I know that... "Justice" Audrey half-turned her gaze, lifted her chin, and with pleasant ease directed her eyes toward a stone pillar supporting the dome, slightly off to the side. She quickly withdrew her gaze, ready to observe the reaction of "The Hangman" upon hearing the answer. "The Magician" Folth, on the other hand, had just begun to grasp one thing: using the so-called Roscel diary, one could exchange it with "The Fool" for answers to certain questions—perhaps even for tangible items! "The Roscel diary? Are those notes written in unique symbols that no one else can read? And yet, they're actually diaries? The Hangman spoke with such confidence, and The Fool didn't dispute it at all... "I've encountered many such notebooks, but I've never purchased them because I found them uninteresting—ah, yes, there are quite a few at Miss Audrey's! She's a true enthusiast of this kind of thing!" Yet, yet—her dog last week, no, perhaps two weeks ago, I can't quite recall—anyway, it tore up numerous books and notes, including all of the Emperor Roscel's diaries! A sudden surge of surprise, followed swiftly by disappointment, flooded Furse's mind, making her want to raise her hands to cover her ears and shout aloud. Nothing less would convey the depth of her emotions! I hate dogs! "The Magician" Furse thought bitterly. Aljer's request came as a surprise to Cline, though it proved to be one of the easiest to fulfill; thus, he chuckled softly and said, "Certainly. Would you like everyone to hear it, or would you prefer it known only to yourself?" "The Hangman" Aljer answered promptly, "Only to myself." He certainly lacked selflessness. Klein smiled and silenced the other members' senses, which made the "Justice" lady feel quite disappointed. She had been eagerly waiting to see the astonished and stunned expression on the "Hanged Man" gentleman's face—just as if she had accomplished something remarkable—though she wouldn't actively promote it, she was genuinely looking forward to how others would react. Now, the irritable "Hanged Man" had taken away this very joy! Audrey muttered this to herself. Of course, she fully understood that the "Hanged Man"'s request was absolutely justified. But I've already known the answer all along, she thought, with a slight smile. At that moment, Klein casually flipped the card over and stood it upright, so that the "Hanged Man" could clearly see the image of Roxel, dressed in black armor, crowned, and wearing a cloak. The Emperor's portrait was familiar to the "Hanged Man" Aljer, who immediately recognized him. More importantly, the card bore a clear and prominent designation: "Sequence 0, Black Emperor!" Indeed! It is the deck of cards said to have been crafted by Emperor Roscel, the one believed to hold the divine path—the very prototype of the Tarot! Sequence 0, "The Emperor"... this one corresponds to the divine path of the "Lawyer"? Master Fool has been diligently collecting Roscel's journals, seeking precisely the clues to this very deck, and already, within just a few months, he has secured one card. Aljé is both astonished and delighted, energized and excited. Suddenly, he feels an overwhelming sense of optimism regarding the future of the "Tarot Circle." Previously, he had been awed by Master Fool's mystery and strength, viewing the "Tarot Circle" merely as a means for exchanging information and goods. Now, he begins to envision the benefits that could accrue to himself and the other members once Master Fool has gathered all of Emperor Roscel's cards. At that point, the Tarot Circle might very well become the most powerful secret organization. Aljé gazes forward, full of anticipation. At that moment, Caine said slowly, "The Card of Desecration." He then lifted the shield. As soon as his senses returned, Audrey of Justice immediately turned her gaze toward The Hangman, faintly "reading" through the blurred image the lingering shock, joy, and yearning in the other's presence. Just like this... Audrey felt an immense sense of fulfillment. "The Card of Desecration"... indeed, it was clearly connected to "The Desecrated Tablet." The Hangman, Aljer, bowed his head and reflected for a few seconds before bringing into being the three pages of Roxel's journal. Soon, the three yellow-brown vellum sheets came into Caine's hands. He glanced down casually, reading steadily and unhurriedly: "On the 15th of March, I was indeed the protagonist—guided only by archaeological clues and folk traditions, I discovered the ghost ship of the Solomon Empire, the ancient 'Black Throne,' near the edge of the Mists Sea, in the Oradak Islands! What a remarkable find!" "There are still some ancient books upstairs, including a map pointing to a small, unnamed island—this was the final settlement of a noble of the Solomonic Empire who had retreated from the northern continent. Everything he left behind is there! 