"??????"
Roselle's mind was nothing but confusion—just confusion piled on confusion.
In fact, hearing a god's name suddenly wasn't even all that shocking anymore. Wait, what's going on here? This so-called evil god…actually asked me to go steal money from a church?
No, seriously—why?!
This time, he didn't dare blurt out the question, since that would count as "asking another question."
You're not an evil god—you're just evil-minded, aren't you?
"Let's leave it at that."
Edward waved his hand, severing the connection with Roselle. At almost the same moment, a deep crimson star, larger and more brilliant than the surrounding ones, appeared in the depths of the grey fog—that was Roselle's star.
Right after, Edward sensed that both the Spiritcaster and the Secrets Sorcerer potion digestions had advanced a little.
The Secrets Sorcerer's digestion he could understand. But Spiritcaster…what was going on there?
Edward thought carefully. Comparing this incident with past times when the Spiritcaster potion digested—taking Bernadette out to sea to find mermaids, first meeting Medici, first encountering Reinette, and now interacting with Roselle—what exactly had he done in common that led to the digestion?
After over ten minutes of reflection, he still had nothing.
Rubbing his temples, he had to let it go for now, returning his thoughts to the present.
As for why he told Roselle to steal money, the purpose was simple.
Often, "crime" grows step by step. This time it's stealing money; next time it might be stealing clothes; and after that, perhaps stealing—or "borrowing"—Arrodes.
Why not just start with Arrodes? Because if Roselle returned and immediately reported the encounter to the Church, they'd grow suspicious and place strict watch over Arrodes.
This way, it was just an unexpected, idle test. It didn't matter if it bore fruit or not.
Sigh.
Edward let out a soft breath. More and more, he felt it was impossible for his arrival not to affect history—and that such effects would only grow bigger and bigger with every action. Unless…he abandoned the search for Lilith and hid away in some deserted, uninhabited place.
No. That wouldn't work either.
In the world of Mysteries, according to the Law of Beyonder Characteristics Convergence, no matter how remote or well-hidden his refuge, sooner or later, someone from the three coward families would "happen," "by accident," or "by coincidence" to stumble across him—triggering yet another chain of events.
But then again—Lilith had lived from the Fourth Epoch all the way into the future. Why was it that she seemed not to have changed anything? Why had she left so few traces—aside from her diary?
How had she managed it?
And further: if the future world already includes the results of my current actions, then how did I manage not to leave behind any trace either?
With a head full of doubts, Edward left the Sefirah Castle.
———
Elsewhere, in Roselle's villa.
As the endless grey fog faded away, Roselle opened his eyes in the chair of his study—and without hesitation hurled away the silver plate.
Suspicion filled his face as his wary gaze swept the room.
What he had just experienced…
It was real.
Roselle was filled with regret and fear. What have I done? I actually revealed my identity as a transmigrator to a being that might be an evil god?
That was far too stupid!
No—if that really was an evil god, then wasn't he in incredible danger now?
He scrambled to his feet, striding quickly to the door.
But just as his fingers touched the doorknob, he hesitated—turning back to look at the plate lying on the floor. After a long ten seconds of struggle, he went back, picked it up, and then left.
"Grimm, Edwards! Accompany me to Trier Cathedral."
Of course, Roselle wasn't in such a rush to actually steal money for that "evil god." No—he wanted to beg the archbishop, or even the true deity Himself, to help cleanse him of any possible corruption. What if that being above the grey fog had planted some hidden mark on him?
But in his heart, he still wavered. Should he tell the Church the whole truth about what he'd encountered above the fog?
He believed the Church would do its utmost to protect his safety.
Yet…if that evil god above the fog was really tied to his transmigration, wouldn't telling them completely cut off any chance of contacting Him again?
Damn it!
After so many years, he had finally advanced to Artisan, finally created the mysterious silver plate to seek the truth of his transmigration.
(At this point, one can't help but notice—it seems Roselle spent many years climbing from Savant to Sequence 6 Artisan. He clearly understood the acting method early on. So why the delay? You couldn't really say he was "lazy," since he had such burning desire to craft the silver plate and uncover the mystery of transmigration. But then again, in the Mysteries World, there's no such thing as "talent" gaps… Maybe the truth is, bedding women was simply more appealing to him than the secrets of transmigration!)
And yet, waiting for him at the end of all that effort…was this.
Such a colossal shock!
Damn it all!
———
The next two days passed without incident—utterly calm, nothing happened.
On the weekend, Edward visited the Racing club, only to realise how naïve his earlier assumptions had been.
