Annan's mood was somewhat complicated.

Whether Evelyn renounces the ritual, or completes it.

The difference is that the body leaves Benjamin, or the mind leaves Benjamin......

Benjamin would enter Zedi Black Tower, choose to become a transformation wizard, and recruit a large number of apprentices and sell transformation products - is it because Evelyn died back then, making him think that it was because he didn't get the ointment back then?

…… It seems to make sense.

According to Salvatore, the Kingdom of Noah has only begun to have a large number of civilian transformation products in the last ten years.

A "thread of flesh" that can be used to suture wounds, a "witch's ointment" that heals burns, and a "panacea" that can alleviate injuries caused by unknown causes...... And because of the improvement of the synthesis method, the price is dozens of times cheaper. There are also eyewear, artificial gemstones, high-quality gauze and sails made using transformation technology.

Among them, the most famous and representative is that it has now entered thousands of households in the Noah Kingdom, and has almost completely replaced the "green fire" of candles.

- And the ways in which the elixir, the witch's ointment, and the green fire were improved were all made by Benjamin. He was also revered as "Master Benjamin" for this reason.

The improvement ideas of these transformation products are also completely consistent.

Rather than continuing to enhance their effectiveness against the Transcendent, they chose to make a low-cost, easy-to-convert civilian version by significantly reducing the cost and choosing to be able to craft without the use of expensive materials.

…… This is most likely the obsession that Evelyn brought to Benjamin.

Evelyn would die directly because she traveled at the Pale Tide and watched the Pale Princess's dance;

She will be fascinated by the dance of the Pale Princess because of her obsession with dance;

She has obsessions because she was disfigured by fire;

She will be disfigured simply because she can't buy a "witch's ointment" that can heal burns.

Evelyn's background was not poor.

She didn't have to work, she didn't have to farm, she didn't have calluses on her hands, and she knew Benjamin — it wasn't because she was poor that she didn't get treatment.

Just because of the arrogance of the wizards.

Salvatore told Annan that the technology monopoly of wizards in that era was very serious.

Not to mention ordinary people, even other types of transcendentals, it is difficult to buy wizards' things. It's useless to have money - because wizards strictly forbid the sale of transformations to anyone outside of Zedi Black Tower.

You can use it for them, but you can't sell it.

The purpose is to prevent the transformation wizards of the other towers from cracking their transformation ideas and imitating the transformation products with better results.

And more than 20 years later......

I don't know if it's because of Benjamin's efforts, the situation has changed completely:

He improved many civilian versions of the "Transformation Product", which occupied the low-end market in large quantities, helped Zedi Heta get a huge amount of money, and at the same time caused competition from wizards in other countries, forcing them to put down their bodies and study "Transformation Products for the use of ordinary people".

The side has pushed wizards all over the world to share technology with ordinary people.

This is a time that alchemists could never have imagined before the Wizards' Unification War-

Benjamin is a transformation wizard who really wants to use the transformation products that only transformation wizards can create to benefit and help the public.

…… But who could have known that almost changing the beginning of an era was simply because of a dancer disfigured by fire?

Annan pondered in silence.

He was a little worried...... Benjamin would be reluctant to officiate the ceremony for himself.

But when Annan and Benjamin came out of the hollow-shaped room, Annan faintly heard something.

The sound is small and far away......

It's like ...... Very ethereal singing.

“…… Did you hear anything? ”

Annan's heart moved, and he asked Benjamin in a low voice.

Benjamin was stunned for a moment, listened for a long time with a frown, and slowly shook his head: "No, not at all." I'll listen closer—"

"No, don't care...... I misheard. ”

Annan comforted softly.

But the singing in his ears became clearer and clearer:

"Life is bright and beautiful, but it is a prisoner's cage;

"Love is blazing and brilliant, but it is a fire that bewilders the eyes;

"The wandering dancer who follows beauty and freedom -

"The Pale knows where you come from,

"Dedicate the remnant soul and love to the paleness;

"Dedicate the head and blood to the pale......"

It was almost exactly the same as what Annan had seen on the note in his dream.

…… It was a voice coming from directly above me.

It's those ghosts in the halls!

Annan immediately realized that this was the first time he had floated out of the "reflection of the church in the lake", an upside-down salute!

At the moment of hearing the salute, Annan lost consciousness again.

When he woke up again, he was at the prison gate—still where he was.

“…… Hey? ”

Annan was stunned for a moment.

Behind him, the prison door was wide open...... But it was empty.

The chains that were originally removed by themselves are still hanging on them.

He twisted the lock of the door and found that it was still opening and closing normally, and it was not broken by the lock.

…… This was on an earlier time?

