Investigating Myself

A minute or two later, a majestic figure appeared in Odys's mind, followed by a passage of text before his eyes: "The Fool that does not belong to this era;

"The mysterious ruler above the Gray Fog;

"The King of Yellow and Black who wields good luck."

Odys let out a sigh of relief. Although he knew the honorific name of the "Fool," he had not learned it through any "legitimate channel," so he did not dare use it lightly.

After getting up to thank the "Fool," he lay down again. Last night's encounters and that gray sphere seemed to have been preparing me to attend the Tarot Club!

As a "Mystery Pryer," Odys could occasionally sense fluctuations in fate that involved him.

Lying in bed, Odys thought about many things. In the end, he had to use "meditation" before he could finally fall asleep.

The next morning, Odys washed up simply, bought a Desi Pie on the street, and made his way to the public carriage station while eating it.

With Odys's income, he could easily rent a small villa and buy or rent a carriage of his own.

However, the Beyonder research he conducted in his spare time was expensive. Take the revolver he carried with him that could release flames. It was of little use to him, but to verify his research results, he could only make one as a test model.

That was merely one of his less expensive projects. Take the magic circle inside Odys's coat, for example. Just that small piece of Ahorna Crystal was worth 1,200 pounds!

Thus, despite his high income, Odys lived at an ordinary middle-class level.

His attitudes from before transmigrating also influenced him. He saved wherever he could in his daily expenses and usually traveled by public carriage.

Just as he finished his pie, the public carriage slowly arrived. Odys followed the crowd onto the packed carriage.

The second floor of the Royal Museum, inside the restored study.

"Can you confirm that only two bookmarks were stolen?" the captain of the "Machinery Hivemind" squad, Max Livermore, asked his team member.

As he spoke, he secretly glanced at the important person standing before the desk with his back to him.

It was an elderly man dressed in a white priest's robe and wearing a cleric's soft cap. He was the head of the Church of the God of Steam and Machinery in Backlund, a member of the Divine Council, and Archbishop Horamick Haydn.

The team member being questioned replied firmly, "Yes. Only those two bookmarks were stolen."

Illusory light flickered in Horamick's eyes. "There was more than one person here last night. At least three, divided into two opposing sides.

"One of them may even have been of a higher Sequence than me. He also had a companion. As for the other side, I couldn't determine their strength, but I can be certain that he escaped in a strange manner.

"That high-Sequence Beyonder immediately gave chase, while his companion... entered the Spirit World and escaped..."

Max, whose facial features were sharp and well-defined, guessed, "A Beyonder of the 'Apprentice' Pathway?"

The illusory light in Horamick's eyes gradually vanished. He gently shook his head. "It doesn't look like it."

Max slowly nodded. Then it must have been a Sealed Artifact from the "Apprentice" Pathway.

Unexpectedly, Horamick frowned again. "It doesn't really look like a Sealed Artifact either."

Max looked puzzled. Not a Beyonder of the "Apprentice" Pathway? Nor a Sealed Artifact from that Pathway? That was strange...

"Things are more complicated than we imagined." Horamick, whose expression was gentle, sighed. "I also know why they wanted to steal the bookmarks.

"We've been deceived by Roselle for more than a hundred and fifty years!"

Ding-a-ling~

A customer entered the shop after four in the afternoon. Kainer, the fifteen-year-old shop assistant at Gall Herbal Shop, stopped organizing the herbs and put on his friendliest smile. "May I help you... Oh, it's Mr. Livermore. Are you here to see Mr. Odys?"

Having gone without sleep for a night and been busy for most of the day, Max Livermore slowly nodded, looking somewhat fatigued.

Kainer, who looked full of energy, gestured toward the inside of the shop. "Please, come in."

Max opened the inner door with practiced ease. Behind the shop was a small courtyard, though it was packed with flowerpots.

The flowerpots held some common herbs that did not have particularly demanding growing conditions.

Beyond the courtyard were two more rooms. One was a warehouse and storage room, while the other was where Odys rested and conducted experiments.

Of course, experiments that could be "shown to the public" did not involve Odys's secrets.

When Max pushed open the door, the first thing he smelled was the herbal scent filling the room. Odys was busy before a table covered with glass cups and graduated cylinders, wearing a mask and a cap.

Seeing Max enter, Odys stopped what he was doing. "Friend, you look exhausted. You can try the potion I'm preparing."

After a pause, he added, "Sit over there for a moment. It'll be ready soon."

Max was indeed somewhat tired. Sitting in a chair, he watched Odys mix the weighed powder with the potion that had already been boiled in the graduated cylinder, eventually producing a blue potion.

Odys poured the potion from the graduated cylinder into a cup and held it out to Max. "This is a formula I obtained some time ago in a trade with a suspected 'Apothecary' wild Beyonder. It can effectively relieve fatigue.

"Of course, I don't possess an Apothecary's abilities, so I can only use spirituality to give the potion a limited effect."

The Beyonder incident Odys had encountered when he transmigrated had been handled by Max, who had led the team. The two had gradually become old friends who could talk about anything.

The captain of the "Machinery Hivemind" squad trusted Odys deeply. After taking a brief look at the potion, he downed it in one gulp.

The potion tasted sour. After swallowing it, his fatigue really did ease somewhat. He handed the cup back to Odys. "So you can make more than just potions that enhance a man's performance in that area."

Odys took the cup and smiled. "That's what the market demands."

He set down the cup, extinguished the alcohol lamp, and asked, "What brings you here today?"

"I have an urgent mission."

Odys paused slightly, already having a guess. "Go on."

"Help me find out whether any of the noble scions on this list have behaved unusually recently." Max took out the list of noble scions who had attended the exhibition separately the previous night.

This was a privilege of the nobility. After all the other visitors had left the previous night, the "Roselle Memorial Exhibition" had welcomed another group of noble scions. The theft had occurred that very night, so they were under considerable suspicion.

After rolling his neck, Max continued, "Also, keep an eye out for anyone trading or using a mystical item similar to one from the 'Apprentice' Pathway. Quietly offer a high price to acquire items Emperor Roselle used during his lifetime. If you receive a bookmark, contact me immediately!

"Be careful to conceal yourselves during those last two missions."

In truth, neither Max nor the Church held out much hope for those last two missions.

Just as I thought! That mystical item resembling something from the "Apprentice" Pathway is pointing straight at me. Heh, having me investigate my own evidence of guilt—I'll never find a clue in this lifetime.

"No problem. I'll arrange it right away," Odys readily agreed.

Max stretched lazily before suddenly standing up. "I have something else to do. I'll be leaving first."

Odys saw him to the door, then immediately returned to the desk, wrote a letter, placed it in an envelope, and sealed it with wax.

Returning to the shop, Odys handed the letter to Kainer. "Give this to Madam Mandy."

Kainer accepted the letter and handed him a newspaper. "This was just delivered—the extra edition. You might be interested."

Odys glanced at it. "Oh? The serial killer has been shot dead!"