Chapter Summaries

Raphael and Xio survived a deadly fight with Feysac Beyonders, but both were badly injured and exhausted. They escaped into the hills to recover, while Raphael warned Xio that their pursuers might soon track them down.

• Raphael killed the Reapers and Conspirers attacking him and Xio, then defeated the remaining Pyromaniacs as the Iron-Blooded Knight fled with another Reaper.
• Raphael used Soothing and a Damage Transfer Mystical Item to save Xio from her fatal injury, and they spoke about Xio's feelings for him.
• Raphael gave Pain the corpses and handed Xio a Reaper characteristic, then explained that they needed to hide from the Feysac Beyonders pursuing them.
• Raphael's Main Account concealed their supernatural traces, and Raphael and Xio fled to a secluded cave in the hills.
• Xio prepared to find food, and Raphael lent her Creeping Hunger while asking her to keep the injured man in the cave safe.

Raphael and Xio were cornered by a Demon Hunter and an Iron-Blooded Knight, then faced the God of Combat's phantom and a Feysac Angel. Raphael invoked the Evernight Goddess to make the God of Combat reconsider the war, and the Demon Hunter withdrew after receiving a divine revelation.

• Xio carried Raphael from the cave as the Demon Hunter and Iron-Blooded Knight closed in, but the pair refused to negotiate and attacked.
• The Lord of Evil Desires appeared to help Raphael, while the God of Combat's phantom and Feysac's supreme military commander, Snarner Einhorn, arrived in response to prayers.
• The Iron-Blooded Knight held off Raphael's phantoms, and the Demon Hunter attacked Raphael as Erlin emerged from the Spirit World and the God of Combat's phantom struck at him and the Many-Eyed Monster.
• The Demon Hunter stabbed Raphael and kicked Xio away, but Raphael urged the God of Combat to question whether the Evernight Goddess had ever lost a war.
• The God of Combat's twilight light enveloped Raphael and the Demon Hunter, who received a divine revelation and withdrew, leaving Raphael believing his gamble had worked.

Raphael and Xio survived the demigods’ attack, recovered together in the wilderness, and grew closer before returning to Backlund. After delivering Giles’s head to MI9, Raphael began carrying out his plan to deter the agency by targeting Dewinter.

• Raphael told the God of Combat that the Evernight Goddess had used a hidden teleportation array to visit the Forsaken Land of the Gods, and the God of Combat agreed to arrange future contact.
• After the demigods left, Raphael transferred Xio’s injuries to her arm, and she helped treat his wounds before they hid in a mountain cave to recover.
• Raphael and Xio spent several days resting together, discussed their hopes for life after the war, and kissed before setting out for Backlund.
• Raphael and Xio returned to MI9 and handed Giles’s head to Dewinter, but Raphael refused to explain how he had carried out the assassination.
• As Dewinter’s carriage entered a quiet street, Raphael appeared outside with murderous intent, ready to kill him and take MI9 by surprise.

Raphael killed Dewinter, MI9’s deputy director, and took his Sealed Artifact and Beyonder characteristic. He then began organizing a hunt for Erlin, securing Sharron’s participation while negotiating how they would divide the spoils.

• Raphael ambushed Dewinter in Backlund, used the Curse Crystal to cripple him, and had the Eye of Illusions projection kill him and cleave his soul in two.
• Raphael took Dewinter’s Beyonder characteristic and Grade 2 Sealed Artifact, then escaped through the Dark Hut as Official Beyonders investigated the scene.
• Raphael decided to move villas and planned to use his remaining Curse Crystal charge against Erlin or the Many-Eyed Monster so he could resolve his Spirit World problem and regain his Traveler ability.
• Raphael asked Sharron to join a hunt for Erlin and Audrey to help deal with a Silent Disciple; Audrey agreed, and Sharron later arrived to discuss the plan.
• Sharron agreed to participate after Raphael proposed that she could claim Erlin’s characteristic if his suspected connection to the Mother Tree of Desire proved false, but would need to compensate the other Saints if it was confirmed.

