Edward continued reading:
"Ah, I've been here for so many days now. So boring, even more boring than before. The food's terrible, I don't like it here!"
---
"That woman has been following me for over ten days now. I've beaten her several times during that period, but she still refuses to leave, or even talk. What a strange person."
---
"Today, that woman finally spoke. I thought she was mute. She told me her name…"
At this point, Edward finally remembered—this was from the diary pages he had found in the gang leader's safe after eliminating the Zmanger Gang. These pages were suspected to be from another transmigrator—a predecessor like himself.
Unfortunately, he had only read the first two pages before Bernadette suddenly showed up and took the diary away. Edward suspected that was when she began keeping an eye on him.
He carefully turned to the second-to-last page. The first four words instantly made his pupils shrink:
"Her name is Cheek."
Cheek?
Edward leaned in and double-checked. It really was Cheek!
Cheek—such a seemingly ordinary name—was by no means ordinary in the world of Lord of the Mysteries. It represented a Sequence 0 True God, the Primordial Demoness!
But…the diary described a woman named Cheek who followed "me" around and was even beaten up by "me" several times?!
These short sentences carried a surreal, almost postmodern absurdity that made Edward's brain lag for a moment.
After a beat, a thought popped into Edward's head: Could it just be someone with the same name? After all, the true names of deities were highly secret in this world, especially those of evil gods like Cheek. Hardly anyone would know.
So it wouldn't be odd if someone happened to choose that name unknowingly.
But wait—
Cheek was a male name. Why would a woman be called that? That's just…suspicious!
"You seem to have read something unbelievable?" Bernadette asked.
"It is...rather unbelievable. Let me finish reading first."
Edward rubbed his forehead and continued reading:
"Ugh, still bored these past few days. Every day is just eating, sleeping, and hitting Cheek."
---
"...Finally got out of that endless wasteland today and saw people again. They told me this place is the Solomon Empire, a land ruled by gods. But all I want now is a proper feast!"
---
"The feast…sucked! Cheek seemed to enjoy it though, so I beat her up again! Hmph, she said she's my underling, yet dares talk back to me?"
---
"Last night, Cheek suddenly came to ask me about the formula for the Demoness of Despair potion. How should I know? She insisted I'd seen all the witch formulas before. I asked where I supposedly saw them, and she said: a gray-white stone tablet. Oh right, I have seen one like that, but I couldn't read any of it...To stop Cheek from calling me illiterate, I beat her up again."
---
"...Haven't written in a while. Half a month ago I was ambushed—would've died if Cheek hadn't blocked the attack for me! Hmm…I've decided I'll stop beating (crossed out) beat her less. She's now officially promoted from my underling to my little sis."
---
"Been recovering these past few days. While half-dazed, I suddenly remembered that stone tablet again. Still had those unreadable symbols…but somehow, I could suddenly understand them! Perfect timing. Since I don't know how to thank Cheek, I'll just give her the Demoness of Despair formula."
—The diary entries ended there.
Edward stared at the last page, lost in thought. He now fully confirmed that the Cheek mentioned here was indeed the future Primordial Witch Cheek!
And at the time these entries were written, she had only reached Sequence 5.
Damn…this transmigrator "predecessor" sure woke up a long time ago, huh?
There wasn't a specific date in the original novel for when Cheek became a god, but based on what we know, she likely ascended sometime during the early Fourth Epoch.
The Third Epoch belonged to the Ancient Sun God—there were no records of the Primordial Witch then. But by the time of the Four Emperors War in the Fourth Epoch, Cheek already existed and had even teamed up with the Underworld Emperor, Salinger, to unleash the Pale Disaster.
So going by the timeline, this diary must be from early Fourth Epoch, and Cheek probably ascended with help from that transmigrator predecessor.
That gray-white stone tablet mentioned? Most likely one of the Blasphemy Slates. It's unclear whether it was the first or second, or how exactly the predecessor accessed it.
Edward turned to Bernadette. "I believe even if you can't yet read Rosellean, you can still tell that these notes didn't come from Emperor Roselle."
Bernadette nodded slightly. "That's right. And that only makes me more curious."
She explained, "I've seen many forgeries before—imitations of Rosellean. But they were always crude. Even when I didn't know the language, I could still tell they were fakes."
"But these few pages are different."
Edward sighed inwardly. As Bernadette became more fluent in Chinese, it was only a matter of time before she realised what he had intentionally left untranslated. Honestly, most of Roselle's salacious escapades wouldn't be that big a deal.
He could always say he'd done it to preserve her "good image" of her father.
