Empress Borought, Böcklund Street, Match Residence...
"Miss! Where are you?! The afternoon meal is about to begin, and you must be ready!" The maid, Anabette, tapped uneasily on the new dark oak door with her left hand.
A gauze covered her forehead, and her right forearm was in a cast; the broken bone would still take time to heal.
Usually, for a servant serving a noble to suffer so many injuries, she would rest and temporarily relegate her position to someone else until she recovered and returned to continue. Of course, this was only usual in compassionate families.
The natural norm was dismissal. Many servants were dismissed and fired once they suffered injuries that prevented them from working. They had to rely on the care of churches and charities to recover.
Fortunately, the Macht family was one of the gentle families. So, people who suffered injuries that required rest could rest and still receive their wages.
But even so, Anabette wanted to continue working for her Miss. Although her attitude had improved considerably, she was still challenging to deal with in certain aspects, so Anabette preferred to avoid problems for her lady by being with her.
She thought that Miss would refuse to let her continue working and tell her to rest, but contrary to what she expected, she just told her;
'Do what you want. But if you feel tired, take a break, I can take care of myself'.
The Lords stopped fussing when they heard that.
Shaking off past memories, Anabette knocked on the door again. "Miss! Please!"
Just as she was considering knocking the door down by crying loudly, a prim and trim Hazel Macht opened it, her eyes glittering with annoyance.
"I was just finishing my makeup."
The servant pursed her lips, and her gaze hardened a little. The softness in her face became a little harder, but her voice kept its gentle tone. "Being on time is respected, Miss. If you wish to get into and stay in college, you have to learn to be punctual."
At the reprimand, Hazel rolled her eyes and began to walk. Closing the door behind her, "Then why are we still here? Come on."
Anabette could only sigh soundlessly and quickly followed her mistress, always three steps behind.
Inside the repaired and reorganized room of the sole heiress of the family, there was no movement, and everything was spotless...
Taking her ear off the door of her wardrobe, Hazel Macht nodded in satisfaction.
Unlike the other Hazel, who had come out wearing an elegant and rich dress, she was wearing dark hunting clothes, and her hair was pulled back in a low ponytail.
Turning to look at the other inhabitant of the dressing room, she raised an eyebrow.
"This will only last a few weeks, won't it?"
Her furry companion gave a graceful, human nod.
The noblewoman looked at that movement and curiously found nothing strange about it, not feeling frightened or repulsed.
'It must be because of the time I spent with Teacher Flora; a talking rat was educating me. Seeing a dog nod is nothing compared to that...' Remembering why such scenes turned her off, Hazel could only sigh.
In front of her, sitting upright like a soldier, was a golden retriever. Its long golden coat curiously curled at the paws, indicating that it was not purebred.
This curious dog, which seemed to have human intelligence, was one of the soldiers of the Scarlet Monarch that Teacher Adryan had 'lent' to her.
According to her Teacher, this soldier's name was Ignir, while the soldier acting as her was Weiss.
These were not the only things he had lent her either, not by a long shot.
Hidden in one of her hidden pockets in her outfit, in the shadows of it, was the Burnt Band. Inside the Burnt Band were Hangover Time, Vecchio Pomodoro, and several light charms.
Her Teacher had entrusted her with three rank 2 artifacts, 2 of his soldiers whose strength was equivalent to a Sequence 8 Provoker, and several charms that would help her escape.
All in all, Hazel had never had so much power in her hands.
There was a little whisper in the back of her mind, tempting her to take these items for herself and not give them back, but she quickly suppressed them.
One of the acting rules from when she was still a Marauder repeated itself calmly in her mind.
'Never take something you can't keep in your control, limit your hand, or it will end up choking you...'
Of course, she had done her part too!
These last few days, she has taken the initiative to 'socialize' more, attending parties and gatherings and behaving better. This is so she will not raise suspicion when the investigation against Ambassador Backerland begins.
Hazel looked down at her hands with a soft sigh and could only grunt a little at the sight of them shaking.
