Chapter 473 Departure
Iwig, Adri.
In the evening, in an upscale restaurant in Adri, Dorothy sat alone in a private cabin, her expression focused as she looked at “Navigation of the Literary Sea” before her, staring at the handwriting of Nephnis and contemplating the important information she had gathered from Davis’s notes.
‘According to Davis, for someone on the Path of Body Reliance to ascend to the White Chalk Tier, they need to perform the ceremony in a suitable spirit field. Moreover, there are quite a few requirements for these spirit fields. Currently, most large spirit fields are either under the control of official extraordinary institutions or churches of various countries, or they are in the hands of the Underworld Coffin Cult and are closely guarded. It would be very difficult to sneak into one of these fields to release ghosts for a ceremony. Therefore, it would be better to choose a spirit field not controlled by any major power for the ascension.
‘As far as I can see, spirit fields not controlled by major organizations are only found in the New World and Northern Ufeiga, which are relatively peripheral areas compared to the Main Continent’s Radiant Church cultural zone. It seems safer for Neph to go to a spirit field in the New World because there are Kapak and his Tupa Tribe, and with the help of Old Shaman Totot, finding a usable spirit field shouldn’t be a problem. But the key point is that I currently have no plans to go to the New World. If Neph wants to ascend, she will have to go there herself; it’s too far from here.
‘In Northern Ufeiga, although I don’t have any forces there, I don’t know where the tombs with spirit fields are located, nor do I know if they are dangerous. However, my current journey is heading in that direction. If Neph is going to Northern Ufeiga, she could go with me, and we could look out for each other. I’m just not sure if we can find a spirit field, and Neph might end up making a trip for nothing.
Gazing at the words in “Navigation of the Literary Sea,” Dorothy thought to herself. After defeating Atif, Dorothy had seized several soul-bone fragments, which could be used in the ascension ceremony. All she needed was to communicate well with those souls. This meant that the most critical condition for Neph’s ascension right now was the spirit field. Once a usable field was found, everything would become simple.
‘I should ask Neph what she thinks about this… After all, this is her own ascension issue.’
With such thoughts, Dorothy closed the book in front of her and then lay back on the sofa, stretching lazily.
“Mmm… It’s finally time to head to Ufeiga. I’ve been resting here for nearly half a month, and it feels a bit hard to leave…”
After stretching, Dorothy looked out the window at Adri’s charming water scenery at night. Honestly, this place was indeed great for tourism. She had rested here for quite some time, and she felt much more relaxed lately.
‘What a wonderful place… but now that I’ve finished waiting for what I needed, everything is ready, and it’s time to leave.
‘But before leaving, I should relax one last time.’
Dorothy thought to herself, then sat up straight on the sofa and looked toward the center of the table. There, a small, exquisitely crafted custom cream cake was placed, adorned with fresh fruits and beautiful decorations.
After inspecting the cake, Dorothy’s gaze shifted to the side, where a telegram was spread open. The telegram contained only a few short words in Prit.
“Happy birthday, Dorothy.”
“By the way, I recently sent my older brother a set of White Chalk equipment and a promotion, so shouldn’t he not need anything for his next birthday?”
Holding Gregor’s telegram, Dorothy smiled to herself and then put it aside. She turned her attention to a small package of candles beside the cake. Dorothy reached out and took it, pulling out colorful small candles one by one and placing them on the tiny cake. After inserting fourteen candles, the already small cake seemed a bit crowded.
‘The cake is too small, and the candles are packed tightly… There’s no helping it since I’m the only one eating it. Huh… In my previous life, when I had my real fourteenth birthday, the cake was big, and there were many people to share it with me…’
After a momentary sigh in her heart, Dorothy took out a box of matches, lit one candle, and then used that candle to light all the others.
After finishing everything, Dorothy gazed at the flickering lights on the cake and pondered today’s date—March 27th, the day young Dorothy Meschos was born.
Looking at the flickering candles on the cake, Dorothy spoke softly after a brief silence.
“Anyway, happy fourteenth birthday, Dorothy.”
With that, Dorothy blew out all the candles on the cake.
…
On a sunny day, the vast Conquer Sea stretched endlessly. The sea breeze howled, waves surged, and a white large cruise ship was cutting through the waves sailing southward in early April.
