[Skip Plot]!
—Fine, it can't be skipped.
Nairn sometimes really wished he could grasp the Authority of time.
Especially at times like this, a Tarot Club meeting where he had already predicted the entire process and even personally directed parts of the script.
He reckoned that even if he weren't present this time, Klein, who had been given a crash course by him, would be able to explain the "Acting Method" and subsequent plans clearly and logically, successfully hoodwinking "Justice" and "Hanged Man."
After all, he had just given him a "godhood crash course" two days ago, teaching him everything from the Acting Method to how to play the part of a deity.
[Remember this site's domain name, Taiwan Novel Network, super smooth and worry-free.]
Unfortunately, the Tarot Club, this ragtag bunch, was just starting out and still in its early entrepreneurial stage; there was no concept of "taking leave," let alone a system for it.
If he, as "Mr. Lover," were to be absent without reason for the second gathering, although Nairn could certainly do it, it would be somewhat abrupt.
Now that the Tarot Club's "ragtag bunch" had just been set up, as one of the founding members—and one of the only two who knew the truth—he had to give Klein some face.
That overthinking freak Klein might start imagining things like "Is Senior disappointed in me?"
He had to ensure his attendance in the early stages; otherwise, if Klein ever messed up his act, he would have to step in and save the situation.
Maintaining perfect attendance and a sense of presence was necessary, at least to solidify the mysterious and reliable persona of "Mr. Lover."
Just treat it as... an investor inspecting the project's progress... 3:00 PM, Tingen City, 2 Daffodil Street.
Klein entered the bathroom on time and locked the door with a click. He took four steps counter-clockwise, chanting the incantation. His body was instantly enveloped by the boundless gray fog, and his consciousness soared rapidly, finally settling on the high-back chair belonging to "The Fool" at the end of the mottled bronze long table.
Almost as soon as he sat down, two clusters of crimson light lit up on either side of the long table, condensing into the blurry figures of "Justice" and "Hanged Man."
Immediately after, directly opposite Klein, a brand-new figure emitting a soft glow took shape. That was the position belonging to "Mr. Lover," and Nairn's figure appeared within the gray fog.
"Good afternoon, Mr. The Fool, Miss Justice, Mr. Hanged Man." Nairn's voice carried a perfect touch of elegance, sounding both mysterious and approachable, taking the lead in breaking the silence Above the Gray Fog.
Hearing this familiar and reassuring voice, the nervousness Klein felt about playing a deity dissipated significantly. He forced down the sense of kinship from seeing a fellow countryman and worked hard to maintain the mystery and majesty of "The Fool," preparing to nod slightly in response.
But... just a nod? Would that be too pretentious?
To be honest, it wasn't that he wanted to put on airs; it was just that acting that way in front of Senior Nairn made him a bit embarrassed to speak.
In that moment of hesitation, another crisp and pleasant voice spoke up first.
"Good afternoon, Mr. Lover!" Audrey's voice was tinged with obvious joy.
Only then, as if she had just remembered, did she greet "The Fool" and "The Hanged Man" in turn.
Klein muttered to himself: I, "The Fool," haven't even responded yet!
However, he could understand. Audrey was a noble girl well-protected by her family, innocent and romantic, unfamiliar with such social intricacies.
Moreover, this girl's mindset was far too relaxed, openly greeting "Mr. Lover" first right in front of him, the "meeting leader."
He's not even a real lover... Klein grumbled inwardly.
But he soon rationalized it; after all, "Mr. Lover" had given Audrey so many benefits—recommending a Pathway, providing a potion formula, and teaching financial knowledge—it was only natural for the young girl to feel close to him.
Thinking this way, the awkwardness in Klein's heart vanished, replaced even by a bit of smugness.
Look how popular the powerhouse I brought in is.
With that thought, Klein adjusted his mindset. He smiled and, maintaining a profound image, spoke in a low voice:
"Good afternoon, Mr. Lover, Miss Justice."
As he spoke, he lowered his head slightly and raised his half-clenched left hand, tapping his brow twice.
This was "Spirit Vision," a new ability he had acquired after becoming a "Seer."
In an instant, the world before his eyes changed completely.
He saw the aura colors radiating from "Justice" and "Hanged Man."
However, the surrounding gray fog and crimson stars remained unchanged; the things that seemed non-existent described by Old Neil did not appear, nor did the seemingly living, clear brilliance.
Shifting his gaze slightly, Klein saw that the colors of "Justice's" aura perfectly matched Old Neil's description—red, purple, blue, white—vibrant and bright, with just the right thickness. She was clearly a vigorous and healthy young girl.
"In her emotional colors, red and yellow are very prominent, representing happiness, passion, and..." Klein made a silent judgment.
"Pleasure?"
As expected, a carefree young girl... Just as he was about to look away, he suddenly discovered something strange.
In the innermost layer of Miss Justice's aura, the colors and sensations that should have been mixed seemed completely unified!
