Chapter Summaries

Theus discussed whether a soul could be restored after death, then asked Ash to retrieve deep-sea Pollution from the Abyssal Trench. He addressed dangerous production problems on the island and ended by considering the skilled workers the Candlelight Society planned to exile as a solution.

• Ash explained that physical death could be reversed with life force, but a dead soul could not be saved, and Theus wondered whether souls could exist apart from bodies.
• Theus asked Ash to bring back Pollution from the Abyssal Trench because he suspected deep-sea Pollution differed from other kinds.
• Alexei reported that soap production had started successfully but that workers were ignoring safety rules in the soap and nitroglycerin workshops.
• Theus ordered the nitroglycerin workshop sealed, directed Alexei to improve worker training and safety incentives, and put nitroglycerin production on hold.
• Theus considered having the Banshees run the nitroglycerin workshop and remembered that Chloe had mentioned skilled workers the Candlelight Society planned to exile to the island.

Theus brought Zoe to teach the Banshees to read and write, then explained that knowledge could free them from lives dictated by their strength and role as warriors. The Banshees remained uncertain but were left with his challenge to learn and change their fate.

• Theus offered Zoe an allowance to teach the Banshees, and she agreed after learning the pay could help her buy novels.
• Theus introduced Zoe to the Banshees and said she would teach them literacy before they chose what else to study.
• Monica questioned why the Banshees needed knowledge when they could communicate through Mind Link, and Theus asked what they wanted from their lives.
• Theus compared the Banshees' forced fighting to their former enslavement by the Fishmen, arguing that they still lacked freedom of choice.
• Theus used Zoe's rise from miller's daughter and maid to teacher as an example of how learning could change a person's fate.

Theus discovered that his craftsmen had produced non-explosive nitroglycerin with medicinal effects and soap that was edible despite being made by the same process as ordinary cleaning soap. He was left baffled by the inexplicable results and the strange capabilities of his workers.

• Theus learned that craftsmen had secretly made nitroglycerin after the workshop was shut down because they wanted to keep their unusually high-paying jobs.
• Alexei showed Theus the yellowish liquid, which did not react to a hammer strike or fire but produced the effects of nitroglycerin medicine when tasted.
• Theus learned that workers in the soap workshop had secretly eaten some of their product, believing it might be food.
• Alexei and Theus tasted bars from two batches and found that one was ordinary cleaning soap while the other was delicious and edible, despite both being made through the same process.

Theus recovered from the shock of discovering that cognition could affect physical reality and named the phenomenon Cognitive Interference. He suspected that new technologies could trigger it and that powerful factions had suppressed technological progress, then returned to his noble body intent on investigating the phenomenon.

• Connor told Alexei that Theus had not left his study, where Theus sat motionless and not breathing beside a notebook bearing the line, “Science no longer exists.”
• In the ancient palace, Theus reviewed his memories and concluded that reality could be altered by subjective cognition, but that the effect must follow rules.
• Theus named the phenomenon Cognitive Interference and reasoned that soap and nitroglycerin might have triggered it because they were new technologies.
• Theus suspected that major powers had restrained technological development to prevent a serious consequence of Cognitive Interference.
• Theus wondered whether sharing scientific ideas had led the Church to kill him in his previous life, and decided to return and conduct experiments.
• Theus descended into his noble body, while Worker Theus raised his head in the palace and looked thoughtfully between the throne and Noble Theus.

After learning that altered soap and nitroglycerin might be linked to Cognitive Interference, Theus hid the discovery and ordered cautious tests. Fearing the Church’s response signaled a danger he did not understand, he placed Castel under martial law and sent the Banshees to secure the island.

• Theus told Alexei to document the incidents, keep the soap workshop’s secret, control the worker who had eaten soap, and suspend night school while warning islanders to stay indoors.
• Theus ordered Connor to send samples of the altered soap and nitroglycerin away from Castel for testing, then tested samples with dogs but found no visible effects.
• Theus recalled that a Church priest had killed him in his previous life without hearing his explanation and decided to copy the Church’s response to Cognitive Interference.
• Theus ordered Connor to have Alexei command the island’s defenses and keep everyone indoors unless ordered otherwise.
• Theus linked with the Banshees, who armed themselves, came ashore across Castel, and watched the island as it went under martial law.