'This treasure shall be mine!' On the 19th of March, after careful consideration and deliberation, I have finally decided to set sail for a voyage across the sea. After that, I will join the Royal Army as an officer, and such an opportunity will be rare. Edwards and Green are willing to follow me on this adventurous journey into the misty ocean." "Actually, I'm not solely driven by the treasure. I also wish to verify a question: from the Sun to the Red Moon, from the paths traced by the stars across the sky to the cycles of the seasons—every sign and set of data suggests that the world I inhabit is a planet. If that's true, then it shouldn't consist of only the Northern and Southern Continents. Based on various data, when we add up the areas of these two continents, they account for less than ten percent of the planet's total surface. So, what about the rest? Are they merely oceans, with only island groups scattered throughout? The Western edge of the Northern Continent is the Mist Sea, and its Eastern edge is the Sunya Sea. I suspect that beyond the ends of these two seas lie other continents—just as the southernmost edge of the Storm Sea leads to the Southern Continent. Perhaps I can discover a completely new continent—the Western Continent! Set sail, great explorer Columbus, Magellan, Gustav, to verify your hypothesis!" "The Emperor was indeed impetuous when young—bold enough to set sail on a map whose authenticity he didn't know, and whose hidden dangers remained unclear. No, even in his old age, he remained just as impetuous. The 'Card of Desecration' is proof of that. Klein couldn't help but mutter a few criticisms. This page of the journal seems to connect with the one he had read earlier, separated only by a few other journal entries, so Klein is fairly certain that Roselle, during this voyage, became lost and discovered a primitive island located outside the safe shipping lanes, inhabited by numerous extraordinary beings. Along the way, he used references to the 'Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse' and 'The Pirate King' to tease and amuse his followers, particularly Green and Edwards. Moreover, Green—whom Roselle had praised as the most intelligent among us—began to grow increasingly odd after discovering the island, eventually dying at sea amid the misty waters. To be honest, the view that our world is composed of planets has now gained widespread acceptance and has been confirmed by astronomy... Klein turned to the second page of his journal: "On April 18th, while browsing through the ancient texts aboard the 'Black Throne,' I discovered the term 'West Continent!' 'There truly is a West Continent!' "Yet, even during the Fourth Age, under the Solomonic Empire, when the gods still walked upon the earth, the West Continent was known only in rumor—said to be the homeland of the elves, linked to the ancient deity Suniasollem." "The issue, however, is that the elves ultimately settled on the island of Sunia, and later dispersed across various mountainous and maritime islands. There are no legends of them ever attempting to return to their homeland." "In short, perhaps the West Continent exists at the far end of the Mist Sea, as the homeland of the elves. But what of the far end of the Sunia Sea? Is there indeed an East Continent? Where in the mythological texts are its scattered references hidden? Might it be nothing more than the elusive 'Land Abandoned by the Gods'? "Keep going, Rossel—you're about to reach your destination!" The Western Continent, the Eastern Continent... Rossel speculates that the latter might be the "Land Abandoned by the Gods." Ah, the Sir of the Inverted Man once mentioned that many members of the Aurora Circle were searching for the "Sanctum" of the "True Creator" on the Sunia Sea, and he himself suspected that this "Sanctum" was none other than the "Land Abandoned by the Gods." This is somewhat aligned with Emperor Rossel's own thoughts. There are still so many secrets in this world... Kline lowered his gaze, focusing on the final few paragraphs of this page: "April 20th: Various signs indicate that we are approaching a landmass, not an island! Is getting lost actually having benefits? Will I finally discover the so-called Western Continent? April 21st: I saw the Deep. The Deep? Did Rossel witness the Deep—the Deep in the esoteric sense? Kline's eyes narrowed slightly, and he quickly turned the page. Yet on the third page of the diary, he began to question his entire life and his years of Chinese education. The page was filled with the following phrases: “Ah, day, hunger, please, summoned to the manor.” Ah—now it clicked for Caine. This page must have been forged by later editors. They had taken the original symbols and arbitrarily assembled sentences out of them. At that very moment, Caine felt as though he were staring at corrupted data, and he had a strong urge to curse the forgers. He longed to verify whether the "deep abyss" mentioned in the diary—the one described as the "source of all evil," "the land of fall," or "the abode of demons"—was indeed the true cosmic darkness that even the gods could be corrupted by. That should be a realm independent of the material world, like the spiritual realm. At least, that’s how both the *Book of Secrets* and the texts he had encountered during his time with the Night Watch team had described it. If this wasn’t the genuine "deep abyss," then what exactly was the abyss the Emperor meant? Klein thought and thought, yet could not come to a satisfactory explanation, growing increasingly frustrated—like a novel he had been eagerly following, suddenly cut off at its most crucial moment. With a calm glance, he steadied his mood and let the journal vanish from his hands. "You may begin," he said, smiling gently as he sat at the head of the bronze long table. "The inverted knight," Aljer turned his head, gazing toward "the sun," and asked with mild indifference, "Have you learned anything from the former leader of that exploration team?"