Chapter 721 The Nobles of the Fourth Epoch
Gray...
Before coming to the appointment, Angel had communicated with the "magician" Fors through Mr. Fool, and learned the name and appearance of the descendant of Abraham's family whom he was about to meet, thus confirming that the person in front of him was not lying.
Because of this, Angel felt a little emotional when she heard the middle name, but she quickly adjusted herself, nodded, walked forward, sat down in the chair opposite Dorian, and said:
"Then, I suppose you have already learned my identity from Ms. Wall."
She did not hide her appearance this time because the "magician" Fors Wall had probably already told her teacher that she was the "Golden Queen". Concealing the truth would only cause suspicion on both sides. Moreover, Angel needed this name to increase the credibility of her communication with the other party.
A renowned pirate queen is always more trustworthy than an unknown demigod who is timid and unwilling to reveal his identity.
This did not violate the Tarot Club's internal regulations not to reveal other members to the outside world. After all, neither the "Magician" nor the "Queen" revealed their identities as Tarot Club members to Dorian.
"Of course, I heard about your exploits at sea through the newspapers. I feel deeply honored to see with my own eyes your beauty, which is rumored to surpass that of a siren."
Dorian Abraham complimented him in a neither humble nor arrogant manner. Angel could tell that his words came from the heart, especially the one about his appearance. However, there was still a necessary sense of caution in his eyes, which showed that even the charm of a high-ranking witch could not make the descendant of Abraham lose his mind.
According to what the "magician" had revealed about the Abraham family, the person before him was most likely only a Sequence 7 Beyonder, no higher than Sequence 6. However, he was sophisticated and determined, and should have already digested the potion of his current sequence and completely stabilized his condition... Angel evaluated this in his heart.
Although Angel knew that the Abraham family had some means to hinder divination and peeping since she last discovered the "magician" communicating with her teacher, she still arranged a mirror substitute on her own to hide all movements in the room before getting to the point:
"As part of my reward for helping Ms. Wall kill the Aurora Society's messenger, I need to ask a few questions and learn about the history of the Fourth Epoch. Is that okay?"
"As long as it doesn't involve our family's core secrets, I will tell you everything I know."
Dorian replied with a smile, but he felt a little uneasy inside.
Based on the silent infiltration of the woman in front of him, her effortless use of large-scale mirror magic, and the rumors about the "Golden Queen" at sea, he could already conclude that she was at least a Sequence 4 "Witch" path, a "Despair" witch.
If such a Beyonder attacked me, even if I immediately used my magical item to flee the scene, I would still be severely damaged by the "disease" afterwards. Fortunately, according to rumors, she is not bloodthirsty and has only sunk a few pirate generals' flagships, not causing large-scale casualties...
Dorian, who had seen the description of the "Witch" path's abilities within his family, pretended to be indifferent and waited for the demigod's questions.
Seeing the other party's cooperation, Angel smiled a little embarrassedly and continued:
"My first question is: Do you know the 'Witch Cult'?"
"I'm actually curious, aren't you familiar with them?" Dorian replied cautiously, glancing at Angel's expression before continuing, "I believe you're not asking about them as a demonic sect, but about the 'Witch Family' of the Fourth Epoch."
He truly understood the point. It seemed that while the Abraham family had fallen into decline, its inner heritage had never been extinguished. But what did that strange look mean? Did he think I wasn't from a "witch sect," but a wild witch, or perhaps a "surrenderer" of the true God sect? Was that why he preferred to communicate in person rather than through a letter or messenger?
Angel muttered to himself and nodded.
Seeing this, Dorian poured himself a cup of coffee with one hand and continued:
"Before becoming the evil sect they are today, the witch families of the Fourth Epoch were merely one of a number of organizations hidden behind the scenes, possessing formidable power but keeping it under wraps. They firmly controlled the potions of this path and, through marriages with the nobles of the time, maintained their existence and replenished their blood. This continued throughout the rise and fall of multiple empires."
"Like Tamara, and you guys?"
Angel asked back.
"Yes, the Abraham and Tamara families are two of the five great noble families that supported the creation of the Tudor Empire and surrounded the 'Blood Emperor' Alistair Tudor. The other three are Jacob, Amon, and Antigonus."
Angel already knew some of this information from the Nighthawks' internal texts, and only wanted to inquire about the part about the Witch Family, so he guided the conversation in the following direction:
"Tell me about the marriage."
"Due to a well-known trait, the 'Witch Family' cannot reproduce on their own, so they constantly need to bring in external forces. At the time, the five great noble families, each mastering a certain path, were undoubtedly the best choice. The Antigonus were few in number, and Amon and Jacob were wary of them for some reason. As a result, the connection between Abraham, Tamara, and the Witch Family grew closer, and even a blood connection was established between the two. Before being stopped by the 'Blood Emperor', the Tamara family had already formed a branch focusing on the 'Apprentice' path, and later suffered an internal split.
