Chapter 59: Roselle’s Origins

Upon hearing The Fool's question, Audrey did not immediately answer like in the past. With her crystalline eyes, she glanced at The Hanged Man with a scrutinous attitude.

After a few seconds of silence, Alger said, "I found two pages of Emperor Roselle's diary and have memorized their contents."

"I have one page," Audrey, whose vision was obscured by the fog, said as though she was removed from the conversation.

"Pretty good." Klein responded.

Their initial search for the diary was definitely easier, for all they had to do was ask through their connections and channels they were familiar with. Collecting the pages would become more and more difficult as time went on.

"Should we 'express' them now?" Audrey inquired.

"Yes." Klein simply nodded.

As he finished his sentence, pieces of yellowish-brown goatskin parchment and dark red fountain pens appeared in front of Audrey and Alger.

The two of them picked up their pens and recalled the symbols they had seen while infusing the emotions of expressing them.

Silently, lines of text appeared on the goatskin. In a mere minute, the contents that Alger and Audrey had memorized were all written.

Klein willed the three pieces of parchment into his hands, giving them a cursory glance and realizing that some words were wrong or missing. But that wouldn't be a problem for Klein, who had read many Chinese novels.

"April 8th. I stood at the bow of the Black King and stretched my arms, saying to Grimm and Edwards, 'My fortune is yours for the taking, but you'll have to find it first. I left everything I own at the ends of the Fog Sea!' They did not understand my humor at all and even asked if I really had other treasures. How boring. You can't be my Four Horsemen of Apocalypse if you keep at that!"

"April 11th. I discovered a nameless island that was not on a safe sea route. There are a good number of extraordinary animals there, no—I prefer calling them extraordinary beings; it feels more impressive that way. Other than that, there are several weird creatures on the island. I believe that if Darwin had been transmigrated there, he would not have written his Theory of Evolution."

"April 15th. Grimm has suddenly become a little odd. Has he been infected by something?"

When did the Emperor Roselle, who was born in the Intis Kingdom, set off on a voyage? The Fog Sea should be the sea west of the Intis Republic... I need to use historical information from the library to cross-reference this… Klein quickly finished reading a page, casting his gaze to the back of the piece of paper.

At this point, he no longer hid the fact that he could decipher Emperor Roselle's secret symbols since this ability fitted the persona and status of The Fool. Audrey and Alger did not speak and waited silently.

"October 2nd. They actually wanted me to marry Matilda from the Abel family without even consulting me first! Heavens, I have not even met her! No, I must decline! Even if I were to run away from home and survive on my own and suffer the vicissitudes of life, I must fight against this marriage!"

"October 5th. Miss Matilda is really pretty."

"October 6th. Her personality and her demeanor are just my type. I am starting to look forward to the marriage."

Hey, Emperor, where is your integrity? Klein leaned back into his seat.

He realized that Gustav did not write in his diary every day but would only write when there were certain events that he needed to lampoon, record, or to vent his emotions.

Klein looked at the last sentence of this page.

"October 9th. They actually called me the Son of the Steam. I like that very much."

Klein was a little disappointed that the information on the first two pages was of little value. He moved to the top of the third page.

"May 21st. The Church of the God of Craftsmanship gave me two choices, two beginning Sequence pathways. One of them is the Savant, which is a complete Sequence pathway they possess. The other is Mystery Pryer, which they obtained from the Moses Ascetic Order but lacks the higher Sequences."

"May 22nd. My choice was easy: Savant! The Savant has a complete Sequence pathway! Although wielding more information on mysticism can aid my return home, the problem is that if I am not strong enough, there is a need to acquire external help. And I do not know if this external entity would be good or bad, benevolent or malicious. If I cannot control it, it would be very dangerous. In that case, why not strengthen myself and return by relying on my own powers? Thus, the complete Sequence was the most important factor in my considerations!"

"May 23rd. I have become a Savant. With the power of the potion, I actually recalled all the knowledge I had learned in the past, such as physics, chemistry, etc… But I also understand it more deeply, as well as its possible applications and implications. Haha, this is a 'job' specially tailored for a transmigrator like me from an alternate realm. I will be able to express my advantage to the greatest extent! I have to say that if I were to return in my present state to the third year of high school, I would definitely become a top scholar. If I could further specialize in an area, it wouldn't even be too hard for me to become a scientist."

"May 26th. I am enjoying my status as a Savant. Something odd is worth mentioning. When I address myself as a Savant, doing things that are in line with this role, the murmurings that drive me crazy become considerably softer, and I have also been able to control my occasional temper outbursts. I have also recalled the matter regarding the diary. "Is this the 'acting' that the mysterious Mr. Zaratul mentioned? This could be key in resolving the side effects posed by potions."

As Klein read the diary page, he had a deep realization that there was a fundamental difference between how he and the Emperor Roselle did things.

For becoming stronger, Klein considered grasping in-depth knowledge of mysticism to avoid risks and accomplish his goal, while Emperor Roselle preferred to rely on himself and face the risk.

The description provided by Emperor Roselle about acting instilled Klein with confidence that the conclusion he made about acting yesterday was more or less correct.

He put the three diary pages down and looked up at Justice and The Hanged Man. "My apologies; I was too absorbed in reading them."

Audrey calmed the envy in her heart. "I can understand. I hope to one day be able to exchange information about the diary's contents."

Audrey put her palms together. "Mr. Fool, Mr. Hanged Man, I have three questions to ask. If you think that the answers warrant a high price, I will try my best to seek them."

"No problem," Alger answered succinctly.

"The first question is, what does 'acting' really mean? I realize that the remnant psyche in the potion has subtle effects on me; is that because I've been acting as a Spectator all this while?" Audrey asked.

Alger didn't respond immediately but glanced at The Fool, as if waiting for his answer.

Klein spoke in a calm tone. "I'll explain it with an analogy. Think of the core powers of your potion as a fortress, tightly guarded. The remnants of the psyche reside within this fortress and can exert negative effects. Our goal is to cleanse it and become the rightful ruler of the fortress.

There are two approaches to achieving this. The first is a direct assault, trying to forcefully take control, but this is extremely risky and requires strength you don't yet have.

The second approach is to gain an invitation from the 'owner' of the fortress, which allows you to enter as someone else. By assuming a different identity, or 'acting' as a guest, you gradually gain acceptance and, eventually, mastery over the fortress."

Alger immediately asked, as if he had anticipated this reply, "Then the aforementioned invitation is the name of the potion's Sequence?"

"That's right," Klein answered.

Audrey froze for a moment, feeling that she understood what 'acting' meant.

She exited her Spectator state due to her excitement and praised in joy, "What an exceptional method, I think—I think it fits your title. Its style is very compatible with The Fool... I would never have believed that acting would have such an effect. Luckily, I have been acting as a Spectator the past few days.

I think that this is a very valuable answer; my heart is not at ease accepting it for nothing. Mr. Fool, what do you need in exchange? Of course, I still remember that I owe you a page of Emperor Roselle's diary."

"More pages of Roselle's diary, or..." Klein paused for a moment.

He had wanted to get information about the Seer Sequence but felt that such a low-level request would ruin the mystical image of The Fool. Thus, he chose to give up on it and planned to ask them discreetly some other day.

I've just advanced recently and have yet to completely digest the Seer potion. He consoled himself and added on without expression, "Anything regarding the Antigonus family, even if I'm already aware of them myself."

Alger remained silent for a moment before looking at Klein. "Mr. Fool... I believe I can pay you back with the information you requested just now."