Theus deployed the Banshees across Castel to contain any danger related to Cognitive Interference and went to watch the church with Ash. After learning that experimental soap vanished into Pollution about ten kilometers from the factory, he received reports of a widespread outbreak that buried Una.

• Theus ordered the Banshees to patrol in pairs, remain concealed, and report anomalies while he instructed Zoe to keep the manor’s servants indoors.
• Theus and Ash went to the church, where he stayed nearby and asked Ash to hide while he monitored the Mind Link.
• Ash told Theus that soap carried toward the Abyssal Trench and into the open sea had disappeared, turning briefly into a small amount of Pollution about ten kilometers from the factory.
• Group Seven reported tangible Pollution pouring from the sky near the soap factory, and Theus ordered nearby teams to investigate.
• Several groups reported simultaneous anomalies, and Group Nine announced that Una had been buried by Pollution.

Theus coordinated the Banshees as Cognitive Interference caused Pollution to appear across Castel, and they handled the outbreaks and captured a corrupted wolf. After noticing Chloe at the church, Theus kept his distance and ended the operation at dawn, ordering the wolf brought to him.

• Theus ordered teams to monitor the sudden Pollution outbreaks and sent Teams Thirteen and Two to investigate after Team Nine went silent.
• Team Nine reported that Pollution had fallen from the sky and buried Una, but both Banshees were safe; Teams Thirteen and Two confirmed they were uninjured.
• Team One reported that a wolf had become a monster after being hit by Pollution, and Theus ordered the team to keep it alive for study.
• Theus directed the teams to lure the slowly moving Pollution toward a location he chose.
• Ash pointed out Chloe leaving the church, but Theus chose not to reveal himself or approach her.
• At dawn, Theus ended the operation, thanked the Banshees for protecting Castel, and ordered them to bring him the corrupted wolf.

Theus explained to Alexei how studying Cognitive Interference and Pollution could let them predict and control outbreaks instead of shutting down the factories. He left Alexei with a scientific method for understanding and mastering the world’s strange phenomena.

• Castel’s islanders admired the thriving factories and hoped to work at the new factory, unaware that Pollution had forced production to stop.
• Alexei asked Theus whether the factories had to shut down because Cognitive Interference caused random Pollution outbreaks.
• Theus showed Alexei their map and notes, explaining that the outbreaks followed patterns and could be investigated rather than simply feared.
• Theus argued that Transcendence, gods, Pollution, and Cognitive Interference were natural phenomena that could be understood through observation and experiment.
• Theus urged Alexei to use science to observe, understand, experiment, utilize, and ultimately master the world.

Theus explained to Alexei how workers’ understanding could prevent Cognitive Interference and keep new factories operating. He planned to teach the advanced class, retrain the soap workers, and use the collected Physical Pollution for his research.

• Alexei reconsidered his fear of monsters and Pollution after Theus’s explanation of science.
• Theus identified that Cognitive Interference arose when workers used new technology without understanding its true purpose.
• Theus concluded that properly educated workers could prevent Cognitive Interference and keep factories running.
• Theus asked Alexei about the school and agreed to teach its advanced class himself.
• Theus ordered the nitroglycerin workshop shut down temporarily, directed Alexei to explain the soap-making principles to its workers, and told him to guard the site where Physical Pollution had been collected.
• Theus said he would explain Physical Pollution and Banshees to Alexei because the Pollution would be useful to him.

Theus explained the Banshees and Pollution to Alexei, then examined the Banshees’ magic for ways to overcome Castel’s manufacturing limits. He ended by asking whether Ash’s Turn Stone to Mud spell could affect iron ore.

