Recaps

Isaac explained how Count Bazel maintained control of the Winter Wolf Guard and planned to kill the Transcendent protecting him, which could destabilize the Northern Territory. After entering Grey Bear Town to carry out the plan, Isaac spotted corpses in the military camp and discovered that a young girl had found him.

• Isaac told Gwen that Bazel likely relied on a loyal combat Transcendent to replace rebellious Winter Wolf Guard leaders and maintain control of his army.
• Isaac planned to kill Bazel's [Knight] Transcendent, believing the resulting power struggle would give the Resistance Army a chance to escape.
• Isaac assured Gwen he could handle the mission and headed toward Grey Bear Town while Gwen prepared the Resistance Army to receive him.
• Isaac entered town, concealed himself, and used [Self-Binding] to inspect the houses and military camp.
• Isaac saw at least a dozen bodies at the camp, abandoned his plan, and found a young girl standing beside him who said, "I found you."

Isaac discovered that Lina had ambushed him and used his abilities to flee between bodies, but she tracked him through the Sea of Unconsciousness and captured him. He could not escape her grip, while Lina’s body had already been sealed by Moth Chasing Flame and the group had paid little attention to her soul.

• Isaac recognized Lina as the traitor he had rooted out and escaped her initial attack by transferring his soul through the Sea of Unconsciousness into a clone.
• Isaac warned Gwen that something was wrong, but Lina tracked him to the outskirts and injured him despite his defensive ability.
• Isaac fled into the Sea of Unconsciousness again, but Lina’s grip followed him and dragged him back to her.
• Lina held Isaac by the neck as he struggled unsuccessfully to escape and wondered how she could overpower him and track him across the Sea of Unconsciousness.
• Moth Chasing Flame had sealed Lina’s body, while its members had paid little attention to her soul.

Lina tortured Isaac for information about Nora and a mysterious thing, then tried to search him herself. Isaac used his hidden contamination attack to create a chance to escape his body, but Lina's response left him gravely injured as his consciousness began to fade.

• Lina crushed Isaac's hand and demanded to know where Nora and the thing she sought were.
• Isaac realized Lina knew Nora's head had been sent to the prince and wondered why she did not expect him to recognize her from Castel.
• Isaac used his [Investigator] ability to make Lina hesitate, then fired a pistol that released tangible contamination instead of a bullet.
• Lina looked at the contamination with longing rather than fear and kicked Isaac away before he could be infected.
• Isaac's chest caved in, and as his consciousness blurred, he was glad he had a chance to escape his body.

Isaac abandoned his body to escape Lina and drifted into the Sea of Unconsciousness, where he encountered the [Chrysalis] and learned his soul had long been marked. As Lina dragged him away, Gwen sensed he was still in Grey Bear Town and decided to go help him.

• Isaac abandoned his shell and let the [Chrysalis] guide his soul into the Sea of Unconsciousness.
• Isaac glimpsed the [Three-Pointed Gate] and the true body of the [Chrysalis] before asking Lord Kaeschi for help.
• The [Chrysalis] told Isaac his soul had been marked and said, "Someone will save you... [Gwen's Friend]," as Lina dragged him away.
• Gwen found Isaac missing, sensed that he remained in the city, and decided to return to support him.

Gwen led the Resistance Army in a surprise attack on Grey Bear Town, where she confronted a Transcendence being who had seized Isaac. After shooting the woman and driving her off, Gwen ordered part of the army to tend to Isaac and led the rest toward the barracks.

• Gwen decided to attack Grey Bear Town before the Winter Wolves could organize a defense and rallied the Resistance Army to charge.
• Gwen reached the town gate and found a red-haired girl gripping Isaac by the neck.
• The girl attacked Gwen and knocked her away, but Gwen shot the girl in the abdomen with her pistol.
• The wounded girl fled as the Resistance Army arrived, and Gwen ordered two soldiers to help Isaac while she led the others toward the barracks.

