Chapter Summaries

Alice accidentally used her light to part the gray fog during a private Tarot Club conversation, revealing herself as the World asked Cattleya to take him on a voyage to find a mermaid. Cattleya accepted after discussing the risks of bringing Alice along, then asked whether Alice still wanted to try Frank’s unusual fish.

• Alice asked Klein to handle a problem she had been unable to solve, then accidentally parted the gray fog while testing her light during the Tarot Club meeting.
• Klein, speaking as the World, asked Cattleya to help him find a mermaid at sea, and Alice listened in after appearing behind the fog.
• The World asked to bring a Grade 0 Sealed Artifact aboard, prompting Cattleya to realize the request concerned Alice and to question the danger she posed.
• Alice reassured Cattleya that she could conceal her special nature, and Cattleya agreed to the voyage after deciding she had no further questions.
• Cattleya asked Alice whether she was still interested in the unusually flavored fish she had mentioned before.

Alice asked Klein how to discuss rare, secret knowledge without attracting the Hidden Sage, then sought advice about her recent encounter with a woman she believed was a Soothsayer. Klein left her wondering whether the cryptic, fate-obsessed woman represented what a Sequence 2 Soothsayer was supposed to be like.

• Alice persuaded Cattleya to let her meet the Beyonder researching Hybridization Technology, and The World agreed to arrange it.
• Alice asked Klein how to discuss secret knowledge safely, then joked that he might someday become her blood relative.
• Klein suggested that Alice consult Bernadette, a Mystery Pryer Demigod who led the Elements of Dawn.
• Alice urged Mr. Fool to rebuild the Tarot Club until all 78 Tarot Cards had owners, while Klein reminded her he was not an evil god.
• Alice told Klein that she had met a woman who called her “child” and spoke cryptically about fate, and Klein considered how well the encounter matched the legendary image of a Soothsayer.

Alice worried that the Soothsayer Acting Method might affect Klein, then tried to figure out how to obtain her potion ingredients and decided she needed money. When she met a man who mistook her for Cassandra, she connected the name to a mysterious Honorific Name and wondered what its owner had seen in the River of Fate.

• Alice and Klein discussed whether the Soothsayer Acting Method could involve unsettling behavior, and Alice said Klein would be in trouble if that were true.
• Alice considered asking Will Auceptin about the Acting Method but said her fragmented memories could not provide useful answers.
• Alice decided she needed money to gather her potion materials and paused outside a casino, considering whether she could win it all.
• Alice followed a familiar man into an alley while concealed, then appeared in a black robe and told him that shadows had shrouded his fate.
• The man called Alice Cassandra, leading her to wonder why they kept meeting and recall the Honorific Name, "Cassandra's Phantom, Eyes Gazing Upon Despair, Seeker of Hope."

Alice questioned Selwyn Magritte about the Soothsayer he blamed for ruining his life and explained that the power he gained was Fate’s Gift, for which he had paid no compensation. Selwyn recounted how he was led into gambling to buy a potion, while Alice left him questioning whether his casino winnings had also been Fate’s Gift.

• Alice asked Selwyn whether he had met another Cassandra, and he blamed the cursed Soothsayer for ruining him.
• Alice learned Selwyn’s name and told him that he had received power beyond the ordinary as Fate’s Gift, but Selwyn insisted he had paid for it.
• Selwyn asked Alice to help him find the Soothsayer and recover what he had lost, and Alice asked him to explain what had happened.
• Selwyn said the Soothsayer promised to change his Fate for 1,000 pounds, so he started gambling and repeatedly won and lost money before buying a potion.
• Alice pointed out that Selwyn had paid only for the potion, not for the Soothsayer’s guidance, and asked whether his casino winnings might have been Fate’s Gift.

Alice questioned Selwyn about the potion he had drunk and realized he had taken the Assassin potion, then investigated his encounter with someone claiming to be Cassandra. She concluded that the book was the real Cassandra and that a swindler had used its name to deceive Selwyn, then vanished from the alley.

• Selwyn angrily accused Alice of lying after realizing he had been scammed.
• Alice learned that Selwyn had drunk an Assassin potion and warned him that his choice would lead to extraordinary experiences.
• Selwyn recalled that the woman who deceived him had been holding a book.
• Alice connected the book to the Deep Blue Ocean and considered how Cassandra's legend and Honorific Name might have originated.
• Alice told Selwyn that the book was the true Cassandra and that a swindler had used Cassandra's name to trap people at turning points in their Fate.
• Alice vanished, leaving Selwyn dazed in the alley.