Raphael began his operation against Erlin and the Many-Eyed Monster, using his Main Account to block Erlin’s cursing powers. The battle escalated when the Many-Eyed Monster arrived, and Raphael prepared to use his final Curse Crystal shot against it.

• Raphael told Xio he had killed Dewinter, and Xio discussed her arrangement with him and her complicated feelings with Fors.
• Raphael traveled to the Balchis Mountains and waited for Erlin, who cautiously emerged from the Spirit World.
• Raphael summoned Sharron, while his Main Account prevented Erlin from using his cursing and injury-transfer abilities.
• The Many-Eyed Monster appeared and aroused Sharron’s desire; she changed targets to attack it as the Eye of Illusions struck Erlin.
• Pain and Audrey arrived to help Sharron, and Raphael felt someone seize his desire to kill.

Raphael avoided the Demon’s attack and watched Larion kill the Many-Eyed Monster, then joined Audrey, Pain, and Sharron in fighting Erlin. When Erlin revealed the Mother Tree of Desire’s attack, Raphael was gruesomely overwhelmed but managed to curse the Great Old One, leaving it stunned and wondering how he could still speak.

• Larion dragged the Many-Eyed Monster into the Spirit World and killed it, taking a piece of its flesh before leaving.
• Raphael used Traveler to evade the Demon, who fled, and the Saints resumed their fight against Erlin.
• Pain restrained Erlin with shadows, Audrey struck his mind with Mind Breath, and the Eye of Illusions’ projection drove a Magma Greatsword into his chest.
• Erlin began transforming and spoke a message from the Mother Tree of Desire that caused Raphael to see visions and suffer catastrophic injuries.
• Audrey and Sharron tried to protect Raphael, while his Main Account lost contact with him inside an illusory space.
• Raphael cursed the Mother Tree of Desire, which froze in surprise when he remained able to speak.

Raphael survived the Mother Tree of Desire’s ambush after using the Curse Crystal to kill Erlin, though his body was left in a corpse-like state. The Oldest One restored him, and Raphael concealed the unfamiliar power that had helped him withstand the attack while planning to advance to Desire Apostle.

• Raphael used the Curse Crystal to destroy Erlin, then collapsed as the crystal broke apart.
• The Main Account offered Erlin’s characteristic to the Lord of Evil Desires, while Pain purified Erlin’s corrupted remains and Sharron left.
• Audrey took Raphael home and discovered that he had no breath or heartbeat, while Raphael encountered unfamiliar memories and the Oldest One within his mind.
• Raphael told the Oldest One that the Mother Tree of Desire had ambushed him, but hid the warm power he had felt during the attack.
• The Oldest One restored Raphael, who then decided to advance to Desire Apostle despite the risk of becoming deranged again.

Audrey asked Raphael to investigate a series of disappearances, then shared details of Raphael’s battle with Erlin at the Tarot Club. The members discussed the hidden dangers behind the fight, and Xio revealed that she had been present when the God of Combat marked the monster.

• Audrey asked Raphael to investigate her missing cousin’s disappearance and the other vanishings, and Raphael agreed.
• Audrey dreamed of terrifying presences watching Raphael during the battle and realized that her spirituality had sensed a struggle beyond the Angel level.
• At the Tarot Club, Audrey told Leonard that Raphael would investigate the disappearances and reported the battle, Raphael’s injuries, and her dream.
• Alger and The World suggested that Erlin had been influenced by an outer deity, and Audrey said the Church of the God of Combat had sent an Angel to kill the marked monster.
• Xio said she thought she had been present when the God of Combat marked the monster.

At the Tarot Club, Xio recounted the recent conflict, and the members discussed a suspected Beyonder murderer, the war, and Backlund’s grain shortage. Raphael then negotiated with Sharron over Erlin’s corrupted characteristic and the Demon Source Scripture, leaving the Silent Disciple characteristic in his possession while Sharron agreed to prepare a Marionette ritual for him.

