Warlock Apprentice

Chapter 3285: Chapter 3286: Tini Mirror Domain

”A bit strange.”

The Dog Deacon’s eyes flashed with doubt upon hearing the ”Page Addition Service” mentioned by Pika Sage.

Little Red blinked her eyes, curiously looking at the Dog Deacon: ”Why does the Steward find it strange?”

The Dog Deacon thought for a moment before saying, ”Intuition. I always feel there’s something amiss when Pika Sage suddenly gathers leaders of all clans together.”

Little Red tilted her head: ”Is it a meeting? Just like when the Everything House receives Eight Star or Nine Star commissions, the Deacons gather to meet.”

The Dog Deacon squinted: ”If it’s due to some incident and a special gathering of clan leaders for a ’meeting,’ then this matter might not be trivial.”

The Dog Deacon paused, speaking hesitantly: ”It might even be... an affair affecting the entire Mirror Domain.”

An affair affecting the entire Mirror Domain? Sipolov beside them appeared somewhat puzzled: ”Recently, there doesn’t seem to be any major events in the Mirror Domain. It shouldn’t be possible to have something affecting the entire domain, right?”

The Dog Deacon remained silent.

Little Red murmured softly: ”If there’s really a major event, there should have been some signs beforehand. Like, before a meeting, the Deacons would carry out a big mobilization.”

Sipolov: ”Signs? Recently, there don’t seem to be any strange signs. Ice Country’s thousand-year snow cave collapsed... Does that count?”

The Dog Deacon glanced at Sipolov irritably: ”Even if the collapse of the snow cave is a sign, it would be a sign for your Ice Country’s future, not affecting the entire Daylight Mirror Domain.”

Sipolov awkwardly scratched his head: ”I was just speaking off the cuff; I haven’t paid attention to matters outside Ice Country for a long time...”

The Dog Deacon ignored Sipolov, instead rhythmically wagging his tail and dragging his chin with his paw, murmuring softly: ”Speaking of strange signs, there have been some recently. For instance, around the Mirror Worlds of many clans, there are ambitious attackers... It won’t be long before brief skirmishes, proton kidnappings, the demise of key figures, and even war outbreaks occur.”

”But according to the Ghost Steward’s investigation, behind these Origins of Chaos, there is almost always the shadow of the Changhuo Clan stirring... Their incitement might lead to chaos in one location, but causing chaos in an entire domain is much harder.”

”So, the so-called signs shouldn’t be these.”

The Dog Deacon pondered for a long time, attempting to discern recent unfamiliar preludes without success. 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ

Sipolov also followed suit in pondering, but the world he observed is mainly confined to Ice Country, unable to think of anything substantial.

Only Little Red, although she interjected a few words earlier, didn’t even consider pondering any signs. She preferred to seize the chance to savor a few more bites of crispy Magic Marrow Meat instead of contemplating these tedious things.

Cat brother’s recommended ”Milk-soaked Magic Marrow Meat” is simply a delicacy beyond compare.

Little Red, enjoying her food self-indulgently, glanced at her dog brother’s serious face, trying to show she’s ”participating” too, hence casually mentioning: ”Speaking of signs, um... gulp... Could the sudden appearance of the Feather Forest and Singer Clans be considered a sign?”

The Feather Forest and Singer Clans? The Dog Deacon pondered for a while, shaking his head: ”Probably not. The Gesen Mirror Domain is a vast and powerful mirror domain, with the most powerful species being the Feather Forest and Singer Clans. According to concealed information from the Ghost Steward, the Gesen Mirror Domain occasionally dispatches envoys to other surrounding domains to spread the gospel.”

”Both the Arc Mirror Realm and Tini Mirror Domain have been visited by their envoys. The Daylight Mirror Domain is somewhat late.”

In other words, from the Dog Deacon’s perspective, the envoys sent by the Feather Forest and Singer Clans are spreading gospel.

Perhaps, as Luigi hinted before, their gospel might contain hidden dangers, but time will allow these dangers to dissipate. Therefore, the possibility of them being signs isn’t high.

Neither the Arc Mirror Realm nor the Tini Mirror Domain experienced any incidents, the Daylight Mirror Domain should be the same.

Upon hearing the Dog Deacon’s response, Little Red let out an ”Oh,” ceasing further thoughts. Having achieved ”participation,” there was no need for additional pondering; food remained the priority.

Sipolov couldn’t offer any advice either, nor could the Dog Deacon decipher the puzzled circumstances, leading to an air of silence.

Nonetheless, though silence prevailed, Angel’s Mind Ribbon was bustling.

”Meatball has been with the Everything House for so many years, greatly enhancing his sensitivity to information.” Luigi mused within the Mind Ribbon.

Being able to deduce so much from Pika Sage’s single ”private multi-person chatroom,” without straying off in major directions, proves the Dog Deacon’s exceptional informational sensitivity.

”Little Red’s intuition is sharp too.” Angel chimed in.

Pika Sage tried establishing a multi-person chatroom, engaging with leaders of various clans, undoubtedly to prepare for the upcoming Calamity Puppet disaster.