'With all these preparations, the risk is much less, but it is still dangerous. One mistake and death will be the best-case scenario. The worst, becoming a puppet to be used against my family...'
She knew the dangers. Her Teacher had explained them to the point of filling several pages in his letter, including the number of Beyonders and their possible paths. But more than that, he had warned her of 2 in particular.
Backerland was the Conspirator of Sequence 6, the same as him. And his personal bodyguard, Rosago, a Marionettist of Sequence 5.
Not only was the information she had to search for most certainly guarded by traps and well hidden, but hiding was impossible because of the Marionettist.
'Below Sequence 4, the Marionettist is the most dangerous. It is impossible to hide from his eyes...'
Clenching her fists until her knuckles turned white, the green-haired girl let out a long exhale of nerves and nodded slightly.
She was now a Swindler, and her job was to steal. She could do this.
'Besides, I can also use this opportunity to find the Swindler's Acting Rules...'
Shaking her head, the young heiress looked up from her fists to the cream wall of her dressing room.
Complicated emotions flashed across her face.
She wasn't stupid; it was obvious who Ignir planned to replace to carry out the espionage mission. After all...
Only one noblewoman is known to have a golden retriever that she carries around.
'But to think that the 'Brightest Gem of Backlund' isn't as innocent as I thought. I can't help but feel disappointed.' Hazel grimaced and huffed.
She didn't know how her Teacher knew Audrey Hall or how she had agreed to 'lend' her pet, but she wasn't going to ask. If she needed to know, she was sure she would have been told.
'Anyway, it'll be time for the change soon anyway.' Closing her eyes, Hazel went into cogitation for a moment to empty her mind.
Once that was done, she placed the strange bandana on her left bicep while placing a hand on the Ignir Dog's shoulder. Doing her best to endure the ravings that were assaulting her mind, she searched for a suitable shadow.
No sooner had that happened than the shadows of the dressing room enveloped them, and they disappeared into them.
Reappearing in the shadows at the edges of the property, Hazel immediately removed the Burnt Band.
A vein pulsed in her forehead, and her teeth were clenched tightly. Quickly entering cogitation, she began to meditate to calm her assaulted mind.
Dog Ignir sat beside her on guard, his brown eyes looking around alertly.
After a while, Hazel opened her eyes and growled slightly. 'So those are the ravings of an Evil God... The teacher is amazing to use it so often and show no reaction.'
Complaining silently, she waited a few moments before using the shadow jump again and reappearing in the sewers.
Today was the day it had been discussed to make the change, taking advantage of a Sunday afternoon meal that the women of the Hall family always held.
...
Earl Hall Villa.
Looking at her mother in front of her, Audrey Hall focused on calming her mind as her eyes read the small book in her hands.
The picnic table before her contained a dainty tea set, various desserts, and ham and cheese sandwiches. Her mother, Lady Hall, was at the head of the table.
The older woman was reading the day's newspaper, her usual elegant and gentle face looking strangely tense.
Being a Spectator, the young woman quickly noticed how something bothered her mother and promptly showed her concern.
"Is everything all right, Mother? You've had that grimace on your face for a few days."
"Sigh. Sometimes, I'd rather you weren't so perceptive." Lady Hall grumbled a little before placing the newspaper on the table. "Finally, the 'Moonless Night' has shown its claws. The Pound has dropped eight percent in value while most utilities have doubled, even tripled the price of their services.
"The worst of all is gas, which has tripled in price per liter in the last five days." Lady Hall sighed wearily as she popped a small cake into her mouth.
Taking the opportunity to pause, Audrey quickly recalled her teaching.
Most of the gas people used for cooking, heating water on cold winter nights, and lighting the streets or the inside of their homes went through East Borought first.
Considering that the few surviving factories were severely understaffed and the demand for this valuable material was higher than ever, it is evident that prices would soar.
Swallowing the cake, the older woman continued bitterly,
"The reconstructions are still far from beginning; we haven't even finished counting the bodies we keep finding; most of the factories have been destroyed or are impossible to access for the time being..."
