Chapter 2797 Anomaly <TOC> Chapter 2799 Mutual Guessing
Translator: SumTLMan
The Sovereign of Wisdom did not seek for Angel to bring surprise, so long as he could bring 「change」, even if it was change for the worse, he was willing to accept it.
The current Ruin Site, the current Her Highness the Goddess, and his current self, were like an axle-wheel that had already been fixed, severely internalized. With his ability, even if he could pry this axle-wheel, he also could not pry it…… because of, rules and promises.
Therefore, if an outsider could pry this axle-wheel, even if it was not moving in a good direction, the Sovereign of Wisdom believed that with his own schemes, he could still turn back the raging tide. The worst result, would only be resetting this severely internalized axle-wheel, and resetting meant that everything would start over from the beginning, and when making choices again, the Sovereign of Wisdom had the confidence to break this internalized system.
Most importantly, after starting over, everything the Sovereign of Wisdom did, would not violate the Laws agreed upon with Her Highness the Goddess; nor would it betray the promise made with Augustine back then.
Therefore, he looked forward to Angel’s arrival, being able to bring to this old world covered with chronic afflictions, the wind of a new world. A mild wind, a gentle wind, even a hurricane, a violent wind, all were acceptable, so long as it could blow in, that itself was a kind of success.
「How far will you walk?」 The Sovereign of Wisdom whispered softly, his gaze looking into the distance, his eyes far-reaching, as though passing through layer upon layer of barriers, watching Angel, who was advancing here step by step.
Suddenly, the flames in the fireplace trembled once.
The Sovereign of Wisdom withdrew his gaze, gently looked at the flames, his brows slightly furrowing for a moment, then slowly relaxing again.
Closing his eyes, and immersing himself for several seconds, when he opened them again, the emotion within his eyes had already vanished, and the worried expression had also returned to that lazy young-boy appearance from the beginning.
「Her Highness the Goddess has come, why not reveal yourself?」 The Sovereign of Wisdom looked toward the bronze mirror above the fireplace.
The surface of the bronze mirror was clear and bright, and at first there was no change at all, until after the Sovereign of Wisdom spoke, only then did a figure slowly appear upon the mirror’s surface.
Judging from the outline, it was a graceful, slender woman.
Only, she did not reveal her face, but instead allowed the shadows inside the mirror to block her body, so that only a robe covered with gemstone crystals, yet somewhat dim, could vaguely be seen.
「Is Her Highness the Goddess unwilling to let me behold your honored countenance?」 There were many honorifics in the Sovereign of Wisdom’s words, but there was no real respect in them, and even, to Aedannis’ ears, they sounded somewhat harsh.
Aedannis coldly snorted and said: 「Since when did you also learn to speak in such a snide, mocking way?」
The Sovereign of Wisdom’s expression did not change, and he said with a smiling face: 「I would not dare. It is only that I did not expect Her Highness the Goddess to come looking for me at this time, and if you were going to come, then come, yet you also do not show yourself, that is a tiny bit disappointing.」
Aedannis did not believe a single bit of the Sovereign of Wisdom’s words, and she also had no intention of following the direction of the Sovereign of Wisdom’s speech, but instead said coldly: 「That woman came here?」
「That woman? The one you mean is……」 The Sovereign of Wisdom asked while pretending not to know.
Aedannis: 「Do not ask a question when you already know the answer, there is not even a trace of residual memory within this mirror surface, it is blank just like a newly made mirror, other than her, who unconsciously absorbs the surrounding memories, who else could it be?」
The Sovereign of Wisdom was not embarrassed at all after being exposed, and still smiled as he said: 「So the one Your Highness spoke of was that one…… yes, she came here, I occasionally have some contact with her, Your Highness should know that.」
Aedannis, through the shadows, quietly stared at the Sovereign of Wisdom, and only after a long while did she say: 「Although I would dearly love for an old fellow like you, who outwardly obeys while secretly defies, to stumble badly, as a collaborator, I still have to remind you, do not get too close to that woman.」
「If her main body wakes up, this Mirror Domain will inevitably once again experience turbulence. This is not any good news for either you, or me, you surely do not want those three little brats from Younus’ family, to have even their homeland destroyed, right?」
The Sovereign of Wisdom: 「Your Highness is worrying too much.」
Aedannis: 「As a lifeform of the material world, you will not understand the meaning of her existence. Do not be fooled by how, in her current body, she looks easy to talk to, but she is a Special Individual born from this Mirror Domain, just like…… the Extreme Sect among you humans. When she awakens, she will only carry out acts of cleansing, and stable inner-mirror space is not something the Laws wish to see.」
「What the Laws want, is for all stability to disappear, for all mirror surface spaces to fall into the Sea of Void Mirrors, only then can purity be maintained, and the absolute separation between the material world and the world inside mirrors be maintained. And she is the executor, and once the executor awakens, she does not know what she is doing. Memories can be instilled, thought can be made self-consistent, logic can be fabricated…… this is what she is.」
「You should understand better than I do.」 Aedannis paused, then sneered: 「Or should I say, do you really think that you have some favor owed to you by her?」
The Sovereign of Wisdom did not have much reaction to Aedannis’ words, he was not stupid, and had long since guessed what Laplace’s main body was. However, so what?
