X - The start of the tarrot club...

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In the not too distant future... (Decades?)

In a mysterious world surrounded by gray fog...

***

I witness three individuals standing with bewildered faces, two of them even showing quite a large amount of panic and reverence.

After a few seconds of silence in the fog, Klein chuckled. With a low but not heavy tone, he calmly spoke as though he was replying to the polite greetings from the visitors, "An attempt."

Heh. First class acting. Five out of five stars!

I thought to myself.

None of the three in the safira detected me so I just bit off a portion of grilled squid off the stick I am holding and chewed.

Slowly enjoying the show.

A blond haired miss took a breath, revealing an impeccable, courteous smile. She asked in a somewhat perturbed way with her melodious voice, "Sir, is the attempt over? Might you permit our return?"

The blue haired sailor nearby simply stood in silence.

Oh my~ look at the refined Miss Audrey! What a beautiful aristocrat. Even I can't help myself and admire her looks. Then I shifted my gaze to Alger.

Man, how can a sailor look that handsome. You should have just find a sugar mommy, probably would have a much easier life instead of suffering in the sea...

Klein nodded mildly and looked at Audrey chuckling. "Of course, if you make a formal request, you can return this very moment."

And his reply was met with a sigh of relief. Audrey's eyes darted left and right, looking at her environment in radiance. She said in an anxious, anticipative and tempted manner, "This is such a wonderful experience… Yes, I have always been hoping that something like this would happen. I mean—I like mysteries and supernatural miracles. No, my point is—what I mean is that, Sir, what can I do to become a Beyonder?"

She got more excited as she spoke, so much so she was fumbling over her words.

After a moment, the gray fog started to churn, giving both Audrey and Alger a shock.

In an instant, they saw a number of towering stone pillars around them. Above them was a vast dome that encapsulated them.

This entire edifice looked magnificent, grand and lofty, just like a legendary palace for giants.

Directly under the dome where the gray fog gathered, a long, bronze table appeared with ten high-back chairs on either side in a symmetrical arrangement. The back of each chair dazzled and shone faintly with crimson red, drawing the outlines of weird constellations that differed from reality.

Audrey and Alger sat face-to-face, sitting next to the Seat of Honor.

The girl looked to her sides, and could not help but mumble, "How fascinating…"

Klein continued his acting and extended his right hand and caressed the edge of the bronze table a little while maintaining an unperturbed expression.

I sat in the chair furthest from them and looked at the new decor.

Man. Klein is so lucky to get such a stylish sefira. All I got was a dingy berth. Tsk. Truly the protagonist of the era...

________________

Alger inspected the surroundings, and after a few seconds of silence, he suddenly opened his mouth, and answered Audrey's question "Are you in Loen?"

"If you want to become a Beyonder, join the Churches of either the Evernight Goddess, the Lord of Storms, or the God of Steam and Machinery."

"The majority of us will not meet a Beyonder our entire lives. This has caused churches, and even some clergies within some of the biggest churches, to suspect the same. While this is the case, I am certain to tell you that Beyonders still exist in courts, tribunals, and execution agencies. They are still fighting against the dangers that grow in the dark, only that their numbers are much fewer as compared to before and during the early days of the Iron Age."

Klein listened attentively, but he tried his best to present himself as paying little attention to Alger's words, much like how young kids listened to stories.

I could only chuckle to myself as Klein's "mysterious being" persona starts to show up once again.

Audrey silently listened to Alger finish his sentence before sighing.

"Mister, I know all about what you just said; I even know more than that, including the Nighthawks, the Mandated Punisher, and the Machinery Hivemind, but I don't want to lose my freedom."

Alger gave a low-sounding laugh, and said vaguely, "You can't become a Beyonder without sacrifices. If you don't consider joining churches and accepting their given challenges, you can only seek the royal families and the few nobles with family histories of more than a thousand years. If not, you can rely on your luck to search for clandestine evil organizations."

Audrey puffed her cheeks subconsciously and looked around in a fluster.

