Chapter 630: Roselle and Arrodes

 Chapter 630: Roselle and Arrodes

"You are the one who left behind endless legends, the pioneer of the Steam Era, an unparalleled romantic poet, the consul of the Republic of Intis, the great Emperor Roselle!"

"Oh my, I've finally met you in person. You are indeed as heroic and unmatched in beauty as the rumors say."

"I never expected you to appear before me in such a manner, it truly makes me anxious and excited."

Arrodes displayed lines of praise on the mirror's surface, enthusiastically showing its admiration for Roselle.

Roselle clicked his tongue, "Stop flattering me, you broken mirror. It's not like I haven't encountered you before in the Church of Steam."

"Oh my, you still remember that brief encounter! It's truly my honor!"

"...Speak properly!" Roselle found it hard to endure Arrodes' enthusiasm.

"Alright." Arrodes ceased its flattery and remained silent.

"Tell me, how did your master-servant relationship with Klein begin?"

"Two years ago in Backlund."

Arrodes' brief response appeared on the mirror. Just as Roselle was about to ask a second question, a line of text appeared on the mirror, posing a question.

"When you learned that witches are transformed from men by taking potions, did it excite you even more?"

"?!" Roselle's mouth twitched, feeling an urge to smash the broken mirror. What kind of nonsensical question was that!

"I refuse to answer!"

Roselle raised his head slightly, and a scarlet lightning bolt descended vertically, striking his chestnut hair. Roselle once again felt the tingling sensation of electricity coursing through his body.

With his hair standing on end, Roselle glared at Arrodes and gritted his teeth, "Aren't you afraid I'll throw you into a cesspit?"

"Afraid." Arrodes replied honestly, and then another question appeared on the mirror.

"What type of women do you like most in your life?"

"I damn..."

Before Roselle could finish swearing, another scarlet lightning bolt struck, leaving him charred.

At this moment, the mirror displayed a series of sad, crying faces, followed by a sentence.

"According to the principle of equivalence, for every question you ask me, I must ask you one in return. It's beyond my control."

"..." Roselle gritted his teeth, "You broken mirror, you're doing this on purpose!"

"Does that count as a question?"

"..."

Roselle said nothing more, summoning a black cloth to cover the ancient silver mirror.

"I almost forgot this feeling. I remember being struck by lightning by this mirror many times before."

Roselle recalled how he had once treated the mirror as a question-answering oracle, enduring many lightning strikes at that time.

Thinking of this, Roselle pulled off the black cloth and stared at Arrodes with a stern gaze, "No wonder you were so eager to flatter me when you saw me. You remember what you did to me back then."

"Does that count as a question?"

"Don't try to dodge the issue. You really are a black-hearted mirror, daring to deceive even me. Do you think I won't dare to split you in half?"

"Does that count as a question?"

"Heh, go ahead and strike me. For every strike, I'll delay returning you to Klein by a day. You must miss your master, right?"

"Please mind your words, such thoughts are dangerous."

"I damn..."

...

In the depths of the palace of the Byran Empire on the Southern Continent, Hastur stepped outside to relax in the courtyard.

Since Roselle's resurrection, he had been providing Hastur with amusing moments almost daily, allowing him to observe Roselle's every move from the Star Hall.

"Master, I'm so bored," said Aisala, who had transformed into a small black cat sunbathing on the roof, as she leaped onto Hastur's shoulder.

Hastur chuckled and patted Aisala's head, "Hasn't Sharon arranged any lessons for you recently?"

"I don't want to study..." Aisala flicked her tail, "I don't want to become like Susie, buried in books all day."

"And Miss Audrey, she seems to have been stimulated by something recently, becoming as diligent in reading as Susie."

After hearing Aisala's report, Hastur laughed, "Let's go and take a look."

With Aisala pointing the way with her right paw, Hastur soon arrived at the royal library of the Byran Empire.

Among the rows of bookshelves, Audrey and Susie each occupied a corner, silently immersed in their own studies.

