Roselle shot a glance at Edward. "Oh, George III—you should be familiar with him. In the Twilight Hermit Order, his codename was Feynapotter. Tch. A king of Loen carrying the codename Feynapotter…isn't that laughable?"
Earl Hall's expression grew even more bewildered. He murmured, "William Augustus I…George I…"
The former was a figure from more than a thousand years ago—practically ancient—while the latter lived around the same era as Roselle himself. The shock was simply overwhelming.
So this is what Beyonders are?
Setting aside their extraordinary powers, even their sheer longevity was enough to make Earl Hall's mind reel. For the first time, he felt that everything he had worked for in his life seemed painfully insignificant.
"Earl Hall," Roselle said with a faint smile. "I'm telling you these things to make one point—everything you were worrying about just now is meaningless. Wealth, resources, authority—none of it is worth a damn before time."
He paused, then added, clearing his throat, "I heard you're pretty good at running banks. You can come work for me later."
Lilith blinked in surprise. "So after all that, you were just trying to recruit someone to work for you?"
"Of course. What identity do you think I hold now? Does just anyone deserve to receive my divine oracle?"
Roselle crossed his arms with a snort. "Once I return to Intis, I'll obviously need a group of people to help clean up the mess."
Audrey froze, then cautiously asked, "Your Majesty…are you planning to overthrow the current Intis government and restore yourself as Emperor of Intis?"
Bernadette explained softly from the side, "The Black Emperor pathway is inherently tied to a nation. Typically, it requires relying on a country to maintain its optimal state."
Audrey opened her mouth but ultimately swallowed the foolish question lingering in her heart—If Emperor Roselle retook the throne, would he be able to order an end to the war against Loen?
She understood that war was not a dinner invitation. It did not begin or end with a few words. Politics, economics, military strategy, the churches—too many complex factors were involved. Ending a war could never be accomplished by a single imperial decree.
Roselle turned back to Earl Hall. "So? Interested?"
Earl Hall's body trembled faintly before he bowed without hesitation. "Of course! It would be my honor to serve Your Majesty!"
—And after saying that, he hesitated, wondering whether he should go all the way to kneeling and prostrating before this legendary emperor.
"Hahahahaha!"
Roselle burst into a triumphant laugh. "Edward, your future father-in-law has already joined my banner! Let's see how I'll keep you in check from now on."
Edward: "…"
Earl Hall drew in a deep breath, still unable to calm the chaos and shock in his heart. After a moment of thought, he sensibly excused himself. "Audrey, take good care of…our guests. I won't intrude."
—In the past, he had always been the one speaking with important figures while Audrey stayed aside. He never imagined that so soon, he would be the one who ought to step away.
"Okay~"
As soon as Earl Hall left, Lilith frowned and asked, "Roselle, why didn't you come help us earlier?"
"I was just about to explain that."
Roselle's expression darkened instantly. "The Evernight Goddess stopped me. She—well, she came up with some bizarre excuse and held me back for over a minute. It was obvious she didn't want me helping you. What is that woman scheming? Did you offend her?"
Edward shook his head. "No. But She always acts with Her own considerations. She wouldn't do something like that without a reason."
"What else would it be?" Lilith snorted. "Betting on both sides, of course. She blocked you from helping Edward on Adam's behalf, while also covering up Edward's whereabouts. In the end, whether Adam won or Edward won, She could cooperate with the victor. She'd never lose, and no one would dare confront Her afterwards."
Roselle twirled his moustache, nodding. "Hmm, that's about what I thought too."
He then asked curiously, "So what's Adam's situation now? Your little trick…did it kill him?"
"No." Edward shook his head, his expression calm. "He will fall into a period of dormancy. When he awakens, he personality will be dominated by the restored, rational consciousness of the True Creator."
"…A restored, rational True Creator? That's…basically no different from the Ancient Sun God." Roselle muttered under his breath. "Do you think once He wakes up, He'll come cause you trouble the way Adam did?"
"I don't know," Edward replied. "Which is exactly why I must clarify certain things before that happens."
"Need my help?"
Edward smiled. "Not for now. You should take care of your own affairs first. You'll have plenty of trouble ahead—God of Steam and Machinery, the Eternal Blazing Sun…no one knows how they'll treat a newly ascended Black Emperor."
Roselle grinned broadly, revealing a row of immaculate white teeth. "Heh, worst case? We go down together!"
Lilith suddenly curled her lips. "Roselle, before you go down with anyone, maybe go take a look at Matilda."
Roselle's body stiffened violently at her words. Bernadette's pupils constricted, shock and worry flooding her face. "Mother… she—?"
"She's…barely considered alive," Lilith said with a helpless shrug. "The Alchemy of the Church of the Earth Mother saved her. She was lucky—at the moment she was about to die, she managed to transfer her soul and consciousness into a specially crafted puppet. But your eldest son wasn't so fortunate."
