In Empress Borough, the opulent villa of Count Hall.
Audrey was supposed to be practicing her piano at this time, but she remained seated in front of her dressing table, thinking about how to read and memorize Roselle's diary in the evening.
Suddenly, her surroundings became hazy, and a boundless grayish-white began to emanate.
In the middle of the gray fog, The Fool's figure sat high above. He was listening to a man who was barely visible pray, " ... I pray for your help.
"I hope that someone can help me touch the bookmark in Roselle's manuscript of creativity."
...
How does Mr. Fool know that I'll be visiting the Roselle Memorial Exhibition this evening after the museum is closed, and that I'll have the opportunity of touching some items... Audrey listened in a daze. Although she was amazed, she didn't find it odd.
With Mr. Fool's stature and abilities, being aware of such a trivial matter is very easy!
As for how he learned of it, there was no need for ordinary Beyonders to attempt to comprehend it.
Audrey was about to reply when The Fool spoke in a low, flat voice, "You can choose to accept this request or not."
Hmm... Audrey pondered for two seconds and said, "Respected Mr. Fool, I can try, but I can't guarantee success."
She wasn't really interested in the minimum reward of 500 pounds. The reason why she had accepted the mission was that she was curious about the special nature of the bookmark left behind by Emperor Roselle, which was so important to the adorer of Mr. Fool that he offered an uncapped price.
Anyway, I was going to look through Roselle's diary today, so it's convenient...Audrey thought.
Amidst the fog, The Fool nodded slightly and replied with a single word, "Okay."
When the illusion was completely gone, Audrey turned her gaze to the dressing mirror and seemed to examine herself closely.
Feeling both nervous and excited, she began to make plans for the evening operation.
I cannot let them notice anything unusual.
Even if Mr. Fool's adorer does take any action later, I cannot become a suspect.
It's definitely not okay to only touch that bookmark. The moment it's lost, all eyes will be focused on me.
Yes... So, I need to show equal interest in all the other objects. I cannot let others notice that my main goal is that bookmark. The entire process has to be fluid, nothing sudden, and it has to be reasonable and logical.
How should I cause inconspicuous damage?
It's just a bookmark...
Audrey's eyes swept across the items on her dressing table without focus. Suddenly, her gaze fell on an open jewelry box and focused on a pair of gemstone earrings adorned with fine needles.
The corners of her lips curled up, bit by bit, as her eyebrows and eyes slightly curved as she muttered to herself, "With Susie's help, it should be enough..."
...
It was six o'clock in the evening. Backlund, that hardly ever saw the sun during the current season, was already dark, and the gas lamps were lit up.
After the Royal Museum sent off the last batch of ordinary visitors, it received a group of visitors composed of the young lady from a count family, the child of a duke, and a young viscount.
As the Machinery Hivemind knew that some of the aristocratic children were foppish people who frequently caused trouble, the Captain of the Machinery Hivemind's West Borough squad, Max Livermore, was responsible for guarding the memorial. He had no choice but to disguise himself as a security guard and stay close by to prevent any accidents.
His hair was neatly combed as he wore a monocle, making his scholarly appearance akin to a college professor.
The monocle was actually a Sealed Artifact, codenamed 3-1328, named Eye of Crystal. With it, Max Livermore could see the spiritual body directly, as well as ghosts and shadows. There was no need to fear Beyonders who used these usually difficult to detect entities to cause chaos or engage in theft.
Of course, this Sealed Artifact also had a significant disadvantage. It could easily attract monsters like wraiths and shadows to the vicinity. If it was worn for a long time, one's vision would suffer irreversible damage.
In the gloom of Backlund, she's like the bright sun... At that moment, Max was looking admiringly at the blonde girl with blue eyes to his side.
Audrey looked with great interest at the toilet which was gold-plated and engraved with intricate patterns. She asked the guide beside her, "Is this the first toilet in the modern sense?"
"Yes, I personally believe that this is one of Roselle's most outstanding contributions to human civilization. The sewer works that go with it have changed the phenomenon of filth being all over the streets of Trier." The guide originally wanted to say the word "feces," but after looking at the girl in front of him, he felt that he couldn't lose his elegance.
Audrey hesitated and asked, "Can I touch it?"
"Can it still be used normally?" Viscount Glaint asked with a laugh from the side.
"Why are you so curious about this? No matter how old it is, it's ultimately still a toilet."
The other aristocratic children who were on good terms with them all laughed.
"No, Glaint, you don't understand. This is the glory of human civilization." Audrey smiled faintly in response but barfed inwardly.
If it wasn't to fulfill the request of Mr. Fool's adorer, I wouldn't want to do this either... She sighed helplessly.
