Chapter 284: Discovered!

Chapter 284: Discovered!

To call it a stroll was completely accurate, for it was indeed a stroll.

The two of them walked in profound silence.

With the onset of night, Dark Moon Island grew noticeably cooler compared to the daytime. Ophelia tucked her hands into the front pockets of her clothes; she was wearing the traditional attire unique to Dark Moon Island today, and the women's version of this garment possessed a distinct feature—a single, kangaroo-like pouch stretching across the front.

In the early years, when life on Dark Moon Island was harsh and devoid of other industries, the men generally went out to sea to fish while the women were responsible for processing the catch. However, due to the unique geographical environment of the island, certain unusual stones were often found during fishing, varying widely in type and frequently swallowed by the fish. When gutting and salting the fish, the women would extract these small stones whenever they found them and place them into the pouches on their chests.

In truth, these stones were usually of little value, being rather ordinary magical materials, but for the women of Dark Moon Island back then, they represented an extra income that could not be ignored.

Nowadays, this sort of work was generally handled by the merfolk and laborers from the outer islands, and local women of Dark Moon Island rarely engaged in it anymore. Yet, what is known as traditional local attire often preserves the characteristics of past modes of production, and so this design had been retained all along.

"Are you cold?"

The one asking this was not Cullen, but Ophelia.

"No."

The two continued forward, bypassing the hot spring area and walking out through a side back door.

The hotel was situated halfway up the mountain; after winding around to the opposite side, a highly bustling street scene suddenly unfolded before their eyes.

It was difficult to imagine that a grand and magnificent hotel could be so close to this civilian street, which was so deeply filled with the breath of daily life.

Only, when they had first come out, they had noticed quite a few guards along that path, meaning a barrier had likely been artificially established.

Of course, ordinary people coming here would not pass through the hotel; they could simply ascend directly from the other side of the mountain.

"This is the old street of our Dark Moon Island. Usually, locals choose to come here to hang out and eat. The area near the docks in town mainly caters to sailors and the like."

"Meaning, that place is for fleecing outsiders, and this is where you locals actually like to come?"

Ophelia nodded and smiled, saying, "In the past, the division was very strict, but now the boundaries have blurred a lot. Still, the truly delicious places are still to be found here. Next time you have the chance to bring your fiancée to Dark Moon Island for a vacation, you can bring her directly here to taste the local flavor."

Cullen looked at her. Because she was walking ahead, the lights from the street combined with the darkness of the night to cast a special, hazy texture upon her profile.

"Actually, we haven't been done with dinner for very long."

Although Wien cuisine was not particularly delicious, the hosts had so enthusiastically prepared a massive table for him, and combined with the fact that he had indeed slept for too long and was ravenous, he had eaten quite a bit.

Ophelia spoke, "I am hungry."

Only then did Cullen recall that Ophelia had indeed barely eaten anything, and her appetite was notoriously large.

"You choose the place, then."

"Shouldn't the host choose?"

"The guest chooses."

"Then, this establishment it is."

Cullen pointed to a restaurant whose sign read "Taste of Longing." The reason for choosing this restaurant was not because its name held any special meaning, but because Cullen noticed that while other shops had barbecue grills set up outside their doors, this one alone did not.

In truth, Cullen had never possessed much interest in barbecue. In his past life, his stomach had been poor, so he rarely touched barbecue or shelled foods; even when he could not avoid it during gatherings, he would only take a tiny taste.

This habit had been preserved to this day.

The steps at the restaurant's entrance led downward; the interior of the shop had been expanded by hollowing out the mountainside, giving it the feel of a cave dwelling.

The space inside was not large, forming a long and narrow shape with a rather pleasant atmosphere. A middle-aged owner was responsible for the cooking, and there was also a young waitress; the two shared a slight resemblance in their features, likely being father and daughter.

"You've come, it's been a long time since I last saw you." The owner greeted her warmly.

"Sister, you're here." The girl also greeted Ophelia.

They evidently knew each other, though the girl likely did not know Ophelia's true identity now.

Ophelia ordered the food, and she ordered a great deal.

