As Angel manifested the illusion on the table, it immediately drew everyone’s attention.
The first thing they noticed was naturally the spot in the center of the table where the canon was placed, but they quickly shifted their gaze away from the "patterns" there. These patterns were obviously magic patterns, and with an enchantment master present, they just needed to wait for Angel’s explanation.
Apart from the patterns, the focus was on the characters.
Angel looked at the Black Earl and Dox, as they were probably the most knowledgeable about the written systems, perhaps they could recognize the origin of these characters.
However, to Angel’s surprise, the first to speak wasn’t Dox or the Black Earl, but Vay, who was always treated like a tool.
"I seem to have seen these characters before... was it in the family’s library? Let me think..."
After declaring he’d seen them before, Vay fell into thought. But he hadn’t been thinking for two seconds before a stone slab fell from above, striking Vay on the head.
Vay winced in pain, wanting to curse inwardly, but he didn’t dare. The slab that hit him had the Black Earl’s nose embedded in it.
"Library? Really?" The Black Earl’s cold voice entered the mind ribbon: "I’ll give you one more chance. If you’re wrong, I’ll chop off your head."
"Chop... chop off my head? Would I still be alive if you did that?" Vay was still baffled.
"What do you think?" The Black Earl sneered.
"I... I guess I’d probably... die?" Vay shuddered slightly and dared not say more, beginning to rack his brains to recall, knowing very well that his Lord never went back on his word. If he said he’d chop his head, he’d definitely do it.
Vay concentrated hard, especially under the scrutiny of the Black Earl, sweating from his forehead.
From his anxious expression, it seemed Vay still hadn’t found the gap in his memory.
Indeed, the more nervous and afraid Vay was, the more chaotic his memory became. Now he regretted speaking up earlier and was in despair about the impending outcome.
Just then, Vay heard someone murmuring in the mind ribbon: "What’s the big deal about this? It’s just forgetting where you’ve seen it, not worthy of such severe consequences, right?"
Vay recognized it as the voice of his friend, Dox.
Was Dox speaking up now to plead for him with his Lord?
Vay was touched but knew it was useless. His Lord wouldn’t change his mind due to any external force. Call it autocratic or dictatorial, this was the style of the Noah Clan’s head.
As Vay mourned for his soon-to-part head, Dox’s voice spoke again: "It wouldn’t come to chopping heads unless it was something Vay absolutely should know but forgot. Could these characters be on something passed down through generations in the Noah Clan?"
Dox seemed to be talking to himself, but when he finished, the Black Earl suddenly "looked" over. Even without eyes, just the dark nostrils gave Dox the eerie feeling of being scrutinized.
Simultaneously, Vay instinctively repeated Dox’s words: "Noah Clan... passed down through generations..."
Suddenly, Vay’s eyes lit up: "I... I remember now! It was on the genealogy! I’ve seen these characters on the genealogy!"
Vay excitedly blurted out the answer, but the Black Earl completely ignored him and continued scrutinizing Dox.
This profound scrutiny made Dox uncomfortable all over.
A long while later, the Black Earl finally spoke softly: "It’s coming to fruition."
Dox didn’t understand this remark, but Angel did. The Black Earl was indicating that Dox’s spiritual perception was nearing its final stage, and once unraveled, it would become a formidable talent skill.
Thinking of this, it seemed logical. Vay, as someone from the Noah Clan, couldn’t come up with the answer, but Dox’s casual comment hit the mark.
At this moment, even Angel had to admire how frighteningly intuitive Dox was.
Reflecting on this, Angel recalled the Observer’s speculation about Reynaud’s Luck Talent. If applied to Dox, would it fit?
If Dox were to die now, would some part of his body or his bones, or something nearby, become a Mysterious Object?
While Angel pondered this, Dox shivered coldly, feeling as though a murderous intent had brushed past him.
Angel and the Black Earl both had their eyes on Dox, while Vay, at the center of the chopping block storm, seemed almost forgotten by now.
After a while, the Black Earl turned the slab, speaking calmly to Vay: "You got away this time thanks to someone else reminding you. But if you make a similar mistake again, I won’t give you any chance."
Vay nodded quickly, relieved that Dox had hinted at the solution; otherwise, he would truly have been done for. Having learned his lesson, he resolved to keep his mouth shut next time. He even began to reminisce about when the Black Earl had silenced him.
With that matter settled, Angel looked at Dox, asking: "Don’t tell me you guessed."
Dox looked innocent: "I really did guess. No, not completely guessing. I had a reasoning process—you heard it, right?"
Angel indeed heard Dox’s so-called "reasoning process," but how did he suddenly jump to "Noah Clan’s generational heirloom"?
There might be a bit of a connection, but it could also be something else, like a language the Black Earl taught that Vay forgot, causing the Black Earl’s wrath... etc.
Therefore, Angel didn’t believe it was completely reasoning; it had to be guided by spiritual perception.
"Don’t look at me, I really don’t know the Noah Clan’s secrets. I truly guessed... ahem, reasoned it out." After a flurry of denials, Dox abruptly changed the subject: "Whether guessed or reasoned, it’s unimportant. What’s important is, what do these characters actually say?"
Though it was clear Dox was changing the subject, this was indeed the most pressing matter, so everyone turned their gaze to the Black Earl.
Though Vay had seen them, he probably couldn’t understand them.
But the Black Earl was different. Since these were characters from the genealogy, he would surely know them.
Under the gaze of everyone, the Black Earl slowly said: "I do recognize this script. It’s called Uisu Language."
"It’s very special. According to records, Uisu Language was unlike any written system discovered at the time; it was a completely alien language system that one couldn’t conceive of even with wild imagination."
"Its exact origin is unknown, but it seems to be related to our Noah Clan."
"Related to the Noah Clan?" Angel questioned.
The Black Earl nodded: "This isn’t speculation, as there are fragments of records in the Noah Clan. During the Southern Domain Wizard World era, the Noah Clan used Uisu Language the most."
"Then why isn’t it used anymore?" Dox questioned.