Chapter 144: g
She swept her gaze over all the members of the Tarot Club, until she noticed two unfamiliar figures. The taller one stood beside the Chariot while the young man sat on the other side of the bronze table.
— Who are these? —she asked in a daze. Audrey grimaced, she had not imagined there would be new members so soon.
The Fool seemed as calm as ever.
— This is The Sun.
And then He turned his gaze forward.
— This is The World.
The Fool introduced them without haste, and after that, the palace was covered in an overwhelming silence.
The Tarot Club had already had two new members right after its founding!
Uh... The Tarot Club is growing! Who could they be? Mr. Mundo is on the other side of the table... Why didn't he appear next to the Sun or the Chariot? Besides, The Sun is very tall... Is he from Feysac? And Mr. Mundo looks young, but he's very quiet. — In her stupor, Audrey was surprised and then excited.
Medici narrowed his eyes, silently evaluating the new members.
The Sun seems to be young even though he's tall. He might be from Feysac... How strange, there's something wrong with these boys. What could it be? His accent is strange... It's familiar...
The World is also familiar and mysterious. I felt strangely confused when I first looked at him... He looks young, but I don't think that's the case. The World is old. In fact, he's not just senile, he also seems to have lived for hundreds of years!
Could he be a Demigod who's been alive since sometime in the early Steam and Machine Age? Or worse, someone who lived in the early Iron Age or earlier? I feel like the second option is more likely... This person is strange... If I can call him a person... Da mn, it can't be... Is he an Angel? That makes The Fool either a true deity or a sealed deity! Why now? In fact, maybe this is just one of The Fool's Angels... — Medici had several guesses, but thought it best to wait for more information before creating any more bold ideas.
Solveig was curious, but held back her feelings to become a silent observer, analyzing the new members before saying anything.
Alger, on the other hand, remained quiet, just observing everything and, above all, cautious.
After some time of talking with each one, finishing the exchanges from the last meeting, The Fool tapped twice on the bronze table.
— have a mission. It's very simple...
He asked the Tarot Club members to collect the pages from Roselle's diary.
After that, the members of the Tarot Club ended up exchanging several pieces of information, such as some about the Antigonus family, which, according to the Hanged Man and the Chariot, had been destroyed by the Church of Midnight and a secret organization.
The Sun felt lost during all the conversations, not understanding a bit of what they were talking about, however, this time he remained quiet in his bronze seat, wondering if he should ask Mr. Fool what they were talking about.
— I heard that there is some strange movement by the Aurora Order in Backlund. They are sneaking like rats through the East Burgh, in the poorest areas. — Medici leaned back in his seat — And there was a fight in the East Burgh where a lunatic from an organization was killed before she could even use her own abilities and her soul was destroyed. It is suspected that she died for the "honor" of keeping her own secrets safe.
— If I am going to tell you news... Well, my etiquette teacher taught me to faint this week. I was just organizing my thoughts. — Audrey laughed — Ever since the failure of the battle on the eastern coast of Balam, the king, the prime minister, and the knights have been under immense pressure and stress. It seems they are on the move.
— The Secret Order has been on the move quite a bit. Two of their members died at the hands of officers, and the other, a Sequence 5, lost control. In any case, the Order of Mysteries is also keeping a close eye on things, too. — The World said in a calm tone.
— Well, I heard that there have been some disappearances in the West Burgh that seem to have strange causes. It seems they sent some officers to investigate. — Solveig said simply. It wasn't a big deal, but it was one of the only things to tell.
Is this the news to tell? — The Sun wondered internally.
— From what I understand, the council of six members decided to go on an expedition to some ruins north of an ancient destroyed city.
No one but Klein could understand a single word Derrick had said. None of the members even knew what to ask about it.
Alger recalled what had happened in the past few days, but he was careful to hide the parts that could give away his position completely. It was best to be cautious with new members.
— By sea, Pirate Lieutenant General Deweyville began his voyage to try to explore the eastern end of the Sonia Sea.
— Vice Admiral Twilight, Bulatov Ioan, has clashed with Admiral of the Stars, Catlleya. It seems that Vice Admiral Iceberg, Edwina Edwards, ended up getting caught up in the fighting and chose Catlleya's side because of a relic. The confrontation ended with both sides retreating far away.
Fortunately, Edwina Edwards kept her end of the bargain and gave me all the information… And maybe it's possible to sell some of the spoils at the Tarot Club… — Alger added in his own mind.