Roselle fell silent. All traces of his earlier arrogance vanished. "…Where is she?"
"At the Earth Mother's cathedral in Feynapotter."
"…Thank you."
Roselle and Bernadette hurriedly departed.
Once they were gone, Lilith turned her head—only to find Audrey staring at her and Edward, brows tightly knit, suspicion written all over her face.
Pressing her lips together, Audrey asked softly, "Edward…Lilith…are you two hiding something from me?"
Lilith blinked innocently. "Lilith doesn't know anything~"
Edward pinched Lilith's cheek lightly, then replied seriously, "We're not hiding anything from you. It's just that…too much happened during this period." He paused for a moment, then asked, "You're very curious, right? About why Roselle and I are so close—and how he suddenly came back to life?"
Audrey nodded rapidly, eyes filled with curiosity and anticipation.
The three of them sat down on the sofa. Edward began explaining:
"To start with the simplest part—Roselle was able to resurrect because of the Black Emperor's characteristics. You probably know this: after someone ascends to the Black Emperor Sequence, as long as the nine mausoleums aren't all destroyed, revival becomes possible under certain conditions."
Audrey froze, her emerald eyes widening in shock. "You…you mean Roselle is now…the Black Emperor?!"
What did the Black Emperor represent?
It was the apex of an entire Sequence. In simple terms, a status equivalent to the Seven Gods themselves.
So…I just met a living god face-to-face without realising it?!
Even though Audrey saw Mr. Fool every week, He existed high above—mysterious, intangible, not something one could gaze upon directly.
But just now, she had stared straight at Roselle…stared at a god for quite a long time!
Edward continued, "As for why I know Roselle—that's a much longer story…"
He paused for several seconds. "To you, I've only been gone for less than two months. But for me…it's been almost two hundred years since we last met."
"???"
Audrey, still reeling from the revelation that Roselle was a god, was completely stunned again.
"At the time, Lilith and I were being hunted in Bayam—Blue Mountain Island—by multiple Angels and the demigods. By pure accident, we travelled through time and returned to the past—roughly one hundred and ninety years ago. That's when we met the young Roselle and Bernadette."
"!!!"
For the next one or two hours, Edward recounted in detail everything that had happened.
How they travelled back to the past, how he searched for Lilith, how he joined the Twilight Hermit Order, accepted a mission from 'Intis,' entered Groselle's Travels, fought the Dragon of Imagination, encountered Amon, devised a trap for Amon…
All the way until he fell into a long slumber, awoke only today, and immediately fought both Adam and Amon again.
Of course, he skillfully avoided mentioning anything involving the Sefirah Castle—he couldn't risk exposing Mr. Fool's true nature. That would have to wait until he spoke with Klein.
As for the truth about Outer Gods, or that the Harry Potter world was a "book"—he omitted those entirely. Those revelations were far too dangerous for Audrey.
Throughout the entire narration, Audrey listened silently. She repeatedly cast [Placate], trying to steady her emotions—but it was useless.
The mere fact of time travel was miraculous enough, not to mention the unbelievable events Edward experienced in the past.
Especially the part where Edward, after becoming a Wanderer, walked the astral world inhabited by gods—meeting all Seven. Some he only glimpsed from afar, but others…he spoke with almost like friends.
Audrey felt awe, longing, and disbelief intertwining within her.
After a long while, Audrey finally whispered, "So…you've gone through so much. And you slept for more than a hundred years."
She gently held Edward's slightly cold hand and asked with concern, "Then…have you completely escaped 'death' now?"
Edward smiled warmly. "Yes. Everything is resolved."
"No wonder even Mr. Fool couldn't find you—you had gone back to the past…Wait." A realisation struck Audrey. "Based on what you said, till the moment you went to the past…the past you also existed with the present you. So there were two of you coexisting simultaneously for a long time…"
She turned to Lilith. "And two of you as well!"
Lilith blinked adorably. "That's right!"
"This is…truly amazing…"
Edward chuckled. "You've actually experienced something similar already. Remember? When we returned to Hogwarts."
Audrey's eyes widened. "Right—the Time-Turner! So going back more than a hundred years was like using a…giant Time-Turner?"
"There are similarities, yes. But there were other factors involved. A normal Time-Turner has limits—you can't travel over a century just with that."
Edward explained patiently, "One of the things I need to do next may help uncover the full answer."
Audrey tilted her head thoughtfully. Then, suddenly, a near-comical confusion flashed in her green eyes.
"Wait…so the Edward standing here right now…isn't the one who was born just a few months after me…but is technically a two-hundred-year-old 'old man'?!"
———
[Note]: Don't forget to VOTE. It keeps me motivated.