A few lanterns floated into the air and began circling gently around them.
——
Half an hour later.
In the distant depths of the darkness, a faint spark of light appeared—fast approaching with an unnatural speed.
Edward could tell at once—this had to be the High Priest of Moon City, coming personally to meet them.
Soon, over a dozen figures emerged from the darkness. At their head was an elderly man clad in deep brown furs. His hair was grey and wild, cascading messily over his shoulders. His face was lined with grooves so deep they seemed carved by time itself.
Those behind him exuded calm and powerful auras—undeniably high-sequence Beyonders. But even among these strong individuals, the signs of mutation were glaring. Some lacked noses, eyes, or ears, while others were disfigured with tumours that clung to their skin like twisted growths.
They fanned out immediately, thrusting their torches into the ground to form a perimeter of light in the oppressive darkness.
Then the old man stepped forward, hands folded in front of him, and bowed respectfully toward Edward and Bernadette.
"Honoured guests, I am High Priest Nim of Moon City."
Edward and Bernadette gave a polite nod in return. "We are travellers from the outside world. I am Edward, and this is Bernadette."
"Though we arrived in this land by accident, I believe it may be the will of my Lord…a divine arrangement, meant to spread "His" radiance upon this forsaken land of the gods."
High Priest Nim's pupils dilated slightly. He murmured, "The Forsaken Land of the Gods…So that is how the outside world refers to this place?"
"That's correct," Edward nodded, though he carefully avoided mentioning the Ancient Sun God's betrayal and death.
Nim quickly regained his composure. His pale eyes fixed on Edward. "Honoured guest, may I ask…whom do you worship?"
Edward hesitated for a few seconds, then replied, "Forgive me. Without my Lord's permission, I cannot reveal His name."
—Truthfully, telling Moon City or Silver City about The Fool wasn't necessarily dangerous. The real issue was if Amon caught wind of it…that would be trouble.
Bernadette glanced over in silence.
The others from Moon City exchanged glances. None had ever heard of this "god" before.
"This great being…is one of the gods from beyond our land?"
"Yes," Edward confirmed calmly.
Nim hesitated, then finally voiced the question he most longed to ask.
"Then…what of the Great Sun God, the Creator of all?"
Edward shook his head. "I'm sorry. I've never heard of a deity by that name. As for the gods we worship in the outside world, I've already shared their names with the scouts who came before you. Did they not relay the message?"
The captain who had accompanied them quickly stepped forward. "Apologies, High Priest. I haven't yet had the chance to report."
"Would you like me to repeat it?" Edward offered.
Nim nodded solemnly.
With a flick of his wand, Edward conjured chairs—one for each person present.
"Let's sit and talk."
"In the outside world, the seven most well-known deities are: the Eternal Blazing Sun, the Lord of Storms, the God of Knowledge and Wisdom, the Evernight Goddess, the Mother Earth, the God of Combat, and the God of Steam and Machinery. Their believers are spread across every corner of the world…"
"Then why do you…believe in this other being?" Nim asked, curious.
"Because these seven gods belong to the old era," Edward answered. "The world stands on the brink of a cataclysm. An apocalypse is coming. These seven gods…may not even be able to save themselves, much less protect their believers. My Lord, however…"He" is the only one who can stop the apocalypse. The only one who can bring renewed light and hope to the world."
Someone couldn't help but ask, "Will "He"…also protect us?"
Edward smiled. "Of course."
A long silence fell over the Moon City crowd.
Compared to Klein—who had once appeared carrying the miraculous Life's Staff, capable of healing all their deformities—Edward's words felt…far less convincing.
But Edward wasn't here to preach like Klein had. His goals were different.
"My Lord has told me that the time has not yet come," Edward continued. "I'm not here to convert you—at least not yet. I'm here to share "His" name with you, to bring you knowledge of the outside world…to help you prepare yourselves. So that when the day comes that you can leave this forsaken land, you'll be ready to embrace a new life."
He paused, then reached into his pouch and drew out a handful of golden wheat.
"At the same time, I've brought food from the outside. It contains no toxins, no mutations, and won't lead to deformities."
Thanks to Goddess' the last shopping list—Edward had purchased a large amount of grain, most of which had been surrendered, but he'd kept enough to feed Moon City's population—about 5,000 people—for several months. With careful rationing, it should last until Klein arrived to guide them out of the Forsaken Land.
Of course, wheat (or flour) alone wouldn't be enough. They still needed protein—and they likely wouldn't be able to stop eating tainted monster meat entirely.
Thinking about it…maybe Frank Lee's "miracle" mushrooms really were a miracle, Edward thought grimly. They were easy to grow, tasted great, and packed a nutritional punch…even if no one could stand them.
High Priest Nim suddenly asked in a low voice, "And the price? What must we give in return?"
He clearly didn't believe in free gifts. No one gave something for nothing.
Edward understood. After all, his goal was to play the role of a Wandering Mentor. But that reason alone wouldn't be enough to win their trust.
So he thought for a moment, then said, "In the long term, I do hope the people of Moon City may come to believe in my Lord. But for now, perhaps I can trade this food and knowledge of the outside world in exchange for some of your Beyonder materials and characteristics."
Nim pondered this, then nodded. "That is acceptable."
Now that a basic agreement had been reached, Edward asked, "Is there anything else you wish to know?"
Nim replied earnestly, "Would you…be willing to ask your god something for us? We want to know…why did our god abandon this land?"
