Putting the tableware on the table, Annan followed Grand Duke Ivan into the secret room of the Grand Duke's mansion.
This is not to avoid outsiders, but to avoid the Hands of Winter.
Even the Hands of Winter who own the ring are only allowed to know at most that "the Archduke's three-color scepter is itself a great-level curse" - this is conducive to them helping the Archduke protect this treasure.
But the deeper secrets...including the true name and effect of this curse are not allowed to be known to them.
This is necessary to maintain rule and tradition.
"And the other reason... is actually to protect them."
Grand Duke Ivan looked at Annan calmly: "Last year, I was actually not sure whether you could inherit the position of Grand Duke.
"It's not because of anything else. It's because you have reversed the power of the bloodline curse of the 'Heart of Winter' - this is indeed a must for you to use the Book of Heavenly Wheel. But it may cause you to be unable to pick it up."
This scepter...at least half of its abilities cannot be used by you."
"Heart of Winter" is indeed a cruel curse.
But it is also a kind of protection.
Not for anything else - but to protect yourself from being deceived by the curse of this great curse.
Annan was stunned.
In an instant, the many subtle oddities that lingered in his cognition were connected in his mind like lightning.
I see……
No wonder the old grandmother would maintain this curse rooted in her bloodline, and watch her descendants wither away and suffer all their lives in the world; no wonder they would lose this curse immediately after their death.
No wonder the power brought by this curse is not that powerful, as if it is just to prevent people from dying; no wonder Grand Duke Ivan clearly has the highest level of [Winter Blood] talent, but still firmly chooses not to become extraordinary.
By.
I'm afraid it's different from Annan and the other three...
Ivan should have known the secret of this three-color scepter when he was very young.
Then Ivan hasn’t said anything, maybe because...
"...The price of bearing this curse is terrifying?"
"That's right."
Ivan said slowly.
He removed his hand from the scepter.
"It's useless to talk more."
He simply replied: "Feel it for yourself."
...You just let me try it directly?
Then if something goes wrong with me, with your current body, can you kick me away from this scepter...
Annan cursed.
But he was too smart to say anything.
Annan was just tentative - cautiously, imitating Ivan's movements and gently pressing his hand on the scepter.
Because he was worried that it might be charged with electricity or have similar effects, which might cause Annan's muscles to twitch. Annan did not reach into the inside of the ring to prevent it from being "sucked", but gently held the ring.
external.
It's completely different from how I imagined it would feel.
The properties of this cursed object did not even appear before his eyes.
And Annan didn't feel any pain - on the contrary, he felt an extremely strong sense of comfort.
As if being touched by an invisible warm hand, an almost peaceful calm, joy and laziness came over my heart. Annan squinted his eyes slightly, as if he was going to fall asleep immediately, as if everything had reached final perfection, as if everything in the world was perfect.
No need to worry about it anymore...
"——Wake up, Annan."
Suddenly, Annan felt a gentle push coming from in front of him.
Annan showed no resistance to this.
It wasn't until Ivan pushed him away from the scepter that Annan suddenly woke up as his hand left the scepter.
That sleepy feeling suddenly made him feel alert.
This even reminded him of the extremely reassuring and slow-responsive aroma that came from Fu Fu when he first met him.
"……what is that?"
Annan asked warily: "Is this the effect it has... or is it a curse?"
"Both."
Ivan replied briefly: "This is one of the forms of this scepter.
"Turn it upside down and try it."
"…upside down?"
"That's right. Place the cross and ring at the end, and change the three branches to the upper end - that is, hold it upside down... You can try it and see if it can be used."
Ivan said seriously: "If I can, I will tell you its name. If it still doesn't work, I can only pass it to Dmitri.
"Even if he is infertile... there is no other way. Only in this way can the existence of this 'great thing' be hidden. But Dmitri is too simple and can easily be taken advantage of. In that case, I
He will find a way to get you to evade him... and then let you give birth to a child quickly and adopt his name to become the heir."
