Chapter 421 - A Corner of the Diary and Secrets
By the ti evening arrived, Klein had returned to his rented residence at 15 Minsk Street, following a day spent on a protection assignnt.
As he reflected on the scenes witnessed while accompanying Reporter Mike on interviews, a heavy weight settled in his heart.
The death of the elderly lady ruined by the "Corn Laws" and the children coerced into pickpocketing by gangs, as revealed by Old Kohler, had left indelible impressions on him.
Even the relatively better-off, like clockmakers and laundresses, were teetering on the edge of bankruptcy. Any small misfortune could reduce them to the sa tragic fate as that old woman who had died before Klein and Mike's eyes.
"That place is more like a jungle than human society... No wonder the Emperor wrote in his diary, 'The Industrial Revolution I personally set in motion, the Steam and Machinery Era I forged with my own hands, will beco the breeding ground for evil gods' descent.' If this continues, the True Creator or the Original Witch might truly descend."
Sighing inwardly, Klein pulled out his keys and unlocked the door.
He had just hung his hat and coat on the rack when a faint, ethereal voice suddenly reached his ears:
"I've brought the item I ntioned earlier."
Startled, Klein instinctively raised his revolver, Confession. Only when he spotted the figure seated on his sofa did he relax, lower his weapon, and chuckle wryly.
"Miss Sharon, your way of appearing is always... so unique."
Dressed in a gothic court-style black dress and a matching petite hat, Sharon sat silently on the sofa, as motionless as a life-sized doll.
"Next ti, I'll knock on the window first," Sharon replied without a change in her calm and detached tone.
A ghost knocking on my window? That's even scarier! Klein grumbled inwardly but decided not to dwell on it. Instead, he picked up the previous topic.
"What's the item exactly?"
Sharon didn't respond verbally. Instead, she flipped her pale hand, and a translucent brown glass bottle appeared as if out of nowhere.
"This is the Biotoxin Bottle. It randomly generates different toxins and, once opened, disperses them into the surrounding air.
"The effects take hold within a minute, grow progressively worse, and can lead to death in about four minutes if the affected individual doesn't escape the toxic environnt."
Sharon's ethereal and floating voice lingered as she uncharacteristically spoke at length.
Not bad. If wielded by a spirit, it's perfect for ambushes. Klein accepted the Biotoxin Bottle, and nurous potential uses for it imdiately ca to mind.
Still, I don't know its drawbacks or the exact potency of the toxins... Sharon's style suggests she might not know either; otherwise, she would've ntioned it.
"Would you mind leaving it here for now? I'll give you an answer by this ti tomorrow." Klein pondered for a mont before making his request. He believed there was enough mutual trust between him and Sharon—especially since they still needed to tackle the labyrinth tower together.
Sharon, ever doll-like, listened quietly before nodding. "That's fine."
She seed to expect this... Makes sense. Trading Beyonder items requires proper verification.
With the main topic settled, Klein exhaled slowly and decided to make small talk.
"You and Maric haven't had any trouble with the curse lately, have you?"
"No. I gave the Scarlet Lunar Corona to Maric," Sharon replied evenly.
The wearer of the Scarlet Lunar Corona was immune to the full moon's effects—a highly coveted artifact among Beyonders of the Monster pathway.
So the necklace she had functions similarly to the Scarlet Lunar Corona? And it's not temporary? Sharon must have deceived Linster and his group right from the start... Klein mused before shifting the conversation.
"Have you found a way to purify the contamination in Linster's lingering Beyonder characteristics?"
"No," Sharon shook her head slightly, then added aningfully, "The sixth level might provide an answer."
True... Completing a labyrinth for the first ti often grants desired information. Unfortunately, Linster won't make it easy for us to pass.
Klein grunted thoughtfully, unsure what else to discuss. After a brief pause, he asked, "Why does the owner of the Biotoxin Bottle want to trade for the Zombie characteristic?"
Sharon remained silent for a few seconds before stating simply, "It's her nesis."
Her nesis? That makes sense... But what does she want the Beyonder characteristic for? To keep it close as a reminder of her grudge?
While Klein privately mocked the odd motivation, Sharon fixed her gaze on him and asked, "Anything else?"
"No," Klein shook his head.
With that, Sharon's form swiftly faded, vanishing from the living room without leaving a trace.
"Miss Sharon doesn't seem to wear perfu... Well, if an Wraith used perfu, their stealth would probably be compromised. Makes sense."
After thoroughly inspecting the living room and confirming with his Black Emperor vision that Sharon had indeed departed, Klein took the translucent brown Biotoxin Bottle to his bedroom. There, he set up a spiritual wall, walked counterclockwise, and ascended to the fog-shrouded hall above the gray fog.
Finally, after everything that had happened, Klein now had ti to examine the spoils from the recent battle and the paynt Sharon had given him.
Seated in the position of The Fool, Klein began with the simpler items.
First, he picked up the Werewolf and Zombie Beyonder characteristics, observed them briefly, then conducted divinations in the form of dream interpretations.
Within monts, he gleaned the unique abilities and dangers of both characteristics.
If only I could've conducted a séance shortly after their deaths. I could've obtained the potion formulas for both sequences... Regretful, Klein set the characteristics aside and turned his attention to the Biotoxin Bottle.
He repeated the dream divination process but didn't feel confident about the depth of his insights. Adjusting his thod, he focused on the question:
"What are its positive and negative effects?"
The dream revealed that the Biotoxin Bottle had a wide range of potent applications, but its use also ca with risks.
