Chapter 1275 Descended into Madness <TOC> Chapter 1277 The Perils of the Night
Previous page password is bold portion: miti@ojLP37
Translator: SumTLMan
On the outer seas of the Old Land Continent, the cerulean sky suddenly tore open, revealing a rift.
From this rift, three figures emerged.
Leading the trio were two men dressed in noble attire, and trailing a step behind, looking visibly restless, was a youth dressed as a white bear doll.
This trio was none other than mentor Sanders and his pupil, along with White Bear, Hobson.
Having discerned from Totoro’s visions that most revolved around Eureka, Angel decided to take Hobson with him. Using Hobson’s unique insight, he had learned of Eureka’s actions. Surely there was an intrinsic link between the two — perhaps Hobson was the key to containing Eureka’s descent into madness!
“Is that Edge Island ahead?” Hobson, gazing at the faint horizon asked, “Why… why would she be here?”
Hobson was unaware of Eureka’s identity, but if his childhood memories had been erased, then that person must be extraordinary. And why would such a being venture into this forbidden land of elemental wizards?
Though not aligned with the elemental branch, Hobson felt an unsettling sensation even before nearing Edge Island.
“When you meet her, you’ll understand,” Angel responded, before unveiling the Gondola and boarding it first.
In no time, the Gondola’s dreamlike silhouette soared across the horizon, disappearing from its original spot.
Angel was pushing the limits, flying at maximum speed towards Pat Mansion. If not for the need to bring Hobson, he might have even wanted to use the Gravity Lines for flight.
The news of Eureka’s madness caught Angel completely off guard. From Freud’s account, his brother Leon was deeply troubled, and even in the Wilderness of Dreams, he emanated a sense of fear.
Angel couldn’t fathom what Leon had gone through, or what Pat Mansion had now become.
Observing Angel’s furrowed brows, Sanders realized what troubled him. Tapping the table lightly, a crisp sound accompanied by an anomalous energy pulse reached Angel’s ears. Instantaneously, the weight on Angel’s heart seemed to lift momentarily.
“Don’t overthink it. Didn’t you ask Totoro for another vision afterward? Put your mind at ease,” Sanders advised.
Angel nodded. When they were leaving Phantom Island, he had asked Totoro to peek into the situation at Pat Mansion once more. This time, Totoro’s vision was even murkier than before. However, what could be discerned was that at the very least, Leon and Jon hadn’t been affected yet.
“I understand,” Angel whispered softly. Assisted by Sanders’ spell, he momentarily cleared his troubled mind, now having the clarity to ponder the root of the issue.
“Why did she suddenly lose her sanity?” Angel murmured to himself. Excluding his frequent wanderings, the last time he returned to Pat Mansion, he had genuinely spent nearly half a year there.
Throughout that time, he never noticed any issues with Eureka.
Upon Suis’s return, Eureka showed no abnormality. Perhaps due to some emotional factors, she seemed even gentler.
What was the true catalyst for her descent into madness?
According to information from the tea parties with the Kulakuka tribe’s young girls, Eureka’s predicament did not arise only in the recent months. Perhaps as early as six months ago, Eureka already displayed oddities. Yet, as she often secluded herself in the attic, few took notice.
The trigger for Eureka’s madness might have manifested quite some time ago, possibly lurking within her all along.
“Could it be…” A sudden realization dawned upon Angel. He looked up at Sanders sitting opposite him, “Mentor, would a wizard go mad if their mental strength suffers tremendous trauma?”
Sanders replied, “It depends on the extent of the injury and the degree of the madness.”
Angel’s face was a canvas of confusion, awaiting Sanders’ elaboration.
“When mental strength is harmed, it might indeed cause one’s behavior to deviate drastically from their usual self. However, this isn’t a fundamental change in character but rather a chain reaction stemming from the damage to their mental strength. Even if this results in madness, it would be akin to a mental discomfort, leading to irrational behavior as a way to vent frustrations.”
“For a formal wizard, such behavioral madness can be controlled,” Sanders added.
Angel furrowed his brows, remarking, “Do you imply, Mentor, that if there emerges an uncontrollable madness, it’s not a consequence of a wounded mental space?”
Sanders nodded gently, musing, “One could interpret it that way. Naturally, this assumes that the individual in question is a formal wizard. Common folks or mere wizard apprentices are beyond our present concerns.”
Lost in thought, Angel’s mind traveled back to the day he returned to Pat Manor. He had clashed with Eureka, and it was then he noticed something wrong with her mental strength. Later, when Suis returned, Angel gleaned from him that Eureka’s mental trauma was severe. Suis had procured numerous potions; he even crafted some elementary ones, but their effect on Eureka was negligible. During Angel’s prior trip to the Feran Continent, Suis had entrusted him to purchase potions that mend mental injuries.
Angel had assumed that Eureka’s descent into madness was related to her mental injuries. But the current evidence hinted otherwise, with no direct correlation.
