The Sorcerer's Handbook

At this point, Sonya’s questioning phase had come to an end. In total, she had secured the Shared Life blessing and retained her Time Class proficiency, while completely losing her mastery over the Mind Class in the process.

Dia had answered a single question and gained the Shared Death blessing. Denzel had also answered once, earning herself ten thousand soul energy in return. Ashe, meanwhile, had not answered a single question, yet he had somehow become Sonya’s emergency life-support and a random candidate to die in Dia’s place.

Phantom Ashe, having stepped in only to stabilize the rules, quietly returned to his role as an observer. Phantom Sonya also retreated, leaving the stage to Phantom Denzel and Phantom Dia.

Phantom Denzel stood to speak. ”Well then—”

Before she could even finish her sentence, Phantom Dia pressed her back down into her seat. She sat directly on Phantom Denzel’s lap, leaning against her like a little girl seeking a mother’s warmth. ”Next, it’s the Witch’s turn. You don’t mind, do you, Empress?”

Phantom Dia was the spitting image of her real counterpart. At such close range, Phantom Denzel seemed momentarily dazed. A tide of memories surged deep within her eyes. ”Of course I don’t mind. How could I refuse you?”

”Thanks,” Phantom Dia turned to wave at the real Dia. ”The second question is simple; I believe you can answer it with ease. Regarding the person you chose in the first question, what is that person to you? I will give you three options: your mother, your grandmother, or your grandfather.

”The treasure tied to this question is your most cherished spirit, Heard Day. You worked tirelessly to obtain it and have never even been willing to use it. Think carefully before you choose.”

The group fell into a heavy silence until Ashe broke it. ”Um... could you repeat those options?”

Phantom Dia blinked at him. ”Mother, grandmother, and grandfather.”

I’ll hold it in for now... Sonya thought, her jaw tight.

Dia, however, asked in shock, ”Why is grandfather even an option? The person on the throne in that painting is clearly a woman.”

Sonya sighed. ”I was barely holding myself back from saying that.”

Phantom Dia simply smiled and shook her head. She wasn’t denying it. She was simply refusing to answer anything related to the problem.

Ashe mused, ”According to test logic, if an option looks bizarre or out of place, it’s often the correct one. Earlier, both the Mistress and I proved we could transform. It wouldn’t be surprising at all if her grandfather could turn into a woman. Besides, becoming a woman has always been a secret desire for many men.”

Everyone, Denzel included, stared at Ashe in dead silence.

Ashe looked back at them, unfazed. ”Don’t tell me none of you have ever wanted to try being a man, even briefly? I don’t mean permanently. It’s just for the experience. Curiosity about the opposite sex is an instinct. That curiosity is what leads to courtship and intimacy. What’s so surprising about it?”

His reasoning made sense, but it didn’t help much. At best, it only made grandfather a statistical possibility. After a brief discussion with the voice in her head, Dia concluded. ”I think she is my mother.”

The Princess in the painting looked far too young to be a grandmother. Even if it were a portrait of a grandmother in her youth, Ashe’s razor principle suggested they shouldn’t rely on baseless assumptions.

”Are you sure?” Phantom Dia asked.

”I’m sure.”

”No changes?”

”None.”

”Really? No changes?”

”Really.”

”Really, really—”

When Dia’s face finally clouded with impatience, Phantom Dia nodded in satisfaction. ”Alright, alright, I’ll stop teasing you. Congratulations...”

Fireworks erupted around the cabin once more. As confetti rained down and Dia’s expression shifted toward delight, Phantom Dia’s smile turned mischievous. ”You got it wrong~”

”Huh?”

A spirit appeared in the Witch’s hand. She clenched her fist, crushing it into countless points of light that scattered and vanished. ”As punishment for your incorrect answer, you have lost your most beloved spirit, Heard Day.”

Despite failing, Dia felt little regret. The question was impossible to analyze. It was a pure gamble, and she had already prepared herself for failure. Still, the result was unsettling.

If mother was wrong, it meant the Princess was either her grandmother or her grandfather, and more importantly, this was the person Dia had instinctively chosen to drag down to death with her. Why would she want to die with her own grandparent?

And then there was the physical resemblance. It went beyond simple bloodlines. There should have been a generation between them, yet the two looked almost identical.