With a snort, the eldest Hall brought a gloved hand to the bridge of her nose and closed her eyes tightly, "Even with all that, we now have threats of protest against the gas price hike... What has happened to this city?"
Audrey could only listen to her mother silently, not because she didn't know what to say. But she felt that what her mother needed now was not encouraging words.
That she needed to let off some steam.
'Sometimes, the best we can do is to give our presence and someone to listen...' Lifting the teacup to her lips, the young Spectator lowered her eyes to her feet.
Her best friend/pet was lying quietly, watching everything around her with curious eyes and a slow wag of her tail.
Those brown eyes, which seemed to sparkle with human intelligence, occasionally passed by the numerous guards surrounding their location.
With everything that had happened, the Earl wanted to avoid accidents, so security was high.
Looking at the small clock on the picnic table. Audrey saw the time of change approaching, and her heart skipped a beat.
She should be terrified. Her identity would be discovered, and a member of the Tarot Club would know who she was—a member who was easily the most dangerous of them all. But Audrey didn't feel scared or afraid; if anything, she felt a little nervous.
And this was thanks to Mr. Fool!
If Mr Chariot crossed even the smallest of lines, the noblewoman knew he would be severely punished!
'Besides, it's not as if our identity would remain hidden forever. Chariot himself is the example of that, ' the blonde lampooned a bit before rolling her shoulders a bit and looking around for a moment.
Internally, she couldn't help but wonder how Chariot's 'man' would get so close without being discovered.
'Could it be a special ability? Or maybe a distraction! Oh, I can't wait to see!' Holding back the corners of her lips from rising, the young lady listened intently to her mother's palaver.
Suddenly, Susie rose from her lying posture with a serious look. Thanks to her heightened sense of seeing changes in the faces of people and animals, Audrey noticed how her friend's muzzle seemed to twitch a little.
As if she had suddenly smelled her favorite treat. Her tail wagging with excitement.
The noblewoman was momentarily confused before her eyes lit up in recognition.
'The signal!'
Of course!
Why try complicating themselves with complicated methods of dodging guards and sneaking when the target could come at them?
Faced with a dog's nose, humans could not compare. Much less a Beyonder dog's nose!
It was brilliant!
Looking around her with a small smile that hid her genuine excitement, Audrey patted her knee three times, drawing the attention of the spectating dog whose tail had frozen.
Smiling at her friend, she winked, "Go play girl."
"Woof!" Happy, Susie took heed, quickly jumped up from her spot, and headed into the woods, barking happily.
Lady Hall paused her speech for a moment to look at that and sighed sadly, "Oh, poor Susie. I almost forgot she spent the last few weeks cooped up in the manor. She must have missed running."
'Yes, she does miss it very much. She doesn't spend all day in my room chewing on that huge bone that Chariot's messenger gave her.' Audrey looked at her mother with a simple smile and nodded elegantly.
"She's been a bit anxious to get out but not as anxious as you think, Mother. I'm sure she'll be bored soon enough."
Thus, the mother-daughter duo continued to talk, although it was more chatter on the mother's part. The daughter listened attentively and responded when she saw fit.
After a while, Susie came running out of the forest with a massive stick in her muzzle.
Arriving before the women, she dropped it and let out a happy "Woof!".
Lady Hall laughed in amusement at the dog while Audrey just smiled.
Her green eyes quickly noticed how the look in her friend's eyes had become more fiery.
...
Watching the golden retriever in front of her from her hiding place in the woods. Hazel, who had donned a simple mask that covered her entire face, just tossed another piece of the roast beef she had prepared.
The original Susie leaped into the air and caught it in one bite, wagging her tail happily.
'I'm a little disappointed it was so easy... Is the Hall security so bad?' Hazel thought, a bit dizzy, while throwing another piece of meat.
3:00 p.m., Monday. In the space above the gray fog.
