Chapter 53: Creativity is Important

With the approval given by the leader of the organization. The exchanges did not take long to begin.

Alger turned his attention to Justice. "I have the Rainbow Salamander's complete pituitary gland. By the end of this Tarot Club, I will send them to you. Have the money ready."

The noblewoman looked at the Hanged Man for a moment before nodding with a small smile, her eyes twinkling slightly. "I have everything ready for the exchange."

Alger didn't show any emotion or respond to what the woman said; he just shifted his focus to the Magician. "I managed to obtain the Terror Demon Worm's eyes but failed to find information on the crystallized blood of a Lavos Squid."

Fors wasn't upset that her material couldn't be found, she was used to decpetions by now. But that didn't mean she wasn't happy.

'Now Xio will be able to advance!' Smiling sideways, like a writer finding inspiration, she looked at the man, "How much do you want for the eyes?"

"600 pounds," Alger replied with simplicity and a calm look.

The ingredients cost him 800 pounds, so once he received the money from the ladies, he would have made a profit of 300 pounds. He could have made more, but he knew how badly greed could hurt him.

'This is a meeting where equivalent deals and exchanges are sought. To break that rule would only be looking at being punished or expelled...' Alger held back his hand, not wanting to miss his greatest opportunity to leave the Church of the Lord of Storms.

"Deal. I'll send the money as soon as I finish the Tarot Club." Fors smiled calmly. Before, such an amount of money would have caused her to go into cardiac arrest, but now? She could only laugh as she lived off her gold cup.

'If there's one good thing about following a madman. It's that he's crazy rich!' Knowing this wasn't coming out of her pocket, the woman savored her meal with relish.

Watching the exchange, the red-haired man didn't rush in. His bored gaze moved across the crimson stars surrounding the brass table until it fell on the club's youngest member.

"Mr. Sun, as I understand it, the City of Silver has in its control some of the Planter Pathway potion formulas, right?"

"Ah, yes, Mr. Chariot. Although we only have up to Sequence 7." Derrick commented with a slight nod.

One of the reasons they have survived as long in the dark as they have been able to is because of that Pathway. If they didn't have the Beyonders specialized in healing and plant care, it was inevitable that the mutations among the members would be much more noticeable, as well as the losses on expeditions. Not to mention the care of the food...

Hearing that, Adryan continued, "I need the Doctor's potion formula. What would you like to receive in return?"

The young giant licked his lips, which suddenly felt dry. 

'I know that Mr. Chariot possesses several Sun Pathway formulas; the logical thing to do would be to request the following formula from Bard... But I am still far from digesting my potion. Not only that but even if I had the formula, I would not have enough contribution points to obtain the ingredients.'

A good portion of his contribution points were used for the ingredients of his Bard potion; the young man seriously doubted that the few he had left would be enough.

Not to mention that he would have to go on an expedition again soon...

The decision was obvious, and he was quick to show it.

"I need a powerful Beyonder weapon with decent destructive power."

The request made the redhead raise an eyebrow curiously, but his answer didn't take long.

"A powerful artifact. Mmm, include one of the main ingredients for the potion, and I'll get it to you before the next Tarot Club."

Derrick smiled hugely and nodded happily. "Deal, Mr. Chariot!"

As soon as he answered, a slight blush adorned his cheeks, and the young man shrank back a little embarrassed;

"Excuse me, Mr. Chariot, but getting your request may take a while. I don't know if it would be possible to receive the weapon first, and at the next Tarot Club, I will deliver what you need..."

"Fufu~ Wow, wow. A bit bold, eh Little Sun?" Adryan laughed delightedly before closing his eyes and waving his hands disinterestedly. "No problem."

As soon as he said that, one eye opened, scarlet glowing mischievously. "Just don't forget it, yeah?"

Derrick pursed his lips and nodded gratefully. "I won't, Mr. Chariot. Thank you very much."

'That's very kind of him... Is he in a good mood?' Klein noticed the man's curious demeanor and couldn't help but wonder if something might have cheered him up.

After a second, he snorted internally and rolled his eyes a little. 'Nah. I'm sure it's because he knows Mr. Sun will keep his word whether or not. The boy looks up to him. It's also because he probably isn't in a hurry to get it...'

Seeing the man's true intentions, Klein couldn't help but roll his eyes.

His almost certain fellow transmigrator was certainly quite a personality.

Having the money to buy an artifact with a solid offensive attack and not being worried about getting a return on his investment so soon...

Seeing that the exchange had passed, Alger took advantage and looked at Chariot.

"Mr. Chariot. I have yet to find any information regarding your request."

Adryan looked a bit quizzically at the blue-haired man before chuckling.

'Someone is anxious to make daddy proud, eh~'

Of course, the red-haired man knew that if he said that, it was certain that the man would explode, so he softened the massage a lot.

"It's okay. It's a weird request. It's the normal thing to do. You don't have to tell me every meeting. I'm not your wife to tell me you failed to get the anniversary chocolate."

