in the Kindel Family, beginning a new case during his vacation.

• Shade met Sister Devlin at the cemetery, sparred with her, and learned about the Death Fire she gained upon reaching the Thirteenth Ring.
• Sister Devlin explained that she could summon ash-bodied souls, then taught Shade Ashes Spirit Summoning.
• Shade left Sister Devlin in a good mood after she reminded him to rest, and later gave Rita Swift a powerful black gemstone through Grace and Helen.
• Queen Diana hired Shade to investigate a maid’s disappearance in the Kindel Family after Ridgewich Field failed to find clues.
• Shade accepted the case and began his vacation by investigating while catching up on his classes and assignments.

Leisha recounted how Shade solved the missing maid case, uncovering a family scandal concealed behind several crimes. Shade returned to the barbecue gathering with Claire, and the evening continued at Snow Mountain Hall.

• Leisha explained that Shade traced the maid through the sewers and discovered unrelated arms trafficking and other crimes during his investigation.
• Shade and Miss Reinhart found the missing maid at an aristocratic masked ball, where Leisha learned she was her uncle’s illegitimate daughter who had disappeared after being encouraged by her half-brother.
• Leisha said her uncle broke his son’s leg and sent the maid to the Kindel Family’s ancestral city, while the Queen reprimanded her uncle.
• The investigation was publicly closed with the claim that the maid had been a Southern Kingdom spy.
• Shade returned holding Claire’s hand, and everyone continued the barbecue gathering at Snow Mountain Hall.

Luvia returned from training and reunited with Shade, while Galina interrupted the household’s celebration to ask for Shade’s life-healing Star Dew for a seriously ill Witch. Shade went to retrieve it, and Galina explained the Great Witch of Chaos’s congenital illness and why she had inherited her Council seat.

• Luvia asked Shade about the Moon Egg, his investigation, and whether he had found clues about the next Chosen One, while Shade learned about her training at the association.
• Everyone toasted Luvia’s return and Shade and Claire’s successful case, then Luvia stayed overnight with Shade, Leisha, and Dorothy.
• Leisha and Dorothy used spatial Thaumaturgy from the Pink Book during their intimate reunion with Shade, and Galina arrived urgently at Saint Derain Square.
• Galina told Shade that Megan had found his life-healing Star Dew effective on a Witch whose condition had suddenly worsened, and Shade went to fetch two-thirds of his supply.
• Galina explained that the ill Witch was the eleventh-seat Great Witch of Chaos, whose congenital illness began after her mother was affected by a relic during pregnancy, and described why the Council had chosen her despite her poor health.

Shade learned that his Star Dew had saved the Great Witch of Chaos, then traveled with Sylvia to Wilundell to meet Margaret. Since Margaret could not leave Cold Spring Palace until noon, Sylvia left Shade to explore the rainy city on his own.

• Galina told Shade that the Star Dew had saved the Great Witch of Chaos, though the treatment used half his supply.
• Leisha gave Shade a letter to deliver to Margaret, and Sylvia agreed to take him to Wilundell through the Space Labyrinth.
• Shade met Sylvia at Vesta Woodland, where they saw Ellie feeding the Luku Birds, then traveled together to Wilundell.
• Sylvia explained that Margaret was busy until noon and gave Shade a city map, leaving him to explore Wilundell alone or wait at her house.

Shade followed a trail of clues across Weilun Dai'er City to reach Sylvia’s hidden island, where he discovered that she had staged Margaret’s kidnapping as a romantic trial. Sylvia asked him to offer the gains he had collected along the way as ransom, leaving Shade ready to present them to win Margaret’s heart.