Several crimson flashes appeared on the moldy bronze table with two inhabitants, followed by various illusory and semi-transparent figures in their respective places.
As was now usual, Justice rose from her seat and curtsied gracefully; in a cheerful voice, she said, "Good afternoon, Mr. Fool~"
Giving a simple smile, Klein nodded slightly to the woman.
After the usual greetings, the Tarot Club officially began.
The lady did not sit down but said, "I have brought two pages of the Emperor's Diary, Mr. Fool."
"I have ready the last eight pages I have yet to deliver." The Hanged Man wasted no time and quickly added.
'10 pages in all... I hope there's something interesting... Surely one of them is a sexual escapade...' Lamponing a bit, Klein just nodded and manifested the red fountain pen and goatskin parchment so the members could write.
Before long, in his hands floated the promised pages, and he casually glanced at them.
<>
...14th January. I discovered a problem. If unconscious High-Sequence Beyonder objects are not sealed, they would unconsciously attract nearby Low-Sequence Beyonders from the same pathway, causing them to come into contact with each other. The higher the original Sequence, the more likely that this will happen.
However, this situation doesn't seem to be a constant. It seems to be intermittent...
<>
'This!' Klein restrained himself from tensing up. This diary part immediately caught his attention because he had had similar encounters!
'As soon as Mr. Chariot arrived in Azshara, I accepted a mission that led me to meet him. Mr. Chariot, who carries an artifact made with the characteristics of Faceless!'
An idea was born in his mind, and he glanced sideways at the place around him.
'The attracting force must come from this mysterious space. Another secret of my transmigration here to see later...'
This page delivered by Justice lacked more data and information, so he could only turn to the last one supplied by the woman.
<>
... 16th January, the taste of a Demoness still isn't bad.
<>
'... Why am I not surprised?' Klein wondered at his lack of reaction. He couldn't help but wonder if there was something wrong with him.
'Of course. I have already read that this guy got a 'divine milking' from a man. The only thing that would top that would be being the passive one next...' Klein lampooned a little, absent-minded and unsurprised.
Thanks to Chariot's 'joke.' Klein knew that any man who took the Witch potion from Sequence 7 would become a real woman. And with the escapes he had already read about from Emperor Roselle, the Clown felt that was enough for the man.
Unable to help, he put himself in the same shoes as Emperor Roselle.
'If my partner told me she was a Witch. And I knew the possibility that she was once a he was very high. Would I still have relations with her, even though she is now a real woman? Would I take that step and not be repulsed by the idea?' Klein lampooned for a few moments before coming up with an answer that defended him.
No, he doubted he would be able to do it. The knowledge would be too much for him, and Mini Klein could not be proud.
Maybe there were beautiful witches out there who would fight against that knowledge, but the lack of proof helped calm the clown.
After all, he had never met a real witch.
The closest thing to his mind when he thought of a witch was Madam Daly Simone, a woman of great beauty and a flirtatious yet gracious character.
Putting aside that existential doubt, Klein continued reading the last page delivered by Justice.
<>
...20th January. I finished making the second Card of Blasphemy.
Let me think, let me think, where should I hide it?
Yes, I plan to disguise it as a bookmark and insert it into a very valuable book. If the person who obtains it isn't someone fated, it would be hard to imagine that the most valuable thing in the book is actually that seemingly ordinary bookmark!
Not bad, that's a good idea!
<>
'Why do I always have to be provoked by my elders?! It's not only with Mr. Chariot, but now it's you, Emperor?! Why didn't you put what kind of bookmark!? In what book did you put it?! You dared to dream me up and then kill me coldly! You have no heart!' Klein felt his blood heat up and his brow quiver for the briefest of moments.
The Emperor had disappointed him twice in a row this day.
'Perhaps future diary entries will have more information on this...' Saving this hint for later, the clown finally moved his attention to the pack of pages delivered by the Hanged Man.
<>
... April 5. Mistress Not-so-straight-as-a-board, or as she prefers me to call her, Mistress Ameliee, has come to congratulate me on my future marriage to Lady Matilda.
