In a standalone two-story house in Backlund.
Xio Derecha, her features noticeably more defined, placed a mirror atop the altar and began chanting incantations to initiate the ritual.
—After Dunn and Daly's wedding concluded, she had brought Ebner—who'd been waiting outside the church—back to a safe house she had prepared in advance. At his request, she began summoning Arrodes.
Xio was no longer overly worried about the ritual's side effects. After all, Ebner already knew nearly all her secrets—there was nothing left to embarrass her with.
But to their surprise, the ritual failed. Arrodes did not descend into the mirror on the altar.
"What's going on? I don't think I made any mistakes..." Xio tried a few more times with no result, finally frowning.
"It's not your fault... it just doesn't want to come," Ebner said, seemingly having guessed the reason.
"Doesn't want to come?" Xio turned to him, confused.
"There are a few possibilities... First, we're too familiar—it might think there's no amusement to be had, so it refuses.
"Second, it may already know what I intend to ask but either doesn't know the answer or doesn't dare to speak it... so it deliberately avoids us.
"Third, it could be wary of the Fool behind us... though that's unlikely. After all, it's responded to you and Fors before."
Ebner listed his guesses one by one, then sighed.
He personally leaned toward the second: that the bootlicker mirror probably didn't know much either. After all, the special souls in the God Casket were all tied to the Sefirot—even Lilith didn't know the details and had sent him to investigate. Even if Arrodes possessed "Insight" or even the "All-Seeing Eye," at most it might know a few fragments.
As for the survivors of the experiment eleven years ago, Arrodes likely knew something... but judging from how Bianca and Abby weren't being treated as especially important, the experiment had probably been a failure.
Uncovering the truth of the experiment, gathering the five survivors, and reconstructing the hidden ritual might not yield practical results... but a clue is a clue, and worth tracking down.
Klein is very interested in the experiment as well. Since Arrodes refuses to answer me, I'll have the Fool interrogate it directly.
Having come to this conclusion, Ebner gave up on shortcuts and returned to his original plan—investigating from multiple angles: the Queen of Calamity, the Delien family, the sea monsters, and the surviving test subjects.
Of those, the Delien family is key—they're tied both to Lilith's short-term goals and the long-term God Casket mission. They're the priority. I need to bring about their downfall quickly and put Sello in power... only then can I uncover the secrets they're hiding.
While thinking through this, Ebner helped Xio pack up the ritual supplies. Then the two casually began chatting about recent events.
Ebner glossed over the unique customs at the Intis ball and focused on the political scene in Trier and the expedition with Fors to the ruins in Bernie. Of course, Roselle's notes were only briefly mentioned and not discussed in detail.
After hearing it all, Xio couldn't help but feel Ebner was constantly caught up in major events. Even though he always turned them into advantages, the more mature and worldly Xio still felt a pang of worry. Being chased by fate like that wasn't something most could bear.
She understood the feeling. Years ago, while fleeing with her mother and brother from the military, she too had felt such pressure—where even pausing for a moment risked capture.
But Ebner's burdens were surely heavier.
To be noticed by gods—multiple gods at once—that kind of pressure was unimaginable.
But I'm still too weak. I can't share that burden. I still have to rely on him...
Even though she was nearly finished digesting the Judge potion, Xio still felt this frustration.
Still, she reminded herself that her progress had been remarkably fast. Half a year ago, she would never have imagined she'd be close to Sequence 5.
Suppressing her momentary discouragement, Xio composed herself and began talking about the events of the past month in Backlund—like the rollout of new air pollution laws, legislation on minimum benefits and work hours, and the rise of the film company.
Especially the last one. As free church-run schools spread, more cinemas were being built. Many businessmen and entrepreneurs, seeing the opportunity, had purchased projector and camera patents and started their own film companies. But Bryan Film Company, having prepared a batch of quality films ahead of time, had gained a dominant position in the current wave of competition.
"The silent comedies you suggested are incredibly popular with the working class. These days, even factory workers are willing to spend a few pence to take their families to the cinema on weekends. It's become a trend in Backlund—and it's starting to spread to surrounding cities.
"As for the sound films targeted at nobles and the wealthy, they're mostly adaptations of Roselle's novels or re-shoots of famous operas. The response has been great. After all, even the best opera stages can't compete with location shoots.
"There have also been quite a few nobles and business owners trying to buy into our company, but Her Highness Vera has blocked them all."
Here, Xio sighed. "Once the theatre chains are built out nationwide, every successful film will bring in massive profits... no wonder people are jealous.
"But the other companies will catch up eventually. Our head start won't last forever."
Ebner didn't mind. "More competition will only make the industry flourish."
Privately, he thought: With my insight and ahead-of-the-times knowledge, unless Klein joins the fray, our lead should hold for years.
And a few years from now, I won't need this film company anymore.
Thanks to Helene's hard work, Intis is nearly caught up too. Once the film industries in both countries are established, we can roll out to Feynapotter, then the three kingdoms of Masin, Segar, and Lenburg.
We'll have the Countess help open the market in Feysac, the Church of the Mother Earth promote in Feynapotter, and the Church of Knowledge assist in the Ronburg trio. That'll ensure our assets stay protected.
Tsk... only now that I've laid it out do I realize—these days, I seem to have influence in nearly every country on the Northern Continent.
I may not yet reach the top levels of power, but if I pulled all my strings, my influence wouldn't be small…
...
Monday afternoon, above the grey fog.
Klein rested his elbows on the armrests, fingers interlaced, as he watched beams of crimson light flash and fade into indistinct silhouettes.
Then, he saw Miss Justice lead the group in standing up and cheerfully greet him: "Good afternoon, Mr. Fool~"
The Hermit, Cattleya—who had just come off a rather memorable birthday—looked calm on the outside, but her spirit seemed a bit dazed. Only when she saw Miss Justice and Miss Judgment each pull out a Roselle diary page—one repaying a debt, one earning credit—did she return to her senses. She cautiously glanced at the Fool, only able to make out his robe-like form through the fog. Her deep violet pupils reflected only the vague silhouette of his manifest clothing.
Klein held the three diary pages but didn't rush to read them. After so many private meetings with Mr. Tower and learning all kinds of secrets, he felt nothing Roselle wrote could shock him anymore.
Unless, of course, he really was turned into a woman temporarily—like that figure on the Demoness card—by some strange blessing... Klein chuckled to himself and scanned the bronze table.
Hmm? The Hermit looks drained. Her curiosity seems different from the others—she appears to care deeply about the diary...
He took mental note, then casually turned his attention to the first yellowed parchment from Miss Judgment.
"September 1st: Inspired by the humiliating experience of being cursed into a woman for a day, I've created a magical item with transformation powers—Magic Wand.
"It's a semi-divine item, very powerful. The only drawback is that it must be used by a man... and using it turns you into a magical girl.
"January 3rd: I've sent Count White Maple to search for the last Trait of the Sequence-Breaking Prince. For his safety, I gave him the Magic Wand."
(End of Chapter)