Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong
Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/
Chapter 145: Brothers Reunited
Tass looked at the stranger, then at Kalen, then twisted around to look at the stranger again, his neck making a series of cracking sounds.
He had a stomach full of questions he wanted to ask, but “Wasn’t your brother captured by V.O.R? How is he fine?” and “Why is your brother dressed exactly like the leader of the Stargazers Society?” were obviously not the sort of questions that should be raised right now.
In the end, Tass awkwardly rubbed his nose. “Uh… should I give you two some privacy?”
No one answered him.
After calling Hermit’s name, Kalen simply stood there blankly. Hermit smiled at the two of them as the door slowly closed behind everyone.
All right, the Dragon Fae thought. He shook out his wings, sat down on the nearest wooden table, and found himself the best possible seat for watching the show.
“…Why?”
At last, Father Kalen found his voice again. His tone was restrained, though it was difficult to tell whether he was suppressing shock or hurt.
“Why are you appearing now? Back then, you just…”
“A reward.”
Hermit interrupted him.
Perhaps because he had removed the mask, his voice was no longer difficult to distinguish. Instead, it was light and smooth, like fresh cream.
Kalen had never been particularly good at communication to begin with. Now he became completely tongue-tied. “W-what…”
“I never expected you to find that bone so quickly.” Hermit spoke gently. “If that little flying runt hadn’t egged you on, you probably would have waited until Salaar and Myss finished the ceremony before investigating.”
“And by then, I would already have taken advantage of the Eye-Opening Ceremony to leave this place… You disrupted my plans. We were never supposed to meet.”
The Dragon Fae instinctively wanted to protest the rude description “little flying runt,” but he was afraid of interfering with the show. In the end, he merely bounced once on the edge of the table.
“But you gave me the opportunity. You could have kept the mask on.”
Kalen’s voice trembled slightly. Tass had never seen Father Kalen this agitated before.
“I had no idea you even knew blood magic… Egan came out of Earl Nebula’s room. Earl Nebula claimed he had somehow become separated from everyone else. Was that also you…?”
Clap. Clap. Clap.
Hermit applauded with satisfaction. “Your instincts have always been accurate.”
Kalen leaned forward, looking as though he desperately wanted to rush over to Hermit. But he forced himself to remain where he was, his lips pressed into a taut line.
At that moment, he didn’t know whether he should feel angry, relieved, or confused.
Whether disguised as Earl or Egan, his brother had constantly dropped hints, indirectly implying that there was some compelling reason behind his disappearance.
But…
“So this is the ‘reason’ you couldn’t show yourself… Something this trivial.”
A dull ache spread through Kalen’s chest. He instinctively pressed a hand over it, then suddenly felt that the gesture, so close to prayer, was almost blasphemous.
This was a private matter between him and Hermit. It had nothing to do with any god.
“…No. I’m sorry, Hermit. I don’t mean to accuse you. I know you wouldn’t toy with me over something like this. It’s just… It’s just that I was truly very worried…”
Kalen took a deep breath and added the words in a disordered rush.
His hands hung stiffly at the sides of his clothes, unconsciously kneading the fabric.
Why Hermit had faked his own disappearance, and why he was wearing the clothes of the Stargazers Society’s leader, no longer mattered at this moment…
What mattered was that Kalen didn’t want Hermit to leave again.
“I understand. I understand completely.”
Anyone could have heard the accusation in Kalen’s voice just then, but Hermit acted as though he hadn’t noticed at all.
His tone was almost soothing, completely at odds with his roguish demeanor.
“I’m the one who wronged you… I can’t continue staying by your side. I shouldn’t have come to see you in the first place. That’s why I called this a ‘reward.’”
Kalen finally moved.
He stumbled toward Hermit and grabbed both of his shoulders.
Although Hermit wasn’t as heavily built as Kalen, he was still tall and solid, and somehow didn’t lose out at all in presence.
“So you’re still leaving.” Kalen’s voice grew even hoarser. “Why can’t you stay? At least tell me… Tell me a little about this ‘reason’ you keep talking about.”
“I’m asking you, Hermit. I’m begging you.”
The smile on Hermit’s face froze for a moment, then he gently shook his head.
“When the day comes that you eliminate V.O.R, if I’m still alive, I’ll tell you.” Hermit said, “Until then, I have to keep this secret with my life. It is an oath I swore before our God.”
“I’m sorry.”
While Kalen was still stunned, Hermit raised both arms and slowly embraced his brother. His hand gently patted the back of Kalen’s head, and a soundless sigh slipped from his lips.
Yet the next instant, Hermit suddenly tightened his arms, so tightly that Kalen could feel the taut muscles beneath the fabric. In the blink of an eye, that strength vanished again, as though the crushing embrace had only been an illusion.
Kalen froze helplessly in place, like an animal caught by the scruff of its neck.
