Chapter 43 – "Monster"
Following the bartender's instructions, Ning Lu slipped past the two guards at the billiard room, went through a hidden door inside, crossed several rooms, and entered a fairly large space.
It was about the size of a lecture hall. Stalls were set up on both sides, their tables crowded with bottles and jars. Because it was still early, some spots remained empty.
Most wares on the stalls glimmered faintly, indicating their worth, yet only one in a few dozen items actually shone with genuine Beyonder power.
Figures dressed like scholars of a bygone age moved among the booths, making Ning Lu feel he had stepped into the Middle Ages.
Glancing around, he noticed a pale young man curled in a corner of the hall, eyes mostly open—awake yet seeming to dream.
Everyone who'd read Volume One of Lord of the Mysteries knew the only person who fit that description: Admisol, the half-"Monster."
"A Fate-path Beyonder… I thought I wouldn't meet him yet," Ning Lu murmured. "But come to think of it, the Church of Storms probably keeps an eye on someone carrying half a Sequence 9 Beyonder characteristic."
As he spoke, Ning Lu walked toward Admisol and addressed the long-silent Celestial Venerable beside his ear: "By the way, Venerable, I have a question."
[What is it? Speak up; perhaps I'll be happy to answer.]
"Why can a Sequence 9 'Monster'—no, half a Monster—sense that someone carries something as terrifying as Sefirah Castle?" Ning Lu said casually.
"Logically, they shouldn't perceive such a high-level existence; it's far beyond their ability."
[So you already know something. Your question has two main reasons.]
The Celestial Venerable generously offered the simple explanation:
[First, if a truly high-level being wishes to hide, they won't detect anything unusual. Second, the Key of Light—like us—is a fragment split from the Original Creator.]
"I see." Ning Lu nodded, reining in the illusory aura of Sefirah Castle. "Then I'd better be careful not to accidentally burst his brain."
Chatting with the Venerable, Ning Lu had already reached the "Monster" Admisol and gently shook the young man's shoulder.
"Wake up."
While rousing Admisol, Ning Lu casually tossed several Thought Disruptions at nearby stall-holders.
Having almost fully digested the Cryptologist characteristic, he could fling Thought Disruptions faster than other Cryptologists—even faster than Amon of the same Sequence, almost on par with the Venerable.
Watching the faint lights flicker around him, Ning Lu resolved to finish digesting the Marauder characteristic today.
Of course, he preferred to steal from those who bore ill will toward others; wealthy folk who wouldn't miss a bit of coin came second.
People who depended on meager savings to survive—or to save a life—were off-limits.
He wasn't the Celestial Venerable; he couldn't do something so heartless.
"What… happened?"
Feeling the violent shaking, Admisol opened his eyes with a shudder and stared uncertainly at the stranger before him.
"I saw you lying here and thought something might be wrong."
"I saw you lying here and thought something might be wrong."
Not caring about his expensive suit, Ning Lu sat naturally beside Admisol. While maintaining Thought Disruption, he wove an Illusion to make onlookers overlook them both.
Thought Disruption plus Illusion wasn't as good as the Spectator path's psychological invisibility, but it was more than enough against ordinary folk or low-Sequence Beyonders nearby.
"…Ah." Admisol answered sluggishly, then muttered to himself, "I-I'm fine. I just… saw something, something terrifying again…"
His pupils, only just focused, began to scatter once more, as if he might sink back into madness—until a voice cold as ice sounded beside him:
"Something like this?"
In confusion Admisol looked up; the gentleman in the black suit twisted into a grotesque gray shadow.
At the sight, chaos swarmed his mind, stabbing pain shot through his eyes, and he nearly screamed.
The shadow vanished in an instant. Admisol touched his cheek, half expecting to find his eyes bleeding, terror claiming his heart.
He remembered the orphanage tales of eldritch monsters—and now one had appeared before him!
What would happen to him next?
But while he still felt his face, the Monster beside him spoke again:
"It hurts, doesn't it—being unable to control your Beyonder powers?"
"The Church has no potion for your path; it can't save you. But I can tell you how to master your power…"
"Otherwise, when you meet real danger or something bizarre, you'll die horribly within minutes."
As he listened, Admisol felt the gentleman beside him was strangely trustworthy, his words carrying an inexplicable charisma.
"H-how do you know my condition?"
"—I'll be here until tonight. Before I leave, if you want to escape your current state…"
Ning Lu didn't answer. He merely smiled, rose without hesitation, and walked away:
"Come find me."