Recaps

Isaac explained the musket’s simplicity and trained Gwen’s resistance fighters while supplying them with weapons and other necessities. After learning that Winter Wolf cavalry was approaching, he planned to attack first and revealed that Count Bazel’s Winter Wolf Guard were skilled pistol cavalry.

• Gwen told Isaac that the White Crow Duchy had been overwhelmed by the Empire’s muskets until priests from the Silent Temple intervened.
• Isaac explained that muskets were easy to learn and trained the resistance fighters to load and fire them in disciplined volleys.
• Isaac distributed weapons, tools, and medicines to the resistance and told Gwen that three cavalry scouting squads had set out from town.
• Isaac rejected Gwen’s plan to stay hidden and escape after an ambush, arguing that the resistance had only one chance to defeat the cavalry.
• Isaac revealed that Count Bazel’s Winter Wolf Guard were known as pistol cavalry and used continuous-fire tactics to establish their foothold in the Northern Territory.

Isaac explained how Moth Chasing Flame could use rebellion and preaching to gather intelligence, then helped Gwen plan an ambush against the Winter Wolves. After the resistance captured a cavalry scout party, Gwen rejected Isaac’s offer to preach but eagerly asked him to explain firearms.

• Isaac told Gwen that Moth Chasing Flame excelled at rebellion and said he had contacts in nearby towns who could help draw out the Winter Wolves.
• Laide and a cavalry patrol spotted coyotes digging near a buried chest and approached it, unaware that the resistance had set an ambush.
• Gwen fired on the cavalrymen when they gathered around the chest, and the resistance fighters rose from the snow to seize their horses, armor, and weapons.
• Isaac asked Gwen for permission to preach among the resistance, but she refused because the White Crow people remained devoted to the Bone White Crow.
• Isaac brought up the principles behind firearms, and Gwen eagerly asked him to explain more.

After the resistance ambushed and killed the cavalrymen, Gwen and the fighters gained confidence in their muskets and awaited the Winter Wolf Guard’s response. In Grey Bear Town, a short stranger drew the townspeople into condemning the soldiers and pooling their money, then began to share news.

• The resistance reported that every cavalryman at the ambush sites had been killed, and the fighters celebrated the muskets’ effectiveness.
• Gwen asked Isaac how the resistance should cooperate with him, and he told her to wait and see how the Winter Wolf Guard reacted.
• A short stranger entered Old Wood’s tavern and encouraged the patrons to voice their anger over the soldiers’ looting and the scarcity of food and liquor.
• Old Wood brought out his hidden barrel of liquor, and the short man urged everyone to contribute money for it.
• The townspeople pooled their coins, and the short man announced that he had heard news on his way to the tavern.

Leonard rallied Grey Bear Town’s residents after the Winter Wolf Guard fled, leading them to attack the few soldiers left in the barracks. The townspeople overwhelmed the soldiers and reclaimed their town.

• The Winter Wolf Guard sent cavalry out to scout after several of its men were found shot dead, and the cavalrymen later rode away from Grey Bear Town in a large group.
• Leonard told the townspeople that the Winter Wolf Guard had fled and urged them to drive out the soldiers still in the barracks.
• The residents armed themselves with pitchforks and hammers and followed Leonard and the traveling merchants toward the camp.
• Leonard and the merchants charged into the barracks before the remaining soldiers could prepare for battle.
• The crowd knocked down the four or five soldiers who managed to draw their swords and overwhelmed the rest.

The Wolves of Winter assembled for another expedition after rumors spread that Nora had survived having her head severed. Their commander led the hesitant soldiers toward the forest to intimidate the resistance, but the chapter ended with them camping cautiously outside the woods without finding any enemies.

• Rumors about Nora’s terrifying charge and possible survival spread among the Wolves of Winter, leaving the soldiers fearful.
• Meli asked the captain whether their mission was a genuine encirclement, and the captain explained that the commander intended to intimidate the resistance and investigate who had killed the scouts.
• The Winter Wolves waited hours for supplies from the three towns, then the lead wolf ordered the force to set out without them.
• The soldiers slowly reached the forest after noon, and the lead wolf decided to stop for a meal while keeping the troops well away from the woods.

