"You may call me... The Beyond."
....
As Lumian spoke, the white kingdom fell into silence.
Mrs. Venerable nodded with a faint smile before asking, "V18… no, Mr. Beyond. Since we've withdrawn from the Organization of the Veiled, do you think we should still attend their meetings?"
Before Lumian could respond, Mr. Revenger spoke up. "I don't think it's necessary. If we need information, we can exchange it among ourselves. Besides, returning there after others have already caught wind of our intentions would only invite trouble."
Turning slightly, he looked toward the figure seated at the left front. "What do you think, Beyond?"
Lumian paused. He hadn't considered that possibility. Resting his fingers against his chin, he thought for a moment before answering, "I don't think we should either. Anything they have… we can obtain through our means."
"Exactly," Mr. Plunderer agreed calmly.
Mrs. Venerable hummed in approval, then asked, "In that case, Mr. Beyond, since we plan to establish a new organization and eventually align with the king, what should be our first step?"
...
Hearing the question, Lumian kept his arm resting on the chair as he stroked his chin and thought inwardly, "First step… When I decided to start this organization, I mainly thought about aligning with the king in order to find Lacey. Hmmm…"
He chuckled softly to himself and continued, "It wasn't even my decision to start the organization this early. Hehe… I wonder what's so special about that eidolon?"
Lumian uncrossed his legs and leaned forward. "As for our first step, I think we should inform the king."
Mr. Revenger looked at Lumian's blurred figure, tapping his fingers impatiently on the table. "Mr. Beyond, yes, informing the king sounds good, but what makes you think he'll accept? After all, we're basically a new organization. Wouldn't it be better to first create a name for ourselves?"
At the same time, Mrs. Venerable subconsciously glanced at Mr. Plunderer and Mr. Beyond. She chuckled awkwardly inwardly and thought, "I can't believe I'm the only girl here."
Lumian raised his brow slightly. "That would normally be the best plan, but not under these circumstances. If you remember, the Veiled sided with the Linktons. With any hint of danger, the king would practically accept any form of alignment."
He paused briefly before continuing, "What we should be focusing on is how to bring this matter to the king."
At that very moment, Mrs. Venerable coughed lightly and said, "I can."
...
"Hmmm… this woman is so unbothered. Didn't she just say she could connect us to high-ranking families? Who exactly is she…?" Lumian smiled inwardly as the thought crossed his mind.
"Can you really do that?" Mr. Plunderer, who had been a quiet observer all this while, finally asked.
Mrs. Venerable hummed lightly in response. She had half expected Mr. Beyond to praise her, yet the blurred figure sat calmly, almost like a Buddha in meditation.
Meanwhile, Lumian was busy painting a picture of her identity in his mind. "A rich business man daughter? No… she feels more like a noble. Or perhaps a foreigner with powerful backing. Maybe that's why she despises the Linktons."
At that moment, Mrs. Venerable turned her gaze toward Mr. Beyond, who was rubbing his chin absentmindedly as though deep in thought. Raising a brow, she brought her index finger close to her lips and subtly pointed it toward him.
Instantly, Lumian felt his body grow light and numb. A strange warmth spread through him as unfamiliar desires surged. At the same time, a whisper brushed against his ear, sometimes saying the sweetest of things, sometimes the most terrifying.
Just as he felt himself on the verge of losing control, the sensation faded, and his body gradually returned to normal.
Thanks to his nature as a diviner, Lumian possessed a slight resistance to such changes. In that instant, he finally realized that Mrs. Venerable was also a sorcerer.
At the same time, Mrs. Venerable sensed Mr. Beyond's gaze settle on her.
...
"Why isn't the spell working? He's supposed to be under my spell, following my orders, but he doesn't seem affected!" Mrs. Venerable inwardly thought.
Just as she expected Mr. Beyond to call her out, he simply looked at her like a statue.
