Ruvian turned the white-and-black mask slowly between his fingers, observing the smooth surface.

’Imagining a face, huh? What features should I go with?’

He pondered deeply about it.

But it didn’t take him long to suddenly imagine a face that he was somewhat familiar with its description. After channeling his mana into the mask, he lifted it and placed it over his face.

As it settled over his eyes, the air around him shifted slightly. The mask was cold at first. Then, oddly comfortable.

"Oh~ that’s quite a handsome face you chose."

Ruvian’s dark hair now possessed a subdued luster, a little bit short. His jawline lent firmness to an otherwise youthful countenance.

Still, it was the eyes that held her attention the longest.

They were dark golden in hue, carrying a composed vigilance. The way he looked to her now... was the face of someone inclined toward rectitude.

"Hmm~ I approve of your choice. By the way, is it the face of someone you know?"

’Well, even if I explained, she wouldn’t know him.’

"Maybe you can think of it like that."

In front of him, Silvena was disguised as a woman with dark hair and dark eyes.

Meanwhile, Irene took the appearance of a woman with golden hair and blue eyes.

Ruvian looked at his reflection in the window, syncing with his mask. He could feel the illusion settling over him, one that would crumple under a God’s gaze, maybe, but not under the eyes of mortals.

Which, tonight, was enough.

’Yes... this should be good.’

Then, Silvena leaned back a little and said,

"Also, about these [Paired Storage]’s enchantments — especially yours and mine, they can be used to communicate if something goes wrong. Irene should be fine even without this enchantment. She can still talk to us with her [Telepathy] spell. But the two of us can’t."

She lightly tapped the ring on her finger before continuing.

"So inside, I already placed some papers and a quill. Yes, it is old-fashioned, but with this ring’s enchantment, we can send our messages between the two rings. It is quite useful, right?"

"I see, it is a good enchantment."

"Yup. So if we are suddenly separated or very far from each other, I will do this—" she slowly raised two fingers in a small peace sign, "—as a hint for you to check your dimensional storage. Or maybe it can also mean that I already sent something to you."

"Now, check the storage. I just sent something."

"Sure," Ruvian answered flatly, giving a small nod that carried absolutely no enthusiasm whatsoever.

He channeled a thin stream of mana into the ring. A faint shimmer formed above his palm, and a folded piece of paper slid out.

Then, what he found out inside the paper was a ugly drawing that had the shape of the middle finger.

He laughed slightly.

’...Is this supposed to be a swan or a middle finger?’

Honestly, with the way the finger curved, it could have passed as an abstract wildlife.

But either way, he couldn’t tell.

Ruvian’s gaze lingered on the paper for a brief moment before he slowly raised his eyes toward Silvena.

"You suck at drawing by the way."

Meanwhile, Silvena was already covering her mouth, trying as hard as she could to contain her laughter.

"Oh, come on," she managed between suppressed giggles.

"It’s not that bad."

Ruvian took another look at the drawing and smiled.

"Wait, on second thought, maybe this is one hell of an art."

Ruvian raised the paper slightly higher, studying it.

"However, for the sake of D’Elvoire’s reputation, please do not show this to anyone and claim you draw this."

He lowered the paper slowly and added gravely.

"Certain talents, especially one like this, should forever remain sealed."

Silvena’s grin immediately widened.

"Hmph. You’re just being jealous. It is just a demonstration of how it can be used. But to answer your lack of artistic sense, yes, I tried to draw a middle finger. And since you’re judging my talent, that middle finger is for you."

Ruvian lightly shook his head, then he stored the paper back again into the dimensional storage.

’Haa... this childish woman.’

Irene, who was sitting beside her, was munching on her bread quietly.

’Huh? I wonder where she stored her bread. She always has an unlimited supply of that.’

Ruvian leaned back slightly, letting his body relax.

"Anyway, Belle also got a potion to boost our overall strength. I’ve stored one in your ring as well. When should we use it?" Silvena asked.

"I’ll give you the signal for that. But if I somehow can’t, you’ll have to decide on your own... I trust your judgment."

Silvena nodded.

But after a few minutes passed, it was then...

