"October 29th, Zrachl, the head of the Secret Order, visited me again. He didn't mention any specific matter — we just chatted casually for a while. I couldn't guess his true intentions; he seemed to simply want to strengthen our communication and mutual understanding?"
"Having already met two high-Sequence powerhouses of the Church, I felt that Zrachl was even stronger and more mysterious than them. So, with no real expectations, I casually asked him which Sequence he was at. To my surprise, he actually answered me!"
"He said he is the Sequence 2 'Miracle Worker'!"
"Sequence 2? In the Church's classification, that's the Angel tier — a status bordering on divinity!"
"Sure enough, stronger than the 'Alchemist' and 'Mystery Scholar' I'd encountered before!"
"However, my intuition tells me Zrachl didn't tell the whole truth. Sequence 2 may have been his previous position, or perhaps he's about to advance."
"'Miracle Worker'? A master skilled at creating miracles? This potion's name is quite evocative!"
"So this is the Sequence 2 corresponding to the 'Seer' — the Miracle Worker who manipulates fate?"
"I tentatively asked Zrachl again whether the so-called miracles are miracles of fate, and whether the 'Seer' Pathway is one of gradually understanding fate, mastering fate, and manipulating fate?"
"Zrachl glossed over the first question. He told me that fate is merely one part of the 'Seer' Pathway — not even the main part. The Pathway that truly represents fate is the 'Monster'!"
"To illustrate, he gave several potion names from the 'Monster' Sequence: Sequence 7 'Lucky One,' Sequence 5 'Winner,' Sequence 2 'Prophet,' and the one at the very top of the Sequence — Sequence 1, the 'Mercury Serpent'! Also known as the 'Serpent of Fate.'"
"This is the first Sequence 1 I've ever learned about — it hit exactly the right note!"
"As far as I know, the 'Monster' Pathway should be held by the School of Life. This school apparently also has part of the 'Apothecary' Sequence. They advocate the triple division of the absolutely rational world, the spiritual world, and the material world. Hmm, pretty cool."
"Zrachl told me the School of Life specializes in astrology, pursuing the path of harmonizing the soul through medicine, music, light, wine, and fragrance to dispel unfavorable stars and unfavorable fate. They believe that disasters and illnesses stem from a loss of balance between humanity and nature, and between humanity and its own mind."
"He added meaningfully that the School of Life worships The Moon."
"Why worship The Moon, and not go further to the Goddess of the Night?"
This diary entry occupied two pages, clearly also copied from both sides of the original.
"That's a lot of information..." Klein silently sighed with genuine emotion.
This was also the first time he'd learned the name of a Sequence 1 level potion.
The "Mercury Serpent" and "Serpent of Fate" truly inspired a sense of longing!
"And this is also the first time I've learned of a particular Sequence 2 — the Sequence 2 corresponding to the 'Seer' Pathway... The name 'Miracle Worker' isn't bad. It's rich in meaning and not low in status. Of course, compared to 'Prophet,' it feels a bit inferior..."
"Fate is only part of the 'Seer' Pathway, not even the main part. I must remember this, constantly cross-referencing it to examine myself, never straying toward the aspect of fate — that could lead to failed roleplaying... Zrachl's words are consistent when read in context, no issues there... The 'Monster' Pathway is the true path of fate... 'Prophet' turns out to be Sequence 2. Thinking about it this way, I actually did know a Sequence 2 before..."
Klein's gaze hadn't left the paper, but he was now seriously contemplating matters concerning his own Sequence chain.
Because of his digestion experiences with the "Seer" and "Clown" potions, because of the evolution from peering into fate and fearing fate to slightly predicting fate yet still feeling helpless against it, he had gradually equated the core essence of his own Pathway with a deepening engagement with fate. If not for this diary entry, he would likely have used this as a premise to understand and roleplay the subsequent Sequences.
As for whether Arurata was lying or not, the one thing Klein could currently confirm was that the "Monster" Pathway was definitely the Fate Sequence. This aligned with what he had read in the Nighthawks' internal records and matched the potion name he had long heard of—"Prophet."
Since there was already a Fate Sequence, the "Seer" Pathway was highly unlikely to overlap with it. Doing so would create a degree of redundancy, which was inconsistent with the distinct characteristics each Sequence currently displayed.
Therefore, Klein was inclined to believe Arurata's words—inclined to believe that Fate was only a part of the "Seer" Pathway, and perhaps not even its core component.
The value of these two diary pages was immeasurable to me right now… "Alchemist" and "Mystery Pryer" should be the higher Sequences of the "Generalist" Pathway. Judging from Roselle's tone, they definitely weren't Sequence 2 or Sequence 1, which meant one was Sequence 4 and the other Sequence 3… He couldn't determine for the time being which was Sequence 4 and which was Sequence 3… Klein pulled his thoughts back, turned the page, and continued reading.
As for why the School of Life only worshipped the Moon and didn't revere the Goddess of the Night—who symbolized the crimson moon—he lacked sufficient intelligence on the subject to delve deeper into the matter.
The third diary page detailed Roselle's journey of thought behind inventing the practical steam engine. One moment he worried about being suppressed, the next he feared his achievements would be seized by powerful figures. Between every line, the sense that others were out to persecute him was unmistakable.