Bernadette's reaction, of course, did not escape Audrey's notice.
She couldn't help but feel a little smug: Hmph, even if you're the Sequence 3 "Queen Mystic," you still have to be shocked by the depths of our Tarot Club!
At that mont, Fors raised her hand again. "Right, I also want to collect so materials—naly teorite Crystal, and the Lavos Squid's Crystallised Blood…"
Edward said, "I have an Astrologer's Beyonder characteristic. Do you need it?" He had exchanged for quite a few mid-to-low Sequence characteristics back in Moon City.
"Ah?"
Fors nodded at once. "Yes! How much?"
"Seven hundred pounds," Edward said. "It's cheaper than buying several main ingredients separately."
"…Alright! Please reserve it for . I don't have enough money on hand just yet."
"No problem."
As Edward said this, he suddenly rembered sothing. He manifested the pirate ship he had acquired from the Admiral of Hell. "Oh, right—just a few days ago, I seized a pirate ship. It hasn't reached the level of a ghost ship, but it does seem to have developed so spirituality. Anyone interested?"
The others reacted with varying degrees of interest. The Hanged Man Alger, however, was particularly surprised. "This ship…looks a lot like the Admiral of Hell's Black Tulip."
"That's exactly the Black Tulip," Edward replied casually.
Alger froze. "…What? Why do you have his ship?"
The mont he asked the question, he felt a bit foolish—Why else? Unless Mr. Tower killed the Admiral of Hell Ludwell, how else would he have it?
The rest of the Tarot Club quickly caught on as well, their surprise mounting—this was already the second pirate admiral Mr. Tower had taken down!
Yet…why was it starting to feel normal?
Compared to all those demigods, angels, and even true deities they'd encountered, a re pirate admiral almost didn't seem worth ntioning.
After a short silence, Alger said quietly, "I'll help you find a buyer."
"Thanks. I'll leave the pricing to you, Mr. Hanged Man—I'm not very good with these things."
"No problem."
Audrey then said excitedly, "Mr. Hanged Man, did you manage to find the fruit of an Illusory Chi Tree I asked for?"
"If all goes well, I should have it in the next couple of days," Alger replied.
Audrey bead. "Thank you so much, Mr. Hanged Man!"
"But as for the pituitary gland of an adolescent Mind Dragon, or the spinal fluid of a Black-hunting Giant Lizard—there's still no leads yet. And the Siskun Demon Worm's Nest Mr. Tower requested hasn't turned up either."
"No worries, that can take ti."
After all, the Queen Mystic had already helped her gather those materials once before. She was only collecting a second set now for Susie. If Alger could deliver the fruit soon, she would be able to advance to Sequence 6: Hypnotist.
Even though I'm still far behind Edward, this is already amazing, Audrey!
Her mood soared. She then continued, "By the way, regarding the commission I posted last week about investigating the Backlund assassination incident—I've made so progress."
The World showed rare surprise. "Oh?"
"A few days ago, soone from the Psychology Alchemists contacted again," Audrey said. "According to her, it's now almost certain that the people who used hypnosis to turn noble youths into assassins were indeed mbers of the Psychology Alchemists. But…"
"Right after the incident ended, nearly all the Psychology Alchemist mbers in Backlund died at the sa ti. The lady who contacted ca to Backlund precisely to investigate the truth behind this."
This was unexpected. Just last week, the Tarot Club had considered the Psychology Alchemists the likely culprits. Now they were seemingly victims.
The Hanged Man frowned. "Could it be…that person from the Psychology Alchemists who contacted you is lying?"
"I can't rule it out completely, but the chances are low," Audrey explained. "I've already verified that the mbers I previously interacted with really are dead. And through my father's connections, I learned that so of them even committed suicide in front of MI9 agents when they arrived."
The World gave a grim smile. "So those Psychology Alchemist mbers…were likely hypnotised as well?"
