The Three Pieces of Advice
The fortune teller shuffled and spread the cards across the table, each one adorned with mysterious patterns. Manderick stared at the display in a daze until he realized he still hadn't answered. He gave an awkward nod.
"Ah, yes."
"Very well. Please, have a seat over here."
Shhhrrrip.
Even though they were both first-years and likely close in age, the fortune teller's polite and courteous tone naturally made Manderick respond with respect as well. As he followed the fortune teller's guidance and sat across from him, the dazzling card-shuffling technique—full of flashy hand movements—refused to let his eyes wander. Like an audience member watching an impressive magic trick, he stared in fascination at the cards being arranged with dazzling precision inside those white gloves.
Tap.
"Ah."
Only after the cards were perfectly aligned and placed on the table with a crisp sound did he snap back to reality. He'd seen the fortune teller tossing tarot cards during the entrance ceremony maze too, but it really was true—fortune tellers handled cards incredibly well. The unflinching smile, the precise movements, the exceptional sleight of hand—Manderick felt a surge of goodwill and trust, and his expression relaxed somewhat.
Now that the cards were arranged and they were both seated, he was about to speak first when—
"You have worries weighing on you."
"H-how did you...!"
"You didn't answer earlier, did you?"
Oh. Right. Manderick had been shocked, thinking his thoughts had been read completely, but the embarrassment that followed made him lower his head. Had he really lost his mind watching that card show? After fidgeting for a moment, he seemed to gather himself and lifted his head again.
"Y-yes. I do have worries."
"And they're related to your studies."
"Yes, that's right...? Wait."
Huh? Had I said that too? I don't think I did.
"How did you know my worries were about studying...?"
"I'm a fortune teller, aren't I?"
"Ah."
The question was resolved in an instant. Come to think of it, why had he even asked a fortune teller something like that? At the same time, the lingering suspicion he'd held toward the Fortune Teller gradually faded away.
He'd never really believed in or paid much attention to fortune-telling before, but if the man was this capable, maybe he could get some answers.
"Lately... well, it's only been a week since I started, but I feel like I'm falling behind compared to my classmates."
"I see. Are they pulling ahead of you?"
"...Yes. Yesterday I came in dead last in Fighter training... and my entrance exam ranking was the lowest..."
"And the day before that, you lost in sparring."
"Yes. The day before that in sparring...? Ah."
He figured that out with fortune-telling too. Maybe this fortune teller was actually incredibly skilled?
"A-as you can see from the reading, I'm falling behind in many ways, so I'm worried. That's why I came here."
"In cases like this... I believe we first need to break down the answer into parts."
"Pardon?"
Shrrrip.
With a gesture from the fortune teller, three cards were laid out face-down on the table. Red, green, and black. Three cards with identical patterns but different colors caught Manderick's eye.
"These are...?"
"The Three Pieces of Advice."
"Three... pieces of advice?"
He'd been expecting something familiar like tarot or physiognomy, but this completely unfamiliar method made Manderick tilt his head in confusion.
"Fortune-telling is a more complex discipline than people think. People seek answers to vague questions, but instead of simply giving those answers, fortune-telling demands certain unknown conditions."
"Conditions?"
"In truth, most people who come for readings have similar curiosities. 'What will my future be like?' 'Will that person like me?' 'What should I do going forward?' Things like that."
Now that he thought about it, that seemed right. When he'd first heard about the fortune-telling shop from Aileen, most of what his classmates had been talking about were questions like those.
My question fits right in there too. I came here to ask what I should do from now on.
As he naturally nodded in understanding at the fortune teller's words—
The red card was flipped over.
"Huh...?"
"Red gives the most direct answer. The kind of thing that sounds more obvious the more you think about it. The kind that makes you wonder if you really needed to pay for advice to hear this. But it's also the easiest to understand."
The image revealed was of a woman who appeared to be taming a lion. Below it was written STRENGTH.
Strength?
"Shall we move on to green?"
Flick.
The green card showed a wheel floating in the sky, surrounded by strange animals. This was one Manderick actually recognized. The Wheel of Fortune. It was that famous.
"Green whispers ambiguous answers. The more you hear it, the more it sounds like something you already know. The more you think about it, the harder it becomes to understand. You have to keep thinking and pondering before you can finally grasp it, but that answer will definitely be of great help."
"Ah......"
