At this point, the Black Earl’s voice suddenly became somewhat strange: "By the way, you probably haven’t seen that old guy Rhein’s daughter, have you?"
Angel knew some things about Lord Rhein’s daughter, and it could be said that this was a deep scar within Lord Rhein’s heart.
Since this was an internal matter of the Barbarian Cave, Angel didn’t want to discuss it much in front of outsiders: "I’ve met her a few times, but she’s not the focus today."
Angel’s attitude of not wanting to discuss this matter was already clear, but the Black Earl seemed oblivious and continued: "You’ve met Samantha? Could it be that Samantha still harbors feelings for your mentor and went to see him, and then you ran into her?"
"Tsk tsk, what a pity. If Samantha hadn’t betrayed the Barbarian Cave, she might have become your master’s wife by now."
Though the Black Earl only spoke a few words, the content hinted at "Samantha’s alleged liaison with Sanders," "Samantha’s betrayal of the Barbarian Cave," and most importantly, Samantha is the daughter of the current controller of the Barbarian Cave, Lord Rhein.
This isn’t a secret among the higher-ups of major organizations, but for the two apprentices present, as well as Dox, it’s definitely an inside scoop.
Angel didn’t need to turn his head to guess; those behind him likely had their ears perked up high, eager to continue listening to the gossip.
"Matters concerning Lady Samantha are elder affairs, and I am not qualified to comment. If you have any valuable insights, Black Earl, you might as well share them, and I will convey them word for word to Lord Rhein, perhaps your thoughts align perfectly."
Since the Black Earl wished to tease, Angel didn’t mind. After all, he wasn’t acquainted with Samantha, but he was happy to act as a messenger.
When the time comes, Rhein and the Black Earl can engage directly.
The Black Earl gave Angel a deep look and softly said: "Just casually discussing, why do you look like you’re about to flip the table?"
"However, there is a reason I’m bringing up Samantha. Her most famous spell, known as ’Glazed Paradise,’ although the concept was proposed in the Barbarian Cave, was only truly perfected after she went to the Frostmoon Alliance. Although the Frostmoon Alliance is now a super organization, it was established just over sixteen hundred years ago, and its foundation isn’t very profound. As far as I know, the Frostmoon Alliance doesn’t possess such niche spells from the mirror branch."
"Without the help of the Mirror Lady, perfecting Glazed Paradise wouldn’t have been easy for Samantha."
Upon hearing this, Angel still didn’t quite understand what the Black Earl was trying to convey: "Does this have anything to do with the Mirror Demon God?"
"Don’t rush, let me finish. A few years ago, there was a rumor that spread like wildfire; the Frostmoon Alliance discovered the ruins of an unknown Legendary Wizard in the Frozen Tundra. Shortly after this rumor, Samantha advanced to True Knowledge through her Glazed Paradise spell."
Angel: "Are these two events linked?"
The Black Earl scrunched his nose: "I don’t know, but I can provide some trivia for you. What you know as the Frozen Tundra is now an associated world occupied by the Frostmoon Alliance. According to secret information I’ve gathered from ancient texts, the Frozen Tundra, only acquired its name and became an associated world after that world’s decline and its fusion with the Wizards’ Realm. It originally wasn’t a minor plane; it was called... the Ice Mirror World."
"Do you know what Samantha’s current codename is?"
Angel replied quietly: "...Ice Mirror."
The Black Earl: "See, this connects it all together. The Ice Mirror World existed for a considerable length of time, but long ago, a group of wizards occupied it. It’s said that the name of that world was given by those wizards. This event occurred over ten thousand years ago."
Angel: "Are you suggesting, my lord, that the Mirror Demon God may be related to the Ice Mirror World?"
The Black Earl: "It’s just a conjecture. However, there is a way to verify this."
The Black Earl paused and looked at Angel: "I heard that Lord Monty promised you access to the Shroud of Frost and Moon Chapter. That’s quite an impressive reward. If they really discovered a ruin that allowed Samantha to perfect her Glazed Paradise on the Frozen Tundra, you could seize the opportunity and request to check out the ruin, and see if it was left behind by the ’Mirror Demon God’."
Angel: "..." Sounds easy, but would he dare go?
However, the Shroud of Frost and Moon Chapter is indeed an excellent reward, and though now he doesn’t dare go, once he attains True Knowledge and has a method to not fear Lord Monty—not confrontational defiance, but rather the ability to safely escape from Lord Monty—or a similar ability like the Black Earl’s avatar, he might really visit the Frozen Tundra.
The Black Earl seemed to perceive Angel’s thoughts and continued: "Besides going to the Frozen Tundra, there’s a second option. Once you return to the Barbarian Cave, you can ask the Mirror Lady; she should know some inside information."
Angel sighed: "I understand."
He also wanted to ask the Mirror Lady, but alas, she’s currently asleep, and no one knows when she’ll wake.
...
The Black Earl shared all he knew, along with information that possibly related to the ’Mirror Demon God.’ However, for now, they were completely out of reach, impossible to confirm.
In other words, despite discovering this mural, they had made absolutely no progress in exploring the ruins.
"Regarding the mural, there’s nothing more to analyze. Let’s put it aside for now; we’ve lingered in this building for quite a while, likely the people from the Merchant Organization are coming after us. Let’s leave here first." Although Angel had a keen interest in these Mirror Demon Gods since they seemingly had connections with Augustine, the priority was completing their task.
Since nothing could be discerned now, it’s best to let it go and see if any discoveries come later.
Everyone naturally nodded in agreement.
"We’re leaving, so what should be done with this mural?" Kaier suddenly asked.
Angel was silent for a moment: "You want it?"
Kaier quickly nodded. He was very intrigued by these things.
Angel thought for a bit, and after glancing at the others, seeing they had no interest in the mural, he said: "If you want to take it, go ahead, but once we return, try not to interact with it too much. If it truly is related to a Demon God, it could pose some danger."
Kaier eagerly nodded and quickly stored the mural in his space.
After putting away the mural, there was no need to continue exploring this building; they directly proceeded along the spiral staircase to the top-level doorway.
A humid, chilly breeze, carrying an unknown, drifting stench wafted in from outside and lingered at their noses.
As they stepped out, the apparent rooftop looked quite normal. However, another alley lay ahead of the rooftop, conveniently connected by a stone bridge, making this both an exit as well.
Ignoring the alley ahead, one could walk to the edge of the rooftop and see the high walls in the distance and the nearby desolate ruins.
Judging by the relatively intact buildings, this place is less of an underground maze, and more of an interconnected, tiered underground city.
If it weren’t destroyed, and with lit lamps and intersecting buildings, it certainly could have been a bustling scene. Sadly, such beauty can only appear in imagination now.
"Where should we go next?" Kaier, somewhat excited, asked while staring at the ruins, his eyes glowing.
Angel first glanced at Dox, who didn’t notice his gaze at all and was instead leaning to peek into the alley below.
Dox is unreliable, so Angel turned to the Black Earl.
The Black Earl was silent for a moment: "Although my bloodline indeed has a resonating feeling with a certain place, whether this is my imagination or reality, I cannot determine. Moreover, it seems far from here, and I can’t discern the direction."