• Theus told Alexei about the Banshees but kept their abilities and Symbiotic Pact secret, and he said he would not conscript them except in an emergency.
• Theus explained physical and cognitive Pollution, warned Alexei to keep people away from the guarded stone caves, and speculated that Pollution held energy.
• Ash showed Theus the Banshees’ spells, including a sea serpent that vanished when she withdrew her mana.
• Theus asked whether Turn Stone to Mud could work on steel, and Ash said it only affected stone.
• Theus asked whether the spell could affect iron ore, leaving Ash frozen.

Theus investigated how Ash’s Turn Stone to Mud spell worked and hypothesized that it temporarily lowered stone’s melting point. He sent Nini away to test whether the spell affected iron, then went with Ash to examine physical pollution collected in a pit.

• Theus watched Ash cast Turn Stone to Mud on basalt and noticed the rock’s holes vanished after it solidified again.
• Theus hypothesized that the spell made stone behave like magma at room temperature, and Ash suggested that Nini test the idea with an iron plate.
• Theus sent Nini to an uninhabited island east of Castel and told her companions to wait a day before returning, in case the test triggered Cognitive Interference.
• Theus and Ash went to the stone caves, where Monica explained that the Banshees had trapped the physical pollution by suspending a wolf above a pit.
• Ash activated Flesh Magic, grabbed a handful of the pollution, and presented it to Theus for examination.

Theus tested whether solidified Pollution could be burned and found that his blood could keep it from escaping through a furnace’s vents. He then asked Ash to study a captured Polluted wolf, and she chose to investigate it herself rather than delegate the task.

• Theus and Ash tested solidified Pollution in a stove, where it slowly shrank but repeatedly tried to escape the flames.
• Monica suggested using Theus’s blood around the furnace vents, and the Pollution stayed away from them when he tried it.
• Theus asked Ash to have Nini’s group test the burning Pollution elsewhere and cautioned them about possible Cognitive Interference.
• Theus brought Ash to a cage containing a Polluted wolf and asked how it obtained energy and what it ate.
• Ash agreed to observe the wolf and decided to study it herself instead of assigning the task to others.

Josh visited the newly opened Department Store, where he discovered the range of goods and bought scented soap made on Castel. The soap’s packaging revealed the words “Made in Castel,” leaving Josh to recognize the meaning behind Castel’s name.

• Josh noticed the lord’s new Department Store and entered after work, curious about what it sold.
• Josh found Ken working as a shop clerk and was amazed by the neatly arranged goods on the shelves.
• Ken showed Josh the different soaps and invited him to try washing his hands with one.
• Josh bought three scented bars of soap after learning that workers could get a monthly discount.
• Josh examined the wrappers and read “Made in Castel,” then connected Castel’s name with its meaning: “Fire and light amid the storm.”

Theus explained to Connor how paying workers and selling goods kept money circulating as Castel developed, convincing Connor that the island was growing richer despite its nearly empty treasury. Theus then asked Connor to investigate Beatrice Joan as a possible connection to Rhine’s noble circles and a way to promote soap.

• Connor reported that Theus’s shops had sold out more than two thousand goods on their opening day, with soap selling best.
• Theus explained to Connor that money gained value through trade and showed him how Castel’s factories, roads, gathering teams, and school had transformed the island.
• Connor realized that circulating money had made Castel and its people wealthier, and Theus praised him for understanding that the recovered money needed to be spent again.
• Theus asked Connor to investigate Beatrice Joan’s background and connections among Rhine’s noblewomen so she could help promote soap.
• Connor recognized the Joan Family’s influence in royal salons, agreed to investigate, and left with Theus’s gold coin in his pocket.

Theus discovered that Nini’s spell could melt steel at room temperature, allowing him to cast parts for a steam engine using simple molds. As he set the craftsmen to work, he planned for the fuel supply and engineering education the island would need, and looked forward to workers from the Candlelight Society arriving.