"Exactly. That's what I suspect. Assuming the hypnosis wasn't conducted by soone inside the Psychology Alchemists, then among the remaining suspects, there's only one that cos to mind…"
Klein's heart trembled: That feather quill!
While Klein and a few others clearly caught on, most of the Tarot Club mbers were left confused by the cryptic exchange.
At this point, Bernadette asked calmly, "Apologies, Miss Justice. This is my first ti attending the Tarot Club. Could you please explain the incident in more detail?"
"Of course, Lady Strength."
Audrey then recounted the entire assassination incident once more. "...Finding out who the true mastermind was—that's the content of my commission."
Bernadette nodded slightly. "And who is it you suspect?"
"I don't have a specific person in mind," Audrey said, "but I suspect it's related to a Grade 0 Sealed Artifact."
Grade 0 Sealed Artifact?
The Hanged Man imdiately felt his scalp prickle. As a mber of the Church of the Lord of Storms, he knew very well how terrifying Grade 0 Sealed Artifacts were—just one of them could easily wipe out an entire city.
"So, the mastermind would be the person who currently possesses that Sealed Artifact," Audrey said.
Bernadette's tone remained even. "What kind of Grade 0 Sealed Artifact is it?"
Audrey looked toward Edward and hesitated slightly. "This Sealed Artifact is rather...unique."
Edward took over smoothly, "It's a Sealed Artifact of the Spectator pathway. It has a peculiar property—once you beco aware of it, it becos aware of you. The more you understand it, the greater its influence over you."
"…"
On the side, Fors, who had just been eavesdropping for fun, suddenly felt the urge to cover her ears: I have zero interest in this sort of thing! Please, don't say another word!
Wait a second—this description…why did it feel so familiar?
Oh right, that little story Mr. Edward had asked her to publish in the newspaper a while ago—it ntioned a feathered quill just like this. One that could turn anything written into reality, allowing the user to manipulate others at will…
As soon as that ca to mind, Fors froze, nearly bursting into tears: I'm dood!
Fors, oh Fors, why did your mory have to be so sharp at a ti like this?!
Bernadette, anwhile, appeared slightly dazed. She rembered asking her father what kind of gathering he had attended once, and he had said sothing eerily similar. Now that she was hearing the exact sa description from a Sealed Artifact…
No wonder Father had warned to "beware the Spectators"—but could there be so deeper connection between the two?
She was silent for a mont, then said, "I'll keep an eye out regarding this matter."
"Thank you, Lady Strength."
With that, the topic seed to reach its end. No one spoke again, and Klein was just about to bring this Tarot gathering to a close when Miss Death suddenly interjected, "Miss Empress, why haven't you said anything this whole ti? Don't you have any commissions or trades?"
Suddenly being called out startled Lilith out of her sleepy daze. "Ah? What?"
Priscilla repeated, "Miss Empress, why aren't you saying anything?"
"Li…Why…am I not talking…" Lilith turned to Edward, clearly asking for help. "Why?"
Edward: "…"
The Hanged Man imdiately caught on to the subtle reaction. Another person who knows Mr. Tower? At this rate, isn't the Tarot Club slowly becoming Mr. Tower's extended family?
Why would The Fool…No. I mustn't speculate on the thoughts of a deity. "He" must have "His" own reasons.
Edward thought for a mont before saying, "Everyone already knows I returned from the Forsaken Land last week by offering a sacrifice to Mr. Fool. At the ti, Miss Empress was with ."
"I also ntioned that only Tarot Club mbers can use a sacrifice to teleport into Mr. Fool's divine kingdom. So, Mr. Fool granted my companion—Miss Empress—an opportunity to join the Tarot Club, which allowed us to return together. But she really is just a child, and unlike Miss Death, not nearly as clever, so…"
Lilith imdiately pouted: Edward is talking nonsense! Miss Lilith is clearly the smartest!
Edward then turned and respectfully bowed toward Mr. Fool. "Thank you, Mr. Fool."
The Fool's tone was calm: "It is what you deserved."
