Due to the adventure with the Time Key, Shard learned that during the Fifth Era, there were at least five continents known as "East, West, South, North, and Center," along with numerous islands like the "Shattered Isles" overseas. This can also be confirmed from other available documents.

As for why there are only the Old Continent and the newly discovered New World in the Sixth Era, the views in the Circle Sorcerer academic circle vary. But it can be determined that the current "Old Continent" shares the most commonalities with the "Midland" of the Fifth Era, although it also exhibits features from other regions.

If we use "space" folding to explain this phenomenon, it becomes clear.

"World folding... Will there be omens of the overlap between North and South cities of Green Lake?"

"Of course, there are omens, everything now is an omen. Indeed, the most precise omen should be the emergence of numerous spatial anomalies within the city, followed by the phenomenon where people arrive at the North Shore from the South Shore or vice versa without using any power. Starting from here, more and more people experience this ’North-South Shift,’ followed by views of the North City seen from the South City and vice versa, walking out from the streets of Green Lake City into the shops of Mikaela Ironworks City, and walking out from the shops in Mikaela Ironworks City into Green Lake City Hall... The spatial order gradually collapses until it finally merges into one.

Iluna didn’t know what happened to Dorothy yesterday, but Shard did:

"Someone has already traveled from North City to South City."

Iluna nodded:

"I’m not surprised at all. Moreover, according to the Prophet’s Society’s current observations, actually... Laplace Klein Howard has been repairing and maintaining the seal on the Central Island in this region ever since he arrived here. Even though the secrets of the Edwards Family gradually surfaced over a month ago, he has been maintaining the seal on Green Lake Central Island, or else the situation would have deteriorated more than it has now."

The two didn’t discuss too much here, and Shard soon returned to Miss Danester’s side and quickly followed the professors to visit the Believer of Old God [Blazar Gate].

That was a middle-aged woman about the same age as Dr. Schneider, living as a landlord, sustaining her life by collecting rent. Saying she’s a Believer of the Old God is not very accurate because the deity’s Order had long vanished, and the teacher of the woman’s teacher only occasionally found relics of the Order, which allowed them to be the factual inheritors.

Having heard the most detailed intel from Iluna earlier, Shard didn’t pay special attention to the professors’ conversation with the middle-aged woman. Once the meeting was over, he bid farewell to Miss Danester and headed back to Green Lake Hotel.

The professors from Saint Byrons Integrated Academy also had significant findings this morning. At least in Miss Danester’s view, the few records related to Old God "Blazar Gate" preserved in the Academy Library, even the records about the Shield that enveloped the entire Academy City at the early stages of the Academy’s establishment, might hold other value.

Shard returned to Green Lake Hotel by noon and encountered Dorothy on the third floor, where Miss Sylvia had just finished setting up a special ritual to stabilize the hotel room:

"There shouldn’t be any issue. You can try ’Lagre’s Leap’ here later and experience the power of the ritual. This stabilized spatial power only encompasses this one room. Shard, you weren’t thinking of keeping Miss Luisa in the room all the time without going out, were you?"

The Black-haired Witch reminded him.

"Indeed, I had that thought, but I respect Dorothy’s freedom."

He then looked at Dorothy, the golden-haired young lady holding little Mia was indifferent:

"I used to not leave home for days when rushing manuscripts before. Anyway, it’s constantly raining outside, and staying in the hotel is also fine. I’m not in a hurry to return to Tobesk; I’ll take a stroll around the local area after matters have been settled."

Yesterday afternoon, Shard’s "pledge" kneeling on one knee to Lecia made her feel good, yet her beautiful emerald eyes still carried other worries:

"But... What about the other person?"

Miss Sylvia might not understand, but Shard understood what she meant. However, given Lecia’s status, she couldn’t stay in a small room without going out, so Angelina and Tifa had to stay by her side for the time being.

Lecia and Tifa discreetly arrived at Green Lake Hotel at around two in the afternoon. Tifa was sent by Miss Galina to confirm whether the Ritual Core in the basement was completed. The Grand Witches’ renovation plan for this hotel proceeded smoothly, finishing the most important parts within just a few days.

As for Lecia, Shard got her to come here through Dorothy, though the reason wasn’t disclosed, but Lecia didn’t mind meeting Shard. Especially after yesterday afternoon’s events, Her Highness the Princess wished she could be with Shard all day long.

