Agatha took out the letter of denunciation - this letter, which appeared to be written on the most common stationery, was covered in an envelope produced by a small local factory in Frost, and even the ink was obviously ordinary. It was sent to her from Cemetery No. 3. To be honest, if Agatha didn't know that the old guard would not play such a joke on her, she would never have believed that this thing came from an indescribable superior extraordinary being.

She couldn't even sense any supernatural power from the letter - but after doing a few simple tests, she had confirmed that this thing was indeed written by that superior supernatural being.

There was a sound of clothes rubbing against each other coming from the dark coffin, and the heavy coffin lid finally opened slowly. Along with a strange smell of incense, a mummy-like body wrapped in bandages slowly rose from inside.

This is Ivan, the bishop of the Frost City-State. He lost his complete body due to an accident many years ago, but Bartok's power has allowed him to survive to this day. Most of the time, he has to stay in the "coffin" of the Meditation Temple and only appears in the public eye during major sacraments. But even so, he is still the most popular and trusted bishop in the history of Frost.

The bishop's achievements and profound knowledge in the supernatural field are beyond doubt.

He sat up in the coffin, took the "report letter" handed to him by Agatha, and stared at the letter for a long time with his left eye, the only eye exposed outside the bandage, and remained silent for a long time.

Agatha couldn't help but break the silence: "You..."

The well-informed and learned archbishop spoke in a muffled voice: "I'll take my time."

Agatha waited for a while and asked again: "Have you recovered?"

"...Are you sure this is it?" Bishop Ivan raised his head, his slightly yellow eyes filled with confusion, "Do you..."

"It does look ordinary - but when I tried to observe the words on the letter through the perspective of the spiritual world, I lost my memory for fifteen minutes on the spot." Agatha knew what the bishop wanted to say, and she nodded seriously. "It is surrounded by a power that mortals can hardly imagine. This plain appearance... maybe it is just the unique interest of the visitor."

Bishop Ivan was silent for a moment, as if he was still recovering, and then he slowly spoke: "The content mentioned in this letter... is disturbing. You have seen the 'Sea Petrel', and if what is said in the letter is true, then the Sea Petrel is just the beginning, and even the loss of control on Dagger Island is just the beginning... Whether it is the cultists in the city or the pollution caused by the 'Element', whether it is the return of the 'Sea Petrel' or the anomaly on Dagger Island, everything points to the deep sea and the Abyss Project half a century ago."

"I have already issued a warning to the City Hall and requested access to the secret files that have been sealed for half a century. I will also go to the church library later. In addition, I have arranged for personnel to intensify the search throughout the city to capture those cultists who are hiding," Agatha said. "But this is not enough. We must at least confirm the current situation on Dagger Island. It seems that the greater source of pollution is on that island."

Bishop Ivan thought for a moment and sighed softly: "If everything points to the Abyss Plan... the appearance of the Sea Mist Fleet near Frost at this moment seems to explain it."

"...Do you think that all this was part of the Frost Queen's plan?" Agatha frowned. "Is it because she left some order to that 'Iron Vice Admiral' that the Sea Mist Fleet appeared today?"

"I'm not sure," Bishop Ivan shook his head, then suddenly looked up at Agatha's eyes, "Agatha, in your opinion, what is the image of the Frost Queen?"

Agatha hesitated for a moment, and said while thinking, "A once great ruler, but after a brief glorious reign, she was infected and bewitched by the power of the deep sea and degenerated into a dangerous 'Mad King'. Because of her willful behavior, Frost established a connection with the horror of the deep sea. Even after half a century, her terrible plan still needs to be completely sealed and forbidden to be known by any ordinary person. Her life is both tragic and dangerous."

"It's a very standard answer. As a young person with sufficient authority to access some materials from half a century ago, your summary is quite accurate." Bishop Ivan nodded, but then changed the subject, "But you haven't really experienced all of that."

Agatha said nothing, but just looked at the archbishop in front of her quietly.

"I have experienced it. That year, I was 26 years old and was still an ordinary bishop in a small church in the dock area. You know? That small church is right next to the test site of the Abyss Project. I even held a blessing ceremony for some soldiers and officers. Later I learned that those soldiers and officers came to the church to receive blessings because they were going to come into contact with the 'submersible'."

