I stepped down from our carriage and had arrived at the venue for the event with the prince. The place was strikingly adorned in a characteristic red hue, with many guards in Loen Kingdom military uniforms lined up, guarding the location.
The air, filled with a profusion of fragrances, filled my nostrils, replacing the previously pungent smell of steam.
I observed everything in detail, trying to spot the slightest anomaly, but everything seemed normal.
"Honestly, I'm curious about how many Beyonders are here," a random thought suddenly popped into my head before I finally walked into the room.
The room was filled with numerous people wearing clothes that looked extremely expensive, adorned with sparkling precious stones.
Several large paintings were visible, depicting a grand castle and other incredibly beautiful and magnificent artworks. The room was also saturated with the scent of expensive, sharp perfumes that assailed anyone who breathed the air here.
The space was filled with the sounds of people chatting with each other, making it quite noisy for any listener inside.
I immediately walked towards a corner of the room, near an area filled with glasses, and tried to carefully observe everyone present, as I needed to identify them in case any characters from the novel were here.
Truthfully, I didn't remember many names of noble characters from the novel. I only recalled a few, like Audrey, the Hall family, the royal family, Viscount Glaint, and... well, I guess that's it.
I actually knew a few other names, but those were entirely based on the original John's memories, so they weren't related to novel characters at all, and I didn't need to avoid them.
I tried to observe everyone currently in the room. I saw ladies wearing very beautiful gowns of various colors, and men dressed in black attire with dashing and luxurious designs.
But... what did Viscount Glaint, the royal family, or the Hall family members besides Audrey actually look like? I truly forgot their appearances.
No. Actually, it should be easy enough to distinguish the royal family because they would draw attention, and besides, I knew what some of them looked like from John's memories. But for nobles like Viscount Glaint, it was very difficult to differentiate them from other nobles, although generally, the appearance of nobles and businessmen was quite different. Nobles tended to choose clothes in various colors, while businessmen leaned towards black.
"Would you like a drink, Sir?" a staff member suddenly approached me and offered a beverage.
"Yes, I would," I answered the staff member briefly.
The staff member promptly handed me a beautiful, clear crystal glass containing a drink.
Then, the staff member immediately left to offer drinks to others, finally leaving me alone.
Suddenly, the noisy room fell silent, and all faces turned towards the entrance. There, a man with an upright posture, black hair, black eyes, and wearing a blue-violet tailcoat entered the room.
"That's Prince Edessak!" I immediately recognized the man entering the room thanks to the original John's memories, which knew the prince's face.
Shortly after Prince Edessak entered, another entourage appeared behind him. A slim man in his fifties, nearly bald with a sharp gaze, emerged. He wore black clothes and a black hat and followed behind the prince.
Who was that? Judging by the order of arrival, I was sure he was an important Loen official. Could he be the Prime Minister? If my guess was correct, he was Aguesid Negan. Would I be interacting with him later?
After them, several other people appeared together. They were probably Loen ministers. After the ministers and officials appeared, I saw a man with sagging skin and a clearly visible potbelly. However, he seemed quite handsome in his youth. He had blue eyes and a fine mustache, which made him look distinguished.
Could one of them be Audrey's father? If so, I needed to avoid them as much as possible.
Honestly, another part of me felt strangely happy seeing those people. I didn't know why; perhaps because Audrey, the Jewel of Backlund, my favorite character, and one of the kindest people in the Tarot Club, could be born. Heh, how foolish.
After that, I saw two blonde-haired men appear and walk quickly towards Prince Edessak. They might be the prince's Beyonder bodyguards. I didn't know.
…
The party was in full swing. I just stayed in the corner of the room, observing everyone and not doing anything meaningful. I did this remembering that I didn't want to stand out and attract the interest of any novel characters.
Wait? If I did this, the Lynch family wouldn't gain any connections, and I would disappoint Viola and everyone else who expected me to make the best possible connections at this party.
No… why was I even thinking about this? Hah… perhaps unconsciously, I was really trying to be John and genuinely thinking like him.
