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Leyton, Klein, and two animals formed a semicircle around the fireplace.
In the center of the fireplace was the undead chef under the Raven, diligently grilling skewers of meat on a grill made of brilliant starlight.
Klein ate the barbecue and said indistinctly, "Why do the undead in this world still barbecue? And it's Earth-style!"
"I taught him," Leyton said proudly.
Then he changed the subject: "Do you know anyone at the Quelaag Club who loves machinery, preferably someone involved in that business?"
"I want to find one or two people in this area to invest in Leopard, and at the same time, better promote the bicycles Leopard invented."
"No problem, even if you didn't say it, I'd do it anyway. I get a share of the money from every bicycle sold!"
Klein raised his eyebrows slightly, and couldn't help but feel excited when he thought that he would have a continuous stream of money coming in.
The smile on his face didn't last long. Klein's expression became serious, and his voice unconsciously deepened slightly, saying, "The Aurora Order is looking for the The Fool's Favored and believers."
"I know," Leyton nodded lightly.
"It should be information spread by Elder Lovia from the City of Silver. The True Creator just conveyed this oracle to the Aurora Order not long ago."
"How do you know so clearly?"
"I was at one of the Aurora Order's gathering points at the time."
After Leyton finished speaking, Klein was silent for a moment.
Aurora Order, Tarot Club, Church of the God of Knowledge and Wisdom, and being a pirate at sea—doesn't he worry about getting into trouble someday and being hunted down by a bunch of experts?
"It's December," Leyton suddenly murmured softly.
Klein looked at him in confusion, wondering what was special about December.
"Backlund's peace won't last much longer. I need to finish digesting the last bit of the Mysticism Magister potion within these two weeks."
Klein frowned slightly and asked with some incomprehension, "Why?"
"Is it related to the advancement ritual?"
"It's somewhat related," Leyton shook his head slightly, without explaining too much.
After finishing the barbecue and chatting with Klein for a while, Leyton got up to leave. To digest the remaining potion within two weeks, he needed the Hidden Sage to immerse himself in the ocean of knowledge.
Two weeks had passed since the last time he had barbecue with Klein in front of the fireplace.
During these two weeks, Leyton had been diligently studying mysticism, trying to digest the last bit of the Mysticism Magister potion. He only went out when delivering potions to Lawrence.
"Phew~ Finally succeeded!"
Leyton leaned back in the chair in the study, feeling the complete digestion of the potion in his body, and a brilliant smile spread across his lips.
With the complete digestion of the Mysticism Magister potion, Leyton felt his vision become even clearer.
It seemed that any trace of existence and trajectory of change of any object would be seen by him.
Just a casual glance, his eyes swept over a book, and the detailed information of that book subconsciously appeared in his mind.
If he stared a little longer, he could even distinguish the material and manufacturing process of the paper, as well as the manufacturing time.
He could even simulate and deduce the entire production process of the book, from raw materials to paper to the final book, in his mind.
"It's more than twice as strong as when I first took the potion and advanced."
"This ability to see and analyze things is very much like a pre-version of 'Insight'!"
"It began to manifest at the Student of Ratiocination stage of Sequence 8, and it continued to undergo qualitative changes with each advancement. No wonder Mr. Hughes said that 'Insight' is one of the most core abilities of this Pathway."
Feeling the changes within him, Leyton murmured a few words to himself.
In two weeks, everything was developing on its own.
Klein had already found the third investor for the bicycle and signed a contract with them.
Lawrence's body had also improved a lot with the potions prepared by Emlyn.
At the last Tarot Club meeting, Fors had successfully advanced to Trickmaster, and Hanged Man Alger had also advanced to Wind-Blessed.
Miss Audrey had also received recognition from the Psychology Alchemists and was about to join this Concealment organization.
Little Sun was also diligently digesting potions and accumulating merits in the City of Silver, preparing to exchange for the Solar High Priest potion formula at the Tarot Club later.
After recalling the events of the Tarot Club over the past two weeks and confirming that he had no pending matters, Leyton finally stood up from his chair.
He stretched his body, which had gone numb from sitting for a long time, and then stepped into the Spirit World.
In the Kalpensa Hotel in the West Borough.
Leyton's figure quickly materialized.
Leyton also saw Fors, who had already advanced to Trickmaster. She was sitting face to face with Lawrence at a coffee table, discussing something.
Leyton's arrival made the atmosphere between the two a bit constrained.
"Good afternoon, Mr. Tines~"
Fors stood up and greeted him.
"Good afternoon, Miss Fors. You don't need to be so formal with my title; I'm still a bit unaccustomed to it."
Leyton nodded politely in response.
