Man, this moment—when the elder answered, Caine was left with nothing but a stream of coarse words echoing in his mind. Beyond that, nothing else came to mind. Charathus, the head of the Monastic Order, descendant of the noble Antigonous family of the Fourth Solomonic Empire, the former steward of the Antigonous family's chronicles, the guiding figure of the great Emperor Rossel’s extraordinary path, a true high-ranking figure of the "Seer" path, already a secret "Miracle Master" a century and a half ago—according to the "Mirror" Arhodes, an angel who had gone awry and become a monster during the process of ascending to the first rank, "The Secret Servant"—this, no matter which description, was utterly beyond what Caine could bear. It felt as though a character from a textbook had stepped out of the pages and walked right into his presence, creating a profound sense of awe. At the same time, it seemed as if the air around him had solidified into tangible layers, piling up one upon another, pressing down on his body, constricting his breath. Klein had once imagined that everything he had endured—his journey, his transitions—might have been part of Zaratustra's grand design, suspecting that He would ultimately become his final, overarching boss. Now, he found himself encountering Him, encountering Him prematurely. "I'm just a Sequence 5!" Klein shouted to himself, beginning to doubt whether the other figure was truly Zaratustra. Chalatu is a surname, denoting a noble family of the Fourth Dynasty of the Solomon Empire. In theory, over these two millennia, there should have been multiple Chalatus... Perhaps this is the grandfather, father, brother, or descendant of the head of the Convent of the Silent, as noted in Roscel's records... Moreover, he mentioned that he himself had already been deceased for many years, yet both "The Mirror" Arodus and "The Mercury Serpent" Wil. Onscent have confirmed that Chalatu, as the head of the Convent, still lives—though now uncontrolled, transformed into a monster, and profoundly mad. Caine first tried to convince himself that the situation might not be as dire as imagined, which quickly calmed his emotions and enabled him to engage in more nuanced reflection: Though the extraordinary abilities displayed by this Chalatu seemed modest at first glance, each one surpassed the ordinary, especially those relating to history and fate—indeed, he was far more than merely a "Weird Mage," even reaching Sequence 3, or possibly Sequence 2—since the number of individuals attaining such status through the Path of the Angel is always limited. This Chalatu bears a close connection to In the world of esoterica, a series of coincidences often signals something is amiss—something certain. If, indeed, it is that very Zarathustra, whose "self" has been fragmented and now exists within the misty town, could this fragmentation be the very cause of his eventual unraveling and madness? As for the matter of "having already died," there is a sound explanation: the head of the Order, Zarathustra himself, once stated: What is a miracle? A resurrection is a miracle! And he himself has long been a master of miracles. While contemplating this, the bearded elder, claiming to be Zarathustra, chuckled warmly. "From your reaction, I gather you recognize me?" Upon a moment's thought,克莱恩 hesitated and asked tentatively: "I've heard of this surname. I once met the 'Mystic Queen,' through whom I learned of the Order and its leader." The elder nodded gently, neither confirming nor denying, smiled, and asked vaguely: "Is there anything else I can assist you with?" "Help me recall your extraordinary abilities, and after a moment's hesitation, I ask: 'Can you summon a fish from outside this hidden world—something that has already become food?' In my view, this is quite possible. After all, many of the outsiders who have entered the town originally come from the divine war ruins at the easternmost edge of the Sunya Sea. Perhaps some fish are kept there, both as a reserve food supply and to monitor environmental changes. Fish may vanish at night, simply because they remain awake and alert. Or perhaps an explorer, having eaten a full meal of fish, finds themselves caught in the night and unable to sleep—thus, the presence of fish in the town's history from outside sources becomes entirely understandable. Chalatu lifted his head, gazing steadily at the image of Caine as he appeared to Gorman Sparrow, and for a brief moment, hesitated without offering an answer. Only after several seconds did he settle his gaze, his voice slightly uncertain: 'Yes.'" "As he finished speaking, a compacted ball of crushed fish, stuck together, appeared in Senyor's hands. 'It will only last for three hours. By the time it ends, it will feel as if I've never eaten at all,' Chalatu added. It truly works... Klein found the strange and formidable nature of the high-sequence abilities of the 'Seer' path even more astonishing. He had intended to say he had no further needs, but recalling that Chalatu was widely regarded as cunning—every word and action of his required scrutiny—he decided to prepare something. As his thoughts raced, Klein resolved to display a certain greed, aiming to lower Chalatu's assessment of him and thus make him more susceptible to influence. After the secret puppet had collected the fish, Klein glanced at his eyes, then took a barely perceptible breath and said, 'I still need the magical recipe of the 'Master of Deceit.' Chalatu remained unmoved, silent for a few seconds before chuckling, 'No problem at all—provided you believe that the recipe I offer is genuine.' "Once you retrieve that obsidian stone, I'll give you both the elixir recipe of the 'Weird Mage' and the symbol for 'opening the door.' 