Gwen and the Resistance Army captured Grey Bear Town after Lina’s purge left the Winter Wolves terrified and disorganized. After the townspeople celebrated their victory, Gwen worried about the enemy forces in the other towns and went to check on Isaac, who awoke and urged her to flee.

• Gwen’s forces attacked the Winter Wolves at the barracks, and repeated volleys sent the enemy into a panicked rout.
• Gwen led the Resistance fighters in pursuit, but the Winter Wolves’ chaotic flight made capturing them difficult and spread disorder through the town.
• The Resistance Army and townspeople fought from daylight until nightfall, driving out or killing the Winter Wolves and seizing their supplies.
• The townspeople welcomed the Resistance Army, while Gwen celebrated before worrying that the remaining Winter Wolves would bring reinforcements from two other towns.
• Gwen went to check on Isaac, who opened his eyes and told her to escape while he held off the threat.

Theus and his allies learned that Isaac’s Ashen Alliance had contacted the Northern Territory Resistance Army, which was close to collapse under the threat of Bazel’s Winter Wolf Guard. After analyzing the enemy’s advantages, Theus declared that Nora could still fight, prompting Monica to question how.

• Theus told the gathering that Isaac’s Ashen Alliance had reached out and that the Northern Territory Resistance Army faced imminent destruction.
• Nora described Isaac’s planned cooperation with the Resistance Army and explained that neither group knew about Blood Port or its strength.
• Alexei explained how the Wolves of Winter’s pistol cavalry could outmaneuver the poorly trained Resistance Army on the open plains.
• Nora warned that the Resistance Army could be forced from its forest refuge and admitted she had previously misjudged its fate.
• Theus insisted that Nora could still fight, and Monica pointed at Nora’s head and challenged the claim.

Theus and the others assessed the Resistance Army’s desperate position in the Northern Territory and discussed how to reach it before it fell. Tata proposed a new ship that might provide a way to help, leaving Theus intrigued by its promised capabilities.

• Theus clarified that Nora was still fighting despite being dead, and Monica suggested she might be stronger without her weakness.
• Alexei explained that the Northern Territory’s open plains and undefended towns left the Resistance Army vulnerable to Winter Wolf’s cavalry.
• Theus estimated that the Resistance Army could hold out for only two weeks, while travel and political obstacles would delay any relief.
• Chloe revealed that Isaac was still alive and might return information if he died and a ritual was performed.
• Tata offered a compact, reliable ship capable of carrying a Dragon Breath Cannon, and Theus wondered whether it could meet those requirements.

Theus and the others considered ways to support the Northern Territory, first rejecting Tata’s bizarre Assault Coffin design before Ash proposed sending Banshees through the waterways. Theus saw promise in the plan but concluded that the Symbiotic Pact’s range limit would sharply restrict how long the Banshees could fight.

• Tata presented Theus with his Type 01 Assault Boat, a sealed coffin pulled by nine Banshees and armed with fifty-four Dragon Breath Cannons.
• Theus called the design “nine dragons and nine serpents pulling a coffin” and ordered Monica to throw Tata out; Monica and Nini then joked about the design.
• Ash suggested sending a team of nine Banshees through the sea and along the Koller River to reach Castel, estimating that the trip could take four days.
• Theus pointed out that the Symbiotic Pact had a range limit, and Ash confirmed that the Banshees could only spend a day or two fighting after the round trip.
• Theus marked the Banshees’ likely operational range on the map and reasoned that they could find the Resistance Army by following the river and nearby forests.

Theus sent Banshee units to support the Resistance Army in the Northern Territory and assessed how the Candlelight Society might respond. He then confronted Castel’s slow intelligence network and considered building a radio station, but stopped to question whether radio signals were safe.

• Theus ordered Banshees to travel north, support the Resistance Army, and report important intelligence while Ash organized the deployment.
• Richard explained that the Candlelight Society had relatively few Investigators and that organized Banshee units could resist them effectively.
• Theus ended the meeting and recognized that intelligence from the Northern Territory arrived too slowly to support urgent decisions.
• Theus decided Castel needed a radio station and considered having researchers develop one.
• Theus paused before drawing up a schematic and wondered whether radio transmissions could attract or receive something dangerous.