The Wolves of Winter camped near the woods, believing they were safe from the resistance, until the White Calamity appeared and sent them fleeing in panic. Meli rode into the forest to escape the advancing mist, but his horse fell and he was thrown unconscious against a tree.

• The Wolves of Winter dismounted and ate while Meli watched the woods, confident that no fight would occur.
• A soldier spotted a towering mass of white mist, and the army recognized it as the White Calamity.
• Meli mounted his horse and fled from the mist, accidentally riding into the woods as most of the Wolves of Winter did the same.
• Meli urged his horse through the forest as the mist rapidly closed in behind him.
• His horse tripped over a tree root, throwing Meli into a tree and leaving him unconscious.

Meli survived the White Calamity’s attack and struggled back to town, while Isaac and Gwen assessed the resistance’s successful ambush on the Winter Wolf Guard. The Wolves of Winter had lost much of their strength, giving the resistance time to fortify the Northern Territory and decide what to do next.

• Meli woke in the woods, found his captain and several soldiers dead, and escaped the forest on foot.
• Meli reached the town at dawn and demanded entry, claiming to belong to the Wolves of Winter.
• Isaac praised Gwen for devising the fog trap that lured the Winter Wolf Guard into a devastating ambush.
• Gwen explained that Isaac had helped her produce the smoke using a formula he had developed through research and Cognitive Interference.
• Isaac concluded that the Winter Wolf Guard had lost its combat ability for the time being, giving the resistance the initiative in the Northern Territory.

Yami reflected on Blood Port’s rapid rebuilding under Castel’s direction and worried about what work he would do after his classes ended. He remained uncertain about the new factories and railways, while the town’s people still struggled to accept the banshees despite the Holy See’s departure.

• Yami recalled being moved from literacy lessons into a course taught by Theus, the lord of Castel, and found calculus more interesting than geometry.
• Yami watched Castel rebuild Blood Port’s destroyed docks in half a month with concrete and iron frameworks, then deliver supplies by cargo ship.
• Yami worried that he would lose the meals from his classes and wondered whether he could find work in a factory or on the railway construction projects.
• Yami considered the railways and roadworks Castel was building, while the residents of Blood Port waited for construction to continue.
• Yami thought about Nini’s newspaper office and noted that many Blood Port residents still feared banshees, despite Nini’s fight against the [Loving Mother] and the Holy See’s fall.

Theus settled in Blood Port to oversee industrial development and prepare an expedition against the Northern Territory, while reflecting on the prince’s leadership and the city’s shifting power. He sent an old Transcendent to gather intelligence in the north and headed to Josh’s Mystic Society.

• Theus recognized that the prince had quickly secured loyalty and advanced infrastructure despite Blood Port’s unrest and resistance to the Banshees.
• Theus established a temporary office by the docks and coordinated literacy classes, factories, railway construction, and recruitment for the expeditionary army.
• Theus planned to build railway tracks toward the Northern Territory over six months to a year, then purge its four duchies and avenge the refugees.
• Theus sent an old Transcendent to investigate the Northern Territory after Isaac’s intelligence network went silent.
• Theus left his office and headed to Josh’s Mystic Society, where some members still secretly worshipped him and had formed a guard unit.

Theus visited the Mystic Society to check on its progress and discuss the armed-believer unit it was organizing for public security. He met Gwen, a white-haired refugee whose appearance and presence stirred a powerful reaction in him.

• Theus decided to guide the Mystic Society away from worshipping him personally and toward knowledge while leaving its members free to hold their own beliefs.
• Theus visited the Mystic Society’s church, where believers took exams as part of its education and promotion system.
• Theus asked Josh how the Mystic Society’s armed-believer unit was progressing, and Josh said it was still recruiting and training.
• Josh introduced Gwen, a young refugee who had excelled in advanced-class subjects, and Theus shook her hand.
• Theus struggled to hide his turbulent reaction after meeting Gwen.

Theus discovered that Gwen registered as a [Named One] and investigated whether the secret worship of him in Blood Port could cause Cognitive Interference. Richard explained that such interference depended on clashes of will, leaving Theus questioning how the Sea of Unconsciousness related to the material world.