This item's value likely rivals, if not exceeds, that of the Sun Brooch. If sold, it could easily fetch over 3,000 pounds.
That price aligns with the Zombie characteristic... The contamination in the latter—resulting from its exposure to the full moon—renders it unfit for direct use. Plus, the Monster pathway's curses reduce its market value.
So, this deal seems fair...
Having reached a decision, Klein set the bottle down and turned his gaze toward the sheaf of Roselle's diaries and the bound book, The Book of Secrets.
After a brief hesitation, he chose to start with the diaries, flipping open the first page.
December 1st
After formally stepping into White Maple Palace, I encountered for the first ti the Sauron family's "living" Grade 0 Sealed Artifact.
Its... no, his code was 0-22, and his na was Calamity Seal.
He was capable of communication, with logic and wording so humanlike that he seed more approachable—far more so than the "Lamp Genie" from the Wishing Lamp.
Yet, I dared not underestimate him. No matter how congenial he appeared, he was the one who orchestrated countless disasters from behind the scenes, even overthrowing the Sauron family's rule in Intis—though I, admittedly, had a hand in that as well.
He seed to read my thoughts and, with what could be described as a "smile"—as much as one could discern a smile from a seal—he remarked that he hadn't sched anything directly. Most of the Sauron family's troubles were self-inflicted, and he had rely "nudged" them along.
Ha, all masterminds say the sa thing! I'm no fool like Franlow.
Still, after chatting with him for a while, I discovered that many of his views aligned with mine. He could swiftly grasp the nuances of my words—sothing even my private secretary struggled with.
Could this be the cunning of a Scher? Or perhaps a skill honed by a Conqueror—one of those so-called "War Angels"? A tactic to lull
into a false sense of security before executing his plans?
Maybe I was overthinking it. Regardless, when he ended our conversation by asking not to be returned to the storage chamber for sealing, and instead offered to share so secrets with , I was deeply tempted... and promptly refused.
Reading up to this point, Klein couldn't help but smirk. That's the Emperor for you. I wonder if 0-22 was infuriated by him...
But a Grade 0 Sealed Artifact with such advanced intelligence isn't unheard of, right? The Wishing Lamp has a mind of its own too?
Intrigued, Klein flipped to the next page to continue reading.
December 2nd
After another round of conversations with 0-22, he once again reiterated his request not to be sealed back into the storage chamber.
I didn't expect him to be so persistent. Ultimately, I decided to grant his wish—sort of. To prevent any sudden antics on his part, I relocated all the sealing chanisms from the storage chamber to my workshop. I also resolved to personally guard him for the night.
That counts as fulfilling his request, right?
December 3rd, early morning
As 0-22 and I were casually chatting, he suddenly went quiet. Just as I suspected he might be gearing up for so mischief, he spoke—but this ti, in flawless Mandarin:
"Hello, fellow transmigrator. My na is Liu Bo."
A fellow transmigrator? There's another one besides Roselle?! Liu Bo? That's a Chinese na... Poor guy, though. At least Roselle and I transmigrated into human bodies. How did he end up as a Sealed Artifact?
Excitent flickered in Klein's eyes. If this "Liu Bo" is still around as a Sealed Artifact, maybe I can find him one day...
Suppressing his growing anticipation, Klein steadied his thoughts and read on:
I was utterly stunned at the ti but managed to compose myself quickly. Still wary, I asked him why he hadn't revealed this earlier.
He explained that both White Maple Palace and the storage chamber currently had angels from the Church of the Evernight Goddess stationed there, making it inconvenient for him to identify himself.
I accepted this reasoning. Considering the ongoing turmoil in the country and my not-yet-solidified position as Grand Chancellor, it made sense for the Church to assign protectors in case of any desperate moves by the remnants of the Sauron family.
As for my workshop? Due to the transferred sealing chanisms, it had beco a relatively secure location for private conversations.
Subsequently, we delved into his backstory. To my surprise, he wasn't experiencing his first transmigration. He claid that early in the Fourth Epoch, he erged from an unknown origin point and transmigrated into a vampire's body, eventually becoming a duke. However, he was ultimately slain by the "divine vessel" of the Eternal Blazing Sun.
Later, at the end of the Fourth Epoch, he returned from the sa origin point and was reborn as a Death Consul—another pawn left by the "God of Death." Unfortunately, this ti he faced relentless pursuit by a chief archbishop of the Church of the God of War. Though he narrowly escaped, he fell into slumber deep within Calderón City.
Of course, these were rely his more successful lives. Apart from these, he had experienced nurous other incarnations, but either achieved little or t untily deaths—often due to his own personality flaws.
When he ntioned his ti as two angel-level figures, I grew curious and inquired about the nas he had used back then.
He revealed that as a vampire duke, he had gone by "Rhein Karaneldia," while as a Death Consul, he chose the na "Vicente Miranda"—both inspired by characters from a novel he adored called The Arcane Throne.
I hadn't heard of the book. Then again, with the sheer volu of web novels out there, it wasn't unusual to miss a few.
However, the na Rhein Karaneldia did ring a bell. During an exploration in Loen, it was Rhein Karaneldia who helped Black Emperor banish the vampire duke tied to the legacy site.
I never imagined he'd turn out to be a fellow transmigrator!
Klein's astonishnt deepened as he reached the end of the entry. A transmigrator sealed into an artifact... with a history spanning epochs... This Liu Bo is remarkable.
His curiosity surged. If Liu Bo were still "alive," Klein resolved to locate him soday.
(End of Chapter)
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