After Evelyn sent Alice a memory of Sylvia invoking Cassandra, Alice connected Sylvia to the mysterious book and the victims, but remained unsure whether Sylvia was a culprit or a puppet. Alice returned to the Golden Dream late and told Edwina she needed Potion Ingredients and money, prompting Edwina to ask what Grade 0 Sealed Artifact Alice had swallowed and why she still needed a Sequence 4 potion.

• Evelyn recalled Sylvia greeting her with “May Cassandra bless you” and sent the memory to Alice.
• After receiving Evelyn’s message the next day, Alice linked Cassandra’s book to Selwyn and the man who had prayed, while questioning Sylvia’s role.
• Alice realized she had missed class and returned to the Golden Dream, where Edwina asked whether she had originally approached her for Main Potion Ingredient information.
• Alice admitted she needed Potion Ingredients and money, then insisted her past deeds were not her doing.
• Edwina agreed to help and asked Alice what Grade 0 Sealed Artifact she had swallowed and why she still needed a Sequence 4 potion.

Alice avoided revealing the secret of the Grade 0 Sealed Artifact she had swallowed, then left Edwina after claiming that Dunn had long harbored feelings for her. Edwina recognized Alice’s story as an excuse and sent for Dunn.

• Alice told Edwina that the God of Knowledge and Wisdom would know about the secret, then admitted it might be forbidden by a God from being spread.
• Edwina invited Alice to return to the Golden Dream, and Alice felt sad about leaving someone who patiently listened to her.
• Alice claimed that Dunn had loved Edwina for a long time and had confessed to her while drunk, urging Edwina to consider him.
• Alice abruptly departed with an excuse, and Edwina told a Sailor to summon Dunn when he returned.

Alice considered ways to find potion ingredients and obtain information, but set aside her more troublesome ideas and asked the Church of the Goddess to lend her a Grade 2 Sealed Artifact. During a stretch of boredom, she wrote the final volume of her fantasy story, then finished reading the manuscripts and asked Adam for his opinion.

• Alice decided to seek a Misfortune Phantom and thought about using a mirror owned by the Church of Steam to locate one, but chose to pray at the cathedral and ask Archbishop Anthony for a Grade 2 Sealed Artifact.
• Archbishop Anthony agreed to arrange the loan with Machine Heart, and Alice left after wondering whether she could collect compensation by repeatedly joining and faking her death as a Nighthawk.
• While bored, Alice wrote the ending of her story, in which the Demon King discovered that her butler had used Geas to incite war between humans and demons.
• Alice finished reviewing the manuscripts and asked Adam what he thought.

Alice met the Sealed Artifact Arrodes beneath St. Samuel Church and began questioning it, then asked who was the most beautiful existence in the world. Arrodes was struck by lightning, leaving Alice and Anthony stunned.

• Alice called out to Adam for help, then decided to send her comic to the magazine publisher after Adam gave no clear response.
• Alice placed a commission with the Tarot Club to search for main potion ingredients and later received word from Archbishop Anthony that the Church and Machine Heart had finished negotiations.
• Alice met Sealed Artifact 2-111, Arrodes, and asked whether her opening question counted as one of its questions.
• Arrodes explained how it received its serial number, then asked Alice what 2-333 meant.
• Alice explained the number's old internet meaning, and Arrodes confirmed her answer before seemingly playing dead.
• Alice asked Arrodes who was the most beautiful existence in the world, and a bolt of lightning struck the mirror.

Alice questioned Arrodes about an ocean-blue book called Cassandra and learned it was acting as a Soothsayer. After Alice correctly identified an Amon avatar as the thief of the Church of Storms' donation box, Arrodes praised her with cheering stick figures, leaving Alice excitedly asking whether the mirror could use memes.

• Alice asked Arrodes who held the greatest authority over Beauty, but Arrodes refused to answer the dangerous question.
• Alice asked about the ocean-blue book called Cassandra, and Arrodes showed Sylvia Maloney holding it before explaining that the book was acting as a Soothsayer.
• Alice asked how Arrodes saw her nod despite having no eyes, and Arrodes answered with a flattering remark about her eyes.
• Arrodes asked who stole the Church of Storms' donation box, and Alice answered that an Amon avatar had taken it.
• Arrodes praised Alice's answer with cheering stick figures, and Alice asked whether the mirror could use memes.