• Theus confirmed that Nini’s Turn Stone to Mud spell could melt steel without triggering Cognitive Interference, and celebrated the prospect of building a steam engine.
• Theus ordered Connor to gather blacksmiths, potters, and carpenters to make molds from his blueprints.
• Theus considered how Castel Island would fuel its steam engines without coal mines and concluded that he would need to import coal eventually.
• Theus decided to add physics, chemistry, and mechanics to the school’s classes, though he would have to teach them himself.
• Theus realized that the workers promised by the Candlelight Society could provide valuable factory experience and skilled labor.

Theus visited the Banshees’ expanding underground home and toured their workshop, where Finier showed him her handmade perfume, “Yesterday No More.” Theus left with the perfume as Nini reported that the Type I machine had been successfully manufactured.

• Theus considered the need to educate and train local craftsmen before putting them to work on steam engine production.
• Theus visited the Banshees’ underground palace and asked a Banshee to show him around.
• The Banshee showed Theus the workshop, where Banshees made soap, oil paper, and essential oils.
• Finier gave Theus a bottle of her rose perfume, “Yesterday No More,” and explained that she hoped to sell it beyond Castel.
• Theus learned that Finier had made the essential oils used in the soaps, then took the perfume despite having no money with him.
• Nini told Theus through the Mind Link that the Type I machine had been successfully manufactured.

Old Ivan worried that he could not afford the new daytime advanced courses for Ken and Gaia, despite knowing they could open a better future for them. After Zoe explained the tuition, the family faced the choice of whether to send only one child to study.

• Old Ivan considered the costs of daily life and worried that daytime courses would leave Gaia no time to work and require tuition.
• As he escorted the night school group, Old Ivan saw how much happier Gaia had become since she started attending school.
• After class, Zoe invited Ken, Gaia, and Old Ivan into her office and gave them the advanced-course schedule.
• Zoe recommended mechanical principles for Ken and cautioned Gaia that chemistry experiments required care.
• Zoe explained that mechanical principles cost two Leos per week and chemistry cost four, leaving Old Ivan unable to afford both courses.
• Ken and Gaia exchanged a glance and looked to Old Ivan as he considered sending only one of them.

Zoe told Ken, Gaia, and Old Ivan that they could work as factory interns while attending the advanced class, with tuition waived. Their chance to study inspired Zoe to consider writing a novel about ordinary people’s hardships, and she stopped the family as they left to ask what Old Ivan wanted to study.

• Gaia and Ken hesitated to enroll in the advanced class because their family could not afford the tuition.
• Zoe explained that the factory needed workers and would waive tuition for advanced-class students who worked as interns.
• Gaia and Ken decided to enroll, choosing Basic Chemistry and Mechanical Principles, while Old Ivan agreed to support them.
• Seeing the family’s relief inspired Zoe to try writing a novel about the emotions and struggles of ordinary people.
• As Ken, Gaia, and Old Ivan thanked Zoe and prepared to leave, Zoe stopped them and asked what Old Ivan planned to study.

Theus taught his advanced-class students how steam could power an engine, then began guiding them through assembling the Type II Engine for his factory. Nearby, a hidden group contacted him through Mind Link and received the same challenge.

• Theus explained how steam lifted a kettle lid and warned the students to conduct experiments only at designated sites.
• Theus introduced the Type I Engine and showed how a piston, connecting rod, crankshaft, and flywheel converted steam's force into rotation.
• Theus led the students to a pile of parts and began teaching them to assemble the more complex Type II Engine for the factory.
• A group hiding in a nearby cave discussed the lesson, contacted Theus through Mind Link, and heard that they should try assembling an engine too.

Theus taught the Banshees and trainees about steam engines before guiding them through assembling and starting a Type II Engine. As the machine roared to life, Theus sensed that pollution had descended.

• Theus created an Online Class Group One in the Mind Link so the Banshees could follow his steam-engine lessons.
• The trainees assembled the Type II Engine under Theus’s guidance, and he checked that they understood its components and principles.
• Theus had the trainees grease the engine, add water and coal, and light it for a test run.
• The Type II Engine started, its pistons and flywheel speeding up as steam blasted from its exhaust and frightened the trainees.
• Monica studied the running engine and wondered what it was missing, while Theus warned everyone that pollution had descended.