Chapter 78: Communication
"What a powerful spell," Charles muttered out loud.
"Everything has a price, lad. My inner world is damaged further due to the backlash, and for the next forty-five days, I will be in a weakened statue." The Holem's Crown deliberated for a moment and then added,
"If I hadn't enchanted your luck, you would have died much earlier." The Holem's Crown moved near him and soon turned itself into a red-gem embedded bracelet.
Meanwhile, Charles caught the bracelet and wore it in his right hand.
He then lay on the stone-like floor and stared at the sky in confusion.
Unlike a few moments ago, the sky looked brighter, and white clouds scattered all over the place. Charles even saw the glaring sun at the angle of 135° and frowned.
He hurriedly took out his silver pocket watch from his space ring, opened the outer case with a click, and checked the time.
'October 3rd, 9.30 A.M.'
'It's been a day already? Did he manipulate the 'time' with the power of 'Dream'? What a scary old man.' He let out a heavy sigh, stored the pocket watch back into the space ring, and pondered about Eddie's earlier words.
'Why would Eddie want to seal us in this city for a day?' At that moment, an absurd thought appeared in his mind.
'Could it be that their main goal is not us? But why did they control my mind earlier and force me to cast a 'Miracle' on someone else? Could it be they are after something else? If they are after something else, why would they want to lead us here and try to seal us?'
At that moment, Charles suddenly noticed that the silver bracelet in his left hand suddenly started to shine brightly!
'Hmm, isn't that the bracelet Eve gave me as a present for my birthday?' He raised his eyebrows and soon turned solemn as he sensed a strange eerie silence.
His heart thumped harder all of a sudden!
A second later, thunder resounded from the sky.
At that moment, Charles stood up with a tensed look, leaped towards his right side as he also received the warning from his [Prevision] skill, and hid behind the Goddess's statue.
A strange silence remained for a second, flowed by a flash of light.
In shock, Charles looked up at the bright sky, saw a blue arc of lightning made a turn from the white clouds, and soon moved towards their direction!
"F*ck! How can this world be so messed up? Lightning from the white clouds?" He cursed as he saw that lightning directly landed on the chained Luke's body and bathed him in purple fire.
The fire even burned his flesh and bones in seconds, leaving nothing behind!
"What the f*ck? Did someone cast some ultra-level spell, or is it a bolt of lightning?" Charles asked in a dumbfounded tone.
"No, there is no presence of elements." The Holem's Crown paused for a moment and soon added.
"That lightning is a pure coincidence."
"Coincidence?"
Charles's face stiffened as he stepped back and showed a worried expression.
"What now? Is this it?" He placed his hand on his chin and fell into deep thoughts.
'Goddess's prophecy hasn't been completed yet.' He closed his jade eyes.
'Tragedy. It will be an orchestrated encounter. You can't escape from the 'Fate.' Face the Fate and be reborn as anew. These are the prophetic words I heard from Bishop Reynolds.'
'Tragedy. No tragedy occurred to me yet. Does that mean I already changed the 'Fate'? Or, is there still more? As for the orchestrated encounter, this absurd scheme might be the orchestrated encounter.'
"Are you saying that there will be more enemies?" The Holem's Crown asked in a startled tone.
Charles shook his head and said in a confused tone upon hearing his words.
"I have no idea about that. But I have a vague feeling that we missed something important."
Sighing deeply, Charles looked at his left hand and got puzzled.
'Why is it shining all of a sudden?' He was about to touch it but halted his movement.
Because Charles felt some suction force was pulling his consciousness from the silver bracelet and got stunned!
'Projection-type communication? No, this one looks like a Consciousness Pull.' The Holem's Crown also noticed the anomaly and said in Charles's mind.
'Consciousness Pull?' Charles asked in surprise.
'This skill allows you to pull one's consciousness from afar and make them appear in front of you. You can stop projection-type communication methods using some artifacts, but not this one. It's an imitation of Astral Projection skill and is very rare-.'
