Chapter One Hundred Thirty-Five: The Oracle

Half an hour later, Andy stood by the roadside, panting heavily.

He had finally lost both the demon wolf and the girl. Even in the wilderness, with his acceleration sorcery fully activated and his charge technique—which had an extremely short cooldown—he still could not keep up with the beast’s speed. It seemed that if he wanted to discover what was truly going on with that demon wolf, he would have to wait until he encountered it again.

Andy was very familiar with the road the girl and the demon wolf had taken, for it was the same road he had followed when he came to the royal capital. It led toward the northern reaches of the kingdom, and from here one could reach Dallas City, Silverwing Fortress, and the northern Sain Grand Duchy.

Thinking of Dallas City and Silverwing Fortress, Andy could not help recalling some old acquaintances. He wondered how Bill and Jella were doing now.

At that very moment, Bill and Jella were in an alchemical laboratory beneath Silverwing Fortress, critiquing Bill’s latest creation.

“Brother Bill, is this magic crystal cannon you’re researching really that powerful? An attack intensity of over a thousand degrees from a single shot—wouldn’t that mean even a gold-rank wizard could be killed instantly?”

Hearing Jella’s question, Bill replied calmly, “It isn’t that simple. Once a gold-rank expert knows the power of a magic crystal cannon, who would stand there obediently and let it shoot them? Still, if it were used for the first time as a surprise attack, it might have an effect. If two or three magic crystal cannons formed crossfire, the chances would be even better. Of course, even then, it would still be somewhat unsafe against veteran gold-rank experts. Who knows what life-saving trump cards they’ve accumulated over their long years? But against a newly advanced gold-rank wizard, it would be ideal!”

Bill analyzed the matter for Jella, thoughtful light flickering in his eyes.

More than a year of military service had changed Bill considerably. He was no longer the awkward young man who neither stood nor sat properly. His back was now ramrod straight, and every movement carried the determination and efficiency peculiar to a soldier. He also looked far more confident.

Jella, by contrast, had changed very little, apart from the fact that she had replaced her alchemical spectacles with a newer style. Upon hearing Bill explain the limitations of the magic crystal cannon, she could not help feeling disappointed.

“I thought we could use it to deal directly with the First Grand Duke of Sain and win the war. So it can only deal with newly advanced gold-rank wizards? Where in the entire Sain Grand Duchy are we supposed to find one of those to fight...?”

At that point, Jella suddenly seemed to sense something, and her voice faltered.

Then the pupils vanished from her eyes, leaving only the whites. Countless runes began racing across them at astonishing speed...

At last, after some time, the runes stopped, and Jella’s eyes returned to normal.

“Oh! So there really is one!” Jella exclaimed suddenly, then gave a mysterious smile.

The moment she finished smiling, she staggered. Bill hurriedly caught her.

“I’m fine. I’m just a little dizzy.” Jella quickly said this before Bill could ask.

“Fine? Hardly!” Bill exposed her without the slightest courtesy. Then he said sternly, “Haven’t I told you? Your ability is extremely dangerous. You should never use it, not even once. Your nearsightedness has worsened again, hasn’t it? If this continues, you’ll go completely blind!”

Caught out by Bill, Jella stuck out her tongue. No longer trying to evade him, she removed her spectacles and adjusted the prescription. In a gentle voice, she promised Bill that she would never recklessly use her ability again. Then she told him that she had just received an important piece of information—one concerning the lives of countless soldiers at the front.

Bill’s dark expression did not change. He stared straight at Jella and said, “If the soldiers at the front are going to die, then let them die. All I want is for you to be safe!”

He could not bring himself to ignore the matter. From Diga, he had already learned that the Blind Prophet bloodline was both a gift from heaven and a curse from heaven. It allowed one to see through the river of fate, yet also prevented one from seeing the brilliant colors of the world before one’s eyes. Jella’s vision had been deteriorating steadily. Only by ceasing to use her ability could the worsening condition be delayed.

That was what he told Jella. But in his heart, he knew that even stopping its use would not completely halt the deterioration. The Blind Prophet bloodline would continue sensing fluctuations in fate and awaken further of its own accord. Even Diga had no way to prevent that, which meant Bill would have to find a solution himself.

It was precisely because of the heavy pressure in his heart that, throughout the past year, Bill had frantically improved both his strength and his alchemical abilities under Diga’s tutelage. Diga had already shown him a glimmer of hope for solving Jella’s bloodline problem: he had to advance to the gold rank as quickly as possible, then use his attainments in alchemy to open the planar passage his family had left behind in the Azure Plane and travel to the great Arcane Empire. The reason he had to reach the gold rank was that only a gold wizard’s protective force field could withstand the spatial pressure along the planar passage.

Diga planned for Bill to join the Royal Alchemical Association once he reached the Arcane Empire, then find a way to obtain a single opportunity to use the Stele of Endless Secrets. Based on his experience, a bloodline problem of the Blind Prophet’s level could probably be solved only by the Stele of Endless Secrets. As far as he knew, the Empress had already been blind for many years by the time the Arcane Empire was founded and the stele came into existence. That was why she had been unable to recover. Jella was still merely nearsighted. Perhaps there truly was a slim chance of saving her.

Although Jella did not understand the specifics of the problem, she could still sense the pressure weighing on Bill’s heart. That was why she had been much more accommodating toward him lately.

Now she abandoned her usual demeanor and returned to her former nonconformist street-girl manner, alternately acting spoiled and adorable before Bill. At last, she managed to make him laugh.

Then she hurriedly promised Bill once more that she would not use her bloodline power again. Fearing that he might still be worried, she added that she was currently studying divination sorcery under her mentor and would soon be able to control part of the power of prophecy without relying on her bloodline. That way, she could still help Bill without using her bloodline ability.

Unexpectedly, the mention of her mentor only made Bill more concerned.

“Your mentor—the woman who calls herself a witch oracle? I’ve always felt that she isn’t a good person. Is it really all right for you to study sorcery from her?”

Jella once again put on an expression of absolute confidence and said to Bill, “Don’t worry. My mentor only became so extreme because she was wounded by love in the past. I once heard her mention that she had been the daughter of a powerful family in the royal capital. Unfortunately, a heartless man accepted her betrothal gifts, then ran away from the wedding. The incident dealt her a terrible blow, and that was how her appearance was ruined as well.”

Jella then assumed a regretful expression and continued, “Her personality may be unpleasant, but her mastery of sorcery is extraordinary. She excels in two rare branches: divination and curses. Didn’t you say that those with the Nethercat constitution possess a great talent for curse sorcery? It’s a pity Catherine isn’t here right now. Otherwise, she would certainly make tremendous progress studying sorcery under my mentor.”

Catherine, whom Jella had just mentioned, was currently asleep.

After returning that day, she had intended to wait for Andy and go eat with him. But Andy had been delayed by some unknown matter and had not returned for a long time, so Catherine had fallen asleep sprawled across the bed.

Then she began to dream. In her dream, she had returned to her home in the countryside and become that five-year-old girl once more.

Her parents were staring at her in terror, while a woman who called herself a witch oracle spoke to them in a strange, gloomy voice.

“This is... an accursed girl. When she grows up, she will bring immense destruction and ruin. For the sake of your lives, and for all living things beneath the heavens, you had best... burn her to death!”

Burn her to death! Burn her to death! Burn her to death!

The witch oracle’s voice echoed again and again through Catherine’s dream.