Set down his pen, Caine unfastened the pendulum from within the left sleeve of his coat, held it single-handed, and suspended it just above the paper, nearly touching it. "Edwena is part of the story in this book," Caine said, closing his eyes and silently reciting the divinatory incantation. After seven repetitions, he opened his eyes to see the yellow crystal pendant rotating clockwise. This indicated affirmation—Edwena, the 'Ice Mountain' figure, was indeed present within *The Grolsch Travelogue*! Truly, a world within the book. And the story would not turn a page unless no new characters joined it—so the state within must be quite special. Caine gave a barely perceptible nod, rewrapped the silver chain with the yellow crystal pendant, then picked up the deep red, round-bodied pen beside him, and wrote a new divinatory incantation: "The means of entering *The Grolsch Travelogue*." This time, he employed the method of dream divination, and in the hazy world, he saw a series of blurred figures. These figures varied in size—some immense, others slender—unified only by the fact that each held a book bound in warm brown leather. Subsequently, two distinct outcomes emerged: some figures who had consistently carried the *Travels of Grolle* simply vanished silently, while others—those who occasionally picked up or set down the book—disappeared suddenly after either accidentally or deliberately dripping blood onto the book's cover. The scene fragmented. Klein opened his eyes, gazing at the weathered long table ahead, furrowed his brow, and began to interpret: "To enter or activate the *Travels of Grolle*, either one must maintain prolonged contact until a threshold is reached, or one must drip one's own blood onto the cover?" "Doesn't this seem too simple? Perhaps... indeed, it is that simple. The Roon soldier in the story first appears as an ordinary man, even unaware of mysticism, gradually evolving into a 'Reckoning Knight' with the help of his companions. Therefore, the method of activation need not be complex—ordinary people could achieve it." "Earlier researchers, including the 'Iceberg Admiral' Edwena, were exceptional individuals with sufficient esoteric knowledge—aware that they could not casually spill their blood without knowing how or even when they would die. This was just as straightforward as ordinary people using an effective 'Mirror Divination' method, easily attracting powerful, unknown, and hidden entities. Thus, they remained unscathed. Moreover, Edwena had kept The Grozsel Travels largely in her study, only occasionally handling it. It was only recently, after developing a new research perspective and engaging with it more consistently, that the book finally reached the threshold of being activated?" "Indeed, even the 'Mirror' Arordes knows only that this book is unusual—its successive owners have often vanished, and their disappearances seem linked to the dragon race and the 'City of Miracles,' Liviethed. This suggests that when the *Grosel Travelogue* is first opened, it disrupts the surrounding environment, erasing relevant clues. Consequently, most of its earlier collectors were unaware of its peculiarities and thus never undertook any in-depth study. 'The missing owners must be far more than the ones mentioned in the story—some of the remaining ones may have died due to various issues, never making it into the Travelogue's records...' Kline gathered his thoughts and performed another divination, hoping to discover a way to leave the *Grosel Travelogue*. This time, within the hazy dream world, he witnessed even more violent snowstorms and saw a colossal figure standing atop a towering peak. It was a colossal, semi-transparent dragon, standing nearly five meters tall even when on all fours, resembling a close relative of the lizard, with a somewhat unattractive face, deep blue eyes, and a long, powerful tail. Behind it, two massive wings covered in membranous skin stretched out, broad enough to seem to shade the sky itself. Its scales shimmered like ice crystals, glowing with a translucent radiance—this was the most beautiful and dreamlike aspect of its entire body. Suddenly, the dragon raised its neck and body, emitting a terrifying roar that pierced through the blizzard. At that moment, standing upright, it soared past ten meters tall. "The King of the North"... that frost-carved giant... Klein broke free from the dream, gently tapping the armrest of his high-backed chair. His interpretation of the divination revelation was clear: The key to leaving the *Grosel Travelogue* lies in the "King of the North!" Klein initially suspected that to complete the story and enable its full resolution, the frost giant would need to be slain—only then could the protagonist Grosel's journey truly conclude and the pathway to stepping out of the book be opened. Yet, it might be possible to forcibly break the barrier between the world of the book and the real world... Drawing on his rich experience, Kline quickly formed the idea of attempting this. First, he picked up the "Black Emperor" card resting on his right side and integrated it into his spiritual essence. Instantly, black armor covered his entire body, a heavy crown appeared atop his head, and his aura became noble and majestic—so imposing that one could hardly meet his gaze. Then, he maximized the power of the mysterious space above the gray mist, channeling it like flowing water, allowing it to surge forth. Seeing this, Kline did not