— Sea? Have you ever seen the sea? How is that possible? — Derrick asked in confusion.
Solveig frowned slightly. Those words simply didn't make any sense.
— Mr. Sun, what do you mean? The sea stretches everywhere in the world. Haven't you ever heard of the City of Generosity in Bayam? It's in the Sonia Sea, just like the Rorsted Archipelago.
City of Generosity? Sonia Sea? Rorsted Archipelago? — Derrick felt like he was hearing things coming from another world.
— In the City of Silver, there is no sea. I've only read about it in some textbooks... Gentlemen, could someone describe it? — Derrick stammered a little.
City of Silver? — Everyone had the same thought.
— It's as if the entire horizon had been taken over by pure water, sometimes raging, sometimes calm. It's so deep that it's impossible to see below the darkness. The skies are more visible in the middle of the sea. You can see the stars, the moon and during the day the sun perfectly... — Medici stopped as he looked at Derrick again, who seemed to have understood nothing.
— Have you ever seen the sun and the moon? What's it like to look at the sun? Does it hurt? — The Sun asked, even more confused than before.
Derrick remembered the time he tried to look too close to a candle that was in his room.
He just wanted to know what it felt like to look at the sun, and in the descriptions in the books there were some mentions saying that it was pure light. However, he ended up almost burning his own face.
His eyes hurt after staring at the candle for a long time, his vision became completely waterlogged and he began to see strange spots of different colors overlapping, but after a while his eyes returned to normal.
It was painful, but the light covered his entire vision like never before.
— It depends. It only hurts if you look at it for too long and sometimes, its light covers our entire vision if it is too strong. It stays above the sky like a ball of fire until night comes. — Audrey explained. At least the way she saw the sun.
She couldn't help but feel sorry for the young Sun who had never seen the light covering everything at sunrise.
But wait... How has he never seen the sunlight? Is there any place that has no light? Does the Sun live in a mystical place? It doesn't make sense... — the more she thought, the more guesses appeared in Audrey's mind.
Audrey remembered the time when she was a child. On some trips to Port Prizt she always wanted to stay awake waiting for the sun to rise over the horizon, however she was always prevented from looking at the sky for too long.
— Does it hurt to look at the sun? — Medici felt stunned by this explanation.
He had never had any problem looking at the sky for even ten minutes or more, although he always thought it was strange when others closed their eyes.
— Any normal human being will feel some discomfort, and that is a common and natural thing to happen. If someone who was not born with Beyonder abilities or who did not become a Beyonder does not feel discomfort, I recommend that they seek out a specialist. — Alger replied logically.
Having always lived at sea, Alger was already used to the sun shining everywhere, so he never had any problems with it. But sometimes the storms were so strong that they dragged ships to the bottom of the sea forever.
— But in the case of people born with extraordinary abilities, it is indeed normal. What would be unusual would be if they actually felt something. — The World calmly explained.
To Klein, he had the memories of the original Klein and was also Zhou Mingriu from Earth, so he could analyze it from both points of view.
Why are we talking about this all of a sudden? When did the conversation get so strange…? — Solveig thought in a daze before remembering something:
She had never felt much discomfort when looking at the sun either!
As a child, she was driven by curiosity and, together with her older brother, decided to ask Ewan, who had already adopted her and her siblings at that time. From his answer, it was because of his lineage that had other Beyonders on the same path and this strengthened his ability. Ewan also said that there was no need to worry about it, however, neither she nor her brother should look directly at the sun as a precaution.
— So you can see the sun... Who is the Goddess of Midnight that you mentioned? — The Sun hesitated to ask more, however, he could not contain the curiosity that grew in his chest.
— ... — Solveig, Medici and Audrey were speechless.
What macabre place does this boy live in? He has never seen the sun or even knowledge of the Seven Orthodox Gods... Is he being held captive or is he part of a bizarre cult? No... City of Silver... Kingdom of Silver... — Medici felt his mind bubbling with confusion.
— Sun, where exactly are you living? — Alger asked unhurriedly.
— City of Silver. — He noticed the attention the other members had on him and almost stumbled over his words.
They continued talking until in the end only Klein remained above the gray fog.
...
In her laboratory, Audrey was carefully separating some vials in front of a silver cauldron.
She placed them skillfully as the ingredients seemed to mix naturally, forming a silvery liquid that bubbled, despite this she seemed to exude calm.