The guide chimed in, "What Miss Hall said is very right. The glory of human civilization isn't only reflected in firearms and other weapons that have changed the form of war, but they also shine in every detail of our lives.
"My lady, I don't know if it can still be used properly, because no one will use it."
The guide glanced at Max Livermore and, after receiving a nod of confirmation, continued, "You can touch it, and you may even open the water tank to take a look at the mechanical structure inside. But please be careful."
"Thank you." Audrey watched as the security guard opened the glass wall. She hurriedly took two steps forward, reached out her right hand, which was covered in white fishnet gloves, and carefully touched the flush button.
Then, she slowly stepped back and said with a smile, "Alright, let's keep it at that. I've satisfied my curiosity. I can't hurt it any further."
She constantly reminded herself that her prescribed character was that of a naive and curious young girl.
After reading this, they entered the exhibition hall where Roselle's diary was located.
After some introduction, Audrey asked again, "Can I look through this notebook? We are all interested in these strange symbols.
"Eh... I heard that paper would suffer damage by mere contact with air after a certain period of time, let alone having them touched. It shouldn't be possible, right?"
She blinked, making her beautiful gem-like eyes express sincerity and desire, together with a little disappointment.
The guide looked at Max Livermore again and waited for his reply before smiling.
"The Church used a special storage method to make the paper look the same as if it was produced only a few years ago. Furthermore, even without this method, we will try our best to fulfill your requests. However, we may need to change environments, change our clothes, and go through a stricter process.
"You can flip it, but not for too long. Don't use too much strength."
Audrey's eyes lit up all of a sudden, making it hard for anyone to shift their gaze away.
After sincerely thanking the guide, she, Viscount Glaint, and the other mysticism enthusiasts had the glass cover removed as they carefully flipped through the notebook.
Audrey tried her best to memorize, but due to the complexity of the symbols, her ability to remember them in this short period of time was rather limited.
That should be around two pages of content. I wonder if there's any way to make a copy of it... Her thoughts wandered as she gave her spot to her peers.
In this way, she made a request for a closer look at something in each of the exhibition halls, which was mostly met.
After a while, they arrived at the restored study.
Audrey kept to her previous behavior and would ask a few questions from time to time, fully displaying her curiosity.
When the guide introduced the manuscript of creativity, her eyes lit up and she said, "Can I flip through it? I wish to see what the manuscript of the great inventor, Roselle, looks like. I also want to know what wonderful ideas it contains."
"No problem, beautiful Miss Hall, honorable Viscount Glaint, you can all have a look through it. Heh, if any of you are a devout believer of the Church, you can even apply for a copy," the guide replied, according to Max's gesture.
As a believer of the Goddess, Audrey could only respond with a faint smile. It wasn't convenient for her to make a comment.
At the same time, she pretended to lift her hair and touched her right ear with her palm, quietly removing her earring.
Immediately, when the glass case that encased the desk was opened, Audrey stepped forward and, holding down the manuscript, casually pulled out the bookmark, before casually flipping a page.
At this moment, Susie, who had received her hint, suddenly barked in a particular direction.
Woof! Woof! Woof!
The crowd's attention was immediately attracted in that direction. Audrey lowered her arm and used the earring in her palm to stab at the bookmark she was holding. While doing so, she chanted the phrase "Pirate King" in her mind, using Hermes before switching to ancient Hermes.
When the sharp, needle-like accessory touched the surface of the bookmark, Audrey suddenly felt an intense and illusory resistance just as it was about to penetrate the bookmark.
An unusual resistance!
The resistance disappeared in a flash. The "fine needle" punctured a tiny hole and nearly pierced through.
There really is a reaction! There's really something strange about it! The light in Audrey's eyes glinted. Without daring to try again, she lifted her hand and placed the bookmark on the desk.
Then, she looked at Susie and calmly told her maidservant, Annie, "Eh... take her to the bathroom."
"Yes, milady." Annie hurriedly led Susie out of the room.
Ting!
Taking this opportunity, Audrey threw the earring in her hand onto the ground, then she tilted her head and said, "I'm sorry, I dropped my earring."
Another maid hurried over, picked up the earring, and helped her put it on.
The interlude went by in a flash, and everyone's attention returned to the manuscript. After they were pretty much done with it, they saw the "security guard," Max Livermore, quickly tuck the bookmark in and closed the glass cover again.
Audrey's interest remained as strong as before in the next few exhibition halls. Just like before, she didn't show any abnormalities.
It was only when she left the museum and returned home did she find a chance to recite the honorific name of The Fool and report the results:
"... I did what your adorer requested, and I damaged that bookmark a little.
"It-it had an abnormal reaction."
