Chapter 1038 Triple History Triple Truth

After listening to the story of the "Mad King" or the "Swan King", Aiwass frowned slightly.

He touched his chin with his hand and fell into deep thought.

Sherlock didn't interrupt Aiwass's thoughts. Everyone at the table remained silent, quietly waiting for Aiwass's opinion and evaluation.

“…I have two questions.”

Suddenly, Aiwass asked, "First, what energy level is the Swan King at?"

Since people call the Swan King "the perfect creation of the Twin Mirror", they even regard him as the "Apostle on Earth" who is the reincarnation of an apostle.

Does that mean that the Swan King himself is also a very powerful extraordinary being?

After all, in this world... the crazier a person is, the stronger they are. Their craziness likely means they have strong adaptability to the path, and as long as they have adaptability, their leveling speed on the path will be much faster than others, and their upper limit will be much higher.

Even if an ordinary person possesses a strong adaptability to the path, they may not be able to find esoteric texts and thus fail to become a Transcendent. However, as long as a Transcendent possesses a high-level adaptability, they can become a high-level Transcendent if they can successfully pass the promotion ceremony. As long as the corresponding path is not banned in the local area and their own energy level is high enough, they will naturally be able to obtain more advanced esoteric knowledge.

——But the Swan King is a real king.

Not to mention, the Path of Beauty was originally the inherited path of the Iris family. Even when the Avalon royal family faced their most difficult times, Princess Isabel still had Sherlock to help her advance; and the eldest princess of Xingti had the expert clown Lalo to escort her.

As the ruler of a nation, the Swan King couldn't possibly be held back by the promotion ceremony. Given his adaptability, his energy level must be quite high.

As expected, Sherlock's mouth corners rose slightly.

Apparently, Aiwass asked the key question -

"The fourth energy level."

Sherlock replied, "That monarch, who was only twenty-six years old, had already reached the fourth energy level at the age of twenty-three."

——That was the era when the power of transcendence had not yet boiled over.

This level of advancement would put him at the level of a candidate for Black Phase in Star Antimony! That would already be a rising star that the nation is paying attention to... Even Chloë de Silieux, the granddaughter of the Master Assassin, the genius of the Hawkeye Organization who was once devoured by a shadow demon and had her voice stolen, was several years behind this.

"The fourth energy level..."

Yasen murmured, "That's already very strong."

He himself is a transcendent being of the fourth level of the path of beauty, and he knows very well "what extent a transcendent being of the fourth level can achieve."

Not to mention, the Dao of Beauty was already exceptionally adept at escaping. Regardless of their profession, surviving was a simple task. Their ability to survive was even greater than that of the Transcendents who had adapted to the Dao.

Yassen immediately realized something was wrong: "But then...how did Louisoix capture the Mad King?

"...Could he be at the fifth energy level?"

The fifth energy level...there are only a few of them in the entire iris flower.

If it truly was a Level 5, it was no wonder the dukes all assumed it was the other party who did it. Excluding the obvious Moon Child, the only remaining culprits were Hawkeye, the Art Association, and the three dukes' affiliated forces—the dukes themselves might not be Level 5, but their families would have at least one Level 5 within them. Otherwise, they wouldn't have the strength to subjugate the army or recruit talented individuals.

The three Grand Dukes have equal power. If one of them loses their fifth-level patron, their talents and resources will be devoured by the other Grand Dukes.

“That’s my second question.”

Aiwass asked, "Are there any signs of fighting between the Swan King and Louisois?"

Even if Louisois's whereabouts were uncertain—even if he disappeared after the establishment of the Council—at least the traces he left behind would be investigated. Whether in Avalon or Star Antimony, every detail of such a major event would be thoroughly investigated and archived. And traces of the road were very easy to detect...

This is a fairly common technique. Even the lowest second-level transcendents can detect where conflicts of Dao forces have occurred. Transcendents of the four paths of wisdom, balance, adaptability, and authority all have relevant skills.

