Chapter 1
Rapid footsteps shattered the silence within the cathedral. A middle-aged divine official, clad in a deep blue robe with golden纹 (wén) patterns, moved like a gust of wind through the long corridor. Under the silent gaze of numerous sages on the murals lining the walls, he arrived at the door of the prayer room. But before he could knock, a gentle female voice came from within: "Enter."

The middle-aged divine official pushed open the door and saw the figure standing before the statue of the Storm Goddess. Helena was dressed in a simple divine official's robe, her wrist adorned with a string of aquamarine beads. She seemed to have been engaged in fervent prayer until the moment before. Hearing the sound of the door opening behind her, she didn't turn around, but continued to quietly gaze at the veiled face of the goddess's statue, and softly asked, "What's the situation outside?"

"The dusk continues, the sun remains in its original position, maintaining a 'normal' brightness and shape," the middle-aged divine official immediately reported, bowing his head. "Order within the city-state is maintained. As the situation is currently unclear, most citizens have returned home to await further instructions. There are also no immediate abnormalities in the Ark. Four teams of tech-priests are standing by near the steam boilers."

Helena nodded gently, seemingly lost in thought. After a moment, she suddenly asked, "What about the other Arks?"

"Contact was made several minutes ago. Everything on the Arks is normal. The Academy Ark reported that their observation equipment received a series of repeated signals from the direction of the sun, different from the previous signals. When converted to sound, they are sharp, short bursts of noise..."

Helena "hmm"-ed, then fell silent, continuing to quietly gaze at the goddess's statue, as if she had forgotten the middle-aged divine official still awaiting instructions beside her. Several minutes later, she murmured to herself, "A long dusk..."

Talan Eyal frowned, looking at the data that his apprentice had just delivered. The long paper tape, automatically recorded by the machine, was filled with a dizzying array of curves and seemingly random holes, which presented the current state of "Anomaly 001 - The Sun" that had long illuminated and sheltered this world.

After a long time, the elven scholar finally put down the paper tape, wearily rubbing his temples, remaining silent for a long while.

A calm voice came from the side: "Tell me the situation, Talan."

Talan Eyal looked up and saw Ted Riel standing by the bookshelf. The Truth Keeper was wearing an Academy robe, but beneath it, close-fitting soft armor and weapon holsters could be seen. He stood there seemingly calmly, but his eyes were as sharp as those of a soldier about to enter the battlefield.

"...The sun is flickering. Although it is not discernible to the naked eye, it is indeed flickering, and not in the form of regular 'signals'. It's more like a... faulty lightbulb," Talan Eyal licked his dry lips, pushing the data aside. "Also, the latest tracking records show that it is not completely stationary on the horizon, but is still moving, only... very, very slowly, so slow that it is imperceptible to the naked eye."

Ted Riel was silent for two or three seconds: "...How slow?"

"If the current speed remains unchanged, it will fall below the horizon in approximately seventy-two hours," Talan Eyal said, reaching for a water glass, but nearly knocking it over. He hurriedly grasped the glass, took two large gulps of the cold tea, and his face improved slightly. "But the worst part is not the seventy-two hours of dusk that will follow, but what will happen after dusk, Ted. You understand my meaning."

"...What is longer than dusk is the night," Ted Riel's expression instantly turned grave. He of course understood the meaning of his friend's words. "If it continues at this speed, how long will the ensuing night last?"

Talan Eyal did not answer. He simply put down the teacup and stared intently at the papers before him, as if trying to see the future of the world from those papers, as if trying to carve out some enemy's secret from the paper. After a long time, he showed a bitter smile and spread his hands to Ted.

"...I will arrange for the Knowledge Guardians to prepare," Ted Riel quietly looked at his friend for a moment, gently nodded. "We have contingency plans for continuous missions after unexpectedly falling into long-term darkness. The 'glowing fallen object' next to Lightwind Port will also provide basic shelter in the night. The situation will not be too bad."

"Yes, the situation in Lightwind Port will not be too bad—other city-states are not so certain," after a moment of silence, Talan Eyal sighed softly. "Unlike the previous time when the sun went out and various city-states directly 'skipped time,' this time we are facing the sun slowing down, and all city-states are experiencing this world-class anomaly... I don't know how they will face the long night ahead."

"Every city-state has survival plans for extreme situations, but how much they can achieve is another matter... We can only pray, hoping that the Four Gods will protect them."

