Sun and Shadow

At the beginning of the Grand Route, the church's Radiant Disc scattered the mist—the island of the pioneers.

The Storm Cathedral on the Island of Departure. After paying his respects to the Lord of Storms, Edmond Tide glimpsed a Pure White Gate in a daze.

When he came to his senses, Edmond gazed at the statue of the God of Storms in the distance, his heart unsettled for a long time.

The 1500 revised edition of the Record of the Storm God stated that the great Lord of Storms had torn apart the mist and opened a gateway to the New Continent.

In the new accounts of the gods, the God of Storms' honorific had changed to "Lord of Storms." Previously, only the Lord of Light could be called "Lord."

The relationship between the Lord of Storms and the Lord of Light had gradually shifted from reverence in the Era of Light to equality.

To pass information to him under the gaze of the Lord of Storms—what a hidden existence that must be!

Edmond Tide left the Storm Cathedral and returned to the captain's cabin aboard the Piranha, where he took out a new tarot card.

He offered the card through a Rite, then waited quietly for the Society of Hours to begin.

Fog City, Cathedral of Night.

Arena swung the longsword in her hand, honing her Swordsmanship. She had once been content to drift along with the tide, but now she was determined to seize a future of her own.

Reilly Stuart's advantage was experience—experience that gave him an edge in every respect.

Arena had been raised as a mere ornament. She hadn't been restricted in the supernatural world, but that was the extent of it.

The battles she had fought and the family's political maneuvering had exposed her to little hostility from the outside world.

With no advantages to speak of, she would have to create her own. A Pure White Gate suddenly appeared before Arena.

She took a deep breath and ended her training for the day. Her only chance was to seek an opportunity at the Society of Hours and ask Mr. Mansus for help.

The Secret Sect Long Table.

Arthur tapped the tabletop, bringing Miss Moth and Mr. Red Grail up before starting a new session of the Society of Hours.

Arena had changed into a black evening gown to show her respect for Mr. Mansus.

"Mr. Mansus, thank you for your warning. You helped avert a disaster."

Arthur knew she meant the Black Devil's Rite. His tone was casual. "It was nothing."

Edmond listened to Miss Moth. Was Mr. Mansus's warning about the Black Devil's actions?

There had been no sign of the Black Devil's activities in the recent news from the Old Continent. He would have to look into it carefully when he returned.

Perhaps he could indirectly uncover Miss Moth's true identity.

Arthur paused, then offered a simple reminder. "Miss Moth, be careful. That penniless loner wandering around alone has a strong taste for revenge."

"Understood." Arena paused. "Thank you for the warning."

Mr. Mansus seemed to have a deep-seated grudge against the Black Devil. A penniless loner wandering around alone?

Edmond was taken aback. Mr. Mansus's description of the Black Devil had dripped with contempt!

Judging by the myths published by churches in different eras, mythological narratives shifted along with a church's status, indirectly reflecting the standing of its god.

Mr. Mansus had to be more ancient and more powerful than the Black Devil. Otherwise, he wouldn't have spoken in such a tone!

Arthur tapped the tabletop and said mildly, "Do you have any new tarot cards?"

Arena lifted the hem of her skirt and gave a slight curtsy. "Mr. Mansus, I've been rather busy lately and haven't had time to look for any unusual tarot cards."

"That's all right."

Edmond Tide bowed slightly. "Mr. Mansus, I found an unusual tarot card."

Arthur nodded. He had already received Edmond's offering through the Rite; he had only asked as a matter of routine to see whether Arena had found anything.

He raised a hand and summoned the tarot card Edmond Tide had found.

The front depicted the last rays of the setting sun. Beneath the sun's radiance, a shadow stretched into the distance. Sun and shadow stood side by side.

On the back, beneath the image of a pentacle, a line of small text appeared: Sun and Shadow.

Tarot Card: Secret History Card.

Secrets hidden in history could take the form of tarot cards under the influence of the mysterious. One could read the Secret History within a card.

Arthur raised his hand slightly. Mist flowed into the card, and an ancient Secret History poured directly into his mind.

The Reader's ability came into play. He read the Secret History: Sun and Shadow.

The Secret History became a series of images that flowed before Arthur's eyes, illusory yet real.

[Year 901 of the Age of Navigation, author: Oscar Capac]

A dilapidated little boat sailed through the waves. With his weathered hands, an old man used cotton thread and llama wool to weave colorful knots.

The "Quipu," unique to Inca civilization, recorded information through combinations of colorful knots.

The woven Quipu revealed information recorded by Oscar Capac:

"I am a sinner. Because of my mistakes, the Great Inti Empire suffered a devastating blow."

"They disguised themselves as descendants of the sun and arrived in the sun's capital aboard drifting ships. I welcomed them warmly."

"The pure light of the sun shone upon the tower's summit. I mistook them for the lost descendants of the sun..."

"I was terribly wrong. They were demons, envoys of demons, the most wicked of people!"

"After a month of pretending, they launched a divine war. The great Sun God Inti was ambushed."

"On that day, the sun was as black as ink. The descendants of the sun suffered heavy losses in the divine war."

"Shadow engulfed the empire. For seven days, the sun never rose. The great Sun God no longer answered the prayers of his faithful!"

Arthur read the ancient Secret History. From Oscar Capac's account, the man had been a high-ranking member of the Inca Empire.

The events he described referred to the celebrations that followed the opening of the Grand Route—the Church of Light's expedition, which proclaimed, "The radiance of the sun spreads across the savage land."

A section of the Quipu's knots had been severed. Oscar had woven the knots, then cut them out himself, unwilling to let that part of history remain.

"The great sun will never again shine as it once did. He has taken away the light that belongs to the gods!"

"The shadow behind the sunlight sustains the great Father God. One day, he will reclaim the sun's radiance!"

"The darkness of the sun will eventually pass. I, Oscar Capac, swear on my life that I will forsake the glory and past of the Capac name, bury all that came before, and follow the Father God!"

The Secret History recorded in the Quipu ended there.

Arthur closed his eyes and absorbed the Secret History. It concerned the divine war at the beginning of the Age of Navigation, as well as the dark past of the most majestic Lord of Light.

The revised 1500 edition of the Gospel of Light stated that the majestic Lord of Light had brought hope and light to the New Continent, and was merciful even in shadow.

He hadn't read earlier editions of the Gospel of Light, so he didn't know whether "shadow" had appeared in their mythological accounts.

Judging from Oscar Capac's account, the shadow seemed to have emerged from the divine war between the Lord of Light and the Sun God.

Arthur suddenly remembered that the Shadow Temple of the Church of Light, its violent law-enforcement agency, had been established only recently.