"Is that her 'Astral Body'? Or the surface of her 'Astral Body'?"
He then turned to look at "Hanged Man" and found that Alger was the same. He could even vaguely see that deep within "Hanged Man's" "Ether Body" was a deep blue color, giving a sensation of gales and giant waves.
What... is going on?
At this moment, Alger also finished his greetings.
"Mr. The Fool, Mr. Lover." Audrey's voice carried a hint of excitement. "I have good news to tell everyone."
"I have successfully obtained all the ingredients for the 'Spectator' potion!"
As she spoke, she gave a playful wink, as if showing off her spoils of war.
There was a sense of pride and self-satisfaction she couldn't hide.
"Oh?" Nairn let out a sound of interest, his specific emotions unreadable.
"Then, congratulations, Miss Justice," Klein said in the flat tone exclusive to "The Fool."
But in his heart, he had a further suspicion—this Miss Justice had likely done more than just obtain the ingredients; she was very possibly already a Sequence 9 "Spectator."
After all, at last week's Tarot Club meeting, Senior Nairn had given her the formula directly. With the resources of a top-tier noble lady, gathering the ingredients for Sequence 9 in a week was practically effortless.
Klein thought to himself that a mere Sequence 9 formula was probably as common as cabbage on the roadside to someone like Senior Nairn, who claimed to "know all potion formulas."
The only thing to worry about might be the buyer taking the formula and running without paying.
But with Miss Justice, that wasn't an issue at all.
She was a member of the Tarot Club; she could run, but she couldn't hide.
Klein even felt that Nairn probably wasn't worried about being unable to sell the formula at all; he had plenty of channels.
Selling formulas in the small "ragtag bunch" of the Tarot Club was more out of respect for him, "The Fool"—a form of investment and a favor.
Moreover... Klein glanced at the blurry figure opposite him, remembering how he had been "unboxed" right after the first meeting.
With Senior Nairn's ability to see through hearts and his elusive movement capabilities, even if Miss Justice dared to default, Senior could just track her down offline.
Thinking of this, Klein—no, Mr. The Fool—couldn't help but want to puff out his chest.
Hmph, exactly! The reason Senior is willing to sell formulas in this "ragtag bunch" of a Tarot Club is all because of me!
It was I who invited such a powerful senior!
"This is all thanks to Mr. Lover's guidance," Audrey's voice was full of sincere gratitude. "If it weren't for him, I might still be worrying about which Pathway to choose."
"It was just a small effort," Nairn waved his hand dismissively.
At the same time, an interesting question suddenly occurred to him.
In this case, would Audrey's golden retriever, Susie, still become that famous 'Dog of Vision' by some twist of fate?
According to the original development, it was Audrey's own carelessness that led to Susie accidentally consuming the potion.
But now, after his 'teaching,' Audrey had clearly become more stable and meticulous, no longer making low-level mistakes like leaving potion materials lying around.
Since she hadn't mentioned anything about a pet, it meant Susie was still just an ordinary dog.
Tsk, that's a bit of a pity.
Nairn thought with no small amount of regret.
After all, a big talking dog—now that would be a lot of fun.
His nature as a 'Fun-seeker' began to stir again.
Maybe he could find an opportunity in the future to force-feed Susie a bottle of potion.
Hmm... what would be good to feed her? Spectator? Even a 'Demoness' potion would work... forget it, a 'Demoness' Susie, that image would be just too 'beautiful' to behold.
That's too ridiculous; let's stick with 'Spectator.'
A big golden retriever calling out 'Onii-chan'—
Yeah, that would be quite fun.
While Nairn was lost in his wild thoughts, Alger began his report.
He first confirmed that he had received the Ghost Shark blood sent by Audrey and expressed satisfaction with its quality.
Subsequently, he mentioned some preliminary progress on the task assigned by Mr. Lover—collecting legends of the sea.
The conversation proceeded naturally until Klein proposed a new idea.
Since I can manifest temples, tables, and chairs here based on my own thoughts, can I also let others directly imprint the contents of their minds?
This thought made his spirits lift.
He decided to try it immediately.
At that moment, Alger saw Mr. The Fool, who was shrouded in thick gray fog, slowly sit up straight and say in a deep, majestic voice:
"Let us conduct an experiment. Hanged Man, imagine a passage of text and give yourself the urgent desire to write it down."
"Now, pick up the fountain pen beside you and write on the parchment."
Indeed, different from the original development, this time, The Hanged Man, Alger, became the one used for the demonstration.
This was also a bit of a small scheme by Klein; he wanted this 'Hanged Man,' who seemed very shrewd, to personally witness the power of 'The Fool' as a sort of 'warning.'
After all, Miss Justice seemed a bit airheaded and had been targeted by Senior Nairn, making her half one of his own; she certainly wouldn't cause trouble in the Tarot Club.
Therefore, she and Senior were on his side.
But this 'Hanged Man' was clearly not easy to deceive, appearing to have a lot of social experience and sophistication.