But disappointing the family and Viola would be really bad, so I figured I should actually try to socialize. After all, I just needed to avoid the novel characters, right? That should be easy enough. Maybe, considering I didn't know Viscount Glaint's face.
I immediately walked towards a group of people who seemed to be talking together, feeling that I needed some social interaction to avoid suspicion. Besides, wouldn't the original John be more likely to interact? And if I didn't interact, perhaps the plot could change.
"The Prime Minister and Prince Edessak looked very serious earlier. The situation with Intis and Feysac is heating up. I hear... our preparations have reached the final stage," one man in the group said to the others.
"Quiet! This isn't the place. Walls have ears. But you are right, the sea will soon change color," a rather elderly woman in the group said, looking at the man who spoke, her gaze meeting his.
"The atmosphere at tonight's party is truly lively, isn't it? It's a rare experience to witness so many important figures of Loen gathered in one room," I interjected into the conversation suddenly, and they immediately looked at me.
"By the way, what were you all discussing earlier? Your conversation seemed quite interesting," I said with a slight smile, looking back at them with my green eyes, and promptly bowed politely towards them.
"Ah, we were discussing Loen's recent politics," a woman said to me with a slight smile on her face.
After that, I joined the conversation and chatted with them quite well. Nothing strange happened at this moment, and I felt I had at least completed the original John's task.
Unconsciously, I smiled slightly, feeling that I had accomplished my duty.
Everything was proceeding as it should:conversation, light laughter, and the soft clinking of glasses echoing.
Until I saw him.
An elderly man on the other side of the table, wearing a black coat with gold embroidery. At first, he seemed like an ordinary guest, his expression shaded, even somewhat friendly.
But as I stared longer,I realized:
His eyes weren't blinking.At all.
I tried to look away, but there was something about the figure that made it hard to stop observing him.
He was still smiling,still talking with two others beside him, yet his mouth was no longer in sync with his voice.
His words sounded half a second faster than his lip movements.
The people around him showed no reaction, as if everything was normal.
I tried to calm myself, thinking it might just be an effect of the crystal chandelier's light. But when a waiter passed by carrying a tray, the man suddenly stopped speaking and stared at the waiter.
That stare...cold, empty, yet pressing down like the weight of metal.
The waiter froze in place. The glasses on the tray trembled.
Then,slowly, the waiter smiled.
A smile too wide,making his cheek muscles seem to twitch.
"Sir," he said in a hoarse voice, "your drink has gone cold."
No one answered.
Only the sound of a falling crystal glass,followed by a strange laugh: flat, broken, and repetitive, like someone suffering from a disorder, utterly insane.
"Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha." The man suddenly burst into uproarious laughter with a completely erratic and chaotic rhythm, and then his face immediately locked onto my eyes.
Everyone stared towards the man because of his extremely strange behavior, but the man paid them no mind at all.
"Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha." The laughter with its chaotic rhythm grew louder, drawing everyone's attention towards him. People near him began to back away in fear of what was happening, others nearby tried to observe, and staff nearby watched with worried faces.
"Sir. Are you alright?" a staff member said to the man with a worried and fearful expression.
"Praise be to you, The Creator of all things. Praise be to you, who carries the burdens of the world's sins." He didn't answer the waiter's question.
Suddenly, he punched the waiter with his fist and ran swiftly towards me. He ran while making a praying gesture, moving his hand from bottom to top, then from right to left across his chest, resembling an inverted cross.
"Praise be to you, The Creator of all things. Praise be to you, who carries the burdens of the world's sins." He shouted it again loudly.
He reached me, pushed me to the ground, and started strangling me with immense, terrifying strength.
I hit him with all my might, trying to get the man off me so I wouldn't run out of breath.
"What the hell are you doing!" I shouted hoarsely, being strangled by the person.
"Oh, you are a precious one, beloved by Him. You are His most cherished. You are the creature whose sins must be erased by Him." He said this to me with a wide smile that was no longer in sync with his voice.