"Unfortunately, there are times when people fail to understand the answer, and there's nothing that can be done about that. I only interpret the cards. The cards themselves give the answers. Since it's the card's response, it's only natural that it might be difficult to comprehend."
"I... suppose so."
So it was advice that was a bit hard to understand but ultimately very helpful. Manderick was starting to get a feel for this Three Pieces of Advice system and naturally turned his gaze toward the final card.
The first was direct but obvious advice. The second was ambiguous but helpful advice. Then the third...
"Finally, black speaks in incomprehensible riddles. The words often seem completely unrelated to the question. They can sound incredibly random or illogical, making it impossible for anyone to immediately grasp their true meaning."
"But the final card..."
"Yes. As you probably guessed, the black card delivers the most certain answer, even though it's the most puzzling. You might only realize its meaning after everything has already ended. Or you might never understand it at all. However, if you manage to interpret it correctly, it will be more effective than any other advice."
Flip.
The image that caught Manderick's eye was of an old man in a gray robe meditating in darkness. THE HERMIT.
Now on the table lay three cards in a row: Strength, The Wheel of Fortune, and The Hermit.
"Which piece of advice would you like to hear?"
"Um..."
"Choose carefully. You can only hear one of the three pieces of advice. Even if you ask again later, the cards will not answer."
So he could only pick one. But wouldn't anyone agonize over a situation like this?
First of all, not red. He said it was direct. It's probably something like 'just work harder~' and I need advice that helps me right now.
The first evaluation for the Fighter class was in just two days. He wanted to achieve at least some results by then.
Then green? Honestly, it's the most tempting... He said the harder it is to interpret, the better the advice. But...
For some reason, his eyes kept drifting to the black card.
No! He just said it would be incredibly hard to understand. What if I pick it and end up not getting it at all?
He tried to think realistically, but then—
Still... you never know until you try. Since it's supposed to be the best advice, the effect should be certain. Maybe it'll be easier to understand than I think.
The thought of 'what if' kept tugging at him. What advice should he choose?
After what felt like an eternity of internal debate, Manderick finally reached out his hand.
"I'll go with this advice."
"Understood."
He had chosen the black card—the Hermit.
Even as he picked it, a part of him wondered if this was really the right choice. But—
This is it!
Manderick had chosen the option that could potentially give him the very best advice. Since he'd come all the way here for a reading, this was his final chance. If he was going to hear advice, it might as well be the best one...!
"Please wait a moment."
"Ah, yes."
The fortune teller took the Hermit card Manderick had chosen, flipped it over, and brought out more cards. He placed the flipped Hermit back into the deck, then shuffled again. He shuffled, cut the deck in half, formed an arch, rolled them through his hands. After an impressive card show that was impossible to look away from, he flipped the face-down cards over to reveal their fronts and spread them across the table.
"Huh...?"
But every single card was The Hermit.
There were easily over a hundred of them, nearly covering the entire table, and every last one showed the old man meditating in darkness. No matter where he looked—left, right, everywhere—it was the same incomprehensible sight. Manderick could only blink rapidly.
Then the fortune teller pulled out a single different card from among all the Hermits.
On it was—
...What the hell is that.
THE... TOWER?
The Tower?
Having no knowledge of tarot, Manderick couldn't tell what the image meant just by looking at it. He could only swallow nervously and watch the fortune teller stare at the Tower card.
It didn't take long for the fortune teller to speak.
"...I see."
"Oh? Did it finally come up?"
"I will now tell you the black card's advice."
Finally. Manderick, heart pounding, prepared to memorize the advice as he looked at the still-smiling fortune teller.
[From the highest tower to the lowest and most humble place. Yet it is indispensable, and it holds warmth within. There, a child shedding hot tears can be found.]
"...Excuse me?"
"Would you like me to repeat it?"
"Ah, no. I remember it clearly."
"Then we're finished."
"It's... over?"
"Yes."
He had memorized it. It wasn't even that long a sentence, so of course he remembered it. But the black card's advice had far exceeded Manderick's imagination.
I was prepared for something strange, but...
He never expected something this incomprehensible to come out. Cold sweat ran down Manderick's back. He'd come all this way for a reading, only to receive something as vague as a cloud in the sky. He thought about asking the fortune teller for more information—
"This is where we part ways."
"—Ah."
The fortune teller was waving his hand. As if there was nothing more to say. As if no matter what he asked, there would be no further answers. As if the rest was now up to Manderick alone.