"--No."

Sherlock gave a clear answer without hesitation: "There's no need for a supernatural investigation... because none of the artworks hanging in the Swan Palace have been damaged in any way. The preservation techniques used to prevent the artworks from aging have not even been eliminated by external forces."

Yasen has the most say in this matter.

He knew very well that even if he wanted to preserve a painting, a gem, or a ring, he would have to use special techniques. Those paintings were too fragile. Without the thin layer of "preservation technology" outside, they would probably fade, become damp, crack, or change color in a few years.

Maintaining a constant temperature and humidity in a room was a real hassle. While mages and alchemists could develop similar techniques, none were as effective as preservation—a thin layer of preservation was all that was needed.

No matter where they are placed, no matter what environment they are in, no matter how they are folded or moved... as long as the power of the preservation technique is completely exhausted or they are broken artificially, the passage of time will not have any effect on those fragile masterpieces, and they will enter a state of complete stillness.

Yasen has a special "treasure storage box" as one of his phantom thief tools. This box is attached with a strong preservation spell, and Yasen needs to put the stolen items into it immediately after stealing them.

Otherwise, when he performs any form of time travel or high-frequency movement, or is hit by other people's spells or curses, the thin layer of preservation magic on the outside may be interfered with and shattered by his extraordinary power, thus causing the things he stole with great difficulty to be damaged.

The reason for this is that "preservation" itself is considered a supernatural power. Therefore, it also has priority.

Preservation can act as a shield because it can offset spells of lower energy levels than itself; just as it can be shattered by spells of higher energy levels, the state of preservation applied to anything will instantly shatter when it comes into contact with any supernatural power with a higher energy level than the caster.

"——And this is also the 'supernormal detection' mechanism of the old Iris nobles."

Sherlock explained.

The extraordinary paths that Iris popularized were the path of love, the path of beauty, and the path of adaptation. Clearly, none of these three paths were good things.

These three paths possessed a plethora of extraordinary skills capable of bewitching people, manipulating their will, stirring their desires, and rewriting their memories. One could easily be controlled without paying attention.

"And to combat this, an inventor developed a countermeasure technology."

Sherlock said: "It is to let low-level preservationists create a kind of 'safety'. These safes are placed in the living room or under the guests' seats.

"Because it's protected by a preservation technique, even the heaviest guests won't crush it or step on it. However, if it comes into contact with any supernatural power of a higher energy level than the caster, it will suddenly shatter. This will trigger an alarm, recording the time and location of the incident, and then handling it according to the pre-arranged method. By observing the shape of the 'safety' shattering, we can infer its shattering speed and roughly calculate the level of supernatural power it was affected by."

"That's clever. That's a great idea."

Aiwass commented, "When we get back, we can install a set in the Avalon Round Table. Put it under everyone's stools. After the game, we'll see whose butt cracks. That way, we'll know who used the power of the Dao."

Sherlock said, "The 'safety' of Swan Castle is level three. And the safety of the entire castle is almost intact... In other words, at least no extraordinary person above level three has ever used their power in front of the Swan King."

"You said...almost?"

Aiwass keenly noticed a detail in Sherlock's words.

Sherlock nodded. "Yes, it's 'almost' - of course, I've done some research. The few broken fuses have nothing to do with this incident. They were either in disrepair or there was a slight misjudgment during the survey."

"That's not necessarily true."

Aiwass shook his head. "Even if there's no evidence, we must remain skeptical. After all, there are so many ways to erase evidence in this world. I care more about motives than methods. Many people possess the means to achieve miracles, and what's 'impossible' for some may not exist for others. But if he wants to do this, he will definitely leave a trace—and that trace is his 'want.'"

Seeing this, Sherlock smiled helplessly. "You're right. By the way, I'll give you another piece of information... No need to pray, I've already asked. The Swan King did not enter the dream world, nor did he become an apostle. He disappeared after being beheaded."

