Chapter 60: Misunderstanding of Lady Violet

Late at night.

When Novala woke up from the somewhat stiff bed, she noticed that her body felt a bit warm.

Instinctively, she thought of ringing the bell to summon the maid, but then she remembered that ever since that night three days ago when Mr. Cain "kidnapped" her from Violet Manor, she was no longer the elegant and noble Lady Violet.

It was quite a novel sensation.

Novala slowly got up and gently touched the tree-shaped mark on her chest.

Lately, when she slept at night, she always felt a faint warmth here, as if a voice was tenderly calling out to her from the depths of her subconscious.

Even more absurdly, she would occasionally have dreams that left her blushing.

And the male protagonist of those dreams...

"Mr. Cain."

Novala covered her slightly throbbing chest, her face turning slightly red, and unconsciously murmured.

She looked around and found that the small bedroom lacked the reassuring figure she longed for, so she could only sigh in disappointment.

In truth, living in the house of that girl who claimed to be a vampire felt somewhat uncomfortable to her.

The girl always stared at her chest with a look of disdain, calling her "fatty," almost making Novala cry, despite never having had a fight before.

"..."

Feeling restless and unable to fall back asleep, Novala had no choice but to get up. She took off the hair tie on her wrist and gathered her slightly disheveled long hair into a neat bundle, gently resting it on her snow-white and tender shoulders.

Then, bare white feet stepped into the slippers.

At this moment, Novala was wearing a lightweight black nightgown, and the shoulder straps hung slightly, giving her a seductive and alluring appearance. She looked like a ripe melon, fragrant and enticing.

Her legs weren't as slender as those of a young girl; they had a slight plumpness to them. However, her skin was firm and fair, with graceful curves and proportionate shape, making them worthy of being called beautiful legs.

Looking at the moonlight outside the window, Novala pushed open the door and stepped out of her small bedroom.

Inside the magical tool shop, the lights were still on.

Various materials and parts were placed on a nearby workbench, accompanied by whispers and soft laughter. The white-haired little girl sat at the table, assembling something.

"Hehehe, Char will surely be shocked by this genius idea of mine..."

She kept assembling while muttering to herself.

Novala watched the focused little girl for a moment, then walked to the kitchen, poured two glasses of water, and returned to the workbench.

"Have some water?"

Novala, who appeared to be twenty years older than Octavia, smiled foolishly and said.

Then, she casually picked up a piece of mineral debris from the little girl's hair.

"?!"

Octavia reacted suddenly, like an angry cat, and stared cautiously at the woman who interrupted her work.

"..."

Seeing this cow-like woman, Octavia was furious.

She glanced at her own flat chest, then clenched her lips in frustration.

Novala felt uncomfortable under Octavia's gaze and nervously adjusted her hair, pulling up the clothes on her chest.

After being troubled by Octavia's gaze, Novala hesitated for a moment and whispered, "Miss Octavia, do you... want... that, um, thing?"

"What?"

Octavia happened to feel a bit thirsty, so she took a big gulp from the water glass and then asked in confusion.

A rosy blush appeared on Novala's fair face.

She hesitated for a moment, then her gaze became somewhat evasive as she said intermittently, "I-I mean... breastfeeding..."

After saying that, she slightly raised her body, causing her melon-like breasts to sway.

When Novala came here, she didn't know Octavia's true identity as a vampire who had lived for thousands of years.

From the outside, Octavia looked like a little girl even smaller than herself.

Due to her habit of reading books, Novala had a good imagination, so she subconsciously imagined exaggerated scenarios like "losing her mother at a young age" and "growing up alone and helpless."

So at this moment, her maternal instincts were overflowing.

Octavia was stunned for a few seconds, then angrily shouted, "Get away, fatty!"

"How could Char fall in love with a deformed woman like you?!"

The little girl was so angry that her face turned red, and she bared her sharp teeth.

She realized deeply how scheming the woman in front of her was.

"Char... Char?" Novala pondered for a moment and realized something. "Is Mr. Cain's real name Char?"

"And... what did you mean by that statement just now?"

"Char is Char, regardless of whether it's Cain or not," Octavia snapped, placing the water glass down with annoyance, and continued assembling the magical tool in her hand. "As for what I said earlier, heh, it's the first time I've seen Char bring another woman here."

"If I remember correctly, besides the maid in his house who likes to curse behind her master's back, I haven't seen him get so close to any other woman."

Novala was stunned.

Octavia's words echoed in her mind.

She instinctively lowered her head and looked at the ring on her ring finger.

Mr. Cain... likes me?

Is that why he risked everything and eloped with me, just like Rochester and Jane Eyre, rescuing me from that mansion-like prison?

Novala's face turned bright red, and she felt her body temperature rise.

