"Rembrandt was an outstanding alchemist. He had spent many years traveling and studying abroad, mastering knowledge and powers beyond the ordinary... Through the Path of the Flaming Sword, he embarked on the so-called Furnace Star Coin path and became a Tier 4 Whisperer."
"Judging by the contents of his diary, he may have possessed a mysterious power that allowed him to hypnotize others."
"After that, Rembrandt returned to his hometown to live in Seclusion, only to accidentally discover that the extinct volcano where he lived had once been a place where a terrifying evil god had lingered. Some kind of horrifying, mysterious power remained at the bottom of the lake."
"He could have escaped in time, but his thirst for knowledge drove him to dive down and investigate... He never returned, and so he met his end at the bottom of the lake. His death also directly or indirectly caused the lake water to change."
"This change gave the lake water powerful hallucinogenic effects, like hypnosis. Everyone in the Expeditionary Exploration Team camped there—soldiers and prisoners alike—hallucinated after drinking the water. Their bodies became distorted according to the obsessions they desired most."
"Lieutenant Colonel Dolomite was obsessed with mammoths, so he became a deformed mammoth. The soldiers who craved the power of ancient creatures through human experiments also grew fangs and claws."
"As for the prisoners, their strongest desire was to escape the prison camp... They feared bullets, so they longed to become immune to them. They wanted to escape, so they grew fleshy wings, multiple legs, and the like."
"Rembrandt's obsession was immortality. He was bent on refining the nonexistent Elixir of Immortality... At the same time, he felt a deep attachment to his hometown and wanted to benefit the locals."
"Thus, after his death, the locals who drank the lake water by accident were unaffected, while outsiders saw the recipe for the Elixir of Immortality he desired most. Even though it was an imagined, false concoction, they still pursued it madly and performed human sacrifices in an attempt to brew it... And so the Lake God Cult came into being."
Gilan's thoughts turned, and he quickly sorted out most of the clues, piecing them together into a roughly complete picture.
At the same time, he had learned something hidden in the Apocalyptic Dream's flashback: the water of Black Lake had benefits as well as drawbacks... Drinking it could permanently and slightly increase one's Gnosis.
Although Gilan knew little about Gnosis, his instincts told him that this increase wasn't a bad thing... provided one could ignore the Miasma lurking in the water, as well as its mysterious hallucinogenic power.
It's only a movie, anyway. I'll try a few sips before I leave... Hmm, I could also treat this as valuable intelligence and use it to curry favor with the Record Society.
Gilan thought to himself.
*
*
*
He left the cabin, then made another trip to the ruins of the burned-down prison camp.
Unfortunately, everything there had long since been reduced to charcoal, leaving nothing of value to be found... At least the Prisoner Monsters instinctively kept away from that area, so Gilan didn't encounter any fights.
He left, somewhat disappointed, and retraced his steps.
By the time he returned to the Black Lake Inn, it was well past noon, sometime after one in the afternoon.
To Gilan's surprise, Mr. Stork and the others were all injured, gathered in Mr. Oystercatcher's room with worried expressions.
When they saw Gilan return, a glimmer of hope appeared on their faces.
"Mr. Snowy Owl, you're finally back," Mr. Stork said gravely. "Did you find anything new at the library?"
He had several injuries and had wrapped them with makeshift bandages to stop the bleeding.
"For some reason, the Cultists hiding in town went berserk and kept hunting us down. Fortunately, we finally fought our way out."
As he spoke, Mr. Stork shook his head with a sigh.
"At the same time, our thorough investigation confirmed our earlier suspicions. The local Public Security Bureau and Tourism Bureau are both members of the Lake God Cult. Other businesses established by outsiders, such as the television station and the Beverage Factory, are also connected to them."
"Mr. Snowy Owl, you aren't hurt, are you?"
Miss Sparrow noticed that Gilan was covered in blood and asked with concern.
"It's all Cultist blood," Gilan replied, shaking his head.
After a moment's thought, he shared some of the information he had learned:
"There was also an informant for the Lake God Cult at the library, but I took care of him. Fortunately, I found the town's historical yearbook and uncovered some secrets. The reason Black Lake became what it is today was an alchemist named Rembrandt..."
A moment later.
The members of the Record Society stared at Gilan in astonishment.
"You're saying the lake's changes are connected to that alchemist's death?!"
Gilan silently nodded.
Mr. Stork drew a deep breath, then picked up a long, narrow bundle from the table behind him. He peeled away the scraps of cloth covering it, revealing an Old Military Saber with a hemispherical handguard. He studied it thoughtfully and said:
"This is an artifact we seized from the Tourism Bureau. The Lake God Cult seems to value it highly... I suspect this Commander's Saber is connected to the Expeditionary Exploration Team you mentioned."
"Let me see." Gilan took the saber and examined it carefully.
Soon, he spotted the faint engraving of "Dolomite" near the base of the blade.
Gilan's gaze sharpened.
This was the lieutenant colonel's saber. No wonder the Lake God Cult wasn't attacked by those Prisoner Monsters. As long as they carried this Commander's Saber, the monsters would instinctively fear it and wouldn't dare approach!
He considered how to phrase his thoughts, then spoke:
"If I'm right, this saber should have the effect of driving away Demons. We can use it to cross the forest and reach Black Lake safely... Also, I suspect the lake water can increase Gnosis. Since the Elixir of Immortality is fake, perhaps the water itself is the greatest reward we'll get from this viewing!"
"What?!" Mr. Stork and the others exclaimed in shock.
"Mr. Snowy Owl, did you find this information at the library, too?"
Miss Sparrow looked startled and impressed.
"No wonder you risked going to the library to search for clues. It seems you already suspected there was important information there... We're lucky you did; otherwise, who knows how many more times we'd have had to watch this before discovering these crucial details."
"An increase in Gnosis... That's unbelievable!"
Mr. Stork's mouth hung open in amazement.
"As far as I know, one's Gnosis is innate and can't be increased through external means. But if that's really possible, it's certainly a good thing!"
"Gnosis determines a person's perception and understanding of mysterious things. It's one of the most important factors in what constitutes 'talent.' That's what an alchemist I once knew told me... If our Gnosis can be increased, it'll bring us countless benefits in the future!"
He drew a deep breath, rose while leaning on his Steel-core Cane, then removed his hat and nodded to Gilan.
"Thank you very much for this information, Mr. Snowy Owl... Inviting you to join the Record Society was an exceptionally wise decision."