Then he pulled a chair from the side and sat down on the other side of the coffee table.
After Leyton sat down, Lawrence smiled and said, "Good afternoon, Mr. Tines, would you prefer coffee or black tea?"
"Hmm, coffee, please. Thank you."
Lawrence smiled and nodded, then got up from his seat.
Leyton and Fors were silent for a while, facing each other without speaking. It was Leyton who first brought up the topic:
"How do you plan to digest the Trickmaster potion? Work at a circus?"
"Circus?" Fors was stunned for a moment, then reacted, her eyes lighting up. She thought it was a very good idea.
"That sounds pretty good. I should go back and try it. Do you have any suggestions?"
Suggestions? Suggestions like learning from Klein, making the Nighthawks, Punishers, and Machinery Hivemind of Backlund his audience.
Leyton muttered to himself, then said in a flat voice, "Perform in front of Beyonders and The Fool them."
"Uh..." Fors couldn't find words to refute.
It's very effective, but not to mention whether I can The Fool Beyonders, even if I do, what about the aftermath? The Trickmaster's tricks have very little combat ability.
"Having Beyonders as your audience for performances can indeed yield more feedback, but it's also quite dangerous."
Lawrence placed a cup of coffee in front of Leyton and said at the same time.
Fors nodded repeatedly, agreeing with Lawrence's words:
"Exactly, I think it's more practical for me to perform at a circus."
"Mr. Tines, you seem to know a lot about the Trickmaster, even knowing that the key to acting is 'performance' and 'fooling'."
Lawrence looked at Leyton with a serious and earnest gaze.
"I have a friend who is currently a Magician. As neighboring Pathways, the meanings of these two titles are similar in some aspects."
Leyton chuckled, passing the buck to Klein.
"Neighboring Pathways?" Fors asked curiously.
Lawrence was the first to explain to Fors:
"There are two Pathways adjacent to the Apprentice Pathway: Seer and Marauder pathway."
"Magician belongs to Sequence 7 of the Seer Pathway, and Swindler is Sequence 8 of the Marauder pathway. The acting principles of these two Sequences are similar to those of the Trickmaster."
"I see." Fors nodded lightly.
Then she looked at Leyton and asked curiously, "Did your friend digest the potion by performing in front of Beyonders and successfully fooling them?"
Leyton nodded slightly: "You should have seen him in the newspapers—the Hero Bandit Black Emperor!"
Fors's lips were slightly parted, but she said nothing.
The Hero Bandit Black Emperor who killed Capim and rescued those innocent girls, the Hero Bandit Black Emperor who is suspected to be a Blessed of Mr. Fool... This is using a bunch of Beyonders, including many official forces, as his audience!
Fors sighed silently in her heart. For this kind of acting method, she couldn't say anything but envy.
She thought about it. If she were to follow this acting method, there would be a 10% chance of being charged by Chavaz's meter when she got home, and a 90% chance of being caught by her chosen audience midway through the performance.
She quickly shook her head, shaking off the thoughts in her mind, then said with a serious expression, "I can't learn this method. The circus is more suitable for me."
"Indeed, that Hero Bandit Black Emperor should possess sufficiently powerful Mystical Items, or have someone helping him, and he himself is also very good at combat. Otherwise, he wouldn't be able to achieve this level of acting."
"Having ordinary people as a Spectator, although the feedback received is much less, it's safer."
Lawrence nodded lightly, agreeing with her words.
Leyton's gaze shifted between Fors and Lawrence, then he chuckled, "Mr. Lawrence, are you planning to train an Apprentice who is not a family member?"
Unexpectedly, Lawrence didn't remain silent or hesitate, but smiled and nodded, saying, "Ms. Fors's character is enough to earn my trust, and she has performed exceptionally well, hasn't she?"
Fors's expression was somewhat moved, and she wanted to say something, but Lawrence showed no sign of stopping.
"You have gained Aulisa's approval. If she were still alive, she would probably personally guide you on the Beyonder's path."
"However, I don't intend to teach you personally. You know my physical condition. Even if it has improved, I am already too old. Perhaps one day, I will suddenly pass away."
Lawrence's gaze shifted to Fors, and he continued, "I plan to introduce you to a teacher. With my recommendation and your own character, I think he will agree. Of course, I am also happy to guide you with any questions you have about mysticism."
Fors took a deep breath, her eyes a little sore. Besides her good friend, Xio, she rarely felt such genuine concern from others.
"Thank you, Mr. Lawrence~"
"This is mutual help. Cultivating a High-Sequence Beyonder without malice is also beneficial to us."
Looking at the familiar and warm atmosphere between the two, Leyton chuckled and joked, "I seem to be a bit redundant here."
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