On the deck of the ship, Nephnis stood here, wearing a long dress and a headscarf, looking out at the horizon in the sea wind. Occasionally, she shielded her eyes from the dazzling sunlight with her hand, then frowned and said.
“The weather is getting hotter. If this were in Tivyan, there wouldn’t be such scorching sun at this time of year.”
“Yes, the climate in Northern Ufeiga is desert-like, so it would definitely be hotter than in Tivyan. Right now, we’re still on the sea with the sea breeze, but once we land, things will get even hotter.”
Standing next to Nephnis, Dorothy continued her statement, and Nephnis paused slightly at this, then continued with excitement in her eyes.
“It’s really hot? Oh, that means I can wear my summer clothes! Among them are my favorite outfits, and there are also swimsuits…”
“Summer clothes? Are you serious, Neph-senpai? Your summer clothes are so revealing that you’ll get sunburnt in Northern Ufeiga. The sun there is completely different from what you know as summer sun. Also, local traditions are much more conservative there, so you’ll get into trouble if you wear revealing clothes. You should buy some local attire once we get there.”
Listening to Nephnis’s words, Dorothy turned her head and looked at her for a moment, then sighed helplessly.
“Oh, that’s right, I forgot about the situation in Northern Ufeiga. What a pity…”
Nephnis sighed like this, and Dorothy, who saw her expression, blinked and continued.
“The current situation in Northern Ufeiga is unstable, so we’d better be careful. However, I didn’t expect you, Neph-senpai, to directly choose to come here with me. Compared to the New World, finding a spirit field in ancient tombs here is quite risky.”
Dorothy told Nephnis this, recalling that when she had asked Nephnis for her opinion on where to perform the ceremony, Nephnis had chosen Northern Ufeiga almost without hesitation, which surprised Dorothy.
“Tsk… How should I say this? Although it’s risky, you’re here with me, aren’t you? Even though it’s risky in Northern Ufeiga, it feels much safer with you. On the other hand, even if there’s no risk, I don’t feel safe going to the New World alone…”
Chin in hand, Nephnis responded to Dorothy, and Dorothy couldn’t help but twitch her lips slightly at her words.
“I see…”
“Yeah, the main reason is this. If I have to give a secondary reason, it’s probably because I want to personally visit Northern Ufeiga. After all, it’s the place where my grandfather developed his business and made enemies, where he met my grandmother, and where I’ve heard stories about ever since I was born. I really want to see this place.”
Looking at the distant sea, Nephnis said solemnly, her expression turning melancholic. Hearing her words, Dorothy fell silent for a moment before continuing.
“So your school has arranged everything?”
“Yes, I asked Grandpa Nunut to send a telegram to the school, saying that I have important family matters to handle and must return to Tivyan alone. I promised that if anything happens during the return journey, it won’t be the school’s fault. So I left the teachers and went off on my own.”
Nephnis told Dorothy this, and Dorothy nodded slightly. After all, the situation in Northern Ufeiga wasn’t good, and as a group of students traveling abroad, they naturally wouldn’t go to such high-risk places. Thus, Nephnis had to leave the group alone. However, acting independently afterward would make things easier for her.
Afterwards, Dorothy and Nephnis chatted for a while on the deck, then walked back to their cabins together. After returning to her first-class cabin, Dorothy sat by the window and looked at the newspaper on the table in front of her, noticing the most prominent headline news.
“Regarding the unrest in Arthus, the Sacred Summit has issued a statement, advocating for all parties to exercise restraint and seek peace under the name of the Three Saints. As long as the principles of doctrine are upheld, the Sacred Summit will actively strive for peace in Arthus.
“For this purpose, the Sacred Summit has dispatched envoys to Arthus, led by Sister Vania Zhaferlen, a renowned evangelist, aiming to ease tensions and seek…”
Reading the newspaper, Dorothy’s expression became grave. Her eyes were fixed on the name Vania in the article. This wasn’t the first time she had seen her name in recent newspapers.
Many days ago, while Dorothy was relaxing in Adri, she had read a report about the unrest in Arthus and the possibility of sending Sister Vania, who had achieved success in the XiaTree incident, as an envoy to Arthus. After reading those reports, Dorothy immediately contacted Vania, who was still in the Holy Land, engaged in various promotional activities and serving as a political figurehead, asking if the church intended to send her as an envoy to Arthus. However, Vania said she knew nothing about this matter, and no one around her had mentioned anything similar to her.
