Chapter Summaries

After reconstructing a plea for help, Lumian decided that he and Aurora needed to leave Cordu, but Aurora devised a way to make their departure seem ordinary. As night fell, Lumian worried the village’s abnormalities would erupt before they could go and entered the dream ruins alone to seek power.

• Lumian burned his notes about the reconstructed letter, then went to find the mysterious woman but discovered she was absent.
• At Naroka’s funeral, Lumian saw Pons Béné speak privately with Naroka’s son and suspected her death was connected to the Parish Priest’s secret activities or the owl.
• Lumian told Aurora about the abnormalities and urged her to leave Cordu, and she agreed but warned that a sudden departure could draw suspicion.
• Aurora planned to ask Novel Weekly about its writers’ salon so they could leave under the pretext of attending it, and Lumian agreed.
• Worried that the village’s abnormalities would worsen before they could leave, Lumian went to sleep intending to enter the dream ruins and gain supernatural power.

Lumian prepared a pair of traps in the ruins to ambush the shotgun-wielding monster, relying on deception because he could not face it directly. After finishing the traps, he hid nearby and tried to calm himself with Meditation as he waited for the monster to arrive.

• Lumian decided to lure the shotgun-wielding monster into a concealed pit trap rather than confront it or use an oil-based plan.
• Lumian prayed for protection, armored himself with books, and carried tools and supplies into the ruins.
• Lumian hid his supplies, set a trap in a fissure with sharpened stakes and a rope net, then dug a second trap where he planned to wait in ambush.
• Lumian hid behind a wall, grew nervous while waiting, and used Meditation to steady himself.
• Lumian heard careful footsteps approaching from out of sight.

Lumian trapped and wounded the half-human, half-beast monster, then tried to outlast it by evading its attacks. When it tricked him into a close-range fight and grabbed his neck, he used Meditation and the crimson sun, which left the monster helpless and allowed him to kill it.

• Lumian lured the monster into a pit trap, wounded it with a pitchfork, and fled into the ruined buildings when it escaped.
• Lumian evaded the monster through the ruins until its injuries slowed it, then charged with his axe after noticing its apparent weakness.
• The monster feigned exhaustion, grabbed Lumian by the neck, and lifted him off the ground as he struggled to breathe.
• Lumian used Meditation to hold the crimson sun in his mind, and he fell free as the monster crouched nearby, trembling and unable to resist.
• Lumian hacked through the monster's neck with his axe, killing it.

Lumian killed the shotgun monster in the dream ruins and recovered a dark crimson substance that seemed connected to supernatural power, but it affected his mental state and vanished when he woke. After sending an important telegram for his and Aurora’s escape from Cordou Village, he headed to the old tavern to ask the mysterious woman how to use it.

• Lumian searched the shotgun monster, found a dark crimson mass among the lights gathering on its corpse, and put it in a pouch after noticing it stirred up his violence.
• Lumian dumped the monster’s body and severed head into a trap, returned home, and assessed his injuries and mistakes in the fight.
• Lumian suspected that something terrifying in the house kept the ruins’ monsters away and decided to preserve the house as a safe zone until he became strong enough to face future threats.
• Lumian planned to ask the mysterious woman at the old tavern how to use the dark crimson mass, then fell asleep with it in his inner pocket.
• After waking with milder injuries, Lumian discovered the mass had not come back with him into reality and remembered Aurora’s instruction to send a telegram.
• Lumian sent the telegram from the administrator’s office and went to the old tavern to wait for the mysterious woman.

Lumian told the lady about the crimson substance he had taken from the rifle-bearing monster, and she explained how Beyonder Characteristics could grant supernatural powers and persist between the dream and reality. She gave him the Hunter potion formula and warned him about the dangers of becoming a Beyonder, leaving Lumian about to ask whether she knew what was wrong with the village.

• Lumian reported that the crimson substance made him irritable and aggressive, and the lady explained how supernatural conditions differed from ordinary injuries in the dream.
• Lumian asked how to use the substance, and the lady gave him the Hunter potion formula and identified it as a Beyonder Characteristic from the Red Priest pathway.
• The lady explained the twenty-two pathways and ten Sequences, and told Lumian that Aurora was a Sequence 7 Warlock of the Mystery Pryer pathway.
• The lady warned Lumian that failed potion consumption could kill or mutate him, and advised him to wait until his real-world aches had mostly subsided before returning to the dream.
• Lumian prepared to leave, then asked the lady whether she knew something abnormal was happening in the village.