"...No need to say so much, let me give it a try first."
Annan felt a little scared when he heard about the urge to get married.
He interrupted Ivan's statement, took a deep breath and looked at the scepter solemnly.
Then he gathered his strength and suddenly picked it up, using his last bit of wisdom to turn the scepter upside down.
"……Huh?"
At that moment, Annan couldn't help but let out a sigh.
An extremely cold breath came out of the scepter and flowed throughout the body in the blink of an eye.
Different from the previous warm current that made people sleepy and peaceful, this cold current instantly washed away all the sleepiness that Annan had.
But that did not make Annan feel the pain of the cold, but made him shiver, as if all the blood vessels in his body were connected, and his mind became extremely clear in an instant.
"...It seems that you are more suitable for the posture of [tyrant]."
Ivan glanced at Annan's eyes and breathed a sigh of relief.
"tyrant?"
"It's one of its two forms."
Ivan explained: "The real name of this great thing is [The Three Sirens]. It has two different forms, namely the [Faint King] who makes people feel infinite joy, and the [Tyrant] who makes people feel infinite rage.
…”
There is actually no need to say what follows.
The moment Annan heard the name [Three Sirens], the system panel finally appeared in front of his eyes:
【Three Sirens: Tyrant】
[Type: Supreme Certificate (Orange)]
[Description: The proof of the power of the elven king in the past was made with the lives of innocents, the souls of sinners, and the will of saints. Those who try to obtain the power of this curse will only become a coward or a tyrant.]
[Description: The reversed Siren will turn you into a tyrant. 】
[Effect: The holder will be cursed with "suspicious heart", "infinite rage", and "mad blood"]
[Suspicious mind: You will always be suspicious and jealous of others until you summon "Zhen Yin"; but if you don't do this, then you will get three times the learning, training, and growth efficiency (your experience gain and attribute growth
Speed increased to three times)]
[Infinite Fury: You will always be trapped in irresolvable rage until you summon "Qing Tiao"; but if you don't do this, all damage you cause to others will be unconditionally tripled (when holding the scepter, your
All damage increased by 200%)】
[Blood of Madness: You will fall into madness from time to time, and random negative emotions will be extreme until you summon the "White Woman"; but if you don't do this, you will be able to permanently control the will of three extraordinary beings (can only be used
Three times, it can only be used on extraordinary people; each time it is used, it can permanently rewrite the mind of an extraordinary person of gold level and below, but there is a one-third chance of turning it into a fallen person of the same level)]
"...Is this a great-level curse?"
Annan's mentality is a bit complicated.
Is it powerful?
Indeed, very powerful. Undeniably powerful.
But it seems, it’s not that...irreplaceable?
Compared with the power it carries, the curse it contains is even more unbearable. If Ivan picks up the "tyrant" posture of the Three Sirens, I am afraid he will immediately turn into a terrifying tyrant.
That is to say, Annan possesses the "reversed winter fruitfulness" in order to invalidate its negative effects.
...By analogy, its "upright" posture should have a completely different effect. But Annan couldn't pick it up at all - the moment he touched the upright position, he almost immediately turned into a peaceful and happy fool.
"Actually, you can think of it as a [seal]."
Ivan said slowly: "You should also feel that its power and curse are all based on 'not releasing the sirens'. But in fact, it also has another use, which is to release the 'three colors' of the scepter.
One, summon a siren. But no one knows what will happen if the siren is summoned..."
"Have the Sirens been summoned?"
Annan couldn't help but ask.
He did know what a siren was - when he saw these three names, he guessed that this was indeed the "siren" he knew.
It's just that Annan is not sure whether the sirens in this world are consistent with what he knows.
——After all, in this world, even Master Michelangelo has become a god.
"Actually, the Sirens were summoned once."
"When?"
"That was the year when the Yasselan Imperial City sank."