She brought me a chocolate cake, which, by the way, was delicious!
... And she also brought a new 'costume' and whip, which she wore that very night while we were 'eating' the cake.
Usually, she would leave shortly after, leaving me with the marks of our games and adventures, but this time, she stayed a little longer.
She fed me what survived of the cake, and we even took a bath together, her rubbing all the marks she left on my body.
Was that the popular aftercare? It felt good.
Of course, that aftercare didn't last long, eventually revealing what I suspected. She wanted something!
"You let me stick a finger in there; you can stick it there." She said to me, wearing something that looked like something out of a sex fiend.
If you've read my diary, this isn't the first time she's played there. Several times, she's tempted me, and even on a drunken night, I let her eat it...
<>
For a moment, Klein closed his eyes, almost putting his face in his hands and cried.
Only his brutal endurance saved him from doing that and his clown control.
'I didn't even finish the first page!' Wailing in horror, the clown made the gray fog over his face denser and continued reading.
<>
Of course, when I woke up the next day, I was furious and almost lashed out at her.
How dare she destroy my masculinity like that!
All she said to me was, "I didn't hear you complaining about my tongue, Roselle~"
... Is this how people feel powerless before a superior being?
Because no matter how hard I looked, I found no way to take it back... I was pretty vocal, in fact...
Whatever!
The deal she gave me was very juicy, and after deliberate and deep, DEEP consideration, I accepted it.
You will understand if you see the ass that woman carries. If I must take a finger up there to taste it, so be it!
Only real men do that!!
I plan to meet her next week. At her recommendation and out of concern for myself, I'm bringing extra lubricant.
...April 12. I'm writing this as soon as we finished the deal.
It didn't feel bad at all; I would even recommend it.
Mind you, next time, I have to specify only one finger...
The bitch used three!
She still has my palm mark on her cheek, but it doesn't seem to bother her. She even tells me to be just as violent next time.
...Intis women are scary.
I'm going to pray to the God of Craftsmanship that Matilda will be gentler.
<>
If he had the original page in his hands, Klein would burn it with holy fire.
Wishing with all his might that he could forget this, he turned to the next page.
'The dates are different...' Frowning slightly, he gave a little more attention.
<>
... June 15. This is the fifth week of travel in search of the New Continent.
Normally I wouldn't write this early but today we came across something extremely interesting!
There wasn't much wind, so some of our Seafearers and Windblessed decided to have a little swim. It's nothing strange; we already know how much those gill-less fish love the water.
The depth those guys can reach still amazes me.
Well, it turns out that one of those Seafearers found the remains of a sunken ship!
We've dropped anchor and are now in the process of salvaging whatever managed to survive.
A little spoiler~
From its looks, it's a Fourth Epoch ship!
We have not yet found a mark of the family it belonged to, but by size, it is likely to have been one of the various Angel families of the Epoch.
But which one is the question~
Will it be during the Solomon Empire, the Tudor-Trunsoest Empire, or perhaps the separation of the aforementioned?
What a thrill! I'm sure it will be full of treasures!
I'll write more tomorrow.
...June 16. As always, the protagonist of this era turns out to be right!
We have found the Tudor family seal on it!
From what I could see, this ship was very likely made during the Tudor Empire. The coins we found there show the seals of the 5 Angel families that supported it.
This is quite interesting!
Unfortunately, all that was there were old notebooks ruined by time and sea and a few treasures.
We also found more ships in the vicinity, but due to a lack of time and worsening weather, we could only grab the most interesting and continue the trip.
How can I be so unlucky?!
I checked every artifact that was brought for abnormalities or specialties but found nothing.
I'm not interested in carrying useless junk, so I told the crew to grab what they wanted and throw the rest.
This was a waste of time.
...June 21. Something strange has been going on with some of the crew members.
They claim to hear voices and see things in the shadows. One even attacked another crew member because he thought he was a monster.
These same people were acting completely normal a few days ago.
