Chapter 1

Shirley left with A Gou, who was still a little uneasy. Vanna and Morris also departed. The captain's cabin fell silent, leaving only Duncan, Alice, and the dozing pigeon.

Alice was wiping the furnishings and windows in the room, while Duncan sat behind the desk, lost in lengthy contemplation.

A creaking sound came from the desk. The goat-head slowly turned its head towards Duncan. "Are you still thinking about Rahm, the God of Wisdom?"

"Not the God of Wisdom—the gods," Duncan leaned back in his chair, a look of contemplation on his face. "The gods... what kind of connection do they have with this world?"

"Who knows? The various sects' own scriptures depict them as the shapers and protectors of the earthly order, while many cultists believe the opposite. They think the gods twisted the world and even stole the credit for creation.

"The content that Morris saw in that 'Book of Blasphemy' had another novel explanation. The lost kings mentioned in the book seem to be the gods of today… perhaps these claims are all wrong, but it is also possible that they all have correct parts…" The goat-head chattered, finally shaking its head again. "But if you ask for my opinion, then my opinion is… they don't seem to be of much use. They neither make the world better nor bring about anything terrible."

"But for most ordinary people in this world, the protection of the gods is indeed real," Duncan said casually. "This protection has allowed most mortals to survive."

"Surviving—a way of maintaining the status quo," the goat-head said slowly. "Like the state of the Frost for the past fifty years, before the balance was broken," who knew how many shadows of disaster had accumulated beneath the balance.

"But at least everyone is still alive." Duncan did not comment on the goat-head's evaluation. He just thought for a moment before speaking thoughtfully.

"So, can it be assumed that the Four Gods have established a 'monitoring' or 'scanning' system for the living beings of the mortal world? That they confirm the operational status of the real world by perceiving certain specific nodes, does this instead indicate that their interference and perception of the present world is actually indirect and limited?"

"Those orthodox god sects wouldn't like your approach. It sounds like you're studying some kind of machine. It shows no reverence for the gods at all."

"Reverence is the furthest distance from 'understanding.' I don't want to revere them, I just want to understand them," Duncan said lightly. "After all, we've already cleaned up two messes for them."

Footsteps echoed rhythmically in the long corridors of the cathedral, as if knocking against the time accumulated in this ancient building. Agatha, in a black dress, walked towards the depths of the sanctuary. She had no entourage by her side, only her shadow accompanied this body that had lost its vitality but was still active. In the niches on both sides of the corridor, the light of gas lamps and candlesticks reflected each other, making the shadows on the ground appear dim and wavering. Only after returning to her room and closing the door did the archbishop and gatekeeper, who had seemed so calm and composed all the way, suddenly relax, leaning back against the door panel and letting out a long sigh. She no longer needed to breathe, but "sighing" was a manifestation of humanity. She was still used to using this method as a "symbol" of her relaxation. After all, she didn't want to make herself… too much like a corpse.

The order of the cathedral was restored, and the small churches throughout the city-state were gradually getting back on track. The tense mood throughout the city continued, but after the Sea Fog Fleet intervened, the chaos in various places, especially the security cases, had been quickly suppressed.

On the other hand, although the distribution of supplies and the handling of the aftermath for the victims was still a mess, and a serious shortage of manpower still plagued every department, after the Sea Fog Fleet entered the city, "they" "magically" found a large number of professionals with administrative management skills or knowledge of the city-state's grassroots operations from various corners of the city-state and arranged for these people to enter the city hall. According to the feedback from the city hall, those people "recommended" by the Sea Fog Fleet were familiarizing themselves with and taking over the work of various departments at an alarming rate. After only a few more days of familiarization, the problem of insufficient manpower in various places would be greatly alleviated.

At the same time, the public opinion preparation required for the Sea Fog Fleet to enter the city and the propaganda work aimed at General Tirian Abnormal were also constantly advancing. The reorganization and restructuring of the city-state's remaining navy and the Sea Fog Fleet had also begun; the new governor had not yet officially held the inauguration ceremony, but the city had fallen under his control at an alarming rate. This was a development that the officials of the Frost Authority would have imagined in their nightmares, but for the current Frost… this was all good.

