Chapter Summaries

Emlyn confronted Redar Valentin over the gas explosion and the Church of the Storm’s past actions, then left Holy Wind Cathedral without resolving their conflict. Audrey joined the Twilight Hermit Order as a Psychology Alchemists councilor and agreed to investigate a Mind Dragon, while Azik learned that Haiter was preparing a ritual to bring Death back aboard a bone ship.

• Emlyn hurried to Holy Wind Cathedral, where Redar Valentin questioned him about the gas explosion and the perpetrator’s possible Beyonder influence.
• Emlyn linked the perpetrator’s motive to his neighbor’s death and demanded an explanation for the Church of the Storm’s failure to compensate the victim, but Redar accused him of bias and Emlyn walked out.
• Audrey used the Wrath persona mask, recognized its influence on her thoughts, and was welcomed into the Twilight Hermit Order as a Psychology Alchemists councilor.
• Hermes assigned Audrey to locate missing Psychology Alchemists members and investigate signs that a Mind Dragon still influenced Hedrak Village.
• Azik learned from a spirit that Haiter’s ritual involved digging a channel for the River of the Underworld and bringing Death back aboard a ship built from bones.

Busuanzi divined signs of change for his temple, while Audrey accepted a dangerous investigation and learned more about the Twilight Hermit Order’s city. Fors returned to Backlund as Leonard arrived in Trier, and Emlyn rushed to the Holy Wind Cathedral after hearing that Feynapotter people were trying to free a bishop.

• Busuanzi cast a favorable hexagram, reflected on the temple’s recent changes, and left the hidden mountain temple to seek out Heavenly Mechanism.
• Hermes warned Audrey that investigating the Mind Dragon in East Chester County would be dangerous, explained how to enter the Garden of Eden with her Personality Mask, and advised her about obtaining a Sealed Artifact.
• Audrey left Hermes and planned to write Mr. Richard and discuss her responsibilities with Ileana before investigating the village on Hall Family land.
• Dorian farewelled Fors, who used her ticket to travel from Trier to Backlund, then saw Leonard arrive in Trier and disappear from his spiritual intuition.
• Leonard asked Pallez about Dorian and decided to stay in Trier, enjoying the city’s fresh wheat bread.
• Emlyn recognized that powerful influence was amplifying hatred in Backlund, then flew toward the Holy Wind Cathedral after a man told him that Feynapotter people were demanding a bishop’s release.

Audrey learned about her new role in the Psychology Alchemists and received information about the Mind Dragon in East Chester County. She planned to travel there with Susie, whom she intended to help advance to Sequence 5 and recruit as a human assistant.

• A disguised Devil watched the unrest gathering outside the Holy Wind Cathedral, then changed his appearance and went to a cake shop instead of approaching the demigods.
• Redar Valentin received a divination that Beyonder power was influencing events but could not identify its source, then saw Feynapotter people gather outside the cathedral demanding Bishop White's return.
• Audrey recalled the Psychology Alchemists' councilors and their territories, considered taking a new identity in Loen, and summoned and dismissed the illusory mask associated with her role as Wrath.
• An illusory letter reached Audrey through the Sea of Collective Subconscious, and she safely opened it to read information about the Mind Dragon in East Chester County.
• Audrey told Susie she planned to prepare her advancement to Dreamwalker, then asked whether Susie would try acting as a human while assisting her on a task in East Chester County.

Two Devil Family members discussed Emlyn White’s conflict with the Church of the Storm while working in a Backlund cake shop. At Holy Wind Cathedral, Redar Valentin’s aura and a Mandated Punisher turned the crowd against Feynapotter’s people until Emlyn intervened, and Redar again demanded the alleged murderer’s accomplices.