• Theus sensed a [Named One] when he touched Gwen, but found no explanation for the label and wondered whether she had encountered Transcendence.
• Theus questioned Zoe about rumors in Blood Port and learned that some members of the Mystic Society secretly worshipped him as a god.
• Zoe raised the possibility that the worship could cause Cognitive Interference, so Theus hurried back to Castel to consult Moth Chasing Flame.
• Richard told Theus that firm belief would not cause Cognitive Interference unless their wills clashed with his, and described the world as a projection of the Sea of Unconsciousness.
• Theus challenged Richard's explanation by asking whether the wall before them was like a Klein bottle, leaving Richard stunned.

Theus discussed Cognitive Interference and the dangers of Transcendence with Tata and Richard, then asked Chloe and Nora about the mysterious term [Named One]. Nora explained that her beheaded body had decayed, leaving her safe from Pollution but unable to be restored.

• Tata explained that Cognitive Interference could alter a person's self-perception, and that Mira had been manipulated by [Loving Mother].
• Tata said Moth Chasing Flame pursued knowledge rather than power, while Theus recalled that he had accidentally purified the Moth Lord.
• When Theus mentioned [Named One], Tata and Richard reacted with alarm but admitted they knew nothing about it and suggested asking Chloe.
• Theus sent Nini to bring Chloe and Nora from the church monument, then asked them whether they could still be polluted.
• Nini placed Nora's rolling head in a vase, and Nora explained that her body had decayed after her beheading, making her safe from Pollution but beyond restoration.

Theus learned that the Mechanical Cathedral’s Great Sage Bruno had called himself a [Named One], then returned to his Worker body in a fogbound Northern Territory sea and found that he could not pull anyone into the Link. In Grey Bear Town, White Crow Duchy rebels failed to trade with wary residents, and Winter Wolf Guards arrived after they left.

• Chloe said she knew the Mechanical Cathedral, and Theus learned that Great Sage Bruno had called himself a [Named One].
• Nora explained that the Silent Temple buried harmful knowledge and might hold records about [Named One], before she and Chloe quarreled and Theus sent everyone from his office.
• Theus returned to his Worker body amid sea fog in the Northern Territory and found that the threads of the Link would not move when he tried to pull others in.
• White Crow Duchy rebels cleared the former Winter Wolf camp in Grey Bear Town and offered goods for trade, but the residents stayed away.
• The rebels left Grey Bear Town without making any trades, and Winter Wolf Guards kicked open the town gates.

Isaac explained that the resistance’s good deeds and rejection by the townspeople were part of a plan, while the Winter Wolf Guard’s brutality would turn the people against their rulers. After the Guard massacred townspeople to cover its defeat, the survivors buried the dead in silence.

• Isaac told Gwen that the townspeople would miss the resistance after it left, and that the Winter Wolf Guard’s oppression would drive people toward rebellion.
• The resistance traveled through several towns, helping residents and offering fair trade while the townspeople remained wary and refused to engage.
• The Winter Wolf Guard arrived in each town after the resistance had departed, battered and depleted from its pursuit.
• The lead wolf accused the townspeople of treason and ordered soldiers to drag and torture them, killing many to provide Count Bazel with an explanation for the Guard’s defeat.
• The lead wolf ordered his forces to raid two more towns for additional supposed traitors and left the square with his soldiers.
• The townspeople gathered and buried the mangled bodies in a mass grave, then stood together in silence.

The resistance settled into a defensible forest camp while Isaac explained why they could not safely retreat south, west, or by sea. Their prospects began to improve when townspeople started joining them, eager to fight the Winter Wolves.

• Gwen asked Isaac why the resistance could not retreat south, and he explained the dangers of crossing hostile territories without support.
• Isaac said he had secretly sent a man south to contact Castel, though he warned Gwen not to expect much help.
• Grisha returned from patrol with a newcomer who wanted to join the resistance, giving Gwen a brief sense of hope.
• Over the next few days, townspeople joined the resistance and asked to fight after learning how harshly the Winter Wolves treated them.
• Isaac said the Winter Wolves' treatment of their people was unsurprising and praised the Silent Temple's way of communicating through combat.

