Chapter Summaries

Theus prepared to treat Monica for Pollution in a hidden seaside cavern and arranged for Nora of the Silent Temple to perform the treatment. Nora arrived in intimidating Northern Territory armor with a smoking Flail, then struggled to look up at the towering Ash.

• Theus told Connor that the fishermen were renovating workshops and would become the first batch of workers, while confirming that no Pollution had appeared in the catch.
• Theus and Connor waited in a seaside cavern while the Banshees treated Monica, and Connor went outside to keep watch.
• Connor spotted Nora approaching alone in full plate armor with a huge shield and recognized the bone-white emblem associated with the White Crow Duchy.
• Nora explained that her armor and smoking Flail were necessary treatment equipment, then confirmed that neither Theus nor Connor was contaminated.
• Theus led Nora inside to treat Monica, where Ash noticed Nora behind her shield and Nora struck the back of her helmet against her breastplate while trying to look up.

Nora arrived expecting hostile sea monsters, but discovered that Ash and the Banshees remained sane and welcomed her purification smoke. As the treatment slowed Monica’s Pollution, Nora revealed that the Pollution had been affecting the sea for over a thousand years.

• Nora cautiously faced Ash, who introduced herself and asked whether Nora wanted to know about the Pollution or the Abyssal Trench.
• Nora realized Ash and the other Banshees had not been Polluted, and used her censer to spread purifying smoke into the sea.
• The Banshees found the smoke pleasant, while the Pollution on Monica slowed and began to recede.
• Nora questioned Theus about the sea-dwellers and learned that Pollution had appeared in the sea recently.
• Nora told Theus and Ash that the Pollution had been going on for over a thousand years.

Theus realized that the Banshees had survived a thousand years of Pollution because their Flesh Magic shielded them, but Nora's revelation was interrupted when Monica succumbed to the Pollution. The chapter ended with Monica attacking Nora as black Pollution spread toward the other Banshees.

• Theus theorized that the Banshees had maintained Flesh Magic to withstand the water pressure, which had also protected them from the Pollution.
• He concluded that the Pollution was concentrated in the Abyssal Trench, explaining why the Banshees had survived and why other sea creatures feared the depths.
• Nora realized that Theus might still be a mortal who had simply asked her for help, and her Tower Shield fell from her hand.
• Nora cried out as Monica became covered in black Pollution, twisted grotesquely, and sent strands of Pollution clinging to the other Banshees.
• Monica surged from the water and slammed into Nora, while Theus remembered Ash's warning that Flesh Magic users could explode and die outside the water.

Monica became a giant Polluted monster and attacked Theus, while Ash and Nora fought to protect him. As Ash prepared to break their Symbiotic Pact, Nora revealed that she could defeat Monica if Theus promised Castel would take in the Northern Territory refugees.

• Monica grew into a Polluted giant, flung Nora aside, and charged at Theus.
• Ash shielded Theus from Monica’s attack, suffered a grievous wound, and was thrown into the cavern wall.
• Nora returned to battle Monica, while Theus weakened as the Symbiotic Pact drained his life force.
• Nini prepared to sacrifice herself, but Ash said she would break the pact and ordered Nini to take Theus and the Banshees away.
• Ash declared that Theus was the Banshees’ Promised Land and prepared to break the pact.
• Nora refused to flee, promised to defeat Monica if Theus pledged to shelter the Northern Territory refugees in Castel, and began to rise as the Burier.

As Monica transformed into a monster and threatened the cave, Theus stopped Ash from dissolving their pact and discovered that he could circulate vitality among multiple pact members. Nini joined their pact, restoring Ash and enabling Nini to come ashore, while Theus called the other Banshees to join them.

