Secrets: Priestess

Chapter 28 Gathering Again
In the bedroom, where tranquil incense was burning, Claire rubbed her forehead and climbed out of the bed.

The whispering in her ear made it difficult for Claire to sleep.

Fortunately, she is the favored one of the "Lord of Sleep and Silence", and the holy object she possesses will make her feel less uncomfortable after falling asleep.

What made Claire even more fortunate was that she only needed to sleep for three hours during the day to restore her full spirituality and energy.

Otherwise, even she would find it difficult to adapt to the nagging in her ears while sleeping and would go crazy sooner or later.

Get dressed, open the curtains, and open the windows for fresh air.

The breeze blows gently, and my hair sways by my ears.

Claire stretched lazily and went to the bathroom to take care of her personal hygiene issues.

After washing up, she took out her pocket watch. There was still more than an hour until the time agreed with Mr. Fool, so Claire decided to go find something to eat first.

Outside the bedroom, there were sticky notes with reminders written by Jessica everywhere.

In less than a week, Jessica renovated the small house, and the layout was greatly different from the original one.

After Claire joined the Night Watch, she was either out on missions or staying at the headquarters reading books, and most of the time she didn't even go home.

Jessica was also busy developing her business in Tingen, visiting local nobles and big businessmen all day long, and did not have much free time.

But every time Claire returned home, she would see these daily updated reminders, telling her what delicious food she had bought, which ingredients were fresh, what daily necessities she had added, and which clothes she had just bought because she thought they suited her...

Just looking at these, a warm smile unconsciously appeared on the corner of my mouth.

Without much skill, she made breakfast according to the recipe she remembered. When Claire ate it, her taste buds were greatly satisfied.

The "generalist"'s ability to remember everything he sees and apply various skills is extremely practical in the secular world.

If Claire wants to become a chef who can capture customers' stomachs, the time and energy she needs to spend will be far less than that of other practitioners.

"Let Jessica try it next time."

After putting away the dishes and kitchen utensils, Claire sat down and silently calculated the time: 2:53.

This she deduced from the sound of her heartbeat.

There is no need to deliberately memorize it. After practicing for a period of time, it will almost become an instinctive and passive thing.

I took out my pocket watch and it was 2:52.

Claire smiled with satisfaction: "After a while of getting familiar with me, I'll be a self-running human clock."

After binding the eyes of the nightmare doll she was allowed to carry with her, Claire sat at the desk and read the basic information about the Morse Ascetic Order that Old Neil had compiled for her.

“Do whatever you want, but do no harm.”

This motto, uttered from within the secretive and sinister Moss Ascetic Order, greatly reduced the probability of the "Secret Peeper" Extraordinary being out of control.

Claire, who had learned about digestion and acting from Russell's diary, understood this sentence as the one that best fits the "Secret Peeper" acting principle.

As long as you practice this motto, you are playing the role of a secret spy.

"So, you have to know when to stop..."

The more secrets you discover, the more you need to restrain your behavior.

Claire understood something and stood up the scattered papers, aligning them on the flat table.

Amid the sound of papers tapping against the table, a deep red light spread and gently enveloped Claire.

A second before this moment, above the gray fog, Klein sat at the head of the long bronze table, using the thicker gray fog to cover himself. He then extended his right hand and pointed at three "deep red" stars in the distance.

……

In the windowless basement, the blue-haired man with a rough and deep outline opened his spiritual vision the moment the clock hand pointed to three o'clock, but the deep red without any warning directly submerged him like a tide.

...Backlund, in a luxurious villa in Queens.

The tall, blonde noble girl had a pen and paper at her side. As she inhaled, "I'm really looking forward to it...", a deep red, illusory light enveloped her.

……

The vision is clear and the ears are quiet.

Claire saw the magnificent palace that looked like the Giant King's residence.

At the head of the long bronze table, the fog surrounding Mr. Fool grew thicker, while the appearances of Justice and the Hanged Man remained largely unchanged.

Miss Justice greeted everyone briskly.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Fool."

"Good afternoon, Ms. Priestess, Mr. Hanged Man."

Mr. Fool seemed moved by the unabashed innocence of "Justice" and actually responded:
"Good afternoon, Miss Justice."

Claire sighed silently in her heart, "This girl is so approachable and infectious."

The party then begins with the follow-up to the previous deal between Justice and the Hanged Man.

The Hanged Man confirmed receiving the Ghost Shark's blood.

Claire saw the Hanged Man tilt his head towards her, seemed to hesitate for a moment, and then explained to Zhengyi the precautions for mixing the potion and the formula of the "audience" in public.

"'Audience', 80 ml of pure water, 5 drops of Colchicum extract, 13 grams of Oxtooth Peony powder, 7 petals of Elf Flower, a pair of eyes of an adult Manhar fish, and 35 ml of Sheephorn Snakehead fish blood."

Miss Justice couldn't remember the potion formula right away, so the Hanged Man patiently repeated it to her until he was sure that Miss Justice had memorized the potion formula thoroughly and accurately.

Is the cautious Hanged Man actually a patient and gentle person at heart?

Claire also listened quietly to their conversation.

After confirming that Justice had memorized the "Audience" formula, the Hanged Man continued to explain to Justice how to meditate, and based on this, he taught him the experience of mastering the power of the potion:

"...After taking the potion, begin meditation as soon as possible to control your spirituality and strength... You must practice daily to truly master the potion's power and unearth its symbolic meaning and further mysteries. Only in this way can you avoid the danger of losing control to the greatest extent possible. The key to the potion's symbolic meaning lies in its 'name', such as 'audience'!"

wrong……

According to Emperor Roselle's description, this is a misunderstanding of the potion system!
"No, not master." Claire said halfway when she heard a tapping sound on the table above her.

She looked up at the Fool, who was shrouded in gray mist.

Then I heard Mr. Fool correcting me in a low voice:
“It’s not about mastering, it’s about digesting.”

"It's not digging, it's acting."

"The name of the potion is not only a symbol, but also an image, and it is also the 'key' to digestion."

Claire saw Justice staring blankly in confusion, and also saw the Hanged Man tremble and freeze in his seat.

"Digest...act, key..." The Hanged Man's dazed whispers kept echoing softly, showing how great an impact the "acting method" had on this cautious man.

As expected, Emperor Roselle’s experience was correct.

Claire was convinced in her heart.

The Hanged Man expressed his gratitude to Mr. Fool in a hoarse voice.

Mr. Fool just smiled and said, "I wanted to say this was an advance payment, but even if I hadn't said it just now, Ms. Priestess would have reminded you."

Everyone's attention shifted to Claire, who spoke frankly:
"I only learned this knowledge by accident. Mr. Fool's reminder this time will make me more confident in walking on this path."

After thanking Mr. Fool, Claire changed the subject with a question:
"Mr. Fool just mentioned 'advance payment'. Do you have anything you'd like us to do?"

(End of this chapter)