"The train has arrived. Now we really must say goodbye."
After disembarking, Carlotta smiled radiantly as she walked toward the Cloud Sea Train, looking as if she had won a great victory and was returning laden with spoils.
Just as she was about to step onto the train, Carlotta suddenly turned back and gave Noah a light wave:
"We'll meet again soon, Mr. Noah."
Noah waved back, bidding Carlotta farewell.
After waiting on the shore for five minutes, Zani and Phoebe finally arrived by gondola.
"Come on, let's go stroll through the Cloud Courtyard."
With that command, the reassembled trio set off once more.
"I never imagined the old Divine Academy would end up like this."
Phoebe looked around at the desolate ruins and drifting mist, speaking thoughtfully:
"I've only ever seen paintings of the old Divine Academy in the cathedral. The dome was incredibly magnificent, with spires pointing straight toward the sky."
"Eh, there are people up ahead."
At Zani's sudden remark, the trio quickened their pace. They saw a small group of masked figures with hands clasped together, muttering words like "repentance" and "absolution."
Zani was puzzled: "What are they doing?"
Noah replied: "Don't mind them. Probably sick in the head."
Phoebe explained: "You shouldn't say that, Mr. Noah. They're here to confess their sins to Lorelai and seek absolution."
Noah countered: "If they've committed crimes, they should go to jail. Does confessing a few times make them innocent?"
Zani agreed: "Exactly. These kinds of people just want to use so-called faith to absolve themselves, thinking a couple of confessions are enough to atone."
Phoebe's eyes widened. For a moment, she couldn't find a rebuttal.
They passed the crowd and continued straight ahead, deeper into the Cloud Courtyard. The moist air grew thicker.
The tall courtyard walls were covered in moss and vines. The entrance to the inner courtyard was sealed by a dim energy barrier.
"It looks like we came at a bad time. We won't be able to see Lorelai."
Zani spread her hands and glanced at the time:
"If we head back to Ragunna now, we'll arrive just in time for dinner. What do you say? Should we turn back?"
"No way. We're already here — how can we leave disappointed?"
Noah turned directly to Phoebe beside him and gestured with his mouth:
"Phoebe, go on — show Lorelai what you've got."
"Huh?"
The sudden request made Phoebe's eyes widen in shock:
"H-how am I supposed to show anything…?"
Knowing the plot, Noah directly spoiled it:
"Sing 'Hymn of the Saintess.' Lorelai will see us then."
"I… I…" Phoebe glanced at the empty Cloud Courtyard, then at Zani, and finally at Noah. She stomped her foot, her round little face flushing bright red.
Why was she suddenly being asked to sing?
This person was definitely finding excuses to bully her again. Teasing her in private was one thing, but how could he do it in front of Zani?
"In this kind of environment, I… I can't sing."
"Trash, let me show you how it's done."
Noah pulled a guitar out of his backpack like magic and began strumming right in front of the door.
It didn't have to be 'Hymn of the Saintess.' Maybe he could wash Lorelai's ears with some classic Blue Star songs.
Fierce rock music echoed across the open space, stirring up waves of reverberation. The distant group praying and confessing turned their shocked gazes toward the source.
"Who is it!"
"How dare they desecrate the sacred ground of the sea of clouds!"
"Quick, go get the Order of the Deep!"
"Gotta admit, this intro slaps though."
Phoebe's face was already burning with shame. Her ten toes curled inside her little white boots, wishing they could dig a three-bedroom apartment into the ground.
He was the one playing — so why was she the one feeling embarrassed?
Too humiliating! Too humiliating!
"Stop! I'll sing! Please stop playing, I beg you!"
"Too late."
Noah played even harder. Finally finishing the intro, he took a deep breath and let his voice ring out —
"Oppa Gangnam Style!"
"Gangnam Style!"
"Oh! Oh! Oppa Gangnam Style!"
