Rover asked, "Even in the Land of Echoes, you've never seen such an Echo?"
Zani shook her head slightly. "No. Why does your tone sound like you're trying to find a lost child's hometown?"
Abby grinned, grabbing food from the table and eating voraciously. "As expected, even in Rinascita, this Abby is the most special! Wow, this is delicious…"
Lucian nodded slightly. "Abby, you need to be more confident. Not just in Rinascita."
"Think about your name—you're the Cosmic Invincible Super Thunder Raptor Abby."
"Even in the universe, you're the most special one."
Abby, mouth full of food, mumbled indistinctly, "…First time I've ever approved of this name."
Zani smiled. "I don't know if these suit your tastes. Ragunna people are very particular about food."
"For example, fresh seafood must never be heavily cooked, or it'll ruin the ingredients' natural freshness."
"Freshwater fish must be eaten before saltwater fish, or the saltwater fish will overpower its flavor."
Lucian asked curiously, "So, covering a pizza with crownapple slices is also part of Ragunna's food standards?"
Zani choked at his words. Why bring up the one thing that shouldn't be mentioned?
Zani explained, "Although Ragunna locals don't like this dish, many outsiders love this highly innovative cuisine, myself included."
Lucian picked up a plate of Cloudpeak meat sauce stewed noodles and, expressionless, pulled a bottle of Champion Hot Sauce from his system space, sprinkling it on.
Zani, horrified, clutched her head. "You… you… what are you doing?"
This was a stewed noodle dish infused with Cloudpeak cream fragrance, aromatic and enticing.
Adding chili would completely mask its original aroma!
Lucian sighed. "This Champion Hot Sauce was a gift from a close friend in Jinzhou."
"She didn't get a chance to come to Rinascita, so I thought this would give her a sense of participation."
Rover slapped her forehead, exasperated. "Next time, you can just bring her here to experience it herself."
"Why does it sound like Chixia has passed away or something?"
Lucian asked, puzzled, "Chixia? I only know Ma Xiaofang, who set the Four Sins."
Rover: "?"
Zani mused, "Ma Xiaofang? That name sounds quite friendly…"
Lucian crossed his arms and snorted. "Don't judge by names, Ms. Zani. The power behind Ma Xiaofang is beyond your imagination."
Zani, seeing Lucian's profound demeanor, asked in confusion, "Is she more powerful than the Montelli family?"
Rover also looked over, puzzled. Did Lucian know some insider information?
Lucian glanced around, ensuring no one was paying attention, then lowered his voice mysteriously.
"Let me tell you, the Ma family is a super-powerful clan in Jinzhou!"
Rover's interest was piqued. How did she not know Chixia was this impressive?
"A super-powerful clan? Where did you get that from?"
Lucian's lips curved slightly. "Let me tell you the truth: the Ma family has already taken control of Jinzhou's lifeline!"
Rover's eyes widened. "For real?"
Gossip is human nature, and even Abby, an Echo, put down his food and floated over.
Lucian chuckled. "Let me ask you, who monopolizes Jinzhou's food supplies?"
Rover furrowed her delicate brows, thinking. "It's… Ma He!"
Lucian nodded seriously. "Exactly! Let me ask you again, who's the receptionist for the Pioneer Association's Jinzhou branch?"
Rover, now realizing the gravity of the situation, said, "It's… Ma Qi!"
Lucian leaned back in the sofa chair, arms crossed, looking certain. "And Lollo Logistics'…"
Before Lucian could finish, Rover interjected solemnly, "Ma Ji!"
Lucian nodded. "Now do you see how massive the power behind Ma Xiaofang is?"
"With the Ma family placing people in so many key positions, Jinzhou City will soon be theirs!"
Hearing this, Rover realized how dangerous Jinzhou was right now. If the Ma family kept infiltrating like this…
Rover's expression grew grave. "So…"
Lucian declared loudly, "So I've decided to marry into the Ma family!"
Rover & Zani & Abby: "?"
You said all that mysteriously just to end up with this? Rover pinned Lucian to the sofa and gave him a thorough beating.