Ted said in a low voice, then shook his head, picked up the thick book recording many miracles, seemingly intending to open a passage and leave this place, but he suddenly hesitated again, put the book away again, and after a sigh, turned and walked towards the door.

Talan quietly watched the back of the Truth Keeper, as if seeing off a warrior preparing to go to the battlefield. Only when the other's figure disappeared on the other side of the door did he withdraw his gaze, his eyes sweeping over the data that he had just pushed aside.

At the end of one page of data, in slightly trembling handwriting, an observer's record was left:

"...According to current calculations... seventy-two hours until the end of sunset..."

Outside the nearby French window, the golden sunset still spread across the roofs of the city-state, magnificent and glorious.

Then, he heard the illusory and ethereal tolling of a bell.

The bell was urgent, repeating rhythmically, as if calling out to everyone who heard it, calling people to come and listen to this announcement before nightfall—

Deep within the Prunnd Cathedral, Archbishop Valentine, who was discussing with Governor Dante Wayne how to respond to this solar anomaly, suddenly stopped, listening intently to the sudden emergence of the bell.

Governor Dante, sitting across from Valentine, immediately looked up: "Your Eminence? What's happening?"

Valentine gently waved his hand and, after a slight hesitation, replied, "It is the Swift Bell."

"The Swift Bell?" Dante's expression immediately changed slightly. Although he was not a cleric of the church, he knew many things related to the church because of Vanna, and naturally knew what the "Swift Bell" was. "Then..."

However, Valentine shook his head: "No, let us continue, Governor."

"...Are you not going to respond to the summoning of the 'Swift Bell'?"

"Do not respond," Valentine slowly said, as if recalling many things in an instant, but in the end, he shook his head. "That is an order."

Do not respond to the bell, do not respond to the Tomb of the Nameless King, do not respond to the call of the Tomb Keeper—

The bell continued to repeat, in every city-state, every church, every ship, in the minds of every cleric who believed in the Four Gods, the urgent and repetitive bell rang again and again.

The clerics stopped what they were doing at the moment the bell rang, but after a brief pause, everyone returned to their busy work—continuing to receive and comfort believers who came to seek help, continuing to maintain sacred objects and churches, continuing to prepare blessings for the warriors, in order to cope with the potentially very long night ahead.

The bell was like the wind in their ears and the distant waves of the sea, echoing in the distance, but no cleric responded to its call again...

And in that distant other dimension, in the ancient gathering place shrouded in darkness and chaos, the last of the ascetics stationed here were quietly watching the center of the plaza.

Huge, towering stone pillars surrounded the gathering place. Streams of chaotic light flashed across the dim sky. The ancient, pale pyramid tomb rose from the center of the plaza. In the desolate and abandoned center of the gathering place, the Tomb Keeper, wrapped in bandages as if forever between life and death, walked out and stood in the empty and deserted gathering place.

However, unlike the past millennia, there were no more saints standing here. The Tomb Keeper held a pen and paper in his hand, but no one came to listen to the message from the tomb.

The ascetics stood far from the center of the plaza, at a safe distance. Their bodies were covered with rune tattoos symbolizing the blessings of the Four Gods. Their eyes and ears had been sealed by incantations. They sensed the situation in the tomb through God-given miracles to avoid directly witnessing the figure of the Tomb Keeper, and to avoid directly hearing his voice.

The Tomb Keeper walked a few steps forward in front of the tomb. A huge shadow grew from behind him. Unspeakable limbs and distorted things spread out like undulating mud along his footsteps. He came to the ascetics and held out a piece of parchment. Trembling eyeballs constantly appeared on the parchment. He opened his rotten, deformed mouth, and called out to the ascetic wardens—

His voice was like ten thousand blasphemous and contaminating curses. Each vibration carried the power to gouge the heart and destroy reason.

The ascetic wardens simply stood quietly outside the tomb's perimeter, like statues, silently "watching" the tomb's guardian.

They could not respond in any way, could not conduct any communication, but could not leave this post either.

The invisible and bizarre wriggling shadow slowly calmed down. After a long confrontation, the Tomb Keeper lowered his head, his cloudy eyes staring at the parchment in his hand. He was silent for a long time, and finally slowly turned around and walked towards the tomb.

Layers upon layers of low murmurs came from within the tomb. The Tomb Keeper's whispers gradually overlapped with the voices coming from within the tomb.

He was muttering softly, repeating over and over again—

"Dusk has arrived..."

(End of Chapter)