After confirming that both the "mysterious man" and Alger did not notice her tic, she pressed, "Are there no other solutions?"

Alger sank into silence. About half a minute later, he turned around to look at the "mysterious man" who was watching the two of them in silence.

Alger looked back at Audrey and said with deliberation, "I have two sets of Sequence 9 Potion formulas."

"Really? Which two sets?" Audrey clearly knew what the Sequence 9 Potion formulas meant.

Alger leaned back slightly, and replied unhurriedly, "As you know, humanity can only depend on potions to become real Beyonders, while the names of potions come from the 'Blasphemy Slate.' After constant translations into Jotun, Elvish, ancient and modern Hermes, and ancient Feysac, they have undergone changes to match the day and age of that era. The essence is not in their names, but whether they portray the 'core characteristics' of the potions.

"I have a Sequence 9 Potion named 'Sailor.' It enables you to have excellent balancing capabilities. Even if you were on a boat in a rainstorm, you will be able to walk about freely as though you were on land. You will also gain immense strength and illusory scales under your skin. They will enable you to swim like a fish and be difficult to catch. You will move agilely underwater just like marine animals. Even without any equipment, you will be able to easily submerge underwater for at least ten minutes."

"Sounds great… the 'Keepers of the Seas' from the Lord of Storms?"

"It was called by that name in the past." Alger did not pause and continued. "The second set of Sequence 9 Potions is called 'Spectator,' although I am not sure what it was called in the past. This set of potions enables you to have an exceptionally sharp mind with acute observational abilities. I believe you can understand by what 'spectator' means from watching operas and plays. Just like an audience, spectators judge the 'actors' in the secular world, catching a glimpse of the real thoughts of them through their emotions, conduct, and mantras."

At this point, Alger emphasized, "You must remember, regardless of whether you are at an extravagant banquet or a crowded street, spectators can only be spectators forever."

Audrey's eyes shone as she listened, and spoke after a long while, "Why? Alright, this is a follow-up question. I-I think I have fallen in love with this feeling—of being a 'spectator.' How can I get this potion's formula? What can I use to trade with you for it?"

Alger looked like he was already prepared as he said in a deep voice, "The blood of Ghost Sharks, at least 100 milliliters of it."

Audrey nodded her head excitedly, but subsequently asked worriedly, "If I can get it—and I'm saying if—how do I hand it to you? How can you promise me that you can give the potion's formula to me in return for the Ghost Shark's blood, as well as the authenticity of the formula?"

Alger said calmly, "I'll give you an address. I'll mail the formula to you, or tell you directly here, once I receive the blood of the Ghost Shark."

"As for promises, I think that both you and I can feel rest assured under the witness of the mysterious sir."

As he said this, he swept his eyes towards Klein who was sitting up straight at the Seat of Honor.

"Sir, the fact that you brought us here shows that you have tremendous strength unimaginable to us. Neither one of us would dare violate a promise with you as witness."

"That's right!" Audrey's eyes sparkled and agreed with excitement.

From her perspective, the mysterious gentleman who had unimaginable abilities was definitely an "authoritative" witness.

How could I or the guy opposite me dare trick him!

Audrey half-turned her body and looked at Klein earnestly.

"Sir, please be the witness of our trade."

At that moment, she then realized that she was all too impolite, having forgotten all along to ask a particular question. She asked hurriedly, "Sir, how should we address you?"

Alger nodded slightly, and echoed the same question in a serious manner, "Sir, how should we address you?"

Zhou Mingrui was taken aback. He gently rapped his fingers on the bronze table. The contents of the earlier divination flashed across his mind suddenly.

He leaned back, withdrew his right hand, and crossed his ten fingers, placing them below his chin.

He gave the duo a faint smile.

"You can address me as…"

Upon saying this, he paused for a moment. He said amiably and calmly, "The Fool."

Ohhh he did it!! He said the thing! Hah! I'm so lucky to witness such a historic moment! I'll have to give him a discount later for sharing such a special moment. Just a small discount though. Hehe. It'll be boring if 'The Fool' did not live in poverty...