"Is that so?" Elena snorted. "If you claim to be honest, then why do you pretend to be someone else?"
"Well, it's a long story, but not that long," the False Mirror said carefully. "A long time ago, that cute little girl with a teddy bear insisted on playing hide-and-seek with me. I said that as long as I hid, no one..."
"So you disguised yourself as a painting and have been hiding here all this time?" Elena interrupted her.
"Yes, astute princess, that's exactly it," the False Mirror whispered.
Elena raised her beautiful eyebrows and then said nonchalantly, "Alright then, since you claim to be honest, I'll ask you three simple questions, just three! If you can answer truthfully, I'll believe you and complete the deal with you."
"What a brilliant idea, astute princess!" the False Mirror exclaimed excitedly. "Ask away, I can see through all falsehoods and will prove my honesty to you."
"Then, the first question." Elena's lips curled up, and she then hid her hands behind her back. "How many hands do I have now?"
"Of course... two!" the False Mirror smiled. "This is such a simple and ridiculous question."
Elena remained silent and continued, "The second question, my guest, is there one less guest now?"
"Oh hehe, another simple question," the False Mirror seemed very happy. "Of course, Your Highness, the Earl is having a headache over this matter."
"Very well, then the last question." Elena said this and couldn't help but smile, with a hint of terror and a hint of morbidity.
[False Mirror Sanity -0.2]
"This is truly the most charming smile I've ever seen," the False Mirror was stunned for a moment and said, "So, what is your last question?"
Elena continued to smile, morbidly and terrifyingly: "My last question is: Are you, the False Mirror, the one hundredth guest I'm missing for my coming-of-age ceremony?"
At this moment, all the eyes on the frame began to spin wildly: "This is such a simple yet strange question. How could I possibly be the one hundredth guest you're missing? My answer is - no!"
Elena pursed her lips: "I'm sorry I didn't make myself clear earlier. I think I should call you 'the Special Inviter of the Unspoken Word' instead."
"Special Inviter? No, no, no, I have no idea what you're talking about, Your Highness. I've said it before, I'm not your one hundredth guest, nor am I any of your guests. I'm telling the truth because I'm the most honest mirror in the world!" the False Mirror argued desperately.
"You're lying again."
"I never lie, Your Highness," the False Mirror ground its sharp teeth together with a "clack clack" sound.
Elena smiled and held up one finger: "For the first question, when one of my guests is missing, the power will appear in the name of 'another me'. So, I should have four hands now."
"For the second question," Elena held up a second finger, "You said my guests are missing one! For a mirror that always has falsehoods in its words, the reason you could answer me so confidently is because you have the privilege to choose 'accept' or 'decline' the guest status at any time."
"So when you answered me that 'there is one guest missing', you must have secretly accepted my invitation to the coming-of-age ceremony, thus making my guests normal. So, the answer you gave me that 'there is one guest missing' is still a lie." A row of eyes on the mirror darted around restlessly, as if each eye held a different emotion, leaving one unable to discern its state, only feeling a sense of chaos.
Elena remained calm and composed, extending her third finger! "So based on the above deduction, since you have the power to freely change the number of guests, it is sufficient to prove that you are the 'Special Inviter of the Unsayable Word'! And yet you answered me 'No', so you are still lying!"
At this moment, the chaotic eyes of the mirror all turned towards Elena, all showing annoyance. "Utter nonsense! Your Highness!! I am the most honest mirror in the world, but your deduction is based entirely on the assumption that every word I say is a lie! This is an insult to me!" the mirror said in great confusion.
"Honest? Huh." Elena sneered. "Then, how do you explain my first question? If you can see through all falsehoods, how could you not know that I would have two of myself when a guest is missing, making a total of four hands?"
"Does Your Highness think that the falsehood of power is something that an ordinary mirror like me can see through?" the mirror argued. "Besides, what evidence do you have to prove that every word I say is a lie? If you can't, then you must apologize to me, Your Highness!" The mirror bared its sharp teeth, and every eye showed an unwavering expression.
But Elena remained calm and composed, as if everything was under her control. Yes, she had long suspected that every word the mirror said was a mixture of truth and falsehood, just as Aunt Mary's warning - the third painting in the corridor always lies. When she first conversed with the mirror in "Future Visible", the mirror gave her five pieces of information.
1. It was playing hide-and-seek with the little girl holding the teddy bear, so it disguised itself as a painting.
2. The frog's disaster was caused by the witch's heart. Alucard's bow tie was the witch's heart.
3. There was a powerful being that was making it deeply afraid, and its power was equal to that of the father.
4. My guest is indeed missing one.
5. I have two hands.
Elena had personally verified the second and third pieces of information in "Future Visible", proving the false statements - the witch's heart was Alucard's tie clip, not his bow tie; the master of fear was a being even more powerful than the father, not a king-level being, etc. These two pieces of information were easy to verify, but it was also possible that it was a sign of the mirror's limited ability. It might not be able to see through too deep falsehoods, so the information it provided would have minor discrepancies from reality.
But when Elena heard Nini say that she had never lost at hide-and-seek, Elena was certain that the mirror must be lying in every word! Just as Aunt Mary's warning said! Nini was her blood contract partner and couldn't lie to her master. So, the one lying must be the mirror! Thus, it further strengthened Elena's judgment - the mirror's certainty that one of her guests was missing must mean it had the ability to control the number of guests at any time. It - was the 'Special Inviter of the Unsayable Word'!
So, it wasn't that it couldn't see through the falsehood of power, but that it knew from the start that when a guest was missing, she would have another self, making a total of four hands!
"Do you want evidence? Then, here it is." Elena's tone was noble and elegant, yet as cold as winter, like a queen who had everything under control! Then, she shouted loudly towards the end of the corridor: "Alucard!"