Rasen had previously managed to persuade the ‘Wizard of the Sky,’ whom he conjectures to be his father, in an illogical manner. It wasn’t logical or rational, but he had managed to eliminate any suspicion by the ‘entity questioning plausibility.’ Without anyone questioning plausibility, it wasn’t considered an issue. It seems to be the same case this time.
“When the world is greyed out, you need to arm yourself with reason,” he thought. In other words, one must pursue the perfection of the novel. However, this situation was slightly different. Rasen had certainly heard it:
“If you cannot provide an explanation I can accept, you will not receive the divine object you desire.”
Rosalyn, who was questioning plausibility, said this. She demanded a convincing explanation. In other words, convincing Rosalyn was all Rasen had to do. When it comes to convincing and persuading people, ‘logical perfection’ is not the best approach.
One can appeal to emotions or meet the other party’s needs. There are various ways to convince a person. In fact, there are numerous cases where you cannot convince someone solely through logical and rational approaches.
After all, human affairs do not flow solely on logic.
Rasen sighed. “Well, it can’t be helped. But promise me you’ll keep it a secret.”
“Sure, I understand.”
Rasen is a novelist. Even if one were to put it nicely, he couldn’t be called an excellent novelist, but he could create dialogue on the spot that moved characters in his novel.
“The thing about this matter is…”
He deliberately stalled for time. He needed to convince Rosalyn. Lies wouldn’t convince her. He mixed 70 percent truth with 30 percent falsehood. That would be enough for Rosalyn to accept it.
“Where should I start from? Anyway, it’s a bit of a complicated story. You’ll keep the secret, right?”
“I promise. On the name of Grandle.”
Rosalyn seemed strangely cooperative. It seemed to have something to do with her eyes turning gold.
“Alright. This tale goes back a long time. I know a famous wizard from Levadon.”
“Who is it?”
Rasen showed the 1st circle ice magic, ‘Ice Crystal.’
“It’s attribute magic.”
“…”
“Almost no one knows I’m learning attribute magic. This is my trump card, so you must keep it a secret.”
Showing some trust to Rosalyn first, he continued.
“Even though I want the [divine object], if I didn’t trust you, I wouldn’t have shown you my trump card.”
“I didn’t expect you to show me so much… Your trust will not be betrayed.”
Rosalyn also seemed a bit heavy-hearted. It was part bravado, but Rasen had laid bare one of his hidden cards. Now that things had come to this, Rosalyn couldn’t take it lightly either.
“This is the famous Northran Ice Magic you know, right?”
“I know the name, at least.”
“Want me to tell you who I learned it from?”
Rasen deliberately looked around once. He pretended to be even more cautious and whispered very quietly to Rosalyn.
“The Ice Witch of the North Sea.”
“What?”
“Stay calm. Just like I have shown trust in you, show me your trust too. You asked me, so I’m responding, and you keep the honor of Grandle.”
Rosalyn seemed shocked.
“What’s your relation to that person?”
“Can’t you tell? She taught me ice magic, even though I’m a dunce in attribute magic. She’s no different from being my mentor.”
“She’s currently wanted, though.”
The Ice Witch of the North Sea, who froze the entire Levadon Castle and massacred the Lord of Levadon and his soldiers, was a very well-known incident.
“I’ll no comment on that. That’s not related to me but to the Ice Witch.”
“Okay. Let’s proceed with the next part.”
Rasen had told more than Rosalyn had anticipated, revealing names of significant importance in their conversation.
“In truth, I once helped the Ice Witch acquire something she needed. Do you need to know what that something was? It was a transaction between just the two of us.”
Hampton, who overheard, was shocked as well.
‘The person who taught the prince ice magic? Evian the Librarian? Is she the Ice Witch of the North Sea?’
His body began to tremble.
The Levadon massacre. The infamous L’arbian was Evian. And this ‘something’ Rasen spoke about in reality was trivial.
Wasn’t it Verdun Mountain chocolate? Hampton was hit by a series of shocks.
Rosalyn read Hampton’s expression.
“It seems Hampton is also surprised.”
“Hampton knows that person.”
Rosalyn nodded. Judging by Hampton’s reaction, Rasen was not lying. Rasen had even deceived his closest confidant, Hampton.
‘He’s opening up to me now, something he hadn’t even told Hampton.’
Rosalyn pondered for a bit. Maybe it would be better not to hear it. Sometimes the truth weighs down shoulders with an intolerable heaviness.
‘Rasen truly trusts me.’
That trust weighed heavily too.
‘Maybe I should stop? It might be better to stop asking.’
What you don’t know can sometimes be better than what you do know. This time might be one of those cases. But curiosity was burning. It was impossible to suppress.
Rosalyn continued.
“Alright. I’ll imagine you handed over some unimaginable, great artifact. So what’s next?”
“I learned the ice magic in return for the item I delivered. That’s why I, with no talent for attribute magic, was able to learn the esteemed Northran Ice Magic. That’s the background. Anything unclear?”
