After packing her things and handing them over to the maid, Vera suddenly extended an invitation. "Today is the day of the Mysticism Study Group — the meeting of the Mysticism Society. Would you like to come and see it?"
"Of course," said Elena, now that she had some time after finishing her current tasks. She was also quite interested in the activities here at the club.
"Then follow me," Vera said, leading the way as they left the music room. As they walked, she began to explain the situation of the Mysticism Society.
It was said that the Mysticism Society was the oldest organization in the club. Before the Duke even founded the club, they had already researched several ritual magics in an attempt to restore their appearance. Once the club was established, the Duke immediately took the lead in gathering a group of like-minded individuals who were also focused on research. Although he was frequently monitored by his detestable uncle, which made it difficult for him to communicate with society members, he still valued the existence of the Mysticism Society very much.
At this point, Vera had to mention the Inquisition, an organization specifically tasked with hunting down beings like them and sending them to the gallows. Yes, they were not the only oddities in this world; there were also some monsters who had lost their sanity, wandering outside. However, the Inquisitors didn't care whether they were different from those monsters.
The origin of these monsters was still undetermined, but the free people speculated that they could be the result of failed ritual magic or certain curses. This made them a serious threat, as the power of the Inquisition far surpassed that of the free people. After all, the Inquisitors were the ones closest to the gods.
"Two hundred years ago, mysticism was divided into three categories," Vera explained. "Astrology, alchemy, and natural magic. In addition to these, there were various forms of divination used to connect with the twelve widely worshiped gods. But people soon realized that, aside from these twelve gods, there were also some other gods whose positions were more hidden and difficult to connect with through traditional methods. This led to the emergence of ritual magic."
Astrology involves observing the movement of the stars to interpret fate and mysterious powers. Alchemy, aside from processing specific materials, also includes creating mystical artifacts, while natural magic directly harnesses the power of nature.
Ritual magic, on the other hand, allows for direct transactions with gods. The twelve official gods grant as many wishes as they have followers, with no debts incurred. However, minor gods are different. If they don't have enough followers, a price can be paid in exchange, but this price is irreversible, and success is not guaranteed.
"So, even if we gain the favor of the goddess Hecate, we won't be able to return to our original forms," Vera said淡淡地. "The Duke realized this, which is why he turned his attention to the goddess of beauty."
"But the goddess Hecate's favor is not entirely useless," Vera continued, knocking lightly on the door at the end of the hallway. "She is the goddess of witchcraft, magic, death, and herbs. This means that we can use her favor to exchange for some protective powers. We're here."
When the door opened, they entered a space lit by flickering candlelight. The red velvet drapes on the walls created an ancient, solemn atmosphere, and the bronze candle holders added to the ambiance. In the dim light, the room appeared mysterious and dignified.
A round oak table sat in the center of the room, cluttered with various antique trinkets, including crystal balls, talismans, and wands. On the table was a large magic book, its cover decorated with golden leather and embedded with intricate runes. Surrounding the table were several ornately carved oak chairs, as if inviting members to gather together.
In one corner of the room, a small incense burner emitted a faint stream of smoke, filling the air with the scent of herbs. Nearby were candles, bottles, and jars. On the walls hung feathers, crystal beads, and complex ancient symbols, each carefully crafted.
"Welcome," a figure dressed in a long robe stood up and approached them. "Welcome to the Mysticism Society. Vera, is this the famous Elena?"
"The famous Elena?" Elena blushed in embarrassment, only able to smile and bow as Vera introduced her. "Yes, this is my friend Elena. It's her first time attending a meeting of the Mysticism Society."
The other member returned the bow and replied, "Yes, you are right. The situation is becoming more and more serious. Everyone needs to learn some knowledge of mysticism."
The other members welcomed them and invited them to sit.
An older member began to explain the current research progress. It was well known that the Church and the Inquisition had strictly forbidden the private study of mysticism, not only ritual magic but also astrology, alchemy, and natural magic were under ban.
They had their reasons. After all, if ritual magic failed, people could turn into monsters, and applying other forms of knowledge could complicate law enforcement, as there were no police in this place.
For those who wanted to study this knowledge, however, it was full of challenges. First, they had to find some ancient books, often written in equally ancient languages. Luckily, these languages shared some similarities with Latin, so by deciphering them, they could roughly understand the meanings. Two such translated books were deciphered by the Duke.
