Deep Sea Embers

Soon, another man emerged from the bustling crowd – an elderly gentleman, refined in demeanor, exuding an air of warmth beneath his dark brown coat. He strode purposefully towards the tall figure.

Spotting Morris weaving his way through the crowd, Vanna took steps to inconspicuously relocate to a quieter section of the bustling area.

“Everything seems ordinary around the cathedral square.” Vanna nonchalantly leaned against a lamppost, her gaze fixated on the cathedral’s entrance a short distance away as she delivered her observation in hushed tones.

“Similar situation at City Hall. At least superficially, the residents here exhibit no indications of psychological or cognitive compromise,” Morris commented while carefully cleaning his monocle. “However, I’ve picked up on something.”

“Oh, what’s that?”

“A few individuals close to the square were discussing the recent sewer investigations conducted by the authorities. Unless I misunderstood, they were referring to the Second Waterway,” Morris disclosed, “They mentioned a certain Gatekeeper Agatha who seems to be heading the team.”

“Gatekeeper Agatha?” Vanna’s brows furrowed slightly at the news, “But the Captain informed us…”

“The genuine Agatha should be ensnared within an illusory doppelganger of Frost as we speak,” Morris imparted with a low, serious tone. “Which leads us to conclude that the person leading the team… is likely an imposter.”

Vanna drew a slow, deep breath, then suddenly shifted her gaze upwards, fixating on the Silent Cathedral.

The majestic and serious structure starkly contrasted against the backdrop of the gloomy sky, its spires eerily emerging from the thin fog.

Her expression hardened: “…If nothing seems amiss with the cathedral, we’re left with two likely scenarios – either the imposter has managed to deceive the cathedral, or…”

“Or the Death Church of Frost can no longer be considered reliable. There’s a significant problem brewing within the cathedral,” Morris nodded gently in agreement, “Regardless of the scenario, it’s clear that the church has completely lost control of the situation. We need to depart immediately and relay this information to Mr. Duncan.”

Vanna nodded in silent approval and made her way towards the plaza’s exit alongside Morris. However, before leaving, she shot one last glance at the sprawling space opposite the Silent Cathedral.

This was where the City Hall was located, the site of the erstwhile Winter’s Court, now known as the Queen’s Palace. As the fog thickened on the mountain peak, Vanna observed the structure, standing as silent as the Silent Cathedral, its spires reaching into the mist. The edifice surveyed the entirety of the island, standing tall against the sky, a silent sentinel beneath the foreboding sky.

Abruptly, Vanna halted in her tracks, her body rigid as if frozen in place.

Reacting to her unusual behavior, Morris swiftly spun around, his concern evident: “Vanna? What did you see?”

Vanna didn’t respond. Instead, she remained transfixed, staring intently into the swirling fog that provoked an uncanny sense of deja-vu in her.

Bathed in the foggy haze, the city hall seemed to revert to its previous form. It was an architectural marvel, a palace-like edifice adorned with numerous arched domes. The grand, dignified main structure, cloaked in a pallor of grayish-white, was flanked by elongated corridors and continuous arches, extending on either side like a bird spreading its wings.

The gloomy, black spires and tower-like structures characteristic of a cathedral were noticeably absent at first glance.

“Vanna? What’s wrong?” Morris’s voice echoed again in the silent square.

“I caught a glimpse of another cathedral where City Hall stands,” Vanna’s voice broke through the silence, her tone low and grave, “It was but for a fleeting moment, yet I am certain my eyes didn’t deceive me!”

“Another cathedral?” Morris was taken aback. He instinctively swept his gaze across the plaza, but all that met his eyes was the seemingly normal city hall.

Nonetheless, he didn’t doubt Vanna’s discernment, not for a moment.

“This isn’t a good omen,” the elderly scholar muttered under his breath, his hand instinctively adjusting the hat perched atop his head, “It seems that only you were privy to this vision, likely attributed to your divine sight as a cleric, which significantly surpasses that of a regular person. The appearance of this vision near the cathedral suggests an escalating contamination.”

Vanna remained silent, her brows knitted together in a troubled frown. She cast her gaze towards the city sprawled at the mountain’s foot, staying quiet for a moment before slowly articulating, “The fog is thickening, engulfing everything in sight.”

The fog had first originated in the heart of Frost and then began its relentless spread throughout the city. Now, it’s veiled the entire island in a hazy whiteness.

“Look at the thick fog outside!” Shirley’s voice rang out from the second-floor bedroom window, her head protruding out as she craned her neck to take in the spectacle unfurling on the streets, her face a mask of surprise.

