Chapter Summaries

Elsa sensed the madness in Fango's final thoughts and fainted, while Vanessa, Dorothea, and Allen investigated a second family massacre. Dorothea concluded that someone had staged the second scene to make it look like a husband had killed his family, as Machine Priests arrived to investigate.

• Elsa sensed a violent madness in Fango's blood, then collapsed and was carried home by Vanessa and the others.
• Vanessa, Dorothea, and Allen discussed whether someone had controlled Fango and whether the Fog Horn Fraternity's Path might be involved.
• Vanessa and Dorothea noticed Reforging Flame priests entering Fango's house, then hurried to investigate the second massacre on Linoleum Street.
• Vanessa found no supernatural traces at the second scene, and Allen explained that the victims were ordinary people linked to the Fog Horn Fraternity by a Fog Whistle and its mark.
• Dorothea used [Rationality] to find forced entry and inconsistencies in the scene, concluding that someone had killed the family and staged it as a murder-suicide.
• Allen moved Vanessa and Dorothea aside as a Machine Priest passed them and entered the second crime scene.

Eleanor patrolled the Hearthfire District while struggling with her worsening madness and encountered Dorothea and Vanessa near a murder investigation. Dorothea explained the mental cost of spirit vision, and Eleanor reported that the killer had already been caught.

• Eleanor left the Night Watch Bureau for patrol, fighting the restless presence inside her and gaps in her memory.
• Eleanor spotted Dorothea and Vanessa on Linoleum Street and noticed Dorothea's Monocle and rationality state.
• Eleanor investigated a gathering of Reforging Flame Machine Priests and learned that an entire household had been murdered.
• Dorothea told Vanessa that investigation investigators sacrificed sanity to gain spirit vision and risked madness when seeing dangerous beings.
• Eleanor returned and said the killer had already been caught, surprising Dorothea with how quickly the case was solved.

Dorothea brought Eleanor to investigate Fango’s family murder after learning that a different killer had been blamed for both cases, but Eleanor discovered a supernatural presence in Fango’s corpse. The presence had already moved on and took control of Eleanor, who resolved to find and eat it.

• Eleanor explained that the Dome Institute had identified a wealthy-family killer after he bragged about the crime in a tavern, but the killer was later murdered and robbed.
• Dorothea urged Eleanor to reconsider whether the dead criminal had also killed Fango’s family, and Eleanor agreed to inspect Fango’s home.
• Dorothea told Eleanor that she and Fango had worked at the same factory as they arrived at his residence.
• Eleanor entered the house alone, sensed an aura in Fango’s corpse, and discovered that the being that had occupied it had already left.
• A transformed Eleanor vowed to find the being and eat it.

Eleanor concealed the supernatural evidence in the murder cases, while Allen, Vanessa, and Dorothea discovered that someone had erased the traces on Fango's body. When they returned home, they found Elsa dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

• Eleanor told Dorothea that her investigation found no supernatural traces and privately resolved to handle the matter herself.
• Allen and Vanessa secretly returned to the house and found that the supernatural traces on Fango's body had disappeared.
• Vanessa concluded that someone had tampered with the body and that the murders would likely be blamed on an ordinary person.
• Allen, Vanessa, and Dorothea returned home and found Elsa dead in an armchair with a Revolving Pistol beside her.

After Elsa killed herself, Vanessa, Allen, and Dorothea learned that Clara had been knocked unconscious, and Clara stayed beside Elsa’s body through the night. Elliot investigated Elsa’s death and summoned Flora into his Dream World to ask for help.

• Vanessa froze when she found Elsa dead, while Dorothea broke down and Allen searched the house for Clara.
• Allen found Clara unconscious, and Vanessa examined her before she woke and explained that Elsa had attacked her.
• Vanessa and Allen told Clara that Elsa had died, and Clara quietly recalled losing her cat Whitey before going downstairs to hold Elsa’s hand.
• Elliot examined the Difference Engine’s new record of Elsa’s corpse and considered whether her suicide was connected to Fango’s case.
• Elliot summoned Conrad to make arrangements, then called Flora into his Dream World and urgently asked for her help.

Elliot brought Flora to the Imperial Capital to investigate the Hearthfire District murders, where she sensed that Fango’s corpse had lost all its spirituality. Flora then joined Vanessa’s investigation of Elsa and discovered that the Reforging Flame was building a church next door to Vanessa’s home.