'Ah, to me, these are all things that don't matter—just as long as you scatter my ashes back into the river at my homeland.' Klein listened quietly and couldn't help asking: 'Given your esteemed status, scattering your ashes into the river would surely contaminate it, giving rise to countless monsters.' Chalatu laughed heartily in response: 'You're quite attentive. But in fact, my ashes contain no special qualities—my unique elements have already vanished.' As he spoke, he lifted his head again and glanced once more at the lofty apex of the ancient church. He was implying that his extraordinary traits and the unique qualities acquired through his bodily transformation had been drawn away by the 'magnet' at the highest point? Klein pondered this, and then asked about the nature of his own path to extraordinariness: 'What is the name of the sequence-3 elixir that follows the 'Weird Mage'?' "Chalatu's facial features and beard subtly moved as he said, 'An ancient scholar.' An ancient scholar... though this sounds as though someone long deceased, unearthed from a tomb, the repeated emphasis Chalatu placed on 'history'—and the extraordinary abilities associated with it—seem utterly beyond belief. Klein, now somewhat delighted, asked again, 'Then what about the Sequence 0?' Chalatu raised his head, glanced at him, then chuckled softly. 'You should have known when you 'opened the door' and escaped.' I detest people like you—always speaking only half, smiling silently... Klein immediately felt a sense of familiarity akin to that of Emperor Rosel. He then turned his gaze to the statue standing right beside him, asking, 'Who is this?' Chalatu did not turn his head, his voice slightly unclear. 'He is a descendant of an ancient deity.' A descendant of an ancient deity—specifically, a descendant of the 'Destroying Wolf' Fregrala?" This ancient deity seems to hold the authority over "Night"... Did its descendants establish the "Kingdom of Night"? Before Klein could ask a question, Chalatu chuckled and said, "He also has a brother—you should be familiar with him." "Who?" Klein struggled to recall, but couldn't place the name. Chalatu gave a "hey" sound: "He has given himself a new surname. 'Antigonus.'" Antigonus... Kingdom of Night... Horanichs... Freglar... Klein's eyes brightened, instantly connecting the scattered pieces of information into a coherent whole. It makes sense that the Church of Night destroyed the Kingdom of Night—this stems from a struggle for authority. Yet it seems illogical that they would have taken such a decisive, all-out approach against the Antigonus family, whose lineage holds the exceptional path of the Seers. After all, the only pathways capable of exchanging with the "Never-Sleeping" path are the "Death" and the "Giants." Moreover, Kline had previously struggled to understand why the Antigonus family insisted on placing the treasure at the summit of the Hōnachis mountain range, and why they placed such trust in the people of the "Land of Night." Now, he finally began to grasp the reasons. As he prepared to ask further questions, he suddenly noticed that the deep crimson moonlight streaming through the church windows momentarily brightened and clarified, casting distinct shadows from the bodies suspended in midair. The red moon had sharpened! Kline felt a sudden tightening in his chest, and without hesitation, following his emergency protocol, raised his right hand and snapped his fingers, igniting a candle located nearby on the opposite wall, farther from himself. At the same time, he transferred the "wandering spirit" Senior into his own body, leapt forward forcefully, and rolled through the air, landing at the nearest outer wall. By then, the entire church had grown unusually quiet, with the murmuring voices fading into silence. Klein's spiritual intuition registered no immediate danger, yet he noticed through the shadows on the ground that the bodies suspended in midair gradually shifted toward the side illuminated by candlelight! Without hesitation, Klein pressed his left palm against the wall, instantly passing through it and stepping out into the churchyard. Then, keeping his head low and relying on the internal momentum generated by the "wandering spirits," he rolled, jumped, leapt, and ran toward the nearest house—just a dozen meters away. Throughout this movement, he heard neither the deep roars of beasts nor any signs of figures moving in and out around him, yet he felt a persistent, prickling sensation of countless eyes watching him from behind. In just a single second, Klein reached the outer side of the house and pressed his palms against it, stepping through. Then, with a crisp snap of his fingers, he remotely commanded the flames, extinguishing the candles within the church. After a brief silence and a sense of tension, the feeling of being watched by countless eyes faded, and figures began to appear beyond the closed curtains, moving in and out. ps1: Recommend this book, "Creating a Game World." It seems that novels centered on players are currently quite popular.