As Lumian looked at her, he brought up the pressure to his head, and suddenly lines began to move around as their figures glowed with colors. Looking at Mrs. Venerable, Lumian saw her glowing brightly in red. "Hmm, she doesn't have good intentions toward me. That means red must be a sign of danger to the individual."
Suddenly, his thoughts shifted to when he saw Mr. Hayes glowing black. "Hm… but what could black mean?"
He then removed his gaze from Mrs. Venerable and focused on Mr. Plunderer and Mr. Revenger. As he did, Mrs. Venerable breathed a sigh of relief. Looking at both, he noticed they had a blue color. "Just like Derrick's before… indifferent, have no opinion, neither like nor despise."
After that, he brought the pressure down as Mr. Plunderer asked, "But Mrs. Venerable, what do you want in return?"
...
Having asked that, Mrs. Venerable didn't answer for a while, drawing Lumian's attention. He brought up the pressure and looked at her. Now, she was burning with a purple color.
"Hmmm… she's been silent. Does that mean purple is fear?" Lumian thought, not entirely certain.
He continued inwardly, "She must be very young if that's the case, probably not up to twenty. From what I can tell, the spell she cast shows she's still at phase 9. Maybe that's why she feels so high and mighty—she's surrounded by non-sorcerers. Hehe… she really has no idea how dangerous the sorcery world is."
"Mrs. Venerable?" Mr. Revenger called out.
Hearing that, she opened her eyes slightly, as though freed from a trance. Regaining her confidence, she let out a small, awkward chuckle. "Mr. Revenger, please, can you say that again? Hehe… I didn't quite catch it."
Mr. Revenger chuckled lightly. "I'm not the one who asked." He said as he pointed toward Mr. Plunderer.
Mr. Plunderer spoke calmly. "I asked. Since you're willing to help us inform the king, what do you want in return?"
...
Mrs. Venerable remained silent for a while, her hand resting on her chin as she recalled something. After a brief moment of pondering, she finally spoke without much concern.
"I want the entire map of the southern land, all the way to the north."
Mr. Revenger quickly interjected, "I hope you know that getting that will be quite difficult."
The reason was simple: countless borders divided the lands. Betyl, located in the western region, was relatively far from the other territories, making accurate mapping extremely difficult. Anyone attempting it would have to pay an enormous cost and deal with countless political complications.
"Hmmm…" Lumian thought inwardly. "Even in the twentieth century, borders are still a major issue."
Mr. Plunderer chuckled, then gave faint smile as he said, "That's practically simple." It was clearly within his area of expertise.
"Thank you, Mr. Plunderer~" Mrs. Venerable said cheerfully.
After a brief silence, Lumian finally spoke calmly. "I'd like to ask a simple question." He paused before adding, "Do any of you know the term 'sorcerer—' "
...
The moment the words left Lumian's mouth, the kingdom fell into silence. Lumian's mouth twitched as he considered not asking further. He had asked mostly because he already knew Mrs. Venerable was a sorcerer, though he was uncertain about Mr. Revenger and Mr. Plunderer.
After a moment, Mr. Revenger chuckled and said, "Well, yes, the word sorcerer is quite common now. We might as well know it… Are you trying to ask whether one of us is a sorcerer?"
"…"
Lumian didn't respond. He simply remained silent.
Seeing no reply, Mr. Revenger continued, "As for the term 'sorcerer,' I practically know it, but hehe… how could I possibly be one?" He was clearly lying, unsure of what Mr. Beyond intended to do with that information.
"Very well," Lumian replied. He then turned toward Mr. Plunderer and asked, "And what about you?"
Mr. Plunderer rubbed his chin thoughtfully and sighed. "I know what a sorcerer is, and I've been trying to become one. The only issue is that I don't have the main ingredients."
As he said that, Lumian's gaze shifted to Mr. Revenger's blurred figure. "Why is he denying being a sorcerer? I'm sure he is. At the last veiled meeting, it was him who gave me the procedures and recipes for the Diviner potion."
"What ingredient is that?" Mrs. Venerable asked thoughtfully.
