Chapter Summaries

Neph explored Tracy’s ship, the Black Death, while considering whether to help Helene escape and examining the ship’s Beyonders. She warned Klein to keep her pathway secret, leaving its nature unexplained.

• Neph reasoned that the Church of Storms’ investigation could connect her to the Bansy Harbor incident and decided to focus on the Black Death.
• Neph found Helene locked in Tracy’s room and considered helping her escape, but chose to wait until Tracy returned.
• Neph discovered that Laila, a Sequence 6 Calamity Priest, had joined Tracy’s crew after surviving the destruction of several pirate fleets.
• Neph prayed to Klein, praised his response to the investigation, and warned him never to reveal her pathway.

Neph followed Tracy to her room and watched her spend the evening caring for the imprisoned Helene. After reading Helene’s romance novel about a captive woman and a ship’s captain, Neph recognized the story as Stockholm syndrome.

• Neph followed Tracy into the room where she had imprisoned Helene and watched them share dinner.
• Tracy told Helene about her day, then invited her to bathe together, but Helene refused and Tracy bathed alone.
• Helene read Tracy a story before they both fell asleep.
• Neph read the book, which told of a young woman abducted at sea who fell in love with the captain who kept her captive.
• Neph returned the book and murmured that the story was clearly Stockholm syndrome.

At a Tarot Club meeting, Neph explained her interest in Tracy and revealed that her Sequence 4 advancement ritual involved the former owner of the Blank Canvas and a revelation linking the ritual to Tracy. After the meeting, she told Klein she was aboard the Black Death and planned to help Helene escape so he could use Helene’s identity to get aboard.

• Neph startled awake at the Tarot Club meeting and explained that she had stayed up reading a romance novel about captivity and Stockholm syndrome.
• Neph asked the Tarot Club members to stop looking for leads on Tracy, while Cattleya warned her that Tracy helped the Demoness Sect traffic people.
• Cattleya asked permission to tell an acquaintance with Roselle’s Diary pages about the gathering, and Mr. Fool agreed on the condition that she reveal no meeting details or participant information.
• After the meeting, Neph told Klein that Ouroboros had revealed her advancement ritual was at sea and connected to Tracy, and that she was still searching for clues.
• Neph told Klein she planned to free Helene and suggested that he use Helene’s identity to sneak aboard the Black Death, then asked whether he would consider Grazing a Demoness.

Neph discussed Tracy, Kalvetua, and the dangers of mythical creature forms with Klein before settling aboard the Black Death, while Cattleya considered asking the Tarot Club for help advancing. Frank Lee showed Cattleya his experimental wheat grown inside a fish, and she suggested he consult Neph about improving it for the City of Silver.

• Neph told Klein that once she became a demigod, he could impersonate Helene to board the Black Death and assassinate Tracy, but they worried that Helene might be discovered missing.
• Neph explained that Kalvetua was a Sequence 3 Sea King drawn to Klein by Sefirah Castle's aura, and clarified that directly viewing a mythical creature form caused corruption.
• Neph asked Klein to buy her bedding, then returned it to Helene's room after spending the night aboard the Black Death.
• Cattleya sent Bernadette a letter about Mr. Fool and considered asking Neph for mythical creature blood to help her advance to Sequence 4.
• Frank showed Cattleya wheat grown from a fish's flesh and blood and described his plans to make it safe for food grown on monster corpses.
• Cattleya suggested that Frank ask Neph for advice and share his research results with her.

Neph handled Frank Lee’s prayer and received his letter and samples, then observed Tracy as she slept and witnessed memories of Tracy’s childhood. Tracy’s memories revealed her father’s transformation, her flight to sea, and her reunion with Katarina Pelle, who introduced her to the Assassin pathway.

• Neph answered Frank Lee’s prayer with research advice, warned him away from the Primordial Moon’s followers, and arranged for him to send his samples through Cattleya.
• Cattleya asked Klein whether she should tell Frank that Mr. Moon was the Sanguine she knew, and Klein offered to pass Neph Frank’s letter and samples along with her bedding.
• Neph paid Klein, froze Frank’s samples, and read his letter saying he had finished digesting his potion and wanted to advance.
• Neph noticed Laila repeatedly appearing near her aboard the Black Death, then found Tracy resting with Helene in the captain’s cabin.
• Tracy’s memories showed that her father became a woman when Tracy was eight, and that a disturbing night later drove Tracy to flee and end up at sea.
• Katarina Pelle reunited with Tracy, sympathized with her, introduced her to the Beyonder world, and guided her into drinking the Sequence 9 Assassin potion.

Neph searched Tracy’s memories but found no clues to her advancement ritual, then warned Klein that Kalvetua was about to die and asked him not to disturb her sleep. After Klein confirmed Kalvetua’s death, Neph met him in Sefirah Castle and explained the origins of the Book of Calamities and the Sea God Scepter, leaving Klein with a possible way to automate its prayer responses and news that Danitz’s price had risen again.