Prince William dismissed Ewan’s fears that Castel was taking control of Blood Port, arguing that power belonged to whoever people recognized as powerful. He said he was using Castel’s knowledge and military support to build strength for future conquests.

• Prince William praised the Dragon Breath Cannon and showed Ewan the weapons, books, and newspapers he had received from Castel.
• Ewan warned Prince William that the Mystic Society’s armed patrols and Castel’s growing influence threatened Blood Port.
• Prince William agreed that Blood Port would eventually fall under Count Theus’s control, then asked Ewan what they should do.
• Prince William argued that the Mystic Society held power in the lower district because residents recognized its authority, while his own decrees reached only the upper district.
• Prince William explained that Castel’s military strength gave it practical control of Blood Port and said he was seeking knowledge and power to conquer other cities.

The prince, Galahad, and Ewan studied the Theus Code, a dot-and-dash alphabet printed on coins, and the prince realized it could transmit messages by sound. As the prince prepared to visit Theus, a whistle sounded across Blood Port, and they decoded its greeting: “Good evening... Blood Port.”

• Galahad showed the prince coins bearing the Theus Code and explained that Castel had distributed them with an instruction booklet.
• The prince recognized that the code's dot-and-dash symbols could be used to send messages, possibly through sound.
• The prince decided to ride to Theus for answers but stopped when a whistle rang across Blood Port.
• The prince wrote down the whistle's pattern while Galahad and Ewan used their coins to decode it.
• The prince, Galahad, and Ewan deciphered the message: “Good evening... Blood Port.”

Theus introduced the prince to communication technologies, from Theus Code and telegraphs to telephones, while preparing radio equipment for testing. The prince then revealed that the Church forbade electrical research because evil entities accumulated in electric currents, leaving Theus stunned.

• The prince and Galahad discussed using Theus Code to transmit signals through solids, and the prince hurried to visit Theus.
• Theus explained Morse code, telegraph technology, and plans for a spark-gap radio transmitter to the prince.
• Theus demonstrated a cup phone and described how telephones converted sound into electrical signals and back.
• The prince told Theus that evil entities inhabited electricity and that the Church banned electrical research, surprising him.

Theus explained to the prince that electricity was not inherently evil and that a conductive Faraday cage could protect someone from lightning. The prince left to investigate electricity, but revealed that people killed by electrocution became evil creatures, leaving Theus alarmed about the danger of further experiments.

• The prince told Theus that Moth Chasing Flame’s attempt to make lightning-proof insulating armor had failed and caused an accident.
• Theus explained that the armor failed because insulation could break down under high voltage, and described how a conductive Faraday cage protected its interior.
• Theus discussed how scientific understanding could move beyond the limits of familiar physics, and the prince became enthusiastic about studying electricity.
• The prince said he would return to study electricity and surround the testing grounds with the Harbor Guard.
• The prince explained that everyone who had been electrocuted turned into an evil creature, and Theus realized he might have overlooked the danger.

Theus discovered that electricity mutated living creatures into aberrations, with larger animals requiring more energy, and ordered strict safety precautions for future electrical experiments. As Nini prepared to lead Banshees to support the Northern Territory, Theus warned the group about the danger while planning to continue investigating electricity.

• Theus learned that the animals Nini had tested, including coyotes, rabbits, sharks, snakes, and horse-faced fish, had all mutated after being electrocuted.
• Theus compared the aberrations with Ash's pet wolf and found that mutation took longer for larger animals and slowed when the battery's current weakened.
• Theus suspected that electricity might behave like radiation in causing mutations and considered whether aberrations could someday help power Castel.
• Theus ordered all electrical experiments to receive his approval and require protective measures, noting the danger to future communications soldiers.
• Nini prepared to lead rotating groups of Banshees to support the Northern Territory, and Theus posted a warning to the main Mind Link group before their departure.