Alice asked Arrodes how to obtain Misfortune Phantom spiritual dust and learned of several possible contacts, then discussed changing her Honorific Name and Arrodes’s request to return to Mr. Fool. The mirror gave her a rune to summon it in Backlund, and Alice asked whether it spied on Mr. Fool while he bathed.

• Alice asked Arrodes how she could obtain Misfortune Phantom spiritual dust, and the mirror showed her several people, organizations, and addresses that might help.
• Alice remembered that Amon had found her through her Honorific Name and decided she needed to change it before Will Auceptin was born.
• Arrodes asked Alice to take it to Mr. Fool, and Alice told it she would relay the request.
• Arrodes showed Alice a rune that would summon it in Backlund, and Alice asked if it peeped at Mr. Fool while he bathed.

Alice left after questioning Arrodes and began considering whom to approach for a trade. She asked Reinette Tinekerr to hunt a Misfortune Phantom and offered to provide charms that could temporarily restore Reinette's power if Reinette supplied the materials and performed the ritual.

• Alice asked Arrodes whether she preferred ice cream with crushed nuts or jam, and answered that she wanted both.
• Alice returned home and weighed the Church, Leonard, and Reinette Tinekerr as possible trade partners while ruling out several others.
• Alice summoned Reinette Tinekerr and asked about the trouble with her four independently speaking heads.
• Alice described the Misfortune Phantom and asked Reinette Tinekerr what payment she would require to hunt it.
• Reinette Tinekerr requested a way to temporarily restore her power, and Alice offered to provide charms if Reinette prepared the materials and ritual.

Alice named Reinette Tinekerr’s restorative talisman “Talk About It Tomorrow” and learned how a Misfortune Phantom could be defeated. After Alice’s awkward conversation with Reinette, the latter appeared to Klein and complained that his “daughter’s” family education had a serious problem.

• Reinette Tinekerr accepted Alice’s blame-shifting and asked about the ritual, so Alice sent her to ask Gehrman Sparrow.
• Alice named the talisman “Talk About It Tomorrow” and asked Reinette about Misfortune Phantoms.
• Reinette explained that Misfortune Phantoms could become indecisive when faced with similar habitats and that their bodies were unstable.
• Alice joked that the phantom had died from decision paralysis, then asked Reinette to put a spare head on her neck; Reinette vanished after Alice apologized.
• Reinette appeared to Klein while he was scrubbing toilets and said his daughter’s family education had a serious problem.
• Klein coughed, denied having a daughter, and said he would have beaten Alice if she were his daughter.

Alice explained her dealings with Reinette Tinekerr and Arrodes to Klein, then wondered whether she could claim compensation for her death. Her question reminded Klein of the family he could never safely acknowledge, but he found comfort in believing his compensation had not been wasted.

• Reinette Tinekerr demanded a gold coin from Klein for Alice’s unpaid visit, and Alice later questioned whether Klein meant her words or her failure to pay when he accused her of going too far.
• Above the Gray Fog, Alice told Klein that she was seeking Sequence 4 Potion Ingredients and shared Arrodes’s symbol for summoning it in Backlund.
• Alice told Klein that Arrodes had named Reinette Tinekerr as a clue to the Misfortune Phantom, and that Reinette had agreed to help kill one in return for a talisman.
• Alice asked who had collected her compensation after she died and whether she could claim it herself.
• Klein remembered that he could never acknowledge Benson and Melissa without endangering them, then said his compensation had at least not been wasted.

Klein helped Alice consider a new honorific name before Will Auceptin was born, while worrying about her past attempts to answer prayers. Alice described her fate-related abilities but kept her prophecy ability secret, leaving Klein to begin composing a name from what she had told him.

• Alice asked Klein to help her come up with a new honorific name before Will Auceptin was born.
• Klein criticized Alice for trying to leave the whole task to him and asked whether she had recently answered anyone's prayer.
• Alice explained that she had asked a frightened petitioner what help he needed, then stopped watching when he ran to a church.
• Klein praised Alice for asking what people wanted and asked her to identify deeds or abilities that could inform her honorific name.
• Alice said she had described how ice cream was made and explained her understanding of a Misfortune Mage's ability to manipulate probabilities, but concealed her prophecy ability.
• Klein considered Alice's explanation and remembered Admiral Emlyn's pants falling down in front of his younger brother.