• Neph found no clues to her advancement ritual in Tracy’s memories and considered divining Tracy’s death after resting.
• Neph prayed to Klein to warn him that Kalvetua was about to die and asked him not to disturb her for ten hours.
• Klein confirmed through divination that Kalvetua was completely dead and found that exploring the hiding place carried manageable danger.
• Neph told Klein that the Book of Calamities and Kalvetua’s Sea God Scepter contained Beyonder characteristics split from Calamity Queen Cohinem.
• Neph suggested that Arrodes could answer prayers automatically, or Klein could become a Sequence 2 Angel, and told him Danitz’s price had gone up again.

Klein showed Neph a mural that led them to speculate about the identities and origins of the Ancient Sun God and Elf King, then Neph teased him by reciting commandments for his Sea God persona. After divining Tracy’s memories, Neph discovered a Memory Corridor ability and wondered why Tracy had encountered the mysterious labyrinth.

• Neph guessed that the mural’s white-robed figure resembled a combination of Amon and Adam, and speculated that his name might be Adamon.
• Neph recited ten commandments to tease Klein about acting as the Sea God, so Klein severed her connection to Sefirah Castle.
• Back in the real world, Neph wondered whether her Lord watched or had prophesied her, then entered a dream to divine Tracy’s death.
• Neph saw Tracy walking through a vast white labyrinth whose walls displayed her memories, and she awoke covered in real ice.
• Neph read that her Sequence 3 Memory Corridor ability could strip memories from anyone passing through it, then questioned where Tracy had encountered the labyrinth and whether another demoness was involved.

Neph secretly boarded Tracy’s ship, where Tracy’s strange experiences and vivid dream made her suspect an unseen intruder was targeting her, the Demoness Sect, or Medici. Arrodes helped Klein search for a Marauder-pathway Mystical Item, while Ouroboros warned Neph that Tracy had contacted Katarina and that Medici had wanted to visit her.

• Tracy told Helene that she felt someone had moved her belongings and described reliving her memories in a vivid dream, then teased Helene about escaping and proposed a new game.
• Klein questioned Arrodes through the Wireless Telegraph, and the mirror listed several possible sources for a Marauder-pathway Mystical Item, including Tingen’s Chanis Gate and Leonard Mitchell.
• Tracy contacted Katarina through a mirror and reported the signs of an invisible presence aboard her ship; Katarina suspected the intruder’s target might extend beyond Tracy to the organization or herself.
• Katarina said she would visit Tracy, while Ouroboros told Neph that Tracy had contacted Medici and that he had stopped Medici from going to see her.

Neph learned that Tracy could be killed and planned to have Klein impersonate her, while discussing the risks and preparations with him. She also directed Klein toward Leonard and Pallez as a possible source of a Marauder-pathway item, leaving Klein baffled by Neph’s plans to obtain a Traveler herself.

• Neph asked Ouroboros whether Tracy could be killed, and he warned that a replica had to resemble more than just its appearance.
• Neph told Klein they could kill Tracy and asked him to impersonate her, then considered using Helene to distract Tracy.
• Klein told Neph that Arrodes had become his Wireless Telegraph and asked why Danitz liked Edwina.
• Neph explained that Klein needed a Sequence 6 Marauder item that could steal abilities and cautioned him against traveling to the War of the Gods Ruins as Tracy.
• Neph identified Pallez as the Archangel attached to Leonard and suggested that Emlyn look for Leonard at 7 Pinsters Street.
• Neph considered asking her Lord to find a Traveler for her to kill, leaving Klein stunned when she insisted she should do the killing herself.

Neph spoke with Medici aboard the Black Death, then advised Klein on choosing a messenger before Cattleya prayed to the Fool for relief from the Hidden Sage. The chapter ended with Klein saving Cattleya and Neph reminding her that he had recently killed a fraudster with lightning.

• Neph encountered Medici in Tracy's cabin, and he said he had wanted to meet her because Amon had mentioned her.
• Neph refused to tell Medici what she had said to a paranoid figure, and Medici revealed that Ouroboros had kept him away because the Lord did not want Neph meeting too many high-level beings too soon.
• Klein told Neph that Mr. Azik had offered two ways to obtain a messenger, and Neph advised him to use the simpler summoning ritual.
• Klein struck Edshiran with the Sea God Scepter after learning that he had used the Fool's honorific name to swindle people.
• Cattleya prayed to the Fool while the Hidden Sage's knowledge threatened to overwhelm her, and Klein brought her to Sefirah Castle and relieved her pain.
• Neph warned Cattleya that the merciful Mr. Fool had just killed a fraudster with lightning for misusing his name.