“You won’t force me to stay, will you?” Hermit asked softly.
“…” Kalen remained silent for a long time. “You said you swore before our God…”
“It’s true.” Hermit released him, his expression unusually solemn. “Here and now, I am willing to swear again before the Lord of Shadows that I have absolutely not deceived you.”
Very, very slowly, Kalen loosened his hands. His eyes were slightly red. Although his hair was still fluffy and neat, there was a desolate air about him, as though someone had dumped a basin of cold water over his head.
“As long as I keep traveling with Salaar and the others, as long as we eliminate V.O.R, you’ll come back and tell me the entire truth.”
“Then swear before our God that, until that day arrives, you must remain safe.” By the end, Kalen’s voice was barely a whisper.
A smile returned to Hermit’s face. He patted Kalen’s cheek, looking almost happy.
“I promise.” He winked at Father Kalen, once again looking thoroughly roguish. “So… I’ll see you then, ‘Father.’”
Hermit stepped back half a pace and put the black mask painted with a silver moon back on, then adjusted his hood. The last strand of flaxen hair disappeared into the darkness, and Hermit suddenly seemed very far away.
He rested one hand on Kalen’s shoulder and walked past him toward the door, until that hand slipped away as he moved forward.
Kalen kept his back to the door the entire time. He neither turned around nor said goodbye.
Only when the door made a nearly inaudible sound did Kalen finally fail to hold himself back and speak again.
“If everything goes well… will there be another ‘reward’?” His voice was low, as though afraid of startling something.
Hermit’s steps paused slightly. He didn’t answer. The only response Kalen received was the slowly closing door.
Yet in a corner no one could see, on the other side of the door…
“This meeting really was a ‘reward.’” Hermit silently moved his lips. “It’s just that… it was just a reward for me.”
“I’ve already been selfish enough. To ask for mor would be inviting God’s wrath.”
After saying that, he couldn’t help turning back to look at the cold door.
“…Still, perhaps God would forgive me for being just a little more selfish.”
……
The Root Church had no windows, but they could more or less smell the change in the air. Dawn was approaching.
No matter how unsettled Kalen felt, he still remembered that they were short on time. If he delayed what Salaar and Myss needed to do, that would be genuine dereliction of duty.
Fortunately, the return journey went smoothly enough. Tass wasn’t particularly surprised to discover that the barred gate separating the sanctuary opened at the slightest touch, just as it had when they had pursued “Egan” earlier.
The Blind God probably left the door open for us, Tass thought.
However, the instant Kalen and Tass entered the confession chamber, time seemed to freeze.
Salaar was tugging at the fabric over Myss’s chest, adjusting the flatbread stuffed inside. The Blind God Himself sat properly on the offering table, seriously watching the two of them pull and fuss at each other.
Dragon Fae: “Wow.”
It wasn’t just young people these days that were impulsive. Apparently the… elderly had plenty of tricks too.
Father Kalen took several deep breaths and barely managed to regain his composure. “It’s good that the two of you are all right.”
“Sogné gave us the general outline of what happened with you.” After adjusting the bodice of Myss’s dress, Salaar moved on to adjusting his hair. “Nothing else should happen next. You can leave first and return to the inn ahead of us.”
Tass: “Huh? We can’t stay?”
That was the Blind God, the god of one of the three great religions! Something this rare only became rarer every time you looked away.
Kalen probably wasn’t in the mood, but the Dragon Fae genuinely wanted to know how such an extraordinary being had somehow ended up looking like the child of these two.
“The ceremony will continue according to its usual tradition. Please watch from the surface.” Sogné spoke softly. “As all of you know, in order to conceal my existence, I won’t leave this place.”
The Dragon Fae let out a disappointed “Oh.”
Kalen was silent for a moment. “Your followers have prepared a very beautiful ceremony for you.”
“Colorful flowers will grow all over the surface of the Root Church, and there will even be a rare circular rainbow overhead… The offerings are called Your left and right eyes. I think they must very much hope that You can see it.”
Sogné listened impassively.
He had no desire to become a god, just as Salaar had never regarded himself as one. He had merely followed the mysterious masked man’s guidance and rescued the people nearby.
Religion had only ever been a tool for his birth, a means through which he could observe the human world.
Whether it was humanity’s love or fear, none of it had ever been what he wanted.
Tass looked at Father Kalen in confusion. In his experience, Kalen rarely interfered with other people’s decisions, much less the decision of a god.
A few steps away, Salaar finished arranging Myss’s hair and tucked the vivid red pomegranate blossoms into place.
“If you get the chance, I actually hope you’ll go see it,” he said. “We really weren’t born as ‘gods,’ Sogné. We were born as ‘people.’”
Sogné listened intently. “I understand, but I cannot do it.”