For Cullen saw that when the owner recorded the dishes in his small notebook, he turned the page three times. Yet, the owner did not inquire whether they could finish it or if they had ordered too much; clearly, the owner was experienced.

In business, one would certainly retain a profound impression of a customer with such an exceptionally high average check.

After ordering, Ophelia and Cullen found a seat in the furthest corner. Ophelia faced inward while Cullen faced outward; clearly, she did not wish for anyone who recognized her to walk in later and disturb the quiet of her meal.

"Do you often come to this restaurant to eat?" Cullen asked.

"It's alright, the restaurant owners along half the street know me," Ophelia said quite candidly. "Always going to a single restaurant to eat makes one easily feel self-conscious."

The first things to arrive were two drinks, bright red in color and covered with a piece of fish skin.

This... Cullen could not quite figure out for a moment whether this was a drink or a soup.

Ophelia lifted her cup, took a sip, and then let out a soft exhale of deep satisfaction.

Hesitatingly, Cullen lifted his cup, blew the fish skin aside with his breath, and then took a sip. There was not the slightest hint of fishy odor; instead, it was exceedingly sweet, and not the kind of sweetness saturated with sugar, but that sort of lingering sweet aftertaste. In short, it was very refreshing.

"Delicious, what is it made of?"

"It's a kind of fruit wine, but when brewing it, there are specific fish that live inside it. This kind of wine cannot be drunk anywhere else."

"It doesn't taste like wine."

"Because the alcohol content can be chosen, and I selected the low percentage."

"Oh, so that's how it is."

The owner served the dishes quickly. Unlike the meal Cullen had shared with Laurel and the others last time, the food here was not served on massive platters; each dish was exquisite, bringing out the original flavor of the ingredients as much as possible.

"The food here should suit your tastes well."

"Yes." Cullen took another sip of the fruit wine. "Although I usually enjoy some heavy flavors as well, that's merely to change things up occasionally."

"How do you usually eat in Wien?"

"Generally out, work is quite busy, so when it comes to dining, one can only make do."

Ophelia smiled slightly and did not speak.

Cullen was full very quickly, but Ophelia seemed to have just begun.

She did not gorge herself when eating, yet she essentially never stopped, rhythmically stripping, shelling, and deboning the food before placing it into her mouth to chew—neither rushed, nor slow.

Cullen asked for another pitcher of this fruit wine, thinking that when he returned, it would be best if he could take a box with him, though he did not know if the teleportation arrays of the Church of Order charged an overweight baggage fee.

At this moment, a young man walked into the shop. The man wore the clerical robes of the Church of Samsara; the moment he entered, he spotted Cullen sitting in the corner—or more precisely, he spotted the robes of Order upon Cullen.

The man sat down, and the waitress immediately ran over to sit across from him. The two conversed very happily and evidently knew each other from before; furthermore, judging by the waitress's body language, she clearly held feelings for this man.

The two did not speak loudly, but with so few people in the shop, the sound of their exchange remained quite clear.

The girl inquired about interesting matters in the outside world, and the man recounted them to her without pause. Between their words, there leaked a sense of how the two of them would do this and that together in the future.

By the look of it, he intended to take the girl away with him when he departed.

This fellow's progress was truly swift.

Cullen turned his head and saw the owner sitting behind the counter, wiping a glass, his expression somewhat desolate.

Before long, the girl walked into the back room, emerged having changed her clothes, and then very happily walked out of the restaurant together with that man from the Church of Samsara, presumably going out on a date.

From beginning to end, the man had not spoken a single word to the owner, even though he had led his daughter away right before his eyes.

Cullen picked up the pitcher and walked over to the counter, saying, "Owner, fill it up again and help me seal it. I want to take it back for my friends to taste."

"Oh, alright."

The owner beamed, filling a bottle of fruit wine for Karen, before meticulously sealing the opening and asking:

"Do you need a cup?"

"No."

"There you go, take care. It seems you truly enjoy drinking this."

"Yes, it tastes quite good."

"My Lema used to love it too, though I fear it will be hard for her to come by in the future."

"Is that lady your daughter?"