Klein confronted Alice about using her Misfortune Mage powers to make his embarrassing mishaps certain, then warned her to consider whether she could handle the consequences of her pranks. Alice reflected on the miraculous survival of the St. Folsen’s passengers and crew and suspected that Adam’s goodwill might have influenced events, but chose not to investigate.

• Klein realized Alice had manipulated the probability of his embarrassing experiences while playing Admiral Emlyn, and Alice admitted she had set the probability to one hundred percent.
• Klein considered giving Alice a new Honored Name because she could not reclaim the Sequence 1 Beyonder Characteristic from Will Auceptin.
• Klein warned Alice that even guaranteed probabilities could not prevent accidents and urged her to think through the trouble her actions might cause.
• Alice recalled that the St. Folsen’s crew and passengers had survived, and that coincidences had spread news of her prophecy and brought her secret praise from their families.
• Alice suspected Adam’s goodwill might have shaped the events but decided not to divine about him or investigate.

Klein warned Alice to think about the consequences of her actions, but her spacing out and teasing about Arrodes watching him bathe led to a playful exchange. The chapter ended with Alice calling Klein her biological mother with no blood relation and explaining that mothers usually cared for children.

• Klein told Alice to consider whether she could clean up the mess before making decisions.
• Alice drifted off again, and Klein startled her by sneaking up and slapping her shoulder.
• Alice threatened to ask Arrodes for a live broadcast of Klein bathing, and Klein rapped her on the head and told her to eat ice cream.
• Alice asked what it felt like to be a man, prompting Klein to cover her mouth and warn her about inappropriate topics.
• Alice called Klein her biological mother with no blood relation, and said mothers were usually the ones who took care of children.

Alice watched a memory within the Misfortune Phantom and saw a girl endure her father’s abuse, lose her mother, and later witness her father sell her. The scene ended with Alice recognizing the girl as a child holding an Ocean Blue Covered Book.

• Klein chased Alice away, then began drafting an honorific name for her as the Creator of Happiness and Miracles.
• Alice met Reinette Tinekerr, finished her ice cream, and asked whether she had found the Misfortune Phantom.
• Alice caught the phantom’s glittering dust with her spirituality and saw a mother and daughter suffer under the drunken father’s abuse.
• Alice watched the mother die and the daughter bury her, then saw the father accept money from someone while the grown girl watched.
• Alice recognized the girl as a child holding an Ocean Blue Covered Book.

Alice witnessed the traumatic memory held in a Misfortune Phantom’s spiritual dust and ordered Reinette Tinekerr to prepare the ritual. Later, Reinette asked Klein how to make Alice’s “Talk About It Tomorrow” charm, and realized he was improvising the ritual as he explained it.

• Alice saw a girl flee her father, who attacked her with a cleaver before their house collapsed and injured her eye.
• Alice learned from Reinette Tinekerr that spiritual dust could reveal the tragedy that most strongly attracted a Misfortune Phantom, then told her to prepare the ritual.
• Reinette Tinekerr delivered materials to Alice and later told Klein how Alice had ignored her while eating ice cream.
• Reinette Tinekerr asked Klein about the ritual and materials for the “Talk About It Tomorrow” charm.
• Klein gradually invented and revised a ritual procedure, leading Reinette Tinekerr to suspect that Alice had made it up.

Alice reflected on Sylvia’s apparent past and wondered whether the Soothsayer acting method was connected to being a protagonist. The next morning, she recognized Winifred Grigori as the woman who had once bought her book and invited her over.

• After Reinette Tinekerr vanished, Klein realized she had noticed his improvised ritual and decided to speak sharply to Alice later.
• Alice identified the girl with the book as probably Sylvia and wondered whether Cassandra’s role as a Soothsayer was connected to a protagonist.
• Alice imagined writing bizarre rules in a Holy Bible, asked Adam about writing one, and apologized to the Goddess after her words were concealed.
• The next morning, Alice opened a letter from Winifred Grigori and recalled that Winifred had bought her book and invited her to meet.