Warlock Apprentice

Chapter 2777: Chapter 2778: The Dual Faces of the Divine Shepherd

Upon hearing the silver-haired girl’s words, everyone realized she wasn’t going to attack them, but was actually prepared to... clear up the misunderstanding?

This behavior was even more perplexing than a straightforward confrontation.

Angel’s words had already reached such a sharp level, yet she was not angry; instead, she took a step back on her own accord, which was vastly different from what they had imagined.

Previously, the silver-haired girl had exhibited a demeanor of aloofness, impatience, and indifference towards everything.

Therefore, they did not think such a cold-natured silver-haired girl would compromise with them. But the reality was completely opposite to their expectations; the silver-haired girl was not provoked by Angel.

Her current behavior made everyone rethink their assessment of her character.

Whether her intentions were genuine or fake, at least she hadn’t shown any malice so far, so... perhaps further communication was possible.

The group lowered their guard, exchanged glances, but no one spoke; yet the meaning behind their eyes was unanimously understood—

Prioritize communication, especially by probing for more information. As for who should be the representative in communication, Dox hoped for Angel to step up.

Dox’s thoughts were straightforward; everyone could see how the silver-haired girl treated him previously. She did not welcome him, repeatedly showing a look that regarded him as worthless.

Hence, Dox certainly couldn’t be the one.

Among the others, the two apprentices were temporarily not considered; the issues they might think of might not be comprehensive. Ideally, it should be Black Earl and Angel communicating. If Black Earl intended to step up, he would have done so at this point; since he hadn’t spoken, he likely supported Angel as the bridge for communication.

Angel felt a bit inclined to refuse, as his earlier remarks had been too harsh, leaving him no room to retreat.

But when Angel raised his head, he noticed the silver-haired girl in the prism still gazing at him.

To her, the others seemed nonexistent.

Seeing this, Angel knew he couldn’t escape, sighed inwardly, and said, "So... since the link has been severed, let’s call it even, shall we?"

The premise of being even is that both parties have inflicted harm or granted benefits to each other. In this context, Angel’s choice of words is inappropriate.

However, the silver-haired girl in the mirror wasn’t one to delve into semantics; she lightly nodded, "Alright."

Angel was initially a bit embarrassed when he spoke, unsure of what to say, but soon, he regained his rhythm: "So you still wish to get the so-called answers from my mouth? Hmm? Laplace. Glaipnir. Luigi... Miss?"

Silver-haired girl: "You may call me Laplace."

"Oh?" Angel squinted and instinctively pondered why she allowed them to call her only Laplace, when there were two other temporal bodies?

Perhaps noticing Angel’s confusion, the silver-haired girl said calmly, "Laplace is a temporal body entirely condensed from my own memories, while the other two temporal bodies have absorbed some floating memories in the Distant Sea."

"They are me, yet not me."

Her, or rather Laplace’s, words seemed like riddles but revealed some intriguing information.

Temporal Bodies, according to her explanation, are her own condensation from different time periods.

However, following this explanation, a problem arises concerning the Bard "Luigi," who is undoubtedly male. If Luigi is a condensation from a certain stage of her life, does it imply her gender varied at different times?

While this question isn’t significant, it’s indeed something that piqued their curiosity. Now, they received partial clarity: this temporal body not only holds her memories but is also influenced by the so-called "floating memories in the Distant Sea." Perhaps Luigi appears male due to memories not originally belonging to her.

Moreover, as the silver-haired girl’s true memory condensed into Laplace, the Rabbit Girl, does this imply she is inherently more childlike?

"I’ve heard of the Distant Sea more than once, is your main form also within this Distant Sea?" Angel, although not directly inquiring further, made his intention quite clear: what is this Distant Sea?

To avoid giving the impression of wanting to seek her main form within the Distant Sea, Angel asked subtly.