— I really did it on the first try! I'm very experienced! I was worried that I might fail. — Audrey murmured with a smile all over her face.
Suddenly, she heard the doorknob move a little.
She opened the door after hiding the vial in a corner that had no light.
Her golden Susie was standing in front of her wagging her tail happily and a little further away was her maid, Annie.
— I told you not to disturb me while I was doing experiments. — Audrey said closing the door behind her.
— There's an invitation from Duchess Negan. — Anne spoke calmly.
When Audrey finally managed to refuse that invitation, she returned to her laboratory, however, she was paralyzed in front of the open door as soon as she looked inside the room.
There were some bottles fallen on the floor and next to them was her golden-haired golden retriever licking the floor.
Susie drank every last drop of the potionLeonard raised his hands in surrender to Rozanne and Bredt.
— Okay, I'll tell you what happened yesterday, but I didn't see everything so the next part would be hard to speculate... It's just that that woman seemed strange. Her name was Olive, I think. It turns out that she came to the Church at night looking terrified. She said that her mother had died in a terrible accident and that, like her brother, she hoped that her soul would go to the arms of the Goddess.
— Soon after, another woman, Diot Chekky, arrived with a somber expression and sat in the prayer room, but by coincidence, she found Olive and for some unknown reason they started arguing. And after that, it seems an elderly man, Ulriah, appeared there and butted into the conversation and ended up fainting in the middle of the discussion... Klein, you're a Seer, right?
Klein turned to Leonard who had bright eyes and next to him Rozanne had the same hopeful look covering her entire face while Bredt Bredtkept a thoughtful look.
Klein practically read the thoughts of the three at the same moment.
— No, that's not how it works. I'm not going to make divination about gossip. — he refused without leaving room for comment.
— It wouldn't exactly be gossip. Ulriah died on the spot before any specialist could even try to help. — Leonard replied with confidence in his voice.
Klein shook his head.
— The case didn't fall to us, so I won't violate anyone's privacy. Besides, how can you be sure he didn't die of a heart attack due to old age?
With a smile on his face, Leonard ignored all her refusals, seeming as if he hadn't even heard them.
— I don't have it. But it could be useful. Can't you also predict other things like the rain just now?
— Exactly, you're a Seer so you might be able to find out about that. — Rozanne insisted. Her face seemed to be full of an enthusiastic smile.
— Yes, yes. I can even pay you a few solis. I just need the outcome of this story. — Bredt seemed ready to take whatever amount was needed out of his pocket.
They think I'm some kind of Google? — Klein scoffed internally.
— That was because the sky was cloudy and so dark that you couldn't even see the sun. — He pointed outside before sighing in his heart.
Suddenly, the front door of the security company opened, distracting their attention.
Standing at the entrance was a thin, gray-haired man in a top hat and a suit that was half-soaked in water. His eyes seemed a little unfocused.
Before anyone could say anything else, the man said:
— You guys are mercenaries... Uh, from this security company? You're the only hope now. I've been to every security company and private detective, but none of them could help right now because of that dangerous criminal everyone is terrified of. The richest ones have hired all the security guards they could.
A common chain reaction... — Klein thought as he looked at Rozanne disparagingly. This showed how poorly managed the security company was.
— Okay. We still have manpower available. You just need to sign this paper here. — Rozanne didn't take long to get some well-written documents and hand them to the man.
After he signed them, Leonard turned to Klein and
— I need your help.
— Ah? — Klein was surprised by the request.
— Even though I'm in good physical condition, I can't track people. — he explained in a simple way so that Klee wouldn't notice anything unusual.
— What do you need?
When Klein told them everything he needed, they ended up hastily making up an excuse so that the butler wouldn't think they were a bunch of charlatans.
They sat down and listened to some important details for them. Klee was a butler to Mr. Vickroy, a tobacco merchant. Apparently his only young son was kidnapped.
After all the conversation, they rode by carriage to Mr. Vickroy's residence, where they did not say a single word until Klee left.
If Leonard asks questions again, I think I'll start considering throwing him out of the carriage. — Klein scoffed internally as he looked at the carriage window gradually becoming more cloudy with the freezing rain falling from the sky.
Leonard felt confident to continue his conversation with Klein and said:
— Did you know that Miss Daly likes the captain? However, he is very shy and ends up getting embarrassed easily, while she has a completely opposite personality. I even offered to write a poem for them.
