Richard drew a horizontal line in his notebook, comparing this information with his own experience.
His shadow had demonstrated the ability to act independently after the Ether Field activated.
The people of the Black Earth River Basin believed the shadow itself was an independent component of the soul.
These two pieces of information pointed to the same conclusion: the shadow was not a projection, but a tangible entity.
The second book was an excerpt from the Hermes Collection.
The contents of this book were much more abstract than the first.
Hermes Trismegistus, also known as Triumphal Hermes, was a central figure in the classical Mysticism tradition.
According to legend, he was both Thoth, the God of Wisdom, and Hermes, the Messenger God—the two made one.
One of the core doctrines of the Hermes Collection:
"As above, so below. As within, so without."
Richard applied this principle to the relationship between "man and shadow":
Man is "above"—corporeal, luminous, acting in the material world.
The shadow is "below"—incorporeal, Lightless, acting on the other side of the material world.
Another passage in the excerpt from the collection also caught his attention:
"Where there is light, there must be shadow. The stronger the light, the deeper the shadow.
The two share the same foundation, like two sides of the same coin."
Richard underlined this passage twice.
The third book was the children’s edition of mythological stories.
Its academic value was almost nil, but it had one merit: it simplified complex mythological narratives into their most basic frameworks.
One story in particular caught his eye.
It told the story of the Sun God Ra and his journey through the Netherworld aboard the Sun Ship.
Every night, Ra’s Sun Ship would sink into the Netherworld from the west and rise again from the east.
During his passage through the Netherworld, Ra had to face all sorts of enemies and obstacles.
His greatest enemy was Apophis, the Chaos Serpent, who tried to devour the Sun Ship every night.
But there was a detail in the story: in the Netherworld, Ra did not travel in his daytime form.
By day, Ra was the brilliant Sun God, crowned with the solar disc, radiating boundless light.
By night, Ra was an old man with the head of a ram, his back stooped, leaning on his Wands.
The author of the children’s book had added a note here:
"Some Scholars believe that the nighttime Ra is actually the daytime Ra’s shadow—Shute.
By day, Ra illuminates the world with light; by night, his shadow crosses the darkness in his stead."
Richard closed the children’s book.
He synthesized the information from the three books in his mind.
The people of the Black Earth River Basin believed the shadow (Shute) was an independent component of the soul, and that after death, Shute continued to exist in the Netherworld.
The Hermes Collection posited that man and shadow are mirror images of each other, sharing the same foundation of existence, yet each is independent.
The myth of the Sun God Ra implied that a shadow could act in its master’s place in another realm.
He considered all this in conjunction with the Sphinx’s riddle.
The surface-level answer to the riddle was "man."
The deeper answer was "the symbiosis of man and shadow."
This understanding stood in stark contrast to his own experience.
His own shadow had indeed shown an independent will.
But the first thing it did upon coming to life was try to choke him.
’What kind of "symbiosis" is that?’
Richard drew a question mark in his notebook after this conclusion.
Perhaps the relationship between him and his shadow hadn’t yet reached the "symbiosis" stage.
Perhaps their relationship was currently closer to a "confrontation."
But this didn’t affect his answer to the riddle.
The Sphinx was asking about a universal law, not his specific, personal situation.
He closed his notebook and returned the three books to the shelf.
As he walked out of the library, a light rain was falling.
His shadow was almost invisible on the overcast day. Without a direct light source, it was as faint as a thin layer of mist.
Richard glanced down at the blurry gray outline at his feet.
’See you tonight,’ he said in his mind.
That night, at 9:40 PM.
The door was bolted, and a handkerchief was stuffed into the crack.
Lying in bed, Richard chose to enter.
His consciousness once again plunged into darkness.
Black water appeared at his feet, with an inverted surface of water overhead.
About fifty paces ahead, the stone door appeared before him.
The mouth of the Sphinx bas-relief on the lintel opened. Thankfully, there was no new riddle this time:
"The deeper answer."
Richard formed the conclusions he had pondered all day into words and pushed them to the forefront of his consciousness.
"The shadow is not man’s servant, nor is man the shadow’s master."
"Shadow and man share existence, each with its own will, mutually dependent."
"The third leg is the shadow’s choice, not man’s need."
He thought for a moment, then added:
"When the shadow lengthens at dusk, it is not only because the light forces it to stretch, but also because it chooses to offer aid when man is at his weakest."
The mouth of the Sphinx on the lintel closed.
Silence.
Richard began to wonder if he had answered incorrectly.
The next moment, the bas-relief moved.
It nodded.
The movement was minuscule, but in this near-motionless space, the gesture seemed exceptionally solemn.
Text appeared on the surface of the stone door once more.
This time, it wasn’t a few fragmented lines, but a complete, clearly structured piece of information.
The text began to emerge from the center of the wall, arranging itself line by line:
"Shadow Reversal (Inversio Umbrae)"
"Nature: Tradition of Change (Fragment)."