An eyebrow quivered, but the older man just nodded in understanding.

'This would make for a good scene...' Fors felt the embrace of inspiration. She calmly decided she would continue writing as soon as she returned to her room.

'A boy trying to impress his teacher/father figure...'

Seeing that the exchanges seemed to be over and sensing his fast, worn-out spirituality, Klein calmly kicked off the free talk.

Immediately that was said, Audrey turned to the farthest member of the table.

"Mr. Chariot, all preparations on my side are finished."

The redhead looked at the woman as he rested his elbow on the armrest of his seat, his cheek in his palm. "That's good."

Laughing a little, Adryan added, "So, Operation Catch the Rat has begun."

The official name for getting the Ambassador Bakerland out of the way is simple, but it defines the man's character very well.

Audrey had no complaints about it and even applauded it; both beings were very similar in her eyes.

"The Ambassador usually has one party a week, on Saturdays. Though it's not uncommon for him to occasionally organize dances during the week." She reminded a detail that seemed important to her.

"The series of his parties is no reason to rush. We only have to worry about the guy not realizing what we're doing." Adryan commented.

Pursing her lips slightly, the blonde woman looked at the man deeply, "How come you're so sure your man will find the information we need? Being that the Ambassador is a spy, wouldn't it be normal to think that he destroys it?" 

This was something that bothered her the more she thought about it. Did this information even exist?

Adryan laughed in amusement at the woman, "That would be the normal thing to do. Even more so considering the man's arrogant personality and the security his house has. I wouldn't be surprised if that arrogance has caused him to retain several of his involvements with the recent kingdom troubles.

"Of course, there's also the fact that he could have kept them as future blackmail. After all, even as a Conspirator, he can't do anything in this kingdom alone. It is inevitable that he will receive some help, which leaves traces."

"And if you're wrong?" Audrey was so quick with her question that she surprised herself.

"Looks like not having your pet left you with a short fuse, eh?" Adryan mumbled boredly but loud enough to be heard by all.

The noblewoman slowly inhaled some air through her nose and looked with crystalline eyes at the man, "I trust she's behaving properly?"

"Of course. She's a real sweetheart." Adryan could barely contain the sideways smile as he remembered his student's letter about how the Dog of Imagination kept making her uncomfortable.

Nodding absent-mindedly, Audrey couldn't help but imagine the strange hidden lair her furry friend would be in. She also couldn't help but feel a little envious, but it wasn't very big.

'After all, I am actively participating in a mission to unmask a spy attempting to go against the kingdom, which is in a precarious situation... Hm! I might even be seen as a counter-spy!' Feeling the beginnings of a smile rise on her lips, the noblewoman quickly controlled her emotions.

"While it calms my heart to hear that, my question has yet to be answered."

Turning his hand disinterested, the red-haired man added simply, "If there's nothing, we'll just plant the information, duh."

Then the man snorted and looked disappointed at her. "If you want to move up the Spectator path, you really need to be more creative, Miss Justice. Personal advice? Grab a book."

The spectator was exited as a familiar vein began to throb in her neck with great intensity. "...I will keep your advice in mind, Mr. Chariot."

'He was already taking his time bullying someone.' Klein thought curiously as he nodded inwardly at the man's words.

The Spectator's pathway in high sequences was able to manipulate a large number of people and create stories with them. It stands to reason that being Creative is necessary to advance.

'His words are even good advice...' Shaking his head internally, the Clown calmly observed the Tarot Club's progress.

After a while, seeing that the meeting was not progressing any further and his spirituality quickly wearing thin, Klein gently tapped the table, drawing the attention of the other members.

With a simple smile, he said, "Before ending today's meeting, I simply wanted to remind you of something.

"If you ever find yourselves in trouble, you can call out my honorific name, and I will lend a hand. Same with the Scarlet Monarch, if you feel a situation overtakes you or you are in great danger, say 'His' name."

Finishing with a slight nod and without giving anyone time to say anything, he added, " That is as far as we go."

The members gave a graceful bow with one hand on their chests, "By your will."

Cutting the connection to the stars and observing the members' now empty places, Klein's eyes paused for a moment at the farthest place on the table.

The Emperor's words replayed in his mind, as did his short experience with the strange copper whistle.

'Objects that have been in contact with high sequence Beyonders for a long time undergo a change...'

Could that apply to Chariot's seat?

It was still unknown to him which Pathway the man belonged to, but Klein was sure he had Anti-Divination methods.

What if he could apply Chariot's specialty in this space? Use the man's seat to enhance his divination? Of course, this place had purification properties, so would even the seat be affected?

Frowning slightly at the pressure on his brain, the clown decided he would try it once he was in Sequence 7. When his control over the space above the Gray fog was stronger, the possibility of an accident diminished.

With a new experiment in mind, the clown finally closed his eyes and dropped down, leaving this mysterious space.