Lumian learned that the danger in Cordou Village was so severe that the lady could only resolve it by destroying everything, and she agreed to send ingredients into his dream. He warned Ryan, Lya, and Valentine about the Parish Priest, then watched Ava become a candidate for Spring Spirit and prepared ingredients for his dream.

• Lumian asked the lady to resolve Cordou Village's problem, but she said the cost would be the destruction of everything and told him the villagers had to find a better outcome themselves.
• The lady said Madame Pualis was a Beyonder on an abnormal pathway and offered to send ingredients Lumian placed beside his bed into his dream.
• Lumian told Ryan, Lya, and Valentine about Pons Béné entering Naroka's house after her funeral and accused the Parish Priest of immoral conduct and suspicious plans.
• Lumian gathered red chestnut flowers and white poplar leaves, then saw Ava named as a Spring Spirit candidate and win over eighty percent of the villagers' support.
• Lumian returned home to learn there was no telegram, recovered from training with Aurora's massage, and placed the dream ingredients by his window before sleeping.

Lumian brewed and survived the Hunter potion, discovering that its abilities had carried over from the dream into reality. After noticing the chest symbol fading in reality, he saw an owl watching him from an elm tree.

• Lumian mixed the Hunter potion from red wine, herbs, a Red Chestnut Flower, and the crimson mass, then drank it despite the severe pain and the mysterious voice’s interference.
• Lumian recovered and found that his strength, speed, reflexes, and control had greatly improved, along with heightened senses, tracking and tactical insight, knowledge of plants and animal organs, and a stronger sense of danger.
• Lumian concluded that his abilities and use of the environment had helped him defeat the shotgun monster, then returned to reality to test whether the potion’s effects remained.
• Lumian found that he had become a Beyonder in reality and that his abilities were undiminished; the thorn-chain symbol on his chest was fading, while the bluish-black symbol appeared to remain only in the dream.
• Lumian sensed something, looked up, and saw the owl from the Warlock legend watching him from an elm tree.

Lumian planned to escape Cordou Village with Aurora and went to the old tavern to learn about being a Beyonder. The lady explained the origins of Beyonder powers and introduced the Law of the Indestructibility of Beyonder Characteristics.

• After the owl visited again, Lumian planned to leave Cordou Village with Aurora, using a hidden mountain trail if no reply telegram arrived.
• Lumian told Aurora the escape plan over breakfast, and she agreed it had a good chance of succeeding.
• On his way to the old tavern, Lumian taunted Pons Béné, who fled; Lumian decided not to chase him and risk complicating their escape.
• The lady told Lumian that Sequence 0 of each pathway was equivalent to a true god, and named the Hunter pathway's vacant Red Priest position and the Mystery Pryer pathway's Hidden Sage.
• The lady explained that Beyonder characteristics came from the original Creator and could neither disappear nor increase in quantity, introducing the Law of the Indestructibility of Beyonder Characteristics.

Lumian learned the laws governing Beyonder characteristics, the dangers of advancing, and the Acting Method from the lady. He also discovered the origins of the Sequence system and Emperor Roselle’s power, leaving him to wonder what Aurora had learned from Roselle’s diaries.

• Lumian asked whether Beyonders could obtain characteristics by killing other Beyonders, and the lady explained the Indestructibility Law and warned that the knowledge could encourage slaughter.
• The lady explained that Beyonder characteristics converged through fate, especially among Beyonders of the same or neighboring pathways, and described Saints and Angels as higher Sequences.
• Lumian learned that potion use could cause loss of control through spiritual remnants, improper advancement, or the influence of powerful beings, and the lady warned him not to seek the identity behind the voice he had heard.
• The lady explained neighboring pathways, including Hunter’s connection to Assassin and Mystery Pryer’s connection to Generalist, and described ways to switch pathways or remove characteristics.
• The lady taught Lumian the Acting Method as a way to digest potions by exploring a Sequence’s deeper meaning, and said the potion formulas and Sequence names came from the Blasphemy Slates.
• Lumian learned that Emperor Roselle had been a powerful Beyonder who created the Blasphemy Cards, then wondered whether Aurora’s ability to decipher Roselle’s diaries had contributed to her power.

The lady taught Lumian about Sealed Artifacts, Beyonder Items, the Spirit World, and the dangers of losing himself while acting. Lumian then joined Ava’s Blessing Procession as the Lent Festival began, and the procession reached his home.