Being a genius, I immediately noticed the cause of this.
I ordered everyone to hand over everything they had grabbed from the treasures of the Fourth Epoch ship.
Some resisted a bit, but in the end, they were all confiscated.
I went through each and every one of them again. But again, I found nothing unusual.
Is it possible that this is some sort of corruption?
Did one of these objects belong to a high-level Beyonder and be marked by 'Their' aura, affecting and causing strange reactions thousands of years later?
With the possibility of that being the case, I immediately ordered everything to be thrown overboard.
We did not have the resources or means to deal with something of such level and being so far from land. The best thing to do was to avoid accidents.
The people who showed changes have been removed and quarantined. We will be monitoring them these days to see if they improve.
... June 30. It seems that whatever was affecting the auditory and visual visions went to the bottom of the sea, the people in quarantine have shown improvement.
This was merely an oversight on my part. I underestimated the danger of certain things, but nothing escalated further.
... July 1. We have lost five men.
Not all the artifacts were thrown into the sea.
One of the normal people hid a mirror he had taken from the treasures. The bastard hid it in his room, and who knows what he did with it.
This person, who was not a Beyonder, had neither extraordinary abilities nor basic mystical knowledge.
This ordinary person was suddenly able to sing melodies that bristled and froze the spirit and launched attacks through music!
He produced symphonies that increased or decreased the area's spirituality in meaningful measures. Even summoning a rather strong Evil Spirit wasn't much of a problem; luckily, we had several Sun Pathway artifacts.
This person I had previously shared drinks and food with was a man searching for adventure like myself. He became a complete stranger; no matter how I looked, I didn't recognize him.
Now, his body was covered with strange marks and lumps of flesh that released music. He used his hair like guitar strings and his thighs like drums.
We managed to subdue and kill him. But when we blew his head and torso off with the combined attack of a Wind Blessed and a Sun Pathway artifact, instead of blood and brains, shards of glass came out.
His body had become a huge crystal, and the mirror in the middle of it all reflected a space filled with a strange gray mist.
I checked this object multiple times but found nothing strange. Now, this once-normal object emitted a dark and oppressive aura that took my breath away.
Before I could do anything about it, this mirror shattered into multiple pieces, but not before I saw my reflection in it—a reflection that was me, but my eyes were crimson in it.
All that gloomy aura vanished as if it had never been there.
What the fuck was that mirror? What the fuck were those ships carrying?
And more importantly.
Who the fuck did that mirror belong to?
It has been precisely six hours since the monster died.
No characteristics or artifacts have formed. No matter what artifacts we use to speed up the process, the body isn't releasing anything.
...
The remains of the mirror, along with the entire ship and everyone on it, were treated by various purification rituals, and the quarantine of the people affected by the ship's objects was reinstated.
Everyone is tense and wants to return.
I hope to find something of real value soon, or all my efforts will have been for nothing.
<>
Klein internally swallowed a little saliva. What he just read could easily be considered an adventure movie that quickly descended into a horror one!
'It seems that the Emperor's journey in discovering the South Continent did not go smoothly... From the dates this event was 1 month before discovering the continent... How he maintained morale in that situation is beyond me...' Praising the Emperor's ability to lead, Klein felt his respect for the man increase slightly.
The events written in this diary were not in the history books. This event was hidden.
'Manipulation of history...' Recalling the words written by the Emperor not long ago, Klein saw another clear example of them.
The abilities of the Monster the man had also faced were things he had never heard of.
A monster that attacks using music and whose own body is an instrument? That was something he had not thought he would read.
'But I don't know of any Pathway with those abilities... Is it even one of the 22? Or is it a new one?'
Was a new pathway even possible? Wouldn't it contradict everything he knew so far?
'I can't help but notice that too... Angel Families... I wonder if the Abraham family was one of them?'
Internally shaking his head, Klein made the pages disappear.
This wasn't something he needed to worry about now.
With that in mind, he smiled calmly at the rest, "You may begin."