Before the Holem's Crown could finish answering, Charles noticed that his consciousness began to travel through space, and soon he saw a mirage of stars clusters and nebulas.
'What the f*ck? Interstellar-space?' He was stunned by the sudden change and soon felt a pulling sensation from the other side.
He felt dizziness an instant later, bent down, and soon noticed that he was in a familiar reception hall.
Then, Charles's jade eyes widened.
'My home? Am I already in Riverdale City?' He blinked his eyes twice and soon frowned as he saw his arms and legs.
They looked more like illusions!
At that moment, he heard a familiar female voice in his head.
'It seems you didn't face much problem.'
Turning his head around, Charles saw a long, deep-blue-haired woman stood two meters away from him and leaned her back against the smooth granite wall.
She had wide-set blue eyes, short eyebrows, a fleshy nose, and olive skin. She wore a full-sleeved black jacket and long skirt, and her hair appeared a little messier.
Although she seemed to be aware of Charles's presence, she didn't show it on her face!
After taking a deep breath in the illusionary form, Charles straightened his back, stared at her for two seconds, and asked while pointing his finger at the other bracelet.
'How did you pull my consciousness here, mom? Is it due to the silver bracelet?'
'Yes, I gave that bracelet as a present specifically to contact you frequently. It's like a long-range communication device, but a more secured one.' Eve's voice suddenly echoed in his head.
'In this form, none can see you or hear your voice other than me.' She added.
'Oh?' Charles was surprised by the strange communication method and soon looked at the corner of the reception room.
He saw a black-haired woman in her black robe sitting in a cross-legged position, and she appeared to be in the middle of deep meditation.
She was around 35 to 45 old and looked slimmer.
'Who is she?' Charles asked in curious.
'Hmm? You don't know? She said that you are the one who asked the Life Church to send someone to protect me, son.' Eve slightly showed a shocked expression as she said those words and soon returned her face to normal.
Meanwhile, the black-haired woman suddenly opened her silvery eyes and stared in Eve's direction for a second before closing it.
'Her perception is sharp.' Charles commented and nodded.
'Yes, I'm the one who asked Life Church to protect you.' He paused for a moment and then asked,
'Why did you call me here through this strange communication method?'
'I just want to see my son's face. Also, I want to tell you something important.' She said in his mind and turned her gaze towards the right side corner room.
Charles also followed her gaze and soon saw that a 25 years-old lady in a v-neck blue shirt and dark blue skirt walked out of the room.
She had monolid-hazel eyes, barely visible eyebrows, a duchess nose, wiry blonde hair, and an upper lip with sharp philtrum.
'Saron?'
Charles retracted his gaze, looked at Eve, and asked,
'Something important? What is it?'
Eve didn't answer instantly. Instead, she went near her favorite ornate sofa, sat on it, and started to speak solemnly.
'Due to some unexpected situations, I signed an agreement with Life Church and promised them that I will sell this house and Wind Villa for 2300 Arc gold coins after six months.'
'Why?'
Charles questioned her as he couldn't grasp her intention and waited in silence.
Noticing his gaze, Eve let out a heavy sigh and spoke in his mind.
'Don't get disappointed, son. There is some secret hidden in this house, and Churches seemed to have found out about it.'
'Is it a link to the Dreamworld?' Charles raised a question.
Eve's eyes widened a little as she heard those words and soon nodded her head in understanding.
'That must be it. After some long bargain, the Life Church agreed to buy our land and this house for 2300 Arc gold coins.'
'The value of our property should be around 10,000 to 15,000 gold coins.' Charles said with a frown.
'Our life is more precious than this, Charles. Moreover, I also got something big from the Life Church, so it's okay. Once you return from this mission, I will tell you more about it.' Eve suddenly turned her face serious and shifted her attention towards Saron.
Meanwhile, Saron greeted her with a smile and sat on the opposite ladder back chair.
Eve also nodded her head and then asked.
"Ms. Saron, what do you want to talk to me?"
Her tone contained a hint of confusion.
Saron glanced at the black-robed woman for two continuous seconds and soon spoke.
"I received important news from the Holy See of Wisdom."
