It was only now that Norton exposed his ambition for the first time.
Sylvia was the container, holding the entirety of Twilight’s authority and divinity.
She was also a key.
The pinnacle of mortals was the Legend rank, an ironclad rule recognized by the supernormal world for hundreds of years.
However, there truly existed so-called gods in this world… the false gods, evil gods, and ancient gods worshiped by many secret organizations, or the True Gods believed in by the Holy See, all attested to this point.
And between Legend and the divine realm lay a pitch-black ocean… the centuries-long historical rift of the “Land of Calamity” had shrouded this ocean in layers of unfathomable fog.
For thousands of years, countless people had explored and searched in that pitch-black ocean, forging paths – what they believed to be the “Path to Godhood.”
Yet, no one knew if the path they walked was correct, if it could lead to the end, and no one had ever reached that end.
Now, Norton had found a deep, secluded path. This Path to Godhood seemed more reliable, though an ancient bronze door blocked the way.
Sylvia was the key to opening this bronze door. After the door opened, one could meet the Ancient God named “Twilight.” Some wished to seal Him behind the door forever, while others would kneel and beg Him for blessings.
Norton, however, was different from the other two. He intended to steal the other’s authority and take His place.
With his strength not yet reaching the Sixth Ring, this undoubtedly seemed reckless—
But due to the seal and Sylvia’s existence, coupled with the leverage from secret organizations, this plan had practical feasibility.
Norton was scrutinizing Shaya. Vague shadows flickered in the void behind him. If he detected the slightest anomaly on Shaya’s face, he would strike without mercy.
Shaya displayed an expression of utter astonishment, as if startled by Norton’s insane plan.
But soon, a hint of determination flashed across his face.
“No matter what, as long as it is Grand Duke Norton’s will, I can only obey.”
【Novice Quest Stage Four: Complete the coming-of-age ceremony of the Grand Duke of Azure Court’s family, and by passing the ceremony, become a core member of the family and truly join Elder Norton’s plan. Target completed.】
【Quest rewards have been settled.】
【Based on your comprehensive performance during this quest stage, the following quest rewards are issued: 40,000 Free Experience Points.】
This quest reward wasn’t too much.
Ultimately, it was because this stage of the quest was merely a connecting and transitional part, lacking significant challenge or danger.
Simply passing the coming-of-age ceremony held almost no difficulty for Shaya at this moment; it was purely a matter of spending time to complete the tasks.
Moreover, his greatest harvest in this Historical Echo was contracting Crimson, so it was reasonable for the quest reward to be less.
【Novice Quest Status Updated.】
【You have understood the full picture of the secrets within the Azure Court Duchy, and you are more aware of Elder Norton’s ambitious plan.】
【Now, fate has split into two unrelated straight lines before your eyes.】
【Where they will ultimately lead is decided by your choice.】
【Novice Quest Final Objective: Cause the young and tender daughter of the Grand Duke of the Azure Court Duchy, Sylvia, to experience the betrayal of her loved one, and undergo transformation and rebirth amidst pain and despair.】
【Historical Echo – The second node of “Ancient Azure Court” has been reached.】
【Current historical node is locked. Please choose to exit the Historical Echo or continue to stay and complete the quest objective.】
【Reminder: This node is an important divergence point and will directly affect the final outcome of this Historical Echo. Please treat it with caution.】
“If this entire Historical Echo were a role-playing game,”
“Then, I should be standing at the last save point before the boss room right now.”
“Following the usual game progression, what I should do now is… gather intel, prepare the most complete strategy, spend all my gold to buy the best armor, weapons, and supplies, and recruit the best teammates.”
“And then, after making thorough preparations—”
“I’ll beat this game in one go.”
Shaya smiled and chose to exit the Historical Echo.
This time, Shaya’s exit was much smoother than the first time when he had no experience. The dizzying sensation of temporal displacement was also greatly reduced.
After the distorted halo of light vanished, he saw the familiar ceiling of the washroom.
Shaya glanced at the clock beside him and found that less than an hour had passed.
Although he had stayed longer in the Historical Echo this time, less time had elapsed in reality.
Shaya splashed his face with icy cold water at the washbasin, forcing himself to calm down.
He indeed needed time to carefully ponder and prepare—
How to walk the final stretch of this novice quest, and indeed, this Historical Echo.
If he were to simply complete the so-called “betrayal” according to the quest objective, he wouldn’t need to do anything; he merely needed to follow Norton’s plan.
However, Norton’s words conveyed a hidden message—
Sylvia was the key.
And a key that had completed its mission of unlocking would naturally have only one outcome: to break off in the keyhole.
Shaya pushed open the washroom door and entered the second-floor hallway.
The opulent magic lamp chandelier in the living room downstairs was lit.
Aerora was sitting in the living room, processing stacks of documents by the light of the magic lamp, her smooth light golden hair spread out on the sofa behind her.
“Congratulations, Little Ai.”
Shaya yawned and went downstairs.
Aerora was not restraining her mental power at this moment. In Shaya’s perception, his childhood friend was enveloped in a sharp, piercing aura.
It was as if the person before Shaya was not a seventeen-year-old maiden, but a Holy Spear, sharp and powerful enough to pierce mountains and shatter stars.
She had also broken through the Third Ring, and her strength after breaking through was likely even greater than Shaya and Aerora had anticipated.
“Thank you.”
The blonde maiden nodded gently and spoke with a blank expression, “Classmate Shaya, you should also pay attention to a balanced diet, having stayed in the washroom for so long.”
Shaya’s footsteps faltered slightly, sensing something was wrong.
The key wasn’t about the washroom or a stomachache, minor matters, but rather Aerora’s address to him.
This girl usually addressed him without any title or simply by his name. However, when she started using a term like “Classmate Shaya,” it often meant that something was beyond her control.
Shaya began to ponder where the slip-up could have occurred.
It couldn’t be that she sensed Sylvia’s existence across spacetime… The problem was that after the previous sixth sense incident, Shaya had learned his lesson. Before leaving the Historical Echo this time, he had specifically taken a bath and changed his clothes.
His confusion was soon resolved.
Because Shaya saw the pink envelope placed separately from other business correspondence documents on the wooden table in front of Aerora.
There were two lines of delicate handwriting on the pink envelope—
The recipient field read: “To Shaya Egut”
And the sender field read: “Diris.”