• A curly-haired Devil and a Southern Continent Devil discussed Emlyn White’s growing dispute with the Church of the Storm as they baked and decorated cakes and cookies.
• Redar Valentin used his demigod aura to intimidate the Feynapotter crowd gathered outside Holy Wind Cathedral, while a Mandated Punisher accused them of endangering Loen’s people.
• The crowd’s sympathy shifted toward the Mandated Punisher, who threw a Feynapotter man to the ground and grabbed another after he accused him of mistreating him.
• Emlyn appeared beneath the crimson moon, knocked the Mandated Punisher down, and helped the injured Feynapotter man to his companions.
• Redar asked Emlyn to take the crowd away so they could discuss the incident, then demanded that Emlyn hand over the alleged murderer’s accomplices for trial.

Emlyn returned to the Harvest Church shaken by a dispute with Redar Valentin and questioned whether he could lead his church amid rising tensions between Feynapotter people and the Church of the Storm. After Edward speculated that the River of Eternal Darkness was guiding a plan to return Death to reality, Emlyn woke from a disturbing dream and feared that a Mother from beyond the sky was watching him.

• Emlyn prayed to calm himself, then told his assistant to seek more clergy to handle confessions, the herb field, and burial duties.
• Emlyn described how a believer's gas explosion and his arguments with Redar Valentin had exposed deep hostility between the two communities, leaving him unsure how to manage his authority.
• Emlyn decided to keep negotiating with Redar Valentin and protect the Feynapotter believers, while acknowledging their trust made neutrality impossible.
• Edward listened to his modified radio's channels and wondered whether the River of Eternal Darkness had inspired the Balamians to build a river as a route for Death's return to reality.
• Emlyn woke from a dream of a blood-red swamp where he fell from a cliff, and suspected that the Mother from beyond the sky was watching him.

Edward planned to use the River of Eternal Darkness and the City of Calamity to stir up upheaval, while Derrick returned to the City of Silver to organize its people’s migration into the outside world. Aaron Ceres kept slipping into a snowy vision of Utopia, where a pale figure searched among people suspended on black threads, before waking beside his family.

• Edward planned to conceal the River of Eternal Darkness by having people in Balam dig its course to the sea, and considered how to activate the City of Calamity near Bansy Harbor.
• Edward concluded that he needed to worsen the God of Thunder’s condition to throw the country into chaos.
• Derrick told Candice and Liawal that the City of Silver and the Eastern Continent people would relocate together, then returned with Candice and Ginod to the City of Silver by praying to Mr. Fool.
• Derrick reported to Waite Chirmont and the Council of Six, who ordered the residents to prepare to leave and planned to transfer directly to the outside world.
• Aaron Ceres repeatedly fell asleep and found himself in a snowbound Utopia hotel, where people hung from black threads and a pale figure searched the streets.
• Aaron woke beside Velma and little Will, feeling cold after his vision of Utopia.

Fourteen-year-old Everett Abraham recorded his impressions of Utopia while staying there with his teacher, Vipelie Abraham, who secretly investigated the city’s strange lack of Beyonders. After Vipelie dreamed of a silver-white snake, Everett woke her to report an enormous snake-like sound moving through the inn.

• Everett described Utopia’s freezing climate, modern facilities, food, and mysterious church in his travel journal, while avoiding a strangely dressed boy who walked through the snow.
• Vipelie collected Everett from a café and explained that she had brought him to Utopia because divination and their ancestor’s guidance pointed to a great opportunity there, despite the danger.
• Vipelie concealed her discovery that Utopia had no Beyonders and continued Everett’s mysticism lessons before they ate, and Everett finally tried the city’s sparkling iced tea.
• Vipelie dreamed of a silver-white snake choosing a path, then woke to find Everett standing in her bedroom.
• Everett told Vipelie that he had heard an enormous snake slithering through the corridor, and they listened as the sound moved away from the inn.

The Fool transported the people of Moon City, the City of Silver, and the remaining human survivors out of the Forsaken Land of the Gods. They arrived at the harbor to begin a new life, with the chapter ending on plans to leave for the Feysac Empire that afternoon.