Klein had already noticed that Daly had a rather humorous personality before, having even been embarrassed by some of the things she had said before, but he never imagined that she liked the captain.
— I hope she invites the captain to go to the theater or dinner someday. — Klein knew that she would probably be the one to take the initiative and ask Dunn out somewhere.
— Actually, Rozanne, Neil, and Bredt made a bet about where Miss Daly would ask him. Old Neil said it might be a theater, Rozanne said it should be a restaurant, and Bredt was torn between three options, but in the end he chose a romantic walk, — Leonard explained. However, Klein doubted that he hadn't made a bet.
They stopped talking as soon as they saw Klee returning with a bag of clothes and another object in her hands.
As soon as they picked up those objects, Leonard gave two notes to the conductor and said simply:
— Charge by the hour.
— But where are you going? — the man asked confusedly, but he quickly remembered the notes in his pocket and didn't ask any further questions.
— Wait a minute. — Leonard looked at Klein.
Spreading Elliot's clothes on the floor, Klein picked up his cane and wrapped the Storm Amulet around it. He would use the "Radiesthesic Searching Rod" divination method.
Entering a lighter state, Klein saw bright lights in his mind as he felt lighter. His sometimes yellowish brown eyes became deep, as if they had no light at all.
Now, he could see the shadow superimposed on Leonard much better. He looked like an old man, but he could still only see his form outlined in shadow.
Incoherent thoughts appeared in his mind and sometimes he even felt eyes watching him from a place beyond. In himself, he felt a lightness and an endless emptiness extending through every part of his body. Perhaps there was something wrong with him.
— Where is Elliot. — his voice sounded ethereal without leaving his throat.
After repeating it a few times, he let go of the silver-encrusted cane.
The cane didn't fall to the ground, but instead stood upright.
On the way, he continued giving instructions on where they should go until they circled a building where Klein was sure Elliot was.
— Here. — he indicated in an ethereal voice, almost seeming to sound like he was in another world.
They got out of the carriage calmly, despite everything Klein's instincts were very useful in case they were being watched.
— One, two, three... And four. — Klein concluded with the shapes he saw walking. — Three kidnappers and a hostage. From Klee's description, this must be the room where Elliot is being held, and the divination indicates this place.
— There are times when I envy Old Neil for his skills, I envy you the same way. — Leonard smiled with a sigh.
He took a step forward and laughed.
— I think I should recite a poem for them.
— Why so much violence anyway?
Leonard's voice echoed throughout the room, seeming full of serenity. His face looked melancholic, but completely calm.
— Oh, the threat of horror, the hope of crimson tears!
— At least one thing is certain, that this Life flies;
— One thing is certain, and the rest are lies;
— The flower that once bloomed, always dies…
The sound of a few thuds came from the house after a few seconds, almost in sync.
Looking at Klein who had a thoughtful expression on his face, Leonard didn't seem surprised that he still seemed fully conscious.
When Leonard seemed ready to say something else, Klein felt a chill cover his body and turned around abruptly with his copper gun in hand.
He was pointing at the man coming up the stairs who was holding a bag in his hands. His blue eyes reflected the glint of the gun that was aimed at his forehead.
— Sir, this must be some kind of misunderstanding, I was just returning to my apartment. — The man spoke with a forced smile on his face.
This... — Klein didn't know if it was true or an excuse, so he began to think quickly.
Leonard leaned against the doorframe and said simply,
— Yeah, there really was someone to bring food to the kidnappers.
The man's expression twisted, and with a quick movement he threw the bag to block their view and tried to run up the stairs.
Bang!
The silver bullet hit his leg, and at the same moment the man could only fall to the ground screaming in pain.
— Good shot.— Leonard said before they turned to enter the room where Elliot was wide awake due to the sound of the shot.
— Y-you... Who are you? — the boy asked, looking relieved with their appearance, but still cautious.
He quickly went back to cowering in the corner.
Leonard grabbed a rope that was above a table and began to tie the kidnappers one by one.
Young Elliot began to look dizzy as his consciousness slowly disappeared, at some point he closed his eyes as if he was falling into a deep sleep.
When Leonard finished tying everyone, he stood up.
— Get a carriage for us while I call Klee. — Leonard said nonchalantly, but received no response.
— Klein? — Leonard turned around when he noticed Klein standing still, and took a few steps to check the chaotic situation he found himself in.
On his face, there was nothing but a blank and indiscernible expression. His eyes were no longer focused on anything.