He was still smiling.
*
"That was quite... unusual."
"What was?"
"Both that fortune-telling method called The Three Pieces of Advice and the advice itself."
After the dejected Manderick had left, inside the fortune-telling shop where only the candlelight flickered, Aileen spoke to Namgung Min as he gathered the cards spread across the table. She had been waiting upstairs, then returned after flipping the CLOSED sign on the building.
"Fortune-telling changes depending on the moment. I use different methods based on the question asked and the customer."
"Didn't you use The Three Pieces of Advice on all five visitors today?"
"That's correct. I'll be doing so for a while."
"I see."
Namgung Min's words contradicted what he'd just said. Yet Aileen simply nodded without asking any questions. It was blind faith that went beyond simple trust.
"You're truly amazing."
"Pardon?"
"Ah, of course you're always great and amazing, Sir Namgung Min... but today you were especially incredible."
"You're too kind."
"No, it's true. To think you could figure out what someone was worried about and what had happened to them recently just from casual conversation...!"
As if.
Of course I had no idea why they came.
The five visitors today—all students from Aileen's Fighter class and her acquaintances—were characters who hadn't appeared in the game. He didn't know their names, personalities, or anything about them. They were no different from complete strangers.
But gathering information beforehand hadn't been difficult.
Thanks to Aileen's stories.
When he'd asked her to introduce the fortune-telling shop to her friends, Aileen had talked about them. Even though she called them non-believers, she'd been smiling, so she must have been happy to have made friends. From there, he'd learned their names and bits of information.
I also asked Charles Teddybear.
Charles Teddybear was both a Fighter and an instructor for the Fighter class. Although there were multiple Fighter classes at the academy and he wasn't the instructor for Aileen's specific class, as a senior instructor he still had information on the students. Under the condition that the information wouldn't be misused, Namgung Min had obtained more details through their personal connection.
Of course, it was only information from after they'd entered the academy—things like class evaluations and sparring records—but it had been enough.
And then there was Observation.
He couldn't use it for long because he'd been relying on it heavily lately, but when visitors like Manderick lowered their heads or focused on the cards, he used Observation to gather even more information.
And I borrowed money from Liu.
To create this fortune-telling shop capable of all this, he'd borrowed a large sum from Liu. The money to build this shop hadn't sprung up from the ground, after all.
The My Own Little Fortune Teller Shop skill created a three-hour cooldown after each use if he left, so it couldn't be used to run a continuous business. Building an actual shop was the best option. That had led to him writing a loan agreement with Liu, but since it was an amount he could repay soon, he wasn't too worried. Strangely enough, Liu had seemed rather pleased after lending the money.
Information and money. With this much preparation, anyone could play the part of a fake fortune teller.
"Anyway, thanks to you, Aileen, I've filled all five customers for the day. Thank you."
"If I've been of help to you, Sir Namgung Min, it is an infinite honor for me...!"
"Haha, yes."
The condition the vice principal had set was twofold. First, he must receive at least five customers per day. Since the very reason for allowing the shop was to prevent him from continuously doing readings and raising his accuracy rate, it was an obvious condition.
The second was to receive more than fifty customers during this one-week period.
Even considering word of mouth, my personal connections alone were nowhere near enough.
Fortunately, Aileen being quite the social butterfly had made things much easier.
After finishing organizing the cards and standing up, Aileen—who had been silently waiting for him—suddenly spoke as if something had occurred to her.
"Now that I think about it, why did you only take five customers? There will surely be more non-believers coming in the future."
"There's no need to take more. Five is enough."
"Pardon?"
Five. The minimum number set by the vice principal's condition, and certainly not a large number. But Namgung Min was confident.
If even one out of five takes the bait, it'll be enough.
Out of the five visitors, three had chosen the black card that Namgung Min had been aiming for. If even one of them managed to interpret the card—
—Forget fifty people. It might bring in over a hundred.
It hadn't been intentional, but as he recalled the trend he himself had started, Namgung Min said,
"Now we just have to wait."
"...Yes, Sir Namgung Min."
"......"
Namgung Min looked at Aileen. His gaze seemed somewhat suspicious.
"U-um, if you keep staring at my chest like that..."
"I'm not."
"If it's what you desire, Sir Namgung Min, then beyond just looking...!"
"It's absolutely not, so please don't worry."