Aedannis said that the Sovereign of Wisdom was a lifeform of the material world, and would not understand Laplace’s existence. But Aedannis had forgotten one point, the Sovereign of Wisdom indeed was a lifeform of the material world, and precisely because of that, it was very difficult for there to be a structural conflict between Laplace and him.
Instead, it was Aedannis who needed to worry about herself.
Also, Aedannis felt that there was no favor between them, that it was a fabricated memory. This too was merely one of Aedannis’ reckless speculations, thinking that because the Sovereign of Wisdom found it difficult to come into contact with the Sea of Void Mirrors, he would not have any contact with Laplace’s main body, but in reality, the Sovereign of Wisdom truly had come into contact with Laplace’s main body, and as for a favor, well, that depended on how one defined it.
As for comparing Laplace to the Extreme Sect, that was even more groundless. The Extreme Sect only seemingly follows the World Will, and that is merely an outward 『seeming』, in reality, by using this banner, they had secretly skimmed no small amount of benefits.
And if even the Extreme Sect can carry that banner, while secretly doing petty, sordid things in the dark. Then must Laplace necessarily obey the so-called principles of the Mirror Domain?
It could only be said, that Aedannis thought too highly of Laplace, while at the same time also thinking too little of the Sovereign of Wisdom.
This was what the Sovereign of Wisdom thought in his heart, but on the surface he did not show it at all: 「If Your Highness came only to speak of this matter, then I think Your Highness still need not worry too much. According to the information I have obtained, her main body will not awaken within a short time.」
After pausing, the Sovereign of Wisdom directly said: 「Your Highness might as well speak of the main matter.」
Aedannis certainly had not come here just to say a few bits of gossip about Laplace, if she had come looking for him, then she necessarily had matters to instruct.
Aedannis: 「Originally I came for only one matter, but since that woman came, now one more matter has been added.」
The Sovereign of Wisdom roughly had an idea in his heart, however he did not speak, but instead waited for Aedannis to take the initiative to open her mouth.
「That woman would not come for no reason at all, you were the one who sought her out, right? In order to look at the Reflection of the Hearts of those few boys, correct?」 Aedannis directly pierced through the paper window.
The Sovereign of Wisdom smiled: 「For Younus to explain this term, Reflection of the Heart, I imagine it spent a very long time, right?」
Aedannis had not had too much interaction with Laplace, and it was even less possible for her to know her abilities out of thin air, so the one who told her, could only have been someone by the Sovereign of Wisdom’s side.
And the only ones who knew of Laplace’s existence, were Younus and its three children, because when the Sovereign of Wisdom first met Laplace, he had brought them along. If One-Eyed Big Treasure, Second Treasure, or Little Treasure, had spoken to Aedannis about Laplace’s matter, then afterward they would definitely have told the Sovereign of Wisdom.
But they had never spoken to the Sovereign of Wisdom about this matter, then the only answer left was Younus.
Regarding this, the Sovereign of Wisdom was not surprised either. One could even say, he had long since guessed that Younus would tell Aedannis about this matter, because, compared with himself, what Younus cared about more, was still its true master.
Aedannis coldly snorted: 「Actually, I would rather have One-Eyed Second Treasure explain it to me, next time, perhaps I can have Younus call Second Treasure over?」
The Sovereign of Wisdom’s words were implying that Younus was actually a watcher that Aedannis had sent to his side. Aedannis also did not yield, and sarcastically mocked the Sovereign of Wisdom for trying to win over Younus’ three children.
At the same time, Aedannis also expressed a viewpoint: I know that you are trying to win them over, I see it in my eyes, and I did not stop you, that is me giving you face. But do not forget, I also have ways to keep them in check.
And what Aedannis said was indeed true, although the One-Eyed family listened to the Sovereign of Wisdom’s words, compared with the Sovereign of Wisdom, they cared more about their own mother.
It could be said, that at this time, they were precisely 「hurting each other」.
And the one who was clearly a level higher, was without question Aedannis, who held Younus in her grasp.
The Sovereign of Wisdom sighed in his heart, and also did not wish to continue arguing with Aedannis on this issue, and could only take the initiative to yield: 「What Her Highness the Goddess said is correct, I indeed had her do Reflection of the Hearts for these few people.」
Aedannis: 「Tell me the result.」
The Sovereign of Wisdom had also guessed Aedannis’ purpose, and he did not refuse either…… because according to the contract he had signed with Aedannis, or rather, the Laws they had set, when it came to people and matters related to the Ruin Site, the Sovereign of Wisdom had no way to refuse.
「Whose shall Your Highness hear first?」 Although the Sovereign of Wisdom had no way to refuse, that did not affect him from using this to probe a little into whom Aedannis was more concerned about.
