Chapter 23: God Express Class is in Session!
Once again, Nairn was the only one left in the room.
He stretched comfortably, feeling the two distinct yet perfectly blended powers of the [Player] and the [Fun-seeker] within him, his mood excellent.
Double Sequence 9, the foundation was set.
As long as he obtained a "Spectator" Beyonder characteristic from Audrey to completely stabilize this fragile balance, he could set his sights on the vast horizon of sequence 8.
Although this bit of power was worth less than a single hair in the face of the Sefirah power of the [Chaos Theater].
But one must eat one bite at a time and walk the path one step at a time.
Just then, a rhythmic knocking sounded at the door.
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"Knock. Knock-knock. Knock-knock-knock."
It was Klein.
This was the secret signal Nairn had agreed upon with him—one long, two short, and then three short. It was simple, easy to remember, and filled with an indescribable feeling of an underground party meeting.
The corners of Nairn's mouth curled up as he stood to open the door.
Outside, Klein's expression was complex, containing both the relief of letting go and a hint of ghost-seeing suspicion.
"Come in," Nairn stepped aside.
Klein entered the room and closed the door behind him before lowering his voice to speak: "The Nighthawks came by last night. They used a 'Dream Entry' ability, but I didn't mention anything about you."
"I know," Nairn replied nonchalantly, as if talking about a trivial matter like "the weather is nice today."
He poured himself a cup of black tea and handed one to Klein. "Try it. Fenepotter Blood-veined Tea. It's refreshing."
Klein took the teacup but didn't drink. He stared at Nairn, the scrutiny in his eyes almost overflowing. "I went to visit my mentor today, Mr. Quentin Cohen."
"Mm-hmm?" Nairn took a sip of tea and gestured for him to continue.
"He told me that a few days ago, a Mr. Naiya who was extremely interested in fourth epoch history visited him, hoping he could recommend an excellent student to explain history to him..." Klein's voice was a bit dry. "And he recommended me."
At this point, Klein choked, and the bellyful of explanations he had prepared instantly got stuck in his throat.
He looked at Nairn's calm and unruffled face, a deeper sense of horror creeping into his heart.
So that was it.
Everything was within his calculations.
He knew the Nighthawks would come, knew he would be scrutinized, and even knew the method of scrutiny would be "Dream Entry."
So he intentionally left no contact information, certain that after he survived the scrutiny, he would "naturally" come looking for him through the mentor's connection.
Before that, he hadn't established any overt Connection with him.
Only after confirming he had passed safely did he use the mentor's connection to provide a seamless and reasonable excuse for their association.
He had thought he kept the secret by relying on willpower and trust in his fellow countryman, but in the end, he was just running self-importantly on tracks someone else had laid down.
This person... just how big was the chessboard he had laid out?
Could all of this be part of Nairn's plan?
This level of calculation, this foresight... just how far into the future could he see?
Klein's evaluation of Nairn—the image of that "Lovers" in his heart, that mysterious "fellow countryman"—was instantly elevated to infinite heights, becoming increasingly unfathomable.
"Don't be so nervous." Nairn seemed to see through his thoughts and casually grabbed a bottle of soda from the nearby cabinet and tossed it to him. "Sit. You are my private History Consultant now; we are just having an academic exchange."
Klein caught the soda and shook his head with a bitter smile.
Academic exchange? Exchanging tips on how to act like an evil god?
Seeing Klein's "broken" expression, Nairn curiously used his "Lovers" character card and "Player" ability to get a brief idea of what he was thinking—
Nairn almost burst out laughing.
As expected of the future Mr. The Fool, his ability to overthink is truly strong.
Nairn just wanted to find a legitimate reason to contact Klein and incidentally guard against Dunn Smith; he hadn't expected Klein to complete the logical chain himself.
"Sit down, don't just stand there." Nairn pointed to the sofa opposite him. "Since you're here, there are some things you should know. After all, as my 'lead actor,' you can't be completely ignorant of the script."
Klein took a deep breath and sat down.
Then, he brought up the matter of the Roselle diaries.
This was another major piece of news he had discovered yesterday.
"In other words, before us, there was another fellow countryman who transmigrated?"
"Correct."
Nairn was noncommittal and nodded calmly.
Seeing Nairn's indifferent attitude, Klein felt that this world was truly strange.
Can transmigrators even come in clusters?
"So, your relationship with Roselle..."
Klein remembered Miss Justice mentioning the "Blasphemy Slate" at the Tarot Club, as well as the speculation about "Blasphemy Cards," and instantly had a more reasonable guess.
"Ahem... I have to clarify something here."
Nairn felt his reputation was about to be tainted by a certain old man who frequently wrote "diaries," and he was instantly displeased.
"Those diaries... how should I put it? See for yourself. You don't need to tell me; I've seen them before."
"Some of the content is truly an eyesore."
"Roselle should pay me mental distress fees for reading some of those diaries."
Hmm?
Klein, who did not yet know Roselle's personality, was full of question marks.
Hadn't Roselle done quite well? He was even a heroic figure with a huge influence on this world.
Why was it that, in Nairn's eyes, he seemed like someone of ill repute?
Klein didn't dare ask, suppressing the doubt in his heart and harboring a sense of curiosity—
What exactly did Roselle write?
He would definitely investigate in the future.
After Klein finished recounting the information from the few pages of Roselle's diary he knew, he heard Nairn explain.
"First, regarding that version of you Above the Gray Fog, the 'Fool'."
Nairn put down his teacup, his expression becoming a bit more serious.
"Roselle's diary mentioned that 'Seer,' 'Apprentice,' and 'Marauder' are the three best pathways of the gods. Do you know why?"
Klein shook his head blankly.
"For you, first of all, these three pathways have an extremely deep Connection to that Gray Fog Space you currently control—the 'Sefirah Castle.' Choosing them allows you to utilize the power of 'Sefirah Castle' to the greatest extent, reducing the risk of losing control and making it easier to digest potions."
Nairn paused and threw out a key concept: "The Acting Method."
He explained in detail how to speed up the digestion of a potion, master Beyonder powers, and combat mental Pollution by acting as the character corresponding to the potion's name.
"They allow you to more quickly understand what the potion you've drunk represents, so you can 'act' it out and 'digest' it, rather than being 'alienated' by it."
"In other words, acting... is understanding and practicing those Sequence rules?" Klein seemed to realize something.
"Yes, but not entirely." Nairn held up a finger. "It's to let you play a role, not to let you become that role."
"Remember, you are always Zhou Mingrui. Klein Moretti is just one of your identities, and 'Fool' is just one of your personas. Once you confuse yourself with the role, you won't be far from losing control."
These words were like a heavy hammer, striking hard at Klein's heart.
Am I Klein?
I am Zhou Mingrui!
Without realizing it, having accepted his new identity, Zhou Mingrui's memory of the past had become a bit blurred.
'No, I can't forget the goal of going home.'
He secretly warned himself: I must remember my name, and I must remember where I came from.
That is where eternal longing lies, where eternal memories are... Of course, the new life now must also be lived well.
Yet for some reason, Zhou Mingrui felt Nairn's words had a deeper meaning, and he felt some doubt:
If one day he were truly left in this world, would he completely become—
[Klein Moretti], whose true name no one knows?
A person with modern experiences, yet possessing the self-identity of an ordinary history student from the perspective of this steam era—
A [Native]?
Is this [Rebirth]? Or [Assimilation]?
Or perhaps, in this crazy world, it is the thing that twists and devours everyone—
[Alienation] and [Pollution]?