Eldritch Horror Theatre

Who else besides the Witch had seen this current appearance? Let alone matched it to First Apostle Herbert.

There was indeed a reason the Witch had verified that detail just now.

Her next gesture, while elegant and unfamiliar, wasn’t difficult to understand.

It clearly triggered a brand-new version of a commandment, similar to the Star Law once followed by the Celestial Sphere Cult.

Its function was simple: to answer the questions of those who prayed to it.

Given the Witch’s style, she likely wouldn’t be diligent enough to do it herself. The interesting part was that the one responding was someone else entirely.

As for who it was?

Although no one but the Witch had seen the First Apostle’s new look, one couldn’t forget the Pocket Watch.

Placed into the Painting World by the Witch, the Countess seemed to have gained a transcendent status over the Painting-Within-a-Painting World. In an alternative sort of way, she had become part of the new commandment.

It sounded exaggerated, but on second thought, it wasn’t all that difficult to achieve. After all, compared to the massive drain of the Star Law, the current Laerdin was essentially a private server set up by the Witch herself.It seemed like nothing more than a change in rules, but the underlying logic had fundamentally shifted. All its power was now built upon the foundation of the painting.

And just as he had noted back then, this method was even more efficient than the original iteration of the Painting World.

No matter how high a transcendent’s Rank was within it, they didn’t need to draw extraordinary power from the painting’s pigments—unlike the Believers of the Seven Lights—which would have damaged their foundations.

Now, the only difference between them lay in the level of authority they could command within the rules. In reality, none of them actually controlled the underlying resources.

In such a system, having a governing will that could occasionally answer prayers and reveal Truth was quite a nice touch.

”Not a bad idea. The job suits her well.”

Facing the Witch, who had finished her demonstration and was now watching him with a radiant smile, Fu Qian freely offered his praise.

”They won’t always receive a response. I told her to just do as she pleases.”

The Knight’s seamless understanding of her intentions seemed to please the Witch far more than his praise for her arrangement. She quickly offered the extra explanation.

”That really is more fitting. Heavenly Majesty Is Hard to Fathom; being too rigid would only cause the believers to worry.”

Fu Qian understood perfectly.

”I thought so too... Anyway, about Annalise. Do you have any more information on her?”

The atmosphere of this meeting was harmonious and pleasant, but the Witch didn’t let herself get too distracted. Having shown off her interesting new changes, she quickly steered the topic back to business.

”I do. In that world we were just discussing, she was once a believer of the original Moon God. Then, one day, she answered a sudden calling and became the reincarnation of the very deity she worshipped.”

Fu Qian casually shared the history he had witnessed firsthand.

”She even genuinely acquired the authority of a higher entity and went on to create her own kin—the Vampire Clan.

”Then, roughly a thousand years ago, that world suffered a catastrophe that practically ended the era of faith. During the Long Night, numerous higher entities fell. Annalise seemed to have foreseen this—though she fell before the Long Night even arrived.”

...

She had foreseen it, yet she perished even earlier than the other higher entities?

”So during That Long Night you mentioned, she never showed up?”

Fu Qian’s somewhat contradictory explanation made the Witch frown in thought. A moment later, she finally asked.

”She didn’t. But here’s the interesting part: the Dark Moon appeared. It was incredibly active during the Long Night—a Dark Moon with power overwhelmingly similar to yours.”

As he spoke, Fu Qian pointed at the Witch.

”That unusual disturbance you sensed not long ago was me using a special method to experience a specific moment of the Long Night. During that time, an effect virtually identical to the Lightless Night stored in the Ring occurred.”

The next moment, he pointed above his head.

A Dark Moon with overwhelmingly similar power...

”And after the Long Night?”

The Witch seemed to have already anticipated this, offering a slight nod.

”The Dark Moon vanished as well, followed by the current Red Moon. However, its condition has never seemed very stable. Just as I mentioned before, it looks as if it were forcibly twisted into becoming a moon.”

Fu Qian concluded his summary of the Chronicles of the Moon that he had pieced together along the way.

”How utterly bizarre and convoluted... So, you suspect that the Dark Moon you encountered is connected to this place? That it might even be the same entity as my ’Mother’?”

The Witch marveled at the revelation. She could perfectly imagine the agonizing effort the Knight must have put into untangling this thread of clues. At the same time, the final conclusion seemed glaringly obvious.

”Yes. There’s also one more piece of evidence. Your previous intuition about there being a problem with the Law was very likely correct. Something known as the core of the essence of law had been lost, and judging by the current situation, it must have ended up in that other world... After returning this time, I paid a visit to a certain place.”

Fu Qian seamlessly transitioned into the topic of the Law, casually recounting his experiences back in the West Plain.

”In short, based on what I encountered, the timelines match almost perfectly... I can’t confirm which side it originally came from, but it’s blatantly obvious that the two worlds seem to share a single core of the essence of law.

”And the reason the Star Law reappeared in this world a while back wasn’t because of the Law’s revival. Quite the opposite—it was a symbol of its total collapse.”

...

”That certainly aligns with what I’ve experienced.”

Although the Knight hadn’t been gone for very long, every single thing he shared upon his return was an astonishing, deeply buried secret.

He had organized the logic so seamlessly that the Witch felt as if many convoluted threads had instantly snapped into place.

Of course, she could also imagine the staggering difficulty behind it. Uncovering these truths—and reaching his current level of ”strength”—must have involved perils beyond imagination.

”It’s just a pity that I actually don’t know much about ’Her.’ I wandered everywhere after I was born, and the only clues I found were within that painting... So, in coming here this time, besides the issue with your Transcendent Perception, were you also hoping to track down more traces?”

Without needing a reminder, she had already deduced Fu Qian’s true purpose for this visit.

”Yes. It’s best to clarify a few things—the night and the Nightmare are both far too long.”

Fu Qian didn’t deny it in the slightest, capping his response with a somewhat abrupt remark.

”That’s a quote from a certain higher entity who survived the Long Night in the place I was staying. Even though their condition could be considered perfectly intact, they still kept an extremely low profile. It made me quite curious about exactly what kind of threat they were trying to avoid.

”And during this process, I’ll try to showcase as much as I can, to see if you can find a solution for my current condition.”

He casually shared the insights he had gleaned from his communication with the Blazing Rainbow. Academic research aside, Fu Qian hadn’t forgotten his main objective.

”I can do that. Actually, I know of a place right now that’s worth exploring together.”

Never one to disappoint, the Witch simply nodded.