At this point, Dorothy realized something was amiss. Many newspapers reported that Vania might go to Arthus, but Vania herself had no news about it. Either some unscrupulous media were fabricating stories to grab attention, or someone was secretly creating a stir. Since multiple media outlets reported that Vania might go to Arthus, Dorothy concluded that someone was likely stirring things up behind the scenes.
As expected, Vania was eventually appointed as an envoy and sent to Northern Ufeiga. Vania was suddenly named an envoy without receiving any prior notice, and she, who was still playing a decorative role in the Holy Land, was hastily sent to Adri’s church port and joined the fleet sailing to Northern Ufeiga, just a day later than Dorothy.
Caught in this situation, Vania was completely caught off guard and was sent to Northern Ufeiga in a daze. Dorothy, however, sensed something unusual from Vania’s sudden and unexpected appointment, suspecting that this might be the result of some political struggle within the upper echelons of the church.
‘Sister Vania, although she is merely a figurehead in the eyes of the church’s upper leadership, remains a focal point in the current power struggle. It’s normal for her to be affected. She was likely sent to Arthus to achieve certain effects for a particular faction within the church leadership.
‘No matter what, Vania is now directly involved in the unrest in Arthus. Combined with my own reasons for going to Arthus, now is the time to gather more information about the situation there.’
Thinking this, Dorothy took out her magic box and then drew out “Navigation of the Literary Sea.” After unfolding the book on the table, she flipped to the page with Beverly’s contact details.
Looking at Beverly’s contact page, Dorothy thought for a moment and wrote directly:
“Are you available? I have something I need to ask you.”
After writing this, Dorothy planned to wait a bit. However, just a few seconds later, printed text appeared on the page.
“What is it?”
Seeing this near-instant response, Dorothy was slightly stunned and then wrote:
“So fast? Were you just next to the book?”
“No, no, I’m not next to the book. I just created a special container for the book, which is connected to my consciousness and has built-in typing functionality. No matter where I am, I can see and respond to your messages.”
Reading the text written by Beverly, Dorothy paused for a moment, then thought, ‘Indeed, as an inventor, she solves problems by making things.’
After perceiving this, Dorothy picked up the pen again and wrote on the page:
“Such a convenient invention… I contacted you to ask if you have any recent news about Arthus in Northern Ufeiga?”
“Arthus? Of course, I know. Things are quite lively there lately, so I’ve been keeping up with it. What exactly do you want to know? We have clients there, and I won’t reveal any confidential client information.”
Beverly’s printed text appeared extremely quickly on the blank page in front of Dorothy, much faster than normal handwriting, making Dorothy imagine a typewriter operating rapidly without anyone operating it.
“Don’t worry, I don’t need detailed information. I just want to know the general situation there, you know, some openly available information in the Secret World. Is that okay?”
Dorothy wrote on the page, and a few seconds later, Beverly’s words appeared directly in front of her.
“Openly available information in the Secret World? That’s fine. Let me tell you some things about it. Overall, the Baruch Dynasty, which originally ruled Arthus, is corrupt and has been heavily infiltrated by the powerful Main Continent, selling national interests under oppression, leading to rebellion.
“Rebellion caused by corruption and betrayal doesn’t seem to have much to do with the Secret World,” Dorothy wrote in response, and soon Beverly replied.
“Not much to do with the Secret World? That’s just a surface impression. In reality, the rebellion has strong ties. This rebellion has religious undertones. Various clear information indicates that the rebels are leveraging the Radiant Church’s heretical sect, the Savior’s Incarnation Sect, to rally support and resist the military extraordinary beings of the Baruch Dynasty. Hence, the scale of this rebellion is so significant that the rebels have even captured the capital. Similarly, due to the existence of the Savior’s Incarnation Sect, the Radiant Church must respond to events in Arthus.
“The Savior’s Incarnation Sect? Isn’t this a heretical belief of the Radiant Church? Are they active in Northern Ufeiga?” Seeing the information in front of her, Dorothy wrote in surprise. In her original impression, Northern Ufeiga should be a place where treasure-hunting societies like the “Silence” sect are active, not a place where the Radiant Church’s heretics are active.
“Not just active, but extremely active. Northern Ufeiga is the most rampant area for the activities of the Savior’s Incarnation Sect. This heretical belief resonates strongly with the culture of Northern Ufeiga.”
