They had left the rocky plateau of central Regiis behind, and now, out of the window of the train, Ceres watched the dusty plains of the Western Province transition into the golden sands of the desert that marked the border between Egypt and the Empire. Yesterday, their train had been vetted by the border security force and a new team of Egyptian drivers had been assigned to them.

Their next stop would be the first one in Egypt. She couldn't help but feel a bit of excitement at travelling beyond the Empire for the very first time.

Then again, this was nothing new for her – travelling beyond boundaries, that is. Looking back, her life in the last couple of years could be summarized as a series of shells she had broken out of. Her confinement in the Vulpine library; the cage of lies that had surrounded her relationship with Mars; and finally, the suspicion the citizens of Regiis had cast upon her because of her origin and race. She had surpassed them all and carved a space of her own in the very heart of the Empire.

Now, she had left it all behind and was travelling to another nation with entirely different cultures, customs, and system of governance. It was slightly intimidating… and at the same time, it was exciting.

The Duchess had taught her a lot of skills that would have been required to successfully complete her initial mission of stealing Regiis’ Imperial technique. Those same skills had proven extremely useful in navigating the courtroom politics in the Capital. And she was confident that she would be able to use those skills in the Caliphate with equally great results.

She couldn't wait to unfold her talents in this new arena and disseminate her husband’s name to another audience.

Of all of Mars’ techniques, the one she was fondest of by far, was the one that allowed him to bolster his comprehension of the Aspect of Radiance the more famous he got. It had given her an explicit goal to work towards.

The Swayamvar was an opportunity. And if everything went her way, it would only be a matter of time before she could spread Mars’s name across the entire Continent.

She moved her gaze away from the passing scenery and to the figure of the pale woman sitting cross-legged on her bed with her palms facing upwards, stacked upon each other on her lap. A marble-sized crystal with reddish-orange smoke trapped within lay in the centre of her stacked palms, surrounded by a lotus of black flames.

One of the key factors of her plan lay within that crystal: The knowledge of the entire Kitsune Arcanum.

Ceres waited, leaning against a pile of cushions with a book in her hand. Occasionally her eyes would lift from the pages to watch the scenery passing by, and sometimes they would fall upon the statue-still figure of Hei Yang’s doppelganger. Anticipation seemed to stretch the hours into days, and despite her eyes taking in the words, her mind failed to register the contents of her book. It was all she could do to keep herself from fidgeting.

When the rays of light coming through the window caught the orange tint of dusk, Hei Lian finally opened her eyes and diverged the fire in her palms.

“I failed,” she sighed, setting the crystal aside and stretching her legs.

Ceres’ heart sank with disappointment. She didn’t let it show on her face though. The Duchess had trained her better than that. “Your expression is a reflection of your mind," she used to say. "And like all reflections, it isn’t fully true to the original. Be careful when you read someone by their expressions, and ensure than no one can read your mind from yours.”

Instead, “Why?" she asked in a curious manner, "Are her defences so strong?”

Hei Lian shook her head. “Not strong, tricky. The soul fragment in the crystal is extremely weak, and her defences are flimsier than a sheet of paper. But instead of a disadvantage, the sly old fox has used her weakness as her shield. She has connected her memories with her barrier. If I try to break the barrier, her memories will dissipate along with it and we will return empty handed.”

She tapped the crystal lightly with her finger.

“My merge with the elemental has made my soul powerful. More than Demigods with decades more experience. But my mastery of the Aspects limits me. In a fight, I can brute force my way through most issues, but in a delicate operation like unsealing the memories stored in this crystal… I am finding myself quite unsuited to the task.”

“So, I’ll have to keep doing what I have been till now and continue using my Dreamland Domain to extract the memories bit by bit?” asked Ceres. She couldn't help but feel disappointed. At the current rate of progress, that might take years. By that time the Swayamvar would be over and the opportunity lost.

She sighed internally. It seemed like this chance for a quick leap in her capabilities was a bust. She would just have to look for some other way to implement her plan that didn’t rely so much on her personal ability.

Hei Lian tilted her head to the side and looked at her strangely. “Hey… you really like to jump to conclusions, don’t you? I said that I failed to break the seal. I never said that I hadn’t made any progress.” She tapped the crystal with her finger again. “I might not be able to touch the soul fragment without incinerating it, but I can set up some tricks on its container.”

Ceres’ eyes widened in realization. Turning her gaze to the mind crystal, she focused on it.

Sure enough, it was different from before. Where it had been a pure Kitsune mind crystal before – like a chunk of frosted glass with reddish-orange smoke floating within – now, there were black flame patterns etched all over its surface.

Hei Lian continued, “Because of your bloodline, and the similarity of your Aspects, you were the only one able to infiltrate the soul fragment with your mind and steal the memories in it. I have neither advantage, but don’t forget, part of my soul is composed of Miyagi Vulpine’s own. And I have experience fusing my unique brand of hellfire with the Kitsune’s smoke. Altering the mind crystal was well within my abilities.”

“Ah, so you’ll be able to travel into Vulpine’s Dreamland along with me,” said Ceres, understanding her plan.

Because of the limited carrying capacity of the soul fragment, the strength of anyone who entered the Dreamland would be restricted to Tier 3 initial stage, the same level as the representation of Vulpine herself within it. Given Vulpine’s home ground advantage, all Ceres could do was sneak around and chip away at the memories a bit at a time.

But now…

Hei Lian’s lips curved upwards in a chilling smile. “Let’s go give the Witch some nightmares.”

End of Volume.