Bella had grown thin.
The arduous voyage at sea and the fierce battles pulling back and forth with the Mist on the Archipelago—none of these had made her weak.
But ever since coming ashore, on the journey from the port to Oath City, she saw the fungal mat covering the ground and mushrooms standing in great numbers everywhere.
As soon as she used **[Truth Vision]**, the sky was still the sky, but the earth was no longer the earth; the entire world was a squirming, surging mass of chaos.
Especially during every meal, seeing others stuffing that kind of thing into their mouths with looks of enjoyment completely ruined her appetite.
The best solution, naturally, was to not use her ability.
However, whenever Bella encountered highly threatening existences, her body would instinctively activate it. It bypassed her brain, bypassed her judgment, and was even more natural than breathing.
Priest Samuel had said that this was proof of her talent for combat.
In the past, this instinct had helped her discover monsters disguised as allies, see through demonic creatures hiding underground, and dodge invisible curses.
Yet now, this instinct was practically killing her.
She vomited almost from beginning to end, leaving her entirely drained and collapsed.
Without a doubt, these fungal mats were very dangerous.
During this time, she had managed to clearly ask about the reasons behind the fungal mats and Puchis being everywhere, and understood that turning into this current state was an inevitable outcome born of desperation.
Fortunately, after vomiting all the way, she had finally gotten somewhat used to it.
Not getting used to the chaos, but her body seemed to have finally accepted the fact that "this is just how the world is now," no longer reflexively activating the vision every time she encountered mycelium.
And Bella's group finally arrived at Oath City.
Looking from afar, Oath City had also changed drastically—it had become the central node of the new defensive line.
The city walls had continued to extend to both sides based on their original foundation, stretching all the way to the end of her line of sight, and the wall surfaces were densely carved with runes.
She recognized a portion of them. They were the standard defensive runes of the United Kingdom: reinforcement, anti-magic, and warning. Most of this knowledge had been taught to her by Priest Samuel.
Of course, she merely knew how to recognize them; Bella possessed no magical talent.
However, mixed among them seemed to be some runes from other systems. She couldn't recognize them, but based on her intuition, they seemed to be from the Elves.
"If only the Archipelago had defenses like this..." Thinking of those small-scale defensive systems on the Archipelago that could only protect the manors of slavers, she could only sigh.
Those detestable slavers had nothing but their own interests and safety in their minds, never having considered the other people on the islands.
Fortunately, they had all disappeared.
Some disappeared into the Mist, while others were believed to have disappeared into the Mist.
Duke Lorenzo personally welcomed Bella at the city gates.
Upon seeing the haggard Bella, he froze for a moment, then stepped forward with sincere concern: "I heard you went to the Archipelago. Are the conditions there really that harsh? If the Hero and the others have any material needs, just ask. We will definitely do our best to assist."
"No... Lord Duke, it's not what you think..."
The officials in the group also quickly stepped forward, rapidly and quietly explaining the situation to Lorenzo.
After this, Bella was arranged to stay in a "clean" residence.
The so-called "clean" here meant that there was not a single trace of fungal mat nearby. Even the garden outside the house was filled with normal plants, rather than all sorts of mushrooms.
Such an environment almost made Bella, who had suffered the entire journey, burst into tears.
Here, Bella and Lorenzo began to discuss official business.
During the great war between Humans and Demon-kin, the Mist continuously advanced, even surging onto the mainland, not to mention the Archipelago.
However, the Archipelago was not completely wiped out immediately. Although they suffered heavy losses, relying on their years of experience constantly pulling back and forth with the Mist, the people on several islands repelled the Mist time and time again, barely managing to survive.
And after the great war, the Mist retreated. Although these people survived, the Archipelago was left almost entirely in ruins.
Making matters worse, they would occasionally be attacked by bugs drilling out of the sea.
And at this time, Sophia arrived at the Archipelago. In the name of the Hero, she gathered the remaining people to her side.
Originally, Priest Samuel had wanted to rebuild the Archipelago, making it a force to assist the Hero. This was much safer than returning to the Kingdom.
However, heaven did not grant their wish. The rebuilding work was only halfway done when the Mist, which had originally retreated, unexpectedly pressed forward once again.
Although the speed of the Mist's advance this time wasn't fast, anyone could see that the Archipelago was indeed no longer suitable for habitation. They still had to consider returning to the mainland.
And in order to guard against traitors selling out intel on the Hero's whereabouts, Bella had come alone this time precisely to obtain a means of communicating directly with Duke Lorenzo.
The official business discussion went very smoothly. Lorenzo incidentally mentioned that the Elves also wanted to send people to assist Sophia, and Bella stated she would pass this on to the Hero upon her return.
After finishing their official discussion, Lorenzo suddenly asked: "Speaking of which, the skill that caused your physical discomfort along the way, is it called 'Truth Vision'?"
Bella nodded.
Lorenzo continued: "In that case, there is someone who might be able to offer you some useful advice."
"Offer me useful advice? Who?" Bella didn't understand.
"Her name is Soralin, a warrior of the Church of Light's Wings of Judgment. Like you, she possesses the Truth Vision skill. She should be able to provide some help to you."
Bella's eyes instantly lit up. She remembered that Priest Samuel had indeed mentioned that the Church currently also had someone with the **[Truth Vision]** skill. Seeing it now, it had to be this Soralin.
"I'll have to trouble the Duke for an introduction. Thank you."
Not long after, Bella met Soralin, as well as that pair of eyes shimmering with silver radiance, just like her own.
What astonished Bella was that Soralin actually maintained her silver-pupil state the entire time, even before entering this clean manor.
One must know, the outside was completely covered in mycelium!
After meeting and getting to know each other, Bella couldn't help but ask this question.
Upon hearing it, Soralin broke into a smile: "Pardon me for asking, but Bella, your Truth Vision hasn't reached LV8 or above yet, has it?"
"It shouldn't... have."
Currently on the Archipelago, there was no ability to inspect one's own skills, and it was impossible for Lady Sophia to inform her of changes in her skill levels at all times. Therefore, Bella wasn't clear on the exact levels of her various abilities.
But she had only acquired **[Truth Vision]** a few years ago. Obviously, it was impossible to have trained it past LV8 already.
Soralin leaned closer, her silver eyes staring fixedly at Bella: "Use Truth Vision more often; it will help you see everything clearly! Trust me, that is not filthy corruption, but the all-encompassing salvation sent down by the Lord!"
"Everyone will receive salvation."
Soralin left, but Bella felt a chill run down her spine.
She felt the other party had probably already been driven mad by those endless, chaotic blocks of color.
Would she also turn into something like that in the future?
After this, Bella met quite a few more people.
There were envoys from the Elves, scholars from the Relic Association, generals commanding armies...
These were all people who might potentially cooperate with the Hero in the future.
And finally, she met Inanna, the Duke's daughter dubbed a war hero.
But the moment she shook hands with Inanna, **[Truth Vision]** subconsciously activated once again.
Then she saw Inanna's color—a pink so deep it was almost purple—along with the crimson wrapping around her entire body, looking as if it wanted to burn everything nearby to ashes.
Bella instinctively took two steps back to pull open some distance. After the silver radiance receded, she didn't see any raging fire.
Facing Bella's faux pas, Inanna didn't mind. She merely opened her mouth and said: "Bella, I have something to talk to you about."
Bella was still somewhat shaken: "Is it about the Hero..."
"No, it has nothing to do with the Hero. I came to find you." Inanna said, and per the Boss's instructions, handed a Recording Crystal to the bewildered Bella.
(End of Chapter)
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