Agatha could finally relax a little. Corpses do not tire, but her spirit still needed a breather; after leaning against the door for a few minutes, Agatha shook her head and slowly came to her dressing table, sitting down to rest. Her figure was reflected in the mirror of the dressing table, and the feeling of being watched made Agatha suddenly raise her head.

There was no one else in the room, and she did not feel any strange aura, but the feeling of being watched was definitely not an illusion. The blind divine officer, with her eyes covered, raised her head and carefully felt any movement around her, feeling the flow of aura. Her "gaze" slowly swept around and then over the mirror on the dressing table. The inanimate furnishings in the room appeared as various blurry, dim outlines in her vision, emitting a tomb-like, cold aura. However, in the next second, the feeling of being watched disappeared, and the figure in the mirror shifted its gaze.

Agatha in front of the dressing table suddenly stopped. She seemed to have noticed something. After hesitating for a moment, she slowly raised her arm and reached out her hand towards the mirror in front of her. A cold and hard touch came, it was a layer of lifeless glass. The figure in the mirror hesitated, hesitated for an unknown amount of time, before also raising her arm and reaching out her finger. The feeling of fingertips touching suddenly came, accompanied by a little warmth;

In the next instant, new light and shadow appeared in Agatha's chaotic and dark vision—a faint, hazy outline that emitted a faint light suddenly appeared in the lifeless mirror. They faced each other quietly across the mirror, and the room fell into a brief silence.

After a long time, Agatha in front of the mirror suddenly broke the silence. "Are you…?" There was a hint of hesitation in her voice.

"Yes," a voice seemed to drill directly into her mind.

"I am here. When did you appear?"

"The key," the voice in Agatha's mind said calmly.

"I have been here since you got that key."

Agatha did not speak for a moment. This feeling was very… strange, because she could clearly realize that the voice in her mind was her own voice. She could even feel the subtle emotions revealed when that voice spoke. However, she could also clearly realize that she was talking to another individual. It was not a hallucination in her mind, not a personality formed by schizophrenia, not some kind of "appendage" of her own.

"Incredible," the her in the mirror said, "Incredible. If I had to say, the symptoms are a bit like schizophrenia? But obviously not. Even the most skilled psychiatrist would probably not be able to solve this problem."

"Don't give the psychiatrists in the city-state any more trouble. They're all trouble these days," Agatha suddenly raised her hand and rubbed her brow. The feeling of talking to "another self" was unprecedented. During the conversation, she always had the illusion that she was gradually unable to distinguish which one was "herself." Although cognitive confusion had not actually occurred, she could not help but stop and sort out her thoughts.

After a moment, she raised her head and "looked" at herself in the mirror. "That key… preserved your soul?" And then used it as a medium to send you to me…" She paused here, seemingly not knowing how to describe her current state. Was the shadow in front of her… in her mind or in her perception, or… just a psychological projection?

"I don't know either," the voice in her mind came, "I don't know if I have a soul, nor do I know the details of this process, and I don't know how that key achieved all of this—my consciousness was in a chaotic state for a long time, and I only woke up in the last two days." Afterwards, this voice hesitated for a moment, and only continued after a few seconds: "Now it seems that the key should have the power to store and transfer memories, but probably only the Frost Queen herself knows all of its secrets."

"The Frost Queen…" Agatha murmured, as if talking to herself, "It seems that this situation needs to be told to the captain, but theoretically we should first report to the headquarters of the Sanctuary of Death."

The Agatha in the mirror reminded her.

The Agatha in front of the mirror was slightly stunned when she heard this, her expression changed, and she hesitated to speak: "It seems… that is indeed the case."

"But the Sanctuary of Death is currently cruising at the farthest end of the civilized territories, and may not have time to pay attention to this kind of private matter." Saying this, she paused and looked up at the mirror.

"What do you think?" The Agatha in the mirror thought for a moment. Thoughts and memories flowed slowly between them, and cognition and emotions reflected each other on both sides of the mirror. A faint green fire appeared in the eyes of the Agatha in the mirror, "I also think we should tell the captain—he is obviously experienced with mirrors."