hesitate. He extended his hand, seized the "Sea God's Staff" from among the scattered items, and infused his own spiritual energy into it. One after another, the sapphire-blue stones at the top of the bone staff glowed brilliantly, radiating a brilliant light. Countless streaks of silvery lightning emerged, swirling gracefully throughout the grand palace, as if forming an ocean of thunder. Finally, Caine leveraged the balancing and restraining influence of the "Black Emperor" title, channeling all his force into the gathering lightning storm. Boom! Thunder rolled across the gray mist, rushing toward the distant horizon, with thick, majestic lightning strikes either simultaneously or sequentially striking the volume of *The Travels of Grolle*. A brilliant light enveloped the entire palace, lasting for exactly twenty seconds. When the storm subsided, Caine turned to his target again and found the once-weathered long table now shattered and ruined, while the book—its cover deep brown—remained undamaged, only slightly curled at the edges. More impressive than I anticipated... of course, something capable of creating an entire world within a book wouldn't be simple. Hmm. Eight thousand pounds was a solid investment back then—definitely not a loss. It could serve as a shield, easily withstanding attacks from even a Saint-level figure. The only drawback? Its relatively small size and limited coverage. As Caine pondered this, the bronze long table swiftly restored itself to its original state. Since he couldn't force a breakthrough through the "barrier" between the world within the book and the real world, he had to start thinking about how to enter using conventional means. "First, draw some blood, then bring it here, smear it onto the cover, and use the spirit body in conjunction with the 'Black Emperor' card and the 'Sea God's Staff'—no need to worry about encountering the 'Five-Sea King' Nastur, since he simply won't sense or be able to enter the world of the book. The issue lies in this: once he rescues the 'Ice Mountain General,' she'll have to be certain that Germán Sparo is indeed the daring thief known as the 'Black Emperor.' "Hmm, there's one more crucial matter: if he enters via spirit body, his physical form remains outside, in the captain's cabin of the 'Golden Dream.' I'm not sure about the flow of time within the book's world—his absence could easily last several days. Without protection and in a foreign environment, his body might suffer an unforeseen accident. By the time he rescues Edwena, he might find himself missing entirely—something that would truly become a serious joke." Klein quickly dismissed the idea of the spirits entering. He didn't trust most of the people aboard the "Golden Dream," and he remained cautious even toward the strongest hunter, Anderson. After attempting a divination to assess the risk of entering the book to save someone, he received a failed result. Reflecting quietly, Klein returned to the real world and then calmly retrieved the "Grosel's Travels," erasing the traces of the ritual. Glancing out the window at the approaching dusk, he walked to the captain's room, unlocked the door, and opened it. All of the guests—Brew, the "Gourmet," and Orpheus, the "Singer"—were outside, none having left, with crew members peering in from the stairwell. "Do we have any leads?" Brew, Walser, asked aloud, but his voice went unheard as everyone gathered at the door asked the same question. Klein glanced around and nodded. In an instant, he heard layered sighs and saw a variety of expressions of joy and excitement. If one day I disappeared like this, who would be as devoted as they are...?克莱恩 thought, then turned to Daniz and said, "I need an assistant." Turning, he walked toward his desk. "Excellent!" Daniz hurried in, promptly locking the door behind him. "What can I do?" he asked eagerly, as if he had already envisioned the scene where, under his efforts, the captain was finally rescued. Standing by the desk,克莱恩 spoke seriously, "The next phase will be extremely dangerous." "Extremely dangerous?" Daniz instinctively tightened his teeth. "You might vanish completely—or even die on the spot,"克莱恩 stated, outlining the most severe outcome. See how seriously even this madman is acting—Danziz suddenly grasped the seriousness of the situation, his heart sinking, instinctively growing uneasy. "Then, what connection does this have to saving the captain?" "Direct," said Kline simply. Danziz stared, his expression distorted, silence lasting for a few seconds. "What if we don't act?" "The captain might remain there forever—or he might die in the very next moment," Kline said plainly. Danziz opened his mouth, then closed it again, unable to speak. His gaze drifted for a few seconds before settling back on Germaine Sparo's face, and he said with gritted teeth, "Let's begin." "Damn it!" he muttered under his breath. Kline picked up the paper and pen from the table, wrote swiftly, folded the note into a square, and handed it to Danziz. "Keep it in your pocket. Read it once you enter." "Enter?" Danziz asked, looking puzzled and confused. At the same time, he had already taken the note automatically and tucked it into his pants pocket. Klein said nothing, but pointed to the book, *Groszler's Travels*, on the table. "Get some of your own blood and paint it onto the book's cover." Hmm... Daniz seemed to be forming a faint guess. He picked up the nearby copper dagger and nodded firmly. "Very well!"