Annan thought for a moment and walked directly to the left.

But this time, Annan did not see the light of the candle flame.

He walked all the way to the middle of the hallway, only to see that the table was blocked in front of the "beheading room".

Annan lit matches and lit candles.

But the candle flame was too dim.

At this distance, the light simply does not reach the beginning of the hallway...... It's hard to get halfway there.

You have to pull the table halfway up.

“…… Hmm, no hurry. ”

Annan muttered: "Let's see if the letter is different first......"

As he spoke, he expertly unwrapped the letter.

Annan's movements paused slightly.

The length of this note...... Much longer than he first saw!

"To those who are loved by the pale:

"In pursuit of unwanted love,

"Imprisoned in the shell of life,

"The wandering dancer who follows beauty and freedom -

"The Pale knows where you come from,

"Through this door,

"Dedicate the remnant soul to the paleness,

"Dedicate your lover to freedom,

"Sacrifice your head to the earth,

"You will receive the soul of condensation, the spirit of purity;

"Or get out of here,

"Follow the rules and send the remnants back to the earth—

"You will be remembered by your beloved.

"The choice is yours,

"—but I already know your answer."

This is a very narrow strip of paper, only about four fingers wide.

After reading the new content on the note, Annan understood something.

He had a preconceived notion before.

Because when "Citalopram" created a character, there were only five levels...... Therefore, Annan thought that the profession of the half-dead daughter should start at the fifth level.

But it could be because the player gets a castrated version of the class - or maybe it's because Evelyn really has a very pure mind.

If she is willing to become a half-dead daughter, she can even start directly at the silver level!

The upper limit of the priesthood is basically the Silver tier!

That is, Evelyn even has the talents of a pope......

In this case, there is no doubt about who the owner of the nightmare is.

- The half-dead daughter of the future who has completed her transformation, Evelyn!

But Evelyn has completed her transformation and has become a half-human, half-undead immortal physique...... Why did she die?

If she really died, shouldn't she have become a geist who followed the Pale Princess?

- Can it be that becoming a geist can also produce nightmares?

Or is it ......

Another doubt arose in Annan's heart:

Benjamin clearly has a desire to advance to gold.

But he has been stagnant at the Silver Rank for more than twenty years...... Is it really because he can't find a way to advance to gold?

Or was Benjamin's original goal to become the Pope of the "Man in the Mirror"?

Annan suddenly remembered something.

In "The White Tower", he told Benjamin that Gerald's cause of death was that he was killed by Annan and Salvatore.

At that time, Benjamin probably didn't know that Gerald would survive in the end and compete with him for Michelangelo's resurrection ceremony.

But at that time, Benjamin muttered:

"—pretty much what I guessed."

This shows that Benjamin knew from the beginning that his future self would sooner or later have murderous intentions towards Gerald.

Then the answer is clear.

Benjamin and Michelangelo have known each other for a long time.

The "pairing" of the year was not Benjamin and Gerald, Michelangelo and Melvin at all - Annan was still misled by Michelangelo in the end!

Michelangelo's symmetry is really Benjamin, not Melvin!

Melvin, whom he killed, is actually Gerald's matchmaker!

And Benjamin, who saw through everything from the very beginning, is not too lazy to care...... Rather, it is because Benjamin does not interfere with Michelangelo's rituals, itself in order to preside over his resurrection ceremony in the future and help Michelangelo achieve the divine throne!

As for his reason -

“…… Yes. ”

Annan muttered.

He folded the note in his hand at the top and bottom of it, and then slowly tore it open. In order not to mislead your past self...... This is how the perfect cycle is achieved.

Benjamin is afraid that at some point in the future, he will enter this nightmare and learn the true whereabouts of Evelyn back then.

Evelyn did not become a half-dead daughter, so she had not forgotten Benjamin;

But she didn't really die, because it was her future self who killed her!

A real half-alive, half-dead daughter, forever trapped in the gap of time that no one loves......

She gains the supernatural powers of the Half-Dead Daughter, but manages to escape the fate of forgetting the one she loves—at the cost of being trapped in a cycle of "past".

Since then, Benjamin's purpose has not changed:

He wants to be the Pope of the Man in the Mirror, to get the elements of the Mirror and Time.

- Save Evelyn, who consciously trapped herself in an infinite loop to escape the fate of giving her soul to the Pale Princess!

In front of Annan, the real main quest slowly emerged:

[Main Quest: Form a Loop]

Underneath this line of quests, three rows of side quests slowly emerge:

【Witness the completion of the sacrificial ceremony】

[Lighting a candle as a half-dead daughter]

【Back to the beginning】

(End of chapter)