Even before I made my move, my own living reflection waded into a pile of scattered items and bones. He grabbed a few valuable pieces and draped a new cloak over his shoulders.
"It's about time you got new clothes. You've been wearing rags since we first met," I said as I furtively glanced at my companions.
The fact that Reflection Ambrosya was a complete mess from all the high-level battles he had to go through was probably the only reason why my companions had yet to realise he was my doppelgänger. His entire getup was a mess, and I was as clean as a bar of soap.
Even our voices were different due to my reflection's sheer exhaustion and overuse.
"I cannot agree more," Reflection Ambrosya said, "Haaah, I'll finally feel clean again."
A small golden crown fell onto his jet-black hair, cleansing all the dirt, monster blood, and grime accumulated on his body. He also grabbed a metallic branch to use as a staff, further allowing him to assume a scholarly vibe that matched our lies.
A book came into his possession, and he curiously began reading it.
[ Darkness Upon the Face of the Deep ].
"...A book like that exists?" I asked as I read the title.
"Weirdly enough," The sound of a page being flipped echoed across the room as everyone placed their attention on the now-clean Reflection Ambrosya. "It's actually something that I don't know of, and if the contents are true, it should be quite significant to the world of Emerallia."
My expression stretched out in doubt. A piece of the world that wasn't of my direct making... How intriguing.
I couldn't help but forget about my search for any useful items. I went up to my living reflection and looked over his shoulder. Handwritten text filled my sight, looking ancient—almost primitive.
Yet the concepts within them could be dated to a much older time. The enchantments engraved upon the book's cover were raw and lacked the artificiality of human touch. Nothing like the mana programming of today.
King was the next person to appear beside my living reflection. He too began to read, and I was able to watch as his expression grew dazed.
"Is this... a book on Emerallia's creation?" He asked.
"It looks like it," Reflection Ambrosya began to read its contents out loud.
"The existence of the planet before me is a peculiar one. In fact, this entire region of the universe is of a different nature than the rest..."
The moment my reflection reached that far, his eyes rolled back into his head.
Thud—!
He collapsed onto the floor, sending the book clattering down a nearby pile of items.
Thud—!
King was the next to fall. Unconsciousness embraced his measly form, and he crashed into the book face-first.
"King! Ambrosya!" We all yelped in surprise.
Rushing towards their side, it was only after we confirmed their pulse and breathing that we heaved a sigh of relief. They didn't seem to be dead... At least on the surface.
"It seems like there are some things we are better off not knowing..." Rose gently placed King's head onto her lap. Worry shimmered in her gaze. "I don't think it's a good idea to bring that book with us."
Han nodded, "I agree. My instincts are telling me that we will only encounter misfortune if we have it in our possession. What do you think, young mage?"
Camellia tilted her head, "I don't have the same feeling that you two have. It just feels like a normal book to me."
Noticing Camellia's gaze, I spoke up, "Same here. It doesn't seem like that bad of an item to bring around. What exactly do you two feel?"
"You don't see the black smoke that's rising out of it?" Rose frowned.
Camellia and I both shook our heads.
There was a brief silence as that reality settled on our shoulders. Thoughts aplenty swirled within my mind, and I might've stumbled upon a certain truth.
"Hmmmmm," I hummed, "I'll take the book with me. I think it's best that I keep it."
Rose hesitated, "Are you sure? Wait... Since you don't sense danger from it then it really shouldn't be dangerous for you... Especially you..."
I smiled. "You know me well,"
I went over to the pile of items and grabbed [ Darkness Upon the Face of the Deep ]. Han's concern palpably grew, but it seemed like he was going to keep his worries to himself.
Both princesses weren't against my ownership of the item. The power of democracy restrained him, and he decided to trust in their judgement.
Since I now had this weird book in my hands, I could study it in the future. For now, I had to return to the task I was originally planning to do.
I recalled a few items that could possibly meet my needs. It took a while, but I eventually found them, buried among everything else. One by one, I placed each of them on the Starlight Anvil.
Meanwhile, the rest of my companions were also digging through Vlønn's creations, looking for things they liked and replacing their current gear. Some items they were taking would surely increase the difficulty of the tower, but I told them to take as much as they could carry.
It would be a good source of cash in the future.
Back to my task at hand.
From a variety of possible candidates, I went and chose the best one after very careful deliberation and a hands-on appraisal. It was an emblem, with the icon of a cloak and a pair of curved daggers framing it. It gleamed yellow and gold, shining a soft light into my eyes.
I made sure to check their enchantments to see if there were any weird spells there that I was unaware of. After all, even if I knew what they were for, I never actually programmed them myself while writing [ Evergreen Passage ].
I placed the rest of the items onto a nearby workbench, leaving only the emblem on the Starlight Anvil.
Then, after a deep breath, I began to work.