Chapter 586
Eivass: Not a big problem
“James…”
Hearing the name, Sherlock softly murmured, and subconsciously turned to look at Eivass.
The moment Sherlock’s gaze met Eivass’s, he realized they were thinking of the same thing.
—Although strictly speaking, there are quite a few people named James. And I haven’t heard of Professor Moriarty having any connection with the Queen of the Fey… But once they heard that “Spider,” they both thought of Eivass’s foster father.
To be safe, Sherlock asked, “What are the characteristics of that ‘James’?”
“…Do you know him?”
Grace asked somewhat strangely.
She originally thought she would be questioned further about other matters, but unexpectedly, Sherlock and Eivass’s attention immediately shifted to that friend.
However, Grace clearly didn’t have the nerve to refuse Eivass and the others—Eivass was, after all, an Archbishop.
Although not a Cardinal… in the Church, an Archbishop could undoubtedly be considered an authority. Even an ordinary Bishop held more power and status than these individuals.
The Church of the Nine Pillar Gods ruled the nation, and the status of those who followed the Path of Devotion was clearly higher than those on other paths.
This was not corruption, as the Church was very clear from the beginning: Since devotees easily offered their own, their loved ones, or their possessions to benefit others, it would be difficult for them to live well in a natural social environment if they did nothing.
Therefore, as an artificial regulation, the Church openly favored devotees. It was telling people that doing good deeds would be rewarded. Even doing good deeds for the sake of reward was better than doing nothing.
Strangely, from the Church’s and true devotees’ perspective, this regulation itself became a form of “devotion”—because it meant that the welfare of true devotees was being given to those who “did good deeds for the sake of reward,” and the devotees were happy to see it…
No Fey would feel ill will towards an Archbishop; their words naturally carried power. This power came from the maintenance of honor by successive Archbishops and Cardinals.
It was for this reason that although Eivass’s arrival would cause them trouble, Madam Grace and her husband did not drive Eivass away. Instead, they warmly welcomed them. When Eivass and the others were deducing the truth, Grace did not deliberately interrupt them, trick them, mislead them, or attack them—instead, she appeared openly and revealed all the secrets, pleading for Eivass’s mercy.
Because they all knew that they were in the wrong—at least in the Fey worldview, they were wrong. They would not commit a greater error to cover up a smaller one.
“…My friend and I have actually only met once. Our meeting was purely coincidental and not a conspiracy, because the ‘Moonlight’ lineage has a strong sense of good and evil. That friend not only had no malice but also had a strong desire for devotion.”
Even so, Grace still defended her friend a little more. After all, the other party had also given them a way to solve the problem, so they couldn’t just blame him and leave.
Then, she seriously answered Sherlock’s question: “He should be an old man; I can see the signs of aging. But I have contacted too few humans, so I cannot determine his specific age.
“However, I can be sure that he should be an Inheritor. And like me, he is a naturally multi-path Extraordinary with multiple inheritances, at least at Fourth Tier, with the Path of Devotion and Path Adaptation. Even by Fey standards, he is definitely a strong individual.
“As for characteristics—I’m sorry, I might be a bit face-blind when it comes to humans. But he was wearing a formal suit that didn’t quite match the style of the Fey kingdom, and he looked very elegant. Also, he was always smiling.”
An old man, multi-path, Devotion and Adaptation…
…An early death?
Eivass pondered, feeling that possibility was greater.
His foster father was once a student of Cardinal Loki… Could it be that he learned the Spider Silk Grimoire from Loki?
But that didn’t seem quite right.
Although many Grimoires were condensed into a single skill, it was essentially a form of inheritance.
Lily found a complete Path Adaptation inheritance from the Spider Silk Grimoire. That’s why Lily sensed special energies from Bram and Cardinal Loki when she met them… because the essence of their powers was the same.
But Lily had spent a long time with Professor Moriarty and had never sensed the aura of the Spider Silk Grimoire from her…
“—No!”
Eivass suddenly woke up.
Although it had been half a year… he suddenly remembered, that was indeed possible!
Because Lily only obtained the Spider Silk Grimoire after the Professor and even Mr. Oswald had left! This meant that after Lily learned the Spider Silk Grimoire, she never saw the Professor again.
It seemed that after thoroughly studying the Spider Silk Grimoire, it could steal others’ powers or identities under certain specific circumstances. However, Cardinal Loki rarely used this skill; his Fey body was bestowed by the Candlemaster. Bram, on the other hand, had successively stolen the powers of the Child of the Moon and the Giant—and after he stole them, Cardinal Loki really lost the ability to turn into a Giant.
When Eivass killed Cardinal Loki at the time, for a moment he thought he was going to enter the second stage: the Fey body shattered, and then the Wildfire Giant would stand up again.
As a result, Cardinal Loki died while still in his Fey body.