She shyly covered her face and quickly ran back to her small bedroom, burying herself under the covers.

As she watched the figure of the other woman leaving, as well as certain trembling parts, Octavia angrily waved her little fist.

"Arrogant fatty!"

"Moreover, why do I always feel a faint... abundance of motherly aura from her?"

...

When Char came back to his senses, he found himself in an unfamiliar place.

In front of him stood a magnificent tower, with a divine symbol glowing at the top that could only be vaguely seen even when looking up.

Not far from the entrance of the tower, a gatekeeper wearing a mage robe cast a vigilant gaze in his direction.

This was the Tower of Mages, the most revered center of academia in the entire Hiren Empire and even the entire Land of Rand, comparable to the Academic Capital of the Neutral City.

Because the people here were all followers of the Elemental Gods.

Char shook his head and looked around at the passing pedestrians, feeling somewhat dazed. However, no one paid him any attention, as if they were not surprised at all by the sudden appearance of this young man.

Shouldn't I be dead?

With a puzzled thought, Char opened the system and glanced at the status bar, only to be surprised to find that his level and available attribute points were still the same as when he left Miss Witch's place.

[Name: Char Adelaide]

[Level: LV.48]

[Race: Human]

[Age: 16]

[Rank: Rank: Two-Star Transcendent Knight / Three-Star Warlock]

[strength: 120]

[Intelligence: 46]

[Charisma: 30]

[Luck: 21]

[Available Attribute Points: 66]

I wasn't killed by Beatrice?

Who saved me?

Char lifted his head in a daze, his eyes fixating on the triangular insignia at the top of the Tower of Mages.

Then, an unbelievable speculation emerged.

Could it be...

"This is the headquarters of the Tower of Mages in the capital city. Irrelevant individuals, leave immediately!"

The gatekeeper had long noticed Char's bewildered presence and now approached him with a vigilant expression, scolding him.

In the past, there were indeed amateur mages who had trained their brains into stupidity and tried to come here to block the entrance, seeking recognition from the elders at the council for their research.

But most of them were just madmen lost in their own delusions.

So, seeing Char in such a disoriented state, it was natural to have some doubts.

Char regained his senses and furrowed his brow.

He opened the Dimension Ring and confidently took out the Inspector Badge of the Tower of Judgment, displaying it before the gatekeeper.

"I'm here on behalf of the Tower of Judgment. Irrelevant individuals, leave immediately!"

...

After leaving the Tower of Mages, Char found an adventurer's inn and rented a room.

After rejecting three waves of door-to-door offers from self-proclaimed companions, he felt that the moral standards of the world had declined.

"Half-elf girls, bearfolk girls, and even gnome girls. It's so disgraceful. What kind of guidebook on otherworldly customs is this?"

Char sighed and lay on the bed, gazing at the ceiling.

He wasn't in a hurry to return to the academy because he didn't want to draw attention to Dahlia until the recent plans of "The Sun" had settled.

In fact, besides her, there wasn't anyone he cared much about in this world.

When he made clothes for Miss Witch earlier, he took the opportunity to visit the school and asked Sitar and Headmaster Lucius to keep an eye on things.

It was at that time that he learned from his mentor that the Inspector Badge was arranged by a high-ranking member of the Tower of Judgment who saw his potential.

"..."

After resting for a while, Char's thoughts became chaotic, and he regained his focus.

Then, he went to the washroom, opened the door, and stood in front of the mirror, unbuttoning his clothes.

Suddenly, a slender body was revealed in front of the mirror, muscles defined and swollen, brimming with explosive power.

However, when Char put on his clothes, he couldn't tell that he was actually such a muscular man; he even appeared somewhat slender.

But at this moment, Char's focus was not on his perfect physique.

His gaze landed on the center of his chest.

In that spot, he noticed a blood moon symbol that had appeared at some point, surrounded by peculiar textures.

Upon closer inspection, it resembled an enchantment embedded on his chest.

Am I Beatrice's master?

It seemed impossible to even think about.

He looked at the strange textures surrounding the blood moon symbol, arranged in an orderly manner.

Carefully counting them, there were a total of nine.

Nine blood-colored textures, encircling the blood moon.

"What on earth is this?"

Char pondered and asked Ember for advice.

After a moment of silence, a familiar voice resonated from the depths of his heart.

"This is the symbol of the Moon Goddess. Those marked with this symbol signify that they have gained Her attention."

Ember's voice sounded weak and lacking energy, perhaps due to severe dehydration from their previous encounter.

Upon hearing this, Char's eyes lit up.

When he left the Dark Plain, Beatrice clearly had a look that wanted to kill him. After all, at that time, Char had played around with a deity in such a manner.

And it seemed that this mark had some kind of tracking effect.