"Yes, she is my daughter. She fell in love with a nobleman from the Holy Church, and he wishes to take her away with him. She is overjoyed, and I... I am overjoyed as well. I only hope she finds happiness."

Deep within the owner's voice lay a profound reluctance to let go.

Yet for the residents of this island, especially the youth, material comfort was secondary. While the owner's household was not among the wealthiest on the island, they were certainly well-off. Young people, however, with their yearning for love and curiosity about the world outside, would often sacrifice anything. Given the chance, they wished for nothing more than to sprout a pair of wings and fly away immediately.

In this regard, Karen himself was no exception—otherwise, why would he have been so unwilling to remain at his family's parlor?

"I wish her happiness."

"Thank you. But I will prepare enough coins for her to purchase a return ticket. I still have some savings in coupons here, which I will have her take along as well. Truth be told, my heart cannot bear to see her leave me, but I have no way to stand in her way. Can you understand?"

"I can."

By then, Ophelia had finished eating. She took out a few gold coins, placed them on the table, stood up, glanced at Karen, and walked outside.

Karen followed her out. Ophelia stood waiting for him on the steps of the entrance, and the two began their walk back.

"Is it always this lively here every day?" Karen asked.

"No. Because of what happened a few days ago, many people were terrified. So, places of consumption have been exceptionally bustling these past few days. Everyone is willing to spend money."

"Oh, I see."

When they reached the side entrance of the hotel, a carriage was already waiting there for Ophelia.

Karen stood where he was, waiting for Ophelia to board.

Ophelia did not rush into the carriage; instead, she turned, tilting her head slightly, and looked at Karen.

For a long time,

Ophelia smiled.

Karen found it somewhat baffling.

"Are you cold?"

This was the second time today Ophelia had asked him the exact same question.

"Not cold."

"I don't want to go back just yet. Sit with me a little longer."

"It is getting late."

Ophelia raised her fist, shaking it lightly in front of Karen, and asked:

"Are you coming or not?"

Karen said nothing.

Ophelia turned and walked toward the other side where there was no path, leading into the mountain woods.

Karen hesitated for a moment, but ultimately followed her inside.

Ophelia walked ahead while Karen followed behind. Once they had gone deep into the woods, Ophelia sat down on a stone and patted the empty space beside her. Karen sat down as well, placing the fruit wine he had brought along by his feet.

For a very long stretch of time thereafter, neither of them spoke. Ophelia merely looked up at the imperfect, dark moon in the sky, while Karen stared at the leaves beneath his feet.

"Are you cold?"

"The holy robe has the function of maintaining body temperature."

Karen felt a bit bewildered; this was the third time she had asked him this question since they met.

Ophelia leaned her body forward, resting her cheek in her hand as she looked at Karen.

Karen spoke up: "You are being a bit strange today."

"Mhm, have you finally noticed?"

"Is it because too many things have been happening on the island lately?"

Ophelia nodded, then shook her head, saying: "It is not just about the island, but about what is between you and me. The kind of things other girls might not encounter once in a lifetime seem to happen between us every other day."

"Perhaps it is just a coincidence?"

"Under normal circumstances, it should be called the arrangement of fate. You deliberately avoided that word. I have noticed that whenever you are with me, you are always like this. It is as if you are intentionally holding back your strength during a duel.

I actually dislike this feeling very much.

Can you tell me the reason why you are always like this?"

Karen pursed his lips. The objective reason was that behind this series of coincidences, a man named Neo was pulling the strings, and the secrets involved could not be spoken aloud.

Yet in any matter, aside from the objective, there must also be a subjective factor.

Seeing Karen remain silent, Ophelia continued to ask: "My father has many women, and he has many illegitimate children. I did not feel angry about this, perhaps because I grew up in such an environment since childhood. You are different; you have a fiancée, so you have always maintained your principles, correct?"

"It is not just that."

"Oh, not just that? Then what else is there?" Ophelia asked.

Karen decided to voice the true thoughts in his heart: "Because when a member of the opposite sex expresses affection toward you, there is always a sense of happiness and enjoyment in your heart. I am sorry, but this is unavoidable."