• Shade found Baron Samir’s deeds and key in a bank vault and discovered that his new house stood next to Sylvia’s residence.
• Shade decoded a ransom letter claiming Margaret had been kidnapped and followed clues from Mrs. Wilford’s tailor shop to Mr. Thornley’s flower greenhouse and a riverside goods yard.
• Shade used Blood Brew to follow a trail, gathered scraps of a ticket, and restored them with Breath of Time to locate a pier on the Dorn River.
• Shade rowed through a spatial anomaly to a hidden island, where Sylvia revealed that she had lent it to Margaret as a safe house.
• Sylvia revealed that she had staged the kidnapping and demanded a romantic ransom, and Shade realized he could offer the gains he had collected during the investigation.

Shade followed a trail of photographs through Sylvia’s house, reliving Margaret’s life from infancy to adulthood. The memories led him to a decorated banquet hall where Margaret awaited him, surrounded by silent Clay Figures.

• Sylvia returned Shade’s cards and toys, explained that her favor repaid her debt to Margaret, and sent him into the house to meet her.
• Shade followed photographs of Margaret as a newborn, a child, a princess, and a young soldier, hearing memories preserved by people who had known her.
• Shade found a photograph of Margaret asking Sylvia to accept her as a true student, and heard Sylvia promise that she would introduce Margaret to someone special.
• Shade viewed a photograph of Margaret and Leisha speaking about an interesting person who was Shade, then put it away and entered the banquet hall.
• Shade found the banquet hall decorated for the occasion, with formally dressed Clay Figures mingling silently as Margaret waited inside.

Margaret showed Shade her past and asked him to walk through life with her, then shared a candlelit dinner and a private surprise. The chapter ended with Shade joining her beneath the moonlight as the evening turned intimate.

• Margaret explained why she had rejected a staged bridal scene and told Shade she wanted him to understand her past before they made a future together.
• Shade reassured Margaret, promised never to let go of her hand, and she kissed him.
• Shade and Margaret shared a candlelit dinner, discussing their lives, her father, and the coming war.
• Margaret told Shade about a magical book her teachers had made and sent him to retrieve it from the Fourth Floor study.
• While Shade was away, Winnie helped Margaret prepare a private surprise; Shade returned and joined her for dessert beneath the moonlight.

Shade and Margaret spent the night together, but Sylvia arrived the next morning with news that the Southern and Northern Kingdoms had declared war. Margaret prepared to return to Cold Spring Palace as the kingdoms’ conflict began amid a coup in the Sete Duchy.

• Shade and Margaret spent the night together, and Margaret said she wanted to become closer to Leisha and the others.
• Sylvia arrived at the river island the next morning and told Shade and Margaret that the two kingdoms had declared war.
• Sylvia explained that Sete and Milson forces had joined together to destroy Delarion’s troops in the Pantanal Great Swamp, prompting Larus III to declare war.
• Sylvia reported that Virgil Cameron had assassinated Grand Duke Sete and secretly defected to Kasonlik with the Grand Duke’s son.
• Margaret agreed to return to Cold Spring Palace, while Shade worried that Director Anlos and Military Intelligence Section Six would face consequences.

Shade spent a quiet stretch of wartime studying, visiting friends, and helping with occasional threats while the war continued without his intervention. The chapter left the Moon Egg still dormant and Shade enjoying a respite before future troubles.

• Shade told Sylvia he would not use divine power to settle mortal affairs and agreed that Margaret could visit Sylvia’s tower, provided Sylvia visited him just as often.
• Shade spent the following weeks studying, consulting Priest Augustus and Doctor Schneider, and taking lessons from Daniste at Saint Byron’s Library.
• Priest Augustus and Doctor Schneider became busier as the war brought more people to church and patients to the doctor’s clinic.
• Ellie adjusted to Academy life and sometimes took Emilia and Little Liana with her to deal with monsters in Before the Doomsday, earning apples from The Church.
• Shade and Daniste learned that nothing had changed on Kalas Mountain and the Moon Egg remained dormant, so Daniste kept it in an enchanted glass case.

Shade helped Director Anlos solve the 1855 Counterfeit Case, allowing Anlos to remain temporarily as director of Military Intelligence Section Six under probation. The chapter ended with Shade reflecting on his wartime investigations and relationships with the women in his life.