With Edward's explanation, the Hanged Man suddenly understood. Thinking back on all the contributions Edward had made to Mr. Fool, it didn't seem so surprising that the Fool would go so far as to grant soone an extra seat at the Tarot Club.
So that ans, if soone else contributes as much as Mr. Tower has, they could receive the sa favour from Mr. Fool?
A fire lit in Alger's heart. As expected of Mr. Fool. Even if "He" doesn't say it aloud, everything we do for "Him"—"He" rembers it all!
Priscilla, on the other hand, looked stunned. Miss Empress is Edward's companion? Why haven't I seen her before? Hmph! You have a friend my age and didn't even introduce her to !
Mr. Fool tapped his finger lightly on the table and said, "Alright. That's it for today."
Audrey stood up, lifting her skirt slightly. "Farewell, Mr. Fool."
As Klein severed the connection, one by one the Tarot mbers vanished, leaving only the Hanged Man and Tower behind.
Alger first bowed toward the Fool. "Thank you, Mr. Fool."
Edward looked at him curiously. "Mr. Hanged Man, may I ask what you needed from ?"
Alger's tone turned a little awkward. "It's…about the money I owe you."
"Oh? You've already saved up enough?"
"…No."
Alger suppressed his embarrassnt and said, "I might not be able to gather that much in the short term. You may not be in a rush, Mr. Tower, but I don't want to keep owing you such a large debt."
"So I'd like to try repaying you in another form."
Edward's eyes lit up slightly. Finally going to offer the location of that primitive island tied to Adam, eh?
If, at first, Edward had wanted to visit that island to et Adam and obtain the Tyrant card—perhaps hunting for so useful mystical materials along the way—
Then now, more urgently, he needed to go there to hunt the demigod-level Feathered Serpent and acquire the Undying's Beyonder characteristic required to advance to Sequence 4.
Alger hesitated for a few seconds and said, "I know of a primitive island filled with all kinds of extraordinary creatures and plants. I…I'd like to trade the coordinates of this island to repay my debt."
High above on the Fool's seat, Klein muttered to himself inwardly: So you, with your thick eyebrows and 'honest' face, were hiding a secret trump card all along—and you didn't even leak a single clue before now!
A whole island filled with mystical creatures and plants—for Beyonders, that's practically an "Item Farm!"
Ugh, I really want to go too…
Edward pretended to ponder, then said hesitantly, "Mr. Hanged Man, it's not that I don't trust you, but…do you really think the coordinates of an island are worth that much money?"
Alger nodded firmly. "Yes. For soone with Mr. Tower's level of strength, this island is definitely more than worth it!"
"Alright. As fellow Tarot Club mbers, I trust Mr. Hanged Man wouldn't try to deceive . It's a deal."
"But…" Alger added softly, "I hope to accompany you when you explore that island."
"When?"
"In a few days."
Alger planned to hunt a Blue Shadow Falcon and advance to Sequence 6 first, so he wouldn't beco a burden on the journey.
Edward naturally didn't object. After all, he hadn't fully digested his potion yet—there was no rush.
Alger then turned toward Mr. Fool and said respectfully, "Mr. Fool, I've finished speaking with Mr. Tower."
"Mm." Klein nodded and severed their connection.
He exhaled slowly, the cold, aloof deanour he had maintained throughout the Tarot eting finally fading.
With the other mbers growing stronger by the day, the pressure on him was only increasing.
But at this point, he had no other choice.
Before today's eting, Klein had hesitated—should he really bring Bernadette above the grey fog?
He worried that with more contact, she might begin to see through sothing.
But not inviting her would be even more suspicious.
And since she was coming, Lilith—Edward's "daughter"—naturally ca along as well. Though she was technically related to Edward, as a god, Klein had to appear impartial and treat everyone equally.
Fortunately…maybe thanks to Edward, Queen Mystic hasn't suspected at all. She even took my inability to bring her above the fog as so sort of test.
This will do…for now.
———
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