Zani scratched her head. "Sounds like this Ma family is really powerful?"
Abby pouted. "It sounds convincing, but it's all just coincidence."
Zani stroked her chin. "So many coincidences don't seem like coincidences anymore."
She glanced at the bruised and battered Lucian, finding it amusing, and coughed lightly, raising her wine glass.
"A pre-dinner drink. Have you heard the old Ragunna saying? 'Those who don't love wine won't be granted water by the gods.'"
"—Please try it. Produced in Egla Town, fermented in small oak barrels from Fagaceae Peninsula."
"Known as the 'Heart of Harvest, Droplet of the Divine,' the Honeydew Fruit Wine."
Golden-yellow, brewed from Corona Chrysanthemum, the Honeydew Fruit Wine.
The Montelli family gifts Honeydew Fruit Wine to every family member.
They claim that in the gift of Honeydew, there are no eternal enemies, only a sincere heart.
Lucian also raised his fruit wine, swirling the glass, the liquid gently swaying inside.
"I heard drinking Honeydew Fruit Wine lets you meet the Sentinel in your dreams?"
Zani shrugged. "Well, I've never dreamed of her."
"But since it's in a dream, anything's possible."
The three raised their glasses for a toast. "To you, guests from afar… and to my distant, wonderful vacation."
At this moment, a sated Abby looked at a group of people nearby cheering and clapping for two Echoes wearing top hats, their faces resembling stained glass.
"Hmm… what's going on over there?"
Zani followed his gaze and explained, "It's probably a rehearsal for Carnevale?"
"It looks like… the Montelli family's Echo performance dedicated to the Sentinel. They've been rehearsing for days."
Two Vitreum Dancers performed a duet in the center of the venue, looking ever so elegant.
But as the performance concluded, something unexpected happened!
The stained glass on the Vitreum Dancers' faces suddenly turned red, and one of them abruptly turned, staring directly at their group.
The next second, the two Vitreum Dancers brandished their swords, driving away the panicked tourists around them.
One quickly fled the scene, while the other leaped forward, aiming straight for Rover…
"Careful!"
The incident happened so suddenly that by the time everyone reacted, the Vitreum Dancer had already turned into a blur, leaping into the air, its blade flashing with cold light as it slashed down.
Zani summoned an ivory shield in front of her, while Rover's Emerald of Genesis glowed with blue light.
But Lucian was faster, pulling the trigger on his Comrade's Hammer, flames bursting from the muzzle, and reaching out to pull Rover behind him.
However, in that split second, Lucian noticed a small crimson petal falling from behind the Vitreum Dancer.
The stained glass on the dancer's face suddenly faded, returning to its original state.
At that moment, a voice and images flooded Rover's mind…
A cyan pegasus shattered the clouds, while an abyssal beast stirred the tides.
Between them, a golden-haired girl raised her arm, golden divine light condensing in the sky like a blazing sun.
The two beasts clashed under the radiance, their expressions ferocious.
A mature female voice echoed in Rover's mind: "Command…"
The scene shifted. The pegasus and sea beast no longer fought but surrounded the golden-haired girl, stirring up monstrous waves.
"Unify…"
"Ascend…"
The next moment, the scene flashed again. Countless Rinascita people, their faces twisted in grief and ferocity, were encircled by golden halos, like livestock trying to break free from a cage.
"Converge…"
In the final frozen image, a six-winged cross stood in the sanctuary, with chains weaving a net, and golden light pierced the girl's chest like a beam.
The voice softened slightly. "Lady Arbiter, I have waited long… My name is 'Imperator.'"
"Please help 'me' bring the lost ones… back to the mortal world."
The vision vanished. The stained glass on the Vitreum Dancer's face was shattered by Lucian's bullet, fragments scattering as its body collapsed to the ground.
"Are you all okay? Strange, why would these Echoes suddenly go out of control…"
Zani frowned, her tone urgent.
In her view, if not for Lucian's shot, the rogue Vitreum Dancer would have struck Rover.