Then, they had to find the materials needed to perform mystic magic (which they referred to as "arcane arts"). These materials were varied and sometimes they even wondered if they had translated something wrong. Finally, they had to chant spells based on these materials, which might be the simplest part, but if mispronounced, the consequences could be more serious than expected.
It was that simple, with no need for any "magic" or "mana"; the only thing they had to worry about was the favor of the corresponding god.
"How do we gain the favor of the goddess Hecate?" Elena asked, somewhat confused. "After all, we can't just openly spread the faith of Hecate, can we?"
The older member, Boulder, nodded. "Yes, that's indeed a difficult problem. Fortunately, we have some experience."
The goddess Hecate was the goddess of witchcraft, magic, death, and herbs, connected with the night, the moon, and the grave, existing between life and death. Perhaps this was why her faith was prohibited. She held many domains, some of which overlapped with those of the twelve main gods.
The members of the Mysticism Society discovered that, due to her many domains, there were many ways to gain her favor. The simplest way was to teach knowledge about herbs and promote the existence of the undead.
Unfortunately, none of the members in the club were apothecaries or had any knowledge of herbs. They did know some arcane secrets about herbs, but how could they promote that knowledge?
"We've written some stories about the undead," Boulder said. "It works pretty well. The goddess seems to really enjoy the fear of humans."
Elena immediately became interested.
"Also," another member leaned in, whispering, "the Duke has a wax figure museum. It's said to contain very frightening wax figures of murderers and notorious historical figures. There's even a scene of an execution by guillotine. When it opened, the whole city of Luenton was shocked."
"I think I heard about that," Elena recalled, remembering news articles about it. "Many tabloids covered the story. I didn't know it was the Duke's museum. He must be greatly favored by the goddess Hecate. But... if we can please gods in different ways, why is it that everyone only focuses on beauty when it comes to the goddess of love and beauty, Daitete?"
Boulder sighed. "This is indeed the problem that confounds us. Some people have written many beautiful songs, praising all kinds of wonderful love stories, but the goddess Daitete still hasn't granted her favor. Others have tried writing touching love stories... Well, it seems that trying to please the goddess Daitete by writing about love doesn't work, so everyone has given up."
"Could it be related to the goddess Daitete's past experiences?" Elena pondered. If writing about love could win the favor of the goddess, she certainly had a lot of inspiration to offer.
"According to legend, she was born from the foam of the ocean," the elder briefly explained the backstory of the goddess Daitete. Since Elena was still young and rarely went out, she didn't know much about Daitete. This was the first time she had heard of the goddess's past. But... well, how should she put it? It felt a bit familiar, almost like the myth of Aphrodite.
If Daitete was indeed related to the Greek goddess Aphrodite, then her domain wasn't simply love but love with desire. After all, Aphrodite herself was born from the severed genitals of the sky god Uranus, which were thrown into the sea and formed the foam. If they wanted to earn Daitete's favor, they shouldn't focus solely on writing about love, but rather write more erotic novels.
However, even though Elena was a scholar, she could never openly write such novels and submit them for publication, because anything sent through the club would pass through the butler's hands, and the address would definitely be known. Unless she mailed it herself secretly, but in her current situation, there was no need to take such a risk.
Elena gathered her thoughts and continued to listen to the society's research results. Their daily work seemed to involve deciphering and experimenting. For instance, this week they had deciphered a simple spell, "Abracadabra," which was said to be useful for treating fevers and inflammation, but they still didn't know the accompanying materials and rituals.
"No matter what, even if it's just carved on a stone, it can offer some protection," one of the sharing members shrugged. "The book says so."
After the meeting ended, Boulder stopped Elena and handed her a badge. The pattern on it was exquisite, shifting with brilliant colors. The edges of the badge were adorned with tiny gemstones, each emitting a soft glow, as if containing incredible power.
"This is a transformation badge. It can help us change our appearance for about an hour, but after that, it can't be used for a whole day. Because the materials are rare and the process is difficult, only the Mysticism Society has three of these badges." He put the badge away. "Each use requires some favor from the goddess Hecate, and it will cause a temporary memory loss regarding one's true form. Frequent use may affect memory."
"What do you mean?" Elena asked, confused.
Boulder smiled and explained, "If you are willing to join the Mysticism Society, you will have access to all the tools in our society. Of course, our requirements are relatively strict, but based on your performance, I believe you can handle it."
Elena asked, "Then, what are the specific requirements?"
"There's only one," Boulder replied. "The favor of the goddess Hecate."