• Ash prepared to dissolve her Symbiotic Pact with Theus, while Nini and the transformed Monica faced the prospect of losing their chance at a home.
• Nora gathered her strength for a final effort, but Monica knocked her away after Theus announced he had a way to stop the crisis.
• Connor shot Monica with Theus's pistol and led the monster away on horseback.
• Theus told Ash not to dissolve their pact, then formed a Symbiotic Pact with Nini despite the risk of draining himself.
• Theus discovered that vitality could flow through him between pact members, restoring Ash and letting Nini move onto land.
• Theus held out his hand to the other Banshees and invited them to share their life pools for Castel and their home together.

Theus formed a Symbiotic Pact with the Banshees, healing Ash as Monica transformed into a massive Pollution monster. The Banshees began a coordinated assault while Theus prepared a plan, leaving Ash to hold the line.

• The Banshees signed the Symbiotic Pact with Theus, and the expanded Life Pool healed Ash's wound and restored her strength.
• Connor returned with the church-sized monster Monica had become, and Ash led the grieving Banshees out to confront it.
• The Banshees linked their minds, planned their tactics, and coordinated with Connor to evade the monster's charge.
• A Banshee used Flesh Magic to strike the monster and escape its grasp, revealing that repeated attacks could disrupt its momentum.
• Ash noticed Nini leaving her position, then heard Theus tell her through their pact to hold the monster off while he prepared a plan.

Theus directed the Banshees through Mind Link to trap Monica’s monster and create an opening for an attack. Nini launched Theus toward the monster, while Ash used Nora’s Tower Shield to protect him, leaving Theus to face the Pollution without Flesh Magic.

• Theus asked Nini whether the Banshees could withstand the monster’s Pollution and persuaded her to carry him closer so he could try to save Monica.
• Ash saw Nini carrying Theus and agreed to follow his orders, taking the Tower Shield that Nini passed to her.
• Theus coordinated the Banshees through Mind Link, and they surrounded the monster while using Flesh Magic to hold it in place and heal their injuries.
• Nini circled behind the trapped monster and hurled Theus toward it as Ash charged in with the Tower Shield.
• Ash blocked the monster’s strike while Nini used Flesh Magic on her by holding her tail, but Theus had no protection from the Pollution.

Theus discovered that Pollution recoiled from him and that his Symbiotic Pact could purify it, then faced the monstrous Monica and reached out to her. The chapter ended before revealing whether he could save her.

• Theus entered the Pollution surrounding Monica, and it retreated from him as if he were its natural enemy.
• The Pollution vanished from Monica’s body, revealing her twisted form as a swollen Flesh Mountain.
• Theus remembered that sealing a pact with a lightly contaminated Banshee had purified the Pollution in both of them.
• Theus reached toward the monstrous Monica, determined to try to save her.

Theus saved Monica from the Pollution through a Symbiosis contract, restoring her body and freeing the Banshees from their torment. As the Banshees celebrated, Theus welcomed Nora and the people of the Northern Territory to Castel as their home.

• Monica, believing salvation had been an illusion, prepared to die in her polluted body.
• Theus reached Monica and formed a Symbiosis contract with her, causing the Pollution to retreat as his vitality healed her.
• Monica's body returned to normal, and the Banshees celebrated as they caught her and Theus.
• Connor helped Nora sit up, and she watched the Banshees celebrate on Castel Island.
• Theus told Nora that Castel would always welcome the people of the Northern Territory and declared that they were home.

A strange storm gathered over Castel as Theus organized the estate’s affairs after the battle and learned that Nora had left to bring refugees to the island. The chapter ended as he began explaining the truth about Pollution and the Cognitive Barrier to Connor.

• Storms gathered around Castel as unusual disturbances affected the Candlelight Society, Gear Academy, the Fishmen, and others across the region.
• Nora’s warning that Sister Chloe was not a member of the Candlelight Society was swept into the mud by a gust of wind.
• Connor reported that Nora had sailed to bring the first refugees to Castel and that the Banshees were staying near the island.
• Theus learned that Sister Chloe had visited the estate and arranged to meet her at the church later that day.
• Theus reorganized his schedule and moved his meeting with Alexei to the chemistry lab to discuss new products.
• Theus began discussing Pollution and the Cognitive Barrier with Connor, whose understanding of the world had been shaken by the revelations.

