Chapter 2065: Chapter 2065

The Evergreen Forest had undergone a second expansion after Jenkins fused the World Tree Seedling, and its boundaries now extended far beyond the valley that once housed the old winery. Without the natural defenses of the valley to rely on, the Church could only set up checkpoints along the main roads leading into the forest. So, before they had even reached the woods, the group was brought to a halt to have their identities verified one by one.

Even out here in the countryside, the gray fog, black clouds, and warm ash were no different from the city. One could even look up and see the belly of the metal leviathan slowly vanishing below the cloud layer.

The air here smelled no different from downtown Nolan, which had become the new normal for the entire world. No matter where one went, there was no escaping this apocalyptic scene.

The identity check went without a hitch, but the Undead Knights could not escort the group any farther. The unique environment of the Evergreen Forest was extremely hostile to the undead. Fortunately, they were not far from the forest entrance, and the Church had already arranged for ordinary horses. Another ten minutes or so, and they would likely reach the forest.

Once they were back in the carriage, Jenkins noticed Chocolate letting out a yawn and settled the cat onto his lap. Then, he turned to Alexia with a smile.

"Do you want to get some sleep, too?"

He shifted Chocolate to his right leg and patted his left.

"You can use this side as a pillow."

Alexia laughed and gave him a light tap.

The book in her hands was not written in the common tongue, nor was it any human language, or even Elvish.

He could only see the open page, which had a complex, circular ritual diagram drawn in pencil.

"Is this a book you wrote?"

"Of course not. It's a question Fini asked me. I'm trying to figure out how to answer it for her."

"You actually included an ability like 'Our God is Here' in Fini's studies. Do you really think a girl in her teens, just starting to learn about mysticism, can understand this stuff?"

The ability 'Our God is Here' could originally only be known by one person at a time. Once it was taught to someone else, the previous owner would automatically forget the contents of the learning ritual. For example, Hathaway, known as Skylark Miss, had sold the ability to Jenkins, after which she completely forgot all the ritual's details. But Jenkins, likely due to the unique nature of his soul, did not forget the information he passed on.

And since Alexia had learned about this ancient god-summoning ability from Jenkins, she was able to help Fini with her questions.

"I remember you mentioned that 'Our God is Here', 'Energy Shell', and 'Angel's Halo' together form the complete ancient god-summoning ritual."

Alexia asked casually.

"Yes. Of those, I have clear knowledge of 'Our God is Here' and 'Angel's Halo'."

He had acquired the former with that moonlight sword last autumn, trading it from Hathaway. At the time, he had just heard about chained abilities and was so envious of their power that he had been bewitched into trading a numbered item for one. The latter was one of fifteen rituals given to him by Magic Miss a few months ago as a thank you for the 'Heart of the Ocean'.

"What about 'Energy Shell'?"

Alexia inquired again.

"I only know the name of that one. But you don't necessarily need all three to form a chain; the chain just has to achieve its effect. Even without an obscure, ancient ability like 'Energy Shell', which has long been lost to time, as long as you can truly achieve an energized body that a deity can use temporarily, the chain can still be completed."

Jenkins explained nonchalantly.

In the current era, there were many ways to achieve a temporary energy form. Not long ago, at a welcoming ceremony for a pseudo-god cult, some people had appeared out of the rain. Even Jenkins himself could exist as a pure spirit of life—a privilege of the World Tree—though it wasn't something he would ever do.

Relatively speaking, compared to the highly conceptual 'Our God is Here' and the exceptionally demanding 'Angel's Halo', 'Energy Shell' was actually the easiest to replicate with other methods.

"Thinking about it that way, Fini seems to perfectly meet the conditions to use this chain. After all, as long as Louise is by her side, 'Angel's Halo' is basically like a natural talent for her."

Alexia joked, but Jenkins was quick to clarify.

"That may be true, but how could I possibly act through Fini's body?"

"I have no desire to be mocked by Chocolate and the rest of you for centuries."

"Next time you mention us and your cat in the same breath, please put us first... but have you considered this: could you use this summoning method to temporarily pull your soul out of the Mysterious Realm? Out of that tower?"

Hearing Alexia's words, Jenkins sat bolt upright. He had never considered that, but it was indeed plausible. After all, a god-summoning ritual communicates with a deity located at a far greater distance than a mere fragment of space like a Mysterious Realm. If it could summon a god from so "far" away, then summoning Jenkins out of the Mysterious Realm was certainly feasible.