• The lady explained Sealed Artifact grades and negative effects, Beyonder Items, the Spirit World, and how Hunters might obtain supernatural tools.
• The lady told Lumian that Sequence 8 of the Hunter pathway was Provocateur and Sequence 7 was Pyromaniac, then warned him to remember that he was only acting.
• Lumian left the old tavern, checked for a telegram, and joined Ava, Raymond, and the other young people for the Blessing Procession.
• Ava sang blessings and gave natural offerings to villagers in exchange for gifts as the procession moved from house to house.
• The procession reached Lumian and Aurora’s home, where Aurora gave Ava an earthenware jar of animal fat in exchange for a leaf.

Lumian joined Cordou Village’s Lent Festival celebrations and recognized that the villagers had grown strangely distant from their faith in the Eternal Blazing Sun. The ritual ended in horror when Pierre Berri beheaded Ava, and Lumian fled toward the church windows.

• Lumian asked Aurora to alert him if Novel Weekly sent a telegram, then joined the Blessing Procession through Cordou Village.
• At the Riverside Ritual, Lumian rushed to throw offerings into the river, and the others tossed Raymond into the water for finishing last.
• During the church celebration, Lumian realized that people in the village rarely praised the Eternal Blazing Sun anymore and told Aurora he needed to speak with her later.
• Parish Priest Guillaume Béné and Pierre Berri entered the church to announce the Spring Spirit’s departure, and Lumian discreetly moved toward the stained-glass windows.
• Pierre Berri picked up an axe and beheaded Ava as Lumian ran toward her, then Lumian turned and sprinted for the windows.

Lumian fought to escape the church after Ava was killed and the villagers became deranged, but the Parish Priest’s supernatural power knocked him unconscious. He awoke at home and warned Aurora, only to learn that the Lent Festival had not happened yet.

• Guillaume Béné used mysterious symbols to disrupt Lumian’s escape, and Lumian crashed through a stained-glass window before Pierre Berri drove him back into the church.
• Lumian dodged Pierre Berri’s axe and charged at Guillaume Béné while the other young villagers celebrated Ava’s death in a trance.
• Guillaume Béné’s body swelled as terrifying marks appeared on his skin, and their presence subdued everyone in the church except Lumian.
• Lumian saw a thorn-like mark matching his own on Guillaume Béné, broke the Parish Priest’s neck, and was struck unconscious when Guillaume Béné opened his blood-red eyes.
• Lumian awoke in his bedroom, rushed to Aurora, and warned her that the Parish Priest and villagers had gone mad and killed Ava.
• Aurora told Lumian that the Lent Festival was still several days away.

Lumian confirmed that he was back on March 29, several days before the Lent Festival, while retaining his Hunter abilities. He ended the evening by verifying that Ryan, Lya, and Valentine had arrived in Cordou Village as before.

• Lumian learned from Aurora that it was March 29, then rushed to the Lizier home and confirmed Ava was alive.
• Lumian learned that Pierre Berri had secretly returned to the village a few days earlier and brought several sheep with him.
• Lumian saw that the church window was intact and encountered Guillaume Béné, who told him to return the next day to pray.
• Lumian realized he still possessed his supernatural abilities as a Hunter and concluded his earlier experiences had not been a dream.
• Lumian ate dinner with Aurora, then went to the old tavern and saw Ryan, Lya, and Valentine arrive.

Lumian found that March 29 had repeated, while the Wands card from the mysterious lady remained and hinted at the danger ahead. In the special dream, he discovered that time had reset there too and killed one of the monsters waiting in the ruins.

• Lumian told Lya, Valentine, and Ryan that the Parish Priest was likely having an affair, then left them at the church and returned home.
• Lumian sat with Aurora on the roof as she spoke about being unable to return to her homeland, then found the Seven of Wands card beneath his pillow.
• Lumian entered the special dream again and found his collected gold coins missing, while the shotgun and other supplies had returned to their earlier state.
• Lumian followed signs of two creatures to the ruins and recovered the Gold Louis from a broken jar.
• Lumian evaded a skinless, blood-red monster leaping from the roof and killed it with his axe.

After becoming a Hunter, Lumian killed the Shotgun Monster again but found no Beyonder characteristic, confirming that the time reversal had not restored the one he had already absorbed. He discussed the village’s abnormalities with Aurora, then received a telegram that appeared to answer a message she had not yet sent.

• Lumian ambushed and killed the Shotgun Monster, then realized its Hunter Beyonder characteristic was absent because he had already absorbed it before time reversed.
• Lumian prepared breakfast and asked Aurora about strange villagers, learning that she suspected Madame Pualis, the Parish Priest, and Pierre Berri’s sheep.
• A telegram from Novel Weekly arrived inviting Aurora to a Writers’ Salon in Trier, though she had not sent a message requesting an invitation.
• Lumian guessed that the telegram was a reply to one Aurora had sent before time reversed, even though that message had not yet been sent in the current timeline.

