Everything began to blur. Klein was half-conscious, half-dazed.
A distorted, illusory scroll gradually unfolded before his eyes.
He felt himself plunging into the painting, becoming many different people. In the eyes of each, there was always a naive, beautiful, kind, and sheltered young girl.
Though there was no concrete proof, Klein instinctively knew that she must be Miss Justice.
He became a domestic servant, a noble scion, a vicious criminal, and a Beyonder powerhouse. Yet, no matter who he became, Miss Justice always appeared naive, kind, and sheltered in his eyes.
This transformation occurred again and again, cycle after cycle. After a countless number of perspective shifts, the image suddenly shattered. Klein finally returned to full consciousness, and as he did, he noticed a blind spot he hadn't perceived in his dream.
That was, the Miss Justice in those perspectives wasn't actually that naive.
Sometimes she was plotting something with her dog. Sometimes she was eavesdropping behind a door. Sometimes her eyes held a cold, detached quality, as if she were looking down upon all living things. Occasionally, she even wore a mischievous, impish smile like a little devil.
But in the dream, in every perspective he experienced, he had invariably ignored all of this. He had blindly regarded her as a naive, adorable, and even somewhat silly girl--as if she would fall for any lie he told.
'An anti-divination ability? No, it's more like an anti-observation ability. It almost seems specifically designed to counter the powers of the Spectator pathway.' Klein recalled the information gained from his dream, trying to analyze the effect produced by the white horse image on Miss Justice.
'It seems like it's there to protect her, but it's better to be cautious.'
Klein didn't rush to a conclusion. Instead, he wrote a new divination statement:
"The origin of the phenomenon above Miss Justice's head."
Using the Dream Divination method once again, the illusory and distorted images shifted once more. He saw a young man in a double-breasted formal suit brush past a beautiful woman in a court gown. Following that, the aura she projected changed.
Mmm, she became just like the Miss Justice in the previous dream--naive, adorable, and even a bit silly.
'It really was Mr. Devil? But how could he have known... right. Mr. Devil provided the identity of the Psychology Alchemists member to Miss Justice, and then by simply following that member, he would naturally find her. Sigh, Miss Justice is really too careless.'
Klein criticized Miss Justice in his heart, but he didn't feel overly worried. At the very least, Mr. Devil was a true gentleman. His probe into Miss Justice's identity was merely to provide protection from the shadows.
'For someone with the codename "Devil," he's as kind as an angel!'
The thought crossed Klein's mind, but he didn't fully trust Mr. Devil just yet. Instead, on a manifested sheet of paper, he wrote a new divination:
"The power Mr. Devil placed on Miss Justice poses a risk to her."
This time, Klein didn't use Dream Divination. Instead, he manifested a spirit pendulum, silently chanting the statement. After seven repetitions, he opened his eyes, only to see the pendulum rotating clockwise at a very, very, very slow speed.
'There is a risk, but it's extremely small...' Klein frowned slightly at the result. 'This tiny risk might be because a high-level entity could see through it? Mmm, just as I can see the white horse above Miss Justice's head with the help of the gray fog. So if she encounters certain high-level entities, they might find her unusual. I wonder just how strong a Beyonder needs to be to notice this abnormality...'
Klein pondered for a long time before deciding to leave the choice to Miss Justice.
He edited the scenes he saw in his dream divination slightly, added a warning about high-level Beyonders, and delivered it all to the deep-red star representing Miss Justice...
...
After completing her prayer, Audrey remained in her room. Normally, she would go to the music room to practice the piano at this time, but her heart was far too tense. She might easily arouse her family's suspicion if she played now.
After this state of anxiety lasted for nearly twenty minutes, the boundless gray fog suddenly spread before her eyes. Then, a large number of hallucinations flashed rapidly...
"Taking the risk of exposure when facing high-level entities... When even Mr. Fool uses 'high-level entity' as a designation, does he mean a true god? If that's the case, there's no need to worry at all!"
Audrey murmured a self-consoling remark, but her heart remained somewhat conflicted.
"Speaking of which, was this person even at the salon? Why would he help me? Mmm, Mr. Fool seems to have deliberately ignored this question. Does he want me to find the answer myself? But even the image was reconstructed--it feels a bit like it's lacking in challenge!"
Audrey's thoughts reached this point, and she tried hard to recall yesterday's literary salon. Strengthened by the 'Spectator' potion, her memory was far beyond what it once was. She even remembered the exact order in which guests took their food.
However, she could no longer remember that man's face at all!
"Mmm, this should be a power similar to the one on me. Does everyone who sees him simply ignore him?" Audrey thought it over briefly before giving up on her own recollections. She said to herself, "Still, since he appeared at Glaint's salon, he must be someone Glaint knows. I'll just go and ask him. Conveniently, he still owes me a favor for finding the Apothecary potion formula!"
...Two days later...
In the Empress District, at a social ball hosted by Viscount Glaint, Audrey, whose facial muscles were beginning to ache from smiling, finally caught her friend's signal. Using the classic excuse of the washroom--a tactic every believer of The Fool should master--she successfully slipped away from the ball. With the abilities granted by 'Spectator', she skillfully evaded all eyes and made her way to the first-floor study. Addressing her personal maid, Annie, she said, "I have something to discuss with Glaint. Guard the door and don't let anyone else in."
"Understood." Annie was no stranger to such tasks. Although the frequency of her mistress's private meetings with Viscount Glaint had been high lately, it wasn't something a maid should concern herself with.
...
Entering the study and locking the door, Audrey saw Glaint sitting behind the desk, fiddling with a steel pen to avoid looking idle.
"I thought you didn't like balls," Glaint said with a smile as Audrey entered.
"I don't, but I have something to ask you," Audrey replied directly, forgoing noble social pleasantries in their private exchange.
"Whatever it is, just ask! Mmm, I'm already looking for the 'Spectator' pathway formula for you, though you know it's not easy." Glaint clearly looked a bit awkward. As an independent viscount, he had more resources at his disposal than Audrey, yet she was the one finding non-standard Beyonder formulas first.
"It's not that. I want to ask about someone I saw at the previous literary salon."
Though Audrey didn't remember Snow's face, the image provided by Mr. Fool included information about his clothing and height.
However, after Audrey finished describing all the details she remembered, she keenly noticed that Glaint's expression looked a bit... strange?
[Translated and Rewritten by Shika Kagura]
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A/N: Early Audrey was truly "super brave." She would do almost anything. If she hadn't encountered the Tarot Club, she might have been force-fed a 'Secrets Supplicant' potion by Mr. A... After all, Mr. A did specifically ask if she was interested in potions other than 'Spectator'. It's clear he intended to push the 'Secrets Supplicant' pathway.
T/N: Glaint's reaction is a hint at Snow's "reputation" in Backlund, which is further explored in the next chapter.
T/N: "Apothecary" (药师) - Sequence 9 of the Mother pathway. Glaint is looking for this for himself.