The little chef Margherita hurried over, full of apologies. "That scared me!"
"I thought if that dancer went out of control, my Beibei might have the same problem…"
Beibei, also an Echo, was Margherita's helper for baking and roasting.
"Chirp! Guests, it's your first time in Ragunna, and you had such an unpleasant dining experience!"
"Please take these dishes. I hope this doesn't ruin your day!"
Before Rover could reach out, Abby swept the food into his stomach like a whirlwind.
Zani: "…Calling him a secret weapon isn't an exaggeration."
At this moment, Rover noticed Lucian crouching on the ground, picking up a red petal.
Rover bent down and asked, "Phrolova again?"
The Fractsidus was truly relentless, causing trouble wherever they went.
It seemed this trip to Rinascita wouldn't be easy.
Add to that Ragunna's complex web of forces, and it was giving her a headache.
Lucian crushed the petal in his hand, glancing at Rover.
Of the two Vitreum Dancer s, one fled, while the other targeted Rover specifically.
It was clearly intentional.
But what puzzled Lucian was that the Vitreum Dancer was under Phrolova's control, so why did that control suddenly vanish?
Before the control faded, the dancer's blade showed no mercy.
Yet, based on Fractsidus' previous attitude toward Rover, there was no reason for them to go for the kill at this moment.
Zani spoke up, "The other dancer ran off. Should we chase it? It'd be bad if it hurt someone."
After the incident, several priests from the Order of the Deep also gave chase.
Rover nodded slightly. With so many people around, it wasn't the time to discuss what she saw and heard.
The group followed the dancer's path, eliminating many controlled Echoes along the way.
But there was no sign of the rogue dancer.
Zani frowned. "Strange, where did that rogue dancer go?"
Seeing no one around, Rover pulled Lucian and Abby aside, recounting what she had seen.
She didn't include Zani because she didn't fully trust the Montelli family.
Lucian was stunned. "So drinking Honeydew Fruit Wine really lets you see the Sentinel?"
"But I drank it too, and she didn't come to see me. What nerve!"
Rover: "?"
"That's not the point right now, is it?"
Abby scratched his little head. "Hmm… thinking calmly, that frequency fluctuation felt a bit like 'empathy'?"
Rover asked, puzzled, "Empathy?"
Abby stammered, "Like… telepathy? I can't describe it well…"
Lucian nodded slightly. "I know this one—it's like voice transmission! That's how it's written in novels."
Abby nodded blankly. "…Something like that."
"But empathy relies on frequency. Voice transmission counts as a superpower, right?"
"Imperator is the Sentinel's name, but who are the lost ones?"
"She said she needs your help… Is there something even the Sentinel can't do? Ugh, all these riddles are making me sleepy…"
With that, Abby performed a spectacular full-score dive back into the Tacet Mark.
Lucian stroked his chin, speculating, "We need to analyze this carefully…"
"Since you saw a pegasus and a sea beast, based on what Jinhsi once said, the Sentinel's form is a pegasus."
"So it's possible the pegasus is Imperator, and the sea beast… maybe a Threnodian?"
"After all, back in Jinzhou, the Sentinel was fighting Ovathrax."
"If it's not a Threnodian, it could be another large Tacet Discord…"
"Then there's the golden-haired girl… You said she seemed to be unleashing some kind of power in the vision?"
"Could she be the lost one? But with such power, maybe she's not the lost one but someone else."
This would explain why Phrolova's control suddenly failed.
It's likely because the Sentinel also took control of that Echo.
Compared to the Sentinel's power, Phrolova's methods probably fell short.
"But based on what the Sentinel showed you and how she showed it, it feels more like a plea for help."
"She could have easily sent a divine oracle to the Enlightened One, Fenrico, of the Order of the Deep."
"But she didn't, choosing instead to hint at something to you in this way."
"Could it be, as I suspected earlier, that the Order of the Deep is restricting the Sentinel? That's why she didn't send an oracle to the Enlightened One, Fenrico?"
"And those words you heard…"
"Command, Unify, Ascend, Converge…"