• Xio described the confrontation involving the God of Combat’s phantom, a Weather Warlock, the Lord of Evil Desires, Erlin, and the Many-Eyed Monster, while concealing Raphael’s role in killing Saints.
• The Tarot Club discussed the murders at Viscount Jeremy’s ball, and Leonard suspected a Desire Apostle might be responsible, possibly with help from the Demon seen near Raphael.
• The members discussed falling grain prices and continued high bread prices before ending the meeting; afterward, Audrey decided to ask Raphael about a possible solution.
• Raphael showed Sharron Erlin’s corrupted Silent Disciple characteristic and offered to resolve its corruption in exchange for the Marionette characteristic within it.
• Sharron recognized that Raphael intended to keep the Silent Disciple characteristic and proposed waiting until he reached Sequence 3 to help her hunt another one.
• Raphael said the payment for their separate Demon Source Scripture transaction would be for Sharron to prepare a Marionette ritual, and she agreed.

Raphael failed to remove the Mother Tree of Desire’s corruption from the Silent Disciple characteristic, so he sealed it away until he advanced. Later, he met Audrey to discuss grain prices and persuaded her to accept morally complicated measures, leaving her to reconsider what justice meant.

• Raphael tried to use the Dark Hut to extract corruption from the Silent Disciple characteristic, but its power was insufficient, so he sealed the characteristic away.
• Raphael arranged to meet Audrey at an abandoned, supposedly haunted manor and asked her to find out who owned it because he wanted to buy it.
• After Audrey explained how greedy grain merchants had manipulated prices, Raphael decided to give the serial killer a reason to continue targeting them.
• Raphael suggested the murderer was connected to a Demon near Backlund, and Audrey recognized the connection from the Tarot Club’s discussion.
• When Audrey worried she had become an accomplice, Raphael argued that moral judgments depended on perspective, and he felt his Devil potion begin to digest.

Raphael used Audrey to test a moral approach to digesting his potion, then took Brook to confront grain merchant Belon about the powerful figures behind the grain scheme. Brook spared Belon after learning their names and attacked Earl Leonardus, leaving the outcome of the confrontation uncertain.

• Raphael discussed flexible morality with Audrey, but failed to digest more of his potion; they agreed to investigate the disappearances in three days.
• Raphael used Traveler to return to his apartment, picked up Brook, and took the puppet to Belon’s home.
• Brook revealed to Belon that it had killed his father and demanded the names of those backing the grain merchants.
• Belon named Earl Leonard, Earl Vera, Duke Hansen, Alon Burke, and Sanders, and Brook vanished without killing him.
• The next morning, Brook emerged from a mirror and strangled Leonardus while two girls watched.

Raphael killed Earl Leonardus and left a message naming the people backing the grain merchants, while Leonard Mitchell investigated the scene under pressure from Duke Negan. Raphael’s Wraith and Devil potions showed signs of digestion, and he confirmed to Audrey that he had killed the earl as they prepared to investigate a disappearance case.

• Raphael’s Wraith killed Earl Leonardus by cutting his throat and genitals, then painted a devil carrying away a man and wrote the names of the grain merchants’ backers and the word “lust.”
• The two women at the scene recovered enough to call for help, and Leonardus’s bodyguards and family discovered that he had died.
• Leonard Mitchell investigated the disturbed crime scene, concluded that a Wraith was responsible, and suspected the killing was a copycat case.
• Duke Negan confronted Leonard and threatened to report the crime to the king, while Leonard pointed out the abuses suggested by the women found at the earl’s home.
• Raphael moved into a new villa, noticed that his Wraith and Devil potions were digesting, and summoned Wagner to manage the Aurora Order’s affairs.
• Raphael met Audrey to investigate a disappearance case, and Audrey asked whether he had killed Earl Leonardus; Raphael admitted that he had.

