"Klein's still a bit green compared to his Backlund days," Snow mused. Back in reality, he immediately severed the Concept Substitution link to Sefirah Castle and closed his eyes, beginning a silent prayer:
"The Fool that doesn't belong to this era;
The Mysterious Ruler above the Gray Fog;
The King of Yellow and Black who wields good luck,
I beseech Your aid, Your favor, that I may smoothly digest my potion…"
The prayer was textbook-perfect, but to any onlooker, Snow would appear to be tracing an inverted cross—long at the top, short at the bottom—while chanting,
"The Lord that Created Everything,
The Lord who Reigns Behind the Curtain of Shadows,
The Degenerate Nature of all Living Things"
This illusion stemmed from a passive clause etched into White Horse, Not Horse. Beyond shielding him from knowledge pollution and divine gazes, it included another,
"The True Creator is a hidden existence, and my prayer is to a hidden existence. Thus, to others, when I pray to a hidden existence, it appears as though I'm praying to the True Creator."
This clause was crafted to mask his "lack of devotion." In the Aurora Order, a fanatical cult where members pray to their "Lord" morning, noon, and night, failing to pray is tantamount to declaring oneself a heretic. Yet praying risks an irreversible slide into the abyss. So, Snow devised this disguise: praying to himself in required settings, letting the Aurora Order see his "piety."
He'd initially aimed for a broader effect—"anyone seeing me pray believes I'm praying to their deity"—but his spirituality couldn't sustain the cost of activating such a clause.
Activating White Horse, Not Horse was like powering an appliance. A high-voltage surge to start, then a steady low-voltage output to maintain. Without enough spirituality for the initial surge, even with the perpetual engine of One Foot of the Staff, he couldn't add the clause. This limited Snow to wielding abilities up to Sequence 6, as his Sequence 9 rank restricted his knowledge to those levels.
Incidentally, the "high-voltage" cost wasn't tied to the clause's complexity but to the ability's authority. Concept Substitution, a Sequence 6 ability, could block cosmic pollution and true gods' gazes without exceeding his Sequence 9 spirituality cap.
Without One Foot of the Staff, though, sustaining it for even five seconds would drain a Sequence 7 dry.
This clue led Snow to deduce that the clause "making observers believe he prays to their deity" involved higher-sequence abilities from his pathway. Though he didn't know which sequence or ability, he was certain his low-sequence self couldn't afford the cost.
…
Snow's prayer continued until evening. With each Hermes prayer, he felt the potion's rigid "shell" crack further.
"Praying to Mr. Fool really works!" Snow tamped down his excitement, noting the dimming sky. He rang the bell for dinner.
At this rate, digesting the Secret Supplicant potion within a month was no longer impossible.
With his most pressing crisis eased, Snow exhaled and began pondering a question—
Why, despite having both a Source Matter and a Uniqueness, did praying to himself yield almost no feedback, while praying to Klein rivaled the True Creator's?
Was it his mindset?
Unlikely.
If knowing he wasn't a high-ranking entity blocked feedback, then Klein, also Sequence 9, shouldn't generate feedback either.
After mulling it over, even finishing dinner absentmindedly, Snow arrived at a plausible theory—
Praying to the Fool didn't just target Klein but also the mark of the Celestial Worthy of Heaven and Earth for Blessings hidden within Sefirah Castle and Klein's body. That mark provided the potent feedback for the Secret Supplicant potion.
Conversely, did this mean White Horse, Not Horse lacked a hidden existence's residual mark?
If true, it was fantastic news. Since arriving in this world and realizing his cheat was a Source Matter, Snow had feared being a pawn in some great being's resurrection scheme. But now…
"No, I can't be sure. It might be a trap laid by that entity. I must stay cautious, preserve my humanity, and remember I'm only acting!"
Snow slapped his face—handsome enough to draw the Aurora Order's recruiters—letting the sting snap him out of fleeting relief.
He was in a world nineteen years from its apocalypse. Each day brought doomsday closer. To avoid being powerless when it arrived, he didn't need to match Klein's three-year true god, five-year Old One ascent, but he had to reach Sequence 4 within nineteen years. Only as a demigod could he hope to survive the end.
Though Tarot Club members averaged Sequence 4 by the story's end, with some hitting Sequence 3, that was no reason for Snow to relax.
Shielded by White Horse, Not Horse, he mentally reviewed the original novel's plot and began crafting his next steps…
…
"Give me a list of your extraordinary materials." In a hidden room beneath the Evil Dragon Bar's underground exchange, a beautiful girl with a round face addressed an elderly man in a black soft cap. Though a veil obscured most of her face, it couldn't hide her beauty, and her captivating, honeyed voice made the man's heart skip.
Despite her allure and seasoned tone, the burly man adhered to protocol. He pulled a notebook from under the counter, flipped to the latest pages, and glanced at it briefly before speaking.
"Water Ghost brain tissue, 3 to 15 pounds depending on condition. Star Crystal, 150 pounds per 50 grams. Queen Bee Grass, 200 pounds per stalk. Adult…"
"I'll take the Queen Bee Grass," the girl said casually, naming her desired material without a hint of haggling.
The man wasn't surprised by her decisiveness. He took the scattered bills she handed over, counted them quickly to confirm the amount, and rang a bell. Someone retrieved the material from a safe.
The girl took the tin box, verified its contents, and promptly left the bar.
"No Black Abyss Demon Fish eyes. I'll check another gathering. If that fails, I'll have to deal with those people…"
(End of Chapter)
Translator's Note: I think Source Matter was similar to Sefirot .