Lumian persuaded Aurora to take him to Trier, then investigated the time loop and concluded that he might have sent the letter asking for help in an earlier loop. He confirmed with the lady that Cordou Village’s residents were People of the Loop, and learned that the term also described a power granted by a hidden being.

• Lumian admitted to Aurora that he had sent Novel Weekly’s invitation telegram and persuaded her to take him to Trier in a few days.
• Lumian studied the Little Blue Book and theorized that he might have written the letter asking for help during an earlier time loop.
• Lumian planned to check the Little Blue Book in the Dream Ruins to determine who had sent the letter.
• Lumian met the lady at the old tavern, confirmed that she remembered the loop, and asked whether Cordou Village was trapped in one.
• The lady told Lumian that they were People of the Loop and explained that the term also referred to a power equivalent to Sequence 4 granted through prayer.

Lumian learned that boons could alter their recipients and that the time loop had several triggers, including reaching the Twelfth Night. Realizing outside authorities might destroy Cordou Village if they discovered the anomaly, he resolved to find the loop’s key quickly and went to investigate Pierre Berri.

• The lady explained how boons could change a recipient’s body, mind, and spirit, and confirmed that Lumian’s special quality would preserve his memories and Beyonder Characteristics through the loops.
• Lumian learned that the loop could begin for reasons beyond killing Parish Priest Guillaume Béné, and that Intis authorities might destroy the village to contain the anomaly.
• After leaving the old tavern, Lumian sensed that his Hunter potion was beginning to digest and considered how becoming a Provocateur could help him survive.
• Lumian questioned Pierre Berri near the church, noticed differences in his wording and suspicious new shoes, and abandoned his plan to speak with the Parish Priest.
• Lumian headed to Pierre Berri’s house to investigate the shepherd.

Lumian investigated Pierre Berri’s three unusual sheep and discovered a hidden plea for help written in Highland Language. Aurora identified the sheep as possibly transformed humans, while Lumian connected hair and nail clippings outside the Berri house to funeral customs and wondered whether Pons Béné had taken Naroka’s.

• Lumian examined Pierre Berri’s three sheep, found recently cut hair and nails in their hay, and saw one sheep write a word in the dirt.
• Lumian pretended to understand the word, erased it, and went home to tell Aurora what he had found.
• Aurora recognized the word as Highland Language for “Help!” and suspected the sheep had once been human.
• Aurora explained that hair and nails were hidden outside a house after certain deaths, prompting Lumian to wonder whether Pons Béné had taken Naroka’s hair and nails.

Lumian and Aurora prepared to leave Cordou Village and planned to report the people transformed into sheep to the authorities. While visiting Madame Pualis to borrow her carriage, Lumian secretly investigated Louis Lund and witnessed a horrifying birth from the butler’s swollen belly.

• Aurora decided to take Lumian out of Cordou Village and teach him mysticism during the journey, while refusing to risk rescuing the transformed villagers herself.
• Aurora and Lumian packed their suitcases and went to Madame Pualis’s castle to borrow her carriage, intending to send the authorities an anonymous letter from Dalege.
• Aurora noticed that the castle garden’s flowers were blooming unusually early, then Madame Pualis welcomed the siblings and said Louis Lund was sick.
• Lumian slipped upstairs to investigate Louis Lund and heard the butler screaming in pain.
• Lumian looked through Louis Lund’s window and saw a woman deliver a blood-covered baby from the butler’s bursting belly.

Lumian witnessed Louis Lund give birth to a claw-nailed baby in Madame Pualis's castle, then left with Aurora in a carriage bound for Dalege. After Naroka joined them, she revealed that she was going to the Otherworld as the world outside the carriage turned unnaturally dark.

• Lumian saw a woman deliver a claw-nailed baby from Louis Lund, then stitch his wound while Madame Pualis remained nearby.
• Madame Pualis confronted Lumian, but Aurora arrived, and the siblings departed for Dalege in a carriage.
• The coachman stopped to collect Naroka, who boarded in a black dress and said she was going to visit some people.
• Lumian noticed Naroka turn pale and lifeless, alerted Aurora, and Aurora sensed something abnormal.
• Aurora told Lumian to stay close, then Naroka said she was going to the Otherworld as darkness gathered outside the carriage.