Episode 1: Another World
The story begins in another world, where the human soul appears as an entity in animal form and is called an elves. The relationship between humans and elves is sacred and indivisible. For centuries, the world has been dominated by powerful church authorities, except for the northern wilderness. There, a prophecy circulated among the witches about a child with a great mission. During the Flood, the child was taken to Oxford. Lord Asriel entrusted the child to the care of the dean of Jordan College and named him Laila. For a long time, the college has enjoyed the privilege of the scholar’s temple, which is the only option to escape the control of the church and protect Laila.
Twelve years later, Laila has grown into a little girl. She didn’t know who her parents were, and she became close friends with Roger, who was also an orphan. She was born with an adventurous spirit that allowed her to explore the academy inside and out, even the underground tomb. Right now, Laila’s Elf Pan hasn’t been finalized. Sometimes she would discuss with Pan, once she reached puberty, what form she would choose, sloth or guinea pig. But Pan prefers a lion, even though it looks like a ferret.
Life in the college is boring, and Laila’s happiest thing is the arrival of his uncle Lord Asriel. Today, Pan saw Lord Asriel walking through the ancient corridors of the college and heading towards the dean’s office from a distance. Laila didn’t have any thoughts to go to class, secretly opened the window, and walked around from the roof to under the window of the dean’s office. The dean was in the office, and Laila didn’t dare to make trouble no matter how mischievous. Little did she see the dean pouring some powder into the decanter on the table. In the decanter was the uncle’s favorite Tokay wine.
Not long after the dean left, Asriel walked in with the box. Seeing her uncle poured a glass of wine, Laila jumped into the window and knocked down the glass. Asriel was surprised at first, and after hearing that the wine was poisonous, he overturned the decanter after a little thought. The dean has always been respected by others, and there must be good reasons for committing poison. Asriel hid Laila on the bottom of the bookcase in the office and gave her a task to observe the dean’s every move, especially when she heard the word “dust”.
The academicians of the college came to the dean’s office one after another. Seeing that Asriel was safe and sound, the dean felt strange, but still sat down with the others calmly and listened to Asriel’s research results. In the past year, Asriel has been in the far north, investigating the mystery of the disappearance of the Grumman expedition. He found that photos taken with special negatives could capture mysterious fluorescence. This kind of fluorescence only revolves around adults, and children are not affected. Asriel thinks this is “dust.” In the aurora photos taken with a special film, you can clearly see the dust appearing in the aurora, forming the outline of a city, that is, the “city in the sky.”
Asriel determined that there are other worlds beyond the control of the church authorities. And it can only be seen through the “dust” ruled as “sin” by the church authorities. Asriel’s conclusion was tantamount to questioning the authority of the church authorities, and the academician stopped other academicians from discussing this heretical doctrine. But when Asriel took out Grumman’s frozen head from the box, the dean had nothing to say. Grumman is an academician of the academy. If he is killed for discovering some evidence, the academy that has always upheld academic freedom has the obligation to investigate.
That night, the college agreed to fund Asriel to continue the investigation. When Asriel thought of Laila, Laila had already dozed off in the bookcase. Judging from the dean’s actions, he may be forced to poison because of some pressure. At least Asriel’s goal has been achieved. Laila wanted to leave the college and follow her uncle to the north. But this can only be wishful thinking, and Asriel could not agree to it.
In fact, neither Asriel nor Laila would have thought that the pressure of the dean came from the truth meter. This precision instrument similar to a clock suggests that Asriel’s research will bring serious consequences and threaten everyone at Jordan College. And Laila will be involved and play a pivotal role in it.
Early the next morning, Roger, who was working in the kitchen, delivered breakfast. Roger also brought a terrible news. Just last night, a gypsy boy, Billy Costa, disappeared in the camp. This is not the first missing child. The police completely ignored them, and the gypsies could only organize search teams on their own. According to legend, the glutton with the fox elves captured Billy, and Laila didn’t believe this at all, and firmly believed that the gypsies would find Billy. In addition, Roger said that Asriel was packing up the airship and preparing to leave. Now Laila couldn’t sit still, jumped up from the bed, and ran towards the college lawn.
Asriel did not give Laila time to say goodbye. Seeing the airship slowly lifting off, Laila was a little sad. Asriel was her only relative, but she would rather leave her in the academy, not even speaking a word. A few days after Asriel left, a glamorous lady, Mrs. Coulter, came to the college. For some reason, Laila felt particularly fond of her, but the golden monkey elf next to her made Pan shudder.
Mrs. Coulter called herself an explorer and knew Lord Asriel. Her adventures fascinated Laila. So when the dean wanted his wife to take in Laila, and Mrs. Kurt also intended to hire Laila as an assistant, Laila nodded in excitement. At Laila’s pleading, Mrs. Coulter agreed to Roger to leave the college together. But Laila couldn’t find Roger anywhere, and Roger disappeared inexplicably, just like being swallowed by gluttony.
Before leaving, the dean called Laila to the office. It was the first time that Laila saw the truth instrument. Since it was confiscated by the church authorities, no one outside has possessed this incredible instrument. The small metal box is a compass when opened. Dozens of symbols form a circle, and four pointers point to different coincidences, representing different meanings. As long as you understand the meaning of it, you can understand the truth of everything. This is probably why the church authorities are afraid of it.
When Laila was a baby, Asriel sent this truth instrument to the academy. The dean has not been able to fully understand the meaning of the truth instrument. He gave the truth meter to Laila, and Laila will use it to protect herself and find the truth. Finally, the dean specifically urged not to tell others, including Mrs. Kurt.
Mrs. Coulter and the Gypsies inquired from different channels that “gluttonous” sent the captured children to London, which is bigger and easier to hide. So, Laila got on the airship and went to London with the gypsies in the river to find the people they cherished.
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