"Damn it! Damn it! Damn it! I'm running out of breath. I'm going to die. I'm going to be killed by this man. I haven't even done anything in this world yet. I haven't found a way home. I haven't accomplished anything." My thoughts were in chaos due to this situation; all the things I had carefully considered were ultimately shattered by this one insane incident. This was more terrifying than facing an Angel-level Beyonder.
"Damn it." I uttered that weakly; my breath was truly almost gone. I might die right now. There was no logical or reasonable way I could survive this.
My eyes were almost closing, while I could only see the man's horrifying smile. I was truly going to die now, making all my thoughts about the experiences of the last few hours feel utterly pathetic.
Honestly, I actually hoped this was a long dream lasting a few hours and perhaps reaching its climax, and when I woke up, everything would be back to normal. I would be back on Earth, with no lost family, nothing having happened.
Unconsciously, while thinking that, I instead remembered the original John's family, which made me truly sad to be leaving them. Hah.. I hadn't even fulfilled my promise to Viola. I was a terrible brother.
I finally closed my eyes; my strength was spent. I felt I could no longer hold on and would truly die. So, goodbye to the world of LotM.
At least I was in the world of a novel I loved before my death; that was truly meaningful. If there is a heaven, I want to always remember this in heaven later.
The world spun, then went dark. The last sensation I felt was the cold pressure on my neck and the shadow of the unnaturally wide smile imprinted behind my eyelids, like an indelible photographic negative.
Gasp! Gasp!
I woke up sobbing, as if emerging from underwater. A rough breath burst from my lungs, followed by a sharp pain in my throat that made me cough violently. My chest was pounding fiercely, its rhythm wild and irregular, filling my still-hazy consciousness.
I... was still alive?
Morning light crept in from behind the window curtains, illuminating the luxurious bedroom. But something was wrong. The light wasn't golden but cast a strange, pale purple hue, as if the world was coated by a thin filter poisoning reality.
This wasn't a dream. A cold certainty crept up my spine.
Then, my gaze fell upon it.
On the desk, right beside John's stack of economics books, stood a clear crystal glass. Its shape was elegant, exactly like the ones at the party. And settled at its bottom, like congealed blood, was the dregs of red wine.
That... that glass.
Instantly, the sounds of the bustling party, the smell of expensive perfume, and the feeling of tightness in my chest came crashing back. The man's empty stare, his broken laughter, and the deadly pressure on my neck. It was all real.
"Impossible..." I rasped, my voice hoarse from the strangulation. My hand reflexively reached for my own neck. Beneath the smooth skin, I could feel a dull, sore pain. Physical evidence. This wasn't my paranoid imagination.
My mind raced. If I was attacked, how did I get back here? Who brought me home? Why did no one wake me? And most importantly: who placed this glass in my room?
This was no longer just a coincidence. This was a message. A blatant warning. A reminder that unseen eyes were watching me, not only outside but had already entered my most private space. This luxurious bedroom suddenly felt like a gilded cage, and I was the trapped bird, not knowing who held the key—or who would slit my throat.
An unnatural tremor ran through my entire body, colder than the morning air. Something was wrong with this morning light. Something was wrong with this glass. Something was wrong with everything.
Knock. Knock. Knock.
A knock at the door merged with the frantic beating of my heart. I nearly jumped out of the bed. My breath caught in my still-sore throat.
Who was it? Fritzh? A servant with a blank face? Or... him?
With unsteady steps full of hesitation, as if each step brought me closer to a precipice, I walked to the door. My hand trembled as I turned the knob.
And there, stood a woman.
It wasn't Fritzh. Nor was it any servant I recognized. Her hair was the color of a violet night, perfectly styled, and her eyes—blue like the deep ocean—immediately looked at me. Not merely looking, but observing, sweeping over every detail of my face, which was undoubtedly still pale and full of fear, as if she could read all the chaos and panic I had just experienced. A slight smile was on her lips, polite, yet it felt like a perfect mask.
"I am Isolde Winslow," she said. Her voice was melodious, as melodious as a song, yet it made my blood run cold. Every syllable was perfectly measured.
She paused for a moment, letting her name—and her mysteriously present self—hang in the air.
"Pleased to meet you, John Lynch." A slight smile was on her face as she said this.