Secrets: Priestess

Chapter 77 Testing
"Beautiful lady, I hope I am not too late."

Lanevus's words were gentle and sincere.

Ijebel's focus was not on the man's gentleness. She asked:
"Mr. Lanevus, the people who went to inspect the mine have returned... We are all convinced that your steel company, which holds the mining rights to the rich ore in the Honachis Mountains, has great potential."

"But I still have one concern, which is time. I need an exact time when I can get a good return."

"I understand the plight of your orphanage, and I feel deeply for it." Lanevus showed sympathy and smiled. "I'll put you in the first group to receive your funds. You'll see a generous return in three months, or as long as six months."

"Half a year..." Ijebel murmured to herself. She squeezed the bag in her arms and thought about the real estate documents and exploration reports she saw in Lanevus' office.

Thinking about the seal of the Severas County government and the endorsements of relevant agencies on those official documents.

Thinking of the photo of Lanevus, Sir Deville, and the mayor on the table.

Thinking about the funding gap that makes it difficult for the orphanage to maintain...

Ijebel gritted his teeth, placed the bag of banknotes on the table, and pushed it towards Lanevus.

"Ma'am, let me take you back."

"No thanks."

Lanevus took the money out of his bag and turned to leave.

Under the classical gaslight, Ijebel crossed his arms and unconsciously made a prayer-like gesture on the table.

Her tired face was buried in the shadow of her arms.

……

Monday, April 7th.

After a good nap, Claire walked out of the holy coffin, opened the curtains of the bay window, and sat down at the bedroom desk under the golden afternoon sun.

These days, she was either learning fighting from Gawain or honing her martial arts skills through actual combat in the black arena. She rarely returned to the Blackthorn Security Company. Claire simply moved the holy coffin back to 20 Ikashim Street in the university district.

As her understanding of combat deepened, Claire felt that the contamination from the Hidden Sage was being further absorbed and digested, which further strengthened her physical fitness.

It feels good to become stronger.

Claire was satisfied with the progress of the "Combat Scholar", but at the same time she was worried about the progress of the "Archaeologist".

During the Sequence 9 "Universal" stage, she was constantly immersed in the experience of digesting the potion. The clear memory of multiple people, as well as the learning and accumulation of all knowledge, helped her quickly digest the "Universal" potion.

But when she reached the "archaeologist" stage, she could only get some feedback on the digestion of the potion when she learned some real history.

This caused the digestion of the "Archaeologist" potion to slow down significantly.

"Do I want to be an archaeologist, explore those ruins, and look for those hidden places that may contain historical clues?"

Claire pondered, "Perhaps there are clues in the Church of the God of Steam and Machinery. After all, the members of the Mechanical Heart mainly use the 'Comprehension' path."

As she was thinking, the time came to three o'clock. Claire gave up her resistance and was enveloped by the deep red light.

Around the mottled bronze long table, blurry figures sat down in their respective fixed seats.

Claire opened her eyes and looked at the ancient long table in front of her. She suddenly wondered if the table in front of her could be considered an ancient wonder. She wanted to study whether it could be used to help her digest the potion.

I'm almost going insane. Claire laughed at herself, looking at the Fool and then at Miss Justice, who was unusually silent today.

Miss Justice didn't even start with her usual "Good afternoon" this time. Claire was not used to the silence.

Claire saw Miss Justice's figure behind the mist, sitting in her seat with her head lowered. This posture... seemed to be confusing.

As Claire observed, Miss Justice seemed to come to her senses and spoke with some hesitation and confusion:
"Dear Mr. Fool, you always help me. I have a question for you. What can a pet with extraordinary powers do for its owner? Simply put, what can it do?"

The inquiry of "justice" broke the silence and turned it into another strange silence.

Considering Justice's personality and financial resources... Claire couldn't help but wonder if Miss Justice had fed her pet a potion? And most likely it was the Audience potion.

Probably……

Thinking of this, Claire expressed a certain degree of admiration for "Justice" in her heart.

The Hanged Man, who had also been silent for more than ten seconds, then replied in a strange tone:
"It depends on what kind of extraordinary abilities the pet has. For example, if it is an 'audience', it can observe and listen on your behalf on certain occasions. You know, people will be wary of the same kind, but are unlikely to suspect pets. Eavesdropping, even if the pet is crouching at his feet.”

The Queen said in the same lazy and slightly teasing tone:

"But be careful of your 'pets' getting out of control. Miss Justice, you're incredibly lucky that a pet didn't bite your neck in your sleep."

These people all speculated about what wealthy and bizarre things "Justice" had done in private.

“Thank you, Mr. Hanged Man, for your answer, and thank you, Ms. Queen, for your reminder.” After raising his head and sitting up straight, Justice thanked the Queen, took a deep breath, and said to the Fool at the top, “Mr. Fool, I found another page from Emperor Roselle’s diary.”