“Without that bone, my concealment is weaker than before. I cannot rashly leave…”
“I’ll do it,” Kalen suddenly said, the ring on his right hand glowing dimly. “Even now, I can still only conceal one person perfectly, but that person doesn’t have to be me. I can take You to the surface.”
“You have protected so many people. You deserve to receive this… this…” Father Kalen paused there, a little color returning to his face. “…this ‘reward.’”
Sogné remained silent for a long time. Although confusion still lingered on his face, he ultimately nodded.
Myss had little interest in the subject. No matter how things turned out, it had nothing much to do with Salaar. The Secret Garden meant nothing to him. He only wanted to see the circular rainbow Kalen had mentioned.
Still, seeing these humans talking so enthusiastically made another question pop into Myss’s head.
“So why are you called the ‘Blind God’?” He asked curiously. “All your followers seem convinced that you’re blind. Even if you have to stay inside the Root Church, there’s no reason you need to pretend you can’t see, right?”
Sogné was anything but blind. Previously, his entire body had been covered in eyes, an astonishing number of them. Even calling him the “Lord of Shadows” would have fit reality better than “Blind God.”
It was difficult to imagine how such a foolish fellow had ended up calling himself the “Blind God” to his followers.
Sogné was slightly taken aback and those eyes, so strikingly similar to Salaar’s, lowered. “The masked man gave me that divine name. He said it was his blessing to me.”
“He said he hoped I could remain hidden in the shadows for as long as possible and never be tempted by the cruel stars—never drawing near, never feeling curious, never gazing upon them.”
“…Because the most foolish and hopeless act in this world is ‘stargazing.’ That is what he said.”
Sogné repeated the words one by one, clearly extremely confident in his own memory.
Kalen abruptly snapped his head up and looked at Sogné.
The divine power of shadow that had appeared three hundred years ago; the Stargazers Society that had suddenly emerged more than twenty years ago; and Hermit, dressed in the clothing of the Stargazers Society’s leader.
What exactly was the relationship between the Order of Shadows and the Stargazers Society?
……
Aboveground, inside the inn room.
“Earl” stretched and patted his stiff waist and back. Humming a tune, he pulled open the curtains. The sky had turned a clear iris blue. The sun was about to rise, and that beautiful ceremony was about to begin.
“Earl”—Hermit—took a deep breath of the morning air and straightened his bed, then he picked up the paper and pen from the desk. The tip of the pen hovered over the paper again and again.
In the end, Hermit looked several times toward Kalen’s bed and shook his head.
“…Forget it.”
He put the paper and pen back where they had been, casually slung his coat over his shoulder, and stepped out of the increasingly bright room.
Sunrise was imminent, and all of the Crimson Marsh had come alive. The morning air carried the fragrance of flatbread and fresh bread. People greeted one another with smiles.
A cheerful woman was handing out herbal cookies on the street.
Hermit took one cookie, casually held it between his teeth, and walked toward the legendary plaza. He had walked this road once before in the middle of the night.
Looking at it now, it seemed like an entirely different world. The sky along the horizon had been dyed rose red, and the morning sun was about to rise. Overnight, green grass and flowers had grown across the plaza’s damaged stone paving.
Now they were bathed in the golden-red glow of dawn, like a velvet carpet laid out to welcome a hero.
Something in his pocket began to vibrate. Hermit avoided the steadily thickening crowd and slipped into the shadows.
A muffled report came through the magical communication device.
Hermit silently chewed his cookie. When he had heard everything, he removed the crescent-shaped cookie from his mouth. His voice became distorted and ethereal once more. “Evening Star City.”
“Have Kai handle the assignment. He’s free right now… Yes. I’ll be back soon.”
Hermit’s tone was utterly rigid, devoid of accent or emotion. His pronunciation was so standard that not a single flaw could be found.
“Before the end of the world, faith is useless. Humanity can only save itself. To the stars that are destined to fade.”
The communication ended.
With a sharp crack, Hermit crushed the communication crystal into powder, mixing it with the remaining cookie crumbs. Not far away, vague cheers rose from the crowd like swelling waves.
Presumably, the god’s “left eye” and “right eye” had appeared.
Hermit lifted his head. Across the whitening sky, the last few morning stars were gradually fading, swallowed by the growing light.
He smiled at them, then turned and walked toward the flood of flowers and joy like any ordinary tourist.
The author has something to say:
This arc is finished!
Next arc, we’re heading to Evening Star City!
Time to start peeling back the layers of the Order of Shadows. [cat paw]
Kinky Thoughts:
With this arc reveal and delving into Salaar’s past, I can see why in the previous arc he wanted to experience “young love”, just like how he longed to stay in the dream state. I know a few readers didn’t think it made sense why he decided to take the “Return to Youth” potion, but this explains a lot. It’s quite sad when you think about it.
Remember, Nian Zhong doesn’t leave plot holes. Everything happens for a reason, and patience is needed when reading her work. All the puzzle pieces will eventually come together.
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