'Captain Admiral Pale? It's been a while since that name came up around here' Adryan tilted his head slightly to the left, his eyes sparkling with interest.
He hadn't inquired before because not only was it not in his interest to obtain information about her, but he didn't have the resources to pay for it. Not to mention that the man had almost no gossip about her.
But now that he did, and since he was planning to go to sea in the near future—as well as the time that had passed since she was last mentioned—it was certain that Alger had more information.
It could even be considered vital.
A new pirate admiral who had not appeared in the original story. Not to mention that, according to Mr Overthinker, she had a mysterious organization behind her.
How could he say no?
So, removing his hand from his chin, the redhead looked up slightly and smiled.
"I'm interested in this Admiral, Mr Hanged Man. How much for all the information you have on her?"
Alger Wilson considered for a moment and nodded, "200 gold pounds."
'So cheap?' Adryan clicked his tongue inwardly.
If this was the price, then what the man had on her couldn't be very valuable.
While he complained in his heart, he nodded outwardly without changing his expression.
"Deal"
Just because information wasn't valuable didn't mean he would refuse it. As an experienced Hunter, he knew all too well the difference a single line of intelligence could make.
Justice Audrey raised her right hand, "I'd like to join the deal if possible."
'200 pounds. Such cheap information about one of the 8 Pirate Admirals is a gift. I can't miss this opportunity!' Her eyes reflected the stars on the table for a moment.
She still knew very little about the world outside her home in Empress Borough in Backlund. Much less about places beyond the Loen Kingdom and its neighbors.
Therefore, getting a little bit of history on one of the most powerful figures at sea—second only to the Churches and the Sea Kings—for only 200 pounds was a complete steal for her.
Knowing this, she didn't hesitate to join the exchange.
Magician Fors, Sun Derrick, and the cold World did not enter into the exchange. The first was that she was not interested, while the second had nothing to gain from obtaining that information. As for the third...
Blocking the senses of the non-participating members with a single thought, Fool Klein watched the business unfolding before him, unperturbed.
'Being the boss is the best.' The corners of the fog-covered figure's lips rose subtly.
Looking at the other founding members, Alger didn't want to waste any time and began to explain.
"Among the pirate admirals, Captain Admiral Pale is the most obsessed with wealth. None of the other seven compares to her in that regard.
"She is known for her constant attacks on cargo ships. She has rarely boarded passenger ships, only four so far, but the few times she did, it was because the ship was carrying quite wealthy people.
"She often rummages through various mid- and high-level pirate auctions, although she avoids those organized by the Sea Kings. She is never a buyer, but always a seller. Everything she obtains by plundering ships or by other means is sold there at high prices. So far, she has never bought anything from these auctions. Whether she acquired anything by other methods, I do not know, but it is already confirmed that she does not spend a penny...
"She does not accept any official currency. Even if it is gold pounds that came directly from the pocket of the King of Loen, if you try to do business with that, she herself will throw you overboard. She only accepts precious stones: gold, silver, diamonds, and emeralds.
"Those who have done business with Captain Admiral Pale and have seen her directly mention that she has dead fish eyes and is sickly pale. Like the corpse of a drowned person."
At those words, Audrey suddenly felt her throat go dry and couldn't help but swallow uncomfortably.
"She looks like a drowned person?"
Obviously, she had never seen a dead body in her entire life, let alone someone who had drowned.
The closest she had ever come to that was a novel she had secretly read as a child, one about a group of students who found a crime scene in one of their classrooms.
The only thing that came to mind about a person who looked like they had drowned was someone bloated, with white skin and blue lips from the low temperatures at the bottom of the sea. Pieces were missing from their limbs because of the fish that took bites out of the tormented souls that accompanied them in those dark and cold depths.
Thinking about fish, the comment about fish eyes resurfaced in her mind.
That was what had caught her attention the most.
'By dead fish eyes, it most likely means that she is extremely expressionless in her gaze, not that she literally has them. A deep emotional detachment or profound exhaustion are the main causes of this... Maybe that's why she's attracted to precious jewels; collecting them is the only way she feels anything?' Audrey tried to get an idea of how such a person might think.
Adryan raised an eyebrow with some interest and spoke. "Any progress on what kind of support she has behind her?"
The Hanged Man's response was not long in coming.
Nodding, Alger said, "According to information gathered by the Church of the Lord of the Storms, it is suspected to be the Rose School of Thought."
'Of course it's them...' Expressionless, Adryan nodded without much interest as he sighed. "She does have the characteristics of a Wraith."
'The Rose School is full of all kinds of lunatics with desires so extreme that they never tried to contain them. It's not surprising that this Captain Pale is an extremely greedy woman...'
Although it was to be expected, the redhead would be lying to himself if he said he wasn't a little surprised at how relatively normal this admiral's desire was.
'Well, compared to a sick attraction to muscle fibers or cannibalism... Yeah, the love of gold is normal.' Remembering the kind of lunatics he had faced, Adryan could really see this woman as someone who was sane.