• Vipelie and Everett discussed the giant snake they had heard in the hotel and went back to sleep.
• After Nim announced the Fool’s revelation, Moon City’s residents gathered and prayed to be taken from the Forsaken Land of the Gods.
• The Fool guided Moon City and the City of Silver through the spirit world, where they met before the Giant King’s Palace and bid farewell to their former home.
• The survivors arrived at the harbor, where Waite Chirmont and Derrick Berg reunited with Chief Colin and discussed the City of Silver’s future.
• Liawal reunited with his wife and daughter, gave them milk candy, and told them about the new life awaiting them.
• The survivors were told to have lunch, show their acquaintances around, pack their belongings, and prepare to depart for the Feysac Empire at one that afternoon.

Klein watched over the people of the City of Silver and Moon City as they prepared to relocate, while Leonard searched for Dilan Castle and encountered Zaratul. Pallez revealed himself to Zaratul, who was startled by the apparent Amon disguise before recognizing his old acquaintance.

• Klein planned to move the Sea God Church to the Feysac coast and watched the people of the City of Silver and Moon City prepare to relocate near the Sonia Sea.
• Alger and Danitz gathered food while the Resistance Army declined to leave the Rorsted Archipelago, and Klein considered future miracles for Moon City's deformed residents.
• Leonard reached a small town in northern Intis and paid an old man to guide him toward Dilan Castle.
• The old man warned Leonard that Pallez might be sending him to his death, then called for Pallez and mentioned meeting a Little Seer.
• Leonard put on a monocle, startling Zaratul, before Pallez spoke through him and teased Zaratul about not knowing about Amon.

Leonard met Zaratul, who questioned him about The Fool and the gatherings in Sefirah Castle before agreeing with Pallez to seek refuge with The Fool. As they traveled toward Feysac in Zaratul’s ancient carriage, the two Angels discussed their losses and the pain of lives shaped by fate.

• Zaratul explained to Leonard that Angels could hear and send ravings, then asked about The Fool and Leonard’s gatherings in the gray-fog-shrouded temple.
• Leonard refused to share private information about The Fool but told Zaratul that he had joined the gatherings after they began and knew little about The Fool’s past.
• Zaratul asked Pallez to reveal himself, and Pallez said Amon was too occupied to pursue him; the two agreed to travel toward Feysac and seek refuge with The Fool.
• Zaratul summoned an ornate Fourth Epoch carriage, and he, Leonard, and Pallez rode through the Spirit World toward their destination.
• Zaratul confessed that losing the chance to obtain Sefirah Castle had made him question his life’s efforts, while Pallez said he regretted only being unable to kill Amon and protect his family further.
• Zaratul admitted he had considered joining God Almighty to escape his suffering, but chose instead to endure it as proof of his independent will.

Leonard traveled with Pallez and Zaratul through the Spirit World, where they debated the Fool’s identity and learned how he had defeated Amon and Antigonus. The people of the Forsaken Land of the Gods reached a snowy new home, and Klein used Sefirah Castle’s power to turn it into a city of miracles.

• Leonard spotted a faint patch of gray fog near the Seven Lights before it vanished, and Zaratul and Pallez discussed the Fool’s connection to Sefirah Castle.
• Pallez told Zaratul that the Fool had helped Door and Antigonus kill the God of Combat, driven Amon from Sefirah Castle, and likely killed Antigonus.
• Zaratul’s carriage followed the people of the Forsaken Land of the Gods through the Spirit World, and Leonard recognized them, including a golden-haired young man he thought might be the Sun.
• Derrick, Waite Chirmont, and the people of the Forsaken Land arrived in a snowy wilderness and prayed to the Fool for protection and a new home.
• Klein heard their prayers and used his power to create a city with homes, public buildings, a cathedral, and a port, while Pallez rang the church bell.
• Zaratul identified the one in Sefirah Castle as the Fool, and Pallez joked about taking his chance to ring the bell.

Zaratul left Leonard and Pallez to join the Eastern Continent survivors in Utopia, where he introduced himself as a servant of the Fool and helped them settle into the city. Leonard and Pallez followed the newly formed river toward Utopia, while another traveler arrived there at dusk and went directly to the Church of the Fool to wait for his friend.

