Chapter 19 - 19: The Fourth Member

Klein awkwardly rubbed his nose before quickly dismissing his ridiculous thoughts. "Drinking potions is inherently filled with the unknown and danger. I only divined that he was more suited to be an Apprentice—I never said he wouldn't lose control." Besides, even if he wanted to help, he had no experience dealing with this kind of situation. "But…is he out of danger now? Or has he completely lost control? Do I need to intervene?" Klein hesitated for a long moment before finally reaching out toward the rippling halo in front of him. At the same time, he let his spirituality surge freely, establishing a stable and mysterious connection. "Huh? Last time, when I connected with Little Sun, my spirituality was already stretched thin, but this time, I still haven't exceeded my limit?" "Well, lucky you!" ——— Edward, having returned to normal, immediately tried pushing the door again. However— It wouldn't budge. In that moment of uncertainty, a realization dawned upon him— His Sequence wasn't high enough. "If that's the case, how do I get back? Back! Wake up!" He tried every possible method he could think of— But nothing worked. Just as panic was about to set in— The darkness suddenly receded. An endless expanse of grey mist replaced it, and Edward found himself lying on an empty, void-like ground. Dazed, he slowly climbed to his feet. The first thing he noticed was the boundless grey-white fog stretching into infinity. In front of him— A massive, ancient, and weathered bronze table. Surrounding it— Towering stone pillars reaching toward the heavens— A grand and ancient palace. "Could this be…?" His gaze snapped to the head of the bronze table. There— A mysterious, shadowed figure, enshrouded in thick grey mist, overlooked everything. The Fool! "I only lost control for a brief moment—why did Klein bring me to the Gray Fog?!" His mind raced, but he quickly came up with a response strategy. "I have to act naturally." He took a deep breath and politely inquired, "And you are…?" Klein rested his chin on his hand. His obscured face revealed no emotion as he spoke: "You may call me Mr. Fool." "Mr. Fool?" Klein activated his Spirit Vision and found that Edward's condition was exactly the same as when he had seen him during the day— perfectly healthy. However, his emotions betrayed his anxiety and nervousness. "Mr. Fool, were you the one who saved me from losing control?" "Hmm…He had already stabilized before I summoned him up here, but…" Klein nodded slightly. "You could say that." "Might as well take credit for it." "Thank you so much, O great existence!" Edward exclaimed. "Huh?" "I am willing to offer my flesh and soul as a token of my deepest gratitude!" "…Why does this always happen?" Klein's eyelid twitched. "First, Little Sun, and now him?" "I have no interest in the flesh and souls of mortals," he replied in a familiar tone. "I prefer fair transactions. You may obtain what you desire from me, but the price must be of equal value." Edward froze. "But…I have nothing." No! You have gold pounds! Of course, the great Mr. Fool would never ask for something so…mundane. Instead, he spoke calmly: "I am particularly interested in secrets hidden throughout history. For example—Roselle's diary." "Emperor Roselle Gustav's diary?!" Edward's eyes widened in shock. His head lowered even further. "As expected of a great existence. Even the notes of Emperor Roselle—unreadable to anyone for centuries—must be perfectly comprehensible to you. You must be the embodiment of wisdom, an eternal and unparalleled being whose brilliance eclipses even the sun and moon—" Klein coughed awkwardly. "Okay, that's enough of that." "Flattery means nothing to me." "Esteemed Mr. Fool," Edward said respectfully, "I do not have Emperor Roselle's diary." "However, I have read some ancient books containing knowledge related to mysticism. It was through them that I first stepped into the world of the supernatural." "Wait a second." "That's not what you said when you came for a divination!" Furthermore— Through his Spirit Vision, Klein could clearly sense— Edward was lying. "Those books do record quite a few accounts of Emperor Roselle's rise to power." Edward paused before continuing, "However, there's only one piece of information related to his diary: Over the years, the major churches seem to have been trying to extract clues about the 'Cards of Blasphemy' he created in his later years." "Cards of Blasphemy?" Mr. Fool straightened slightly, showing a hint of interest. "It seems that the Emperor created them based on the contents of the Blasphemy Slate. Each Card of Blasphemy contains the complete pathway of a Sequence." Klein's heart trembled. "So, if I could get my hands on the Card of the Seer pathway…I'd have access to the full set of formulas?" But on the surface, he remained calm and composed. "Hmm. What else?" Edward rubbed the back of his head awkwardly. "I'll need to go back and…um, do some more research (or rather, make something up)." "Alright." Mr. Fool's tone remained unhurried. He hesitated internally—should he allow Edward to join the Tarot Club and participate in the upcoming weekly gatherings? After all— He knew nothing about Edward's character. What if he turned out to be a problem? Then again… "Now that I think about it, I don't actually know much about The Hanged Man, The Sun, or The Justice either." The Tarot Club was still in its early stages. For now, he could afford to loosen the requirements slightly. If a current member turned out to be a problem, he could always just purge them later. After all, he controlled who could be summoned to the gatherings. With that thought, Klein suddenly felt at ease. "I will hold a gathering here every Monday afternoon." "By then, there will be others like you attending the meeting." He smiled slightly. "I can allow you to join, but you must abide by one rule—" "You are not to reveal anything about me to anyone, unless I permit it." Edward immediately bowed his head. "I will strictly follow your command, Mr. Fool." "Before that, you need to choose your codename." Klein gestured toward the bronze table, where a deck of Tarot cards had materialized. "Choose a card as your alias. The Fool, Justice, The Hanged Man, and The Sun are already taken." Edward stared at the twenty-two cards, feeling momentarily indecisive. "I've never studied Tarot before—I have no idea what these cards represent!" After thinking for a moment, he shrugged. "Forget it. Let fate decide." He flipped over eighteen cards face-down, shuffled them randomly, closed his eyes, and blindly picked one. "Alright, this is it!" Klein, watching from across the table, twitched at the corner of his mouth. "This guy definitely has decision-making issues." "Isn't that supposed to be a problem for the poor?" "You're clearly rich, aren't you?!" Edward flipped over the chosen card. The illustration depicted a towering structure, crumbling in an ominous collapse. "The Tower." In the Tarot deck, The Tower was a highly symbolic card. It was often associated with disaster, destruction, and calamity. A famously ominous card. Klein silently hoped that allowing him to join the Tarot Club wouldn't turn out to be a mistake. Maintaining his mystical air, Klein spoke in a solemn tone: "Remember your choice. It will follow you for the rest of your life." At the same time— He raised his hand and severed the connection. The crimson light quickly retracted. Across from him, Edward's figure dissolved into a hazy shadow, vanishing bit by bit. ——— [Back in Backlund] As the crimson glow faded, Edward returned to the villa. A slight burning sensation spread across the back of his right hand. Moments later, the scarlet light spiralled inward, forming a strange sigil before completely disappearing into his skin. Edward let out a long sigh. "I had planned to join the Tarot Club eventually…but I was supposed to do it after preparing a proper backstory!" "Now, thanks to that sudden loss of control, I ended up joining completely unprepared." He sighed again. "The Harry Potter storyline already collapsed before it even began…" "Let's hope the Lord of the Mysteries plot doesn't derail the same way." ——— [Note]: Don't forget to VOTE. It keeps me motivated.