"A~~~~~~"
BOOM——
The door sealed by the dim barrier burst open, revealing a gigantic blue humanoid creature behind it — Lorelai — glaring with wide eyes.
Lorelai stared straight at them, flames seeming to burn in her eyes. The purple thorn crown on her head trembled violently. Several water orbs brimming with powerful energy condensed in midair.
"Wait… Boss, stop singing." Zani nervously tugged at Noah's arm:
"It looks like she doesn't like this song… I feel like she's about to attack us."
"Then let's fight."
Noah finally put away the guitar and drew Ages of Harvest.
After a moment's thought, he stowed Ages of Harvest back in his inventory and pulled out Emerald of Genesis instead.
No good — Rover (Spectro) already had six chains. He didn't want to accidentally one-shot Lorelai.
He put Emerald of Genesis away, successively drew Death and Dance and Red Spring, hesitated again, and finally switched to a training swift blade.
With a flick of his wrist, the training swift blade was instantly cloaked in Havoc's black-purple energy, transforming into a chilling scythe that Noah swung with whistling wind.
Switch — Rover (Havoc).
"Do we really have to fight… This is a legendary Echo of the Order. Is it too late to quit now?"
Zani froze on the spot.
Before Zani and Phoebe could react, Noah flapped the half-black wing on his back and charged straight at Lorelai with the scythe:
"Havoc Ten—"
"Stop! I surrender!"
Seeing an extremely terrifying surge of Havoc energy gathering on the scythe right in front of her, Lorelai decisively called for a halt and retreated rapidly.
"Who are you? Why did you come to disturb my slumber?"
"Ah… so you're still conscious."
Noah landed awkwardly and put away the scythe, looking embarrassed:
"Sorry. I thought you had already been controlled by those flowers with strange frequencies. I wanted to wake you up first. I didn't mean to hurt you."
"Flowers with strange frequencies?"
Lorelai thought for a moment and nodded slightly:
"When I was falling asleep, I did feel a malicious frequency polluting the clouds of the sea."
She lowered her head, glancing at Phoebe and Zani who had hurriedly caught up, before finally fixing her gaze on Noah:
"But before I could examine it closely, I was awakened by a particularly intense noise."
In the game plot, Lorelai had to be awakened from her dream in order to restrain the sea of clouds filled with endless thunderstorms.
Fractsidus had poured massive amounts of Phrolova's flowers into the sea of clouds. The highly malicious flowers polluted Lorelai's emotions, causing her to become violent and drive the sea of clouds to flood toward Ragunna.
It was only when Rover and the others arrived that Lorelai was roused from her dream, regaining clear consciousness and stopping the sea of clouds from continuing toward Ragunna.
When Noah saw Lorelai appear ready to fight, he had assumed she was already under Fractsidus control.
Turns out… she just really didn't like his song and was only using a bit of power to scare them away.
"Uh…" Noah scratched his head awkwardly: "Maybe there's been a bit of a misunderstanding between us…"
"No matter." Lorelai shook her head slightly and looked down at the three of them:
"As an Echo creature possessing a portion of the Sentinel's power, I can sense that you bear no malice."
Especially the man in the middle — he was practically radiating wickedness.
"You came looking for me — is there something you need?"
Zani shook her head.
Phoebe shook her head.
Noah nodded and directly spoiled the plot:
"Be careful of those flowers. For you, they carry a frequency pollution strong enough to be dangerous."
"…" Lorelai was somewhat speechless.
Who could understand? She was sleeping peacefully at home when suddenly someone burst in, not only woke her up, but nearly split her in half with a single slash.
And this person's only purpose was to remind her: Watch out for nightmares.
"I understand. Thank you for the warning. Is there anything else?"
With the warning, Lorelai would naturally be more vigilant against those strange frequencies. As an Echo with a portion of the Sentinel's authority, she could naturally avoid being controlled.
With that, Noah's objective was finally achieved.
"Nothing else. We'll take our leave."