David's cooperation with Prince Roland was two-way. He never intended to work for the Prince for free, so when he needed to rely on the other's power, he wouldn't hesitate in the slightest.
And that Fourth Prince was equally straightforward with David—the reply letter arrived the very next day.
"...There is no such potion. Memories sealed on slaves cannot be restored through normal means..."
This was an answer that surprised David a bit. After reading the explanation that followed, he learned that the so-called memory seal was a partially lost curse ritual. This curse was almost impossible to lift unless you found the person who performed the ritual.
Slaves whose memories had been erased had generally already been "hollowed out" of all value before losing their memories. For various reasons, certain people naturally wouldn't let them easily recover their memories.
Many people had tried to forcefully break through memory seals before, but the final result was always turning the slaves into idiots...
David was somewhat disappointed. His plan to find clues about the Hand of Divine Corpse through the twins' memories seemed to have fallen through.
Until he saw the end of the letter, where His Highness the Prince had written an "unless..."
...
In the afternoon, an exquisite yet understated carriage stopped in front of David's house. To his surprise, His Highness the Fourth Prince had personally come calling.
When he saw the Prince again, she had already turned back into "him," just as he'd looked when first meeting David—a composed and radiant prince.
The two dismissed all attendants and sat down facing each other in the living room.
David personally brewed a pot of tea for Roland—a pot of chamomile tea.
"How did you know..." The Prince looked at the crystal-clear tea in the cup with some surprise, then looked at David's clueless face and smiled. "Never mind, it's nothing."
"Your Highness, this was my favorite drink back home. I don't much like coffee, and I don't like adding milk to tea either. This is all the house has prepared, please forgive me." David sat down and took a sip himself. The home he mentioned referred to his past life.
The chamomile fragrance was one of the deepest flavors in his few memories from his past life. It made him feel very much at ease.
"It's fine..." His Highness smiled. "I didn't know the viscount's territory even produced this kind of flower tea."
David didn't say more and changed the subject. "Your Highness, I thought you wouldn't change back to this form anymore."
"A 'prince's' identity is naturally more convenient than a 'princess's.' For me, there are many ways to achieve this."
Roland shrugged. On the path of pursuing power, His Highness the "Prince" seemed willing to use any means necessary.
"Let's get back to business. I came to find you about what you mentioned in your letter."
As he spoke, he pulled a small long box from his pocket and placed it on the coffee table.
"Normally, we have no way to lift a memory seal, but I found a very ancient scroll in the imperial vault. It records a special advancement ritual."
The Prince opened the box, revealing a strange blue scroll inside.
"According to my investigation, this advancement ritual can strengthen the human mind and shares the same source as the ritual power that seals memories. Perhaps it can break through the memory seal's curse...
But I must warn you—this advancement ritual's origin is unknown, and it only has the first tier. What existence it communicates with, what it will summon, I don't know either."
David took the scroll and set it down, temporarily suppressing his urge to open it.
"I understand Your Highness's meaning. Don't worry, I'll handle it carefully."
This ancient object buried deep in the imperial vault had reached the point of being completely forgotten. He had no idea how the Prince had dug it out for him.
For this, David was deeply grateful.
"Don't thank me yet, David Frank."
The Prince smiled, crossed his legs, and took a sip of tea. "You know, I've investigated you before, so I can probably guess what you need this for."
David nodded, quietly waiting for His Highness the Prince to make his demands—he definitely had demands. David never believed in free lunches.
"The people you want to remove the memory seal from should be those twin sisters, right?"
Roland admitted that the twin maids he saw when entering David's house made even "her," a woman, feel somewhat amazed.
And she also knew these maids had been bought by David from cultists.
"...Delivered to you along with them was also a very mysterious thing—a deep crimson arm. Am I right?"
Worthy of being the Fourth Prince—he could even investigate something like that.
David silently nodded.
"I've been very curious how you obtained such massive life force. Now that I think about it, it should be through that arm."
The Prince paused, quietly glanced at David, and seeing the other still expressionless, said somewhat helplessly:
"Don't misunderstand—I'm not interested in you supernatural beings' power. I just want to understand your goals. You know... the imperial vault actually also houses such a red arm."
David's expression finally changed.
"Unfortunately, no one knows how to use that arm. Even with all my resources, I can't trace its origins. It's like some deliberately buried secret. With my status, I still don't have the qualifications to access it."
Roland put down his teacup, somewhat surprised to see a palm extend toward him.
Looking up, he saw David reaching out to ask him for something.
"Uh... you're really not shy about it."
"Naturally. Your Highness promised me." David looked completely matter-of-fact.
Roland laughed. He shook his head. "I naturally haven't forgotten our agreement. I can give you this scroll directly, but that arm—not yet..."
He suddenly asked David a meaningful question: "David Frank, are you ready?"
David withdrew his hand in confusion.
"When you're ready to advance to second-tier, I'll give you another mission. The mission's reward will be that arm."
"Your Highness, if you want me to hunt some target, I don't think you need to wait until I advance to second-tier..."
"Don't underestimate your opponent, don't take the danger you're about to face lightly, and don't look down on my enemies... Wait. When you're ready, I'll tell you the target." Roland stood up, ending this meeting with those words.
When the Fourth Prince left, he glanced at the twin maids with a strange look.
He always felt like he'd seen these twins' exquisite faces somewhere before, but he just couldn't remember where.
Could they be some noble's descendants?
The Prince didn't think much more about it. He had more important matters to consider. Compared to affairs among supernatural beings, what he cared more about were the obstacles on his path to pursuing power...
...
After nightfall, David took out the scroll His Highness had brought in his study.
The imperial vault actually held another Hand of Divine Corpse—this made David very excited. But figuring out the arm's origins was still the top priority.
He looked at that deep blue scroll. Its surface was covered with strange "patterns"—only someone like David Frank who'd received proper noble education could barely recognize them as ancient text from hundreds of years ago...
Just as Roland had said, this was a supernatural advancement ritual. Even though the scroll only recorded first-tier ritual content, as long as he had the twins perform the ritual, it meant they would step onto the supernatural path.
David thought for a long time and finally decided to open it.
"Ritual, Fool Angel...?"
When the scroll unfurled, David seemed to see moonlight shine through the window, coloring the entire room a frosty white.
He looked at the night sky outside the window in some confusion. This world shouldn't have a moon except for that terrifying celestial body in the southern sky...