Neph explained why the Hidden Sage pursued Cattleya and planned to help Helene escape the Black Death so she could impersonate Katarina and guide Tracy toward the Memory Corridor. She met Mr. Azik, told him he had been the Death Archon of the Balam Empire, and secured his help freeing Helene.

• Neph explained that the Hidden Sage was the corrupted Uniqueness of the Hermit Pathway and warned Klein that rare, truthful knowledge could attract his attention.
• Neph planned to disguise herself as Katarina and get Helene off the Black Death, while Klein sent Mr. Azik a letter about Neph.
• Neph secretly contacted Helene by inserting a conversation into her memory, and Helene agreed to escape despite the danger.
• Mr. Azik arrived to meet Neph, who told him he had once been the Death Archon of the Balam Empire before suffering an unknown injury.
• Neph asked Mr. Azik to help her free Helene, and he agreed.

Neph helped Azik release Helene from the Black Death, then sent the True Creator information about the Death God Uniqueness and met Klein to discuss Tracy, his messenger, and the Tarot Club. The chapter ended with Alger agreeing to obtain the Sanguine Baron's legacy for Emlyn within a week.

• Neph and Azik helped Helene escape the Black Death by dinghy, and Neph sent the True Creator details about the Artificial God of Death and the keys to Salinger's mausoleum.
• Tracy tightened controls aboard the Black Death after Helene disappeared, prompting Neph to use ice dishes and pick locks to evade scrutiny.
• Klein's messenger Reinette Tinekerr delivered a letter to Neph, who told Klein that Reinette was an angel and explained her need for gold coins as a qualification.
• Neph told Klein to prepare to assassinate Tracy and offered detailed information about Helene so he could disguise himself, but Klein refused some of her more intimate records.
• At the Tarot Club, Neph asked Cattleya to seek access to the original Roselle's Diary pages, and Alger agreed to obtain the Sanguine Baron's legacy for Emlyn for 4,500 pounds within a week.

Neph revealed that she came from the Western Continent and explained how it connected to the Forsaken Land of the Gods and the Sonia Sea. The Tarot Club completed several trades and searches, then Audrey asked Neph to tell them more about the Western Continent.

• Emlyn negotiated the price of his dolls with Alger, while Neph offered Derrick a trade for the Druid potion formula and Cattleya offered a Fruit of the Radiant Spirit Tree for information.
• Cattleya suspected Neph came from the Forsaken Land of the Gods, and Neph explained that she came from the Western Continent and described the routes through the grayish-white fog barrier and the War of the Gods Ruins.
• Derrick traded the City of Silver's history to Cattleya and promised to prepare a list of nearby monsters for a future transaction.
• Audrey agreed to buy the Psychiatrist characteristic from the World, while Neph offered her a Zombie characteristic that could later be made into a Mystical Item.
• Alger asked the club to search for the Ocean Songster potion formula, and the World requested the eyes of a Six-Winged Gargoyle.
• Audrey asked Neph to tell them about the Western Continent, and Neph's smile faded.

At the Tarot Club, Neph and the others discussed the Western Continent, Kalvetua, and Audrey’s exploration of the Sea of Collective Subconscious. Emlyn provoked Neph by questioning her connection to the Ancient Sun God and insulting her Lord, so she froze him before the gathering ended.

• Neph told Audrey that she came from the Western Continent several thousand years ago and did not know what it was like now.
• Alger recounted how Laticia’s discovery of the Ancient Elven Ruins led Kalvetua to threaten the Rorsted Archipelago, and Klein said Kalvetua had become a demigod through a relic left by Calamity Cohinem.
• Audrey described entering the Sea of Collective Subconscious and seeing a high-Sequence dragon, then asked whether Liveseyd was hidden there.
• Neph, Alger, and Cattleya warned Audrey against exploring the Sea too deeply without Mr. Fool’s protection, and Neph suggested asking him for help.
• Emlyn challenged Derrick’s account of the City of Silver and questioned Neph about her ties to the White Angel and the Ancient Sun God.
• Neph froze Emlyn in ice after he claimed Lilith was older than the Ancient Sun God, then apologized to Mr. Fool, who ended the gathering.

Neph explained what she knew about Lilith, Herabergen, and the Western Continent, then asked Klein to negotiate for Groselle's Travels. Klein learned that Admiral of Blood had sailed away and accepted Vice Admiral Iceberg's invitation to meet in Gragas, while Neph prepared to impersonate Katarina in Tracy's memories.

• Neph told Klein that Herabergen was the Dragon of Betrayal and shared her limited knowledge of the Western Continent, then asked him to negotiate with Edwina for Groselle's Travels.
• Klein returned to the real world, found Danitz asleep, and learned Admiral of Blood's fleet had sailed south toward the Berserk Sea.
• Klein gave Danitz his messenger's summoning method and let him return to the Golden Dream.
• Danitz relayed the captain's invitation for Klein to meet her in Gragas, and Klein accepted.
• Neph altered Tracy's memories to make Katarina appear as herself, then Tracy returned to her cabin and found Katarina waiting there.