“Although,” Sanders began with a contemplative tone, “it’s rare for a wounded mental space to cause a formal wizard to become uncontrollably mad. Yet, once the mental space is injured, it becomes susceptible to mental shocks. Even some strange powers targeting the mental space might exploit this vulnerability. The resulting inability to defend can lead to various post-trauma symptoms, which could, in turn, lead to madness.”
Sanders’ shift in discourse left Angel momentarily stunned.
A fleeting insight crossed Angel’s mind, a gnawing feeling that he might have overlooked something crucial. The insight was elusive; by the time he tried grasping it, it had vanished. Yet, deep down, he felt that during his months at Pat Manor, he might have missed something significant.
Angel was lost in his reverie.
On the other side, White Bear, listening to Angel and Sanders’ conversation, could clearly discern the content, but the specifics remained shrouded in mystery. This left him unable to interject, feeling an increasing unease.
An intuition suggested that the person they mentioned, the one “gone mad”, might just be the very person he sought.
…
Sanders, leaning against the Gondola’s railing, silently observed the surroundings.
For all Angel’s worries, Sanders didn’t seem overly concerned. Instead, he was more intrigued by this continent.
He had been to Edge Island before. Having heard it was a magic forbidden zone, he had once explored it out of sheer curiosity, but finding nothing of interest, he had left.
Now, amidst the void of elemental energy surrounding him, an eerie feeling persisted.
The mystery of “The Disappearing Elements of Edge Island” remained unresolved, hanging in the open missions of every wizard organization. Numerous wizards had ventured here only to return empty-handed. The Crown Star Church once organized a massive deduction session, but still emerged without answers.
Thus, a shroud of mystery cloaked Edge Island.
Prevailing opinion in the Wizarding World suggests that a colossal magical formation might lie beneath, siphoning the island’s elemental energy for its own purposes. Yet, after all these years, no one has uncovered this so-called “magical formation.”
Sanders, now on Edge Island, thought he might stay for a while, perhaps diving deeper into this elemental mystery.
As dusk’s gentle glow began to fade, giving way to the embrace of the Goddess of the Night who unfurled a starry tapestry, a gondola glided across the cloud-filled sky, abruptly halting.
Through the wispy clouds, silhouettes of buildings could be discerned on the land below.
Their destination was within sight — Angel’s homeland, the Goldfinch Empire’s province of Elegant Plum, one of Watford’s subordinate towns, Grud Town.
Gazing at his homeland, Angel’s eyes didn’t reflect the usual apprehension of approaching home, but a deeper concern.
In the images previously sent by Totoro, Pat Mansion was enveloped in a faint Bloody Ambience. Now, up close, that sanguine aura was even more pronounced.
Sanders, noticing the eerie glow, frowned, “This bloody luminescence is odd. It seems like a projection of some sort of seal?”
“A seal?” Angel turned to Sanders, seeking clarification. However, Sanders didn’t elaborate, choosing instead to leap off the gondola.
Quickly stowing away the gondola, Angel and White Bear followed suit, descending from the sky.
Landing on the main road flanked by farmlands and pastures on both sides, Path ahead led straight to Grud Town.
“There’s a strange energy swirling within that mansion; let’s go and investigate,” Sanders suggested, heading towards Grud Town.
The time was the Month of Recovery, marking the heart of winter.
The town of Grud was cloaked in a thick blanket of snow, the forests shimmered with a pristine white sheen. In the distance, Grud’s silhouette was similarly veiled by snow. The strong winds stirred up a haze of snowflakes, making the world appear as if ensnared in a white ethereal veil.
From afar, the muffled bleating of sheep echoed.
Angel looked back and noticed the herds of winter sheep trotting on the snow, systematically heading towards the barn. Behind the flock, one could barely discern the figure of a shepherd, his whip occasionally flashing in the cold air.
The sight brought a momentary relief to Angel’s heart.
From this vantage point near the pasture, one could gauge the state of most of Grud Town. The organized nature of the flock and the shepherd still at work suggested that the townspeople were likely unaffected.
At the very least, Eureka’s manic episode might still be kept at bay by the power of Suis.
They soon approached the guard post of Grud Town.
“There are traces of an illusion spell here,” Sanders said, glancing at Angel. “Your doing?”
Angel nodded, “When the Goldfinch Empire was embroiled in conflict, I set up an illusion to protect the townspeople. Once the chaos subsided, I dispelled it.”
Inside the guard post, a knight, encased in his armor, sought warmth from a nearby burning fire.
This knight was no stranger to Angel. It was Jordan, the son of Grud Town’s Sheriff, Uncle George.
Perhaps due to exhaustion, Jordan leaned against the post, his breaths even and rhythmic, lost in a light slumber.
As Angel and his party passed by, they didn’t disturb him.
The streets of the town were immaculate, with snow swept neatly to the sides. This suggested that the townsfolk remained undisturbed.
Given the depths of winter and the night’s curtain drawing close, most families were nestled inside their homes. Occasionally, curious eyes peered out from windows at Angel and his companions. However, the unusual attire of a white bear costume, coupled with Sanders’ icy demeanor, ensured no one dared venture out.
Chapter 1275 Descended into Madness <TOC> Chapter 1277 The Perils of the Night