Dog, too, wandered over to the window, his skeletal head nudging alongside Shirley’s. After surveying the scene outside for a while, he abruptly broke the silence, “The dense fog blanketing the city is usually due to a significant temperature disparity between day and night, coupled with human activities that trigger a rise in water vapor, subsequently increasing airborne dust particles. When the moisture-laden air circulating between the buildings undergoes rapid cooling, it results in…”

Shirley turned towards him, her expression one of confusion, “Dog, what on earth are you trying to say?”

“Dog is actually reciting a passage from Chapter Two of ‘The Logic Behind Nature’. He’s been engrossed in that book for the past few days,” Nina remarked off-handedly, never taking her eyes off the homework spread across the desk beside her, “You should consider reading simpler books once in a while. It’s quite effective in enhancing vocabulary. If text-heavy books intimidate you, you can start with picture books.”

Shirley paused for a moment, then retorted uncertainly, “Are you insinuating that my vocabulary is so poor that I’m only capable of reading picture books despite all my efforts to learn?”

Nina, her attention already back on her homework, replied matter-of-factly, “No, I’m merely stating the obvious that you indeed can only handle picture books. There’s no mockery in expressing facts…”

Shirley’s face contorted, ready to burst out in indignation, but she was abruptly distracted by the intensifying fog outside the window and waved her hands dismissively, “Let’s forget about that. Come take a look! The fog outside is exceptionally dense! I’ve never witnessed such a dense fog back in Pland…”

“Pland experiences marginal temperature variations between day and night, and the breezy mornings and evenings typically deter fog formation,” Nina explained without lifting her gaze from her work, “I can’t look now, I still have a mound of unfinished homework. This test paper that Professor Morris assigned is remarkably challenging. The multiple-choice questions are designed to be deceiving. I can’t shake off the feeling that I’m consistently choosing the wrong option…”

“Well, if you’re unsure about an answer, always go with option C,” Shirley suggested nonchalantly. Then a new idea seemed to cross her mind, “Hey Nina, do you feel like stepping out? We won’t wander far – there’s a pastry shop right across the street. Given the weather, it’s unlikely they’ll have many customers. We might get lucky and find some discounted cakes…”

“I’m not interested,” Nina replied dismissively, “Feel free to go by yourself. If Uncle Duncan returns, I won’t spill the beans…”

Her words were abruptly interrupted by an eerie, rustling sound that reverberated through the room, instantly putting a stop to the girls’ chatter.

“Did you… hear something just now?” Shirley rapidly retreated from the window sill, her eyes darting around the room, a guarded expression on her face.

Nina grew alert too, but as her eyes instinctively swept the room, she noticed something peculiar happening on the pages of the exam paper and textbooks sprawled in front of her.

The text appeared to be in motion, symbols spinning uncontrollably, the stark contrast of the black and white ink marks seemingly coming alive, trembling inexplicably. Along the edges of those jittery strokes, black shadows began to spread out like seeping ink, rapidly blanketing the entire paper.

Within the span of a heartbeat, every textbook and paper that Nina had been diligently studying moments ago began to quiver and convulse with an eerie intensity. A dissonant chorus of whispers melded with the unsettling rustling sound, reverberating ominously throughout the room!

“Ah! Your books have been possessed!” Shirley hollered in astonishment, her instincts prompting her to raise the chain that bound her to Dog. As her outcry echoed within the room, an insidious entity, lured by the essence of wisdom and knowledge, started manifesting itself in the physical world and infiltrating it!

Swirls of dark dust stormed and swirled violently, coalescing into a tangible shape. Scattered skeletal fragments rattled and rolled across the floor, rapidly morphing into a grotesque, spine-chilling creature—three menacing dark hounds materialized on the floor, letting out intimidating growls, their eyes ablaze with turmoil and insanity!

Their eyes then fell upon Dog, who lay stunned in the empty space by the window.

Three malevolent dark hounds locked gazes with an intelligent counterpart—Shirley thought she detected a fleeting moment of confusion in the demeanors of the “native demons”.

But such unexpected circumstances didn’t hamper her reactions.

The black chain rattled and clinked as Shirley lifted her arm high, leveraging an enormous force to swing Dog around like a devastating meteor hammer. The next moment, he whizzed through the air and barreled towards the demon closest to the window!

“I’m gonna whip you into shape!”

With a thunderous crash, two canine heads violently collided. The poor demon, who recently emerged from the shadowy abyss, was clearly no match for Dog, who had honed his combat skills through years of rigorous training with Shirley—be it in terms of skull strength or reaction speed.

The first shadow demon crumbled into shards upon the initial impact.

Meanwhile, the second shadow demon had just enough time to part its jaws, but before it could let out a fierce roar, it was assailed by a wave of blistering heat.

An inferno flared from the side, and Nina landed a searing kick with an incredible temperature of 6000°C.