"An invisible sea connecting countless mirror worlds; you seem to call it... Sea of Void Mirror." Laplace explained, noticing the curiosity in the eyes opposite her, hesitated briefly, and added: "The Sea of Void Mirror is not a Paradise Land. It erases all living emotions, memories, until even consciousness vanishes. This is the rule of the Sea of Void Mirror."

Laplace emphasized just enough, leaving everyone understanding that it was a warning not to enter the Sea of Void Mirror.

Regarding whether this admonition was effective, Laplace did not worry. Essentially, she did not need to remind them of this; it was only because of some interest in the unusual boy outside the mirror that she felt like speaking a bit more.

After detailing the dangers of the Sea of Void Mirror, Laplace returned to the main topic: "Regarding the question you asked me earlier, my answer remains unchanged. I wish to know the answer."

Seeing Laplace’s serious demeanor, Angel thought for a moment: "So, you still only have words of advice to offer?"

Laplace’s eyes drooped: "My main form is still in slumber. All I can do is analyze the Reflection of the Heart projected here."

Her words were very subtle, essentially expressing: penniless, only words of advice.

Angel contemplated briefly: "If it’s just words of advice, I’m unwilling to make this exchange."

Upon hearing this, Laplace’s eyes slightly darkened. However, the next moment Angel’s words reignited light in her eyes.

"If you can, beyond this, answer a few of my questions, I will choose an ’answer’ to tell you." Angel: "But whether this answer is the real answer, I don’t know, and it’s up to you to judge. I can only say it’s among what I’m considering."

Angel emphasized "an" answer. Among the many possibilities he had considered, there was indeed one suitable for disclosure.

If using it for intelligence exchange, Angel believed he wouldn’t lose out.

Laplace would have preferred knowing all the answers, but understood it equated to the opponent directly revealing all his cards, which was unrealistic.

After contemplating, Laplace nodded: "Alright."

Angel: "Do you not mind the scope of questions I might ask?"

Laplace replied indifferently: "What you wish to know won’t surpass your understanding."

Her words were clear, reflecting that Angel’s cognition differed from hers; it’s akin to a child asking an adult, where a child’s questions are constrained within their perceptual framework, and these frames cannot exceed the adult’s knowledge boundaries.

Even if Laplace meant no other implications, it remains a kind of intellectual snub.

As Laplace’s words concluded, Angel heard Dox stifling laughter at the back.

"You also have a day like this..." Dox snickered, and then started mocking in the Mind Ribbon.

Angel was silent for a moment, then replied in the Mind Ribbon: "I was originally thinking about seeing if you had any questions you needed me to ask, but now on second thought, I’ll do it myself."

Ignoring Dox’s wailing in the Mind Ribbon, Angel continued on his own: "Shall I ask first?"

Laplace: "You may."

Angel pondered for a moment, then posed the first question: "What are you?"

This question sounds simple, but in reality covers a very broad range, with much room for maneuver and control.

"If you are asking about my race, you might be disappointed." Laplace: "I don’t have a community, nor do I have the racial distinctions you humans imagine. If you must summarize, you can, like The Sage, categorize me as a being born in the mirror."

This answer also proved that Laplace was indeed not human; her human form might just be a projection for convenient communication.

"Do all beings born in the mirror have no community? Is You Nu the same?"

Laplace thought for a moment: "I am an exception."

Seeing Angel raise an eyebrow, Laplace seemed to guess what he wanted to ask, and spoke first: "Exception does not mean special. The ecology of the beings in the mirror is different from the outside world."

Angel: "The ecology of the beings in the mirror?"

Laplace: "This question shouldn’t be answered by me. If you want to know, you’ll need to see it for yourself... However, I do not recommend living people entering the mirror."

Angel: "Because of the Sea of Void Mirror?"

"The Sea of Void Mirror is just one reason; without a method of guidance and positioning, you will quickly lose your way in the mirror world."

Previously, the Wise Sovereign also mentioned that it was easy to get lost in the Mirror World, but Angel had another question about this: "Can’t you break through the void?"

He thought that if the Plane Corridor could be used, then losing your way wouldn’t matter much.