After capturing Grey Bear Town, Gwen rallied the Resistance Army and weighed whether they could defend it against the remaining Wolves of Winter. She decided their best chance was to break into nearby Slading Fortress, whose defenses were weak.

• More Resistance Army members reached Grey Bear Town, giving Gwen the strength to confront the Wolves of Winter.
• Isaac recalled how two mysterious threads had pulled him from the Sea of Unconsciousness, and he felt dejected that Gwen and the Resistance Army had rescued themselves and him.
• Gwen recognized that Winter Wolf cavalry from the other towns could trap the Resistance Army if they stayed in Grey Bear Town or tried to flee across the plains.
• The Resistance Army took the Winter Wolves' firearms and supplies, increasing its combat strength.
• Gwen set her sights on Slading Fortress as the Resistance Army's next target.

Isaac and Gwen planned to capture Slading Fortress, whose small, poorly trained garrison made it a promising target for the Resistance Army. As the Resistance Army marched toward it, Count Bazel arrived with his Frostland Guard and a red-haired maid.

• Isaac told Gwen that Slading Fortress had about 150 guards, including fewer than 50 full-time soldiers, and that its defenses had been neglected.
• Gwen worried that the fortress gates might be shut and the Resistance Army could be trapped outside by the Winter Wolves, but Isaac promised to help open them and said Alliance members inside could assist.
• Isaac reflected on Lina’s strength and resolved to draw her away if they met again, so his forces could take the fortress.
• Before dawn, the Resistance Army received orders to travel light and march toward Slading Fortress.
• Count Bazel arrived at Slading Fortress with several dozen guards and a red-haired maid, while townspeople marvelled at the guards’ heavy Tower Shields, Solid Ice.

The Resistance Army marched from Grey Bear Town toward Slading Fortress, where Gwen prepared to lead a rapid assault. Grisha declared he would stay to protect his friends in the Northern Territory, and the chapter ended as Gwen ordered the attack.

• The Resistance Army left Grey Bear Town and advanced toward Slading Fortress under Gwen's command.
• Grisha asked Gwen whether they would save the Northern Territory, then said he would remain to protect his friends.
• Gwen and the army prepared for a swift assault, knowing that allowing the defenders to retreat into the fortress could make the battle much harder.
• Gwen drew her sword, ordered the troops to charge, and the Resistance Army began its assault.

Gwen led the Resistance Army’s mounted vanguard into Slading Fortress while Isaac remained missing. She reached the fortress gates, where Bazel’s defenders awaited, and realized the coming assault would decide whether the Resistance Army could enter.

• Gwen charged the city gate with her riders before the guards could raise the drawbridge, then ordered Castro and Lian to secure the winch.
• Gwen led the remaining riders through the streets toward the castle, worried that Isaac had not returned.
• A squad of city guards scattered into nearby alleys when Gwen’s riders confronted them, then regrouped to pretend they had driven the Resistance Army back.
• Gwen heard gunfire behind her as the Resistance Army engaged the city guards and hurried toward the fortress gates.
• Gwen reached the fortress and saw its gates, causing her heart to sink.

Gwen led the Resistance Army into Slading Fortress after an enemy noble’s panic disrupted the defenders, while Count Bazel’s shielded guards fought their way out. Bazel revealed he wanted the Northern Territory destabilized and planned to visit the Resistance Army’s camp in the Canary Mountains to investigate rumors about Lady Nora.

• Gwen saw the heavily shielded soldiers blocking the castle gate and prepared to charge before a noble’s shouted orders threw their formation into disarray.
• Gwen led the Resistance Army through the gap and seized the castle, whose few guards surrendered while the servants’ resistance was quickly crushed.
• Count Bazel ordered his Frostland Guards to use overlapping Tower Shields and firearms to break through the Resistance Army’s encirclement and escape through the city gate.
• Bazel told his deputy to seek aid from Octavia and falsely report that the Resistance Army had routed his forces.
• Bazel decided to visit the Resistance Army’s camp in the Canary Mountains and see whether the rumors about Lady Nora were true.

