Recalling Frank's robust physique and then thinking about the "Goddess of Life" Issis he had just seen, Ebner felt strong resistance toward the speculation forming in his mind.
No… I can't jump to conclusions. After exploring this castle, I'll go to that valley on Blue Mountain Island and check it out…
While Ebner was thinking, Orneia's dream changed uncontrollably again, entering a relatively calm "plot"—a condensed depiction of the several hundred years she spent living under the protection of the Elven Court.
At this time, while watching the scene, "Greed" Ksenia continued talking about what she had just experienced:
"…After breaking out of the encirclement, I encountered a strange 'demon wolf.' It felt completely different from the others of its kind. The ability it used was also unbelievable—it could invade my mind through its 'howling,' attempting to 'assimilate' me into a 'demon wolf' under its command, fundamentally altering my cognition of myself.
"Fortunately, its Sequence wasn't high and it hadn't obtained divinity yet… And as a 'Manipulator,' my research in the mental domain far surpassed it. That's how I managed to kill it without much danger.
"However, after it died, it left behind an item."
As she spoke, Miss "Greed" opened her palm and showed them a "wolf bone flute" only the size of a little finger.
Ebner didn't take it to examine it, because only now did he notice Miss "Greed" Ksenia's predicament.
Because of her "dragonification," her original clothes and belongings had long since been destroyed. The robe she was currently wearing was naturally something she had conjured with illusion, which was why she could only hold the spoils of battle in her palm.
After carefully observing Ksenia for a moment and noticing that she still had quite serious injuries remaining on her body, Ebner finally spoke before the expression of shame and irritation on Miss "Greed's" face could spiral out of control.
"Ksenia, you can make a wish to me and ask to return to the state you were in before entering this dream."
Although the "Miracle Invoker" Alvin was not here, the "Insightful One" was the Sequence most adept at leveraging power for personal use, achieving goals in the simplest and easiest way.
If even the rules of the world and the fate of others could be leveraged, then the Beyonder abilities of his other identities were even easier to mobilize.
Ebner had far too many ways to transfer Alvin's "miracle" here for use!
In essence, this was an elevated application of the "Ritual Magic Master" ability of the "Reader" pathway.
On the other side, after hearing Ebner's words, Ksenia's face immediately showed a trace of shyness, but she didn't question why she had to make a wish to him.
After all, as his "believer," asking him for help was perfectly normal.
"I wish for my condition to return to what it was before entering this dream!"
As Ksenia's voice fell, Ebner raised his right hand and snapped his fingers with a snap, then said with a smile:
"Alright, your wish has been fulfilled."
For such a simple "miracle," the current Ebner no longer needed to accumulate wishes.
Miss "Greed" hurriedly checked her body and discovered that not only were her injuries completely healed, but even the clothes torn apart during "dragonification," as well as the satchel she had been carrying, were restored as good as new.
"Thank you for your 'miracle.'" Miss "Greed" dispelled the illusory robe and performed a curtsy while lifting the hem of her real skirt.
"No need to be polite." Ebner waved his hand. While continuing to pay attention to the changes in the dream, he looked toward "Sloth" Closfia, who was fiddling with the "wolf bone flute."
"Did you figure anything out?"
"This probably isn't something from our 'world'… It most likely came from the 'cosmos' and is a summoned item of the 'Blood Moon Queen,'" Closfia said with rare seriousness.
Because she had a close friend in Madam Helen, Miss "Sloth" was quite familiar with the abilities of a "Summoning Master." She knew that the "summoning" ability occasionally produced uncontrollable mutations, allowing strange creatures or objects that did not come from the spirit world and had never formed contracts to descend into reality.
And these things were often extremely dangerous. In the long history of the Sanguine, no fewer than ten "Summoning Masters" had died because of this, which was why Sanguine marquises were so rare.
"A summoned item? Orneia's summoned item existing within her dream…" Ebner thought for a moment before once again taking out the Sealed Artifact "Heavenly Banquet" he had obtained from "Gluttony," speaking thoughtfully:
"If that's the case, this probably also came from here rather than the first-floor hall!
"'Gluttony's' memory was tampered with."
"It was probably done to hide Orneia's existence, right? But why didn't the person behind it just kill 'Gluttony' directly?" Miss "Greed" Ksenia asked in confusion.
"Either they couldn't do it, or they had another purpose… for example, drawing us here." Miss "Sloth" pointed at the three of them and said with a smile.
"But 'Gluttony' obtained the 'Heavenly Banquet' seven hundred years ago. That memory shouldn't be wrong, because he really did start collecting ancient bloodlines from that time onward… Who would plan something for us seven hundred years in advance?"
Miss "Greed" followed that line of reasoning and guessed, "So they couldn't do it? The one who altered 'Gluttony's' memory had significant limitations?"
It's not impossible that someone planned against us across seven hundred years… No, to be precise, planned against me!
Seven hundred years ago was the era of Danitz… In the memories of Danitz that I received, there's a noticeable blank segment. It might not be unrelated to this matter!
Of course, it might not necessarily be a scheme. It could also be planning, arrangement, or simply leaving benefits behind.
However, the good news is that if this truly came from "my" own handiwork, then there's no need to worry too much about safety… My conflict with "myself" isn't about these external factors.
Just as Ebner thought this, he noticed that Orneia's dream had reached a turning point. The "snapshot" of her peaceful life in the Elven Court was about to end.
Sure enough, by a certain "coincidence," she discovered that her friends among the elves—the "God of Luck" Olivier and the "Queen of Calamity" Goshinam—frequently used a secret "teleportation passage" to travel near the Giant King's Court to meet secretly with the "Goddess of Harvest," the "Giant Queen" Omebella in the Silver City.
Orneia, who had always believed that Omebella had orchestrated the death of the "Goddess of Life" Issis, felt that she had been betrayed by her friends.
Even though Olivier and Goshinam both explained that this was necessary communication to deal with threats from the "dragons," Orneia ultimately led part of the Sanguine away from the Elven Court and hid deep within the mountains.
This also allowed her to successfully avoid the divine war in which the "Ancient Sun God" reclaimed His authorities, escaping the fate of perishing alongside the Elven Court.
Watching the worried expression appear on Orneia's face after she received the news that the Elven King had died in battle and that the "Queen of Calamity" and the "God of Luck" had gone missing, "Sloth" Closfia placed a finger against her chin and said thoughtfully:
"Perhaps the news about secretly meeting the 'Giant Queen' was deliberately leaked to the 'Blood Moon Queen' by that 'God of Luck.' The purpose might have been to make her leave the court and avoid that conflict.
"And the 'Blood Moon Queen' later clearly guessed this as well, which is why this segment of memory is so deeply engraved in her mind and was displayed in such detail within the 'dream.'"
"Why would it be the 'God of Luck' who deliberately leaked it, rather than the 'Queen of Calamity'?" Miss "Greed" asked in surprise.
"Heh, elves of the 'Sailor' pathway aren't capable of doing something this elegant… And besides, as the 'Elven Queen,' Goshinam would have no reason to force away a Great Angel-level combat power.
"On the other hand, the 'God of Luck' possesses the ability of a 'Prophet.' Perhaps it was to prepare in advance… or to leave a backup plan?" Closfia speculated.
Listening to the conversation between the two ladies, Ebner thought about Orneia currently sleeping inside the castle and inwardly complained:
That chuuni 'God of Luck' probably never thought about leaving any backup plan at all… He most likely foresaw the danger ahead of time and realized that bringing one extra person along would make it impossible to escape…
(End of Chapter)