Bishop Ivan spoke slowly, his voice low and gentle, as if a tributary was flowing out from the river of memories. Those things from long ago that could not be told to ordinary people were told bit by bit from under the overlapping bandages.

"After the rebels broke through the palace, most of the information about the Abyss Project was sealed. In addition, the panic caused by the cliff collapse at the beheading site destroyed most of the information about the Abyss Project. So even a 'gatekeeper' with authority like you can only access the most superficial information. If I tell you now that the Frost Queen actually came to the chapel the night before the city-state guards launched the attack and asked me to hold a funeral ceremony for her... what would you think?"

Agatha's eyes suddenly widened.

"She was called the 'Mad Queen' - indeed, her behavior in the last few months was really no different from 'crazy'. The entire plan had completely gone out of control, and people were missing, dying, and going crazy every day, but she continued to push forward the project. She even closed the palace and imprisoned the last ministers who were willing to give advice. She ordered the military police to block the port and arrest those who wanted to escape from the Frost... With these actions in the first place, the subsequent uprising was a natural consequence. She was destined not to have a good end as queen...

"But even so, I don't think she was ever 'crazy'... She was very sober, even..."

Bishop Ivan suddenly stopped, as if recalling those long-ago events overwhelmed his mind, or perhaps he was looking for the right words to describe the strangeness he felt back then. After a few seconds, he continued, "In fact, it was like he was the only sober person in the entire city-state."

Agatha leaned forward without realizing it. "Why do you say that?"

"She walked into the church without any entourage, with clear eyes, as if she had known her fate, and she came to the icon of Bartók herself, lit incense for herself, and then came over and patted my shoulder - just like this."

Bishop Ivan raised his arms, as if recreating the scene half a century ago.

"She patted me and said, 'Wake up, you're the only one in town with your eyes open - come and do me a favor, I'm dying.'"

Agatha felt that her breathing was suddenly a little difficult, just like a pause in her breathing between sleep and wakefulness. Then, in the next moment, she couldn't help but put her hand on her forehead and felt her heart pounding. She didn't know how to react. After a few seconds of silence, she could only ask the most direct question of her confusion: "You are the only one in the city who still has your eyes open... What does this sentence mean?"

"I still don't fully understand it," Bishop Ivan sighed, his voice muffled under the bandages. "She asked me to wake up - but I was awake all the time, and after that, she didn't explain anything to me, just told me to follow her orders... She lay on the morgue, like a dead person, and then... I held a funeral ceremony for her."

"How can a living person hold a funeral ceremony?" Agatha stared in disbelief. "Your ceremony... was really completed?"

"Of course, a living person cannot hold a funeral ceremony. I just followed her instructions and completed the entire process. Naturally, nothing happened after the ceremony." Bishop Ivan shook his head. "I think the ceremony is meaningless, but the Frost Queen seems to have achieved her goal. She left just like that. Before leaving, she told me something..."

"One thing?"

"She told me not to tell anyone about what happened that night, otherwise the rebels would definitely kill me. When she said this, it was still 24 hours before the first city-state guard attacked the arsenal."

Agatha fell silent. After an unknown amount of time, she finally spoke in a low voice: "You never told me this..."

"I never told anyone," Bishop Ivan said calmly. "At that time I was just a minor bishop."

"But you later became the bishop of the city-state. No one can judge you for your involvement back then. This secret..."

"I intend to take this secret to my grave, so why should I tell it out?" Bishop Ivan raised his head, his cloudy and yellow left eye staring at Agatha's eyes quietly, "I know this matter is very serious - the queen has long known about the actions of the rebels, and even happily accepted her own death. This fact can shock many people... But apart from its own shocking nature, it has no meaning. The Abyss Project will still be blocked, and the stable order of the city-state is the most important thing for the vast majority of citizens. No one will care what a queen who has been executed thought or did in the end. And there is another more important reason..."

Bishop Ivan paused for a moment and exhaled softly.

"There is a more important reason - the Abyss Project is over, the Queen's Era is over, and everything is settled. At least... this is what I have been thinking for the past fifty years."