• Elliot asked Flora whether she could sense the dead, and she explained that she could perceive a corpse’s emotions and that fresher corpses gave clearer impressions.
• Flora agreed to help investigate the murders and traveled by airship to the Imperial Capital, where Elliot met her and took her to Fango’s room.
• Flora examined Fango’s corpse and sensed that all its spirituality had been drawn out, prompting Elliot to wonder whether someone had tampered with it.
• Elliot left Flora to investigate, and she soon met Vanessa and went with her to examine Elsa.
• Flora told Vanessa that the Reforging Flame planned to station Machine Priests in the district and build a temporary church right next to Vanessa’s home.

After Elsa’s murder, Elliot arranged for Reforging Flame priests to guard Vanessa’s group while Flora discovered that Elsa might possess an unprecedented form of true resurrection. Elliot used Elsa’s corpse card to enter her Dream World, where he found her lying beside him with two bloody holes in her head.

• Elliot asked the old duke for priests and had a temporary Reforging Flame church built beside Vanessa’s base.
• Flora examined Elsa and found that the dead girl retained her own will instead of communicating with her.
• Vanessa told Flora that Elsa could resurrect, and Flora explained that Elsa’s ability might be true resurrection rather than a false restoration.
• Elliot inserted Elsa’s corpse card and his own card into the Difference Engine’s Dream Entry slot.
• Elliot entered Elsa’s Dream World and found her lying on a small bed beside his.

Elliot discovered that Elsa’s corpse and Spirit Body existed separately in the Dream World and found that supernatural materials accelerated her resurrection. He received the upgraded Path · Glimmer and began exploring Principles, but ended the chapter wondering whether Elsa’s corpse could participate in a conversation.

• Elliot used [Spirit Vision] to see Elsa’s Spirit Body lying apart from her corpse and concluded that [Resurrection] was restoring her Spirit Body.
• Elliot fed supernatural materials to Elsa’s Spirit Body, making it grow more solid and estimating that she could be resurrected within two or three days.
• Elliot collected the upgraded [Path · Glimmer] Card from the Difference Engine and opened the options for choosing and naming his order.
• Elliot examined the [Principle · Strife] and [Principle · Insight] Cards, then decided to study the Principles later.
• Elliot prepared a conversation about [Path · Glimmer] with Vanessa and considered bringing Clara into the Esoteric Cult, but paused when he wondered whether Elsa’s corpse could converse.

Flora woke to find Elsa moving after Vanessa claimed she had joined her sect, though Flora sensed Elsa was still a corpse. Elsa began cooking, and Dorothea wondered whether the activity was accelerating her revival.

• Flora mistook Elsa's lifeless body beside her for Vanessa and screamed when she realized she had been sleeping next to a corpse.
• Vanessa said Elsa had joined her sect after speaking with the Great Being, and Elsa suddenly sat up, slapped Vanessa, and walked downstairs.
• Flora sensed that Elsa had not fully revived and that only her corpse could move, while Vanessa concluded that her Conversation had gained the power to control corpses.
• Vanessa dragged Clara away to speak with her, while Dorothea and the others followed Elsa downstairs.
• Elsa answered that she was cooking, and Flora found that she was still a corpse but that her spirit body's recovery had advanced unusually quickly.
• Dorothea wondered whether Elsa's cooking could speed up her revival.

Elliot examined Elsa Ramsey’s Card and discovered he could control her corpse until she resurrected, while her suicide note suggested she had died to protect others. Jin returned to the Fog Horn Fraternity with news of an unnamed Esoteric Cult that recruited factory workers and promised supernatural powers, healing, and the resurrection of its Cult Leader.

• Dorothea speculated that her cooking could suppress the resurrection of corpses.
• Elliot examined Elsa Ramsey’s Card, which showed her suicide and the message, “This time, it's my turn to protect everyone.”
• Elliot found that he could control Elsa’s corpse and considered whether her resurrection could be useful.
• Jin returned to the Fog Horn Fraternity without leads on the household massacres, leaving its members discouraged.
• Jin told the Fraternity that an unnamed Esoteric Cult offered free Holy Communion, healing, and supernatural powers in exchange for the materials Believers found in the Dream World.
• Jin said the Cult Leader would resurrect on the third day after her death.

Jin and the Fog Horn Fraternity investigated a supposed secret society in the Hearthfire District and discovered it was a legal community canteen, night school, and medical station. Dorothea was dismayed that their own society had been officially approved for similar work, but felt hopeful when the Fog Horn Fraternity arrived to meet them.