• Pallez challenged Zaratul about his ambition to advance, and Zaratul said he would never give up on power and longevity.
• After seeing the survivors arrive in Utopia, Zaratul decided to stay and guide them, while Leonard chose not to join them.
• Zaratul revealed himself to Derrick, Colin, and the others as a member of the Secret Order who now served the Fool, then helped them learn how to live in the city.
• Leonard and Pallez found that the river Zaratul had directed them to was newly created, and they followed it toward Utopia.
• A traveler reached Utopia at dusk and went straight to the Church of the Fool to wait for his friend.

Everett recorded his observations of Utopia and asked Ms. Vipelie about the Fool, learning that the city belonged to an ancient friend of the Abraham ancestor. Audrey received her appointment to oversee reconstruction in southeastern Intis and prepared to return to Backlund under a new identity, with Susie helping her.

• Everett wrote about Utopia, including a curious traveler who visited the Saint Merlin Hermes Grand Cathedral and the city's lively music parades.
• Everett read Ms. Vipelie's research on snake dreams and asked her about the Fool and the cathedral; she warned him to forget the matter and said the city belonged to the Fool, an ancient friend of their ancestor.
• Audrey received her appointment as head of the reconstruction region in southeastern Intis and arranged for Ileana Montemar to manage it while she was away.
• Audrey planned to travel to Backlund for Mr. Hermes's task and reconnect with her family and friends under a new identity.
• Audrey chose a financially troubled noble family as the basis for her persona and planned to teach Susie aristocratic etiquette and human customs.

In Saint Millon, a supernatural notice board enforced strict laws and kept the city orderly after the God of Combat’s death. Medici met with Hilda, discussed his failed attempt to assassinate Patriarch Larion, and considered how to weaken Feysac’s rulers and prepare for war.

• A young man disguised in a hat and scarf read the notice board’s laws, then vanished from a tavern after ordering a drink.
• The disguised man revealed himself as Medici and met Hilda in the tavern’s hidden room to ask about her intelligence.
• Medici explained that he had tried to assassinate Patriarch Larion at the Grand Holy Cathedral, failed, and prompted the new law forbidding Hunters from hunting in Saint Millon.
• Hilda shared her notebook’s reports, and Medici noticed that Larion had quickly resumed public duties and that Feysac’s Church had received food and other support.
• Medici concluded that Feysac’s weakened rulers and Church were vulnerable, but he needed the army and further support before he could launch a war against Loen.

Medici devised a scheme to use secret Sea God worship and rumors about Giant descendants to destabilize the Church of the God of Combat and gain allies. In a separate scene, Viscount Conrad waited at Pritz Harbor for the wealthy relative’s daughter he planned to present as Miss Susie Conrad.

• Medici dismissed Sauron and Einhorn’s unhelpful advice, then asked Hilda about people who had promoted the Sea God near the harbor.
• After learning the Sea God’s worshippers had died under the Brass Book’s laws, Medici told Hilda to encourage discreet offerings and exploit the resulting belief.
• Medici revealed that the current Sea God was a real god and instructed Hilda to contact a tall weapons buyer, spread a message about an approaching holy war, and portray his people as God’s chosen Giants.
• Viscount Conrad awaited his relative’s daughter at Pritz Harbor, hoping the promised payment would cover his mounting expenses.
• Viscount Conrad saw the young woman and learned that her prepared identity was Miss Susie Conrad.

Audrey and Susie traveled to meet Viscount Conrad while Susie practiced living as a human under a fabricated identity. When they encountered a violent dispute fueled by hostility toward Feynapotter immigrants, Audrey discovered that Emlyn White had intervened to settle it.

• Susie used a gold pocket watch to persuade Viscount Conrad's valet to escort her and Audrey to the carriage.
• Audrey and Susie discussed Susie's human disguise, their false identities, and how their arrangement helped Audrey understand the acting principles of a Manipulator.
• Their carriage stopped amid a crowd, and Audrey explored nearby minds to learn that a Feynapotter man had been mocked and mistreated by Loen locals until he fought back.
• Audrey realized the growing hostility between Feynapotter immigrants and Loen residents might be deliberately incited, and warned Susie to be cautious.
• The coachman reported that Emlyn White, a Loen Earth Mother archbishop, had intervened, and Audrey recognized him as Mr. Moon.

