Liam had one leg crossed over the other, a cup of tea resting on the table as he continued reading the newspaper Julien had brought him yesterday afternoon.
Julien quietly stepped out of his room, putting on his coat at the same time. Liam glanced at him. "Up early?"
Julien gave him a faint smile. "After what happened last night, if I'm not up early, then I'm no different from someone who's asking to die!"
Liam folded the newspaper and placed it on the table. "By the way... why did you act like you'd never heard of him when I told you about my dream yesterday? Last night, you two seemed pretty familiar."
"Familiar? No... I have a personal grudge against that crow."
"A personal grudge? Why?"
"Let me put it this way... If you were sitting somewhere and a meteor suddenly crashed into the ground right in front of you, what would you say? 'Wow, how beautiful?' Or would you die of fright?"
"The second one..."
"Well, that's basically what happened between me and that crow... I was still a member of the Nightwolves back then."
"I see... Oh, and don't forget to get tickets for the express train."
"You know they're a little expensive, and... it might take a few days to get them."
"That's fine... I have absolutely no interest in riding a regular train."
"Because you're a detective?"
"No. Because I might get so tired during the journey that I decide to kill you."
"Please be kind... Don't torture me before you do it!"
A brief laugh escaped Liam as a smile spread across his face. Julien headed toward the door, but Liam suddenly called out, "By the way... you talked a lot about the Nightwolves and the King's Cabinet last night. Tell me a little about the Silver Company too!"
Julien leaned against the door.
"I wasn't with the Silver Company for very long, but Old Deay once told me that it's basically a second branch of the Nightwolves that has absolutely nothing to do with the Nightwolves..."
"Huh? What does that even mean?"
"I think its leader was a woman with silver hair... I'm not sure whether she was the leader of the Silver Company or her brother was, but I do know that the two of them were Old Deay's former disciples."
"Oh... Let me ask you something. Don't you want to tell me more about this Old Deay?"
Julien gave him a faint smile and lowered the door handle. Morning sunlight poured into the room.
Liam immediately called after him, "Hey, you idiot! I'm talking to you!"
Julien turned around with the same smile.
"I'm sure you'll see him once we reach Loy... Though you'll probably have to deal with him after I get reprimanded first!"
Liam picked up the newspaper from the table. Julien stepped outside and closed the door behind him. Liam sighed deeply and muttered under his breath, "What is this ridiculous nonsense... Would it kill you to just talk like a normal person?"
A little while passed. Liam turned the final page of the newspaper, only for the headline to ruin his mood.
"Mystiquire Attack on London, Capital of the Great Kingdom"
His eyes trembled, and he let the newspaper fall from his hands.
"My lord... Is His Grace all right? I should probably write him a letter to ask how he's doing."
He hurried to his room to write a letter to his master, Elias.
──────────────────────────
Elias was suspended at the highest point of the gray sky above the Gray Expanse.
From below, the Dark Hand called out loudly, "How's the weather up there? If it's warm, I'll come up too!"
"Now is not the time for jokes, old man."
"Old hand would be more accurate. I genuinely want to know what you're doing up there."
"...Hmph. They want me to find out whether it has an end."
"I told you it doesn't."
"I don't trust you!"
"Much appreciated."
Elias let himself fall. Just before he disappeared into the mist, he stopped himself in midair once again and slowly closed his eyes.
The Dark Hand watched him in silence.
Silence between words. The cold of the mist. The sound of the shifting masses of fog.
Without saying anything, Elias turned around and quietly muttered, "Celestial Conclave."
Just like before, silence descended.
Suddenly, walls of mist formed around Elias and the Dark Hand. The mist slowly sank back toward the ground, revealing the white pillars, the red carpet, and the pale morning light.
It was the same place.
Without a word, Elias walked toward the orb, with the Dark Hand following behind him.
"What are you planning to do?"
"You said I could recreate a place using my own memories..."
"That's right."
"I want to see if I can try the same thing with memories of something else."
"Why test it on that floating pen inside the orb? You could test it on a human. Don't you have a single human in your memories?"
"I wanted to recreate John Smith, but I don't know why. No matter how much I thought about him, the mist wouldn't recreate him... Now that this place has been recreated, I want to find out where this floating pen came from!"
