Out of an abundance of caution, Annan had decided to use up all the 76 points of public experience he had accumulated.
These experience points were just enough to level up his Swordsman class once more, while also bringing up his Wizard Apprentice level to LV7.
After all, given "Tan Juan's" age and physique, it was hard for Annan to carry the sword he could use with him for an extended period. Not to mention, the Frost Sword Technique was an absolutely secret lifesaving trick...
In this situation, even if his Swordsman level was high, it wouldn't add much to his combat ability in a normal state.
It was merely a high damage rating on the stat panel, which was basically useless in actual combat.
On the other hand, the Wizard Apprentice profession...
Annan had decided that he needed to level up quickly, and it was best to advance in a short period, if possible.
After all, although Tan Juan was young and had been murdered, he was not only Benjamin's student but also a Bronze-rank Wizard himself.
It was uncertain how many people knew this.
But before suspicions about Annan arose, he definitely also had to reach the Bronze rank.
So, his attribute and class panels had become this:
Annan, Human, Male
Rare Elite (Gold), Challenge Level 8
Title: None
Rank: None
Health: 100%
Erosion: 4%
Attributes: Strength 8, Agility 8, Constitution 7, Perception 18, Willpower 13
Public Experience: 0
Personal Characteristics: Winter Heart [Reversed Inscription]
Employment Overview——
Swordsman LV5: [Guardsman Swordsmanship LV5], [Disarm LV1], [Frost Sword Technique LV2]
Wizard Apprentice LV7: [Instant Spells LV2 (Cold Touch, currently none)], [Guided Spells LV1 (currently none)]
Completely different from the "Swordsman" profession.
From its name alone, the "Wizard Apprentice" could be guessed to simply be a precursor to the "Wizard" profession.
It didn't provide spells just by leveling and even after reaching level seven, it had only gained two levels of skills.
...or rather, two spell slots.
But now, he had empty slots with no spells... which was quite awkward.
However, there had been a considerable change in Annan's attribute list:
His previous Perception was 11 points, Strength was 7 points, and Constitution was 6 points. This meant that every level in the Wizard Apprentice profession had stably provided him with an increase in Perception.
The two levels he advanced in the Swordsman profession had each added a point to his Strength and Constitution.
The increase in Perception made Annan's brain very clear, with disorganized thoughts disappearing and his thinking became sharper.
Like a computer cleaned of junk, he could feel his thought processes speeding up.
But whether it was an increase in Perception or Constitution, Annan had no tangible feeling of it. The only thing that gave him an exact measure was the increase in Strength:
He had previously tried swinging John's hand-and-a-half sword a couple of times. At that time, he could feel a noticeable sluggishness.
The strong inertia felt as if it could throw him off balance, and his sword moves were completely deformed, unable to be used properly.
Now, he could barely wield the broken sword. Although it was still very difficult, at least his Guardsman Swordsmanship moves wouldn't deform due to the inability to control inertia.
...However, why were the attributes like Perception and Willpower so high when the predecessor only had a level three Swordsman?
Annan had no clues about this question and could only temporarily attribute it to his own awesomeness.
Annan had just done an approximate calculation.
Based on the increase in the Strength attribute, to use the broken sword as fluidly as John's body did, at least ten points in Strength were required. And for the original longsword, maybe twelve points were necessary for proficiency.
Unlike the Wizard Apprentice, the Swordsman profession seemed to have an even distribution of points. This meant that when Annan could smoothly use the broken sword, he should essentially be at the level of Swordsman LV10.
By the time he reached that level, his Wizard Apprentice profession might already be advanced.
——This broken sword was completely unusable.
Annan reached a clear conclusion in his mind.
If he needed to defend himself, he had a better option:
"That sword..."
Annan muttered to himself.
He remembered that the young master Tan Juan had a very fine, sharp, and sturdy short sword.
When he had used "John's" body before, that sword seemed short, akin to a slightly long dagger... but for Annan's height, it was just the right size for a one-handed sword.
"I just don't know if it's still there."
Annan exhaled a sigh of regret.
He didn't go directly below the deck but headed to the captain's cabin instead.
In his memory, if Benjamin and Tan Juan were to die, they would be in this place——
Indeed.
The Grand Wizard Benjamin, who had effortlessly killed the captain of the guards without taking a step back or even using magic, was now lifeless, sprawled over the table. His mouth overflowed with blood, staining his teeth and the plate, his eyes pitch black.
It was almost like a nightmare replayed.
The only difference was that Benjamin's silver ring on his right hand was gone. His robe and the jewelry he had worn were removed, making him look like an ordinary old man.
Beside Benjamin lay Tan Juan with blood overflowing from his mouth, and the old butler with a sword piercing through his back, lying dead on the ground with eyes wide open.