Count Bazel discussed the Northern Territory alliance and the Holy See’s plans, then ordered Lina to prioritize information on the Bone White Crow and Moth Chasing Flame. In Frostwood Town, Granny realized a Candlelight Society Investigator was tracking her and prepared to face them directly.

• Count Bazel learned the grand dukes had chosen to remain allied with him and agreed to keep hunting resistance fighters for the Holy See.
• Bazel told Lina that gathering information on the Bone White Crow and Moth Chasing Flame was her priority, and she left by scattering into threads.
• Granny returned to her house in Frostwood Town and revealed her true appearance as a Moth Chasing Flame Transcendent sent by Theus to investigate the resistance fighters.
• Granny suspected a Candlelight Society Investigator had tracked her and decided to confront them rather than flee or wait for a mistake.
• Granny pulled a Dragon Breath Cannon from beneath her bed and prepared for a fight.

Granny used a Dragon Breath Cannon to kill Moth Chasing Flame’s short-bodied investigator in a public street, triggering chaos across the Northern Territory. She returned to warn the lord and decided to recommend carrying two cannons for greater sustained firepower.

• Granny completed a death-bound communication ritual, concealed the Dragon Breath Cannon inside her body, and walked into the street openly.
• Moth Chasing Flame’s investigator confronted Granny, and residents transformed into threads and fired flintlock guns at him, but their bullets did no harm.
• Granny fired the Dragon Breath Cannon at the investigator, killing him and carving a molten trench through the street.
• The killing threw the town and then the Northern Territory into turmoil, while Granny returned home to destroy the ritual’s traces and prepare to warn the lord.
• Granny decided to suggest that the lord equip her with two Dragon Breath Cannons.

Granny reported that Castel’s Dragon Breath Cannon could kill even an invincible Investigator, prompting Theus to ask how it changed the balance of Transcendent combat. Richard realized Moth Chasing Flame could use Granny’s clones to carry two cannons and defeat an Investigator head-on, potentially overturning the existing combat rankings.

• Granny’s return caused Castel’s people to crowd Nora with questions about whether the new weapons could kill her, until Nora begged Monica to take her to Theus.
• Monica explained Nora’s ordeal to Theus, who awkwardly promised to end the experiments and suggested a ball game, earning a ball to the face.
• Theus asked Granny about the Dragon Breath Cannon, and Granny explained how Transcendents’ combat strengths varied across their paths.
• Granny revealed that she had blasted an Investigator to ash while he was using his invincibility ability, confirming her theory that his physical enhancement had a limit.
• Granny said two Dragon Breath Cannons were needed for a guaranteed victory, and Richard recognized that her clones could conceal and carry them into direct combat.

Theus learned how the Dragon Breath Cannon could reshape Transcendent combat and heard reports of a devastating defeat for the Northern Territory resistance. He decided to travel by sea and airship to investigate and try to save the survivors, then learned that the persistent sea fog was the White Calamity.

• Richard explained that the Dragon Breath Cannon had a short effective range but could make its wielder a top-tier combatant.
• Granny told Theus that she had reached the vicinity of Dragonfang Duchy before an Investigator noticed her, and described the Northern Territory's rulers and Galahad's [Knight] path.
• Richard revealed that Duke Cohen was an imperial loyalist who had sent his illegitimate son to serve as a Border Count, and Theus realized Cohen was his father.
• Granny reported an unverified rumor that Bazel's Wolves of Winter had won a brutal victory over the resistance and killed many fighters.
• Theus decided to send a ship and a smaller airship to Rift City, then cross Duke Alvaray's territory to search for the resistance.
• Granny told Theus that the persistent, dense fog over the sea was the White Calamity.

Yami struggled to decide what work to pursue until Bettis proposed opening a stall with Grandma Penny to sell fried fish and French fries. Their plan looked promising once Yami realized Gwen could help them obtain olive oil through High Priest Josh, whose name left him trembling.

• Yami worried that the literacy class was ending and considered factory work after the expeditionary army stopped urgently recruiting.
• Bettis asked Yami whether he liked French fries and fried fish, then revealed that she and Grandma Penny wanted to open a food stall.
• Yami calculated that factory workers could afford the food and saw potential in selling cheap fish and potatoes.
• Bettis introduced her friend Gwen, who said High Priest Josh could help her obtain olive oil.
• Yami recognized Josh as a powerful figure in Blood Port and began to tremble.