• Shade visited Sister Devlin, and they walked hand in hand toward the nuns’ cemetery.
• Director Anlos asked Shade to investigate a counterfeit-money case that could affect his position, and Shade agreed after consulting Galina.
• Shade used a map-based analysis and Luvia’s divination to track the counterfeit banknotes to a factory in northeastern Tobesk, where he worked with Ridgewich Field and Military Intelligence Section Six to solve the case.
• The counterfeit operation was revealed to be backed by domestic rebels hiding in the New Continent, and Anlos was allowed to remain director under probation, suspended without pay.
• Shade told Margaret that Anlos had known who supported the operation but had been unable to catch them, and he described the rewards he received from Larus III.
• Shade continued seeing his companions, while Margaret became more involved with Sylvia and Vanessa’s group activities despite her growing wartime workload.

Shade kept up with his friends and companions as the civil war spread across the Old Continent and Moon Bay grew into a prosperous but dangerous neutral zone. The frontlines remained inconclusive, while the war’s effects reached even distant towns and drew spies, merchants, refugees, and wealth toward Moon Bay.

• Shade spent time with Claire, who discussed the Maid Disappearance Case and walked with him along the beach.
• Rita invited Shade to walk on Sikar Mountain and offered him a kiss, while Shade continued visiting his friends and checking the sealed drop of Primal Demon's Blood with Priest Augustus.
• Major Rades returned to Tobesk, reunited with Shade, and was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel while remaining there to recuperate.
• The civil war continued across the Pantanal and western Frontlines, with neither side gaining a decisive overall advantage and both navies suffering heavy losses.
• Moon Bay’s trade tripled as merchants and refugees arrived, while spies and agents increased crime and unidentified deaths in the growing Neutral Zone.

Shade gave Sylvia [Star Dew] to help the Great Witch of Chaos, whose congenital illness had worsened as the Material World’s rules grew chaotic. He then met Professor Danist about the still-unhatched Moon Egg and proposed asking Blaney for ancient dragon-hatching knowledge.

• Shade woke to yellow-gray acid rain and noted that his one-month restriction on using the Time Key had ended.
• Sylvia took half of Shade’s [Star Dew] to treat her colleague, the Great Witch of Chaos, and explained that Chaos’s congenital illness had worsened recently.
• Winnie discussed the difficulty of treating Chaos’s illness, which likely involved her soul.
• Emilia told Shade that Professor Danist wanted to discuss the Moon Egg at the Academy library.
• Professor Danist said Dragon Island’s modern hatching method had failed and that an ancient technique might help the fossilized dragon egg.
• Shade suggested using one of his remaining Time Transfer Station tasks to ask Blaney about Dragon Book: Breeding and Growth.

Daniste updated Shade on investigations into the Kalas Mountain deaths and gave him a photograph of the suspected agent Big Mouth Sparrow, while cautioning him not to get drawn into wartime politics. Shade stayed for lunch with Daniste, Little Mia, and the elves, then visited the present Elven Kingdom's heartland.

• Daniste explained that copies of the Eggshell Book might exist in other organizations' collections and said she would seek them out before asking Shade to visit in person.
• Daniste reported that more than a hundred laborers from Thorn Bay had been taken to Kalas Mountain in 1853, but investigators found only nineteen bodies and no trace of the rest.
• Daniste told Shade that Leon Elwood, known as Big Mouth Sparrow, had traveled from Escariz City, and she gave Shade a photograph reconstructed from the innkeeper's memory.
• Shade said he would ask Luvia to use divination to find Big Mouth Sparrow, and Daniste warned him not to pursue the agent if his visit to Kalas Mountain was unrelated to the tower.
• Shade stayed with Daniste, then brought Little Mia to lunch with Ellie and the elves, where Grandma Qishala invited them to tour the Elven Kingdom's heartland.