Miss Justice wrote down the diary she remembered:

"December 20th is the start of a new year, but the feedback I've been receiving has left me incredibly confused and bewildered... There's no oil in this world! There's no oil!" There's no oil...

After seeing this, Claire suddenly understood.

She now understood why all the information she had seen had a strange feeling of technology coming to a sudden halt.

In the more than 170 years since Emperor Roselle launched the Industrial Revolution, the secular world of this world has failed to develop more advanced and complete industrial technology like Earth. Instead, it has relied on the special existence of "high phlogiston" to run crookedly on the road of steam.

She had guessed that this was the influence of supernatural power.

Is it because there is no oil?

As Claire thought about this, she had a bigger doubt:
But why? The world meets all the conditions for the birth of oil, so why is there no oil?
"It's also possible that the creation of oil was prevented by the influence of supernatural forces."

Oil is the blood of the Industrial Revolution.

Could it be that the mysterious forces are suppressing material technology?

Suppressing the turmoil in her heart, Claire continued reading:

"December 21st. Don't worry about oil anymore. Improving your Sequence Level is the most important thing!"

"December 22nd... I'm going to gather my ministers and formulate a 'Capital Sewer and Public Toilet Improvement Plan.' Um, we're also going to correct residents' bad habits. They're going to boil hot water for drinking, wash their hands and faces frequently, avoid littering, urinating and defecating in public, and use condoms whenever possible. Haha, I've figured out what to call this thing: the Patriotic Health Campaign!"

"So, the invention of condoms needs to be put on the agenda, as well as items such as masks and paper cups. Well, the most primitive version will do. Give it a try. Thank the world for its rubber trees."

"On December 23rd, maybe I should consider that suggestion and leave a way out for myself outside the Church of the God of Artisans. For example, join that ancient, secretive organization that secretly affects the world situation?"

The natural rubber provided by rubber trees is relatively expensive and not suitable for large-scale use in ordinary people's lives.

Besides, this world's secret organizations are endless. When Claire was curious about the name of the organization her senior, Russell, had joined, she couldn't help but compare it to her current situation.

My situation as a member of the Tarot Club is so similar to that of Emperor Roselle...

Claire thought so, and an idea that had long been in her mind began to stir. She hesitated for a moment, but finally imitated Miss Justice and spoke to the Fool at the top:

"Dear Mr. Fool, I also found a page from Emperor Roselle's diary."

The Fool's calm voice rang out from the thick fog, "Oh, Ms. Priestess, you also have some insights. Please express them."

Claire wrote down the diary entries she had prepared for a long time on the paper in front of her:
"On March 6th, Madam Flornal made me feel the beauty of being a noblewoman of Intis..."

"Matilda seemed to have sensed something, but she was even more enthusiastic and proactive than before..."

Lines of text appeared, filling both sides of the paper.

These were all fictional creations made by Claire based on records from books such as the official history and unofficial history of Intis.

When this fictional diary flashed into the Fool's book, Claire observed the Fool covertly and without revealing any emotion.

The Fool's posture and movements are still as if he is reading those diaries from before!
The Fool remained silent until he finished reading the diary she handed over!
Can a half-truth diary fool a fool?!

After making a tentative move, Claire remained seated quietly, without making any further movements.

The Fool, who had made the diary disappear, looked up and said, "You can communicate now."

Zhengyi inquired about the information of the "Arbitrator" potion and the "Apprentice" potion.

The Queen explained that Loen's royal family, the Augustus family, had many Extraordinary People of the Arbitrator sequence, and some of the nobles also had them.

The Hanged Man added that the Castilla family of the Feynaporte Kingdom also possesses the Arbitrator sequence.

It also points out that the arbitrator possesses convincing charm and sufficient authority, as well as excellent fighting ability to deal with unexpected situations.

After giving an answer that satisfied Justice, the Hanged Man made a request to the Fool, hoping to have a private transaction with Justice.

Under the Fool's isolation, Claire could not hear the private transaction between Justice and The Hanged Man.

Claire, who had no information to listen to, stared at the "Queen" opposite her out of boredom.

This would allow her to conceal and calm her restless state of mind after testing the Fool.

Regardless of whether the Fool is a god or not, it has at least been confirmed that the Fool is not omniscient, and that the Fool cannot probe the hearts and memories of Tarot Club members.

After confirming this premise, Claire began to think about testing the boundaries of the Fool's authority.

This idea is bold, but it is also an extremely rare opportunity to understand and analyze the existence of something like a "god".

But before Claire could put her idea of ​​testing the "god" into action, she stared at the "Queen" and saw the black-haired, black-eyed woman opposite her stretching out of boredom.

Then stretch upwards, bend your arms, put them next to your ears, and twist them left and right...

This is Claire's habitual action!

(End of this chapter)