Tracy learned that her mother had let Helene go, then ordered the Black Death to sail to shore so she could post a bounty for Helene. Meanwhile, Klein met Edwina aboard the Golden Dream, where she questioned him about Kalvetua and offered him a paid commission for a giant's Whip Key.

• Neph told Tracy that Helene had been released and urged her to endure suffering so she could become a Demigod.
• Tracy asked Laila about the Black Death, ordered the ship to shore, and told Mithor King to accompany her to post a bounty for Helene.
• Neph warned Tracy to hurry back, and Tracy returned to the Black Death that night, planning to investigate Neph and rescue Helene.
• Klein arrived aboard the Golden Dream and met Edwina, who questioned his identity and his connection to Kalvetua.
• Klein explained that his glove was Creeping Hunger, and Edwina offered him 5,000 pounds to obtain the giant's Whip Key.

Klein traded Neph’s knowledge about Groselle’s Travels to Edwina for the book and secured her agreement to reserve Death’s Key for him. After reading Neph’s letter about the travelogue’s dangers and origins, Edwina realized its greeting referred to the Dragon of Wisdom, while Neph prepared to send the book into the Pure White Space.

• Klein asked Edwina about Groselle’s Travels, examined the book, and warned her that it was dangerous for her to possess.
• Edwina agreed to exchange Groselle’s Travels for knowledge from Klein’s friend and reserved Death’s Key for him.
• Neph told Klein that the knowledge concerned an ancient god, described Tracy’s actions aboard the Black Death, and asked when he would disguise himself as Helene to surprise her.
• Edwina questioned Klein about the Aurora Order, then accepted the envelope of knowledge and handed him Groselle’s Travels.
• Edwina read Neph’s letter explaining that the book could draw its owner into an unfinished quest and that it contained Ankewelt’s imagined world and a contingency for resurrection.
• Neph considered the implications of her message to Edwina and prepared to send Groselle’s Travels into the Pure White Space.

Klein used his Faceless abilities to pose as Helene and let Mithor King claim the bounty, so he could be taken to Tracy aboard the Black Death. After Tracy received word that Helene had been found, Neph followed her and surprised Klein when he struggled to change into a dress.

• Klein learned that Helene was wanted for 1,000 pounds and used Neph's information to plan a way to reach Tracy.
• Klein disguised himself as Helene, and Danitz helped arrange for Mithor King to collect him at a warehouse.
• Mithor confirmed Klein's disguise, paid Danitz the bounty, and took Klein by boat from Bayam to the Black Death.
• Tracy received Mithor's signal, realized Helene had been found, and hurried to meet her while Neph secretly followed.
• A maid ordered Klein to change into a dress, and Neph appeared to offer help, leaving Klein frozen at the sound of her familiar voice.

Klein disguised himself as Helene to approach Tracy while Neph prepared an ambush. After they killed Tracy, Neph collapsed from stealing her fate, and Klein was left to manage the ship and preserve the corpse.

• Neph helped Klein choose Helene's clothes and disguise himself, then made the guards forget how long they had been in the room.
• Klein entered Tracy's quarters and acted as Helene until Neph stole Tracy's bracelet; Klein sealed Tracy's substitution abilities and Neph struck her with an ice spear.
• Neph revealed she had borrowed Ouroboros's Angel-level power to steal Tracy's fate, exhausting her spirituality, and Klein finished Tracy off with Psychic Piercing.
• Klein used Creeping Hunger to consume Tracy's Beyonder characteristics, then carried the unconscious Neph to bed and tidied the room.
• The next morning, Neph proposed transferring Tracy's fate to Klein and named Mithor King as a suitable target for Creeping Hunger.
• Klein told Neph he had left Tracy's corpse in the bathroom and asked how they could preserve it.

Neph and Klein took control of the Black Death after Klein assassinated Mithor King, then settled on posing as Tracy and her mother, Katarina Pelle. Neph sent them toward the Fog Sea to search for the Lost Newins.

• Neph declined Tracy's diamond bracelet and joked about seeking a true god's remains from the Evernight Goddess.
• Neph warned Klein that a Rose School Wraith might belong to the Indulgence Faction and might seek to have a child with her.
• Klein assassinated Mithor King aboard the Black Death, escaped into the sea, and returned to the Captain's Quarters with his Beyonder characteristic.
• Neph reassured the crew and told Klein to impersonate Tracy while she posed as Tracy's mother, the White Demoness Katarina Pelle.
• Klein and Neph met in Sefirah Castle, where Neph proposed approaching the Fog Sea to search for the Lost Newins.