After rescuing Monica, Nora explained to Theus that ignorance protected ordinary people from Pollution, while learning about it could break that protection. She revealed that Transcendents were another form of life, and traced Monica’s sudden outbreak to the [Cognitive Barrier] being broken.

• Nora prepared to return to the Northern Territory, but Theus stopped her to ask about Pollution.
• Nora told Theus that people who did not know Pollution existed could not be polluted, while Transcendents were more vulnerable to discovering it.
• Nora demonstrated that she had no heartbeat and revealed that Buriers were immortal, explaining that Transcendents were another form of life.
• Theus asked why Monica’s Pollution had suddenly erupted, and Nora explained that his ignorance had protected him until she told him specific details about Pollution, breaking his [Cognitive Barrier].

Nora explained to Theus how his knowledge of pollution had triggered Monica’s catastrophic transformation and warned him that Transcendence was a curse, not simply a source of power. After Nora left, Theus questioned whether his plans to reshape the world through science and industry could work in a world governed by pollution and Transcendent forces.

• Nora told Theus that his words had shattered the Banshees’ [Cognitive Barriers], causing pollution to surge and converge on the already contaminated Monica.
• Nora explained that the [Burier] had been essential to stopping Monica and said the Church would not act against Theus as long as he did not bring pollution.
• Theus asked why nobles knew so little about transcendent power, and Nora called it a transcendent curse that brought pain and madness alongside power.
• Nora warned Theus to remain ignorant and stay away from Transcendence, then left by ship.
• Theus sat alone and questioned whether his plans for industrialization could succeed, realizing that most of his accomplishments had depended on Transcendent power.

Theus remembered why he had descended: to destroy the world’s entrenched suffering, not to join its corrupt rulers. He decided to adapt scientific knowledge into a weapon against Pollution and began planning new projects in Castel.

• Theus recalled his final death as a factory worker after he improved machinery and shared knowledge with his fellow laborers.
• Theus rejected the idea of accepting the Church’s secrecy, the workers’ suffering, and the nobles’ oppression as unavoidable.
• Theus reasoned that scientific knowledge and industrial products might function as a new form of Pollution that he could use against other Pollution.
• Theus imagined Castel’s factories and scientific creations reshaping the world and unsettling the Church’s influence.
• Theus ordered Connor to send the Steam Engine blueprints to Ash, summon Alexei to discuss the workshop, and accompany him to the chemistry laboratory.

Ivan’s family weighed the cost of sending Gaia to school against the need to earn a living, while Ivan planned to learn a trade at the new workshops. The chapter ended with Ivan deciding that both Gaia and Ken would go to school.

• Ivan returned home to find Gaia cooking fish and Ken bringing back fruit, and he said his construction work paid two leo a day.
• Gaia asked whether Ivan’s work would continue after the workshops were finished, and Ivan planned to train as a craftsman and make Ken an apprentice.
• Ivan worried that schooling would cost money Gaia might need for a dowry, though he knew she wanted to attend the new free school.
• Ken urged Gaia to go to school and offered to keep working to support her, while Gaia insisted she did not need to study.
• Ivan remembered his late wife and ended the argument by deciding that both Gaia and Ken would go to school.

Theus showed Alexei his chemistry laboratory and explained that the territory needed a road through the mountains to support large-scale olive oil production. He prepared to demonstrate a successful chemical reaction, leaving Alexei unsure what to expect.

• Alexei reported on the school, workshop renovations, and mineral survey, but Theus told him they also needed to build a road through the mountains.
• Theus explained that the new factory would produce olive oil in quantities too large to transport by hand and gave Alexei candy from Nora to ease pollution effects.
• Theus showed Alexei a fire-equipment box and warned him that olive oil fires had to be extinguished with dry sand rather than water.
• Theus led Alexei to his chemistry laboratory, where Connor brought materials for a demonstration.
• Theus said the laboratory preparations had succeeded and that chemical reactions might be ready for large-scale production.

