In the study of Green Shade Town No. 17, Dorothy felt a surge of excitement as she looked at the old notebook on the table. Finally, after such a long time, she had once again found information about the Star Numerology Scriptorium.
With a mix of excitement and anticipation, Dorothy didn’t rush to read the notebook immediately. Instead, she boiled some water, made herself a cup of hot tea, and leisurely moved her reading spot to the fireplace in the living room. After changing into comfortable home clothes, she sat by the fire, sipping her tea, and began to read, fully prepared to enjoy the experience.
By the fireplace, Dorothy slowly began to read Darlene’s notebook. As she read, she discovered that the notebook primarily contained Darlene’s explorations into the Revelation path. During her research, Darlene found that studying the Star Numerology Scriptorium was unavoidable, so the notebook contained a wealth of information about the organization.
According to Darlene’s notes, she had obtained many mystical texts related to the Star Numerology Scriptorium. Through long-term research, she determined the rise and fall of the organization. The Star Numerology Scriptorium originated at the end of the Second Epoch, possibly connected to the ancient civilization of North Ufiga. The organization reached its peak during the middle of the Third Epoch, having deep ties with many powers and even the imperial authorities of that era. It ultimately came to an end at the close of the Third Epoch, lasting for an entire epoch.
Although Darlene couldn’t pinpoint the exact reasons for its origin and downfall, she managed to reconstruct the timeline of the Star Numerology Scriptorium’s existence. From this, Dorothy gained even more useful information—a historical framework for this world.
The official history of this world begins with the Radiance Church’s history, starting from the Radiant Savior’s salvation and the establishment of the church. Only after this did various nations begin recording their own histories. Anything before this is considered Mystic History, filled with cognitive poison.
In Darlene’s research notes on the Star Numerology Scriptorium’s timeline, Dorothy gained a preliminary understanding of Mystic History. In this history, epochs are divided by world-changing events, with each epoch lasting for varying lengths of time.
According to Darlene’s notes, Dorothy’s current era is the Fourth Epoch. The transition from the Third Epoch to the Fourth Epoch was marked by the establishment of the Radiance Church. The Fourth Epoch has now lasted over a thousand years.
The transition from the Second Epoch to the Third Epoch, Darlene speculated, was marked by the Dawn War led by the King of Light and his allies, followed by the establishment of the empire. As for the transition from the First Epoch to the Second Epoch, there is almost no information, making it impossible to speculate.
Of course, in these notes, while Darlene speculated on the events marking the transitions between epochs, she knew little about the specifics of each epoch or the reasons for their transitions. She knew that the Dawn War marked the transition from the Second Epoch to the Third Epoch, but the causes, events, and outcomes of the war remained unclear. Even the details of the Third Epoch itself were scarce.Still, this at least gave Dorothy a basic understanding of the timeline of Mystic History. She now knew that the King of Light and his Dawn War were real, and his empire likely spanned the entire Third Epoch.
Based on the information Dorothy had gathered, she could confirm that during the Third Epoch, many powers existed alongside the King of Light’s empire, including the Goddess of Abundance Church, the Star Numerology Scriptorium, and even the mysterious Mirror Moon Goddess faith. The Mirror Moon Goddess and Abundance Goddess faiths shared a common trait—they both had their own churches and could openly proselytize, unlike today, where only the Radiance Church holds such a position.
At the end of the Third Epoch, some major event must have occurred, leading to the disappearance of the empire, the Abundance Goddess faith, the Mirror Moon Goddess faith, the Star Numerology Scriptorium, and many other powers. Based on the underground ruins beneath King’s Campus, the Star Numerology Scriptorium likely disappeared earlier, at least before the Mirror Moon Goddess faith. The Fourth Epoch began with the establishment of the Radiance Church, and the Three Saints faith became the absolute orthodoxy, spreading to billions of believers worldwide.
Additionally, from Darlene’s research notes, Dorothy learned that the ancient civilization of North Ufiga dates back to the Second Epoch, making it far older than the King of Light’s empire.
"Hmm... so that’s how it is. Now I finally have a rough understanding of Mystic History..."
