Rain began falling near the cave in the island's southeastern corner. Gradually, all of Castel was shrouded in rain. Typhoons swept across the Storm Ocean year-round, bringing rain with them, so every season here was rainy.
But today's rain seemed a little strange.
The sailors at sea all said that storms always passed eventually. Their ships often sailed through storms, and as long as they kept their sails full, they could always leave the storms behind.
But today, ships sailing on the Storm Ocean would be astonished to discover that no matter how fast they traveled or where they headed, they were always in the storm.
If one pulled back to a higher vantage point, one would see dark clouds slowly gathering over the entire Storm Ocean around a certain spot, where torrential rain poured down.
That central location... was rather strange.
It wasn't the Storm Eye, where thunderstorms raged year-round. It was a little farther north, and a little farther west.
To its west lay the Empire, to the northeast lay Gem Bay, and to the north lay the White Crow Duchy's seaport.
It was a small island called Castel, meaning "fire and light on the Storm Ocean."
At that moment, storms and lightning fell like divine punishment across the entire ocean, surrounding Castel.
Meanwhile,
in Rhine, at the Candlelight Society's Underground Tribunal, seven hooded figures seated around the Secret Keeper Council's long table raised their heads at the same time.
At Gear Academy, built by the Empire's royal family, several enormous Steam Engines suddenly roared to life in unison.
In the Storm Ocean, the Fishmen, migrating as an entire people, suddenly stopped. After a brief discussion, they turned around and headed back.
In Gem Bay, a man covered from head to toe in tattoos suddenly opened his eyes wide. Then, to the horror of those around him, he dissolved into a puddle of black pus.
In Castel, inside the Candlelight Society's church, a crack suddenly appeared on Kaeschi's chest as he knelt in prayer.
In Nora's room, a gust of wind blew the window open and swept the diary off the table and onto the floor.
The note beneath it bounced twice before being carried off by the wind and landing in the muddy water. The mud gradually obscured the words on it:
"...My successor, there is one more thing you need to keep in mind. You must be wary of Sister Chloe in the church."
"Though I don't know what she really is, I can say for certain that she is definitely not a member of the Candlelight Society."
At the mansion, Theus had changed into fresh clothes and was sitting in an armchair, reading the report Alexei had just delivered.
He looked up at the cloud-covered sky and smiled wryly. "It actually started raining at just the right moment. In the novels I've read, it always gets windy and rainy when something big happens. I've actually experienced it myself today. What a coincidence."
"Young Master." Connor gently placed several documents on the table.
He was wearing hunting trousers, a white shirt, and a black vest, with the white pistol tucked into his holster.
After last night's battle, Theus had given the pistol to Connor. Partly, it was a reward for coming to his aid in time. Also, Theus had realized that Connor made better use of it.
Besides, Connor accompanied him whenever he went out, so he might as well bring the gun along.
It was clear that Connor liked the pistol. He even carried it around the estate, which Theus found rather amusing.
There was one other thing: Connor had started calling him "Young Master" again. But Theus had no time to dwell on forms of address; he had too much on his plate.
"How are things?"
Connor gave him a slight nod.
"Miss Nora has already left by ship. I tried to persuade her to stay, but she insisted on going to bring the first group of refugees here."
"Has she recovered from her injuries?"
"She said... it's a trait of the Buried. No matter how severe the physical injury, they recover quickly. As you know, she doesn't really count as one of the living anymore."
Theus nodded.
"Did she say when she'll be back?"
"About a week."
"What about Monica?"
"Monica wasn't injured. Lady Nora examined her and said there was no trace of Pollution left in her body. She asked me to reassure you."
"As for the other Banshees, they've been temporarily settled in the cave beneath the secret passage. They asked me for some tools and are planning to renovate the place."
The Banshees weren't yet suited to being seen by the public. Besides, they had always lived underwater, so they might not feel at ease on land.
So Theus had arranged for them to stay temporarily in the waters near Castel. With him serving as their anchor, the Pollution in the Deep Sea could no longer harm them.
"Also, Sister Chloe came to the estate this afternoon. We weren't here, so she stayed for a while and then left."
"Oh, I nearly forgot." Theus nodded in understanding.
He had indeed arranged to meet Sister Chloe at the estate. It was a contingency plan in case Nora couldn't or wouldn't help him deal with the Pollution. Then he would ask the Candlelight Society for help.
But in the end, he hadn't needed the backup plan.
"She didn't suspect anything, did she?"
"No. The explanation we prepared in advance was perfectly reasonable, and she came at a time that didn't overlap with us and... our battle."
"Good." Theus nodded, relieved. He had carefully chosen the location of the seaside cave. Although the battle had been quite noisy, it hadn't attracted anyone's attention.
"I'll go visit her when I have time. Add it to today's schedule."
At the mention of the schedule, Connor took a notebook from his pocket and glanced at its contents before speaking carefully.
"Young Master, as you requested, I've divided your to-do list into four categories."
"Important and urgent, important but not urgent, unimportant but urgent, and unimportant and not urgent."
At this, a faintly curious look appeared on Connor's face.
The method seemed simple and crude, but it was surprisingly useful. Under Theus's guidance, Connor had used two perpendicular axes to determine the priority of each task, effortlessly sorting the long list of things to do by priority.
"Ahem. Based on that, I'll come by every morning to tell you the day's schedule."
"This morning, you need to meet Alexei in the study. He's coming to report on the progress of building the new factory and recruiting craftsmen."
"Then you'll inspect the territory with him."
"In the afternoon, you'll go to the church to see Lady Chloe."
Theus nodded. Organizing his work this way would make him much more efficient.
"Change the meeting with Alexei to my chemistry lab. You should come too. I'm going to talk to him about some new products for the territory."
"Will you tell him the truth about the Pollution as well?"
"I probably won't. After all, it concerns his..."
"[Cognitive Barrier]"
At those words, Connor's eyes flickered. The truth about [Pollution], [Cognitive Barrier], and even [Transcendence] had shaken him deeply. He felt as if his entire worldview were teetering on the brink of collapse.
It all began with the conversation between Theus and Nora after last night's battle.
Before you continue