As early as Avalon... he knew that Aiwass was such a person.

Aiwass places little weight on evidence and logic, preferring to identify flaws in his opponent's psychology by examining their motives. This often puts Aiwass a step ahead of Sherlock, as he doesn't need to gather evidence or validate his reasoning. He simply needs to convince himself.

This also made Sherlock somewhat dissatisfied - although his intelligence and talent were innate, his way of thinking was developed by the educational structure, and he could be considered half-academic.

Aiwass, with absolutely no intelligence or information, had come up with a whole behind-the-scenes truth. And it was all right, claiming, "I know everything." But when he asked her more closely, Sherlock could sense he knew nothing... At least Aiwass himself knew the facts, but not the reasons... He had no idea how things had developed to this point.

Sherlock could only assume that Aiwass had this characteristic.

Once the matter involves someone related to him, he can use his eyes that can see through people's hearts to skip the argument and get the result.

However, the "Swan King" incident is clearly an unsolved case.

No one knew the origins and whereabouts of "Young Louisoix." Or perhaps they knew but were deliberately concealing it... but in any case, it couldn't possibly have anything to do with Aiwass. Aiwass didn't even have a clear grasp of the case at this point, relying on Sherlock's careful explanations.

——In this case, you can't just jump to conclusions!

Sherlock searched through all the relevant documents and files in the Hall of Mirrors, checked a lot of relevant information, and even used the special mechanism of the Hall of Mirrors to use the books behind him - the information obtained by "reading the lives of dead artists" to indirectly confirm his findings...

Now, he can finally give a detailed and perfect conclusion.

"You've already asked both of your questions."

Sherlock asked Aiwass with great interest, "Then let me ask you, Aiwass - what do you think is the truth of the matter? And which side is Louisois on?"

There was a blue flame burning in the bottom of his pupils, which was a sign of resonance with the path of wisdom.

“…I’m not sure.”

Aiwass was silent for a long time, and finally spoke softly: "But I have some speculations... This is a conclusion based on my common sense.

"If you ask me, just invite him down and ask him. For a genius like the Swan King, his death is a promotion. Just like the Fool of yesteryear, when he ascends to the Dream Realm, he will become a Celestial Master and an Apostle of the Pillar God. Even if he doesn't, he could still become the new Celestial Master.

"But you also said... the Swan King isn't in the Dream World. Actually, there are only three possibilities I can think of. These three possibilities exist simultaneously. They may exist in different world lines, but they may also be true at the same time.

"—The first possibility is that the Swan King's soul was stolen. Perhaps he made a deal with a demon, or was branded with the Mortal Sin by the Fallen Angels. However, I don't see any possibility of the Swan King being branded with the Mortal Sin. The only close possibility is the Mark of Pride, but its purity is still insufficient. Alternatively, he could have been preyed upon by a wild phantom demon from the Dream Realm... and his soul was shattered.

"The second possibility is that his soul never entered the dream world at all. For example, he died unjustly, and his soul attached itself to a certain instrument or a family member. For example... a beheading ritual platform, or..."

At this point, Aiwass glanced at the Grand Duke before continuing, "The strange disease of the Vendôme family."

"Probably not."

Old Argon wasn't angry, he just shook his head: "Our family's history of colds is much longer than the Third Rebellion..."

But he still asked Aiwass with some anticipation: "What about the third possibility?"

Aiwass and Sherlock looked at each other and gave the only answer to the question:

"——It's simple. The Swan King is not dead at all."

"……correct."

Sherlock breathed a sigh of relief, and replied with a touch of regret and satisfaction: "This is the conclusion of my investigation.

"The Swan King is not completely dead yet—he, or his soul, is still somewhere among the irises, watching all this."

Update completed meow~! I'm not feeling well today, so I'm updating two in one meow!

(End of this chapter)