This kind of person was clearly not easy to Fool.
To deal with such a person, soft tactics alone were not enough; one must occasionally display one's power as a 'Deity' to make him remember at all times who the master here is.
Was this also a basic method taught by Senior Nairn?
Regardless, using 'The Hanged Man' as the 'guinea pig' would yield better results.
He had to seize the opportunity to give him a little 'Fool's Shock.'
Unknowingly, Klein was already able to make such analyses.
Who was a natural ally, who could be simply won over, and who needed a combination of grace and Authority.
Klein already had a scale in his heart.
Could this be considered a form of growth for him?
Klein thought while waiting with interest for The Hanged Man's reaction.
Alger's heart tightened when he heard Mr. The Fool's command.
He was to be the one to try it?
He subconsciously glanced at 'Lover' opposite him, then at 'The Fool' at the head of the table; a sense of pressure from being watched by two big shots simultaneously arose spontaneously.
He did not dare to delay and immediately reached out, grasping the manifested ancient fountain pen in front of him.
The pen felt cold in his hand, possessing a heavy texture that did not belong to a mortal object.
He closed his eyes and composed a passage of text in his mind. What should he choose? It couldn't be too simple, nor could it involve secrets.
He thought for a moment and decided to use an old proverb that circulated at sea.
"A smooth sea never made a skilled Sailor."
"We must abandon the illusion that the sea will always be calm; we must learn to sail in strong winds..."
He repeated this text in his mind while trying to generate a strong emotion of 'urgently wanting to record it.'
Then, he opened his eyes and placed the tip of the pen on the parchment in front of him.
In the next second, a sight he would never forget in his life occurred.
He didn't use any force at all, and didn't even make a writing motion; the fountain pen seemed to come to life, its tip sliding across the parchment on its own, leaving behind lines of smooth and elegant Hermes letters.
It was word-for-word identical to the prayer text he had imagined in his mind!
"This..." Alger's pupils constricted sharply, and the hand holding the fountain pen began to tremble slightly.
What great power!
This was no longer a simple Beyonder ability; this was practically the Authority of a Deity!
This Mr. The Fool's control over this mysterious space far exceeded his imagination!
Mr. The Fool was actually powerful to such an extent!
All his previous guesses about 'The Fool' seemed so laughable and insignificant at this moment.
He had originally thought Mr. The Fool was just a convener of a mysterious gathering, a powerful existence whose Sequence might be high but whose range of ability was limited, or a member of some ancient secret organization. But now it seemed the other party's level was far beyond his imagination!
Alger took a deep breath, put down the fountain pen, stood up from his seat, and bowed deeply to Mr. The Fool at the head of the table.
"Thank you for your guidance, Honorable Mr. The Fool. Your great power is as vast as the Cosmos."
His voice was full of awe, no longer containing any of the previous testing or appraisal.
Klein was feeling ecstatic inside.
See that! This is the power of 'The Fool'!
On the surface, he still maintained an inscrutable posture, merely tapping the edge of the mottled long table lightly and saying in a deep voice: "Sit down; this was just a trivial experiment."
Trivial... Alger's lip twitched slightly, feeling even more that Mr. The Fool was unfathomable.
Audrey's eyes were also shining as she watched from the side. Although she didn't have as clear a perception of power levels as Alger, she understood what this meant.
It meant that in the future, exchanging information at the Tarot Club would become incredibly safe and convenient!
Any symbols, text, or even images that couldn't be described in words could be transmitted this way!
"It's so magical, Mr. The Fool!" Audrey praised sincerely.
Then, her gaze involuntarily fell upon Nairn opposite her.
Audrey noticed that from beginning to end, Mr. Lover had just sat there quietly with a faint, indiscernible smile, as if this miracle—which was enough to make The Hanged Man lose his composure—was nothing more than an interesting play to him.
He didn't seem surprised at all.
Many guesses popped into Audrey's mind.
Could it be... Mr. Lover already knew Mr. The Fool possessed such an ability?
Or was it that this level of power was simply not worth mentioning in Mr. Lover's eyes?
Or perhaps, the reason Mr. The Fool could do this was actually because he had received help from Mr. Lover?
The more she thought about it, the more she felt the mysteries surrounding Mr. Lover grew, and that layer of mysterious veil became even thicker.
She couldn't help but start guessing Mr. Lover's purpose for having The Hanged Man collect legends of the sea.
Did Mr. Lover have The Hanged Man collect sea legends because he had never been to the world at sea and wanted to take this opportunity to learn about it in preparation for future adventures?
Or was he an Author? Using these sea legends as material for creation?
These guesses made Nairn's image in her heart more rich and mysterious, and also made this young girl, who was experiencing her first stirrings of love, even more curious.
She felt as if she were reading a wonderful book that could never be finished, with every page filled with unknown surprises.
Even though Audrey had already become a Beyonder of the 'Spectator' Sequence, she would never be able to see through him.