I remember that Emlyn had once asked a Sanguine duke about the ancient castle, but the answer he received was that the ancient castle was older than the duke. Furthermore, any creature that approached it would be in danger of being corrupted by the corruptive powers of Chaos Sea!
Even a Devil was corrupted after being thrown into the ancient castle, turning from cold and cruel to crazy and chaotic.
If Baron Conva had really explored the depths of the ancient castle centuries ago, it would make sense that he hadn't finished building the mausoleum and had sealed himself underground…
With this in mind, Ebner was in no hurry to translate the rest of the content. Instead, he flipped to the first page of the notebook and compared it to the Book of Dead in his memory. He started from the beginning.
"2 May 745.
"Today, I—Benjamin Conva Grant—became a Gatekeeper. This is a day worth remembering because I finally have the right to build a mausoleum and prepare the ritual to awaken my ancestor.
"As the diary entries from today might involve some secrets, I decided to change my notebook and use a hidden passage to record them… This way, unless someone had read the Ancestor's Book of Dead, it would be hard to decipher…
Ebner looked at the translated words "Benjamin Conva Granta" and "Book of Dead Souls" and fell into deep thought.
Jane's last name is Grant… And according to her, the fake identity she had taken on in Bayam was named "Jane Milantha"…It was definitely not a coincidence!
And the original book of the Book of Dead was dug up by Jane in her ancestor's mausoleum…
Then, who was Jane's ancestor? At first, I thought that it might be an identity that Mr. Azik had used in one of his lives… But now, it seems unlikely.
After all, Mr. Azik didn't need the so-called "awakening" ritual. From the looks of it, he hadn't instructed anyone to build a specific mausoleum for him…
Furthermore, according to the knowledge I obtained from the Book of Dead, building a special mausoleum isn't to "awaken"…
The effect of the ritual was to use some special connection between the real world and the Underworld, allowing the built mausoleum to temporarily overlap with the real mausoleum in the Underworld, forming a "door" that led to the real mausoleum.
And Jane had said that she had found her ancestor's mausoleum in a ruin in the Berserk Sea, and she had obtained many treasures and gifts, including the Book of Dead…
Jane, could it be that she entered her ancestor's true mausoleum through that ruin?
Hmm… Queen Mystic seems to always know of the ruins in the Berserk Sea, but she just doesn't have the right to enter… That's why she nurtured Jane who's related to the ruins and personally taught her?
And Queen Mystic's goal is likely to find something left behind by Emperor Roselle when he was alive… In that case, the emperor must've forcefully entered the mausoleum…
Perhaps this is how the Grade 0 Sealed Artifact, Pale Death, in Queen Mystic's hands came about…
Then the question returns to the past. Who was Jane's ancestor… or the ancestor of the Grant family?
Why did the messenger he left behind look so similar to the messenger that Mr. Azik controlled?
Is it another descendant of the Eggers family? Or is it the other resurrection contingencies of Death?
After pondering for a long while without any clues, Ebner didn't think further. He picked up a pen and paper and continued his translation work.
"3rd May. I plan on summoning my subjects to build a castle for me in the name of the feudal lord. I'll use this to cover up the commotion of me using my Spirit Body to dig underground mausoleums to prevent myself from being discovered by the three Churches."
"4th May. The progress of the construction wasn't ideal. The Spirit Body I controlled was terrible. Even the simple carvings were slanted… Ancestor, I don't wish to find an artist's Spirit Body, but at least bless me with the spirit of a stonesmith…
…
"25th May. As it was the busy farming season, I had no choice but to stop my recruitment. The progress of the mausoleum and castle construction was forced to be suspended… Thankfully, the best time to hold the awakening ritual is next April. I still have plenty of time to prepare."
…
The rest of the content was filled with daily trivialities. After taking a few glances, he swept it away and paused his gaze on a page of the June 23rd notebook.
After secretly bearing a child, Mrs. Aston is still as beautiful and enchanting as ever. Unfortunately, this is Loen, who's very conservative. She's unwilling to end her marriage with that old man and marry me… Even if we secretly have a child together…
"Heh heh, speaking of which, that little fellow was reared in Backlund by Aston's servants, but that old man from the Augustus family knew nothing. I even imagined that she had gone on vacation.
"Aston gave the little guy a name, John Grant, but I didn't like it much."
Lady Aston… Don't tell me it's the one in the later diary who he plans to bring to the ancient castle for an expedition?
Upon seeing this, Ebner sighed because it was destined to be a tragedy.
"26th June. The farming work has finally come to an end. After letting the subjects rest for a few days, I issued another conscription order. My castle and my mausoleum have finally begun working again…"
…
"6th July. I once again came to Backlund to meet Aston. And this time, I met that little fellow. However, his body was very cold. He likely inherited some Beyonder characteristics and was born half a Corpse Collector.
"For this, I wore a mystical item that had been passed down in my family for years on him, so as to hide his physical abnormality. And that item also contains some of the knowledge of the Corpse Collector pathway. Even if something happens to me in the future, the little guy can use it to become a Beyonder.
"Although he's an illegitimate child, he's my only child after all."
…
"1th September. It's almost time for autumn planting. I have no choice but to stop the recruitment process… The advancement of Aston requires the cursed item of an ancient wraith. I have to help her seek out relevant information in the Beyonder circles…"
…
"5th September. At tonight's Beyonder gathering, someone told me that there seems to be an ancient wraith in the depths of Delaire Forest… My territory is at the periphery of Delaire Forest. There were no rumors of wraiths in the past… However, the host of the gathering didn't confirm that what he said was the truth… Perhaps, I should personally explore it?"
What happened next was something that Ebner already knew from the previously translated diary entries. This baronet had called for Lady Aston and entered the sealed castle which had underground corruption!
As for the last few pages of the diary, the handwriting seemed to be different from before, as though it was written by another person… Therefore, Ebner didn't dare to translate it.
That might very well be what Baron Conva wrote while being corrupted. Who knows what terrible things he might write?
Yes, there shouldn't be any problems when the Tarot Gathering happens next Monday.
However… Baron Conva likely still retained some of his rationality. Otherwise, he wouldn't have sealed himself up.
And it was most likely arranged by him that the landslide destroyed that Irma had read about in the library was to completely seal himself inside…
Unfortunately, he was still found by a Grade 1 Sealed Artifact… Sigh, I wonder if 1-025 has already been corrupted? If so, it would be even more terrifying.
…
Backlund, in a factory at the dock area.
More than ten people were gathered around a long table in a hidden basement, discussing something.
And not far away from them, a young man wearing a pair of gold-rimmed glasses, with wheat-colored hair, grayish-blue eyes, and high cheekbones was quietly listening to their conversation.
Strangely, no one noticed his existence.
This young man was none other than the deacon of the Church of Storms, Mysticism Magister Stuart.
He wanted to hear more of the conversation of the Secret Order members, but at that moment, the door to his room suddenly opened. However, no one appeared at the door.
Stewart first frowned, then guessed inwardly, Psychological Invisibility?