Audrey weighed whether to exploit the growing conflict between Loen and Feynapotter, then changed course and planned to approach Hvin Rambis with Susie’s help. She discovered that her charity foundation had gone bankrupt, while events elsewhere showed Alger preparing to lead the Church of the Fool in Feysac and a secret Sea God faith spreading among the poor.

• Audrey concluded that her plans could worsen the conflict between Loen and Feynapotter and affect Emlyn White, so she decided not to intensify it for now.
• Audrey told Susie to reveal some Beyonder power and named Hvin Rambis as a new target for their approach.
• Audrey saw that the Loen Charity Education Fund had closed after declaring bankruptcy, and she hid her reaction from Susie.
• Danitz complained to Alger about the Sea God Church’s work and his wish to retire, while Alger looked forward to establishing the Church of the Fool in Feysac.
• A poor man accepted a prayer slip from his neighbor and decided to try praying to the Sea God.
• Edward learned that workers had dug a quarter of the river channel in twenty days and remarked that they were unknowingly digging toward their own end.

Azik confronted High Priest Haiter about the danger of bringing the River of the Underworld into Balam, but Haiter revealed that he intended to sacrifice Azik to help free Death. Azik was pulled into a dream and submerged in the river as Haiter questioned why he resisted eternal peace.

• Haiter oversaw sacrifices along the river channel as the Church of Death continued its excavation and prayed for the god's return.
• Azik warned Haiter that the River of the Underworld could overwhelm Balam and urged him to stop the project, but Haiter insisted they had no choice.
• Haiter told Azik that the Lord's messages suggested he was trapped and that opening the channel might free him, then asked what Azik wanted for Balam's future.
• Haiter trapped Azik in a dream and led him toward the river, revealing that he planned to sacrifice himself and sink Azik into the water as the god's child.
• As Azik sank, Haiter asked why he resisted death and the Lord's promise of eternal peace.

Haiter agreed to become a vessel for the Lord and ordered Balam’s government to shut down as the nation prepared for the River of the Underworld. Meanwhile, Baldur preached about Mr. Fool to Feysac traders, and a young man who bought a monocle recognized Pallez Zoroast.

• Haiter left Calderón after the Divine Child died, then ordered the Imperial Capital’s administrative offices to close and announced that Azik Eggers had gone to serve the Lord.
• Haiter told the demigods they could help dig the River of the Underworld’s channel, and one eagerly welcomed the chance to reunite with the Empress in another realm.
• Edward explained that accommodating a Pale Emperor characteristic could help Haiter preserve his self within the river, and Haiter agreed to sacrifice himself while leaving the fate of Balam’s territory to the Lord.
• Baldur introduced Mr. Fool and his angels to Mansour and other Feysac traders, who listened uneasily to his claims and miracles.
• A young man bought a plain monocle, tried it on, and identified its owner as Pallez Zoroast.

The Mentor of Deceit realized that, without Amon’s main body, he feared death and needed to hide from his old enemies. Meanwhile, the Fool answered the prayers of Moon City and the City of Silver, curing their deformities; the chapter ended with Zaratul listening to the bell in the Church of the Fool.

• The Mentor of Deceit removed his Monocle, reflected on Amon’s disappearance, and realized that he no longer wanted to die.
• Baldur and Bohn discussed the lack of heating, electricity, and winter produce in the outside world, and considered selling Eastern Continent food.
• Bohn joined Moon City residents in praying to the Fool for freedom from their deformities.
• Xin gained a nose, Bohn’s eyes became symmetrical, and the deformities of people in Moon City and the City of Silver were cured.
• The innkeeper saw Bohn’s changed face, and Bohn wept and praised the Fool for answering his prayer.
• Zaratul listened to the bell’s lingering resonance inside the Church of the Fool and groomed his beard in satisfaction.