Gwen and her friends opened a fish-and-fries stall near the docks, where it quickly attracted customers. Theus visited and asked Gwen whether she remembered her Northern Territory village and if many people there shared her name, leaving her startled by the question.

• Yami agreed to help Gwen and her companions, and they opened Yami's Fish & French Fries the next day.
• The stall drew a crowd with its cheap food, while Yami handled supplies and accounts and Gwen and Bettis cooked.
• Yami tried to sneak food, but Gwen caught him and stopped him from stealing fries.
• Theus came to buy food and asked Gwen which Northern Territory town she came from; Gwen said she could not remember and that her village had been empty when she left.
• Theus asked whether many people in the Northern Territory were named Gwen, and Gwen stared at him in surprise.
• Theus gave Bettis one of his packets of fries.

Theus recalled how Nora identified the white fog he encountered as likely connected to the White Calamity, despite the fact that it had appeared at sea. The chapter left him considering whether the mysterious fog was in the legendary Shattered Sea beyond the Pure White Realm.

• Bettis shared French Fries with Gwen, who said she recognized Theus as a good person by his comforting presence.
• Theus enjoyed the fries and reflected that his territory and industrial plans had made him less eager to return home or pursue Transcendence.
• Theus recalled fleeing Worker Theus's shell after white fog disrupted his ability to manipulate the threads and seemed to contain a threatening presence.
• Nora explained that the White Calamity had never been known to reach the sea, but changed her mind after hearing Theus's description of the fog.
• Nora suggested the fog might have appeared in the legendary Shattered Sea beyond the Pure White Realm, and Theus began to consider that possibility.

Theus questioned Nora about the resistance and learned that its refugees faced severe organizational and supply problems, while Gwen might be their best chance. Gwen recalled losing her parents during the war and fleeing her village, then wondered why people still suffered under the powerful Empire.

• Theus asked Nora about the resistance, and she realized he might be testing the Dragon Breath Cannon in the Northern Territory.
• Nora explained that the resistance lacked military organization and local support, and said Gwen might help them find a way out.
• Theus asked Nora to explain Gwen’s background in detail.
• Gwen told Isaac that her parents disappeared while seeking food during the war, and she fled her village after her food ran low.
• Gwen said she had followed fleeing villagers and later joined a Silent Temple priest instead of returning home.
• Isaac described the Empire’s continuing conflicts, and Gwen asked why people suffered despite its strength and wise Empress.

Isaac led the Resistance Army to capture Kaven Town, where they hanged the local lord and tax collector and distributed grain to the subjects. The Winter Wolves prepared to retaliate, but their plans were interrupted when the Head Wolf found Lina in his room.

• Isaac persuaded Gwen that the Resistance Army could use local support and intelligence to attack Kaven Town across the plains.
• The Resistance Army spread rumors of an attack on Grey Bear Town, keeping the Winter Wolves on alert while the force moved elsewhere.
• The Resistance Army captured Kaven Town, hanged its baron and tax collector, and distributed thirty percent of the town's grain to the subjects.
• The Winter Wolves celebrated after seeing no attack on Grey Bear Town, then learned that Kaven Town had fallen and its grain stores were gone.
• The Head Wolf prepared to march on Kaven Town the next day, but found Lina in his room that morning.

Lina slaughtered the Winter Wolf Guard’s leaders and forced the surviving soldiers to kneel before demanding to know where the Resistance was. Near Grey Bear Town, Isaac and Gwen learned that chaos had erupted in the Winter Wolf camp and realized the Guard might be changing its lead wolf.

• Lina killed the Alpha Wolf by tearing off his head, then moved through the camp killing other high-ranking Winter Wolves.
• The soldiers discovered a mound of headless bodies with Lina seated above them on a throne of heads, and most knelt in fear.
• Lina asked the soldiers where the Resistance was.
• Isaac and Gwen waited near Grey Bear Town for the Winter Wolves to take the road north, but the Guard did not set out.
• Isaac received a report that the camp was in chaos and many people had died, then explained that replacing the lead wolf could require a major purge.