Most of Trier's true nobles stayed in their private boxes to watch the races. Running into them in the club proper was purely a matter of luck. And even if you did run into them, those people probably wouldn't bother to give you a second glance.
So, after watching a few races, Edward prepared to leave—only to see Akasha, red-eyed from losing, digging every last coin off her brother Arlde…and then promptly losing it all again.
Then she came to Edward to borrow money, planning to cheat her way into winning everything back. After all, every vampire had beast-taming abilities.
Edward flatly refused.
Really now? Did she think those nobles dropping thousands of Felkins on horse races didn't have Beyonders by their side? And even if they didn't, did she think the racing club itself wouldn't?
In the end, Akasha swore up and down, promising not to use Beyonder abilities to cheat. Only then, thoroughly annoyed, did Edward lend her 500 Felkins. Predictably, she lost it all without even a ripple.
"That's impossible! I clearly tried to secretly—"
Edward's brow arched. "What did you say?"
"…"
Arlde could only rub his forehead in helplessness. Their bad luck was nothing new, but Akasha…she was nothing more than a walking donation box.
But as her brother, he couldn't stop her. At least now that suits were free, it didn't matter too much.
———
Night fell.
Scarlet moonlight washed the silent world.
Edward left a shapeshifted decoy in his bedroom, used [False Reality], and then quietly slipped away, heading toward the Boulevard District in western Trier.
Tonight, he would deliver the "results" of the Rose Street No.7 villa investigation to "Intis."
Though Roselle's gas lamps had already spread through central Trier, Quartier de l'Observatoire on the outskirts still treated them as a luxury.
So when Edward arrived there at midnight, the whole area was pitch-black. No street lamps, and even most houses still relied on candles.
The agreed meeting point was a grove in the Quartier de l'Observatoire. Edward only had to bury the letter under a random tree. That meant "Intis," or his subordinates, might be monitoring the area around the clock.
So, from far away, Edward conjured a black dog carrying the folded triangular note. It ran into the grove, chose a tree, dug a hole, buried the letter, then lifted its leg to pee on the spot.
Job done, the black dog went "free," bolting away madly into the distance.
Edward couldn't see through its eyes, but thanks to Secret Keeping, if anyone tried to divine him through the dog, he would know instantly.
He himself hid in a concealed space near the grove, keeping watch.
Two hours later, a squad of soldiers marched in neatly. They lingered briefly at the burial spot, then jogged away. The whole process seemed ordinary—but Edward knew the item had been retrieved.
To mobilise soldiers like that…could "Intis" be in the military? Or even a member of the Intis royal family?
But then, why would someone of that identity need help from a Twilight Hermit Order member to investigate a villa?
Strange.
Still, Edward had no real enmity with this "Intis." If the man hadn't mentioned the "underground," linking Edward's thoughts to Trier's Conqueror Beyonder characteristic, he wouldn't even have cared.
Since he's retrieved the letter, does that mean he's also left behind the 'treasure' clue?
Sure enough, another mangy mutt bounded into the grove. It dug at the burial spot, pulled out a piece of parchment, and bolted.
It ran through alleys and streets, darting left and right, before suddenly vanishing into thin air—never to be seen again.
Silence returned.
——
Half an hour later, certain no one was tailing him, Edward teleported with the mutt to a deserted island in the Rorsted Archipelago.
"Tch, tonight really makes me look like an idiot."
It seemed "Intis" had never intended to trace him through the exchange at all—just a simple information swap. Edward had basically been…battling wits with the air.
After confirming the parchment was clean, Edward unfolded it. Inside was a map. At its centre, a spot was marked with a bright red flag—and beside it, written in Intisian: "Danger."
Edward compared it with a full map of the Northern Continent. As "Intis" had said at the gathering, the location lay between Intis and Feynapotter, seemingly in a valley.
Flames blossomed in his palm. He burned the parchment to ash, then used the Sefirah Castle for a round of divination-cleansing. Only then did he return to his bedroom.
"Interesting. According to the Sefirah Castle's divination, going to the marked treasure site isn't harmful to me at all—in fact, it may even benefit me."
Lying on the bed, Edward clicked his tongue in wonder. Could it be that I misjudged this 'Intis' because of my wariness of Hunters and Witches? That he's actually a trustworthy 'good guy'?
He laughed at himself immediately.
Even as a demigod, he was still naïve enough to divide Beyonders into "good guys" and "bad guys"? Aside from Klein and the Tarot members influenced by him, how many Beyonders in this world could truly be called "good"?
———
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