Raphael and Audrey investigated mysterious ruins near Backlund where people had recently disappeared, only to discover that the building was extraordinarily hard to damage and faintly glowed with a strange light. Raphael uncovered unfamiliar letters on its reinforcing steel, leaving them with a new clue to pursue.

• Raphael admitted that he had committed a copycat crime to draw the real killer's attention, and Audrey mistook his motive for helping restore Backlund's food supply.
• Audrey and Raphael explored the ruins near a village to investigate whether destroying the building would be dangerous.
• Raphael clawed at a wall but could remove only plaster, revealing an exceptionally hard inner layer that even his enhanced hands could not penetrate.
• Raphael consulted his Main Account and saw that the building was enveloped in a hazy, multicolored glow, so he and Audrey decided to search for other clues instead of trying to destroy it.
• Raphael uncovered letters on reinforcing steel in a decayed section of the first floor and called Audrey over when he realized they belonged to no alphabet used on the Southern and Northern Continents.

Raphael and Audrey were transported from a ruined building near Backlund to Chernobyl in the Forsaken Land of the Gods, where Raphael discovered a link to the Chaos Sea. Meanwhile, Klein approached Sorn City as a missionary of Mr. Fool and learned that its people worshipped the Lord of Evil Desires.

• Raphael noticed that the ruined building’s walls had restored themselves and exposed more of their glowing surfaces, triggering a hidden mechanism.
• Raphael found himself in a concealed domain under a crimson moon, then was transported to a dark square in the Forsaken Land of the Gods, where he reunited with Audrey.
• Klein sent a projection of himself toward Sorn City, where Speaker Dohaden Hawk met him outside the locked city gates.
• Klein told Dohaden that he had come to spread the glory of Mr. Fool, and learned that Sorn City worshipped the Lord of Evil Desires.
• Raphael’s Main Account identified their location as Chernobyl, leading him to realize that the buildings had been affected by the Chaos Sea and that a teleportation array connected the site to Backlund.

Raphael and Audrey explored the Forsaken Land of the Gods, where living oil beguiled them and dragged Audrey into an Abyss entrance before the Lord of Evil Desires rescued her. Raphael then hunted an Abyss One-Eyed Spectral Shadow with Audrey’s help, and the chapter ended as she manipulated it into climbing back toward them.

• Raphael and Audrey left Chernobyl to explore the Forsaken Land of the Gods and saw ruins Raphael said had existed since the First Epoch, where the Ancient Sun God had awakened.
• Black liquid erupted around Raphael and Audrey, formed a ring, and attacked them with piercing whispers and a seductive voice.
• The oil beguiled Raphael and Audrey, and Audrey fell into it before the Lord of Evil Desires helped the Eye of Illusions’ projection pull her out of the Abyss entrance.
• The Lord of Evil Desires revealed an Abyss One-Eyed Spectral Shadow, and Raphael enlisted Audrey to help him hunt it for a Marionette ingredient.
• Audrey used Mind Deprivation and then manipulated the spectral shadow into climbing back up the Abyss wall as Raphael and the Eye of Illusions’ projection pursued it.

Raphael and Audrey killed an unusually powerful Abyss One-Eyed Spectral Shadow and acquired the main ingredient for advancing to Marionette, then traveled to Sorn City. There, Klein realized that the Lord of Evil Desires might have a foothold on the Western Continent, just as Raphael and Audrey arrived at the city’s fortress.

• Audrey and Raphael restrained the Spectral Shadow with Mind Deprivation while the Eye of Illusions and the Lord of Evil Desires attacked its spirit body, killing it.
• Raphael discovered that the Spectral Shadow carried the main ingredients for both Marionette and Demon and explained why it had survived at the Abyss’s entrance.
• Raphael and Audrey left the Abyss and traveled to a mountain overlooking Sorn City, where Raphael noticed an acquaintance at a nearby fortress.
• Klein questioned High Priest Zed about the Lord of Evil Desires’ influence and learned that the Dark Hut Disciples’ appearance and clothing seemed connected to a Western Continent population.
• Klein suspected that the Lord of Evil Desires had a foothold on the Western Continent, and Zed hurried out to greet Raphael and Audrey as the Oracle arrived.