Laplace: "Only a very small part of the mirror world is relatively stable; the vast majority of it is constantly created and destroyed, liable to shatter at any time. At least I’ve never seen anyone dare to use spatial abilities in the mirror world; that would only accelerate the shattering of the mirror and become completely lost."

Angel: "Since spatial abilities can’t be used in the mirror world, how do you perform quick transfers?"

"The mirror itself is a passage." Laplace said this while raising her gaze, lightly looking into Angel’s eyes.

Without saying anything, Angel understood a meaning from her gaze.

—So, do you understand now? The questions you’ve asked do not exceed your understanding and cannot touch my limits.

Angel was silent for a moment and then asked a different question: "These two masks crafted by the old stones... you said they’re called the Mask of Pan? Could you introduce them?"

Regarding these two masks, Angel was most curious about two things: first, whose memories are stored in the masks? Second, why are they called the Mask of Pan?

The first question does not need an explanation, and the focus of the second question is on "Pan."

In the Southern Domain, as long as one is a transcendent, upon hearing "Pan," the first thought would definitely be of the mysterious Pan family.

The Pan family’s most famous feature is the Pan artifacts.

Back when Angel encountered Kavoline in the Purification Garden, she hailed from the Pan family, and the attire she wore was the renowned Pan garment.

With the Pan garment, Kavoline could transmute into numerous forms: battle stance, defensive stance, offensive stance, each with corresponding attire, and there wasn’t just one set. For example, the offensive stance Angel saw included several options, such as the Reaper’s robe, Space-Time Witch attire, Valkyrie armor, Wasp Queen attire...etc.

Each outfit had unique abilities, and even the ones currently known are already extremely powerful.

Once Kavoline becomes an Official Wizard, the augmentative effects of these outfits will be further enhanced. It’s even said that once Kavoline advances to an Official Wizard, calling her the most versatile below True Knowledge wouldn’t be an exaggeration. Some abilities even surpassed True Knowledge Wizard.

And the Pan garment is just one of the Pan artifacts.

However, it is said that only the garment part of the Pan artifacts remains in the Southern Domain, while the other parts were taken to the Origin World by Pan.

But regardless of whether the other parts of the artifact are in the Southern Domain or not, the garment Kavoline revealed is already astonishing.

Because of this, Angel had also paid attention to the Pan artifacts. Upon hearing Laplace say that these two masks are called "the Mask of Pan," he immediately wondered whether this could be a component of the Pan artifacts.

Not only Angel, but everyone present knew about the Pan artifacts. Therefore, upon hearing Angel ask this question, everyone curiously perked up their ears.

Especially Dox, who was the most attentive. If this truly was one of the Pan artifacts, its value... would definitely be astounding!

However, as Laplace narrated, Dox’s eyes gradually dimmed.

According to Laplace’s account, she discovered these two overlapping masks in the Sea of Void Mirror. When she found the masks, most of the memories inside had been washed away.

After reading the sparse remaining memories, she learned their name, which is "the Mask of Pan."

And the memories currently inside the mask are fragmented ones that Laplace casually poured in from the Sea of Void Mirror...

As for why she poured memories into the mask, it was because she discovered deeply rooted "shadows" inside the mask. These shadows seemed to be memories as well, but they were not affected by the Sea of Void Mirror, and Laplace also could not read these shadows.

She wanted to unlock the secrets within the shadows, so she tried various methods, and infusing memories was one of them.

She hoped to flush out the stubborn shadows by injecting memories; once the shadows floated in the Sea of Void Mirror, she could attempt to read them.

However... there was no effect whatsoever.

Besides infusing memories, she also tried breaking the masks, which is why the mask with the male visage was shattered by Laplace.

The results were still futile.

Eventually, as time passed, Laplace’s curiosity about the shadows gradually faded. However, because the masks were rare physical objects in the mirror world, she didn’t casually throw them away, instead using them as a medium to perform the "Bridge of Fate."

That’s the whole story.