...
Inside an apartment with an open window, there seemed to be nothing abnormal.
— Hahahaha!
The insane laughter echoed throughout the place.
Somewhere in the room, there was a man huddled in a corner with a contorted expression.
Suddenly, that vision dissolved into gray mist with another chaotic one replacing it almost at the same time.
The sky and the earth seemed distorted in that colossal Gothic cathedral supported by pillars carved from dark stone. Above the ceiling were candles hanging upside down exuding an ancient air.
The shadows seemed serene and ethereal, but at the same time mysterious, as if no one could even think about what was there.
Night predominated in the skies with a giant crimson moon seeming to cover everything that existed in the world.
Beside an altar was a distorted statue of an eight-legged black wolf with a human face!
Eight? — Klein frowned slightly as he cast his gaze around, ignoring Leonard's voice in his second vision.
Gracefully engraved on the wall in front of him was a huge symbol of a pupilless eye with partially distorted intertwined lines. There was also another symbol hidden by darkness and in front of it was the sacred altar made to perfection.
It was the symbol behind The Fool's chair!
In that part were drawn murals of mountains covered in pure white snow. On the main peak of that mountain range, there was a huge palace where several beings walked.
In one of them, there were four beings next to a mountain. One of them exuded a serene air in his dark cloak.
The other seemed to look above the cosmos with his eyes in different tones from each other, it seemed somewhat bizarre and inexplicable.
Beside him was a shining figure with blond hair. His face looked like it was dissolving or something like that.
And the fourth, it had eight legs. In part of the human legs covered by his cloak were four of them and the rest remained on his back.
On another of the blurred murals, a man in dark armor could be seen. All around him was war and silver thunder covering a desolate plain.
There were others, but they were indiscernible.
Above the altar was a tarot card.
It depicted the image of a deity covered in a sacred and dazzling robe. His indiscernible gaze shone with a deep and garish tone. Beside him was a dog smiling imperceptibly.
Below it was a line written in Ancient Jottun:
"The Fool."
The Fool... — Klein felt a horror spreading through his body.
When he looked again, he felt his body freeze.
The Fool blinked with the corners of his mouth curled up, disappearing from the card.
Everything was enveloped by a gray mist.
...
— Klein! Get out of it!
Klein suddenly came back to reality when he felt Leonard shaking him once again like a rag doll, he stared at him with empty eyes.
— What was that? Are you okay, Klein? — Leonard shook him once more before realizing that Klein was finally focusing his gaze on him with confusion.
Klein looked at him still without much attention, making Leonard take three steps back cautiously, and then explained containing his horror:
— The Antigonus family notebook. I felt it... It's close.
— It's not just him that I saw... Uh... There seems to be a young man alive with the notebook, not exactly very stable. I don't even know if he's human now.
Leonard raised his eyebrows, giving him an almost shocked look.
— Is the notebook here? —the poet finally recovered.
The Antigonus notebook is in the apartment across from the kidnappers!
Although it was a coincidence, Klein believed that his intuition was correct.
— He's in the apartment across from this one… Right now, the man is looking at us… He's showing signs of losing control.
Leonard nodded slightly. Deep in thought, he said:
— We don't know what Sequence he's in or what period level he represents… Probably the Pathway of the Seer? We should go straight to the captain and let him know. We have to finish here first.
They told Klee to call the police and didn't stay at the scene, instead taking the nearest carriage.
The crimson moon was already above the sky.
They took one last look at the building, and in the window was a figure.
She was a woman with grayish blue eyes with a serene glow. Her bloodstained hair was long and a shade of black.
Her face, full of grotesque knobs of flesh, contorted, revealed a calm expression, almost an unattainable serenity.
Leonard froze in his seat, instinctively pulling out his gun.
That... — Klein remembered the woman who had followed him on the day of his transmigration, that was right before he met the strange boy with the tarot cards who had drawn the Fool card.
It was her!
In his confusion, Leonard didn't hesitate to throw a few solis to the driver.
His voice still had a forced calm:
— Go as fast as you can to the Cathedral of Saint Selene.
The woman's head began to melt as swollen veins appeared on her glabella. In a few seconds, a second face appeared inside her own.
Her head cracked, revealing her skull that was contorting slightly with blood flowing like a waterfall everywhere.
The head detached from the seemingly severed neck, falling to the ground with a thud.
Bang!
The red liquid covered the entire window.