Hastur did not disturb them, instead controlling his breath and footsteps, watching from the doorway.

Guided by Hermes, Susie now exuded a scholarly aura, and the pair of gold-rimmed glasses on her face added to her academic demeanor.

With such a presence, she could easily be mistaken for a college student.

On Audrey's side, she frowned slightly as she flipped through books, jotting down difficult or incomprehensible points on blank paper. The books she read were highly specialized, all within the same field.

The sound of pages turning piqued Hastur's interest in reading. Since arriving on the Southern Continent, he had read far less than he had in Backlund.

After watching for a while, Hastur approached a nearby bookshelf, selected a book titled *A Hundred-Year History of the Byran Empire*, and sat beside Audrey. Meanwhile, Aisala had already gone to where Susie was.

"Mr. Hastur, please read over by Susie so as not to disturb my studies," Audrey said seriously without looking up.

"Are you competing with Susie in reading speed?"

"Don't talk to me, it will distract me." Audrey's cheeks puffed slightly, resembling a small bun, making Hastur want to poke her.

"Alright, I'll head over to Susie."

Before Hastur could leave, Audrey put down her book and cleared her throat, "Mr. Hastur, since your presence has disrupted my reading, how do you plan to compensate me?"

Hastur replied earnestly, "Beautiful Miss Audrey, to be fair, I will also go and disturb Susie's reading, distracting her so she can't focus."

"No need to be so obvious." Audrey's cheeks flushed slightly, "Susie hasn't left the library in a long time. I mean, she needs to rest and can't be immersed in books all the time."

"That's undoubtedly a correct and reasonable decision."

"Really?" Audrey's eyes lit up slightly.

"Of course." Hastur took Audrey's hand, kissed the back of it, and smiled, "Our Miss Audrey should also take a break and spend more time with her loved ones."

"In honor of Mr. Hastur, I'll stop studying for today." Audrey showed a relieved expression.

A few days ago, she had lost to Susie in a knowledge competition, making her realize she needed to study hard, or Susie would quickly surpass her in knowledge.

So she came to the library to compete with Susie.

Today was the third day, and she was indeed feeling a bit tired. She enjoyed reading, but reading out of interest and reading to compete were two entirely different experiences.

But she couldn't admit defeat, so it was fortunate that Mr. Hastur arrived at the crucial moment.

"You can use Aisala more often in the future. She doesn't like seeing Susie read all the time."

"Will it really work?" Audrey leaned her head on Hastur's shoulder, her eyes sparkling with interest.

"Of course, Aisala is the least fond of studying among you."

"Isn't that a bit underhanded?"

"We're doing it for Susie's sake. Being buried in books isn't good; she needs a balance between work and rest."

Eventually, Audrey accepted the suggestion without much resistance after Hastur's repeated persuasion.

The two of them nestled among the books in the library, and soon there were a few cat meows and a bark.

"See, Aisala is quite professional at dealing with Susie."

"Aisala is amazing!" Audrey smiled sweetly, her joy evident, and then she pretended to be reserved, "I'm doing this for Susie's good."

Before long, Susie and Aisala joined Hastur and Audrey.

"The weather is nice today, let's go for a walk," Hastur said seriously to Susie, "Emperor Roselle once said, 'Reading ten thousand books is not as good as traveling ten thousand miles.'"

"Woof!" Susie's spirits lifted instantly.

...

At night, after returning from their outing, Hastur took a bath and then embraced Audrey as they slept.

Audrey nestled in Hastur's arms, gently tracing her finger across his chest, and whispered, "Mr. Hastur, do you have something important to attend to?"

"Indeed, nothing escapes the one beside me." Hastur tightened his embrace around Audrey's waist, "I am making a decision."

"Is it because you can't let go of Miss Sharon and me?"

"If anything happens to you, I'm afraid I won't be able to return in time."

"Are you going somewhere far?"

"Yes, to the stars."