On the contrary, Bram… not only turned into a Wildfire Giant but also, like a true Giant, lost his intellect and rationality due to rage.
If his foster father also possessed the power of the Spider Silk Grimoire, what would he use it to steal?
Or rather, were there any talents like “Giant” or “Fey” worth stealing?
“…No way.”
Eivass murmured.
Thinking of this, he realized something.
【—Mr. Eivass Moriarty… my lovely little key.】
These were the words Professor Moriarty said to him during the last Ascension Ritual after discovering Eivass’s identity as an Ascender.
He could have easily made Eivass withdraw, but he didn’t. Eivass had thought of it as an act of kindness at the time.
But now, thinking about it, this “little key” might have had a different meaning.
In the original history, Eivass died shielding the Player—the now-insane Professor Moriarty had become extremely enraged.
Not disbelief, not sadness, not shock… but rage.
…What was he angry about?
Was it their deep father-son bond, making him unable to accept Eivass’s death? Or was he angered by Eivass’s refusal to return to him even at the cost of his life?
—But Eivass felt neither was right.
Even if Professor Moriarty had gone mad, he was still that unfathomable foster father who inspired fear and even made him tremble.
How could he have been enraged for such a ridiculous reason?
Conversely, Edward’s consciousness was clear at the time. He had a good relationship with Eivass, but why did he show no reaction, with a blank expression, when he killed Eivass?
At the time, Eivass didn’t know Edward’s character and thought he was just a cold-blooded, unfeeling tough guy. Only later did he realize that he was an outwardly cold but inwardly warm elder brother who cared for his family. He was just too accustomed to suppressing himself and enduring pain in silence.
Could it be…
When Edward saw Eivass block the attack, he was actually able to hold back his strength—but he didn’t?
He thought Eivass dying was better than being captured, but he completely obeyed Professor Moriarty’s orders, so he could only act at that moment… to give Eivass a quick end.
…Could the Professor have wanted to steal Eivass’s power?
But what power did Eivass have?
If “Divine Entity” was a fragment of Samsara Heavenly Envoy, then in a worldline with players, the Swamp Dweller containing the Divine Entity should have been the player themselves.
But Eivass could be sure: from Moriarty’s perspective, Freya, Edward, and Yulia were all less important than Eivass. He most likely wanted to steal some “talent” from Eivass, but he was worried that his intervention would cause Eivass to lose this talent… So whether in the game or in the reality Eivass was currently experiencing, he left Eivass after Eivass became independent.
The more Eivass thought about it, the stranger it felt.
He vaguely felt that he had grasped the key to a conspiracy—in addition to the Ring Heavenly Envoys eyeing him, other conspiracies were also entwined around him.
So Eivass asked, “Madam Grace, I have a question…
“Since you still have the ‘Moonlight’ inheritance, can you bring people into the Fey kingdom?”
“…I can bring one person at a time.”
Grace, being intelligent, immediately guessed Eivass’s intention: “I take Maxim to see Anastasia almost every year. But I haven’t seen that man in years. I think he probably hasn’t returned.”
“When was the last time you entered the Fey kingdom…?” Eivass asked.
“April last year, almost a year ago. Because if we contact her too frequently, it might disrupt Anastasia’s sense of time. Once she realizes that a long time has passed outside, she might be driven out by the Fey… so we usually just take a glance from afar and rarely go over to say hello.”
Grace immediately replied, “Last year, I only saw Miss Jeanette there—she is also human. And seems to be from Avalon. As for that old man, we only met him once in total.”
“You mentioned… the Queen of the Fey knows him?” Eivass continued to ask.
Sherlock looked at Eivass uneasily.
He keenly felt that Eivass seemed too fixated on this question.
“Yes.”
Grace nodded.
“I want to see the Queen of the Fey, Madam Grace.”
Eivass was silent for a moment, then replied, “I will keep silent about Anastasia’s matter… but I hope you can take me to see the Queen of the Fey.”
“…Is this a threat?” Grace said with a wry smile.
“No, it’s a request,”
Eivass said seriously, “I know the location of a Fey cave. If you don’t agree, I’ll have to go in by myself.”
“…Just you alone?”
Sherlock couldn’t help but ask, “Won’t it be dangerous?”
Eivass scoffed, “It would be dangerous to bring someone like you, who has no sense of humor and can’t handle children. I like children, so it’s not a big problem.”
“Then… when do we go?”
Grace was clearly concerned about Anastasia’s situation.
If possible, she would want to go as soon as possible.
Eivass also understood her thoughts—coincidentally, he felt the same way.
“What’s the earliest?” Eivass asked back.
“Two o’clock tonight,”
Grace said softly, glancing down at Fairy Nilim sleeping on her hand, “Then I’ll take this child with us as well.”
“Alright, we’ll go tonight,” Eivass said with a smile. “We’ll be quick and return, maybe we can even catch breakfast.”
(End of Chapter)