Raphael and Audrey met Klein in Sorn City, where the two Oracles exchanged information and agreed to fight the city’s enemies together. After Raphael warned Audrey about a dangerous hidden world, he took her to Bayam to try its grilled fish.

• Raphael arrived in Sorn City and greeted Klein, who asked whether the Lord of Evil Desires had contacted the Western Continent.
• Raphael shared information about the Western Continent and asked Klein to join a coming war against the followers of Outer Deities; Klein agreed and gave Sorn City food-producing mushrooms.
• Raphael showed Audrey the suffering residents of Sorn City, and she volunteered to fight alongside them; he advised the city to prepare an elite squad and strengthen its Beyonders.
• Raphael and Audrey returned to the Lord of Evil Desires' divine kingdom, then traveled to Backlund using a homeless man's recitation of the God's honorific name.
• Raphael warned Audrey that the ruins' teleportation array lay inside a hidden world and should not be explored again before she became an Angel.
• Audrey invited Raphael to lunch, and he took her to Bayam to eat grilled fish.

Raphael discussed culture and politics with Audrey, then continued his murders and killed Speaker Sanders despite Earl Howard’s attempt to capture him. He escaped detection and returned to Sanders’s home, ending the string of serial murders.

• Raphael and Audrey discussed the Western Continent’s culture, class relations, and the proposed Rorsted Parliament over a long meal.
• Raphael considered how provoking Audrey to defy convention might help digest his Devil potion, then assassinated a nobleman manipulating grain prices and Minister of Agriculture Alon Burke.
• Raphael infiltrated the House of Commons to kill Sanders, but Earl Howard recognized him and used Deprivation and Restraint against him.
• Raphael transformed into a Devil, trapped Howard with Damage Reflection, killed Sanders with a Magma Greatsword, and escaped through the Spirit World.
• Raphael evaded Howard’s pursuit, returned to Sanders’s home, and painted a Devil mural in the Speaker’s study.

Raphael planned his ritual to advance to Desire Apostle and learned how to alter its organ-eating requirement from the Oldest One. At the Tarot Club, the members discussed Loen’s worsening military position and the effect of the serial murders on grain prices.

• Howard left Sanders's study after inspecting the killer's mural and concluded that the investigation was over.
• Raphael discussed the Desire Apostle ritual with the Oldest One, who explained its purpose and suggested feeding each victim's organs to the next victim before devouring the final victim's spirit body.
• Raphael approved of the alternative ritual method and began planning for its psychological effects.
• Audrey received Raphael's permission to share information about Sorn City with trusted people and hoped to interest Madam Hermit in the operation.
• At the Tarot Club, Xio and Alger described Loen's setbacks on land and at sea, and Cattleya predicted the war might end before the new year.
• Leonard reported that the serial murders had finally brought grain prices down.

At the Tarot Club, Leonard, Audrey, and the others discussed the grain-price serial murders and Raphael’s role in helping the killer target corrupt political figures. Audrey then described her and Raphael’s investigation of strange ruins, leading Klein to connect them to Chernobyl, the Chaos Sea, and the Abyss.

• Leonard explained that the killer’s murders had forced powerful grain manipulators to sell their stores, bringing bread prices back down.
• Audrey revealed that Raphael had identified hidden political figures for the killer and committed a copycat murder, prompting her to reconsider him as a person with a strong sense of justice.
• Xio said she had quietly delayed MI9’s investigation into Raphael while the agency focused on catching spies.
• Leonard shared official theories that the killer was conducting a ritual and said a copycat murder would likely complete it without requiring another killing.
• Audrey recounted how she and Raphael had encountered indestructible ruins and an Abyss entrance, and said Raphael told her the Ancient Sun God had awakened there.
• Klein connected the ruins to Chernobyl and the Chaos Sea, and considered what the Abyss and the apparent life in petroleum revealed about the world.