This disaster was indeed initiated by the Singer Clan and the Feather Forest Clan.

Although the Dog Deacon didn’t adopt Little Red’s suggestion, her ability to pinpoint the Singer Clan and Feather Forest Clan as potential determinants of significant events underscores her intuitive acumen.

Luigi: ”It’s not necessarily intuition, maybe it was just a casual remark.”

Laplace: ”Even a casual remark can be fate pushing the tide.”

After Laplace said this, she added lightly: ”This isn’t my words; I’m speaking for Glaipnir.”

Luigi: ”...I dislike fate talk.”

Laplace: ”Then why does your poetry favor using fate as a gimmick? That’s Glaipnir’s remark too.”

Luigi shrugged: ”A storyteller doesn’t necessarily like the story. Just as codifiers, I don’t believe they truly appreciate their codex, more about filling gaps, plotting personal gains.”

”My poetry is alike, using fate to imbue grandeur and mystery, not implying I endorse fate.”

Luigi and Glaipnir’s debate occurs almost periodically, Angel being quite accustomed to it.

After their banter subsided, Angel finally interjected: ”Speaking of, are the Arc Mirror Realm and Tini Mirror Domain also names of Mirror Domains?”

Luigi remained silent, gazing at Laplace.

He’s unfamiliar with these extraneous matters; even as Laplace’s Temporal Body, if Laplace doesn’t share information, he’s equally in the dark.

Laplace: ”The Arc Mirror Realm and Tini Mirror Domain are indeed akin to the Daylight Mirror Domain and Gesen Mirror Domain, large Mirror Domains. As I know, the Arc Mirror Realm primarily focuses on Arc-faced Mirror Light, and the domain’s Aggregation Energy inherently possesses the trait of ’Transformation,’ thus, species born in the Arc Mirror Realm generally exhibit irregular appearances... compared to other domains.”

Despite never visiting the Arc Mirror Realm, the Sea of Void Mirror contains a Sea Eye frequently emitting things from the Arc Mirror Realm. Occasionally, even life forms from that realm drift out.

Thus, Laplace confidently states the species in the Arc Mirror Realm exhibit atypical forms, skewing towards amorphous or twisted shapes.

Regarding the Arc Mirror Realm’s energy standards, it mirrors that of the Daylight Mirror Domain, simply the nature of Aggregation Energy diverges slightly but doesn’t affect the overarching situation.

”As for the Tini Mirror Domain...” Laplace paused for quite a while as if organizing her words.

Eventually, Laplace raised her head but refrained from discussing the Tini Mirror Domain within the Mind Ribbon, instead looking towards the Dog Deacon, still immersed in deep thought, in the distance: ”Meatball.”

Laplace’s call prompted the Dog Deacon to raise his head, perplexed.

Sipolov, on the other hand, lowered his head. Despite not hearing ”Meatball” as an address for the first time, he now confirmed it truly called the stately Dog Deacon... This appellation was quite disconcerting.

But speaking of it, this heterochromia girl named Laplace daring to directly call the Dog Deacon ”Meatball,” with the deacon’s respectful demeanor indicating Laplace’s formidable identity.

Sipolov mused independently, while on the opposite side, the Dog Deacon waited respectfully for Laplace to speak.

”You mentioned the Tini Mirror Domain earlier.” Laplace: ”Is this information belonging to the Everything House?”

The Dog Deacon nodded: ”Yes.”

”Is it information detected by the Ghost Steward?” Laplace continued to ask.

The Dog Deacon shook his head this time: ”No, the information cloud constructed by the Ghost Steward, all information gathering is within the scope of the Daylight Mirror Domain. The information on Tini Mirror Domain was left by the founder of the Mansion of Affairs.”

The Dog Deacon spoke cautiously, mainly because Sipolov was here, and also, some words were not dared to be spoken due to a contract.

However, Laplace probably understood as well.

The information on Tini Mirror Domain was left by the mysterious founder of the Mansion of Affairs—Kelos.

”How much information does the Mansion of Affairs hold on the Tini Mirror Domain?” Laplace did not inquire much about ”Kelos’s” identity, she knew well that the Dog Deacon had binding contracts, so there was no need to trouble it.

The Dog Deacon thought for a moment: ”There are some more, would you like to see?”

Laplace: ”Can I see?”

”Yes, you can.” The Dog Deacon stood up, shook the fur that was slightly matted, and with a nimble leap, landed on the cloud sofa where Laplace was.

The Dog Deacon raised its head, a faint glow emanating from its brow.

Seeing this, Laplace seemed to understand its intention, and she gently touched her finger to the Dog Deacon’s brow.

The glow at the brow instantly traveled through the finger, entering Laplace’s body.

The glow lingered at Laplace’s brow, finally turning into lots of points of information light, entering the depths of Laplace’s thoughts.

Seeing Laplace close her eyes in contemplation, only then did the Dog Deacon retreat, snuggling back into the paw-shaped pillow.

After a while, Laplace opened her eyes: ”... there’s quite a lot of information.”