After the Resistance Army captured Slading Fortress, Gwen searched for Isaac and learned he had left with the red-haired woman she had fought in Grey Bear Town. Meanwhile, Nini and two other Banshees arrived in the Northern Territory and tried to use an unreliable map to find the Resistance Army’s camp.

• Gwen learned that the Resistance Army’s main force had arrived safely at Slading Fortress after encountering a small group of Winter Wolves.
• Grisha told Gwen that Isaac had climbed over the fortress wall and left with a red-haired woman, and Gwen recognized her as the woman she had injured in Grey Bear Town.
• Nini assigned Una to find the Resistance Army’s trail and Finier to gather intelligence, while she took responsibility for drawing a map.
• Nini and the other Banshees reached the Northern Territory by water and studied the prince’s unreliable map to locate the Resistance Army’s camp.

Nini found the Resistance Army’s abandoned camp and confronted Count Bazel’s soldiers. When Bazel called for Lina, Nini raised the cannons hidden in her armor and unleashed a barrage of fire.

• After searching along the Koller River, Nini found a frequently used trail and followed it through the forest.
• Nini reached the Resistance Army’s evacuated camp, where Bazel’s soldiers were searching for anything unusual.
• Nini charged into the camp, towering over Bazel’s Frostland Guard and alarming the soldiers.
• Bazel ordered Nini to identify herself and surrender, then spotted Lina in the woods and called for her.
• Nini revealed cannon muzzles beneath her six armored hands and fired, engulfing the camp in flames.

Nini annihilated Count Bazel's soldiers with the Dragon Breath Cannons, leaving the Resistance Army's camp destroyed and its members apparently gone. The Banshees found the unconscious Isaac and decided that Finier would take him back to Castel while Nini and Una searched the area longer.

• Nini's Dragon Breath Cannons wiped out the soldiers surrounding her, and Lina escaped with Bazel into the flames.
• Finier and Una arrived and learned from Nini that Count Bazel's men had been at the camp and that the Resistance Army might have been wiped out.
• The Banshees searched the ruined camp but found no survivors or useful clues.
• Finier and Una discovered the unconscious Isaac and recognized him from Theus's portrait.
• Nini asked Finier to take Isaac back to Castel while she and Una continued searching for a few more days.

Isaac awoke in a strange church after Lina subdued him and concluded the Resistance Army was doomed. He explored the apparently divine structure and entered a greenhouse, where unfamiliar plants left him uneasy.

• Isaac woke in an unfamiliar room and recalled Lina had captured him at Slading Fortress, where Frostland Guards had overwhelmed the Resistance Army.
• Isaac used [Self-Binding] and saw an enormous evil god imprisoned beneath the church, nearly losing consciousness from the sight.
• Isaac examined the room and found its walls were made from a single seamless mass of exceptionally hard stone, leading him to suspect he was in a divine kingdom.
• Isaac left his room and discovered a pipe in the corridor that carried gas toward the furnace beneath the church and connected to nearby rooms.
• Isaac entered a greenhouse filled with towering, unfamiliar trees whose appearance made him feel deeply unsettled.

Isaac discovered that the greenhouse’s enormous crops were ordinary plants grown with tangible Pollution, then fled through the church and found Chloe’s diary hanging from a monument. Believing Chloe was dead and Moth Chasing Flame might be near its end, he took the diary and resolved to preserve the organization’s legacy.

• Isaac recognized the greenhouse’s gigantic plants as enlarged rye, turnips, beets, hawk grass, and corn, and pocketed a corn kernel to bring back to Castel.
• Isaac narrowly avoided falling into tangible Pollution and realized the crops were being nourished by it, possibly extracted from an evil god.
• When an alarm sounded and someone raced after him, Isaac fled toward the light and saw the church’s furnace smelting tangible Pollution and evil gods.
• Isaac spotted Chloe’s diary on a monument and sensed energy coming from it, leading him to believe Chloe had died and preserved her soul through [Pupa].
• Isaac worried that Castel and Moth Chasing Flame might have fallen, then grabbed Chloe’s diary to preserve the organization’s legacy.