"It seems the Playwright's potion isn't about directly altering others' fates but about creating rules to bind them. Bringing people into my framework, making them live by my rules... that's the script most aligned with the Chaos Pathway…"
Alaric rubbed his chin thoughtfully, not lingering on the realization. He'd long suspected this, and now it was merely confirmed.
His focus quickly shifted to another matter.
Concocting the "Disciple of Delight" potion and preparing for the ascension ritual.
Due to his recent busyness, Alaric hadn't yet gathered the final auxiliary material, but it shouldn't be hard. A visit to old Pallez or even confronting Zaratul to instill despair would suffice.
What intrigued him more was the ascension ritual, which he realized might already be complete.
"Not because of City of Silver, but the Rose School…" His expression turned odd. The Rose School's core members were few, but its informants and affiliates were numerous. Most crucially, Alaric's complete takeover of the organization had directly impacted far more than ten thousand lives.
This wasn't surprising. As one of the Outer Deities' primary agents in this world, the Rose School's fall affected millions.
Unlike the obscure City of Silver affair, Alaric had deliberately publicized the event. Nearly everyone in the Beyonder world knew the Rose School had changed hands, with the long-defeated Temperance faction staging a comeback. That easily exceeded the required hundred thousand.
As for inspiring profound emotions in at least a thousand... the Rose School had far more than that, and their feelings toward Alaric were nothing if not intense.
Thus, his ascension ritual was complete.
"So, I'll soon reach Sequence 3? Faster than I thought," Alaric mused, pleased but not shocked, given his recent accomplishments. If his potion hadn't digested after all this, that would be absurd.
"Settled. After approving Klein's leave, I'll track down Pallez and aim to ascend to Disciple of Delight today," Alaric decided, opting to head straight to Klein's office rather than linger in the border city.
When he arrived, Klein's office already had a visitor... Sasrir, there to take over Klein's duties per Alaric's instructions.
"Morning, Sasrir," Alaric greeted with a smile, studying the former Deputy of Heaven for a moment. "You're looking much better. Seems you've had a good rest."
Sasrir had previously teetered on the edge of collapse, a sight that pricked even Alaric's capitalist conscience. Now, he seemed revitalized.
"Morning, Lucifer," Sasrir replied with a warm smile. "I've indeed rested well, though it's been a bit too leisurely. I'm not quite used to it."
He spoke truthfully. After wrapping up the Rose School affair, Sasrir had intended to dive into border city operations, with City of Silver's matters nearly resolved. But Alaric intervened, insisting it wasn't urgent. He wasn't heartless enough to have Sasrir tackle the Rose School one day and the border cities the next, so he forced a few days' vacation on him... mostly out of fear Sasrir might actually drop dead.
It was a "vacation" in name, but Sasrir still handled light work with assistant support, making it a relaxed period by his standards.
"Tch, talk about a born workaholic," Alaric said, shaking his head, then teased, "Don't worry, your idle days are over. Brace for a year-round overtime inferno."
"Sounds terrifying…" Sasrir played along, shrugging. "But I'm used to it."
Overtime inferno? For the Deputy of Heaven, that was just another day.
Did Alaric grasp the legend of Sasrir the Overworked?
"Great hells, Sasrir, you're making me look like a heartless capitalist," Alaric quipped, then glanced at Klein, Lil' Amon, and Jack whispering in the corner.
As Jack Himself, Alaric knew they were griping about overtime. He smiled at them, noting Klein and Lil' Amon's sudden stiffness. "Almost forgot you three. Morning, Klein, Lil' Amon, Jack."
"Morning, Mr. Lucifer!" Klein replied dutifully.
"Morning, Uncle Lucifer! Am I the only one who noticed it's nearly noon?" Lil' Amon said, producing a pocket watch showing almost 11 o'clock.
"Morning, old man!" Jack flashed a sunny grin. "Finally remembered to approve our leave?"
"You need a break?" Alaric shot Jack a theatrical glance. "Far as I know, you've been slacking off, not doing much real work."
"Who says? I've helped Klein loads lately!" Jack protested, indignant. "You can't call me out for not working 24/7. You heartless capitalist."
Talk about "honoring the master."
Alaric didn't look annoyed, just glanced at Klein and Lil' Amon with an expression that screamed, My pure flower has been corrupted by you two.
"..."
"..."
Come on, hasn't Jack always been like this? Your rose-tinted glasses are thick, Mr. Lucifer!
"Fine, saw this coming," Alaric said, shaking his head, then turned to Klein. "Your request for leave to head to the Five Seas to find mermaids and advance to Marionettist is approved. Sasrir will handle your work handover. Once it's done, you're free to go."
He paused, producing a stack of documents and handing them to Klein, who looked puzzled. "No need to rush back from the Five Seas. I've got some work there for you. It won't be a free trip... I'll ensure you're well compensated."
Klein took the documents, flipping through them briefly. They detailed various Five Seas factions, like the Church of the Sea God's resistance and pirate generals.
***
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