The bronze ring in Tan Juan's hand was also missing, but there was an additional luxurious silver ring set with a sapphire. The ring bore sharp feather-shaped marks on its band, the very relic left to him by Tan Juan Geraint's mother.
But Annan knew clearly that this ring did not belong to Tan Juan.
Unlike Benjamin, Tan Juan's clothes had not been touched.
...Why was that?
Annan frowned slightly and searched Tan Juan's body.
Upon searching, he indeed found that there were additional items on Tan Juan's body.
For instance, the silver pocket watch that had broken in the nightmare but was now still ticking. The outer case of the pocket watch was engraved with the pattern of a three-eyed crow, easily recognizable as the crest of the Geraint family.
The captain's quarters' wall still hung Tan Juan's long dagger—yet Annan distinctly remembered that a sea chart was supposed to hang there.
And most unusually, the letters that were originally kept in Tan Juan's room were now stuffed on his body. With just a light search, they fell to the ground.
It was as if someone was waiting for Annan to find them.
Annan understood clearly that on the day of Tan Juan's death, there was supposed to be a party on the ship. There was no need for Tan Juan to carry around so many heavy and cumbersome things.
Alternatively, he could have simply handed them over to John.
...Unless, someone wanted those who discovered the body to realize that this young man was indeed Tan Juan Geraint.
After all, these clothes didn't look ordinary. And once someone checked his belongings, they would receive information about Tan Juan's identity.
After all, the letters bore Tan Juan's name, and both the pocket watch and the ring bore the Geraint family crest.
Was someone intending for the Geraint family to recover Tan Juan's body?
But wasn't the third prince trying to conceal Tan Juan's death? If so, the most convenient and thorough method would have been to destroy the body and leave no trace. They could have just burned everything together with the ship and dump all evidence into the sea.
...Wait a minute?
Annan paused for a moment.
A memory suddenly came back to him:
In the first loop, Tan Juan had mentioned to him that he had sewn a treasure into the lining of his clothes.
And though Claus was ostensibly loyal to the third prince, from the final second-phase transformation, it seemed like someone else was pulling the strings from behind.
At least from Benjamin's reaction, he clearly had no anticipation of Claus pulling such a move.
Plus, the third prince wanted Tan Juan's seal. But in the first loop, Claus had searched Tan Juan's room for "something made of paper," casually looking for the seal as well.
Which means...
Claus, that guy, he might not be just an ordinary double-crosser.
He may have a dual identity, betraying not only Tan Juan in the open but also the third prince in secret!
By intentionally leaving traces for the Geraint family to recover Tan Juan's body, Claus was probably aiming to obtain the "secret treasure" hidden on him!
Because he didn't know how to retrieve the secret treasure, he planned to silently spread the news of Tan Juan's death, allowing the Geraint family to come and recover the body. By the time the body was discovered, the news spread, and the Geraint family informed, confirmed, and then arrived, at least a few months would've passed.
If Annan wasn't mistaken, Claus would've most likely been in the Royal Capital by then.
He would surely find an excuse—like causing trouble for the Geraint family or cleaning up loose ends—to take a leave from the third prince and secretly follow behind to see where the secret treasure was really hidden.
...Odd, didn't he search Tan Juan's body?
Annan frowned slightly but decided to strip Tan Juan's clothes anyway.
While he was still pondering where the treasure might be hidden,
The instant Annan made contact with the inner side of Tan Juan's clothes, a light flashed before his eyes:
[Fragments of Truth Discovered]
[Condition One: Not currently in possession of conflicting Pages of Truth]
[Condition Two: Must possess a Rare Elite (purple) template or higher]
[Revelation of Truth——]
The next moment, a brilliant white light burst forth.
The dazzling white light soared into the sky—then was completely blocked by the captain's quarters, with only a few stray beams dispersing through the windows and the door.
The white light persisted for half a minute before gradually dissipating.
Before Annan's eyes emerged a page, exceptionally soft, reminiscent of paper but with the feel of jade. Dark golden text flowed upon it akin to living things; it was somewhat similar to the symbols released from Benjamin's ring, yet seemed infinitely sacred.
Simply looking at it, Annan felt an intense sense of familiarity.
A light screen also appeared over it:
[Book of the Celestial Chariot, Cover Page]
[Type: Fragments of Truth (1/6) (Unlocked)]
[Remaining Shard Holders: 5]
[Manifested: 1]
[Description: A Fragment of Truth newly born, gather all the pieces to wield a new authority]
[Book of the Celestial Chariot (1/6): Summon or dismiss a specified number of players from another world (0/100)]
[This feature will be available in 40:33:23]
[Current Effect (1/6): Players can be revived]