Thwack! Derek's axe, shimmering with silver streaks, struck the river depicted in the mural, splitting the wall and sending stone fragments flying. In a single blow, the river, which had flowed continuously from end to end, was severed completely. As Derek anticipated the cycle to be broken and the entire exploration team to leap out of the temple, "The Hunter of Monsters" Colin suddenly materialized before him, his face serious. "What are you doing?" Though Colin's sword tip remained lowered, the grip on the hilt had clearly tightened. Recalling the collective wisdom of the Tarot gathering, Derek spoke with a mixture of doubt and fear. "Just now, a dark figure passed through here—your lordship, I'm certain! It looked like a child's form!" Colin Iliad kept his gaze fixed on the next team member. "Heinm, did you see that too?" The member of the expedition team named Heineim unconsciously leaned toward the chief, firmly shaking his head: "No, I saw nothing." The faint glow in Colin's pale blue eyes spread out, highlighting two complex symbols in deep green. He simply stared at Drik for another four to five seconds. Finally, he looked away, speaking without any unusual tone: "This is your first exploration mission. It's perfectly normal to experience hallucinations due to nervousness. From now on, you'll stay with me. I believe this will help calm you." "Yes, Chief." Drik immediately agreed. After that brief attempt, he had初步 confirmed that the murals were not directly linked to the key points. The "Savior Rose" hinted at by Mr. The Fool likely held a deeper meaning—not something so simple after all. Holding the "Gale Axe," Drik walked silently beside Chief Colin. What happened thereafter did not differ greatly from several of his remembered explorations. The group repeated the same steps, and for the sixth time reached the final hall adorned with altars, where they found the blonde boy Jack huddled in the shadows. Upon hearing "Save me... save me..." and seeing the clear image of a child, the "Hunter," Colin gave a barely perceptible nod, shifting most of his attention away from Darien Berg. As he pondered his words, preparing to speak, Darien suddenly asked, "How do you save me?" Jack responded with excitement, "Save me, save me—take me home! Take me home!" "Where is your home?" Darien asked, both curious and afraid. Seeing this, Colin closed his mouth and tightened his grip. With a weak gesture, Jack raised his hand, "My home... my home is in the Port of Enmatt!" "Emat Port... Although Mr. The Hangman never mentioned it, from the very word 'port,' Jack truly doesn't belong to our region. He likely comes from outside—perhaps even from the kingdom of Luon, where Miss Justice and her people reside! Deryck was overjoyed, his excitement hard to contain. "Jack, the young boy, looked thoughtful, recalling: 'First, we sailed by boat with my father. Then, we joined his companions and continued sailing. After a tremendous storm, the survivors landed on shore and proceeded in the direction the deity was gazing—right here.' Proceeding in the direction the deity was gazing? At the same moment, Colin and Derek, the hunters, turned their attention to the deity statue on the altar, trying to determine where it was looking. Soon, Colin had a clear sense of the direction. They had traveled along the path the deity's gaze indicated, arriving at this place. Therefore, if we reverse this journey, we can find the seashore and the point where they first landed. The reverse direction of that gaze is... As the map of the surrounding areas of Silver City, gradually refined through exploration, came into focus in Colin's mind, he began to sketch out the young boy's journey route." If there are no other temples or corresponding statues along the way, and if this stretch continues unbroken, it will pass through the ruins of the "Hall of the Giant King!" Colin's pupils suddenly contracted. That was the divine palace once inhabited by the ancient god, the "Giant King" Olmire—neither far nor distant from the Silver City! The descendants of the Silver Kingdom, long ruled by the Giants, had always known precisely where the ruins lay, yet had never managed to explore them, because the site was perilously dangerous—more so than pure, unlit darkness. According to Colin's recollection, the stranger boy and his companions had precisely traversed the ruins of the "Hall of the Giant King" to reach this very place. "How did they manage that? Perhaps they didn't take a straight path, but instead circumvented the 'Hall of the Giant King'... Regardless, there is a road leading from the back of the 'Hall of the Giant King' toward the