Of course, she was a member of that shitty school. There was no way she was really sane.
And with the way his fate seemed intertwined with the Rose School of Thought, it was possible that their paths would cross in the future.
And when that happened, he wouldn't hesitate to cut off her head with Rapture.
Ignoring that last thought, Adryan gave a slight smile and raised his thumb. "I'll send the money an hour after the Tarot Club. No problem?"
As he had imagined, although it was information about one of the 8 Pirate Admirals, it wasn't very sensitive. The most important thing he got was the support behind her and her love for shiny things.
Even so, it was information that served him well. That price was fair.
After listening to Chariot, Justice Audrey nodded with satisfaction, "If there's no problem, I can send the money at that time too."
"All right," Alger nodded, his shoulders a little lighter.
With the Windblessed potion formula so close to him, he had been focusing on obtaining monetary power.
Of course, he wasn't anxious about it.
Even if he had the formula now, he couldn't start gathering the ingredients for the potion right away. He was still a member of the Church of the Lord of Storms. If he were discovered gathering the materials when the formula for Sequence 6 was so closely guarded, he would be imprisoned for interrogation at the very least.
He had to do it slowly and calmly; being impulsive would only risk his life.
Discreetly, the blue-haired man glanced out of the corner of his eye at the place beside him. Where covered by the fog of the private deal, Sun was sitting.
At that moment, the fog covering the young men cleared. At the same time, Alger closed his eyes and breathed calmly.
Derrick Berg looked around curiously, but that soon disappeared. It wasn't that he was no longer curious about the conversation, but that paying for it wouldn't help him at all. He would only be wasting his contribution points, which he risked his life to obtain every time he went on an expedition.
It wasn't appropriate.
Sighing inwardly, the young giant just watched.
Soon, the free time for conversation slipped away. The seats were emptied, and the imposing, rusty-bronze table, surrounded by gray mist with its own crimson stars, was replaced by a warm living room.
Sitting on the tight sofa, Klein looked to his side with deeply narrowed eyes.
"Tell me everything. Don't you dare hold anything back."
"Where did that come from, Zhou?" Adryan blinked under his hood, lost, "I just sat down."
"You're the one who used the meeting to say you have a partner. So? Who is she? How did you meet? What is her family like? Is she rich? Does she treat you well? How old is she?"
'Seriously, he asks if she's rich before asking if she treats me well?' Adryan stared blankly at his favorite clown, who once again lived up to his title of Poor God.
This was a side of the Fool he didn't know he had. His Chinese even became more aggressive.
After about seven seconds of silence, the redhead closed his eyes and, taking on the dignified bearing of a monk, spoke calmly:
"吃瓜群众(chī guā qún zhòng)"
"Ah?!"
Klein's face immediately broke. His mouth hung open, and his eyebrows rose ridiculously. Instinctively, his body recoiled. When the man realized what his body had done, his hand was already on his heart, as if he had just been stabbed.
After giving this a moment's attention, Klein glared daggers at his soul brother.
"How dare you?!"
The redhead raised his hands, a huge toothy grin breaking out on his face, "Am I wrong or not?
"I—" Klein opened his mouth, but was unable to argue back.
Realizing he had no defense, he quickly changed the subject.
"How do you even know that? Junior. Your Chinese teacher was not a local but an immigrant? Tell me!"
吃瓜群众. Or, as it would be translated in this new world, a melon-eating person.
That was slang for someone who passively observes gossip, drama, or conflict, especially on social media, without getting involved or taking sides.
It was too local a term for someone on the other side of the world to know!
"Ehe~" Adryan smiled, satisfied that he had annoyed the detective. Shamelessly, the tempting song. "Did you forget? Asian novels and series began to gain global popularity before I transmigrated."
He still remembered the worldwide phenomenon that was Squid Games. His mom had practically become addicted to that series. Several times, she forced his dad to stay up late to watch the entire first season.
Grumbling, the leader of the Tarot Club snorted to one side and crossed his arms. Calmer now, he spoke, "Whatever. Are you going to tell me or not?"
Pap!
A large hand playfully slapped the detective on the back, knocking all the air out of his body.
"Of course! We're soul brothers. This is one of the things we need to talk about between us. Don't you think?" Winking, Adryan laughed happily, ignoring his friend's death stare.
Holding his chin, the redhead narrowed his eyes slightly. After a second, he nodded.
"Let's see... Her name is Flora Jacob. We met in the sewers of Backlund where she tried to kill me. Her family hates her. She's filthy rich. She treats me well. And she's between 130 and 300 years old, I'm not sure."
"..." Klein didn't know where to even begin with what he had just heard.
Shaking his head, his gaze returned to the large man beside him. When he didn't know what to do, it was always best to focus first on the elephant in the room.
"Tried to kill you?" he asked slowly.
To his disdain, the redhead nodded super casually.
"Water under the bridge. We're fine with that now."
"How are you fine with that?" Incredulous at what his ears were receiving, Klein could only shake his head again.
