Iver stepped forward and picked up the Crimson Puppet Mask from the ground.
It was a smiling mask made of red carnelian, its color as vivid as flesh—it was the mask Jester Angel had worn earlier. Before it was put on, the positions of its eyes and mouth were clearly transparent holes. But the moment it was worn, they filled with black, making the features hidden beneath the mask impossible to see.
"...Just as I thought."
Iver held the mask and murmured under his breath.
He could vaguely sense Path Power from it, yet his system had not displayed any notification.
That was only natural.
Ever since Iver had completely twisted the predetermined future and led this world into the "IF Timeline," there had been more and more things the system could not recognize.
In the original timeline, Jester Angel had never been dragged down until the very end, surviving all the way to victory—in the aftermath of the Transcendent Tide, Jester Angel became the only surviving Angel of the Path of Beauty. He had barely participated in the plot at all, and had even cleverly avoided every camera... For precisely that reason, Iver was extremely unfamiliar with his abilities and personality.
Iver actually had no idea what Jester Angel's objective was. If he had come over to ingratiate himself like Shadow Angel because he did not want to be dragged down by the Ouroboros Ring Ritual, it somehow did not feel that way... All Iver could sense was that, at least for now, Jester Angel bore him no ill will.
"What is this thing for?"
Sherlock came over and casually asked Iver.
Iver raised his eyebrows in surprise, then casually handed the Puppet Mask to Sherlock and asked in return, "Why would I know?"
"You seem to know everything,