This meant that for a long time to come, Char would be subjected to relentless pursuit from the Moon Goddess and the endless power She possessed.

What could be more exciting than this?

Char couldn't contain his joy.

"Oh, by the way, have you processed the memories from the black mask incident?"

After a while, Char remembered this matter and proactively asked.

"I've collected some of it," Miss Ember whispered, "but it seems that the organization possesses a powerful anti-investigation mage who can intercept crucial parts of the memories."

"What did you see?"

Then, Miss Ember materialized two crucial nodes from the memories of the black mask and presented them before Char.

The first segment depicted a scene where the black mask met a mysterious individual. The mysterious person was dressed in a black cloak, and the collar of their garment bore a partially damaged sun emblem.

At that moment, with an authoritative tone, they were admonishing the vice president of the Night Shadows Society about something.

However, due to the interference of the mysterious power mentioned by Miss Ember, the conversation was completely indistinct.

Only towards the end of the memory, there was a faint mention of words like "divinity" and "purification."

After watching this segment, Char took a deep breath.

It was indeed as the letter from Arin had stated—the underground altar of the Violet Manor had intricate connections with "The Sun"!

Then, the second segment appeared before his eyes.

This segment was very brief, with only one clear image.

It depicted a place that seemed like a deep cave somewhere unknown, filled with stagnant water and dirty mud.

At the end of the field of vision, faintly visible, were vines and roots deeply embedded in the stone wall, drawing some kind of nourishment, as if a towering tree had been broken, yet its roots were still tenaciously surviving.

But none of that was the focal point.

The focal point was the half-withered giant tree, upon which Char saw a human face.

That face had both eyes tightly closed, serene and tranquil. Although it shared the same material as the tree roots, one could vaguely discern its exquisite features.

Char was stunned.

Because that face looked exactly like Lady Violet.

...

In the Judgment Hall of the Heresy Tribunal.

After reviewing the case files in his hands, Chief Judge Nidro concluded a busy day, took off his glasses, and rubbed his slightly sore eyes.

In recent months, the proportion of extraordinary cases related to heresy within the Hiren Empire had noticeably increased, which gave him a severe headache.

Letting out a soft sigh, as if suddenly remembering something, he pressed the bell next to him.

Subsequently, an elegant young man with a monocle entered from the door.

"Sir," the young man, who resembled a secretary, spoke softly.

"Have you verified the report we received from Mevis?"

Chief Judge Nidro picked up the water cup beside him and took a sip.

The secretary nodded, "We did find the mark of the Blood Moon on the victim, Angelica, and subsequently dispatched members of the Holy See's knights to conduct covert surveillance on the suspect, Char."

"He is highly vigilant, and we have had little success in tracking him. Lately, he occasionally leaves the Upper City, and we don't know what he's doing behind the scenes."

"That's almost certain, then."

Chief Judge Nidro's expression showed some satisfaction.

Since the horrific Blood Moon incident all those years ago, he had been relentlessly pursuing any information about the Red Moon Cult and its leader, Mansfield.

In fact, many years ago, the worship of the Moon was allowed within the Hiren Empire, but after the Blood Moon tragedy, the followers of the Moon Goddess had all vanished without a trace.

After all, nobody wants to have any association with a cult.

"Now, the key question is, how big of a fish is this Char? Is it worth casting the net?"

Chief Judge Nidro muttered to himself.

"Well then, sir, how should we determine the status of a Red Moon member within the cult?" the secretary asked.

Nidro smiled and glanced at him, slowly explaining, "The hierarchy is not determined by the members themselves but by the presence that exists."

As he spoke, he pointed to the moon outside the window.

The bright white moon radiated a cold brilliance.

"Once they receive Her gaze and favor, their bodies autonomously form a 'Blood Moon' mark. This mark distinguishes the members within the cult into three levels."

"Based on the number of textures around the mark, they can have a minimum of one texture, gradually increasing with more textures. The more textures they have, the deeper the favor they receive from the Goddess, and thus, the higher their status within the cult."

The secretary nodded. "So, how many textures does Mansfield have?"

"Him," the expression of Chief Judge Nidro became somewhat inscrutable upon hearing the name. "He is the current leader of the cult and naturally receives the most favor from the Goddess. He has a total of seven textures of the Blood Moon."

"In this state, he can even briefly borrow a trace of the Goddess's authority. That's why the Red Moon Cult he leads is the most difficult to eradicate."

"Then, are there people with even more textures?" the secretary inquired further.

"Impossible," Chief Judge Nidro chuckled. "Beyond that, it would be eight textures."

"If there were truly such a person, they would probably be the Goddess's own son, wouldn't they?"

....

At the same time, in an adventurer's inn in the royal capital, Char sneezed.

"Who's talking about me behind my back?" he muttered.