"After the witches came to believe in the 'Original Witch,' this 'family,' connected by path rather than simply blood, emerged. Well, in modern terms, it's a change in path. They no longer rely on reciprocal marriages to continue their existence. Instead, they use their own path as the core, absorbing and converting some members of the Abraham and Tamara families to form a stronger and more cohesive organization.
"But until the catastrophe that changed the entire world at the end of the Fourth Epoch, they were far from being an evil sect. I believe the reason for the current changes is still related to that 'Original Witch'."
At this point, Dorian picked up his coffee cup and drank half of it despite the heat, giving himself and Angel time to rest and digest the information.
As expected, consistent with the information obtained from Mobet Zoroaster, the predecessor of the "Witch Cult," or rather, its early members, was far from its current form. Instead, it was a secret sect that secretly preached and intermarried to maintain a certain scale. The divergence between them may be related to Chike becoming the "Original Witch" and the severe damage caused to her by the Pale Calamity at the end of the Fourth Epoch...
Furthermore, I hadn't expected the relationship between the Witch Family, the Tamara Family, and the Abraham Family to be so entangled. They were intermarried, and even their own potion formulas were obtained by other families. The "Gnosis Society," which only appeared in the Fifth Epoch, might have been born from this relationship. They possessed the low-sequence formulas for "Apprentice" and "Assassin," and served as a peripheral organization for the current "Witch Cult"...
If so, are there any descendants of Tamara or Abraham's family within the current "Witch Sect", or are there some members of Tamara and Abraham's family who retain the inheritance of the "Witch" path?
Thinking about it, Angel continued to ask:
"The Tamara family seems to have disappeared since the Fifth Era. At least there's no systematic inheritance. Do you know the reason?"
Dorian chatted freely while casually drawing two different, yet partially related, heraldic designs on the table with his fingers. A stream of icy air emanated from his fingertips, and fine ice crystals quickly condensed where they touched, outlining lines that quickly dissipated.
The tricks of the "Master of Magic". Fors once said that she went to the circus to seek inspiration and performance opportunities. Could this be what she was doing? Angel smiled secretly and looked at the two emblems.
One is a vertical sword inserted into the shield, surrounded by symmetrical thorns. This is similar to the mark formed by the contract with Anne hidden in the palm of Angel's right hand, but the latter surrounds the sword and shield with scales instead of thorns.
The other is a double door, with a sword matching the other emblem serving as the gap between the doors.
Naturally, Angel pointed to the sword and shield emblem of thorns and asked:
"Is this the original coat of arms of the Tamara family?"
She confirmed this because Anne was an "Arbitrator," an angel on the "Judge" path, and the mark formed by the contract was likely to be somewhat similar to that of the Tamara family, who mainly followed the same path.
"Yes, this represents their original path of potions, the 'Judge', and the other one..." Dorian paused, an unnatural smile on his face, "is Abraham's 'Apprentice' path. You should be able to recognize its symbol. This is also another name for this path, the 'Gate'."
Door... Looking at the emblem that looked like a door that could open at any moment, Angel immediately thought of the blood curse that had appeared in the late Fourth Age of the Abraham family, which controlled this path, and the history of their decline due to it.
According to Mr. Fool, the cause of this curse is the crazy ravings of an ancestor of the Abraham family, who is called "Mr. Door"!
Is there some kind of connection between these two? Should I tell him... No, this involves a lot of information about the Tarot Club, and I can't confirm it... Angel suppressed the urge to "instruct" and waited for the traces of the emblem on the table to evaporate before continuing to ask:
“What about the Abraham family?
"If it involves confidential information, you can skip it."
Hearing this, Dorian smiled bitterly and replied:
"Aside from the identities and whereabouts of other members of our clan, we no longer have many secrets. Of course, we've lost contact with most of our family members and are scattered across the world. I don't know where they are or whether they're still alive...
"You may know from Fors that members of our family hear whispers that can cause them to lose control during full moons and blood moons. This also makes it difficult for Abrahams and others to advance to higher sequences. The same is true for those who married Tamara and embarked on the path of 'Judge'. As for those who joined the Witch Family, I have no idea.
"Now, in the Fifth Epoch, we only have two angel-level beings left. We are no match for the status of one of the five noble families during the Tudor Empire."
At this point, Dorian revealed a smile that was unclear whether it was loneliness or nostalgia.
Two angels... Angel's expression was a little stiff.
Most cult organizations do not have such treatment. Even in the Orthodox Church, angels are at the level of the Pope!
She muttered to herself, suddenly noticing the unnaturalness in Dorian's expression and look, and caught the question in his words.
Is this Abraham lying, bluffing, or unwilling to reveal the true situation of his family?
Angel's eyes narrowed slightly.
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