• Jin led the Fog Horn Fraternity to an abandoned warehouse after hearing rumors of a cult offering free holy communion.
• Miss Crow explained that the warehouse housed a registered factory canteen, and the members met its short, masked representative, Elsa.
• The representative told Jin that the group was called Hearthfire District Third Community Canteen and also operated a night school and community hospital.
• After consulting Flora, Vanessa and Allen applied to register their society, and the application was approved with buildings and subsidies for community services.
• Dorothea questioned her ambitions after learning about the approval, then felt relieved when Elsa brought the Fog Horn Fraternity inside and served them food.

Vanessa established a worker canteen as a base for her faith, while Dorothea questioned the rapid recruitment and encountered Eleanor. Meanwhile, Elliot discovered a new threat targeting the Hearthfire District and considered using his growing power to respond.

• Vanessa told Dorothea that the Fog Horn Fraternity had agreed to help uncover the culprit behind the family massacre, and explained that her faith welcomed ordinary workers as well as Supernatural people.
• Eleanor arrived at the canteen for a meal, and Vanessa prevented the believers from approaching her while Dorothea felt an inexplicable fear.
• After leaving, Eleanor entered a deserted alley and revealed a savage grin as she called Dorothea and the others her kind and her food.
• Elliot reviewed the Difference Engine's warnings, including an unknown hungry threat and a team of Supernatural people infiltrating the Hearthfire District to sabotage its factories.
• Elliot suspected the Fourth Prince might be behind the sabotage and decided to add a point and advance Vanessa.

Elliot used the Card Difference Engine's warnings to prepare Vanessa's Society for an impending attack, then advanced Vanessa to the Second Rank. He discovered new dream-related abilities and considered three powerful talent options as the chapter ended.

• Elliot concluded that The Enemy in the Dark would likely send Middle Rank or lower Supernatural people to cause trouble and saw a chance for Vanessa's Society to earn the workers' and Fog Whistle side's trust.
• Elliot spent supernatural materials to give Vanessa [Vitality] and complete the nodes needed to advance her to the Second Rank.
• Elliot learned that he could use Spirituality to stabilize dreams during Dream Entry and that Vanessa's condition had been fully restored.
• Elliot considered [Body Adaptation], [Mother of Concealment], and [Rapid Recovery], recognizing the possible combat and recovery benefits of each.

After gaining Mother of Concealment, Elliot tested how well it hid him and learned it could fool some Supernatural people, even at higher ranks. When a new Difference Engine event appeared, he set out to find the Third Prince, while Eleanor’s madness erupted and drove her toward the Canteen to find a white-haired girl.

• Elliot chose Mother of Concealment and discovered he could make a Card he touched disappear.
• Elliot tested his concealment on Evan, who detected him only after his prosthetic eye alerted him.
• Elliot learned Evan was a Seventh Tier Supernatural person whose Reforging Flame’s Path specialized in direct combat and war machines.
• A new event, [It Has Come], replaced [The Hungry It], and Elliot told Evan to prepare a horse so he could visit the Third Prince.
• Eleanor’s madness erupted, and she remembered seeing a white-haired girl at the Canteen before heading there to find her.

Vanessa and the others prepared for a possible attack on their canteen and discovered that the hidden figure outside was Eleanor, an officer from the Dome Institute. At the Third Prince’s palace, Elliot suspected that a mad, powerful being inside Eleanor was the entity from the coming event and wondered whether the Night Watch Bureau had sent her.

• Vanessa sent the believers home and warned Dorothea, Allen, and Flora that a dangerous being might attack that night.
• Vanessa sensed someone outside, and Dorothea used mirrors to reveal a hidden figure while Vanessa detected a powerful, chaotic presence inside her.
• Elsa turned on the gas lamps, illuminating the mirrors and allowing Dorothea to recognize the figure as Eleanor, an officer from the Dome Institute.
• Elliot watched Eleanor from the Third Prince’s palace using the Stage Difference Engine and recalled that she had appeared on a card as a Night Watch Bureau detective assistant.
• Elliot considered whether the Night Watch Bureau knew about the being inside Eleanor or had sent her to the canteen.

Eleanor attacked the group with a pistol, and Elsa took the bullets meant for Dorothea. As the fight escalated, Flora drove Eleanor through the kitchen wall, where a terrifying aura emerged; Eleanor then returned unharmed and called Elsa her kin.