"Effect: Reverses a mastered Technique into its shadow version. The shadow version’s effect is a distorted reflection of the original Technique, with specific manifestations varying based on the original."
"Limitation: Each Technique can only be reversed once. The reversed shadow version is an independent Technique that exists parallel to the original, without interference."
The text remained on the wall for about ten seconds before slowly fading away.
Richard burned every word into his mind.
The space began to darken—the same exit process as yesterday.
The ashen-white light faded, the outline of the stone door blurred, and a pulling force came from behind him.
When he opened his eyes, he was still lying in bed.
The blanket was pulled up to his chest, his posture identical to before.
He turned his head to look at the pocket watch on the nightstand. It was 11:20 PM.
It felt about right.
He felt no discomfort; in fact, he felt a little more refreshed than before he entered.
Richard lay in bed, staring at the ceiling.
’Shadow Reversal... reverses a mastered Technique into its shadow version.’
’A "mastered Technique." The condition is very specific.’
’What Techniques have I mastered so far?’
’Strictly speaking, only one: the Fog Wall Technique.’
He had used it once on Central Avenue. The effect was immediate, but so were the side effects, which affected several innocent passersby and nearly caused a huge mess.
’If I could reverse the Fog Wall Technique into its shadow version...’ Richard sat up in bed.
He didn’t turn on the light. Closing his eyes in the darkness, he sank his consciousness into the panel.
At the bottom of the panel, the line of text for Shadow Reversal glowed quietly, the font size the same as a Skill tag.
He tried to touch it with his consciousness.
A short instruction manual floated up:
"Select a mastered Technique and confirm reversal."
A blank selection box was listed below.
Richard focused his attention on "Fog Wall Technique," trying to push it into the selection box.
The panel didn’t react.
The selection box remained motionless, and the name "Fog Wall Technique" did not appear inside it.
He tried again. Still no reaction.
On his third try, he changed his approach and simply recited "Fog Wall Technique" in his mind.
This time, the panel responded, but not in the way he had hoped.
A line of small gray text appeared below the selection box:
"This item does not meet the reversal conditions."
"Reason: Not an Official Technique."
Richard stared at the gray text for a long time.
’Not an Official Technique.’
He mentally reviewed all the information he had on the Fog Wall Technique.
’What did Mr. Hutton say when he gave it to me?’
"A little trick, not a proper Technique."
’The core of the entire process was the Ashen Grass itself. Ashen Grass was a plant that grew in Ether-polluted areas and contained trace amounts of residual Ether.’
’Strictly speaking, this isn’t Casting, it’s just lighting a fire.’
’The Ashen Grass is the match, the Breathing Technique is striking the match, and the flame is the Ether carried within the grass itself.’
’The Caster’s own Ether is barely involved in the process at all.’
’So what is a true Technique?’
’The Technique recorded on the Gargoyle should be one.’
Richard collapsed the notification on the panel and leaned back against the headboard.
The conditions for Shadow Reversal were stricter than he had anticipated.
It wasn’t enough to just "know how to use" it; it had to be an "Official Technique" to be reversed.
Shadow Reversal would only be useful once he fully learned the Technique from the Gargoyle.
His gaze fell on the beginning of the text for Shadow Reversal on the panel.
"Nature: Tradition of Change (Fragment)."
’Tradition of Change.’
Richard fumbled for his notebook in the nightstand drawer and flipped to the pages of notes he’d taken while deciphering *On the Ascent in the Veil*.
The five great traditions of the Sun, Furnace Fire, Abyss, Hunting Moon, and Weaving Net were the five recognized main paths in the world behind the Curtain, but "Change" was not among them.
Richard closed the notebook in the dark and put it back in the drawer.
He had initially guessed that the Sphinx, as a Gatekeeper in the mythological system of the Black Earth River Basin, should belong to the Sun Tradition.
The reasoning was straightforward.
In the myths of the Black Earth River Basin, the Sphinx crouched before the gates of the Temple, guarding the domain of the Sun God.
But the label given by the panel was the Tradition of Change—a name not among the five great traditions.
Richard’s brow furrowed.
’Not enough information. No point in overthinking it.’
’I can look for information on this "Tradition of Change" at the Imperial University Library later.’
’I’m exhausted. I need to get some rest.’
On Wednesday, Richard ran into the anxious-looking old man from the mailroom at the classroom door.
"Williams! A letter for you!"
The old man, breathing heavily, thrust a letter at him. The envelope was stamped with the address of the Dawn family.
He opened the letter. Inside was a single notecard with slender, neat handwriting.
"Mr. Williams:
Following a recommendation from the Classical Society North District Office.
Please come to 24 Helfier Road this Saturday at ten in the morning for an interview.
Sincerely, Charlotte Dawn"
The wording was polite but concise, with no unnecessary pleasantries.

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