"What is it?" Eve leaned her body forward, placed her right hand on the arm of the sofa, and asked in interest.
"It's about the people who are after the class gem-" Saron was about to finish the sentence when she suddenly sensed a presence from outside and stopped her talking.
'Class gem?' Charles raised his brows and followed her gaze.
The black-haired woman also opened her silvery eyes at that moment, stood up, and started walking near Eve.
"A guest seemed to be waiting at the entrance." She said as she looked at the entrance and asked loudly.
"Who is it?"
A silence answered for a while, and soon a man in his late 70s walked in.
He wore a black surcoat, white pants, white shirt, brown leather shoes and held a small sheathed dagger in his waist region. He had short wavy blonde hair, deep-blue eyes, a square face, fair skin, and straight eyebrows.
'Why does he look familiar?' Charles raised his eyebrows and was about to ask Eve but stopped as he heard harsh words from her mouth.
"What brings you here, Martin Nightwind?"
A chuckle leaked out of Martin's mouth as he strolled on the carpeted floor, arrived near a ladder back chair, placed next to Saron, and sat on it.
'Martin Nightwind? Isn't he the one who sent James and his son to kill me?' Charles pressed his lips together and silently observed him with cold eyes.
"You appeared to be already aware of my arrival, Eve?" Meanwhile, Martin leaned his back against the wooden chair and asked in amusement.
Eve stared at the old man for a second and shook her head.
On the other hand, Charles's face froze.
Not because of her sudden action, but because of the blonde-haired old man.
'Martin Nightwind… Blonde-haired old man… I had seen him somewhere in this city. Wait. Yes, he is the one who appeared outside John Wayne's room! He must be the blonde-haired old man, Evil!' Charles's jade eyes widened.
'Mom, be careful of him. He is a dangerous one.' He instantly warned her.
Upon hearing his words, Eve raised her eyebrows and nodded her head.
"I'm just here to get the class gem," Martin said calmly and turned his gaze towards the black-robed woman.
Meanwhile, the black-robed woman appeared behind the sofa and stared at Martin with an emotionless look on her face.
Upon noticing her gaze, Martin smiled wryly.
Before he could open his foul mouth to greet her, a shadowy hand appeared on Eve's right side.
A second later, the shadow enlarged into a humanoid one and formed into a black-cloaked man in his late 30s.
He had deep blue hair, a lean body, and looked around 187 cm tall. He wore a black mask with an eye symbol engraved on the forehead and looked more like a skilled assassin.
Upon seeing the assassin's arrival, Martin became more surprised.
"Are you the assassin from the Amber Church?" He sized him up and down and asked.
"No. I'm from the Collins family." The assassin responded coldly, turned into a cloud of dark smoke, and then disappeared!
'Collins family? Who are they?'
Meanwhile, Charles frowned deeply and got puzzled by the current situation.
On the other hand, Martin also turned his face solemnly and gazed towards the entrance.
"It's time." He said in a cold tone, causing the room to turn gloomy suddenly.
At that moment, another two old men walked in from the entrance.
One was a white-haired old man, while the other was a blonde-haired one.
The white-haired old man looked around 90-years-old, full of wrinkles on his pale face, glacial blue eyes, and a rough square face. He wore a golden robe and looked very domineering.
Upon seeing the man's appearance, Charles's face went icy.
'Anderson Black? Why is he here?' He looked at Anderson with a frown and turned towards the long wavy blonde-haired one.
He was a man in his late 40s and wore a blue robe, a long green pendant around his neck, and two unique platinum earrings.
He had wide-set oceanic eyes, a slightly wrinkled face, a lean body, and appeared around 184 cm high.
But what caught Charles's attention was the unique black-covered ancient-looking book he held in his right hand.
'Why is he staring at the book from time to time?' He frowned a bit and soon turned his attention towards Eve.
He felt that she was still hiding something from him from her facial appearance and became utterly clueless.
'Why do I feel they are about to make some illegal transaction?' He frowned a bit and looked at the three uninvited guests warily.