Tch. There it is. Knew we couldn't avoid this one, Edward thought to himself.
"I can try," he said. "But I can't guarantee my Lord will answer me."
Nim immediately stood and gave a deep bow. "Then, on behalf of all of Moon City…thank you."
He hesitated again, then added, "Would you be willing to visit Moon City as our guest?"
Edward smiled. "I would be honoured."
Led by High Priest Nim, the group retraced their path and stepped once again into the boundless darkness.
Some of the Moon City folk appeared especially intrigued by the lanterns circling around them—particularly after witnessing how Edward had conjured them out of stones with a casual wave.
If the people of Moon City could master such abilities, the safety of their future hunts would greatly improve.
"How many normal people live outside the Forsaken Land?" someone asked.
Edward replied, "Almost all of them are normal. If I had to give a rough number…I'd say over a billion."
The original novel had never mentioned specific populations of various countries, but if a metropolis like Backlund housed nearly five million people and a smaller city like Tingen had around three hundred thousand, then estimating the global population in the billions wasn't a stretch—likely far more.
Nim's pale, greyish eyes quivered. That was a number he couldn't even begin to fathom.
"So many people…Is there enough food for all of them?"
Though Moon City had preserved itself for millennia, Nim was just over a hundred years old. Ancient records and knowledge had long since vanished. The people here had grown up eating only the flesh of mutated monsters—they could hardly imagine that other kinds of food even existed.
"Barely enough," Edward admitted. "But people out there cultivate vast fields of edible crops—like the wheat I showed you earlier, which is one of their staple foods. Besides that, they also raise animals for consumption or fish from the oceans. There are many different sources of food."
Even though the captain had told him as much earlier, Nim still couldn't help asking, "And those foods…truly have no contamination? No mutations whatsoever?"
"None. Which is why most people outside are healthy."
"What…what is the ocean like?"
"Imagine a giant pit on the ground," Edward explained, "so massive it's almost endless. It's filled with saltwater, and in that water live all kinds of creatures."
Nim fell silent for a long moment, then murmured, "That sounds…wonderful."
——
About twenty minutes later, a wide swath of light appeared up ahead—framing the silhouette of a vast city. As they approached, the thick sense of history hanging in the air became palpable.
"Moon City once belonged to the Sanguines," Nim explained. "But that civilization was destroyed in the ancient past."
"Later, our ancestors followed the will of the Sun God and came to settle here, continuing their lineage until today."
This used to be a vampire city?
Did the progenitor of the Sanguines—Lilith—once live here?
Edward instinctively glanced at the anklet around Lilith's leg—"Lilith's Leg Ring."
To his surprise, it was softly glowing.
Was it resonating with Moon City somehow? Or…something else entirely?
"Huh?" Lilith noticed it too, lifting her leg and giving it a wiggle in astonishment. "Edward! My anklet's glowing!"
Nim's brows furrowed slightly. "That item on her leg…it seems to carry a faint aura of Moon City. Where did you get it?"
Edward shrugged. "It was a gift from a Sanguine in the outside world."
Bernadette added casually, "Was it that vampire count we met at the hot springs?"
"No, her brother. This anklet likely came from the Clan's vault."
A flicker of surprise crossed her gaze. She couldn't help wondering—could it be related to this cat's name?
But under normal circumstances, naming a cat after one's ancient progenitor should earn the Sanguine's hostility, not their friendship…right?
Nim was astonished. "There are still Sanguines in the outside world? I thought they'd gone extinct with the fall of Sanguine Ancestor Lilith."
Lilith immediately widened her eyes. "Eh? I'm also ca—"
Edward quickly clamped her little mouth shut. "Actually, they've been doing quite well these past few millennia," he said smoothly. "But their numbers have dwindled significantly. After all, it's humans who now dominate the surface world."
As they spoke, they finally reached the gates of Moon City.
Before them stood sturdy stone structures weathered by time, bearing marks of age yet still resilient. The streets were bustling with Moon City residents—nearly all of whom bore visible deformities, and some showed signs of partial aberration.
At the sight of the High Priest's return, the townsfolk stopped and bowed respectfully. Nim returned each greeting with dignity, then led Edward and the others to a tall tower near the central square.
"Honoured guests, this will be your residence for the time being."
Nim arranged two adjacent stone rooms for Edward and Bernadette. The interiors were simple: a stone bed, a stone table, a single chair. The beds were covered with animal pelts, but that was all.
"However…before that, we must conduct another identity check. I hope you'll understand."
"No problem."
——
Soon, someone brought out a Sealed Artifact. The two travellers and one cat underwent a thorough examination—which naturally yielded no issues.
Still, the people of Moon City weren't entirely convinced. The city's leaders held a special meeting to discuss the situation, and eventually Nim made the final decision: two high-sequence Moon City powerhouses would be assigned to "accompany" the guests—which was, in truth, a polite form of surveillance.
Nim relayed this to Edward directly. Edward had no objections.
That evening, atop the tower, the High Priest announced to the city the arrival of outsiders and informed them that this man from the outside world would be sharing information about the lands beyond.
Anyone interested was welcome to attend the gathering in the central plaza.
The city instantly erupted into a buzz of excitement. Most were filled with intense curiosity, while a few remained anxious—worried that this so-called "outsider" might in fact be a monster in disguise.
But when Edward finally began his "public lecture" in the square, the space was packed—people pressed in layer upon layer, both near and far, straining to catch every word.
———
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