Black Lake

"But..."

Mr. Oystercatcher, bruised and battered, spoke up hesitantly from the side.

"During the last viewing, Miss Sparrow and I both drank the locally produced beverages. They clearly contained water from the lake, so why didn't we undergo any changes?"

"The amount ingested was too small."

Mr. Stork seemed to have some understanding of this and turned to explain.

"Besides, the increase in Gnosis doesn't have very obvious characteristics... No, that's not entirely true. Haven't you noticed that after being injured in the film, the mental lethargy and phantom limb pain in reality recover much faster than usual?"

Mr. Oystercatcher was taken aback.

He and Miss Sparrow exchanged glances and both nodded.

"It seems... that is indeed the case."

"So, the intelligence Mr. Snowy Owl shared with us is most likely true."

Mr. Stork nodded with a smile.

Expectation flickered in his eyes.

Gilan looked at the group, suddenly thought of something, and reminded them:

"Long ago, I felt there was something wrong with the protagonist, Fema Castro. It would be best if everyone confirmed it before we set off."

The four members of the society were slightly stunned, but they immediately caught Gilan's subtext and nodded one after another.

"Indeed, it was Fema who gave us the drinks that caused Miss Sparrow to accidentally fall into the trap. Perhaps her parents were also affected by the Black Lake and became members of the Lake God Cult long ago, or perhaps she is even the mastermind behind the scenes!"

Mr. Stork analyzed in a deep voice.

"It was only because of her status as the protagonist that we subconsciously overlooked this point."

"I don't think so." Miss Seagull frowned slightly, voicing her disagreement. "Fema's family are followers of the Dawn Era; it is unlikely they would abandon their faith to worship some so-called 'Lake God'."

The group fell silent one by one.

If faced with the temptation of immortality, could anyone truly hold fast to an ethereal faith?

It was hard to say.

"We'll know once we check," Gilan said calmly. "We'll lure her away for a moment, then search her room. We might find something."

"Mr. Snowy Owl makes sense."

Mr. Stork immediately expressed his agreement.

"I will find an excuse to ask Fema to go downstairs later, perhaps by asking her to help us buy some medicine for our injuries..."

"Agreed." The others consented.

Mr. Stork put his black top hat back on and walked out of the room, leaning on his Steel-core Cane.

Not long after, he returned and nodded at the group.

The others filed out, quietly made their way through the second-floor corridor, and opened the door to Fema's room.

Everything inside was normal, until Mr. Oystercatcher pulled a palm-sized red student ID from Fema's backpack.

"This?!" He opened it, took a look, and let out a cry of astonishment.

"Did you find something, Mr. Oystercatcher?" The others looked over at the sound.

Mr. Oystercatcher walked over with the document and pointed at it.

"Look at this!"

The group gathered around, fixed their eyes on it, and immediately gasped in shock.

A sense of absurdity welled up in their hearts.

The document clearly stated:

"Fema Castro, female, 19 years old, sophomore in the Department of Archaeology at the University of Michigan, recommended for admission by the Vita Foundation Orphanage."

"An orphan?!" Miss Sparrow exclaimed in surprise.

"She never had any so-called parents. They were merely a product of her imagination after she accidentally bought and drank the beverage produced in Fayelane Town..."

Mr. Stork instantly grasped the main thread of the story.

"Because her inner longing for parental love surpassed her desire for the Elixir of Immortality, she embarked on an absurd journey to find her family."

*

*

*

Carrying the truth, the group went downstairs with heavy hearts.

"Is everyone feeling better?"

Fema walked over holding gauze and anti-inflammatory medicine, looking at them with concern.

"It's all my fault for making you come here with me. I didn't expect the public security in Fayelane to be so poor, that there would be so many thugs who would beat you all up."

They exchanged glances, sighing inwardly.

Looking at Fima, who remained completely oblivious and filled with indignation, they could only feel that she was incredibly pitiful.

Because according to the progression of the film, this young student, who had no family to turn to, would ultimately die in that forest or on the shores of Black Lake while searching for her "parents."

"They are just superficial wounds, it's nothing," Mr. Stork said with a smile. "Finding your parents is more important. Without further ado, let's set off."

"But..." Fima's expression was filled with worry.

Miss Seagull pulled her into an embrace, comforting her as she led her out of the inn.

The others nodded at each other and followed them out.

They traveled to Forest Park by public carriage once again, but as they passed the exhibition hall at the entrance, Gilan made an excuse to temporarily leave the group, promising to catch up soon.

He watched the members of the Record Society walk ahead, then turned back to the glass display case of the "Mammoth Specimen," looking up at the massive skeleton.

Gilan now knew that this was not a mammoth specimen at all, but Lieutenant Colonel Dolomite of the "Expeditionary Exploration Team"!

It was a monster mutated from his inner obsession after being corrupted by Black Lake!

Although I don't know how he died, that doesn't stop me from corrupting him...

Gilan thought to himself, then raised his leg and kicked.

BANG—CRASH!!

Amidst the loud noise, glass shards scattered across the floor, giving the staff a terrible fright. Seeing that familiar, blood-stained figure, they felt nothing but terror and anger.

What on earth is the Public Security Bureau doing?!

It's been several hours since the police were called, yet this lunatic hasn't been caught, and now he's back?!

My god! He's actually stroking the mammoth skeleton with a strange grin on his face?!

Madman! Pervert!!

But none of the staff dared to speak up to stop him, only cursing him in their hearts. Because the madman was holding a gleaming short-barreled revolver, its dark muzzle pointed directly at their position.

They dared not gamble their lives on whether that gun was real or fake, nor did they dare to bet on whether it was loaded, and certainly not on whether their brains would be blown out if they made a sound.

Gilan ignored the staff.

He watched as the skeleton specimen decayed and drifted away, a smile curling his lips.

The colorful numbers in the corner of his vision jumped from "25" to "35."

To have "10" points of Mystic Energy even after being dead for so long shows just how powerful the monster the Lieutenant Colonel mutated into was. It's no wonder even his skeleton could exert such pressure on me... If he were still alive, I fear I would be no match for him.

Gilan thought to himself.

Soon, he pulled his thoughts back and walked past the group of staff members with a smile on his face.

However, Gilan's smile did not make them feel he was being friendly; instead, it only made them feel cold all over, their hair standing on end... they were terrified that this unstable man might fire a shot at them and then run off laughing.

"Do you have a cigarette?" Gilan suddenly asked a male staff member.

The man froze on the spot, letting out an "ah."

Not long after.

Miss Sparrow and the others saw Mr. Snowy Owl catching up from behind, a cigarette in his mouth and a revolver in his hand, looking to be in quite a good mood.