Seeing Laplace with a different look in her eyes, the Dog Deacon curiously asked, ”Is there anything wrong with Tini Mirror Domain?”

Laplace shook her head: ”Nothing.”

After Laplace finished speaking, she did not speak further, but the Dog Deacon could sense that Laplace, Luigi, and that human Angel seemed to be using some ability to communicate privately.

Although curious about what they were discussing, the Dog Deacon ultimately did not use its ability to spy, instead suppressing its restless thoughts, and refocusing on the display stand.

On the display stand, Pika Sage had already left the stage. The new leader, an Elder of the Crystal Eye Clan, similarly brought along a number of Crystal Eye Clan soldiers, all carrying various colored crystal shells.

The crystal shells, upon the Elder’s gesture, transformed into dazzling forms, without a doubt, this time the Crystal Eye Clan had prepared to showcase various different crystal shells on the main display stand.

If it were before, the Dog Deacon might have been interested in these crystal shells, but at this moment, it was more curious as to why Laplace was so concerned with Tini Mirror Domain.

It had previously mentioned two different Mirror Domains, Arc Mirror Realm and Tini Mirror Domain.

But Laplace completely avoided talking about Arc Mirror Realm, mentioning only Tini Mirror Domain. Clearly, there was something about Tini Mirror Domain that Laplace cared a lot about.

Yet the Dog Deacon pondered for a long time and couldn’t come up with a reason.

Tini Mirror Domain... in the materials left by Kelos, there didn’t seem to be anything strange.

The energy levels were about the same as those in the Daylight Mirror Domain, if not worse.

Logically, it shouldn’t be worth paying attention to?

In the information about Tini Mirror Domain, the only somewhat ambiguous part was the origin of its name ”Tini.” It seems in Tini Mirror Domain this is a forbidden word...

Is Laplace’s concern related to this forbidden word?

While the Dog Deacon was puzzled, coincidentally, Laplace also spoke of the word ”Tini” through the Mind Ribbon.

”Can’t mention it in Tini Mirror Domain, is it a forbidden word?” Angel curiously asked.

”Forbidden word? No.” Laplace: ”You can think about it, a word you can’t mention, apart from a forbidden word, what other possibilities are there?”

Angel hesitated for a moment: ”Can’t mention it, or afraid to mention it, unworthy to mention it.”

Laplace nodded: ”That’s right, this is not a forbidden word, it’s because the groups in Tini Mirror Domain believe they are unworthy to mention this word.”

Laplace did not hide, and disclosed the information she knew—

The reason Tini Mirror Domain is named ”Tini” actually bears some similarity to Gesen Mirror Domain’s ”Gosen,” but is not entirely the same.

”Gosen” represents the Singer and Yusen, the two most powerful clans in Gesen Mirror Domain.

Whereas ”Tini” represents a lady named Tini.

She calls herself Lady Tini.

Laplace: ”I don’t know whether Lady Tini truly exists. But according to the information I got from Gesen Mirror Domain, to the various clans in Tini Mirror Domain, Lady Tini is perceived as an exalted... Divine Spirit.”

Luigi was taken aback for a moment: ”Gesen Mirror Domain? Why is the information obtained from Gesen Mirror Domain? What does this mean?”

Laplace said flatly: ”It means exactly what it says. I’ve never obtained any information related to the Tini Mirror Domain through the Sea of Void Mirror.”

Precisely because information on Tini Mirror Domain has never been leaked, Laplace felt puzzled.

It must be noted that even Gesen Mirror Domain, such a vast Mirror Domain, can have some information flow out through the Sea Eye of the Sea of Void Mirror.

But Tini Mirror Domain, if not for Laplace learning about its existence from some information in Gesen Mirror Domain, she would hardly know about this Mirror Domain.

”Could it be that Tini Mirror Domain doesn’t have the Sea of Void Mirror?” Luigi speculated.

Laplace shook her head: ”The Sea of Void Mirror is the foundational element for a Mirror Domain’s existence, it can’t not have it.”

Since there is the Sea of Void Mirror, but no information outflow, then there’s only one possibility, the Sea of Void Mirror of Tini Mirror Domain is completely controlled.

And the one capable of doing this is perhaps the legendary Lady Tini?

But curiously, even the people from Gesen Mirror Domain don’t know if Lady Tini really exists. In Gesen Mirror Domain’s records, Lady Tini seems more like a symbolic Divine Spirit, or rather a concept.

And in the information about Tini Mirror Domain provided by the Dog Deacon, Tini Mirror Domain also has nothing that seems off, which is exactly the same as how Gesen Mirror Domain defines Tini Mirror Domain.

Gesen Mirror Domain also considers Tini Mirror Domain completely negligible, without any threats.

But Laplace feels the opposite, after all, she has lived long in the Sea of Void Mirror, the informational blackout from Tini Mirror Domain just doesn’t add up regardless of how she thinks about it.

The only reason she can think of is a powerful presence completely controlling or blocking the Sea of Void Mirror of Tini Mirror Domain, and this presence, Laplace speculates, might be the rumored Lady Tini.