Falling into the Abyss

The city of Siloan sprawled over a series of hills, like a layer of fine white sand. Many crisscrossing flight tracks wove into a fine net on top of the city, and many colorful aircraft and dual-purpose vehicles reflected the golden sunlight, forming a dazzling fog. In the densely built city center, there was a circle of exquisite gardens. The center of the garden was surrounded by a circle of octagonal buildings, and a crescent-shaped red building was surrounded by the stars. This was the Red Moon Temple.

The silver dual-purpose vehicle slowly landed in front of the two human sculptures. The two sculptures were similar to the other sculptures from the docking bay. One was a white, old man with a long beard, and the other was a black young man in a gorgeous golden robe. Both sculptures appeared to be Eves, but there was something a little strange and unnatural about their expressions, causing them to appear somewhat out of sorts.

Ethan and Samuel got out of the vehicle with Tanisiel. They were all dressed in the dark brown priest robes that Tanisiel had found for them, which was the attire of the most elementary apprentices. At the gate, one could see many teenagers weaving in and out of the vehicles donning similar robes and holding some sort of heavy paperback book in their hands, a spherical ball floating around them. Ethan and Samuel glanced at each other. They were not used to each other’s young and strange appearances, and they could see a tinge of nervousness reflected in each other’s eyes.

In the distance, the crescent-shaped building standing in the center of their field of vision was like an outstretched arm, opening on both sides. The dense relief sculptures on the tips of the building wove a packed and complex display of shadows and light. In addition, the entire building appeared massive, and it felt as though the building had lived through many changes, carrying along a bloody and heartrending sadness. Surrounded by trees, the hustle and bustle of the city seemed to be segregated from here. The air was quiet and solemn, and there seemed to be no one talking loudly.

When Tanisiel left the aircraft, he immediately attracted the attention of many apprentices. Ethan noticed a lot of shy and hidden gazes darting towards them from every corner, and the whispering crowd also showed their presence from time to time. Tanisiel seemed to be used to receiving this kind of attention for a long time, and he smiled at Ethan and Samuel and said, “Let’s go.”

Along the way, almost every apprentice who passed by them saluted Tanisiel, and Tanisiel nodded calmly. However, Ethan noticed that many apprentices who were initially walking far away had come up to bid him well. When the number of people around them decreased, Samuel sneered and elbowed Ethan. “It seems that you have a lot of love rivals.”

Ethan rolled his eyes at him. “Why is a mute still speaking, shut up.”

They went straight to the central shrine. The tall, pointed door was open, and inside was a prayer hall wide enough to accommodate hundreds of people. There were murals in the Eve’s style everywhere, and beside the front pulpit, there was a tall machine in which many colored slices of glass were arranged from large to small. Near each slice, some things were similar to cotton mats and closely connected gears, which were connected to a platform composed of many pedals. It seemed to be the Eve’s unique musical instrument, the heavenly harp.

Ethan couldn’t help but look at the harp. On Earth, the only musical instrument similar to it was probably the long lost glass harp. It was said that the sound of that wonderful musical instrument was ethereal and mysterious, and it had the ability to charm people’s hearts. Some people called it “the voice of angels,” while others called it “the harp of demons.” The Eve’s heavenly harp was obviously many times larger than the glass harp. It didn’t rely on one’s fingers to be “played,” but relied on one’s feet to skilfully step on the pedals, which would cause the glass slivers to rotate and touch the cotton pads nearby. Ethan once saw an Eve play this instrument. The man stepped on the pedals in a graceful and beautiful manner, in a unique and light dance. Under his movements, the glass slivers rose and fell like the tide, and the music sounded broad and distant, like clouds, rain, and fog in the air. After listening for a long time, one really entered a realm of meditation. It was a long time after the performance ended that he regained his senses.

Tanisiel noticed Ethan’s gaze and said with a smile, “Are you interested in the heavenly harp?”

“Ah……no……”

“That’s a pity,” Tanisiel said lightly, “In two days, it will be the Holy Spirit Festival. The temple will hold a grand requiem ceremony, and I will play it myself.”

“Holy Spirit Festival?”

“Yes, it’s a festival to commemorate the dead and pray for them.”

When he spoke of the dead, sadness flashed across Samuel’s face. He was probably thinking of Schneider.

But at this time, a timid voice came from behind, “Tanisiel, you are back.”

Tanisiel replied and looked back. He saw a beautiful and lovely young man wearing a light blue priest robe. Ethan recalled the color’s rank. He should be a junior-ranked priest.

“Do you know what it is regarding?”

“It seems to be about the king’s participation in the Holy Spirit Festival.”

“What?” Tanisiel appeared very surprised, and it didn’t seem to be due to happiness. He frowned and asked, “Is the king coming?”

Samuel and Ethan looked at each other with curiosity. Wasn’t the Eve King Tanisiel’s uncle? Why did it seem that Tanisiel had a headache?

The Eve King, who they occasionally saw on TV, was a male Alpha in his sixties. This was considered middle-aged for human beings who had an average life span of 120 years. The Eve King was indeed a very spiritual and handsome man.

The young man replied, “Yesterday, the prime minister came to discuss this matter with the head priest. It should be true.”

Tanisiel turned back to look at Ethan and Samuel, then suddenly turned to the boy and said, “Haldir, these two are my apprentices. This is Aldrin, and next to him is Asaniel. I haven’t had time to take them to register their names. Please help me to guide them there.”

The young priest known as Haldir gave Ethan and Samuel a strange look, but he still gave them a friendly smile and greeted, “Hello.”

Ethan quickly and respectfully gave a priestly salute to the “child” in front of him. After all, in terms of his present appearance, he might be even younger than the young man in front of him. Moreover, he was just a preparatory priest and belonged to an even younger generation than this man. Although Samuel was very reluctant, in order to avoid trouble, he copied Ethan’s gestures.

