When Ed stepped into the temple of water, the sorcerically forbidden stone hall, Mondstadt's voice still ringed in his head:

“...... You know the answer...... No matter how incredible that is, get rid of the more improbable, and the only answer is left. ”

Does he know?

In front of him, bound in mid-air by countless chains of golden light, was the demon that could still change, but could not escape.

Although it is used as a prison, this is not a dark vault underground. It is exposed to the clear autumn sun, and its high dome is inlaid with crystals that allow light to pour in—such a deliberately condensed, intense sunlight that is certainly a disservice to the "guests" from hell, and it is really not comfortable for humans.

Ed narrowed his eyes, and it took a while to get used to it. However, although the light was bright enough, it was completely devoid of the temperature that sunlight should have. The runes hidden under the floor occasionally flickered as the demon shrieked or struggled, and the sound that seemed to pierce the eardrums was reflected off the heavy stone walls on all sides, making people's hearts beat and almost scream with it.

When the door closed silently, Ed was left alone in the stone hall. The illusion was gone, screaming and twisting to himself. It can conjure up countless forms in a very short time - Sean, Naria, Tate, Is, Scott......

Not the half-charred humanoid that had ever appeared in front of Iss, but a cold, sharp warrior with golden eyes, like an unsheathed sword—it must have seen such a Scott to become so vivid.

When the body suddenly shattered into a blur of flesh and blood in front of Ed's eyes, even if he had been prepared, Ed's face turned pale and he retreated again and again.

But at least one thing, he was finally able to confirm.

"You're not crazy. He said.

It knows who the people he cares about and cares about the most, and it knows what he fears...... It's certainly not crazy.

However, even when it was revealed, the illusion ignored him. It laughed maniacally, still changing to and fro, and between all the horrors and strange forms, there were some inexplicable things interspersed - it could even turn into a small butterfly, with mottled lines on its black and white wings shaped like skeletons, and it seemed to dance with the fluttering of the butterfly's wings.

Trying to ignore the change, Ed quickly found the symbol.

This demon has never been hidden...... It is impossible to hide it. Creatures from hell are truly one with their bodies and souls – they are completely inseparable. Once the body dies, the soul will disappear completely at the same moment, and vice versa. Mankind...... Dragons, or dragons, can hide such marks deep in their souls, but demons cannot.

There was a sentence that suddenly came to Ed's mind: "In a sense, they are much purer and more real than humans." ”

This is the sentence from the notebook of the mad mage Luo Muan that I saw in the Enzhi Valley...... The mage seemed to appreciate the demon quite a bit. According to Niya, his soul is indeed in hell now, and it seems to be quite good......

Ed shook his head, pulling his distant thoughts back—he couldn't afford to be distracted by a demon.

He didn't expect the demon to speak to him, not even Icabird. He wouldn't risk touching the sigil with his soul, for it was a demon and not an Is...... But he wasn't without other options.

He circled around the demon for a few moments before carefully layering another spell on top of the original. Scott had used the method he had come up with to find Ankeland here, and the same method, with a little variation, should have found the other party to which the contract was connected...... And there is also a powerful magical power here that can be "borrowed". If something really happened, the priests who were secretly guarding the neighborhood would not be able to take care of an already extremely weak demon......

Gradually, tiny points of light rose from the ground, condensed from the air, and floated silently, like twinkling stars in the night sky. They surrounded the demon, flowing, changing, dimming as if shrouded in mist in its intoned screams, but never disappearing.

Thin threads loomed from the demon's body, connecting between the tiny stars...... Connected into a hazy gray cobweb.

Ed stood outside the cobwebs, silently rubbing his eyes.

It was a lot harder than he thought...... Or rather, he thought too simply.

The usefulness of this spell is to find the "trail" - everything that has happened, no matter what, there is a trace, everyone ...... Or the soul and life of every demon, connected to other beings in some form. He thought that even if he didn't touch the mark, he would be able to find the one who had made the contract, because it must be a rather unique and eye-catching "star", but this one in front of him was ...... Either he didn't have enough strength to see clearly, or he was overshadowed by another force.

If you want to be opportunistic, it's not so easy.

He turned around several times unwillingly, but he didn't dare to take the risk. He didn't want to be buried in the sand again...... Or maybe there's no chance of even being buried in the sand.

He stared at the web that was beginning to dissipate, remembering Mondstadt's warning. Those mercenaries had seen demons, more than once, more than one...... Demons who appear to be mild-mannered and even obedient compared to the cunning and ferocity of the legend are, in the eyes of the followers of Nethers, a testament to the greatness of the gods they believe in—he can make demons submit to them. But for the more sober mercenaries, only the strength of the employer was demonstrated...... And danger, after all, mages who treat demons as pets, they have not never seen.

But Mondstadt did not believe that the priests of Nethers, or even Nethers himself, had the ability to control demons. He didn't believe that the mark on the phantom's body, as some clerics had speculated, was left by the dragon trying to return to this world.

"I've been studying necromancy for almost twenty years,"

The mage did not shy away from telling him, "Unlike most necromancers, the subjects I am experimenting on are not living people...... Not dead people, but demons. I want to figure out why I have to 'make a deal with demons' to use necromancy, and I want to know what the source of that power is. I feel like I've found ...... What about you?"

- That's a good question.

Ed involuntarily crouched down and clutched his head sullenly.

Yes, he probably knows the answer...... And he could no longer deny it to himself.