The nine-story tower was fraught with peril. Even a temporary escape for his soul would surely be an enormous help to him.

"No, it still wouldn't work. The summoning ritual requires not only the cooperation of a mortal but also the power of the god themself. I only have one drop of divinity, and I need to save it for the final confrontation with the Difference Engine, or be forced to use it along the way to protect myself. I can't waste it on a brief escape from the tower."

At this thought, he leaned back again, somewhat dejected. Alexia understood this point, so she didn't press the idea further. But a new thought was already forming in her mind; after all, little Fini was quite special.

Their conversation continued, but it shifted to more mundane matters, even touching on the subject of their wedding next summer. It was then that Jenkins learned Alexia actually had guests she wanted to invite—friends she had known from before. She wasn't the complete loner he had imagined.

"Speaking of which, how long have we been in this carriage since we got back in? Haven't we reached the Evergreen Forest yet?"

He asked suddenly, a flicker of doubt in his voice as he pulled out the ladies' pocket watch to check the time.

Seeing Jenkins still carrying her pocket watch, a faint smile touched Alexia's lips. During the 31-day loop incident last year, on the very last day, she had lent it to him before they split up outside the winery that preceded the Evergreen Forest. She had been in a hurry to take a carriage to Ruen afterward and had forgotten to ask for it back, and Jenkins had carried it ever since.

Although they weren't as close then as they were now, Alexia staunchly considered it a token of their love.

"Oh, we might have a problem."

He gestured for Alexia to look at the watch face, where all three hands were spinning wildly. This didn't mean the watch was broken—Jenkins could tell with a single tap that its internal mechanism was fine. Some external force was influencing it.

"I figured the Difference Engine would pull something. I thought it would send a mechanical army to attack the forest, not resort to these petty tricks." ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ noᴠelfire.net

He grumbled, patting Chocolate's small head to wake him. This was no time for sleeping.

"The Difference Engine probably knows that a mechanical army alone is no match for the Church."

Alexia pushed open the window beside her, and they both peered outside. The view was of a vast, lightless plain shrouded by black clouds, which was consistent with where they were supposed to be. But as they leaned out to look ahead in the direction of the carriage's travel, the shadow of the forest was nowhere to be seen.

The other carriages that should have been traveling with them were gone. He shouted, but the coachman outside gave no response. Jenkins, holding Chocolate, and Alexia decided to try jumping out of the window to assess the situation.

But the moment they landed, before he could even roll to absorb the impact, he collided with Alexia. The two of them and the cat tumbled into a heap inside the carriage amidst Chocolate's pathetic yowl.

It was the same carriage as before. The claw marks Chocolate had left and Alexia's book were exactly where they had been.

"Looks like our range of movement is restricted... I'll try again."

Leaving Chocolate behind, Jenkins scrambled to his feet, shoved open the side door of the carriage, and jumped down again. When he landed, if Alexia hadn't yanked him aside, he would have nearly crushed the cat, who was oblivious to their predicament.

Even so, Chocolate's fur stood on end. It scrambled into a corner, and Jenkins had to pick it up and comfort it for a long while before its fear-induced trembling subsided.

A short, dry laugh escaped Alexia.

The surrounding spiritual aura was black, as expected, but that was no help. The first thing to figure out was why they returned immediately after leaving the carriage. Understanding that would at least allow them to break the stage the Difference Engine had set.

"It could be time or space. If it's time, then we were frozen the moment we left the carriage and moved back inside... On second thought, let's just say I didn't say that. It's unlikely, and I'm basically immune to time-stop effects. So it has to be space. The space around us has been altered."

Jenkins said, as blue magic began to swirl in Alexia's palm. The azure light was brighter than the carriage's oil lamp, alternately illuminating both their faces.

"But the question is, what does it want? Trapping us in the carriage can't be its ultimate goal. Perhaps... there's a problem with the direction the carriage is heading."

Alexia suggested, which gave Jenkins another idea.

"I'll try projecting myself out."

He closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, he was standing in his own wardrobe at home.

"The spatial lock is ineffective against projection?"

He couldn't believe it was that simple. He checked his surroundings and confirmed that he was truly in his home, not deceived by some illusion.