The Dark Hand was about to say something, but before he could, Elias thrust his hand into the orb and grabbed The Legend of Idris, the floating pen within the Celestial Conclave.
Nothing happened.
The silence grew even heavier.
The Dark Hand immediately said, "I was going to tell you it probably wouldn't work... Better that you see it for yourself!"
Elias looked around in confusion. Everything was still. He slowly pulled his hand back, The Legend of Idris in his grasp.
He held out his hand and released the floating pen. It remained suspended above his palm.
The Dark Hand spoke in a mocking tone. "What a memory. It's been in the Celestial Conclave from the very beginning!"
Elias exhaled, curled his fingers, and grabbed the floating pen for a second time.
Light.
A blinding radiance burst from the pen and filled the entire space. Both of them immediately closed their eyes.
The moment Elias felt the cold, he opened his eyes.
Golden words passed overhead. Pieces of the ground floated through the air, suspended without gravity, while Elias himself stood firmly upon the earth.
His eyes fell upon a man holding the floating pen, The Legend of Idris.
Elias was still staring in disbelief when the Dark Hand suddenly spoke, his voice filled with confusion.
"What language... are those words written in?!"
Elias grew even more uneasy. Slowly, he raised his head again. The golden words passed overhead in the form of sentences.
He whispered, "Could it be... that man... is Idris?"
Once again, a beam of light filled everything around them. Elias closed his eyes against its intensity, then opened them again almost immediately.
Everything had returned to normal.
The same sea of mist.
The same Gray Expanse.
Elias slowly turned toward the Dark Hand. As the Dark Hand opened his eye, Elias stared directly into it and asked, "This place we... saw... do you recognize it? Is there anywhere on this earth like it?"
"No..."
"What about before Year 0? If it isn't within the last 1,879 years, then what about before that?"
"Before? There's nothing before Year 0!"
Elias fell silent. He was frightened at first, but quickly recovered. A strange, almost foolish smile settled onto his face.
"So there's nothing? That's... ridiculous. It's like someone in my world saying dinosaurs never existed."
The Dark Hand was about to say something when Elias suddenly spoke again.
"I have a new goal now... Finding out whether anything existed in this world before Year 0!"
The Dark Hand let out a deep sigh. "That's impossible."
"...By the way, how do you breathe? You don't even have a nose or a mouth. You're basically just a palm with five fingers and one eye!"
"Was that an insult?"
"No, I was just curious."
"I photosynthesize."
"Don't be ridiculous, old man."
"I repeat... Old hand is more accurate."
Elias was about to ask another question, but the Dark Hand cut him off.
"Don't ask me. I've been like this ever since I opened my eye here. Maybe I breathe through my eye... or somewhere else!"
"I see..."
Night, Paris: Capital of the Kingdom of Lothier
His blond hair swayed in the wind blowing across the top of the Eiffel Tower. He pulled the floating pen from his pocket and looked at it.
"How is it... enjoying the weather?"
"I never thought we'd actually come to Lothier."
"I came to see an old friend... The Legend of Idris."
"I hate that name."
"Don't be upset..."
John extended his hand slightly. The floating pen hovered above his palm. The familiar smile on his face trembled slightly.
"We're going to see someone dangerous..."
The Legend of Idris remained silent for a moment before answering.
"Master of Mechanic... be careful, John."
At the same time, a man stood in a metallic chamber facing a gigantic head with six circular eyes. Three creatures were kneeling behind him while other automatons worked atop the enormous metal head.
The man slowly turned toward the three creatures.
"Raise your heads."
All three lifted their heads. The man calmly began taking attendance.
"Automaton One... present. Two... present. Three... present. Four... Where is Automaton Four?"
The three creatures looked at one another.
Suddenly, a voice echoed from the end of the corridor.
"You wanted this... Master of Mechanic?"
The metal head of the fourth automaton struck the ground several times before finally coming to a stop beside the Master's feet.
He slowly raised his head and looked at John. His smile twisted into a nervous smirk as he quietly muttered,
"An old acquaintance..."
John stepped out from the shadows between the lights of the metal tunnel and stared at the Master.
"Thank you..."
A toothy smile carved a small dimple into the Master's cheek, "Error... Angel."
John commented,
"Industry Archangel."