seashore, and on the far side of the sea, there may well be a human kingdom—could that be the hope of the Silver City?" Colin found himself thinking, unable to stop. At that moment, Deric keenly noticed that the clothing around Jack's chest and abdomen was stained a deep red, as if a liquid were slowly seeping out. "Are you hurt?" he asked gently. Jack lowered his head, responding in a wavering tone: "I've grown some rather unattractive things..." As he spoke, he pulled his clothes aside to reveal his bare chest and abdomen. There, embedded there, were two eyes, a nose, and a mouth! They weren't painted on, nor composed of stones—rather, they were made entirely of real eyes, a real nose, and a real mouth, and they didn't seem to belong together, as though each belonged to a different person. Suddenly, Deric envisioned a scene: after Jack had consumed his companions, he had used their remaining eyes, nose, and mouth to form a strange face across his chest and abdomen. That face was gentle and detached, and Deric felt an unexpected sense of familiarity. In just a few seconds, Deric understood the reason for the familiarity: this face resembled the angel depicted in the mural above—the silver-haired angel standing on the flowing rivers! Indeed, the very reason we keep returning to explore stemmed from Him. Deric's mind sparked with insight, and he uttered a word aloud, as if casting a spell to resolve the predicament. "The Redeeming Rose!" he declared solemnly. As always, the exploration team entered the underground hall featuring an altar and statues, where they encountered the clearly strange young boy Jack. After similar exchanges, Darien once again saw the face composed of features from different people. With experience, he made no particularly striking gestures, instead speaking softly to the "Wardensman" Colin: "Your Lordship, the face on Jack's chest resembles the angel depicted in the mural—only with silver hair. The angel standing with the river flowing from its feet, the one whose corner bears the inscription 'Redemption Rose.'" Colin was momentarily startled, then furrowed his brow. He watched Jack, soothing him, while simultaneously observing Darien with the side of his eyes. After a moment of silence, he murmured: "Because you mentioned this, I've begun to form some associations." "Without waiting for Deric to ask, he went on, speaking to himself: 'We've studied that mural for a long time, and simply assumed it depicted an angel leading a group of pious ascetic monks—perhaps that very group was named the "Rose of Redemption." The continuous river symbolizes cycles, and our interpretation has always been that the pilgrimage occurs repeatedly. Now, however, it seems it might indicate the identity of the angel itself. This is the idea that came to me because Amun once dwelled within you.' 'Why?' Deric was momentarily puzzled. 'The little creature left by the Archmage Colin,' the warrior observed, looking at the young boy Jack, 'carries a symbol of time. The river of cycles is often associated with fate. Together, these elements reminded me of a few references mentioned in some texts—whether true or not, I'm not certain.' When the Almighty, the All-Knowing, the All-Powerful God, gazes upon this world, numerous angels surround Him. Among them, eight angelic kings—leaders of all the angels—stand closest to the Divine Throne. The names of these eight have faded into the long history of time for some, while others remain recorded, either briefly or in greater detail. It is said that among these eight angelic kings, some are even descendants of the divine beings. Two of them hold the titles of "Angel of Time" and "Angel of Fate." Derek suddenly realized, and asked with confirmation: "Do you believe Amun is the 'Angel of Time'? Then, is the figure in the mural the 'Angel of Fate'?" "Currently, we cannot be certain. Only one title for the 'Angel of Time' has survived, while the records of the 'Angel of Fate' are more detailed..." Colin, the Hunter of Monsters, suddenly inhaled deeply. Then, he spoke solemnly: "The Angel of Fate—Ulophus, the 'One Who Swallows the Tail.'" …At dusk, within the underground halls of the Odrade family. Emlyn White gazed upon the iron-black coffin containing the ancient vampire, and spoke to him: "Lord Nibais, I accept the Primordial's mandate!" Nibais replied in a weathered voice: "Very good. When would you like to begin? Are there any unfulfilled wishes of yours?" "...” Hearing Lord Nibais inquire about his wishes, Emlyn White felt his calf muscles weaken, nearly regretting his decision. With a firmness he struggled to maintain, he said: "No! We can begin now."