After confirming the whereabouts of Zero and One and exchanging contact information, Yvette felt a significant sense of relief. She had finally achieved a major goal in the dream world: figuring out who she really was.
Of course, this clarity wasn’t complete, but at least she had established a connection, identifying who her “protagonist” was within the dream. In the future, even if she entered the dream again, she would be able to quickly reunite with the protagonist and follow her, pushing the plot forward.
The only regret was that the protagonist’s personality was somewhat extreme and prickly, and it seemed she wasn’t very fond of Yvette. The starting favorability was effectively negative.
If push came to shove, Yvette might have to find a way to align herself with either Lianna or Firefly to integrate into this “protagonist team” and continue in the narrative.
Hmm… why does this feel like playing a galgame?
…
The next day, at midday, in her villa on Yangon Street, Yvette slept peacefully until she naturally woke up and lay in bed, checking her email. To her dismay, all the detective agencies she previously contacted had declined her requests, subtly warning her not to seek death.
Clearly, although Yvette hadn’t explicitly mentioned the “Ghost Hand Society” in her requests, the detection agencies quickly discerned her true intentions through the locations she specified and dared not take the case.
It was evident that the Ghost Hand Society was indeed a significant power in Firth, and it was quite possible that Firth itself was merely a small piece of the Ghost Hand Society’s larger puzzle.
After having lunch at an upscale restaurant, Yvette returned to the Soulfire Cathedral on a sunlit afternoon. There weren’t many people around at this time in the church, where Hoyle was continuing his sermon at the bone altar just like last time.Considering his position as a soul memorial priest and the highest leader of the Holy Spirit Sect in Firth, it was admirable that he could work so diligently at the front line. At least, regarding matters of belief, he seemed quite sincere.
“Good afternoon, Nameless Miss. Are you here to pray?” After finishing his sermon, Hoyle took a sip from a cup of water handed to him by an assistant. Upon noticing Yvette standing in the corner, he approached her cheerfully.
“I’m not planning to worship the god of death yet,” Yvette replied.
“Alright, then do you have something to discuss?” Hoyle asked, somewhat disappointed.
“I need information about the Ghost Hand Society. I suspect you might have some,” Yvette stated.
“I do have a bit, but it’s mostly superficial. Would you like me to compile it and send it to you?” he offered.
“Sure,” Yvette agreed.
After adding Hoyle to her contact list, she noticed the magical ring on his hand and couldn’t resist asking, “Mr. Cors, may I ask you a bold question?”
“Please go ahead,” Hoyle smiled.
“What mage level are you?” Yvette inquired.
Unlike those life-and-death, kill-or-be-killed fantasy worlds, Origin Star was, after all, a world bound by order, with police and laws in place. Asking about someone’s mage level was impudent but not uncommon, akin to asking someone their test scores or annual income.
In fact, for many ordinary families, if a child passed the qualification test for mage status, even if it was just the lowest level certified by the Mage Association, it would be a cause for significant pride.
Of course, Yvette herself hadn’t obtained such a certification, but anyone who had witnessed her casting would likely not have the courage to question her about that.
“I’m a Level 3 mage,” Hoyle stated candidly.
Yvette thanked him softly.
In the world of Origin, a mage’s level was primarily determined by the specifications of spells one could proficiently cast.
For instance, the levels ranged from novice, Level 1, Level 2… up to Level 5. Each level corresponded to one’s ability to proficiently perform spells rated between 0.5W, 2W, 4W, 6W, 8W, and below 10W.
The next tier, Level 6, was the highest, requiring proficiency in spells rated at 16W, and such mages were extremely rare worldwide, often deemed walking strategic weapons—like the four embodiments of the god of death within the Holy Spirit Sect.
Notably, the key point emphasized here is “proficiency” rather than simply being able to use a spell. Achieving the corresponding mage level required undergoing stringent examinations that tested stability, adaptation, application, adjustment of spells, and even originality.
As for Yvette at present, she assessed herself as a Level 5 mage — perhaps even slightly higher — but when it came to claiming Level 6 status, the limitations of her magical terminal restrained her; she lacked experience in the usage and design of 16W spells, so she didn’t qualify.
“What about you, Nameless Miss? What mage level are you?” Hoyle inquired curiously.
“I’m an unqualified mage.”
“…”
“Are all soul memorial priests Level 3 mages?”
“No, the soul memorial priests in big cities should be Level 4, but I’m somewhat weaker,” Hoyle admitted sheepishly.
Yvette nodded, thinking that it could be a rough estimate: the soul memorial priests’ levels spanned the range of Levels 3 to 4, that the five reincarnation high priests were likely Level 5, and that the three saints and the Pope must be Level 6?
No wonder this was the largest cult organization in the world; with such capabilities, they could easily overshadow most countries on Origin Star.
After leaving the Soulfire Cathedral, Yvette received some information about the Ghost Hand Society from Hoyle’s files. Most of it related to confirmed positions of various industries, including both gray areas and legitimate businesses, as well as information on local supervisors and hidden informants.
Using this intelligence, Yvette quickly pinpointed several locations around Shalin Town, where Zero and One were located.
These were small casinos, mainly functioning to lure foreign tourists into spending money; once their funds were depleted, those unable to pay their debts would be sent to the industrial parks, processed smoothly and efficiently.
But after identifying these certain evidence-backed hideouts, new concerns emerged — in Shalin Town, Lianna and Zero were two unfamiliar faces, small girls who also lacked the means to rent a place, accompanied by a seemingly non-combatant magic puppet. How could they not attract the attention of the Ghost Hand Society?
Of course, Yvette wasn’t worried for Lianna or Zero; she was concerned that Zero was too quick to act. If by the time she arrived, the gangsters had already met their demise, how would she interrogate them for information?
As evening arrived in Shalin Town, Yvette found her worries had materialized. Several small casinos had been wiped out, leaving no survivors, and not even any remnants like magical terminals; only the neon signs continued to glow, casting the area in an eerie, ghostly light.
Fortunately, because of the abrupt disappearances, the fixed terminal devices were still operational, allowing her to effortlessly hack into them and acquire some information. It revealed that Shalin Town and nearly the entire outskirts belonged to a regional supervisor known as “Fire Demon” Colby.
This regional supervisor operated similarly to a contractor under the “General,” managing industries and territories while periodically receiving tasks, earning additional rewards for completing them successfully.
In contrast to “Death Eye” Bryce, Colby’s operations were thriving. In addition to transit centers and multiple casinos, he also owned a nightclub and several legitimate bars in Firth.
This divergent approach stemmed from their philosophies; Bryce valued individual strength and preferred to use the money earned for expensive cyber modifications, and though he held a low mage level—seemingly only Level 1 or Level 2—he could at least rival a Level 3 mage in terms of combat power.
On the other hand, Colby leaned towards growing industries, building networks; his own fighting power was barely distinguishable from that of an average person, relying entirely on bodyguards for protection.
However, this approach allowed him to outpace Bryce significantly, becoming one of the foremost local bigwigs in the entire Firth area, adeptly navigating the politics between various gangs without making many enemies.
If she could take him down, she might gain more information about the General, and perhaps even lure the hidden mastermind out into the open.