CHAPTER 863: THE WEARY CATTLEYA

Leaning back against the high-backed chair, Ebner secretly glanced at the "Fool" at the head of the table, wondering about his reaction upon seeing the page of diary Xio had submitted.

Speaking of which, he had already read that page at Xio’s place yesterday, and at the time he had suddenly understood: no wonder Roselle had put the knowledge of creating the "magic wand" inside the Dream Labyrinth Tower for someone like Mr. Gaston, a tower climber, to obtain—it turned out that after enjoying himself, he wanted to "give back" to society!

I wonder if the "Emperor’s Deluxe Edition" magic wand that was bestowed upon Earl White Maple was passed on to the "King of the Five Seas"...

Could Nast really have such an open mind about magic wands? Otherwise, why would his subordinates keep placing orders one after another... Hmm, I had just returned to Backlund yesterday when I received a telegram from Mr. Gaston requesting materials for purchase...

While Ebner was musing, Klein was also struck by a sudden realization: no wonder when my spirit body used the "Demoness" card to go out, I encountered the Black Emperor... Was Nast using a magic wand at the time?

And to be able to trick Roselle, and with the leisure to do it so thoroughly... eight or nine times out of ten, it had to be Liu Bo. Unfortunately, these two diary entries were obviously disconnected, so he couldn’t tell exactly what had happened before and after.

At that moment, Klein was inexplicably reminded of those "incomplete cut" videos he had seen on certain websites in his previous life. With a faint sense of regret, he turned to the second page, which was the first page submitted by Miss Justice.

This one mainly described how Roselle had found a sense of belonging in his eldest daughter, Bernadette. He no longer felt like he was playing an RPG game as before, and believed he had matured somewhat because of his paternal love.

No children, so no way to experience that feeling—not even a girlfriend... But the mindset mentioned in this diary, I must be wary of... It didn’t exist before, but that doesn’t mean it won’t appear in the future...

Moreover, Mr. Tower had also told me that when he first crossed over... Hmm, it should be when he first crossed over this time, he also had a similar feeling, until he met Miss Xio and became friends, which gave him a sense of reality about this world.

By contrast, I had been dragged into supernatural events from the very beginning, with death a constant possibility, so I never developed such a detached mentality... And whether it was Benson, Melissa, the captain, my colleagues, or later Sharon and the other Tarot Club members, they all made me bear a certain responsibility. That was also a kind of belonging...

So this was the "humanity" that demigods valued so much?

But no matter what, I still wanted to go home...

Klein sighed silently and turned to the third diary page.

This one was short, mainly describing how Roselle, having just become an "Artisan," recreated a mysterious silver medallion suspected of having caused his transmigration. But after activating it, all he saw was endless grayish-white fog. Other than that, nothing happened.

Grayish-white fog? There’s a boundless sea of gray mist right beneath my feet!

It seems that, just as Mr. Tower said, my transmigration, Roselle’s, and even the Goddess’s transmigration are all connected to this mysterious space. But why can I enter while Roselle cannot?

From the final diary entries of Roselle’s life, he clearly never unlocked the medallion’s secret. Otherwise, in his most desperate, most insane moments, he wouldn’t have failed to think of this place, nor failed to use it as a lifeline...

Is it because his pathway was wrong? Only the "Bizarre" pathway can enter? That’s right, Roselle once regretted not choosing "Apprentice" or "Seer"!

Klein lifted his head, gazing toward the outside of the ancient palace.

He remembered that deep within this mysterious space was a staircase of light leading to something like heaven, vaguely corresponding to his own sequence.

The staircase seemed built for giants, its destination a layer of gray-white mist floating in midair, as if supporting something.

Could the secret of both Roselle’s and my transmigration be hidden there? Mr. Tower should know the reason, perhaps even the reason for the Ancient Sun God’s transmigration... But based on my earlier probes, he won’t tell me now... Just like I won’t tell a demigod that Rhine, Vicente, Alwin, Dannett, and other transmigrators are actually Liu Bo.

At the very least, one must be a demigod to know!

Sighing inwardly, Klein made the diary vanish from his hand, leaned back, and said in a calm tone, "You may begin."

As soon as he finished speaking, the "Magician" Fors turned first toward the "Hanged Man" opposite her.

"I’ve obtained the ’forehead eyeball of the Three-Eyed Thunderbird.’ How long do you need me to keep it?"

In fact, still traveling, Fors didn’t dare keep such a precious material with her, so she had spent her accumulated contributions to "offer" it to Mr. Fool for safekeeping. It was now lying in a pile of miscellaneous items.

Previously, Alger had cooperated with Klein to kill the squadron commander of Vice Admiral of Twilight’s fleet, Carol. Although the bounty and Beyonder characteristic had gone to Gehrman, Alger still received a decent extraordinary item.

He planned to wait until the attention died down before selling it, and during that time quietly make one or two more scores, which should barely allow him to scrape together 7,000 pounds.

As for why he didn’t sell it in the Tarot Club... Before the "Hermit" joined, he might have considered it. But now, selling Carol’s item here would be equivalent to revealing the "World’s" identity to the "Admiral of the Stars," which would in turn endanger his own identity.

And he didn’t trust her.

After some calculation, Alger requested, "Can you give me five to six weeks?"

"Sure." Fors agreed without hesitation.

The traveling circus she was with would take about two more months to return to Backlund, so as long as it was before then, there would be no problem. She didn’t need to buy anything right now anyway.

"Thanks." The "Hanged Man" let out a breath, then looked around and asked, "Does anyone know the whereabouts of Vice Admiral of Ailment Tracy? If you have concrete information, I can offer a satisfactory price."

After all, the church would reimburse him.