Suddenly, another voice came, quietly drowning out Silvena’s words, pulling his attention away.

[You have unlocked a hidden story arc!]

’Hm?’

[Bearer of the Fable... beware of the unknown.]

[Not every arc was meant to be walked.]

[Some hidden arcs demand a heavier price than they first appear.]

[Entering A Hidden Arc: ’The Ashway Bazaar’.]

[You have received +1250 Plot Points!]

Ruvian calmly read the notification.

However, he could feel the heavy meaning behind the message.

*****

The carriage did not stop at a building.

It stopped somewhere far less official, a wedge of silence between two forgotten warehouses. There was a rusted gutter, a crumbling mural, and a dry fountain choked with dead ivy.

The three of them stepped out, taking in the surroundings with a skeptical glance.

"This is it?" Irene asked, not bothering to hide her doubt.

"Yes, this is it."

"What was the hint that they gave?" Ruvian asked.

"Ugh. They simply told us that we have to come here, at this location and look for some switch around the walls. Nothing more."

’...Tch. How bothersome.’

Ruvian walked past them, his boots making no sound as he approached the mural; it had once depicted an angel, but time and weather had chewed away most of the details, leaving only a ghost of wings and faded gold leaf.

He reached out and dragged his gloved fingers along a sequence of seemingly random cracks in the wall.

After a few minutes of searching, a soft click answered him.

Ruvian’s brow lifted slightly.

"Found it," he murmured.

With the soundless breath of displaced air, part of the mural folded inward, collapsing like paper being creased.

"Let’s go."

The three of them entered the path.

The corridor beyond was narrow, but smooth... its walls lacquered black and inscribed with softly glowing runes.

With each step, the temperature dropped. Ruvian followed in silence, noting the faint distortion in the air. The path didn’t spiral or descend as they walked. It bent. One moment the floor felt level, the next it seemed to slant without shifting.

"..It’s spatial redirection, it’s confusing for a first timer. This is normally used to confuse the intruder, but since we’re the guest, it should be fine."

Irene muttered, explaining it to them.

Ruvian and Silvena simply noted the information she gave.

The hallway twisted one final time and abruptly opened into a small, circular chamber.

At the center of the room sat a woman statue, or something that looked like one. She was draped in layers of silk, her limbs marked by inked runes, and her eyes hidden beneath a blindfold.

In one hand, she held a scale.

For some terrifying reason, the moment Ruvian saw the statue... a strange, almost ominous familiarity rose slowly within his mind.

"Where... have I seen this before?"

Ruvian muttered, almost unconsciously.

Silvena let out a small chuckle, as if she thought he was making a joke.

"What do you mean? Don’t tell me... you don’t know what this statue is?"

Ruvian turned to look at her.

’Is this someone famous in this world that I don’t know?’ he wondered.

There were many statues mentioned in the novel. Many people have become heroes in this world, after all.

But it was not like he knew every detail about how each of their statues looked.

"So... is it one of the Seven Virtuous Paragons?" Ruvian asked.

Silvena blinked.

"What? No."

She then lightly shook her head, her voice calm.

"This is the statue of Althea... the Goddess of Fortune and Protection."

Silvena continued, "I don’t know if what you said is true or not. But saying you had seen her — that is a crazy statement. I mean... wait... hold on, maybe you really did see her.

"Was it in one of your prophetic visions?"

She paused, then remembered that Ruvian was an oracle.

Well, a self-proclaimed one.

Because of that, she thought it might actually be possible.

But Ruvian’s expression had already turned serious.

He kept looking at the statue in silence. On the statue’s face, there was a gentle and benevolent smile... calm, kind, and almost comforting.

Yet, unsettling.

Then suddenly, as he continued to watch the statue, his memory overlapped.

That very same smile...

He had seen it somewhere before.

The image of the mysterious woman he met in Evermere Plaza appeared in his mind.

The resemblance was too similar, almost exact!

At that moment, Ruvian felt true fear.

A deep, instinctive fear that even his S-Rank Mental Strength could not suppress it.

’...You got to be kidding me.’

──────── ✦ ────────

[Chapter 148: The Ashway Bazaar (2)]

Plot Points= 9,050