Looking at the matter objectively, there were no lies. Rosalyn, considering everything, especially with Hampton’s reaction, didn’t suspect Rasen.
“Do you think I could have learned the ice magic just for delivering the artifact? It wasn’t just about learning magic.”
Rasen opened a void space and pulled out the ‘Northran Beginner’s Book of Ice Magic.’
“I received this book. Written by the Ice Witch herself.”
“…”
Getting the book must have been a significant deal. Rosalyn thus misunderstood.
“The reason I showed you this is simple. It signifies the serious transaction between me and the Ice Witch. It was certainly not a trivial exchange.”
“Sure. I acknowledge it.”
There was clear evidence at hand. How could she not believe it? Honestly, Hampton was puzzled. It wasn’t supposed to be this grand.
“The Ice Witch told me stories about Levadon. During that time, she also told me about the Black Rose.”
“The Ice Witch is related to the Black Rose?”
The author, Cha Sung-min, didn’t know either. Yet they suspected there to be some connection.
‘When Levadon’s frost-bound castle walls melt in the Northern Sea’s winds, a path will open.’
Since the Ice Witch, Evian (L’arbian), is assumed to be both the one who froze and the one who could melt the ice.
Rasen skillfully evaded answering.
He smiled lightly, as if hiding something. Lying was not an option. The moment he lied, Rosalyn might sense the falsehood. It was better just to naturally move on.
There’s a connection. Instead of saying it outright, they proceeded with the facts.
“How else could I have known about the April Snow and the Sun’s Grace?”
“…Ah.”
As they spoke, it seemed that a story was formed: ‘There is a certain relation between the Ice Witch of the North Sea and the Black Rose, and the Ice Witch knows how to lift the curse of the April White Wolf created by the Black Rose. The Ice Witch informed Rasen of this method after a very significant exchange.’
“So, I instructed Hampton to prepare the April Snow and Sun’s Grace. I already knew about the curse of the April White Wolf.”
“…”
Rosalyn closed her eyes a moment, thinking about Rasen’s words. It didn’t sound odd.
“Magicians often say it’s an expression of supreme love to hand over a personally authored book.”
“Exactly. It’s akin to handing over one’s life. By getting the book, you can learn the magic of the author, as well as the methods to counteract it. You’ll understand the operational techniques. It becomes easy to create counters. If by chance it falls into the hands of an enemy, it could be the end.”
Rasen grinned.
“If the Ice Witch, who’s wanted and feels threatened, would give this to me, you understand the rest, right?”
Hampton did his best to conceal any reaction. Evian was not at all feeling threatened. She was living well, serving as a librarian in the Starlight Library under the protection of the Magic Noble’s family.
Rosalyn nodded.
“Thank you for being honest.”
Rosalyn’s eyes returned to normal.
“I didn’t expect you to share so much with me. It’s a bit surprising.”
“What for? I said I trust you.”
“…”
Rosalyn was silent for a moment before speaking again.
“Fine. I’ll reciprocate your trust and belief. Even though I said I let it all out, I can’t forget what you did to me when I was young. It was traumatic for me.”
“…”
Rasen felt wronged, but he had no argument. Regardless, it was something his character had done.
“I’ve decided to genuinely trust you.”
“…”
“One more question. Is the [divine object] so important to you, that you’d reveal your secrets like this?”
Rasen paused to think. It was important. After all, the ‘divine object’ in question was very likely orchestrated by Kirteil and Alberto.
That arrangement was for Rasen himself. It was prepared to feed him, so shouldn’t he take advantage of it?
Rasen nodded confidently.
“It’s important.”
“I see.”
“But I wouldn’t have revealed such secrets if it wasn’t for you.”
While it was true that it was significant, it was also true that he wouldn’t have disclosed those secrets to anyone but Rosalyn. Rasen stressed his words further.
Author Cha Sung-min knew how to touch the character Rosalyn.
“It’s because you’re Rosalyn, that’s why I told you.”
This was not a lie either. Rosalyn’s eyes had turned to gold, and ‘The Joker’ had doubted the plausibility of the world. And ‘The Joker’ was Rosalyn. Thus, telling her because it was Rosalyn was not false either.
Rosalyn’s heart grew heavier. It felt like a wet cotton ball was placed on her heart, somewhat heavy.
“Truly intriguing.”
Having trusted her so much, she wondered if she’d kept too much distance until now.
So she decided to change her mind just a little. It seemed appropriate to get a bit closer to Rasen.
Rasen’s heavenly eye read the interpretation.
[‘The Joker’ has been completely convinced by the words of the character ‘Rasen Mayton.’]
[‘The Joker’ begins to harbor goodwill for the character ‘Rasen Mayton.’]
A new interpretation followed.
[The scenario direction for the character ‘The Joker’ has been decided.]
[‘The Joker’s other name (異名) will be shockingly revised.]
The Joker.
In some card games, a card used as a ‘wild card’ to introduce change.
That name has been changed.
[‘The Joker’s’ other name has been changed to ‘The Rook.]
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