When the voices in Dia’s mind noticed these oddities, they did not argue as she had expected. Instead, they fell into a silence so deep it made Dia uneasy.

”Now for the final, third question,” Phantom Dia said gently. ”It will be over soon. This one is simple, so relax and answer.”

Her fingertip brushed lightly across the Princess’s portrait. Her ink-dark nails looked as if they might scratch the face in the painting at any moment. ”The question is still related to this same woman. Tell me. What does the person in the painting want to do to you?”

Phantom Dia smiled. ”Option one: She wants to offer you as a sacrifice to achieve some unspeakable goal.”

She let out a soft sigh. ”Option two: She wants you to inherit her position and carry on her legacy for generations.”

When it came time for the third option, her face went expressionless. ”And the third: She wants you to become a god among mortals.”

All three options felt far beyond the ordinary. A heavy silence fell over the cabin. Even Ashe, usually carefree, grew quiet.

Dia waited for a long time, but no external hints came. Desperate, she turned to Ashe, bit her lip, and looked at him with a pleading expression.

”Do you really want me to analyze it?” Ashe asked softly.

Dia froze. Her expression shifted suddenly, as if she had heard something she didn’t want to believe. Her face grew sorrowful, her eyes glistening on the verge of tears.

Dia whispered, ”They... they said the second question proves she is my grandmother. But the first question proved I wanted to die with her. That means she must be a villain.”

She took a shaky breath. ”For this question... the answer should be the first option. It fits. She wants to use me as a sacrifice, which is why I hate her.”

Sonya let out a quiet sigh. She stepped forward and took Dia’s hand, trying to share her burden. Even without their memories, the knowledge that one’s own family sought to harm them, and that they, in turn, wished for that family member’s death, cut deep. Perhaps the lack of memory made it hurt even more. It meant that a lonely, amnesiac soul truly had no home to call its own.

At that moment, Denzel stared at Phantom Dia before leaning close to Ashe to whisper, ”I’ve discovered something important.”

”What is it?”

Denzel did not answer immediately. Instead, she asked, ”If I tell you, will you forgive me and continue to cooperate?”

Ashe paused, quickly catching her drift. ”You lost the advantage of your Seeker of Secrets, so now you want to rely on our analysis to answer the next question? Was your arrogance earlier just because that ability gave you confidence?”

Denzel’s expression remained flat. ”Different cards require different strategies.”

So, you ignored us when you were ahead, and now you need us, Ashe thought.

He almost teased her before agreeing, but he glanced at Sonya and Dia and shook his head. He didn’t mind it personally, but even with amnesia, he could tell Sonya held grudges deep within her. Hatred seemed to be her fuel.

Denzel had attacked them earlier. Sonya had likely already dug a grave for her in her mind and was just waiting for the chance to push her in. Ashe was the only thing preventing a bloodbath. Remaining strangers was the best possible outcome. If he tried to mend things now, he would only make life harder for himself.

However, Denzel misunderstood his hesitation.

After a moment of thought, she walked behind Ashe, pulled his head back against her chest, and rested her chin on top of his head. In a flat, almost mechanical tone, she said, ”Forgive me, alright?”

***

In Vanmura.

”Phew...”

Annan dismissed the Book of Gospel, and the spiderweb blindfold vanished with it. She rubbed her eyes, then walked to the window to look down at the mist-shrouded city below.

Everything was advancing at a rapid pace, yet the Dolan family still clung to their ancestors’ achievements. They survived on the glory of the first Empress, as if she had already done everything that needed to be done, and they were born only to enjoy the results. But this could not continue.

The history of the Dolan family had to change in this generation. Either they would decline and become nourishment for the Senheiser... or she would restore the glory of the Dolans and follow the path of Empress Denzel.

Annan’s resolve was firm. Since childhood, she had known her family’s origins and had admired the Empress who first unified the Gospel Kingdom. Unfortunately, as dynasties rose and fell, the Empress’s deeds had been swallowed by time. Aside from her name, Annan knew nothing of her.

Still, Annan knew that an Empress who unified a kingdom in an age of chaos must have been a stern, dignified, and ruthless ruler. She would have been a sovereign of iron and blood, one who never bowed to anyone.