It’s just that the arrangements Shard made for her were a bit odd. He had Lecia tell Dorothy upstairs to have Miss Writer holding Mia stand by the window, while he himself took a short walk with Lecia on the street outside Green Lake Hotel, discussing the matters of Saturday’s Day of the Red Butterfly.

Now the situation in the Green Lake region is unstable. The Day of the Red Butterfly can only be temporarily postponed, and both Lecia and Dorothy can accept this. However, they still cannot figure out what exactly Shard wanted to do by summoning Lecia here this afternoon. This is because afterward, Shard brought Lecia to Miss Tifa and Miss Sylvia in the basement, then informed Dorothy in the room upstairs that she didn’t need to stand by the window.

He himself then hurriedly stepped into the rain once more and got into the carriage parked across the street.

"They are candidates, though they are not high in the sequence. The placement of your pair of butterflies should be ahead of theirs."

The purple-eyed girl who had been waiting in the carriage for some time gave the answer:

"I immediately arrived at this conclusion after seeing them together. However, since this validates the situation you guessed from the start, what are you going to do about it?"

"Preparations have already been made. I have a way to separate souls. When the time comes, even if they really proceed with the Chosen One Ceremony, I will forcibly separate them."

If Lecia and Dorothy proceed with the ceremony, it signifies more than just their entanglement with fate; their merged souls may never be separated again.

"As long as you’ve thought it through yourself. Today is Thursday, and you may not be able to see me before the weekend ends. On Saturday, the large-scale divination ceremony of the association will begin, and I can’t easily leave the lakeside camp."

"I understand, and you take care as well."

Shard gently embraced Luviya; while the purple-eyed girl responded with a gentle hum, she distinctly noticed that Dorothy on the third floor was still gazing at the outside scenery through the window, looking a bit bored.

That afternoon, Shard stayed at the Green Lake Hotel, learning about the almost completed renovations that endowed the building with new functions, convenient for effectively utilizing this crucial stronghold in the event of war.

Tifa left with Lecia around three o’clock, and by evening, Miss Sylvia at the hotel and Audrey who arrived at four entered the Witch Council for a meeting. All afternoon, strange noises intermittently echoed in the city. It seemed as if someone was fighting in the distance, just too far for Shard to confirm, though he could only speculate that the church had encountered an enemy.

Before the meeting of the Grand Witch ended, Shard unexpectedly met Sister Delphine. This happened around five in the afternoon, while Shard listened to Dorothy talk about Lecia’s preparations for advancement to the Six Rings in his room. Just then, the door knocked, and upon opening, he saw the blind nun with her silver eyepatch standing outside.

Surprised, Shard welcomed her, and of course, Dorothy remembered the last time she saw this remarkable nun at the Shard family when yawning and stepping out of the bedroom. It made the usually adept novelist stutter slightly when greeting the nun, blushing even more:

"I’m off to the kitchen downstairs to get some tea."

As for Sister Delphine’s visit, apart from informing that Granny Cassandra and them would arrive tomorrow, and besides her, the number of Circle Sorcerers from the Spiritual Practice Order coming, more importantly, what she "saw" by the Green Lake Shore regarding the island:

"Primal Fire is on the island."

"Yes."

Shard briefly explained the information obtained from Mr. Nicholas Green and the Old God Believers earlier that morning;

"Over the years, the stability of the island’s space depended on the Primal Fire and what Mr. Green described as a ’kerosene lamp.’ The latter should be some powerful relic or divine item, but that’s not important. Since the flame of Primal Fire is here, let it return to the flame in your hands. Later, like sealing the Interstice of Life and Death, I’ll use Maze Lock here to seal the Green Lake Central Island."

In normal circumstances, even if Shard obtained enough spirit to activate Maze Lock, sealing such a troublesome thing might not be feasible. After all, Maze Lock is not omnipotent, and Shard only has Six Rings. But briefly during ascension when the spirit rune is infused with divinity, he is almost in a state equivalent to "Divinity Overflow," fully capable of sealing.

Not to mention, both the Night Watchman and Yggdrasil’s Staff can greatly enhance spellcasting ability, and the latter, being wood itself, has a special enhancement effect on tree-related abilities... This was what the long-haired girl in the dream said.

Sister Delphine wouldn’t doubt Shard’s ability to accomplish these things; she just sat on the sofa, nodding slightly. For some reason, even in such a small room, her voice seemed to echo as if in a vast ritual site:

"My eyes can ’see’ that the instability of Green Lake space has reached its limit. At most ten days, the issue here must be resolved."