Rita and Nivalis spoke about Deceitful Bloom so casually that even By ended up laughing along.
Rita couldn’t help but wonder if Deceitful Bloom had ever clearly explained their history to By. But more likely, this Vineborne simply had no interest in getting involved in whatever existed between the two of them.
Either way, Rita had no intention of discussing it.
If soone had been personally buried here by Deceitful Bloom, their relationship couldn’t have been shallow.
Rita asked, "Are there any rules for being buried in the Graveyard of Bones?"
If even the owners of divine relics were buried here, then beings like Lynx Duke must be here too.
So what about soone like By, who clearly hadn’t participated in the final war between Starsea and Quiet Mountain?
Or did it an that as long as a player had begun detaching from divine authority before death, they could be buried here? That would be far too many...
"Only players who have pushed their divine talent to one hundred percent at the mont of death qualify to be buried here," By explained. "A fragnt of their will is preserved.
"That ans their soul fire has been fully ignited and can no longer be extinguished. They are eligible to be recorded within the Clock of Order and beco part of it."
Rita’s gaze shifted to By’s forehead.
The outline of soul fire appeared there, already fully ignited.
"That’s another problem," By said, sounding troubled. "When I finished Divine Instruction, I had only reached thirty percent."
She had lost part of her mory. Everything after the third Bell. Including how she had pushed her divine talent to completion.
Rita said with certainty, "You think Deceitful Bloom tampered with that too."
"Exactly." By nodded, clearly displeased. After a pause, she added, "She’s always been like that. Ever since she was young. She likes controlling everything."
Rita added, "She’s the sa now. And she lies a lot."
By pressed her lips together in a faint smile. She almost looked... proud?
Still, she spoke in Deceitful Bloom’s defense.
"It’s possible that what she did to my divine talent mories was just incidental."
After satisfying her curiosity, Rita shared what she knew.
"I’ve seen a scene from the final war between Starsea and Quiet Mountain. Quiet Mountain’s Deceitful Bloom said to her, ’You’re the last Vineborne in Starsea. Who are you still fighting for?’"
If there were still so many Vineborne alive after the third Bell, and they even controlled a world, then what could possibly wipe them out?
The answer was obvious.
The Bells.
So why did Deceitful Bloom force By to invade Tingo at this exact point every ti?
Was invading Tingo the key to preventing Midsumr’s destruction?
Or was she trying to correct so past mistake?
Rita ran through possibilities.
By did the sa, but she didn’t seem surprised by this information.
After a while, she shifted the topic.
"Deceitful Bloom never gives answers. But later, I encountered a few gods buried here in the Graveyard of Bones."
"You can et other wills here?"
"Of course. Ti is limited, but everyone is buried within different segnts. Sotis those segnts overlap. Even if it’s just one second, if we appear in the sa place at that mont and touch, we can enter each other’s ti."
It sounded both deeply romantic and deeply tragic.
If ti overlapped, then even in isolation, two dead wills could et by chance.
But if it didn’t... they would never et at all.
Rita, when she wanted to be, was a good conversationalist.
"They shouldn’t be afraid of Deceitful Bloom. Did they tell you anything about the Vineborne? Or did they not know anything about your era either?"
By hesitated, then slowly shook her head.
"Every ti we et, we discuss this. There’s no shortage of ti here, so they’re happy to pass it like that.
"We also considered that invading Tingo might be tied to the future of the Vineborne."
At that mont, the scene around them shifted.
Like paint spreading through water, everything dissolved and reford.
Rita and By appeared above the battlefield of Tingo.
It was the first ti Rita had seen Tingo in a non-desert form.
An endless ocean stretched out. Whales danced between sea and sky, guiding towering waves.
But it lasted only a few seconds.
The scene shifted again.
They were back in Midsumr. Back in the castle study.
The invasion had ended.
Rita frowned slightly.
"She doesn’t care about the result? Or she can’t simulate too many possibilities?"
"I don’t know," By said. "She can co here and seal my mories. I don’t know what her limits are."
Rita returned to the earlier question.
"What’s Deceitful Bloom’s divine talent? I’m not interested in her privacy. I just want the answer, so I can get my reward."
To show she was serious, she added,
"I’m not threatening you. But I won’t stay here forever.
"You know how bad things are in Starsea after the third Bell. This ga doesn’t last long either. If I don’t find the answer before the next connection to reality, I’ll leave. After I find Lynx Duke, I’ll co back."
She deliberately ntioned Lynx Duke.
But By’s expression didn’t change. No such luck. Either their tilines didn’t overlap, or they simply had no connection.
By wasn’t upset.
"I really don’t know. She never told anyone."
Seeing Rita’s look, By explained,
"I didn’t tell her either.
"After Divine Instruction, she said we should play a ga. Guess each other’s divine talents."
She spoke with a trace of nostalgia.
Rita imdiately said, "So what’s your divine talent?"
By stared at her.
"...Do you have any sense of timing at all?"
Rita replied, "...I’m not dead yet. I’m in a hurry. If I end up buried here one day, I’ll chat with you for a whole year."
By sighed.
"...I understand Deceitful Bloom now."
Rita nodded.
"I don’t. So what’s your divine talent?"
By shook her head.
"Find hers first. Then I’ll tell you mine. I can take you to other points in my tiline."
It was a sincere offer, but there was a problem.
"Even if I find what I think is the answer, how do we confirm it’s correct?" Rita said.
"That’s why I only asked you to find out why she made invade Tingo. Not her divine talent."
"But without knowing her talent, it’s hard to analyze that! Your talents could be the key."
"Then analyze."
"How am I supposed to analyze without knowing them?"
"Then go find them."
"...."
Rita pressed a hand to her forehead.
"Then at least tell yours."
"Find hers first."
"...."
...
Toy Palace.
Deceitful Bloom had just picked up a windpipe when a familiar voice spoke behind her.
"Sotis I think you and BS Rita are oddly compatible."
"What do you an?"
"You haven’t checked on Graveyard of Bones? That’s rare."
"I just finished dealing with Ashveil and Boiling Orange. What about it?"
"Oh, she just entered and landed straight into By’s tiline."
Deceitful Bloom’s eyes curved into a smile, and it only grew brighter.
"I’m really looking forward to seeing them talk. I wonder which one is more stubborn."
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