He knew this guy had a screw loose, but not one this big!
Who would date someone who tried to kill them? Only a madman!
Feeling that he would get nowhere no matter how hard he tried to point out the ridiculousness of the situation, the Fool pointed to the second elephant in the room.
"And what's this about her being between 130 and 300 years old?!"
The face of the woman he now knew was called Flora Jacob appeared in his mind. Although her hair was pure white, she didn't look a day over her mid- to late 20s.
How could she be over 100 years old?
To his already enormous annoyance, his brother rolled his eyes again.
"I don't know her age yet. But from what I've been able to test, she's in that range."
"...How old were you again?"
"22"
Klein nodded slowly. Very slowly. Like an old gear that was in need of an oil treatment.
Finally, he could only say one thing.
"...I wouldn't have thought you liked older women."
For a moment, he had thought that Joa was someone who preferred women his own age or somewhat younger. But it turned out this guy preferred women much older.
To what his favorite clown had said, Adryan could only wink with a proud smile.
"The more wrinkled the fruit, the sweeter it is."
"Urgh. Shut up." Klein hit his partner's shoulder, shaking his head with a slight smile.
"Hehe."
For a short while, silence filled the room.
"… How rich are we talking?"
"Gold digger."
Feeling a vein throb at that response, the detective finally gave up on getting more information about who had stolen his partner's heart.
Sighing quietly, he placed a hand on the man's shoulder. Looking at him calmly.
"Just be careful, Joa. A relationship isn't something you can take lightly, especially in this world. A broken heart as a Beyonder can jeopardize your mental stability..." Realizing something, Klein's eyes widened a little more.
"Hey Joa... Please tell me this isn't your first relationship."
"Okay. I won't tell you." Adryan looked away to the side, not looking directly at his friend's falling face, which made a grimace.
"...Well, you've been tortured before. I'm sure you can handle a broken heart." With a few pats of silent support, Klein finally let go of his shoulder, but not before offering a few final words on the subject.
"If you need a drinking buddy, I can spare a Friday."
"Hahaha." Laughing softly at the poor fool, the redhead shook his head. "You don't have to worry."
Although what his partner had said seemed like a joke, it was in fact a real danger, as ridiculous as it sounded. Even so, he wasn't worried about it. His relationship with Flora had indeed had a strange beginning, but that was precisely why he was confident that it wouldn't happen.
"What makes you so sure of that?" Klein asked curiously.
Adryan's gaze softened a little. "She won't let me go, just as I won't let her go. Because I am hers, and she is mine."
'Yeah, this guy is crazy.' Expressionless, the Magician did not wish to probe further. No, sir.
Touching his chest in his mind four times in a silent prayer to the Goddess, Klein simply changed the subject.
"Leaving your taste aside. Are you planning to go to the museum on the 20th?"
A red eyebrow rose, "What do you mean?"
Klein blinked in surprise, "Haven't you read the newspaper these days?"
"Let's just say I've been a little busy." Scratching his neck, Adryan made a slight grimace.
To avoid accidents, he and his group had practically quarantined themselves in that hotel. So these days, he hadn't read the newspaper as he usually did. He planned to catch up as soon as they returned to Astope Quarter, but it seemed that wouldn't be the case.
Soon, a thick newspaper appeared in Klein's hands. He handed it to Adryan, who took it and began to read.
The first thing he noticed was a huge headline that took up almost the entire front page.
Roselle Memorial comes to Lenburg!
Finally, after more than 50 years of insistence and failed deals, the Memorial of the Emperor of Intis will pass through Lenburg.
On October 20, in the Helikon District, the National Museum will open a special section in its south wing. The doors will be open to the public at 9 a.m.
'It seems that my concerns about how to get Klein the Card of Blasphemy were unnecessary...' Adryan frowned slightly before sighing to himself.
He shouldn't be too surprised. This was the turning point in Klein's destiny with the Black Emperor; one way or another, the two would meet.
Looking up at his fellow, the redhead pretended not to know anything. "There's something you want to tell me with this, isn't it?"
Instead of answering, something else appeared in the detective's hands, which he handed back to him.
It was a yellowed page with horrible, simplified Chinese written on it—a page from Roselle's diary.
As Adryan looked at this page, Klein sat closer to him and pointed to a specific line.
January 20th. I finished making the second Card of Blasphemy.
Let me think, let me think, where should I hide it?
Yes, I plan to disguise it as a bookmark and insert it into a very valuable book.
If the person who obtains it isn't someone fated, it would be hard to imagine that the most valuable thing in the book is actually that seemingly ordinary bookmark!
Not bad, that's a good idea!
Without rushing and without looking away from that line, Klein spoke calmly.
"It's possible that the Card of Blasphemy Roselle hid is in that exhibition. I need your help to confirm it."
---
New artwork for the book has been published. Check Twitter or the AO3 version to see it.
*Reference sheet for Opera
*Reference sheet for Serena
*Adryan x Flora Short Comic