"I heard it's very rare, and the proportion has to be quite high since I want to brew the Ravager potion," Mr. Plunderer replied. He sighed bitterly. "It's Black Nightshade berries."
"I don't think it has to be that high," Mr. Revenger quickly intervened. "It can be high, but not too high. Maybe around fifty pieces."
"Hehe… Mr. Revenger, I don't know whether you're forgetful or just bad at lying," Lumian said inwardly.
He refocused on the conversation.
"I'll keep that in mind," Mr. Plunderer replied. "But the main issue is still obtaining the berries."
Hearing that, Mrs. Venerable hummed softly. "I can."
"…Damn," Lumian said inwardly. "Just how rich is this lady?"
Mr. Plunderer raised his brows slightly. "Really?"
"Of course," Mrs. Venerable smiled. "Think of it as a simple exchange for the map."
"Thank you very much. I really appreciate it," Mr. Plunderer said, acknowledging her generosity.
"But remember," Mr. Revenger added, "brewing the Ravager potion is quite tricky. You'll be dealing with whispers during the process. Make sure you practice mind resistance to withstand the effects on your brain."
Lumian's eyes lifted slightly as he processed those words.
"Turning into a curse begins with the mind?"
He analyzed deeply. "Mr. Zayn said curses are born from the Creator's thoughts. V1 said curses are manufactured through humans, since they stem from the God of Beginnings, who came from the Creator. And Hayes spoke of laws…"
He rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
"Mind… thoughts… curses… humans."
Raising his brows slightly, Lumian finally understood the logic behind curses.
...
"That's it… since the Creator's thoughts and mind release curses, that means He doesn't actually release curses directly. What He releases is logic—a logic sorcerers follow when they lose control of their powers."
"It makes sorcerers more susceptible to this logic, since we are relatively closer to it, because our powers come from the Creator's hair," Lumian realized inwardly.
He rubbed his chin.
"But what about humans… and the laws?"
He pondered for a moment, then thought uncertainly, "Could it be that humans turn into curses when they lose control of their emotions? That when they lose control of their emotions, they begin to follow curse logic, and release curses or become one?"
At that moment, Lumian formed his theory—the Curse Logic Theory.
He tapped his fingers on the armrest and thought inwardly, "Then what Mr. Hayes said about laws might actually be true. Performing the role helps us divert from that logic. The Creator might grant us another logic entirely—that should be the laws."
With that, Lumian sat upright and said,
"Can we end our gathering?"
...
Hearing that, Mr. Plunderer and Mr. Revenger stood up and said, "Alright."
Mrs. Venerable quickly rose as well, mimicking their actions. One after another, their figures blurred further before gradually dissipating.
Lumian remained alone in the white kingdom—not because he didn't want to leave, but because he didn't know how. At the same time, he realized something strange: since they were within his subconscious, only after he gave them permission to leave were they able to do so.
The entire butterfly situation felt slightly unsettling as Lumian looked around the serene white kingdom. His gaze landed on the red curtains hanging near several of the windows.
"How will I get home?" he muttered. "Or will I just become an immovable leader?"
His cheek twitched slightly at the thought.
Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through his head. It felt as though his brain was being removed and reinserted repeatedly. Having no idea what was happening, Lumian closed his eyes and rubbed his temples.
Then, in the next instant, he opened his eyes and realized he was back in his room.
Suddenly, the pain intensified.
Lumian let out a scream as thunder cracked across the night sky, briefly illuminating his distorted, pained face reflected in the mirror.
...
Meanwhile, on the Lad River, Benson slowly opened his eyes. He had just arrived.
Standing up from the couch, he began to hear faint noises coming from outside.
"Benson! Benson!"
Hearing his name, Benson quickly rose and rushed out of the cabin. He reached the deck, where William and three other crew members stood, thier hairs glistering under from the rain.
"What happened?" Benson asked.
Without saying a word, all of them pointed toward the ocean. Not far from the ship, a massive tentacle surged upward from the water.