Pillar of Yita

The brooch lay quietly on the ground.

Fang Hong and Hilveld exchanged glances before stepping forward to pick it up.

As he picked up the brooch, he discovered that its name had subtly changed in the Summoners System: from the original ”Zealot’s Mark of Sacrifice” to ”Witness of the Sacrifice.”

”Witness of the Sacrifice?” Fang Hong murmured the name twice to himself.

Below the brooch in the system’s window, there was a line of small text:

”The witness of Sacrifice perceives the truth, the bearer of the vow passes through the fog—”

”The bearer of the vow passes through the fog?” Fang Hong paused slightly.

”What is it?” At that moment, the noble lady also came from behind.

Fang Hong answered, ”There’s a phrase on the brooch, but I’m not quite clear on its meaning.”

As he spoke, he handed the brooch to Hilveld to look at. She took it and raised it to the moonlight, puzzled, but still could not discern anything.

She turned back and asked, ”Where is that phrase? I don’t see anything.”

It was then that Fang Hong realized his blunder and hurriedly explained, ”Sorry, I wasn’t paying attention; it’s only visible within the Summoners System.”

Hilveld then understood without getting angry, and handed the mark back to Fang Hong, asking, ”What exactly is the phrase, then?”

So, Fang Hong repeated the phrase.

Hilveld, having listened quietly, finally said, ”The witness of Sacrifice sees the truth, it goes without saying who the Sacrifice is, so Captain, are you puzzled by the latter half?”

Fang Hong nodded.

”Perhaps the bearer of the vow refers to us, think about it: the hero’s sword, the histories’ poems, navigating through the fog to seek the truth—that’s precisely what we are doing in this Phantom Realm.”

Fang Hong shook his head again: ”But where is this ring?”

”There happens to be one.”

Fang Hong was startled, then remembered what she was referring to: ”That ring is just a fake—,” at this point, he suddenly remembered something and involuntarily shut his mouth.

Hilveld looked at him curiously, asking, ”What is it?”

”It’s nothing,” Fang Hong shook his head, ”I just hope I’m not mistaken.”

Seeing he didn’t wish to speak, Hilveld, cleverly didn’t inquire further. She just smiled slightly and changed the topic: ”I have a little question as well, Captain; the information on this brooch only visible to you, what exactly is it? Is it a magic mark left on this brooch, or something else? I’ve always been curious.”

Fang Hong responded, ”To tell the truth, it’s not information that only we can see.”

”Dragon Knight and Sky Knight too?” Hilveld countered.

Fang Hong nodded; this was the world rule in Eteliria, which had always been there and didn’t change for anyone—be it natives or Earthlings.

However, it was difficult for him to explain to Hilveld what dimensions are, or what an information state world is, so he could only provide such examples to her.

The noble lady may or may not have truly understood; she thoughtfully nodded her head.

As Fang Hong finished speaking, he looked up at the firmly closed door ahead—he understood that the final illusion was far from over. Because everything that had happened thirty years ago, from his perspective, was still just the beginning.

As he was about to reach out, Hilveld gently grasped his hand: ”Wait a moment, Captain Sir.”

”What is it?”

She turned around and spoke to her maid, ”Xiesta.”

The maid nodded, walked over to where the bookshelf originally was, and gently wiped the wall there, scraping off a layer of dust, revealing a hidden compartment.

Xiesta figured out a method to open it and then took out a box from inside, opening it to reveal a few parchment scrolls lying quietly within.

Fang Hong looked at the scene in surprise: ”What’s that?”

Hilveld smiled faintly at him, giving him a knowing wink.

Alright, Fang Hong understood; this was another ’unspeakable secret.’ He found that the time spent with her had greatly improved his EQ.

However, since she did not wish to disclose, he didn’t inquire further—mainly because Hilveld never pried into his affairs, which made him feel somewhat embarrassed.

He just asked, ”Did you come here for that from the start?”

Hilveld nodded.

”But how did you know it was in that spot? That hidden compartment isn’t easily found, right? I noticed Xiesta was near that spot from the start; she knew where it was, didn’t she?”

Hilveld smiled mischievously at him: ”You observe very meticulously, Captain. An old saying from my hometown—a boy with insight is never too unlucky, because someone found this thing here before, so I naturally knew it would be there.”

Fang Hong was astonished: ”But didn’t you say that no one has been here before?”

”Indeed, but what happened before occurred in reality.”

”You mean, someone found this thing in the Dolifen Ruins?”

Hilveld nodded.

Fang Hong looked more suspiciously at the noble lady, unable to resist asking: ”Miss Hilveld, were you targeting this from the start?”

But facing this question, Hilveld just smiled without speaking, the meaning was clear—a lady’s secret, not to be asked if it’s not necessary.

Helpless, Fang Hong could only drop the topic; he then asked: ”So, can we leave now?”

”Where to, Captain?” Hilveld inquired.

Fang Hong shook his head: ”That depends on where this door will take us; now in this Phantom Realm, the boundary between the real and the illusionary has disappeared, and next, we might see anything.”