"Is it because of this?"

"Mhm."

"So, in your heart, you still have that kind of affection for me, right?"

Karen replied with utter candor: "Yes, I do."

"Good, I understand. You want to adhere to your principles, yet you also enjoy the feeling of me liking you." Ophelia extended both hands forward and said: "This is just like sitting by a fire. You like the warmth brought by the roasting flames, yet you neither would nor dare to truly thrust your hands into the blazing pyre, because you know it will burn you. How is my analogy?"

"Very fitting."

Ophelia raised her fist once more, holding it in front of Karen and shaking it: "I have just eaten my fill, and now I have plenty of strength."

"What do you intend to do?"

"Nothing at all, mhm..." Ophelia rested her chin on one hand. "I am very fond of the stories of Ancestor Bernard, as well as the poems and essays he left behind. I have loved them since childhood. Almost every native of Dark Moon Island grew up listening to the stories of Ancestor Bernard."

"I know."

"In our eyes, Ancestor Bernard is pure and flawless. His life, his emotions—they were all like that."

"Mhm."

"But because of Mr. Philias's matters, I saw another side of the ancestor. Furthermore, I recently took the time to finish reading the diaries of Mr. Philias and Ancestor Bernard.

The image of the ancestor has changed for me. From the heavens, it has fallen to the earth, and it has gathered quite a bit of dust.

Before you came to the island this time, I tried to map the relationship between you and me onto the relationship between the ancestor and Miss Poe. Both are separated by a very, very long distance. I feel as though what lies between us is a carbon copy of that love story."

"And then?"

"And then, when the ancestor's image was no longer so flawless to me, I looked back at the love stories he wrote between himself and Miss Paul, and I felt a sense of... a sense of dissonance.

It is as if there is a line running through those love stories; they seem to have all been torn apart.

Do you know, I even began to doubt... doubt whether anything at all, anything at all, actually happened between Miss Paul and our ancestor..."

Ophelia bit her lower lip, then released it:

"I have always projected myself onto our ancestor, Bernard, and I have always projected you onto Miss Paul. And so, it is this feeling, hard to describe. Yesterday, I spent the entire day with the ancestor's love stories echoing in my mind, trying to dismantle that line that made me feel the dissonance;

In the end, I felt, I felt... ha.

I felt that I am truly very much like our ancestor. I understood him. In every story, the first half is the actual development of reality, while the second half is a beautifully imagined illusion."

Karen froze; he had not expected this to be the conclusion Ophelia would suddenly speak aloud.

"Ah... it all happened over a hundred years ago, so there is no need to be so literal about it anymore, because perhaps it was never meant to record events, but merely to depict love, right?"

Ophelia looked pointedly at Karen, seemingly wanting to obtain an answer from him. She repeated her question:

"Right?"

Karen's palms broke into a slight sweat at this moment, because he understood the implicit meaning within Ophelia's words. She seemed to have pierced through the fog, "understanding" the romantic lie Bernard had woven for himself.

But the problem now was, if the story between Bernard and Miss Paul was a lie, then what exactly was the definition of his own identity?

If Bernard and Paul never ended up together, how did he, a descendant of Paul, manage to appear out of nowhere?

Delving deeper, the Blade of the Dark Moon... without the backing of lineage, what method did you use to unleash it?

Who, exactly, are you?

Expanding a bit further, what was the matter with Miss Paul's tombstone in the Allen Manor, and that moving line of text inscribed beneath it?

Finally, this could even be extended to the recent series of events that had occurred on the island; all of it could serve as a foundation upon which to deduce a grand conspiracy theory.

Karen pressed his palms against his knees, thinking to himself: Damn it, Captain, you have completely ruined me this time...

It was precisely because she truly liked Karen that she could genuinely project herself onto her ancestor, Bernard, and could thus "understand" the long string of love stories left behind by him...

Yet because of this, she had glimpsed a secret, or rather, a truth.

It required only a tiny fracture, and all the disguises would be completely pried open because of that single breach.

And Karen's mask always seemed to lose its deceptive effect before those who were genuinely close to him.

"I don't know."