After all, it's not like I would be socially ruined…Wait, unless she really starts treating me like her dad, then what if she flips out and backstabs her 'old man'?
And what if she asked about the other transmigrator?
Hmm…maybe I should just come clean. Tell her: "Hey Bernie, I may not be your dad, but I'm kind of like your dad's peer. So just call me Uncle from now on."
"You're thinking about how to make up a convincing story, aren't you?" Bernadette suddenly said.
"No such thing, Bern—ahem, Your Majesty."
Edward cleared his throat and said, "The person who wrote these pages…should be from the same place as Emperor Roselle."
Her eyes flickered slightly. "Home?"
Eh?
Edward was startled. In the original story, she only learned the true meaning of "home" from Klein. How could she know it this early? Could it be that she asked Mr. Fool during her time in the Forsaken Land of the Gods?
"That's right."
Edward decided to be straightforward. "But from the context of the writing, it seems to describe events from the early Fourth Epoch. The author mentioned travelling abroad and arriving at the Solomon Empire of that time. He also met someone…" He hesitated a moment before continuing, "That person's name was Cheek."
Bernadette paused in surprise. "The Primordial Demoness?"
"More precisely, Cheek before she became a god. According to these pages, she received her Sequence 4 potion formula from the diary's author."
Her deep blue eyes grew more profound. "That's…a truly astonishing revelation."
After a few seconds, she asked again, "So, this so-called Rosellean language wasn't invented by my father—it came from their homeland?"
"Well…yes, that's probably the case."
Bernadette gazed steadily into Edward's eyes.
"And what about you? How is it that you know Ro—this language? Are you also from this 'home'?"
"I am."
Edward fell silent for a few seconds, then said in a low voice, "So…if you've misunderstood me in any way before…"
"There's no misunderstanding."
She cut him off calmly.
"…Huh?"
Bernadette stood up from the swing chair. "Two days from now, I'll return to Emerald City to retrieve more of my father's journals. They're stored in my palace on Rasha Island, part of the Fog Sea. Since you won't be heading to Intis anymore, why don't you come to Emerald City instead?"
"As for the next two days, keep using your spare time to teach me Rosellean."
With that, her figure vanished, swallowed by a towering stalk of pea vines.
"Edward, she's gone now~" came Lilith's voice.
"Mm."
Edward looked toward where Bernadette had disappeared, briefly lost in thought.
They had practically laid everything bare just now—so why did Bernadette insist there was no misunderstanding? And even invited him to her private palace?
What was she really thinking?
Tch, I've got no clue at all.
Whoooooooo~~
At that moment, the White Agate's whistle blew. The ship gave a slight jolt and began slowly pulling away from the pier.
——
By midday, the warm sun had driven off the chill of late autumn. Though the deck still had a biting wind, many passengers came out to bask in the sunlight.
Edward and Klein picked a spot near the railing, enjoying the sound of the waves lapping against the hull as they ate lunch. Lilith ran about without a care, curiously inspecting everything. When she saw flying fish leap from the sea, she even struck a dramatic pose as if preparing to dive after them.
The whole scene was peaceful and comfortable.
Klein couldn't help but think: If only this trip really were just a vacation…how nice that would be.
Edward read his expression and chuckled, "We've only just set out. But think about it—every day from now on, all you'll see is endless ocean and sky. And the ship's not exactly spacious. Won't it get boring fast?"
"Hmm, that's true." Klein nodded. "But I looked at the White Agate's travel schedule—basically, it stops at an island every 2–3 days. So it shouldn't be as bad as you say."
He paused, then asked, "We should arrive at Damir Harbour by tomorrow afternoon. Are you planning to disembark and change routes there?"
Edward's fingers intertwined as a thought struck him. "Why don't you divine it for me? Should I get off at Damir?"
As the Anchor of Fate in this world, Klein's divinations were certainly worth consulting.
"…Huh? What do you want me to divine?"
Then Klein realised something. "Wait a sec—you can divine for yourself!"
"Come on, who can out-divine a Seer? My pitiful skills would only make a fool of me."
"…I feel like you're being sarcastic."
Klein pulled out a citrine crystal. "So, what exactly are you asking?"
"Just—should I disembark at Damir Harbour or not?"
"Hey now, you do know divination doesn't work well with vague questions like that, right?"
Edward pulled out a gold coin and handed it over. "Then don't divine. Just flip this. Heads, I get off. Tails, I stay. Either way, the coin is yours."
Klein squinted, accepting the coin.
"Well, if you're this determined to give me free money, I won't say no."
He held up the coin for Edward to see.
"Watch carefully."
———
[Note]: Don't forget to VOTE. It keeps me motivated.