Above the Gray Fog, inside a palace that resembled the dwelling of Giant.
Emlyn, the " The Moon," pondered carefully which part of the Sanguine history he should tell Mr. " The Fool."
He and the Progenitor were old friends, so he must know a lot about what happened before the Cataclysm. I don't need to repeat it... In the Fourth and Fifth Ages, the glory of the Sanguine was not uncommon. There is a lot of history worth telling, but the most important and crucial point is only one... Emlyn quickly had an idea.
In his current understanding, " The Fool " is likely an ancient god from before the Cataclysm who, for some reason, did not perish but has been dormant until now and is gradually reviving.
This explains why, throughout the millennia-long history of Sanguine, there were no records of such Hidden Existence until the other party's esteemed name suddenly spread.
After a moment's consideration, Emlyn straightened his back and said:
"After the Cataclysm, the Sanguine left the center of the historical stage of the Northern Continent, becoming nobles of different empires and dynasties as individuals rather than as a race, either governing a territory or guarding castles in key areas."
"When our queen, the ' Blood Moon Queen ' Olkina, who led us out of the Dark Ages, became the wife of the Night Emperor of the Trunsoest Empire, the entire Sanguine united and became an important supporter of this dynasty. At that time, Augustus of Loen and Einhorn of Feysac had to respectfully address our queen as Her Majesty the Queen."
"In that era, Queen Olkina was the symbol of beauty. If Magic Mirror existed that could answer questions, the answer to 'Who is the most beautiful woman in the world?' could only be her..."
Emlyn grew increasingly proud and self-satisfied as he spoke, transforming from a reserved and cautious man into a fluent and eloquent speaker.
The Magic Mirror that can answer questions... isn't that Arrodes? I wonder if any members of " Machinery Hivemind " are so bored that they'd say, " Magic Mirror, Magic Mirror on the wall, who is the fairest of them all?"... What kind of answer would Arrodes give? Klein remained seated, a smile playing on his lips, his thoughts wandering.
After rattling off a bunch of things, Emlyn's expression turned serious:
"All of this was shattered in the ' War of the Four Emperors.' The Night Emperor fell, the Queen fell, and the vampire Sanguine suffered a heavy blow. After seizing the final spoils of victory, the Seven Gods supported the four noble families of Augustus, Einhorn, Sauron, and Castiya in dividing the empire and destroying the royal family, which lacked a high-ranking member. We Sanguine could only retreat into the deserted mountains and hide in the shadows to preserve the continuation of our race."
Just as I expected... Seven Gods, there were already Seven Gods during the " War of the Four Emperors "... Klein thought of the six god statues in the underground ruins of the Tudor Family.
"Fortunately, at that time the Seven Gods split apart and the four kingdoms attacked each other. After paying a certain price, we finally escaped the Calamity." At this moment, Emlyn was unusually in high spirits.
He looked intently at Klein and said:
"Honorable ' The Fool,' do you still have the time to listen to me recount the life and deeds of the ' Blood Moon Queen ' and the glory once possessed by the Sanguine? It is a heavy tome composed of pages of glorious chapters, and I can repeat every part of it."
It seems you could talk for a whole day and night... I used to think you were a disgrace to Vampire who liked Puppet and wouldn't know much about history, but I never expected you to be so professional and academic... No wonder you've always thought Sanguine are noble and are proud of it... This kind of guy who doesn't like to go out, if he really becomes interested in a field, he will definitely do in-depth research, and Vampire do have long lifespans... Klein considered it for a moment and prepared to politely decline Emlyn's offer.
Although he was not lacking in interest in that history, time did not allow him to listen to the other party's long-winded explanation.
"That's enough," Klein said with a slight smile. "I prefer equivalent exchanges. I won't let you make statements without gaining anything in return. When the opportunity arises later, you can use the corresponding history to exchange for what you want from me."
"... Okay." Emlyn was still a little disappointed.
This was the first time he had the opportunity to tell other beings about the glory of the Sanguine.
Normally, in order to conceal his identity, he couldn't flaunt these things with humans, and within the Sanguine, everyone who needed to know already knew, and it wasn't his place to be responsible for the education of newborns.
Klein said no more, reverting to his condescending attitude:
"Alright, you can go back now."
Emlyn White was suddenly enveloped by a deep red light.
After a brief period of dizziness, he found himself still sitting in the moving carriage.
Immediately afterwards, he saw the illusory parchment and gained knowledge of how to pray to the " The Fool " for help through Mysticism Ritual.
When I had some free time at noon and returned home, I immediately held a ceremony to ask Mr. The Fool to dispel the Psychological Suggestion I had been given... Emlyn suddenly became a little agitated.
He calmed down and paid the fare only after the carriage arrived at the Harvest Church.
Upon entering the church, he saw Bishop Utravsky preaching to the few remaining believers. He was no longer as distressed as usual and felt quite relieved.
In this state, he inexplicably thought of some things:
Father Utravsky never seemed to stop me from finding ways to break free from Psychological Suggestion... What was he thinking...?
