Cartethyia.
A name that have completely vanished twenty years ago, yet now was being spoken once more.
At the Carnival twenty years ago, Cantarella had briefly crossed paths with her.
But with the eruption of the Dark Tide, Cartethyia, along with the entire Avinoleum Theological Seminary, had ascended into the heavens, and had never been heard from since.
Though no one had witnessed her death, under such desperate circumstances, the hope of survival... was minimal.
"I don't know either..." Ray furrowed his brow, carefully recalling the scene. "At the time, I learned from the Second Young Miss that the painting we'd won at the auction hid a stone tablet."
"The auction?" Cantarella murmured thoughtfully. "I do seem to recall something about that. I remember you caused quite a stir. What kind of tablet was it?"
Ray said, "A steed galloping across the heavens."
Cantarella's movements abruptly stopped. Her usual composed elegance was replaced by astonishment.
Her eyelashes trembled slightly, but quickly returned to their usual calm.
"Is that so? It seems you both already know?"
Ray looked puzzled. "Know? Know what?"
"The true form of the Sentinel, Imperator, is not this twisted image of today." Cantarella's voice was very soft, yet carried an indescribable solemnity. "Originally... it was a steed galloping across the heavens, until Leviathan, through intrigue and deceit, dragged it into the bottomless abyss."
"A steed galloping across the heavens?"
Ray murmured softly, unconsciously pressing his lips together.
In a daze, the scene he had witnessed that day at the Cathedral surfaced again, a divine white horse leaping across the sky, only to be dragged into the abyss by endless schools of black fish.
Could it be...
that the Sentinel had been trying to reveal this buried truth to him?
But why him, of all people?
He didn't know.
"Anyway, if what you say is true, that you've actually seen Cartethyia with your own eyes, then she's probably still alive for now." As Cantarella spoke these words, she looked up toward the sky. "Living somewhere we can't see. But the question is... we can't yet know whether she's friend or foe."
If the family's Saintess trial was meant to select the Sentinel's Resonator, then the Order of the Deep's Saintess...
whose Resonator was she?
The answer was already clear.
Though Cantarella had briefly met Cartethyia at the Carnival, her demeanor had been proper, with no signs of Resonance erosion, and she had lived up to the name of Saintess when the Dark Tide erupted.
But...
Twenty years had passed. Who could guarantee that Cartethyia hadn't been corrupted by now?
"About Cartethyia, is there any way you can see her again?"
Cantarella shared her concerns with Ray, and he naturally understood her vigilance, the Threnodian was civilization's mortal enemy; no amount of caution was excessive.
"I've only met her that one time. I haven't seen her since." Ray pondered for a moment. "But... if I try to contact that stone tablet again, maybe it would have an unexpected effect? Only, I'd have to ask the Second Young Miss for help with that."
"Hmm, that's good. If you can repeatedly contact Cartethyia, we might be able to glean the truth of what happened twenty years ago." Cantarella set down her watering can and yawned lazily. "But that's for later. After talking so long, I'm actually a bit tired."
Ray instinctively asked, "Didn't you rest well last night?"
Cantarella covered her mouth with a light laugh, her eyes sparkling. "I wonder who it was that kept me from resting properly? So hard to guess."
The corner of Ray's mouth twitched slightly. He unconsciously took a small step back. "Wait, Miss Cantarella, you wouldn't have... last night..."
"Are you serious about that half-step back?" She cast him a mockingly aggrieved glance. "It's just that someone took over my bed and didn't sleep quietly. I had to get up early. But well..."
She lightly bit her red lip, her gaze lingering on Ray with a playful gleam.
"I was the one who took off your clothes. Your physique... is very solid."
"..."
For some reason, Ray felt like a lamb awaiting slaughter in front of Cantarella.
He had never experienced this feeling with anyone else, whether it was the Second Young Miss's reserve, Luno's willfulness, or Phrolova's aloofness. Though they could be assertive, they never made him feel so at a loss.
As for Phoebe?
In front of him, she was the prey.
This, he supposed, was the unique composure and sharpness of a mature woman.
Completely different from the tentative probing of young girls, this was the effortless grace of a mature woman!
If it were anyone else, they'd have surely fallen into the deep-sea jellyfish's gentle embrace by now.
But who was Ray?
A sigma male!
Carlotta Montelli's partner!
How could he easily, well, perhaps, maybe, probably... he had indeed, just a little, fallen into her rhythm.
Sigh, Second Young Miss, I'm sorry.
"Would you... sink with me once more into the dream of the deep sea?"
She moved closer, gazing into his eyes with those deep orbs, as if trying to anchor everything about him in this moment.
"Alright, just teasing you." Cantarella suddenly laughed softly, the weariness in her eyes fading. "I put a lot of effort into calming you down yesterday. I need some good rest too. For now, I won't disturb you further. You're the hero who saved the Fisalia. From now on, the doors of the Fisalia will always be open to you."
"For now, if you want, you can stay here until evening and have dinner with me."
"Of course, you can leave anytime. I'll keep a guest room ready for you, always welcoming you back."
...
...
Ragunna City.
Ray bid farewell to Cantarella and returned to the city alone.
It was noon, but perhaps because the lingering effects of last night's rain hadn't dissipated, the sky remained overcast.
"Morning~" Anby slowly emerged from the Tacet Mark, rubbing its sleepy eyes with its little paws.
"The sun's almost high in the sky, and you're still saying morning?" Ray took out his keys and looked at the dazed little guy, shaking his head helplessly.
"Who could blame me? That fragrance last night was so comfortable, I just couldn't bear to wake up." Anby yawned lazily. "I'm so hungry. Since the sun is already high, shouldn't we be having lunch?"
Ray turned the lock. "What do you want to eat? Pizza?"
"Pizza every day, I'm sick of it! I want to try something new!"
"Then... how about I cook you some Huanglong dishes?"
"Really? I can't wait—"
Anby's words abruptly stopped.
Probably because the atmosphere in the room was too chilling, it unconsciously swallowed.
The little guy turned its head stiffly toward the doorway, to see Carlotta standing there, her face dark enough to drip water.
"You two look like you're in good spirits. Been out having fun?"
"I've been waiting here... for an entire night!"
A smile never seen before began to spread across the young woman's face. Its brilliance was dazzling, its warmth genuine, captivating.... yet also carrying a bone-deep chill.