Tanisiel pressed down onto Ethan’s shoulder and whispered in his ear, “Call me if you encounter something. I’ll constantly be keeping an ear out for it.”

Ethan couldn’t help but show a sweet smile and whisper, “Hurry along, I’m not going to get busted so soon.”

The priest winked at him. To keep up with his charade, he gave Ethan and Samuel some instructions before leaving in a hurry. The trio remained, with two pairs of big eyes staring at the other.

Haldir took them from the left side of the prayer hall into the long, sunny corridor. There were priests wearing brown and apprentices wearing green around, but their voices were very quiet, and the atmosphere was very peaceful. The sacred aura could be felt in the heat of every ray of sunshine.

“Both of you are very lucky,” the young man called Haldir said suddenly.

Ethan couldn’t be sure for a moment if he was talking to them and asked, “Huh?”

Haldir turned his head and looked at him. “Did you know that Tanisiel has never taken apprentices before? When I first came here as an apprentice, I wanted to be an apprentice under his name, but I didn’t succeed… How did you get to know him?”

Ethan laughed dryly twice before utilizing the answer he had discussed previously with Tanisiel, “When he passed our planet, we both begged him to take us in. He agreed when he saw that we were orphans.”

However, Haldir didn’t seem to be convinced. His seemingly gentle eyes looked at Ethan with a sharp edge. Although his third eye was not open, he gave Ethan a sense of inexplicable oppression. Of course, compared with Tanisiel, this sense of oppression was still too weak and could be ignored. As the young man looked at Ethan, he didn’t know whether it was an illusion, but Ethan felt a slight coldness hidden behind his gaze.

“Is that so, then both of you are very lucky. Both of you must cherish the opportunity.”

Samuel rolled his eyes behind him, probably because he thought the encouragement was filled with envy and insincerity. Ethan also felt that the atmosphere was a little strange, so he asked, “Is your mentor the head priest, Theonile?”

“That’s correct.”

“Wow, how powerful! It turned out that the head priest was your teacher!” Ethan pretended to admire the child to coax him. Watching him, Samuel wanted to laugh but could only suppress it.

“So…….is there a dispute between the head priest and Tanisiel recently?” Seeing the boy’s proud look, Ethan continued to dig out information.

Haldir gave him a strange look. “There was at first, but they seemed to have reconciled. Why? Do either of you happen to know why?”

Ethan quickly replied, “No, I don’t know much about it.”

“Seriously, I was surprised, too. Tanisiel and his teacher are like father and son, and they seldom quarrel. Fortunately, it’s all over now.”

Was it really over?

It was difficult to imagine that the terrifying man who had just used a smile to tear down his spiritual defense line little by little would turn a blind eye to such a large issue as Tanisiel secretly seizing other countries’ fugitives that were tagged with bounties and would even agree to allow Tanisiel to bring him to the temple.

Was it because he and Tanisiel privately chose the God of Disorder as the main god they favored? Perhaps that was why he would treat the mutated Heavenbounder who had forces of Disorder in his body well?

Ethan always felt that Tanisiel brought him to Eve not only to save him…… He was like a prisoner awaiting the final trial, waiting anxiously for the truth to be revealed someday. However, the priest had been meticulously taking care of him, so much that he had almost lost himself in these warm feelings.

But……Ethan suddenly woke up after seeing the grave where Tanisiel’s father was buried under the castle.

He knew that Tanisiel had not told him the whole truth.

The strange mausoleum under the castle and the books on the tombstone. Everything had a tinge of bizarreness like it was all filled with an extremely foul and evil aura.

The scent had lingered around him since that night, up until now. Even in this sacred temple, not only did the scent not fade, but it grew clearer and stronger.

Haldir took them to register their names and explained the apprentice’s schedule to them. Most of the time, the apprentices followed their teachers as assistants and attendants and studied the priestly courses at a fixed time every day. The only problem now was that there were not enough dormitories in the temple. For the time being, Tanisiel would be responsible for arranging their accommodations.

At this time, Haldir’s ten-thousand function sphere flashed, and a message was transmitted. Haldir took a look and said hastily, “My teacher is summoning me. You can wait in the prayer hall for Tanisiel to return.” Then, he turned around and left. After taking a few steps, he suddenly turned his head and stared at Ethan in an unnatural way. He grinned, his mouth stretching to an incredible width, and showed a twisted and frightening smile.

“Eternity is coming to an end, and the sleeping king is about to awaken. It’s time for you to accept his blessing.”

It was no longer Haldir’s voice but the voice of the black man from his dream.

He actually heard that man’s voice in reality, when he was not dreaming at all!

Were his dreams beginning to erode reality?!

Ethan’s body stiffened, but in the blink of an eye, Haldir had already left, as though time had not stopped.

“What did he just say?” Ethan grabbed Samuel to question him.

Samuel was at a loss. Seeing that there was no one around, he said in the Earthling’s language, “He said for us to wait for Tanisiel in the prayer hall.”

“I mean, after that, he suddenly turned around and said……” Ethan was unsure now whether what he saw just now was real or……

However, Samuel was growing more and more confused. “What are you talking about? He left without looking back.”

The author has something to say:

If there is no accident, we should be able to stir trouble in the next chapter……

T/N: Thank you everyone for your concern! I’m very busy with my thesis previously, so I didn’t have time to reply to all your comments. But I do want everyone to know that I read through all your comments, and really appreciate all the readers. But it was the author who said they were swamped with project work + school, and coincidentally, I (the tler) was in the same situation as the author, so your well wishes were all received by me xD. Thank you! <>