Inside a café in the East Borough, the tables are greasy.
Klein, who arrived at the scheduled time, enjoyed oat bread dipped in gravy from stewed lamb and tender peas while listening to Old Kohler recount the information he had gathered over the past week.
Unfortunately, it didn't contain much valuable information.
After the other person finished speaking, Klein thought for a moment, then took out two pounds worth of banknotes and pushed them over.
"You already gave it to me!" Old Kohler was startled and waved his hand in surprise.
Klein chuckled:
"I'll be going on vacation to the south this week. I've worked hard all year, it's time for me to rest for a while."
"I might not be back for two or three weeks, so I'm paying you in advance. Hehe, don't forget to gather information for me."
"Okay, okay!" Old Kohler accepted the banknotes with a mixture of joy and gratitude.
In that instant, he had already decided how he would spend the New Year.
He planned to buy the cured ham that he had previously hesitated to purchase, and use it to accompany his bread.
This is so exciting... Thank you, Detective Moriarty! He unconsciously swallowed.
Klein picked up the hat, considered for a moment, and said:
"You should have noticed that things have been a bit chaotic in the East Borough lately."
"Don't take risks to gather information. If you find anything amiss, immediately hide and don't get involved."
The matter surrounding Prince Edessak worried him greatly, which is why he thought of reminding Old Kohler of it.
"I understand," Old Kohler patted his chest. "I'm a coward; I won't take any risks."
"Very good," Klein praised.
He immediately thought of Liv, the laundry worker, and her two daughters, Freja and Daisy, who loved reading and hoped to change their Fate, and said thoughtfully:
"Keep an eye on Liv's family. Make sure they're not bullied. If there's any riots or anything like that in the East Borough, take them to a safe place."
"Riots... you mean the workers' protests?" Old Kohler asked, somewhat puzzled.
"More or less," Klein replied vaguely.
This is the limit of what he can reveal, otherwise it would be easy for people or Sealed Artifact to become suspicious.
In a room filled with Puppet of all sizes, Emlyn White, who had returned home at midday, sat in a chair, enjoying the dim light created by the curtains.
He looked around and clenched his fist, saying:
Cheer me on!
After saying this, he found some Spirituality materials and began to write down the honorific name of " The Fool " and its corresponding symbolic symbols and magical signs.
After a flurry of activity, he attempted Mysticism Ritual, and his Spirituality gradually dissipated, as if he had reached an infinite height.
In the dim light, he saw countless shadows of indescribable shapes, seven beams of light that seemed to contain a wealth of knowledge, and the gray-white mist that perched above them.
Above the boundless Gray Fog, there was an ancient palace that could not be seen clearly, and inside the palace sat a figure shrouded in Gray Fog.
Then, Emlyn saw a majestic and sacred golden figure, and behind it, black wings that blotted out the sky.
Before he could count how many pairs of those mysterious wings there were, he felt himself rising rapidly and making contact with the golden figure.
"Ah!"
He screamed in agony, clutching his head and rolling on the ground, with wisps of blue smoke rising from his body.
After a long while, Emlyn calmed down and heard the Fool's deep voice echoing in his ears:
Your Psychological Suggestion has been dispelled.
Is this what it feels like to break free from Psychological Suggestion? It's so painful... Emlyn sat on the ground, panting heavily, his neatly combed hair now disheveled and hanging down.
Above the Gray Fog, Klein nodded thoughtfully and muttered to himself:
"As expected, the ' The Sun Brooch's' Purification and dispel effects will simultaneously damage Vampire."
He had already calculated that the amount of "sunshine" needed to remove the weakened Psychological Suggestion would not be enough to severely damage Emlyn, so he didn't bother to change to a more complicated method. Now it seems that the result is consistent with his expectations.
After dealing with this matter, Klein removed the citrine pendant from his left wrist cuff and used it to Divination his next move.
"This afternoon is a good time to visit the Red Rose Manor."
After silently repeating it seven times, he opened his eyes and saw the pendulum standing still, not spinning.
Divination involving "0" level Sealed Artifact or corresponding powerful individuals is too difficult and cannot yield effective insights... Klein sighed, roughly understanding the reason.
Immediately afterwards, he Divination about whether it would be auspicious to visit the Red Rose Manor the following afternoon, only to be disappointed once again.
It's always been said that Divination isn't a panacea, and now that's proven true... I have to make my own decision... This step is essential; otherwise, there's no way to quietly exit the stage and move behind the scenes... The sooner the better, I can't delay, or things might get out of control... Amidst his fluctuating thoughts, Klein made his decision.
He immediately returned to the real world, put on a double-breasted long dress and a half-high silk hat, and walked out of 15 Minsk Street, his destination being Prince Edessak's Red Rose Manor.
P. S.: Just finished an author salon and got back from Japan. I'm exhausted, so I won't be updating early this morning. It'll be at my normal time, but I'd like to ask for your recommendation votes for Monday! Um, I need to catch up on my drafts tonight, otherwise I won't be able to guarantee the update time.