He muttered inwardly, while keeping his eyes straight but his attention fixed on the "World."

In his view, the "World" was definitely connected to Tracy.

The "World" Klein quickly noticed the "Hanged Man’s" intentions, feeling a little speechless. Why are you looking at me? Ask Mr. Tower!

Meanwhile, Ebner was thinking to himself: I do know—she’s lying right in the bedroom of my estate... But I can’t just expose myself, can I?

Quite a few forces have been looking for Vice Admiral of Ailment Tracy recently... Which side does the Hanged Man represent? Not the Rose School or the Demoness Sect, so that means the Loen military or the Church of the Storm? Hmm, from his previous behavior, the latter seems more likely!

The "Hermit" Cattleya instantly had several guesses and gave a slight nod. "I can help you keep an eye out."

Although it wasn’t the "World" or "Tower" who answered, Alger still felt a stir in his heart and smoothly asked, "Madam, how much remuneration do you require, or is there something specific you want?

"I can start gathering clues in advance to trade later."

What do I want? Cattleya gave a faint chuckle inwardly, noticing the subtle probing hidden in the Hanged Man’s seemingly normal question. After all, where there’s a need, there’s a lead.

Since she lacked neither formulas nor materials, she directly made a request for a demi-god-level extraordinary item, intending to irritate the Hanged Man to confirm his identity.

But to her surprise, the Hanged Man politely responded.

...Very deep, not easily angered. This doesn’t quite match the general style of the Church of the Storm... Perhaps he’s an outlier within the church...

Such people weren’t many, but not rare either—every pathway had its share of oddities, and her ship had even more of them...

Thinking of the "ghost parade" cake battle at her last birthday, and how it had taken three full days to clean every bit of cream off the Future, the "Hermit" Cattleya felt weary and chose not to continue probing.

The "Hanged Man" scanned the table again, and seeing that the "World" truly had no intention of speaking, he leaned back in his chair.

With their exchange over, no one else brought up any trade requests. Most had already secured follow-up formulas and materials, or were low on funds, forcing them to suppress the urge to shop.

Sure enough, as everyone gradually moved beyond the low sequences, promotions slowed, and trade frequency dropped sharply. Where once there might have been one or two trades a week, now it might be every two or three weeks, and in the future perhaps every three or four months... The "Fool" Klein gave a slight nod, uncertain if this was good or bad, and gestured for them to converse freely.

This time, the "Sun" spoke first, sharing how the Chief had taken the young boy Jack on an exploration of the outside world, but their path had been blocked by the power of the True Creator, forcing them to retreat.

"The Chief told me that next time, he plans to take Elder Lovia and me along...

"Is this the ’balance’ you, Mr. Tower, Mr. World, and Mr. Hanged Man, talked about?"

The "Sun" Derrick asked earnestly, looking toward the three men he had named.

To be able to ask such a question, the Sun has grown... But the situation in Silver City is already very different from the original. Without the ability to observe in person, and unable to divine for now, I can’t accurately gauge the Six-Person Council’s intentions... Best to let an old fox like the Hanged Man handle this. Ebner didn’t reply, leaving Alger to act.

Soon, under the Hanged Man’s guidance, the Sun Derrick nodded as if enlightened. "Mr. Hanged Man, thank you for your help."

As things were wrapping up, the "Hermit" Cattleya cautiously asked about the Amon mentioned earlier in their conversation, and was shocked to learn from others the meaning of "King of Angels."

She was about to share the name "Adam," the Creator’s son she knew of, but Ebner interrupted: "It’s best not to casually say the name of the ’Angel of Imagination’... Whatever is spoken will be known."

Whatever is spoken will be known?! This familiar phrase instantly reminded the other members of the mysterious organization Mr. Tower had mentioned before—one that influenced the course of the age from the shadows and had planned the Duke Assassination Case.

"Justice" Audrey even knew the organization’s name: "The Twilight Hermit Order"!

It now seemed likely that the organization was founded by Amon’s elder brother, the Creator’s son...

And "Angel of Imagination," so now they knew another King of Angels’ title?

At this moment, Cattleya was thinking: Red Angel, Angel of Destiny, Angel of Time, Angel of Imagination... You’ve already got four of the eight Kings of Angels! And I only just learned about this title today... Her expression grew pensive, and she didn’t ask further.

Just then, "Justice" Audrey asked worriedly, "Will it be a problem for the ’Hermit’ to know the name of the Angel of Imagination?"

The "Hermit" Cattleya gave a soft hum. "Don’t worry. While few know of that being in the real world, it’s not that rare. I’ve mentioned His name on many occasions. As long as the surrounding words don’t touch on secrets, I believe He would at most glance at you and then look away."

"That’s because you’re a ’Mystery Pryer’ pursued by knowledge. It’s perfectly normal for you to know Him... But for others to learn His name and say it out loud without reason would likely arouse suspicion." Ebner paused here, glancing at the others, then added, "Though it’s unlikely He would actually act."

Unlikely to act... because of Mr. Fool? The others listened to Ebner’s words and nodded thoughtfully.

The "Hermit" looked at Ebner in surprise with her deep violet eyes, confirming she didn’t recognize him...

But how does he know I’m a Mystery Pryer pathway Beyonder? And he even seems to have identified me?

Cattleya’s gaze lingered on Ebner for a long while but found nothing.

After that topic, the "World" privately chatted with the "Moon" for a moment, and the Tarot Club came to an end.

Soon, Mr. Fool announced the meeting’s conclusion amid the members’ salutes and farewells.

As everyone vanished into crimson light, only Klein and Ebner were left above the gray mist...

No, to be precise, two people and one puppet.

(End of Chapter)