Aedannis: 「As you please.」
Aedannis clearly did not want to fall into the pit dug by the Sovereign of Wisdom.
However, the Sovereign of Wisdom also did not care, since he had asked, he had confidence in sounding out Aedannis’ true thoughts from the side.
「Alright, then I will start by speaking of this person first.」 The Sovereign of Wisdom lightly tapped the void, and simulated an illusion. Within the illusion appeared a tall, handsome, red-haired man.
Mm, that is right, it was 「Red Sword」 Daus.
When Aedannis saw Daus’ appearance, her brows wrinkled slightly, she was not interested in the information of this kind of outsider. But she had only just said 「as you please」, and if she changed her words now, she also felt that it was somewhat inappropriate.
Aedannis could only respond with silence, suppress her temper, and listen as the Sovereign of Wisdom spoke about Daus’ affairs.
And after the Sovereign of Wisdom began to speak, the more Aedannis listened, the more she felt that something was off.
At the beginning, the Sovereign of Wisdom first spoke of the Gift Words, then explained the Gift Words, immediately after that he spoke again of definitions, and then even began to describe Daus’ background, while also casually inserting a bit of Laplace’s opinion.
At first hearing, all of it sounded reasonable, it was just…… too long-winded.
Aedannis many times wanted to interrupt, and say 「enough」, but every time she was about to interrupt, the Sovereign of Wisdom would deliberately mention the opinion Laplace had given, or set up some suspense…… especially suspense involving Daus’ teammates.
Among them, he many times mentioned the person Aedannis truly cared about, so she could only endure it and continue listening.
Yet the more she listened, the longer it became, the more time it took……
As the Wise One, his command of rhetoric was certainly extremely high.
Something that could be said in one sentence, he could analyze for you through spring, summer, autumn, and winter, and you still would not have the heart to interrupt him.
No matter how good Aedannis’ temper was, she still could not quite endure it any longer, not to mention, her temper was not good to begin with!
However, the Sovereign of Wisdom’s grasp of emotions had simply reached the point of perfection. Just as Aedannis was about to explode, the Sovereign of Wisdom suddenly opened his mouth: 「Alright, that is about enough regarding his Gift Words, let us talk about the next one.」
Aedannis had nowhere to vent her anger, and could only take a deep breath: 「For the next one, say it more simply.」
「Alright, more simply ah…… then this time I will speak about, this person.」 The Sovereign of Wisdom tapped the void, and a man without a nose appeared.
「This person……」 Aedannis frowned, wanting to say something, but before she could say it, the Sovereign of Wisdom spoke a step ahead
「What Your Highness said is correct, this person is precisely a descendant of Noah, presumably Your Highness’ level of concern toward him should be very high. Therefore, I will first talk about him.」
Aedannis very much wanted to ask: I did not say anything at all, so how did it become that what I said was correct?
Also, Aedannis very much wanted to refute him, that she had no particular interest in this person. But just as the Sovereign of Wisdom said, this person was a descendant of Noah, and from the position she occupied, how could she, how was it possible for her, to have no interest in a descendant of Noah?
Therefore, even if Aedannis wanted to refute him, it was awkward to do so, and she could only continue listening.
Thinking, this was an apprentice, so it should be finished quickly.
But she still underestimated the Sovereign of Wisdom too much, even with the completely unrelated outsider 「Treasure Seeking Hunter」 Daus, he could speak of him fluently and at length, much less this descendant of Noah, 「The Solitary One Hidden Among the Crowd」 Vai.
When the Sovereign of Wisdom spoke of Vai, all kinds of phrases also came readily to hand, occasionally involving secrets, but most of the time it was all nonsense.
This was like, constantly feeding you plain water, and when you found it too bland, he would occasionally give you a piece of candy.
Aedannis only felt both itchy and uncomfortable inside.
She wanted to continue listening, yet also felt that most of what she was hearing was useless, and that there seemed to be no need to continue listening.
Under this state of wavering back and forth, the Sovereign of Wisdom finally finished speaking about Vai.
Aedannis let out a breath of relief, Vai had been spoken of, and there were not many left either, it should soon be that one’s turn.
However, Aedannis also did not want the Sovereign of Wisdom to keep speaking so much nonsense, so, just as the Sovereign of Wisdom was about to speak of the third person, she opened her mouth and said: 「Do not speak any more nonsense, also, do not mention boring people to me again.」
「Your Highness means that you want to hear about people who are interesting, and have substance?」 The Sovereign of Wisdom asked.
Aedannis neither affirmed nor denied it, and nodded.
The Sovereign of Wisdom thought for a moment, then smiled and said: 「Alright, I had originally planned to speak of another person, but since Your Highness wants to hear about someone not boring. Then I will speak of someone who is not boring, and especially interesting……」
The Sovereign of Wisdom tapped the void once again, and a human-shaped illusion slowly emerged.
The person in the illusion, was not the one Aedannis had been expecting, but rather another apprentice besides Vai.
An apprentice who looked rather scholarly, but whose dress was somewhat sloppy
「Retrospector Seeking the Past」 Kael.