By the fireplace, Dorothy murmured to herself as she read the notebook. She took another sip of tea from the table and continued flipping through the pages. The information in the latter part of the notebook piqued her interest even more.
In the latter half of the notebook, Darlene actually documented several Star Numerology Scriptorium ruins she had located and explored through various clues. Unfortunately, these ruins were all quite far away, located on the mainland rather than on the Pritt Island, and had already been looted.
However, one particular ruin stood out. This ruin was located in a valley within the Barrier Mountains of the central-southern mainland. During her exploration, Darlene encountered a major earthquake. To avoid danger, she temporarily halted her exploration and only resumed after the earthquake subsided.
When Darlene returned to explore the Star Numerology Scriptorium ruin in the valley, she made an unexpected discovery. The ruin, which should have been completely looted by others, had suffered severe structural damage from the earthquake. Many areas had collapsed, including a particularly thick wall that had cracked open, revealing a hidden passageway behind it.
Through this passage, Darlene discovered a secret chamber within the ruin. Inside, she found many Revelation-related artifacts and valuable murals and documents about the Star Numerology Scriptorium. Among these was a wordless stele placed at the center of a Revelation-themed ritual array. The stele had no inscriptions but was covered in countless chaotic scratches!
Reading this part of the notebook, Dorothy immediately recalled the scene in the Star Numerology Scriptorium ruins beneath King’s Campus. There, in a hidden chamber at the center of a Revelation-themed ritual array, stood a stele. It was on this stele that the advancement methods for all Black Earth ranks of the Revelation path were inscribed. It was thanks to this stele that Dorothy had advanced to her current rank of Scholar.
Could this be a similar stele?
Reading Darlene’s records, Dorothy felt a surge of excitement and continued reading.
As expected, Darlene also recognized the stele’s significance. First, its position at the center of the ritual array indicated its importance. Second, Darlene noticed that while the stele was covered in seemingly random scratches, its material was incredibly durable, making it difficult to carve. Therefore, the chaotic scratches couldn’t have been accidental—they were deliberately made.
Although Darlene couldn’t see the strange scratches, these signs convinced her that the stele was extraordinary. She decided to take it from the secret chamber and transport it back to her base in Pritt for further study.
"So... there might still be a similar advancement stele in Tivian?"
After finishing Darlene’s notebook, Dorothy murmured with excitement. She knew exactly what those chaotic scratches were—they were Universal Language, the language used by the Star Numerology Scriptorium. This script would only reveal its meaning to specific individuals predetermined by its creators, and it could even transcend language barriers. The text on the stele beneath King’s Campus had worked in the same way.
After finishing the notebook, Dorothy closed her eyes and began extracting the spirituality of the mystical knowledge within. Soon, she gained 5 pure points of Revelation.
"Phew... it seems... it’s time to talk to Adèle again..."
Letting out a long sigh, Dorothy closed the notebook and quickly took out her magic box. She opened it and had the corpse marionette inside search for something.
After a while, a hand holding a book emerged from the box. Dorothy took the book and high-fived the hand before it retreated back into the box. She then closed the box.
Next, Dorothy opened the book she had retrieved—her Literary Sea Logbook. She quickly flipped to the page where she communicated with Adèle and began writing. Her main question was about the stele, and she described its various details in her message, asking if Adèle had any recollection of it.
After sending the message, Dorothy used the marionette mark on Adèle to notify her of the incoming message and began to wait. After about ten minutes, she finally saw Adèle’s handwriting appear on the page.
"Good afternoon, Detective. It seems you’ve received the latest materials I sent you. Asking me about this now... you must have found something new in my teacher’s notes. To have researched it so quickly, I must say, your cognitive poison processing efficiency is truly impressive."
Reading Adèle’s message, Dorothy paused. She realized that in her excitement, she had contacted Adèle a bit too hastily, which might reveal her unique ability to handle cognitive poison.
However, this didn’t make Dorothy nervous. In her eyes, Adèle was already half an ally, and she might fully join her side in the future. Knowing a bit more wasn’t a big deal, but Dorothy reminded herself to be more cautious in the future.