Theus demonstrated that his soap could rival the Church’s Number Nine Holy Water at a tiny fraction of the cost, and Alexei saw its enormous commercial and political potential. Theus then explained that scaling production would require better roads and revealed that glycerin, not soap, was his true target.

• Theus showed Alexei how effectively soap cleaned grime, and Alexei compared it to the Church’s Number Nine Holy Water.
• Theus revealed that soap cost only fifty Gold Rum per ton and could be produced at about three tons per day, stunning Alexei with its affordability and potential reach.
• Connor explained that soap was easy to transport and that future automation and access to raw materials could reduce costs further.
• Theus and Connor discussed the need for roads between the factories and the olive-growing region, and Theus explained that making soap also produced glycerin.
• Theus told Alexei that glycerin was not merely a byproduct but the product he truly wanted.

Theus demonstrated nitroglycerin’s power as both heart medicine and an explosive, then explained how Alexei could begin producing soap. He left Alexei to organize the factory and headed to the school, postponing his trip to the church until that night.

• Theus showed Alexei and Connor nitroglycerin, and Alexei detonated a few drops by striking soaked cotton with a hammer.
• Theus explained that nitroglycerin required sulfuric acid and nitric acid and could not yet be produced in large quantities.
• Theus taught Alexei the soap-making process, and Alexei said the factory could begin work the next day.
• Theus told Alexei to follow the factory manual and said he would handle staffing the school himself.
• Theus headed to the school and asked Alexei to announce registration to the citizens.
• Theus told Connor to postpone their church visit so they could find Sister Chloe that night.

Ivan took Ken and Gaia to register at the school opened by Theus, where Gaia became fascinated by a mechanical clock and enrolled in hopes of studying machinery. Theus also announced night classes and a student patrol, and Ivan joined the patrol so he could watch over his children.

• Ivan brought Ken and Gaia to the school to learn about registration, where they saw Theus and a mechanical clock.
• Gaia asked Theus how the clock worked and became absorbed in its gears and moving parts.
• Theus explained that he would teach mechanical principles and encouraged Gaia to use machinery to change the world.
• Gaia asked to learn how to make a clock, and Theus told her to first learn to read with Miss Zoe.
• Ivan learned the school offered night classes and signed up for the patrol team so he could escort and watch over Ken and Gaia.

Nora sailed toward the Northern Territory with refugees and sent Theus a warning about Chloe, whom she suspected was a spy from another Church. In Castel, Chloe arranged for exiled skilled workers to work for Theus and told him an Investigator would soon arrive.

• Nora learned that negotiations between the Northern Territory and its local lord had failed, and decided to deliver the refugees by ship.
• Nora sent a letter warning Theus that Chloe was not part of the Candlelight Society, using a White Crow to carry it beyond the pigeon’s usual route.
• Chloe told Theus that the Candlelight Society would send exiled criminals and an Investigator to Castel, and Theus agreed to employ the skilled workers.
• Chloe said the body to be buried nearby belonged to a purified cultist who had also been named Theus.

Ash organized the banshees as they settled into their new home, documenting their spells and distributing weapons sent by Theus. The chapter ended with Theus asking whether any banshee spell could bring the dead back to life.

• Ash watched the banshees expand their cavern and began recording their spells for Theus.
• Ash demonstrated how her summoning spell could combine with nitroglycerin to create an explosive attack, while considering how her magic might help build parts for Theus's steam engine.
• Ash summoned the banshees through their work group and showed them crates of weapons provided by Theus.
• The banshees teased Monica about her size and weapons until Nini caught and lifted her during a scuffle.
• Ash told Theus the weapons were of limited use, and Theus promised custom equipment and asked if a spell could bring the dead back to life.