• Vanessa warned the others that Eleanor was approaching, and Eleanor burst through a window and fired six shots.
• Vanessa dodged the bullets with supernatural help, while Elsa shielded Dorothea and was hit several times.
• Flora engaged Eleanor, and Allen, Vanessa, and Dorothea joined the fight as Eleanor struggled to defend herself.
• Eleanor warned Dorothea that something was coming, then began swelling with supernatural energy.
• Flora drove Eleanor through the kitchen wall, and a terrifying aura briefly overwhelmed the group before their consciousness recovered.
• Eleanor emerged unharmed, stared at Elsa, and asked her to become one with her kin.

Vanessa, Allen, and Dorothea struggled to hold off Eleanor, whose gaze and touch could overwhelm and control her opponents. Elsa armed them with hidden military weapons, forcing Eleanor to pause and negotiate.

• Dorothea urged Vanessa to flee and call for help, but Elsa told them to hold out while she prepared a plan.
• Eleanor used Mental Shock to daze Vanessa and Dorothea, but Vanessa's instincts let her evade Eleanor and counterattack with supernatural materials.
• Eleanor touched Vanessa and tried to make her a puppet, but Vanessa attacked Eleanor instead, leaving Eleanor unsure whether she had gained control.
• Elsa revealed weapons hidden beneath the floorboards and handed guns to Allen and Dorothea while taking a Steam Rifle herself.
• With military weapons aimed at her, Eleanor's madness receded, and she claimed she could talk without alerting the Hearthfire District.

Vanessa’s [Spirituality Pressure] stopped the monster possessing Eleanor, and Flora took charge of the captive while the others hid the evidence before the Machine Priests arrived. The chapter ended with Elliot wondering why Eleanor had become completely motionless and whether the danger was truly over.

• The monster controlling Eleanor lunged for Vanessa, but Vanessa’s [Spirituality Pressure] overwhelmed it and left Eleanor frozen.
• Flora recovered enough to restrain Eleanor, while Dorothea warned that Eleanor’s unusual stillness might be a trap.
• Flora questioned Vanessa about her ability and how the others had resisted the monster’s mental attack, and Vanessa attributed their protection to the Lord.
• Dorothea identified the visitors as patrolling Machine Priests, so Flora hid Eleanor and Dorothea concealed the weapons before Allen opened the door.
• The Machine Priests inspected the room but left without asking questions, and Allen wondered whether his legally contracted canteen status had helped.
• At the Third Prince’s mansion, Elliot reflected that Eleanor remained an unresolved danger after Vanessa’s glare had stopped her moving.

Elliot returned to the Difference Engine after the Machine Priests left and discovered that Eleanor’s Card had changed to [Its Corpse]. Vanessa and the others found Eleanor still breathing but seemingly caught in a deathlike, dreamlike state.

• Elliot avoided involving the Machine Priests because their investigation could expose Vanessa and the others to the Reforging Flame Church and the Old Duke.
• The Third Prince warned Elliot that someone was targeting him, and Elliot hurried back to the Duke’s Estate.
• Elliot checked the Difference Engine and concluded that Eleanor had been the target of the [It's Here] event.
• Elliot saw that Eleanor’s Card had changed from [Night Watch Bureau Detective: Eleanor Bennett] to [Its Corpse] and suspected Vanessa’s [Spirituality Pressure] had killed [it].
• Dorothea examined Eleanor and found that she was breathing with a strong heartbeat, despite having dilated pupils and occasional twitches.
• Dorothea said Eleanor seemed like someone trapped in a dream and struggling to wake up.

After Eleanor’s original consciousness remained trapped, Vanessa recruited her corpse as a new Believer and prepared to use her identity. Elliot planned to exploit Eleanor’s position in the Night Watch Bureau to gather information, while Vanessa closed the canteen for repairs and covered up the damage from the previous night.

• Elsa suggested that Eleanor counted as half a corpse, and Vanessa introduced the Society and its great being to Eleanor’s body.
• Vanessa emerged with Eleanor’s corpse animated as a new Believer, who insisted, “I am Eleanor.”
• Elliot worried that the Night Watch Bureau could target Vanessa and planned to use Eleanor’s Card to investigate the Bureau.
• Vanessa announced that the Hearthfire District canteen was closing for renovations and explained the damage as the result of Miss Crow’s cooking and a struggle with a huge fish.
• A worker recalled Miss Crow’s past cooking disaster, when a pot flew over two blocks and nearly hit Theresia.