"Thank you for the compliment, Miss Adèle. We do have some efficient methods for handling cognitive poison. I’ve gone through part of Darlene’s materials, and she mentioned having a stele like the one I described in her workshop. This stele is our target. Do you have any memories of it?"
Dorothy wrote her reply, and soon Adèle’s response appeared on the page.
"I do remember that stele. It was in my teacher’s workshop, covered in random scratches and nothing else. I saw it a few times when I visited. My teacher studied it for a while but eventually set it aside after finding nothing significant.”
"After the Joyful Dance Society was destroyed by the Wolf Blood Society, my teacher’s workshop was ransacked by those beasts, so the stele naturally fell into their hands. Based on some of my teacher’s memories that I’ve recently organized... the stele should be in Davic’s possession."
“In the hands of the Wolf Blood Society again...?”
Dorothy’s heart sank as she read Adèle’s message. She continued writing.
"Davic? Who is that?"
"Davic Jones, a member of the Wolf Blood Society. Although he’s just a Black Earth-rank Beastman, he’s one of the few in the Wolf Blood Society—a group of gluttonous fools—who has any talent for mystical research. According to my teacher’s memories, due to his talent, he rose quickly within the Wolf Blood Society and is on the verge of becoming a White-rank Werewolf. He’s involved in many of the society’s research projects and is considered a key figure within the organization.”
"In my teacher’s memories, this guy once interrogated her about the secrets and research result in her workshop. So I’m certain that all the seemingly useless but research-worthy items from her workshop are now in his possession."
Adèle replied. Reading this, Dorothy paused, then continued writing.
"Miss Adèle, do you know where this Davic is located?"
"If I knew Davic’s location, he’d already be in pieces. Every member of the Wolf Blood Society is my enemy, especially those involved in matters related to my teacher. I’d love to tear each of them apart, but unfortunately, a member of a secret society with strong anti-divination abilities isn’t easy to find. All I can confirm is... he’s probably still in Tivian."
Adèle’s response appeared on the page. Reading this, Dorothy couldn’t help but frown.
“Ugh... no idea where he is... back to the task of finding someone…”
Dorothy felt a bit frustrated. She was no stranger to tracking people down, but searching for someone in a massive city with almost no clues was a first for her. It left her feeling somewhat stuck.
Still, despite her frustration, she knew she had to express her gratitude first. Dorothy continued writing in the Logbook.
"Thank you, Miss Adèle, for taking the time to answer my questions despite your busy schedule. Your answers have been very helpful. Thank you."
"You’re always so polite, Detective. After all, we’re friends, and helping each other is what friends do, right? Also, didn’t I say last time? You can just call me Adèle. Being too formal might create distance between us~"
Adèle replied. Dorothy glanced at the message, paused for a moment, and then wrote.
"Alright, thank you, Adèle."
"No need to thank me~ Detective. I’m also looking forward to the day I learn your real name, so I don’t have to keep calling you ‘Detective.’"
Adèle’s final response appeared. Dorothy sighed, shook her head, and closed the Logbook. She leaned back in her chair, pondering how to find the Wolf Blood Society member named Davic.
"Tsk... this is troublesome. This time, aside from knowing his name and rank, I have almost no clues... I have no idea where to start..."
Resting her head on her hand, Dorothy thought to herself as she warmed herself by the fireplace. Just as she was deep in thought, a familiar voice echoed in her mind—a prayer transmitted by the system.
And this voice was very familiar—it was Gregor!
“Oh, my brother is praying to me~”
Thinking this, Dorothy immediately sat up straight and began listening to her brother’s prayer in her role as a deity.
“Great Aka, Recorder of All Things... I pray to You, I beseech You, to build a bridge of communication for me, allowing me to contact the Detective directly. I need his help to face the meeting with the Eight-Spired Nest member.”
Hearing Gregor’s words, Dorothy paused and glanced at the calendar. Today was the 25th—the day she had arranged for Gregor to meet with the Eight-Spired Nest member.