Dorothy’s Forbidden Grimoire

Midday in Igwynt, in a room at a certain inn.

The thick curtains were fully drawn, blocking out the sunlight. The dim room was lit by a gas lamp on the table, casting a yellowish glow. Dorothy sat at the table, in front of her lay a large map of Igwynt. The white map appeared scorched in color under the amber light of the lamp.

Beside the map were drafting tools such as a compass and ruler. On the map, a magic circle had been drawn using dark red powder. Mysterious runes and symbols overlapped the city map. The prominent symbols in the magic circle were a vertical staff radiating light at the top and an open eye at the bottom.

“Phew… Done…”

After meticulously drawing the magic circle based on the data provided by Aldrich, Dorothy finally completed the preparation for divination. It would be her first attempt at divination in her career as a mystic.

Opening a small wooden box on the table, Dorothy retrieved a piece of amber—a small orange-yellow fragment she had bought from Aldrich earlier that day, which served as a container for the Lamp spirituality.

According to Aldrich’s divination teachings, two types of spirituality were essential for divination: Lamp and Revelation. Dorothy could naturally provide the Revelation herself, but acquiring the Lamp had cost her 150 pounds. Based on her passive Cain Appraisal skill, she estimated the amber contained approximately one point of Lamp spirituality.

“One point of spirituality for 150 pounds… If only I could extract and sell my own Revelation spirituality…”

Grumbling inwardly, Dorothy placed the 150 pounds amber on the Lamp symbol on the map, leaving the Revelation symbol vacant for now.

Next, she took out a crystal pendant from her pocket. It was a cheap trinket she had bought for a few coins from a street vendor in the lower city. The vendor had sworn it was real crystal, but Dorothy was convinced it was just glass.

No matter. According to Aldrich, what mattered in divination was the spirituality, not the tools. As long as the necessary spirituality was present, the rest was inconsequential.

Holding the cheap pendant, Dorothy prepared to perform a divination method called a “pendulum reading.” Among the simple methods Aldrich had taught her, this was best suited for locating a place.

Technically, Dorothy could attempt to directly divine the location of the Crimson Eucharist’s headquarters and report it in advance. However, she wasn’t certain whether the Crimson Eucharist, which operated in scattered bases, even had a central headquarters. Even if it did, what if they had anti-divination defenses? With only one point of Lamp spirituality, she couldn’t afford to waste it on a gamble. Playing it safe, she decided to divine the ambush site instead.

Standing at the table, Dorothy held the pendant over the map, letting the tip of the fake crystal dangle. She began to chant softly.

“With the all-seeing Lamp, illuminate the sea of Revelation…”

As Dorothy murmured, the amber on the magic circle cracked slightly. An invisible force of spirituality was released. Simultaneously, Dorothy felt something being drawn out from within her. According to her system’s notification, her Revelation spirituality had decreased by one point.

“I seek to know the location where the Crimson Eucharist plans to ambush the hunter squads in Igwynt.”

After speaking her divination intent, Dorothy began to swing the pendant. The tip of the pendant swayed back and forth across the map.

Gradually, as if guided by an unseen force, the pendant tilted toward a specific direction. The swinging slowed, and finally, the pendant came to a halt, pointing—unnaturally defying gravity—at a particular spot on the map.

Dorothy followed the direction indicated by the crystal’s tip. The landmark displayed on the map read: Flooded Dockyard.

…

Flooded Dockyard

Located in the eastern outskirts of Igwynt, downstream along the Ironclay River, the Flooded Dockyard was once a moderately busy riverside dock. It primarily handled loading and unloading for small riverboats and cross-river ferries. However, due to poor location, the dock often experienced severe flooding during the rainy season, hence the name.

The dock wasn’t an official facility but was privately built by several merchant shipping companies. This made it a hotspot for illicit activities, including extraordinary goods trafficking and even a black market. Several years ago, the Igwynt authorities cracked down on the dock, arresting nearly a hundred people. Since then, the area had become desolate and largely abandoned.

Afternoon in Igwynt, at the Flooded Dockyard.

Unauthorized shacks lined the riverbank, arranged in uneven rows. Scattered among them were three- and four-story stone-brick buildings with no external plastering. Warehouse doors gaped open, revealing empty interiors. Boats moored along the river were rusted and evidently long unused.

In a secluded street corner, a carriage was parked. Inside, a white-haired girl sat with her eyes closed, resting. Dorothy’s senses were connected to an all-seeing eye in the heavens.

Several bird corpses animated by her control circled above the Flooded Dockyard, providing aerial views of the complex terrain.

“Well… If I were in their shoes, how would I choose the perfect ambush site?”

With this thought, Dorothy imagined herself as a member of the Crimson Eucharist, pondering how best to set up a trap to annihilate the enemy effortlessly.

Thanks to the multiple angles offered by the bird’s-eye views, Dorothy quickly identified a suitable location.

It was a small, low steel-frame warehouse, surrounded by four unfinished brick towers. One of the towers, slightly taller, resembled a clock tower. These structures were spaced far enough from the warehouse to allow for strategic positioning.

In Dorothy’s mind, if snipers were stationed in the four towers and the clock tower, any enemy entering the warehouse would be completely trapped.

The warehouse’s exterior walls were made of gypsum board, incapable of withstanding bullets. Many sections had holes, providing clear lines of sight inside. If the interior occupants were surrounded by snipers at five elevated angles, they’d stand no chance.

In low-level Beyonder battles involving ordinary humans, firearms remained the dominant force. This was true for both the Crimson Eucharist and the Serenity Bureau. Considering this, Dorothy envisioned a gunfight scenario where the warehouse served as an ideal kill zone.

The entire afternoon, Dorothy manipulated her bird-marionettes to patrol the dockyard. She conducted thorough reconnaissance of the brick towers and the warehouse, while also waiting for something.

Finally, around 3 PM, after waiting over two hours, Dorothy spotted a group of men sneaking into the clock tower. From its summit, they surveyed the surroundings and engaged in heated discussion.

Among them was a thin, sharp-eyed man with neatly combed brown hair and a small mustache. Holding a staff, he silently observed the scene below, issuing orders to his subordinates.

“Ahhh… You guys are finally here to scout, huh…”

Seeing this, Dorothy stretched lazily in her carriage.

…

Nighttime in Igwynt, at an upper-class apartment building.

In a disheveled bedroom, Brandon knelt respectfully on the floor. In front of him, a grotesque mouth formed of flesh and blood on a sacrificial altar issued commands.

“The trap is set. The operation will take place tomorrow. At 10:30 AM, our ‘gift’ will be delivered to the Serenity Bureau. Once they move out, you act immediately.”

“Yes, Mr. Buck!”