In the end, Karen offered this response, carrying quite a bit of a "whatever happens, happens" attitude.

Because it was impossible for him to silence Ophelia by killing her here; he could not and would not do such a thing, without even harboring the thought.

Ophelia stood up, smoothing the hem of her skirt as she spoke:

"Karen, do you know, you should be grateful that Mr. Philias ultimately gave up on his revenge, and you should also be grateful for what you just told me about having a good impression of me and liking this feeling.

You should be even more grateful that I like you.

But I truly cannot understand it. For the first time in my life I have liked someone, so why must I suffer this kind of grievance? I am truly unwilling.

Therefore, I really want to give you a good beating, but then I suddenly feel it is quite meaningless, and most importantly, ha, you have been very obedient today."

Karen remained silent; so it turned out that when she spoke those words earlier, this was what she meant.

So, every time she raised her fist before, she was actually looking for a reason to hit him?

"I will still go to the Church of Order for training, but I will not choose to go to York City; I will choose to go to another parish of the Church of Order.

Because I quite enjoy the feeling of liking you, but just as you have your fiancée and you have your principles, I have my Dark Moon, which is my principle.

To my family, I need you to help me maintain the facade; this will save me from the trouble of arranged marriages in the future.

Finally, apologize to your captain on my behalf."

"The captain?"

The captain was exposed too?

"If I were to go to York City, he would draw people from his own squad to help me assemble a team, and then he could be promoted to a squadron leader managing three squads. Now, he cannot be promoted."

Karen: "..."

Ophelia crossed her arms, saying faintly: "I'm cold."

Karen stood up. Before he could say or do anything, Ophelia spoke: "See me back to the carriage."

"Mm."

The two still walked one after the other, but this time, Karen walked in front, and Ophelia followed behind;

The light of the Dark Moon filtered through the leaves, shining upon Karen, stretching out a dappled silhouette, yet also tracing the footsteps of his departure.

The atmosphere between the two grew increasingly oppressive.

Yet at this moment, the intertwined panting of a man and a woman from a nearby pile of fallen leaves shattered this tranquility.

They must have utilized a concealment array, but this concealment array only had a masking effect on the perimeter further away; at close range, it conversely had no effect. Of course, perhaps they themselves felt that a completely silent environment would diminish much of their pleasure, requiring each other's voices to serve as an accompaniment.

Karen had intended to walk away, but the people inside were already finished. A man stepped out while putting on his clothes, and looking at Karen as well as Ophelia, whose figure was completely shielded as she stood behind Karen, he smiled and said:

"Friend, you finished quite quickly."

This person, Karen recalled, was the man from the Church of Samsara who had entered the restaurant during dinner. What he was currently arranging was also the divine robe of the Church of Samsara.

The woman who stood up behind him waved her hand casually, dissolving the simple barrier that had been set up earlier. She walked over and took the man's arm, saying:

"Let's go, let's go, I'm hungry. I want to taste the local specialty dishes of Dark Moon Island."

"Mm, alright, I will take you there right now."

The man waved his hand at Karen and said:

"Goodbye, haha."

With that, he took the woman's hand and turned to walk out of the woods. Karen noticed that the woman was precisely Lema, the daughter of the restaurant owner.

"Wait a moment," Karen called out.

The man halted his steps, looked back at Karen, and smiled:

"What, are the people of Order so unable to take a joke?"

Karen pointed at the girl and said: "You have swapped her soul."

Hearing this, the man's gaze narrowed slightly as he said:

"I believe we have no reason to have any dispute here over a matter involving a Dark Moon Island pariah, do we?"

Hearing this, Ophelia prepared to step forward, but her wrist was firmly caught by Karen.

Even if the one being targeted was a person of Dark Moon Island, it was not suitable for the Dark Moon to take action, because someone who could utilize a soul contract was absolutely no ordinary member of the Church of Samsara. Therefore, if a conflict were to arise, it was best for the conflict to occur between the two divine churches.

Karen took two steps forward, completely shielding Ophelia behind himself, and said: "There is a reason."

"Oh, what reason?"

"The food her father makes is very delicious."